cairo containeth in circuit eighteene miles, being so inhabited and replenished with people, that almost it cannot receiue more; and therefore they haue begunne to builde newe houses without the citie and about the walles. in cairo are people of all nations, as christians, armenians, abexins, turkes, moores, iewes, indians, medians, persians, arabians, and other sortes of people, which resort thither by reason of the great traffique. this citie is gouerned by a basha, which ministreth iustice, together with the cadie throughout the whole kingdome. also there are two and twentie saniackes, whose office is onely to ouersee and guarde the kingdome of euery good respect. there are also seuen thousand turkes in pay, to wit, three thousand ianizaries, and foure thousand horsemen: the rest of the people in cairo are for the most part marchants which goe and come, and the remnant are moores and other base people. about two miles from cairo there is another little cairo called the olde cairo, which containeth in circuit litle more then tenne miles, and the better halfe is not inhabited, but destroyed, whereof i neede not make any other mention. the new cairo answereth euery yeere in tribute to the grand signior, 600000 ducates of gold, neat and free of all charges growing on the same, which money is sent to constantinople, about the fine of september, by the way of aleppo, alwayes by lande, vnder the custodie of three hundred horsemen, and two hundred ianizaries footmen. the citie of cairo is adorned with many faire mesquitas rich, great, and of goodly and gorgeous building, among which are fiue principall. the first is called morastano, that is to say, the hospitall, which hath of rent fiue hundred ducats of golde euery day left vnto it by a king of damasco from auncient times; which king hauing conquered cairo, for the space of fiue daies continually put the people thereof to the sword, and in the end repenting him of so great manslaughter, caused this cruelty to cease, and to obtaine remission for this sinne committed, caused this hospitall to be built, enriching it as is abouesaid. the second famous monument of cairo is called neffisa, of one neffisa buried there, who was a dame of honour, and mooued by lust, yeelded her body voluntarily without rewarde, to any that required the same, and sayde she bestowed this almes for the loue of her prophet mahomet, and therefore at this day they adore her, reuerence her, and finally haue canonized her for a saint, affirming that shee did many miracles. the third is called zauia della innachari, who was one of the foure doctors in the law. the fourth is called imamsciafij, where is buried sciafij the second doctor of this law. of the other two doctors one is buried in damasco, the other in aleppo. the fift and last famous monument is giamalazar, that is, the house of lazarus: and this is the generall vniuersity of the whole kingdome of egypt. [sidenote: 1566.] in this place anno 1566 in the moneth of ianuary by misfortune of fire were burned nine thousand bookes of great value, as well for that they were written by hand, as also wrought so richly with golde, that they were worth 300 and 400 ducats a piece, one with another. and because it could neuer be knowen yet how this fire beganne, they haue and doe holde the same for a most sinister augurie, and an euident and manifest signe of their vtter ruine. the houses of cairo without are very faire, and within the greater number richly adorned with hangings wrought with golde. euery person which resorteth to this place for traffiques sake, is bound to pay halfe a duckat, except the gentlemen venetians, siotes, and rhaguseans, because they are tributarie to the grand signior. [sidenote: the description of cairo.] cairo is distant from the riuer nilus a mile and more, being situate on a plaine, saue that on the one side it hath a faire little hill, on the toppe, whereof stands a faire castle, but not strong, for that it may be battered on euery side, but very rich and large, compassed about with faire gardens into the which they conueigh water for their necessitie out of nilus, with certaine wheeles and other like engines. this magnificent citie is adorned with very fruitfull gardens both pleasant and commodious, with great plenty of pondes to water the same. notwithstanding the great pleasures of cairo are in the moneth of august, when by meanes of the great raine in ethiopia the riuer nilus ouerfloweth apd watereth all the countrey, and then they open the mouth of a great ditch, which extendeth into the riuer, and passeth through the midst of the citie, and entring there are innumerable barkes rowing too and fro laden with gallant girles and beautifull dames, which with singing, eating, drinking and feasting, take their solace. the women of this countrey are most beautifull, and goe in rich attire bedeked with gold, pretious stones, and iewels of great value, but chiefely perfumed with odours, and are very libidinous, and the men likewise, but foule and hard fauoured. the soile is very fertile and abundant, the flesh fat which they sell without bones, their candles they make of the marowe of cattell, because the moores eate the tallow. they vse also certaine litle furnaces made of purpose, vnder the which they make fire, putting into the furnace foure or fiue hundred egges, and the said fire they nourish by litle and litle, vntill the chickens be hatched, which after they be hatched, and become somewhat bigger, they sell them by measure in such sort, as we sell and measure nuts and chestnuts and such like. of certaine notable monuments without the citie of cairo. without the citie, sixe miles higher into the land, are to be seene neere vnto the riuer diuerse piramides, among which are three marueilous great, and very artificially wrought. out of one of these are dayly digged the bodies of auncient men, not rotten, but all whole, the cause whereof is the qualitie of the egyptian soile, which will not consume the flesh of man, but rather dry and harden the same, and so alwayes conserueth it. and these dead bodies are the mummie which the phisitians and apothecaries doe against our willes make vs to swallow. also by digging in these pyramides oftentimes are found certaine idoles or images of gold, siluer, and other mettall, but vnder the other piramides the bodies are not taken vp so whole as in this, but there are found legges and armes comparable to the limmes of giants. neare to these piramides appeareth out of the sand a great head of stone somewhat like marble, which is discouered so farre as the necke ioyneth with the shoulders, being all whole, sauing that it wanteth a little tippe of the nose. the necke of this head contayneth in circuit about sixe and thirty foot, so that it may be according to the necke considered, what greatnesse the head is of. the riuer nilus is a mile broad, wherein are very many great croccodiles from cairo vpward, but lower than cairo passeth no such creature: and this, they say, is by reason of an inchantment made long since which hindereth their passage for comming any lower then cairo. moreouer of these creatures there are sometimes found some of an incredible bignesse, that is to say, of fourtie foot about. the males haue their members like to a man, and the females like to a woman. these monsters oftentimes issue out of the water to feede, and finding any small beasts, as sheepe, lambes, goates, or other like, doe great harme. and whiles they are foorth of the water, if they happen at vnawares vpon any man, woman or childe, whom they can ouercome, they spare not their liues. in the yeere of our lord one thousand fiue hundred and sixtie it happened, that certaine poore christians trauelling by cairo towardes the countrey of prete ianni to rescue certaine slaues, were guided by a chaus, and iourneyed alongst the banke of the said riuer. the chaus remained lingering alone behinde to make his prayers (as their custome is) at a place called tana, whom being busie in his double deuotion one of these crocodiles ceazed by the shoulders, and drew him vnder water, so that he was neuer after seene. and for this cause they haue made in sundry places certaine hedges as bankes within the water, so that betwixt the hedge and banke of the riuer there remaineth so much water, that the women washing may take water without danger at their pleasure. this countrey is so fruitfull, that it causeth the women as other creatures to bring foorth one, two, and oft-times three at a birth. fiue miles southwarde of cairo is a place called matarea, where the balme is refined: and therefore some will say, that the trees which beare the balme growe in the said place, wherein they are deceiued: for the sayde trees growe two dayes iourney from mecca, in a place called bedrihone, which yeeldeth balme in great plenty, but saluage, wilde, and without vertue, and therefore the moores carying the same within litle chests from bedrihone to matarea, where the trees being replanted (be it by vertue of the soyle, or the water, aire, or any other thing whatsoeuer) it sufficeth that heare they beare the true balme and licour so much in these dayes esteemed of. in this place of matarea there are certaine little houses, with most goodly gardens, and a chappell of antiquity, where the very moores themselues affirme, that the mother of the blessed christ fleeing from the fury of wicked herode there saued her selfe with the childe, wherein that saying of the prophet was fulfilled, ex Ægypto vocaui fillium meum. the which chappell in the yeare of our lorde one thousand fiue hundred and foure, the magnifico daniel barbaro first consull of that place went to visite, and caused it to be renued and reedified, so that in these dayes there resort thither many christians, who oftentimes bring with them a priest, to say masse there. also about an harque-buz-shotte from matarea is a spire of great height like to that at rome, and more beautifull to beholde. neere vnto the olde cairo are yet twelue storehouses of great antiquitie, but now very much decayed, and these till late dayes serued to keepe corne for behoofe of the kingdome, concerning which many are of opinion, that the founder hereof was ioseph the sonne of iacob, for consideration of the seuen deare yeares. [sidenote: olde thebes.] also passing higher vp by the banke of nilus, there is to bee seene a fayre citie ouerflowed with water, the which at such time as nilus floweth lyeth vnder water, but when the water returneth to the marke, there plainely appeare princely palaces, and stately pillars, being of some called thebes, where they say that pharao was resident. moroeuer three dayes iourney higher vp are two great images of speckled marble, all whole, and somewhat sunke into the earth, being things wonderfull to consider of, for the nose of either is two spannes and a halfe long, and the space from one eare to the other conteineth tenne spannes, the bodies being correspondent to their heads, and grauen in excellent proportion, so that they are shapes of maruellous hugenesse, and these they call the wife, and the daughter of pharao