Mon Ap 17. [17 April 1911] Rain again. I went down before 7 to the
church finished my plan and photographed till 9.30 when the caravan
came up and I too was ready. A little more than an hour out of Nisibin
[Nusaybin (Nisibis)] at the village of Kodo, I saw some European
tents and riding down to them found 5 engineers, 2 French, 2 German,
1 English naturalized German, who are making the final survey for the
B. Rly which is to reach Nisibin in April 3 years hence. Stayed talking
to them for about 3/4 of an hour, then rode on and lunched for 20
minutes just before Kasr Serchikhen. The latter is in complete ruin but
one bastion (octagonal) stands to the W, of fine squared stones with
rubble inside. It looks like Byz. work. I saw from here Zoraba 5? E of
N, and Seritch a little to W of it under the hills, not marked in W.O. map.
They put Sarinje S of the road but I was told it was a village to the N,
NNW of the Kasr. We got into Dara at 3.10 and found the camp being
pitched just inside the walls above the bridge. Threatening weather
but I took a guide, one Yusef (Islam) and walked about the ruins for 2
hrs. The so called prison is barrel vaulted; so is the cistern above the
lower town, but the cistern near the rock cut tombs is roofed with
groined vaults on plain impost capitals. Saw a Korb capital built into a
house. All the work has an extraordinarily finished solid look though it
is plain. The mouldings apt to be splay faces but an interesting door
in a ruined building with a big torus between smaller fillets and
cavettos. There is a small Xian community - 10 houses of Cath.
Armenians. I called on the Kass and then came back to my tents in
streaming rain. Received a visit from an old Hajji who is one of the
Sheikh's men. The Sheikh is a Sayyid, Muhammed Sa'id and is well
spoken of. Amazing sunset with light on banks of eastern rain cloud
and great rainbow. All the world aflame with the light.