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AZOV—AZURITE.
captured by the Egyptians, after a 29 years’ blockade
and siege. In the wars between Alexander Balas
and Demetrius, A. was destroyed by fire. It was
afterwards rebuilt by the Romans, but never
regained its early importance. It has now a popu-
lation of about 300, and the sea is gradually receding
from its harbour.
A'ZOV, or A’SOW, a fortress and port-town in the
south of Russia, situated on the Don, about 20 miles
from its mouth. The sand and mud deposited by
the river have choked up the port, so that the trade
and shipping of the place have dwindled away, and
the 3000 inhabitants now depend mostly on fishing.
A. was anciently a Greek colony, under the name of
Tanais, and carried on extensive commerce with the
northern peoples. In number of inhabitants and in
wealth it often rivalled Panticapzum (now Kertch).
In the 13th c. it was taken possession of by the
Genoese, who called it Tana. They were driven
out of it by Timur (Tamerlane) in 1392. In 1471,
it was taken by the Turks, and since then has borne
the name of A., the Turks calling the town and the
neighbouring sea Asak. After an obstinate struggle,
at which Peter the Great, then beginning his career,
was present, it was captured by the Russians about
the end of the 17th c¢. It more than once fell again
under the dominion of the Turks, but at last, in
1774, remained in the undisturbed possession of
Russia. It was bombarded and destroyed by an
allied English and French squadron in 1855.
A’ZOV, SEA oF, named after the town, is a large
gulf of the Black Sea, formed by the peninsula of
Crimea, or rather an inland lake connected with the
Black Sea by the long narrow strait of Kaffa. The
Siwash or Putrid Sea is the western portion of the
Sea of A. cut off by the long narrow slip of low sandy
land called the Tongue of Arabat. The entrance to
the Putrid Sea is by the narrow strait of Genitschi ab
the north of the Tongue. The Putrid Sea is little bub
a succession of swamps. The ancient name of the Sea
of A. was Palus Meotis. It gets the name of Balik-
Denghis, or Fish-sea, from the Turks and Tatars,
from its abundance of fish. The water is almost
fresh. The whole sea is shallow, and occupies an
area of about 14,000 square miles. During the
Crimean war, an expedition, having on board 16,500
English, French, and Turks, was sent to this sea in
May 1855, which devastated the ports, and cut off
supplies intended for Sebastopol.
AZTEC CHI'LDREN. In the year 1853, there
were brought over to this country from America
two diminutive children, a boy and a girl, said to
be aged respectively 17 and 11, and who were
represented as descendants of the ancient Aztecs.
The height of each was under 3 feet. Their figure
was slender and not ill-proportioned ; that which was
chiefly remarkable being their features. While the
forehead and chin receded, the nose was so singu-
larly prominent as to suggest the idea of the face
of a bird. Yet, with dark lively eyes, an olive
complexion, and glossy long black hair, and a great
fund of good-nature, they were far from unpleasing.
They spoke no intelligible language, but understood
a few words of English, and seemed to have a taste
for music. Shewn to the public as curiosities, they
were usually exhibited on a large table, on which
they ran about amusing themselves. Their exhibitor
told a very incredible story of how they had been
obtained from the ancient city of Iximaga, where
they were reverenced as gods. A certain Sefior
38
Velasquez,in company with a Canadian and American,
penetrated into this ancient city of Central America,
where they made the acquaintance of one of the
guardian priests of these undersized deities, who
was so charmed with the accounts of the outer world,
that he resolved to steal the gods of his people, and
escape with the strangers. One after the other—
the Canadian, the American, and the priest—were
overtaken by disaster, and Velasquez alone was
left to tell the wondrous tale, with no attestation
but such as the children themselves furnished.
Professor Owen considered them mere dwarfs, and
other authorities held a similar opinion. Belonging
probably to some Indian tribe, they were doubtless
monstrosities; and this becoming apparent, interest
in them ceased.
AZ'TECS. The name of the dominant tribe in
Mexico at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards.
See MEX1C0, ANTIQUITIES OF.
AZU'NI, DomeNico ALBERTO, a distinguished
jurist, born at Sassari, in the island of Sardinia,
August 3, 1749. He early applied himself to the
study of law, devoting himself particularly to the
maritime relationships of nations. He became judge
of the Tribunal of Commerce at Nizza or Nice; and
in 1795, after that city had been taken by the
French, he published a work in which he endeavoured
to reduce maritime laws to fixed principles, and
which, being recast, was published at Paris in 1805
under the title of Drowt Maritime de UEurope.
The work was sufficiently anti-British in tone to
secure its author the favourable consideration of
Napoleon’s ministry, by whom he was appointed one
of the commissioners for compiling the new com-
mercial code, the maritime portion being allotted
to him. Genoa having been annexed to France,
A., in 1807, was appointed president of the Court of
Appeal there, where he remained until the fall of
Napoleon. Among other things, A. published an
EBssai sur U Histoire Géographique Politique et Morale
de la Sardaigne, and a Dictionary of Mercantile
Jurisprudence, and some controversial brochures.
For some time after he had withdrawn from Genoa,
he resided at Nice, and afterwards in his native
island, where he was appointed, by King Charles
Felix, judge of the consulate of Cagliari, and
librarian to the university of that city. He died
in January 1827.
A'ZURE, a French word technically used in
Heraldry to signify blue. In engraving arms, it is
always represented by horizontal lines.
A'ZURINE (Leuciscus ceeruleus), a fish of the same
genus with the roach, chub, &ec., and most nearly
resembling the Red-eye (q. v.) or Rudd (L. erythroph-
thalmus), from which, however, it is readily distin-
guished by the slate-blue colour of the back, and the
whiteness of the abdomen and fins. Itis a fresh-
water fish, and was first described by Yarrell from
specimens received from Lancashire, where it is
called the Blue Roach, but it is also an inhabitant
of some of the lakes of Switzerland.
A'ZURITE, a name which has been given to
the mineral more commonly called Lazulite (q. v.),
and to which, along with Lapis Lazuli (q. v.) or
Azure-stone, mineral turquoise (see TURQUOISE), &c.,
the generic name, Azure Spar,is sometimes given.
—The name A. is also given by mineralogists to
an ore of copper, generally known as Blue Copper
(see CoPPER), nearly allied to Malachite (q. v.),
and remarkable for its beautiful azure colour. %
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