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CHAP. XII.]
ABUNDANCE OF GOLD.
277
Reland seems to have been the first who advanced the opi
nion that the land of Havilah was identical with Colchis; 1 Haviiah.
but Colchis is, in reality, only a part of Havilah, which was
watered by a river of the first order, and included the village
ot Haivali, with the district of Chalvata, in Lesser Armenia;
so that, in fact, it corresponded nearly with the pashaliks of
Sivas and Tarabuzun.
The abundance of the precious metals in ancient times, in Gold in
Colchis, is indicated by the fable of the golden fleece, and in Colchls *
the adjoining territories of Media and Persia, 2 by the account
of the golden throne 3 which was presented to the king of
Mazanderan after his battle with Kai-Kous, and also by a
passage in Herodotus, 4 where it is said that 1000 men had
golden pomegranates suspended from their spears, and that
9000 Persians and Medes had the like ornaments in silver.
These circumstances show at least that gold and silver were Gold in Asia
to be obtained in those parts ; and to this day they are found MlIlor '
occasionally both in Armenia and Asia Minor. Herodotus
also states, 5 that the lonians were the richest people in Asia,
possessing abundance of gold, silver, copper, and stuffs of
various colours. He further mentions, that Xerxes, when
passing through the central parts of Asia Minor, received
from Pythius, the son of Atys, a present of a plane tree and a
vine, both of wrought gold, besides a sum of money equivalent
to about three and a half millions sterling; an enormous
amount, even without making any allowance for the differ
ence in the value of money in ancient and modern times.
The precious metals were drawn from the earth by means of
forced labour, which, it may be presumed, from the well-
1 Colchis and Havilah are evidently the same name, the monosyllable is
heing merely the termination. It would be written in Hebrew Cwlch, which,
being formed from Chwy, is, when the vowels are added, exactly the same,
except that, in Havilah, there is the letter i, which is wanting in the other
word.—Reland, de Situ Parad.
2 The mountain Orontes is celebrated all over the East for its natural pro
ductions ; and many of the natives assured us that it contains several veins of
gold as well as silver.—MS. Mr. A. A. Staunton, 183(5.
3 Malcolm's History of Persia.
4 Lib. VIL c. xli. 8 Lib. V. c. xlix.