8

ACCUMULATION

CHAP. I.

house; also the' whole altar that was by theoracle he overlaid with gold V’

The quantity of gold which Solomon collectedin a single year is stated to be (1 Kings, c. x.v. 14.) six hundred three score and six talents,or, perhaps, about three hundred thousandpounds in value in our present money. Thatwith which he covered the sanctum sanctorum,at the same rate, would amount to about twohundred and thirty thousand pounds. We learnfrom the book of Kings 2 , that the king broughtby his ships from Ophir four hundred and twentytalents of gold, or about one hundred andninety thousand eight hundred pounds. Thebook of Chronicles 3 represents the amountgreater, as four hundred and fifty talents, or twohundred and three thousand pounds, a differ-ence of no great moment, and one which, per-haps, a collation of manuscripts might recon-cile.

Without attempting to calculate the quantityof metallic treasure heaped up by Solomon , wemay best describe it in the language of his day.We read that “ his throne was of ivory overlaidwith the best gold—that all the drinking vesselswere of gold—that all the vessels of the houseof the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold;

1 1 Kings, c. iii. v. 20—22. 4 1 Kings, c. x. v. 28.

3 2 Chronicles, c. viii. v. 18.