Dovesʹ Dung

In 2 Kings vi. 25, during the siege of Samaria, “there was a great famine … . and … . an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung [hariyonim] for five pieces of silver.” This “hariyonim” was a plant called chickpea, a common article of food still sold to pilgrims on their way to Mecca.

“In Damascus there are many tradesmen whose sole occupation is preparing [hariyonim] for sale. They have always been esteemed as provision meet for a lengthy journey, and are a necessary part of the outfit of all who travel in the remote parts of Syria and Asia Minor.”—Bible Flowers, p. 71.

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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.