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 THE 
 
 GEOGRAPHICAL SYSTEM 
 
 OF 
 
 HERODOTUS 
 
 EXAMINED AND EXPLAINED, 
 
 BY A 
 
 COMPARISON WITH THOSE OF OTHER ANCIENT AUTHORS, 
 
 AND 
 
 WITH MODERN GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 IN THE COURSE OF THE 'WORK ARE INTRODUCED 
 
 DISSERTATIONS 
 
 ON THE ITINERARY STADE OF THE GREEKS, THE EXPEDITION OF DARIUS 
 
 HYSTASPES TO SCYTHIA, THE POSITION AND REMAINS OF ANCIENT 
 
 BABYLON, THE ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, AND CANALS OF SUEZ ; 
 
 THE OASIS AND TEMPLE OF JUPITER AMMON, THE ANCIENT 
 
 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, AND OTHER SUBJECTS 
 
 OF HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 int. WHOLE EXPLAINED BY ELEVEN MAPS ADAPTED TO THE DIFFERENT SUBJECTS ; ANO 
 ACCOMPANIED WITH A COMPLETE INDEX. 
 
 By JAMES RENNELL, Esq. 
 
 LATE MAJOR OF ENGINEERS, AND SURVEYOR-GENERAL IN BENGAL; FELLOW OF THE 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETIES OF LONDON AND EDINBURGH J MEMBER OF THE BOYAL INSTITUTE 
 
 OF PARIS, AND OF THE IMPERIAL ACADEMY' OF ST. PETERSBURGH ; 
 
 AND FELLOW OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF GOTTINGEN. 
 
 SECOND EDITION, REVISED. 
 
 VOLUME II. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED FOR C. J. G. & F. RIVINGTON, 
 
 ST. PAUL'S CIIURCH-YARD, AND WATERLOO-PLACE, PALI.-MAI.L, 
 
 MUCCCXXX.
 
 Or ^7 
 V, ^ 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 TO 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 SECTION XVI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Of Africa at large, according to Herodotus 1 
 
 SECTION XVII. 
 
 Concerning the Isthmus of Suez, and the ancient Canals 
 that united the two Seas 55 
 
 SECTION XVIII. 
 
 General Observations on the Floods and Alluvions of Rivers, 
 &:c. &c. applied more particularly to the Nile: with an 
 Inquiry concerning the Site of Memphis <JS 
 
 SECTION XIX. 
 
 Concerning the Number, Order, and Positions of the 
 Branches of the Nile, ancient and modern 147 
 
 SECTION XX. 
 
 Concerning the Oases of Egypt and Libya 182 
 
 SECTION XXI. 
 
 The Subject continued — Oasis and Temple of Jupiter 
 Ammon 222 
 
 624970
 
 IV CONTENTS. 
 
 SECTION XXII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Of the Tribes wlio inhabited the Coast and Country of 
 Libya, between Egypt and Carthage 261 
 
 SECTION XXIII. 
 
 Concerning the two Syrtes ; the Lake Tritonis ; the Temple 
 and Mgis of Minerva ; and the Antiquity of the Manu- 
 facture of dyed Skins in Africa . . 314 
 
 SECTION XXIV. 
 
 Concerning the Circumnavigation of Africa, by the Ships of 
 Pharaoh Necho, King of Egypt 348 
 
 SECTION XXV. 
 
 The Subject continued 37 
 
 SECTION XXVI. 
 
 An Examination of the Account of the Voyage of Hanno, 
 along the Western Coast of Africa 409 
 
 Addenda 44,7 
 
 Index 455
 
 LIST OF MAPS 
 
 TO 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 No. VII. Lower Egypt, ancient and modern ; shewing 
 the changes in the courses of the branches of 
 the Nile, and the difference between the an- 
 cient and the modern Deltas. Also the lines 
 of the canals that joined the Nile to the Red 
 sea ; the vestiges of the canal near Suez ; and 
 two sketches, explanatory of the bars of rivers. 
 This map is explanatory of the XVII, XVIII, 
 and XlXth Sections 55 
 
 VIII. Map to explain the Position of Memphis, and 
 the change of place of the head of the Delta 
 of the Nile : explanatory of the latter part of 
 Section XVIII. . . . , 115 
 
 IX. The coast and country of Libya, from Egypt to 
 Carthage ; the country of Egypt generally ; 
 the Oases of Egypt and Libya ; and the 
 middle and eastern basons of the Mediter- 
 ranean sea. This contains also a Map of 
 Positions, shewing the data for the posi- 
 tion of Jupiter Ammon, &c. : and the whole 
 is explanatory of XX, XXI, XXII, and 
 XXlIld Sections 18^
 
 VI LIST OF MAPS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 X. Map to explain the Circumnavigation of Africa, 
 by the Egyptians, under Pharaoh Necho ; 
 shewing also the streams of current in the 
 Atlantic, and the general courses of the trade 
 winds. Explanatory of the XXIV and XXVth 
 Sections 348 
 
 XI. Map to explain the Voyage of Hanno, the Car- 
 thaginian, from Carthage to the Western 
 Guinea : with an extension of the coast of 
 Africa to Benin, and the Island of Fernando 
 Po. Also Ptolemy's geography of Western 
 Africa. This is explanatory of Section 
 XXVI; and also of a part of Section XVI, 
 on Africa 409
 
 THE 
 
 GEOGRAPHY OF HERODOTUS 
 EXAMINED, &c. 
 
 SECTION XVI. 
 
 OF AFRICA AT LARCxE, ACCORDING TO HERODOTUS. 
 
 Herodotus knew a greater extent of Space in Afiiica than in the 
 other Continents ; hut only the North-east 2^firt of it, in detail 
 — In doubt how to class Egypt — Had no idea that Africa ex- 
 tended so far to the West and South as it really docs — Lower 
 Egypt and the Promontory of Soloeis, taken by him for the 
 Eastern and Western Extremities of Africa — Conjectures re- 
 specting this Promontory, which was the Limit of the ancient 
 Navigations — Various Notices, shewing that the Ancients were 
 not absolutely agreed respecting its position ; but that the 
 Soloeis of Herodotus was Cape Cantin — M. Bougainville mis- 
 taken in respiect of it — Herodotus, as well as Ptolemy and the 
 Arabian geograj)hers, supjwsed the coast of Africa to trend to 
 the South from this Cape — Our Author knew the general dis- 
 tribution of North Africa, as far as the Sahara and the River 
 Niger — The Geography of Egypt already illustrated by 
 M. D'Anville — Inhabitants of Africa divided by Herodotus into 
 two races: iAe Libyans and Ethiopians — common Boundary of 
 their Possessio7is — Cajye Verd, the Arsinarium Promontory of 
 Ptolemy, denominated from the Assanhagi, or Sanhagae Tribe 
 — The Abyssinians, the Macroh'mn Ethiopians of Herodotus — 
 Ethiopia, with him, included all the remote 2^(^'>'i of Africa — 
 VOL. II. B
 
 2 AFRICA. 
 
 The Niger explored by the Nasamones, and taken by Herodo- 
 tus, erroneously, for the remote part of the Nile ; as having an 
 easterly course — The Sources of the Nile jildc^d in too remote 
 a situation by Herodotus, and the Ancients in general — The 
 most distant sources of this River still imknown — not in Abys- 
 sinia, but more to the south-west — Proofs adduced from Mail- 
 let, and from ^xViCe himself — 7?(?jJorf o/" Ledyard — The Nile 
 doubtless formed of two distinct Branches, the one from Abys- 
 sinia, the other from the South of Darfoor — Reports of 
 Ptolemy, Edrisi, and Abulfeda — Error of the two latter, in 
 deriving the Niger from the Nile — Extent of the African 
 Continent, southward, according to the ideas of Herodotus, who 
 knew that it was surrounded by the Ocean. 
 
 The third and last division of our subject is Africa, 
 or Libya. Concerning this continent, it may be said, 
 that our Author was aware that it contained a 
 greater extent of space than either of the others ; 
 although his knowledge of it, in cleiail, was more 
 confined. Here it may be remarked, that if his 
 native city, Halicarnassus, be taken for a centre, it 
 will be found, that a radius of 1000 British miles 
 will circumscribe the whole extent of his geographi- 
 cal knowledge in detail. It may also be remarked, 
 that the circle so described, passes through, or near 
 to, the several points of Babylon, Syene, Carthage, 
 Corsica, the upper part of the Danube, the forks of 
 the Borysthenes, and the mouth of the Tanais. So 
 that it included Greece, Italy, Thrace, Scythia, Col- 
 chis, Asia Minor, Assyria, Palestine, Egypt, Libya, 
 and the country of the Garamantes. It will be 
 found, almost invariably, that beyond this range our 
 Author grows more and more obscure and uncertain, 
 as we advance in any line of direction whatsoever :
 
 AFRICA. 3 
 
 or, if any thing, he grows more obscure on tlie Euro- 
 pean, than on the Asiatic, side. But of the absolute 
 measure of extent known to him, by report, Africa 
 contained a greater proportion than either of the 
 other two continents : or it may possibly be, that the 
 space known, in that mode, in Africa, may have 
 equalled that known *in Asia and Europe collectively. 
 These being the circumstances of the case, it will 
 appear that the parts of Africa best known to our 
 Author, were those along the middle and eastern 
 basons of the INIediterranean sea ; including Egypt 
 and Libya, with Fezzan, and other Oases, in the 
 Libyan desert. Beyond these regions, his descrip- 
 tions grow less circumstantial ; as is the case of those 
 of the upper part of the course of the Nile ; the 
 course of the Niger ; the country about mount 
 Atlas ; and the position of the promontory oi Soloeis. 
 And finally, he carries us into the regions of dark- 
 ness, of fable, and even of absurdity, in his descrip- 
 tions of the Macrobian Ethiopians, and the people of 
 Nigritia ; of the fountains of the Nile, and the opera- 
 tion of the sun on its waters, &c. In fact, the same 
 cause that allotted a place in his history to the de- 
 scription of the arits that were said to dig up gold in 
 India ; and to that of the mode of collecting cinna- 
 mon in Arabia ; namely, the difficulty of getting at 
 the truth, gave occasion also to the description of the 
 table of the sun in Ethiopia '. 
 
 ' For the description of the ants, see Thalia, 102. See also 
 Arrian's description of India. 
 
 The mode of collecting cinnamon in Arabia, will be found in 
 
 P. 2
 
 AFRICA. 
 
 Although the term Libya is occasionally used by 
 Herodotus, as synonymous to Africa (and particu- 
 larly in Melpom. 41, 42, and 45), yet it is almost 
 exclusively applied to that part bordering on the 
 Mediterranean sea, between the Greater Syrtis and 
 Egypt ; and in which, Cyrenaica, the first Grecian 
 establishment on that continent, is included. So 
 that Africa, and not Libya, is the term generally 
 employed by Herodotus ". 
 
 It has been said, in page 218, Vol. I. that some doubt 
 arises whether Egypt, in the contemplation of Hero- 
 dotus, was a part al Africa. For he seems either to 
 have expressed different opinions in different places ; 
 or to have expressed himself ambiguously : or pos- 
 sibly we may not have comprehended him rightly. 
 
 In Euterpe, 17, he appears to say, that Egypt did 
 not belong either to Asia or Africa, but was classed 
 
 the same book, c. Ill; and is so very extraordinary, as to bear 
 some resemblance to one of the adventures of Sindhad, in the 
 Arabian Nights' Entertainment. 
 
 ^ The desert which separates Egypt from Fezzan, contains a 
 wandering tribe, named Leheta, or Levata. This desert is to be 
 regarded as the 2^ro2Jer desert of Libya : and it may be a ques- 
 tion whether the tribe of Lebeta, akhough norv found in the in- 
 terior of the country, may not have originally inhabited the sea- 
 coast ; and that the Greeks denominated Africa from them. 
 This was the part of Africa the nearest to Greece, and the first 
 colonized by the Greeks : and it is a known fact, that the Adyr- 
 macMdce and Nasamones, who, in the days of Herodotus, in- 
 habited the coasts, were, at a succeeding period, found in the 
 inland parts, about Ammon and Angela. Mr. Park saw a wan- 
 dering tribe named Libey ; and whom, he compares, in respect 
 to their habits and modes of life, to gipsies.
 
 AFRICA. 5 
 
 distinctly ; or, if we may so say, it was, in respect of 
 geographical arrangement, extra-continental : in 
 effect, he thought that " the land of Egypt alone 
 constituted the natural and proper limits, or boun- 
 dary, of Asia and Africa.'' 
 
 He says* also, Eut. 15, that the Greeks considered 
 the Delta alone as Egypt : but in this point Hero- 
 dotus differed from them, and we think with reason, 
 because the ancient Egyptians, as he observes, must 
 have had a country, before the present Delta was 
 formed ; and probably descended from thence, to a 
 lower situation, as it encroached on the sea, or rather 
 as it became habitable. 
 
 He also informs us, that Asia terminates at Egypt, 
 Melp. 39 ; and that Libya begins where Egypt 
 ends, 41. And again, Euterpe, 65, Egypt is said 
 to be near to Africa. These notices seem to be 
 clearly in favour of that arrangement, which makes 
 Egypt distinct from Africa or Libya. 
 
 But, on the other hand, what he says in Melp. 41 
 and 42, gives a very different idea. These are his 
 words ; " except in that part which is contiguous 
 to Asia, the whole of Africa is surrounded by the 
 sea :" and he goes on to say, that it was proved, by 
 the ships of Necho having sailed down the Red sea, 
 (Arabian gulf) and round the continent, to the Me- 
 diterranean and Egypt. And besides this, he says in 
 the foregoing chapter, after describing a narrow tract 
 of 1000 stadia, which can only be intended for the 
 Isthmus of Suez, " here the country expands, and 
 takes the name of Libya." The reader will deter- 
 mine for himself ; but it appears, on the whole, as if
 
 6 AFRICA. 
 
 Herodotus had either no decided opinion of his own 
 on the subject; or that, in one of the places, he has 
 merely expressed the opinions of others, without ex- 
 plaining- his own ^ 
 
 Although Herodotus knew that Africa was sur- 
 rounded by the sea ; and was likewise apprized of 
 the length of time that had been employed in cir- 
 cumnavigating it, yet it appears that he did not sup- 
 pose that it had so great an extent to the south, or 
 that it projected so far to the west, beyond the co- 
 lumns of Hercules, as it really does. For he says, 
 Melp. 42, that " Europe in length much exceeds 
 the other two continents ; but is J'ar inferioi' in 
 breadth." Thus, then, notwithstanding that he 
 extended the dimensions of Europe to an unusual 
 length, by including the Issedones in it ^ yet even 
 that extent will not reach beyond the 20th degree of 
 south latitude, in Africa. 
 
 The breadth of Africa he must have reckoned 
 from east to west ; and which is undoubtedly greater 
 by far than the breadth of Europe : and had he con- 
 fined Europe within its proper limits, the breadth of 
 Africa was even greater than the length of Europe. 
 But he appears to have thought that the greatest 
 breadth of Africa was comprized between Lower 
 Egypt and a Promontory of Mauretania, on the 
 coast of the Atlantic, named Soloeis. For Hero- 
 dotus, in common with Eratosthenes, Strabo, and 
 
 ^ Polybius (lib. iii. c. 4.) supposed that Africa was contained 
 between the Pillars of Hercules and the Nile. 
 
 ■* He supposed the Issedones to lie no farther to the east than 
 the meridian of the river Jaxartes. See Vol. I. p. 174.
 
 AFRICA. 7 
 
 Ptolemy, amongst the ancients ; and witli Abulfeda, 
 amongst the moderns, supposed this continent to 
 project much less to the west than it really does : 
 and they appear, moreover, to have placed the 
 western extremity of Africa, at no great distance to 
 the south of the straits of GiJyraltar \ And this 
 opinion was no doubt, formed long before the time 
 of Herodotus. 
 
 Our Author seems to have known the general 
 extent of Africa in this direction, as will be shewn in 
 the sequel ; but as the investigation is so closely 
 connected with the particular geography of the coast 
 of the Mediterranean, we shall reserve it until that 
 subject is discussed in a subsequent chapter : and, in 
 the mean time, the reader may regard the opinion of 
 Herodotus on this subject, as coinciding nearly with 
 those of Eratosthenes and Strabo, and which differ, 
 in no very great degree, from the actual geography. 
 The Pillars of Hercules, the Promontory of So- 
 loeis, mount Atlas, and the Atlantic ocean, were ob- 
 jects familiar, at least in thought, to our Author : 
 and it appears from Scylax, who wrote before Hero- 
 dotus, that the extent of the Mediterranean was well 
 known to the Carthaginians, and no doubt to the 
 Greeks also ; since Herodotus himself calls it, " the 
 sea frequented by the Greeks." 
 
 As he places the western extremity of the Persian, 
 or Erythra3an sea (for he certainly knew not that 
 
 ' Ptolemy even describes the coast to trend to the eastward of 
 south.
 
 8 AFRICA. 
 
 there was a Persian gulf*^), too far to the west, in re- 
 spect of the Mediterranean sea, he must, of course, 
 have believed that the Red sea, or Arabian gulf, had 
 a northerly and southerly, instead of a NW and SE 
 direction ; otherwise there would not have remained 
 a sufficient space for Arabia : and this would neces- 
 sarily have the effect oi flattening the eastern side 
 of Africa. 
 
 It will appear clearly, from circumstances, that he 
 regarded the Promontory of Soloeis, as the western 
 extremity of Africa : but this idea did not go either 
 to Cape Blanco, or Cape Verde, because he was 
 speaking of the inhabited tract near the Mediter- 
 ranean, and not of the central parts of Africa : nor 
 had he, of course, any such idea of the general out- 
 line of that continent, as to be able to ascertain 
 which part of it projected farthest to the west ^ 
 
 The position of the promontory of Soloeis, there- 
 fore, becomes of great importance towards the mea- 
 sure of regulating our ideas of the ancient system of 
 African geography ; and of adjusting the limits of 
 ancient navigations, and ought, of course, to be fixed 
 at the outset of the present inquiry, although it will 
 lead to details that may appear tedious. M. D'An- 
 ville has not spoken clearly to this point, but it may 
 
 « See Vol. I. pages 2G0 and 261 of this work. 
 
 '' It happens that there are two capes of the name of Blanco, on 
 the western coast of Africa ; one in Morocco, the other on the 
 coast of the Sahara, nearest to Cape Verde. They are more 
 than 900 miles asunder. It is the Cape Blanco of Morocco 
 alone that has any reference to the Promontory of Soloeis.
 
 AFRICA. 9 
 
 be concluded that he took Cape Cantin for So- 
 LOEis : in which opinion we shall be found to coin- 
 cide. The modern opinions have been divided be- 
 tween that and Cape Bojador. 
 
 Herodotus, in Euterpe, 32, says, " all that part 
 of Libya towards the Northern sea (Mediterranean) 
 from Egypt to the Promontory of Soloeis ^ which 
 terminates the 3d division of the earth, is inhabited 
 by the different nations of the Libyans ; that district 
 alone excepted, in possession of the Greeks and 
 Phoenicians. The remoter parts of Libya, beyond 
 the sea coast, and the people who inhabit its bor- 
 ders, are infested by various beasts of prey. — The 
 country yet more distant, is a parched and im- 
 measurable deserty Here he clearly distinguishes 
 three belts or regions, parallel to the Mediterranean, 
 the northernmost of which, we must, of course, con- 
 ceive to have been that which extended along the 
 sea coast, and was bounded on the south by mount 
 Atlas, and other ridges : the middle one, that called 
 the country of Dates ; and the third, the great de- 
 sert, or Sahara, itself ^ In consequence, the northern- 
 most, or that between mount Atlas and the Medi- 
 terranean, should contain the Promontory of Soloeis; 
 supposed in this passage, as well as in the one that 
 describes the voyage of Sataspes, in Melpom. 43, to 
 be the most western land of Africa : for, in the first 
 
 * Soloeis, in Euterpe, 3.2 : Sijloes, in Melp. 43. In Hanno's 
 Periplus it is Soloeis. Pliny calls it Soils. 
 
 " Abulfeda's division is differently arranged : he goes from 
 west to cast, but making also three divisions.
 
 10 AFRICA. 
 
 instance, it forms one extremity of the habitable tract, 
 of which Egypt is the opposite extremity : and in 
 the second, it was the point from whence the voyager 
 first hegan to pursue a southerly course, in his way 
 from the straits. 
 
 Much the same idea of the relative position of 
 Soloeis, arises on a perusal of the journal of the voy- 
 age of Hanno ; although this document does not 
 afford a regular chain of distance, or any positive 
 notices of position, till we arrive at Cerne (Arguin). 
 It therefore becomes necessary to examine at large 
 this part of the journal. 
 
 The substance of it is, " that having founded the 
 first city. Thy mutter ium ^ at two days' sail beyond 
 the Columns (of Hercules), and proceeding thence 
 towards the west, they came to Soloeis, a Promon- 
 tory of Libya, thickly covered with trees ^ where 
 they erected a temple to Neptune — and again pro- 
 ceeded half a day towards the east, to a lake near 
 the sea, full of reeds ; and where elephants and 
 other wild animals were feeding \" 
 
 ^ The Thamuslda of the Anton'ine Itinerary, p. 7, may be 
 taken for this place, it being 126 MP. from Tingi, (Tangier) 
 say 94 G. miles direct. Hence it falls near the river of Ma?Horrt. 
 The distance 7nay have been sailed in two days, on a hnown part 
 of the coast ; as this, no doubt, was. 
 
 ^ We have examined the views of land in the new Spanish 
 Charts of Don Tofiiio, 1788, but do not find that either of the 
 Capes Blanco, Cant'm, or Bojador, are woody. But this is 
 nothing to the purpose ; for Hanno, at that time probably, would 
 have found the Hebrides o^ Scotland covered with wood. 
 
 ' That herds of elephants were in this quarter we learn from
 
 AFRICA. 1 1 
 
 " That having passed the lake, two days' sail, they 
 founded other cities near the sea. Jive in number ^ 
 the third of which, in the order of their route, was 
 Acra. Thence they came to the great river Lixus, 
 which flows from Libya, (or rather from mountains 
 situated amongst the Ethiopians,) and has on its 
 banks, the Lixifce, a shepherd tribe, with whom the 
 Carthaginians continued some time on friendly 
 terms : and who appear to have been old acquaint- 
 ances. Beyond this tribe dwelt the inhospitable 
 Ethiopians. Leaving their friends, after obtaining 
 interpreters from them, they coasted a desert shore, 
 three days, and arrived at the island of Cerne ; 
 doubtless Arguin. The first tivo days they sailed 
 southef'li/ ; the third, easterly^ See the Map of 
 the Voyage of Hanno, sect. XXVL 
 
 It is certain that this chain of distance, from its 
 being broken and imperfect, proves nothing, when 
 taken altogether ; but the parts of it, taken se- 
 liarately, and with a reference to otlier notices, 
 prove, or at least induce a belief of, a great deal. 
 The distance from the strait of Gibraltar to Cerne, 
 may be about 1230 G. miles along the coast ; 
 amounting to about 35 days' sailing, according to 
 the rate arising on that part of Hanno's route be- 
 tween Cerne and the river Gambia : that is, 31 to 
 
 Pliny, (lib. v. c. 1.) who says, that they were very troublesome at 
 the river Sala ( Salee). 
 
 Hula appears to have been a place of note anciently, as well as 
 at present. It is the Salaconla of the Itinerary. 
 
 * Caricon-tlcos, Gytte, Acta, MciiUa, and Arumbys.
 
 12 AFRICA. 
 
 35 miles per day, for 14 days : and which accords 
 generally with the rate of sailing of ancient ships, 
 deduced from a great number of examples \ Only 
 6^ days, however, are sjyecified: but it plainly ap- 
 pears, that one space is implied between Thymiate- 
 rium and Soloeis ; and another, in which the five 
 cities were founded, between the latter and the 
 southeDimost river of Lixus : and these cities can- 
 not be supposed to have been very near to each 
 other. In course, a great many days' sail are 
 omitted, though evidently implied. 
 
 It may be remarked, that the position of the coast 
 is such as not to admit of a ship's sailing eastward 
 for half a day, after passing Cape Bojador : but such 
 a position of the coast is really found between Cape 
 de Geer and Santa Cruz, round the southern termi- 
 nation of mount Atlas : and therefore, following, in 
 our idea, the obvious meaning of the journal, one 
 can only take for the Soloeis of Hanno, some one 
 part of the coast between Cape Blanco and Santa 
 Cruz ; that is, between the parallels of 30"^ and 
 
 ^ It is known that a constant current runs to the soutliward 
 along this coast ; at least within the hmits of the settled northerly 
 wind. This, of course, must have lessened the number of days' 
 sail, and explains the cause of the error, in the calculation made 
 by Hanno, where he supposes Cerne to be no farther to the 
 south of the strait than Carthage was to the east of it. It also 
 furnishes a strong presumptive proof in favour of the veracity of 
 the journalist. 
 
 The ancient rate of sailing will be given in the sequel : at the 
 same time we shall apprize the reader that the result is about 35 
 G. miles, or about 40 British,
 
 AFRICA. 13 
 
 S'l*^^ : and conclude^ of course, that the Jive cities 
 beyond it were situated along the coast of the pro- 
 vince of Sus ", and in the bay southward of Cape 
 Niui : but certainly sJiort of Cape Bojador. 
 
 Scylax of Caryandra says, that the distance is 12 
 days' sail from the straits to Cerne : that is, two to 
 the Promontory of Hennceus, three thence to So- 
 loeis ; and seven more to Cerne. This requires a 
 rate of 101 miles per day : and is nearer to that, 
 which might be expected from a modern ship, 
 than an ancient one. But his Periplus within the 
 straits, gives a rate which is generally not very dif- 
 ferent from that of other ships of those days ; or 
 about 36 G. miles ^ It must be allowed that the 
 many examples adduced, ought to have more 
 weight, than those alone, between Carthage and 
 Cerne, even if the general rate of Scylax did not 
 accord with the rest. Besides, the Periplus of 
 Hanno above quoted, furnishes the strongest pre- 
 sumptive proof that the rate of Scylax did not ex- 
 
 •^ The southern province of the kingdom of Morocco. 
 
 ' For instance, he says it is 75^ days' saiHng from Canopus to 
 the Columns, tracing the sinuosities of the coast ; we conclude, 
 according to the usual mode of coasting. This gives a rate of 
 32 G. miles per day, and Hanno's rate between Cerne and the 
 Gambia is 35, on 14 days' sailing. At the same tiine it must 
 not be omitted, that Scylax says, that the voyage between Car- 
 tilage and the Columns may be performed in seven days and 
 nights, with a favourable wind. This requires a rate of 107 for 
 each day and night, and is not very different from the 12 be- 
 tween the Columns and Cerne. But the same authority allows 
 generally 2>Q only, within the straits, in a variety of instances. 
 How are these accounts to be reconciled ?
 
 14 AFRICA. 
 
 ceed, but rather fell short, of that Periplus. For, 
 this latter places Thymiaterium at two days' sail 
 from the straits ; and Scylax allows the same dis- 
 tance between the straits, and the HermcBum Pro- 
 montory, which place he describes to be short of 
 Thymiaterium ; consequently, by his account, this 
 place must be more than two days' sail from the 
 straits. He then reckons three more days to the 
 Promontory of Soloeis ; which distance, according 
 to the same proportion, can only reach to Cape 
 Blanco ; but nevertheless, considering the vague 
 nature of his description. Cape Cantin may have 
 been intended. As to the remainder of his chain of 
 distance, it is not worth regarding ; as he reckons 
 only seven days between Soloeis and Arguin. 
 
 Pliny says, (lib. v. c. 1.) that the river Lixus, 
 (that is, the northernmost of the two, of that name, 
 and the Lucos of the present time ; a position well 
 known ;) is 57 MP ^. from T'mgi, (or Tangier ;) 
 and Rutuhis 313 MP. farther : and he adds, that 
 still farther on, is the Promontory of Soils. The 
 313 will reach to SafFy ; allowance being made 
 either for the inflexions of the land route, or those 
 of a coasting voyage. Hence Saffij may be taken 
 for Rutuhis, or rather Rusihis Portus, as we jfind it 
 in Ptolemy, who places it within 10 minutes of the 
 true latitude of SafFy. The Promontory of Soils 
 
 * In two numbers, 25, and S2. The Itinerary has 54 MP. 
 between Tingi and Lix, which differs Uttle from Pliny, and is 
 justified by the distance of the Lucos R. from Tangier. 
 
 Pliny says that another authority gave 112, which must be a 
 mistake.
 
 AFRICA. 15 
 
 tlien, is by Pliny's account, to be looked for beyond 
 Rusibis, or SafFy ; althoug-h it is not said hoiv far : 
 but Pliny could not at any rate have had Cape 
 Bojador, which is about 6 degrees to the south of 
 Saffy, in contemplation. And as Ptolemy has a 
 promontory named Solis Mons, at about 70 miles 
 to the southward of Rusibis, we may suspect that it 
 was intended for the same place as the Solis of 
 Pliny ; and possibly too, for the Soloeis of Hero- 
 dotus, of Hanno, and of Scylax, though somewhat 
 misplaced. Nor could Ptolemy have had Bojador in 
 contemplation, because his Solis Mons is placed four 
 parts in five nearer to Atlas Minor, than to Atlas 
 Major ; or in other words, to Cape Cantin, than to 
 Cape Bojador. 
 
 If we may regard the Solis Mons of Ptolemy, as 
 the Promontory of Soloeis itself, this may be 
 reckoned a positive notice respecting its situation ; 
 and indeed, the only one that occurs ; although the 
 presumptive evidence of Hanno and Scylax is very 
 strong. But there is some difficulty in supposing 
 that the promontory intended by the above writers, 
 formed any part of the compm^ativehj straight 
 coast, which is found between the Capes of Cantin 
 and Geer, when the characteristic distinction of 
 Soloeis seems to have been prominency, beyond the 
 line of the coast to the northward of it. 
 
 There are few parts of Ptolemy's geography, in 
 which the latitudes agree so well with the modern 
 observations, as in the part between the Strait of 
 Gibraltar and C. Bojador. In effect, there is a 
 remarkable coincidence in many points, as will ap- 
 
 13
 
 16 
 
 AFRICA. 
 
 pear by the subjoined table**; so that this part of 
 the coast must have been much frequented ; but, it 
 
 ** Comparison of certain parallels, in Ptolemy, with the 
 modern observations, and charts. 
 
 Ptolemy, Africa Tab. 1. 
 
 Strait of Hercules 
 Sala River 
 Macanitae 
 
 Atlas Minor . 
 
 Rusibisis P'"^ 
 Diur R. * . . 
 
 Solis Mons 
 Hercules Prom. 
 Tamusiga . 
 Usadium . 
 
 Una R . . 
 Atlas Major 
 
 Subas R. . 
 Gannaria extrema 
 
 Bagazi 
 
 Daradus R. . 
 Arsinarium Prom. 
 Stachir R. 
 
 34 
 33 
 
 
 10 
 
 30 
 
 33 10 
 
 32 
 31 
 31 
 30 
 30 
 29 
 
 18 
 15 
 12 
 11 
 
 50 
 
 
 
 
 30 
 40 
 20 I 
 
 
 15 I 
 
 28 
 
 30 
 
 26 
 
 25 
 
 25 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 20 
 
 Modem Observations. 
 
 C. Spartel 
 Salee R. 
 Mazagon . 
 C. Blanco . 
 C. Cantin . 
 SafFy (Bay) 
 Mogadore . 
 Tafelane Point 
 C. de Geer 
 Tamara 
 Agulon 
 C. Nun . 
 R. Nun . 
 C. Bojador 
 
 Ouro R. 
 
 C. Blanco . 
 
 Arguin 
 
 St. John's R. M 
 
 Point 
 Senegal R. moutl 
 C. Verde . 
 Gambia R. mouth 
 
 rie 
 
 35 48 
 34 2 
 33 20 
 33 20 
 32 33 
 32 20 
 31 25 
 31 
 30 38 
 30 29 
 29 10 
 28 40 
 28 26 
 2Q 20 
 
 23 34 
 20 47 
 20 26 
 
 19 13 
 
 15 52 
 14 48 
 13 30 
 
 * We cannot help regarding the Pcea Island of Ptolemy in lat. 
 32", as being intended for Madeira. The latitude differs but 
 little, but it is certainly too near to the coast of Africa, by many 
 degrees of longitude. But as the Fortunate Islands were known 
 to Ptolemy (his Eryth'ia, in 20°, must have been intended for one 
 of them, probably Fortaventura), what island so far to the north 
 as 32°, could have been meant, but Madeira ? This conjecture, 
 in our idea, is rendered more probable by the description which 
 Diodorus (lib. v. c. 2.) gives, of a large island, fertile, well 
 wooded and watered, and situated at many days' sail to the west
 
 AFRICA. 17 
 
 is very remarkable, that, although the parallels are 
 so generally exact, the bearing is out full four points 
 of the compass ; it being nearly S b. E, in Ptolemy, 
 when it is in reality about SW b. S \ And hence it 
 may be collected, that, when the latitudes could not 
 be applied to the correction of the bearings, the 
 ancients formed very erroneous calculations of them ^ 
 But this does not, in the present case, destroy the 
 harmony of the positions, in respect of each other, so 
 far, as to prevent them from being recognised, by 
 means of the general resemblance of the figure of 
 the coast, combined with the parallels. 
 
 But to the south of Atlas Major (Bojador) the 
 latitudes are not only in general wrong, but the 
 figure of the coast loses all resemblance to the truth, 
 until we come to Cape Verde : for even Cape Blanco 
 (of the Sahara), which is the most prominent part 
 of the coast, recedes, in the descriptions of Ptolemy, 
 within a direct line drawn from Cape Bojador to 
 Cape Verde. This latter is also about 2| degrees 
 too far south ; the mouth of the Gambia 2\ de- 
 grees ; and that of Senegal nearly a whole degree. 
 
 By a reference to the comparative table of lati- 
 tudes (in the note) and to the geography of Ptolemy, 
 
 of the coast of Africa. It was said to be discovered by certain 
 Phoenicians, who were blown by a storm into the Atlantic, as 
 they were coasting Africa. 
 
 * Between C. Spartel and Bojador, the difF. lat. is 568, and 
 the departure 410 ; whence the bearing is about S 36*' W : Pto- 
 lemy has S 10° E : wliencc the error is about 46". 
 
 ^ Thus, the eastern shore of the Mediterranean lies nearly NE 
 and SE, in Ptolemy ; instead of about N b. E, as it ought to be. 
 
 VOL. II. C
 
 18 > AFRICA. 
 
 it will appear, that Atlas Minor', the most promi- 
 nent feature of the coast, in that geography, answers 
 the nearest to Cape Blanco (of Morocco) ; which cape, 
 together with that of St. Vincent, forms what may be 
 called the mouth of the funnel, that conducts the 
 stream of current from the Atlantic into the Medi- 
 terranean. But it also appears, that Ptolemy con- 
 founded Cape Cantin with Cape Blanco ; and that 
 07ie cape serves for both in his geography, although 
 they are more than 20 leagues asunder. This is 
 proved by the suite of positions from C. Blanco, 
 northward, and C. Cantin, southward ; for imme- 
 diately to the N. of Atlas Minor, is Macanitay 
 which is succeeded by Sola ; as in our geography, 
 Mazagon and Salee lie to the N. of Cape Blanco. 
 Again, to the south of Atlas Minor, is found, in 
 Ptolemy, the port of Rusibis and the river of Diur, 
 answering in like manner with Saffy and Mogador. 
 
 The promontory of Hercules agrees pointedly to 
 Cape de Geer, which is the proper termhiation of 
 the ridge of Mount Atlas, on the coast. Ptolemy 
 took Cape Bojador (his Atlas Major) for it : so 
 that it happens that neither of the promontories 
 denominated by him from the supposed commence- 
 ment and termination of the ridge of Mount Atlas 
 are, in fact, connected with it ; which no doubt 
 proceeded partly from his ignorance of the inland 
 country ; partly from its being described merely 
 from hearsay. They were, however, the most pro- 
 minent points of the coast ; whilst the name of Solis 
 is by him applied to a much less prominent part. 
 
 From a review of the argument, then, it appears, 
 
 13
 
 AFRICA. 19 
 
 that the Soloeis of Hanno, and of Scylax ; and the 
 Soils of Pliny and of Ptolemy ; must have been 
 situated between the Capes Blanco and Gee?', on 
 the coast of INIorocco ; in which quarter also, the 
 Soloeis of Herodotus, as being a part of the inha- 
 hitecl tract, must of necessity be situated. 
 
 From an expression (in Hanno) it might be con- 
 cluded that Cantin was the Soloeis intended. It is 
 said, that from Thymiaterium '' they proceeded to 
 the ivest to Soloeis :" and Cantin is the point from 
 whence the direction of the coast changes from west- 
 ward to southward, in a greater degree than any 
 where else, within the space in question. The 
 Soloeis of Scylax may be either C. Blanco, or 
 C. Cantin ; but more probably the latter. 
 
 The Soils Mons and promontory of Ptolemy and 
 Pliny, are more to the south ; or between Cantin 
 and Geer : but as there is no remarkable promi- 
 nency of the coast between Cantin and Geer, the 
 latter of which is the Hercules promontory of Pto- 
 lemy, it is difficult to assign the place of Soils. 
 Ptolemy places it to the south of the river Diur, 
 which we take for that of Mogador ; and to the 
 north of Mysocorras, taken for Mecl. Conse- 
 quently, as the point of Tafelane lies between, this 
 should be the Solis promontory of Ptolemy. That 
 of Pliny may be supposed to be nearer to SafFy ; 
 and hence it would appear, that different navigators, 
 or geographers, called different capes by the name of 
 Soloeis or Soils ; which is by no means extraordi- 
 nary, as instances of a hke kind have happened in 
 
 c 2
 
 20 AFRICA. 
 
 modern times ; and we even find two rivers of the 
 name of Lixiis on this coast. 
 
 Our idea of Soloeis ought, no doubt, to be regu- 
 lated by the early authorities, such as that of Hanno, 
 and of the Carthaginians in general ; which was pro- 
 bably the idea followed by Herodotus : and he ex- 
 pressly intends by it, as we have seen, the western 
 extremity of the inhabited tract of Africa, along the 
 Mediterranean sea, in one instance ; and in an- 
 other, a promontory which formed the chief obstacle 
 to navigators, in clearing the western lands of Africa, 
 in their progress southward. It has also appeared, 
 that the ancients in general agree in placing it within 
 the space between C. Blanco and C. de Geer : and 
 moreover, that they supposed the coast to trend to 
 the south, from about the position of Soloeis. So 
 that, on the whole, we must conclude that to be the 
 promontory intended, from whence the coast turns 
 sensibly to the southward, after projecting westward, 
 from the neighbourhood of the strait of Gibraltar. 
 For the circumstance that seems to have marked it,' 
 was, the difficulty of doubling it from the northward, 
 with the prevalent winds of that region ; which are 
 westerhj ; and which difficulty was greatly increased 
 by an indraught of current towards the mouth of the 
 strait. This indraught is clearly proved by the jour- 
 nals of ships, which describe a motion of the sea in 
 every direction from SE to NE, as they advance 
 from a station in the Atlantic, opposite to Cape St. 
 Vincent, towards another station opposite to Cape 
 Blanco.
 
 AFRICA. 21 
 
 When Cape Cantin, or Soloeis, was once doubled, 
 the wind, which before might have been adverse, 
 w^ould serve tolerably well, until they arrived within 
 the limits of the NE trade wind (or rather of the 
 northerly wind, said to be the prevalent one, near 
 the shore), which would doubtless happen, before the 
 coast again trended much to the westward ; although 
 the group of Canary islands is known to disturb 
 the regularity of the trade wind occasionally. And 
 as Cape Bojador itself lies in about twenty-six degrees 
 of latitude, w'e cannot conceive any difficulty in 
 doubling it from the northward, on the score of the 
 winds, provided that ships sail at a proper distance 
 to clear the shallow water, and rip^jliug of the cur- 
 rent, said to disturb the water beyond it^ In a 
 word, it may be conceived, that only the Capes Can- 
 
 * It is certain, that in the history of the early part of the Por- 
 tuguese discoveries, there is much stress laid on the difficulty of 
 doubling Cape Bojador ; which was said to be so named, from 
 its great projection, westward, from the line of the coast. 
 However, it is very difficult to conceive how, within the tract 
 of the northerly winds, a ship should find any difficulty in 
 making her way to the south ; as the current also sets that way. 
 It is equally astonishing how the Portuguese, the best mariners 
 at that day, should have found a difficulty in accomplishing a 
 task that was performed by the ancient navigators. 
 
 It is indeed given out, that the strong current round C. Bo- 
 jador occasions a frightful rippling, and a breaking of the sea, on 
 the sands that extend to six leagues off: and that even the Por- 
 tuguese mariners were terrified : and that it was the ne p^Ms 
 ultra of the Spanish navigation till A.D. 1432; when it was 
 found, that by keeping at a proper distance from the shore, the 
 passage might be effected. (Astley's Coll. Vol. i. p. 11 ; who 
 refers to Barros, dec. i. b. i. c. 2 ; and to Dc Sousa, lib. i. c. 1.)
 
 2g AFRICA. 
 
 tin and Bojaclor can have any claim to a preference 
 in this matter; and that, from their 'prominency 
 beyond the line of the coast ; and for which quality 
 the Promontory of Soloeis seems to have been dis- 
 tinguished. In point of relative situation, Bojador, 
 from what has appeared, is absolutely out of the 
 question : and it must then be concluded, that Can- 
 tin was the promontory intended by Herodotus, and 
 the Greeks in general; whilst Pliny and Ptolemy 
 placed it more to the south, perhaps from misap- 
 prehension : but as to Bojador, no one of them 
 seems to have looked so far to the south. 
 
 M. Bougainville's Soloeis is, however. Cape Bo- 
 jador ; and he places all the five cities, of which 
 Acra is the third in order, from Soloeis, between 
 Bojador and the river Ouro, taken by him for the 
 greater Lixus. But, independently of other circum- 
 stances, one finds in M. Delisle's Map of Africa, a 
 town named Area, together with several others, 
 between Mount Atlas and Bojador ; and even if this 
 be not the Acra of Hanno, it is a more likely situa- 
 tion for towns, on that Continent, than the desert 
 coast, on the south of Bojador. But in fact M. 
 Bougainville allows, out of all proportion, too great 
 a rate for the sailing of Hanno's fleet ; for when we 
 find 300 miles allowed for the two first days be- 
 tween the straits and Thymiaterium, as he does, one 
 need not be surprised at his transporting that com- 
 mander to Benin, whilst others cannot suppose him 
 to have gone much, if at all, beyond^ Sierra Xeona ; 
 that is, only -f- of the distance to Benin *. 
 
 * See Mem. Acad. Inscrip. Vol. xxvi.
 
 AFRICA. 23 
 
 The greater Lixus it may be difficult to place : 
 though the river St. Cyprian answers to the distance 
 of three days' sail short of Arguin (or Cerne), on 
 the proportional rate between the latter and the river 
 Gambia. But the description does not seem to 
 accord, either with that, or the Ouro : for neither of 
 them appears to be a great river, or to have any 
 length of course ; and the Lixus was said to possess 
 hoth of those qualities. However, if we may judge 
 by what passes elsewhere, great changes may have 
 happened in respect of the course of the Lixus : for 
 the principal stream of the Oxus (Jihon) which 
 once flowed into the SE part of the Caspian, flows 
 no longer in its former channel. And this has pro- 
 bably arisen partly from sand blown into, and 
 arrested by the surface of the river, when low ; 
 partly from its own depositions, when swoln. In 
 like manner, the Lixus may have now ceased to flow 
 into the sea, " from the Libyan mountains ;" and 
 may form an inland lake : nor should we be sur- 
 prised if the Wacl-Drah (or river Drah) should 
 have been the Lixus. That river is now lost in the 
 sands of the Desert, according to Abulfeda ^ 
 
 We have been unavoidably led into this long dis- 
 quisition, for which we crave the reader's indulgence. 
 
 Thus, then, our Author evidently supposed the 
 western side of Africa to trend to the south, from 
 about the parallel of 33** ; but what his ideas of the 
 form or extent of the Continent may have been, we 
 have no means of knowing. It may, however, be 
 
 * Tab. III. Africa ; article Darah.
 
 24 AFRICA. 
 
 collected, generally, from his vague comparison of 
 the proportional extent of Africa to Europe, that 
 he supposed the former to extend very far to the 
 south of the equator ; but the consideration of this 
 part of the subject must be deferred, until we come 
 to the inquiry concerning Herodotus's idea of the 
 position of the sources of the Nile. 
 
 It appears from the various notices scattered 
 about, in different parts of his history ^ that Hero- 
 dotus had heard a great deal concerning the interior 
 parts of Africa, most of which was probably collected 
 during his residence in Egypt. It has already been 
 shewn, page 9, sup. that he distributes the great body 
 of Libya (but in which Egypt is not included), into 
 three regions ; the interior or southernmost of which 
 "is a parched and immeasurable desert." Euterpe, 32. 
 This desert is again mentioned, in Melp. 181, and 
 is said to " extend from the Egyptian Thebes to 
 the columns of Hercules '' ;" and, in 185, it is said to 
 be '' a vast and horrid space, without water, wood, 
 or beasts ; and totally destitute of moisture." All 
 these descriptions clearly refer to the great African 
 desert, or Sahara, whose character he seems to have 
 understood distinctly ; but it will also appear, in the 
 sequel, that he had heard of the great inland ^ river of 
 Tombuctoo and Kasseena (in effect, the Niger of 
 
 ^ Melp. 181, 185, and 191 ; and Euterpe, 31. 
 
 ^ " The Africans (says he) who inhabit the sea coast, are 
 nomades : the more inland parts, beyond these, abound with wild 
 beasts ; and remoter still, is one vast desert, from the Egyptian 
 Thebes to the columns of Hercules." 
 
 * Used in contradistinction to those which reach the sea.
 
 AFRICA. 25 
 
 the Romans), whicli flowed beyond the borders of 
 this desert. 
 
 His descriptions of the several tracts of inland 
 country, are oftentimes so brief, that whole regions 
 are disposed of in a single line. But he enters par- 
 ticularly into the description of the provinces, along 
 the coast of the Mediterranean, from Egypt to the 
 neighbourhood of Carthage; and is yet more 
 minute, the nearer he is to the seat of his inquiries, 
 Egypt ; concerning which country, and its imme- 
 diate dependencies, he is well known to have entered 
 into very minute and interesting details ; not except- 
 ing also its geography. But this is a part of Hero- 
 dotus which has been so well illustrated, and even 
 rendered famihar by the writings of several eminent 
 persons, that it would be unnecessary, if not pre- 
 sumptuous, in us, to undertake the subject. We 
 mean only to say a word concerning its ancient 
 architecture, with a view to prove that both it, and 
 the mythology of Egypt, were extended far into the 
 Libyan desert : and to make some observations on 
 the ancient and present state of the alluvions of the 
 Nile, from whence much may be learnt respecting 
 those of other rivers. 
 
 The ancient geography of Egypt, in particular, 
 has been so well illustrated by M. D'Anville, that it 
 would be idle in us to attempt a new system of it, 
 unless a fresh stock of materials had been previously 
 collected. It is however true, that certain parts of 
 it require correction ; particularly the Isthmus of 
 Suez, the head of the Delta, and certain other parts. 
 And these corrections we are enabled to effect, by
 
 2Q AFRICA. 
 
 means of observations published since the time of that 
 great geographer. 
 
 It may be proper, however, to remark, in this 
 place, that in the report of Herodotus, respecting 
 the extent of Egypt, he has made use of a stade 
 which is totally different from that which he uses, 
 when he refers to Greece, or to Persia. This ap- 
 pears in a remarkable instance, where he assigns an 
 equal number of stades, within 15, to the space 
 between Athens and Pisa, as between Heliopolis 
 and the sea coast of Egypt ; although the former be 
 about 105, the latter 86 G. miles only; the one 
 giving a proportion of 755, the other of 1012, to a 
 degree. So that he appears to have used stades of 
 different scales, without a consciousness of it. (See 
 pages 21 and 25 of Vol. I.) 
 
 A like proportion appears, in his calculation of the 
 length of Upper Egypt, and the breadth of the 
 Delta: but he gives different dimensions of the 
 Delta in different places ; and in all, a greater num- 
 ber of stades than are allowed by others ^ In the 
 comparative extent of Upper and Lower Egypt, 
 he is pretty exact, although the scale be faulty. In 
 the discussion of the stade, in page 25, Vol. I. we 
 have supposed that his error arose from a faulty evalua- 
 tion of the schoene, an Egyptian measure : and this 
 seems conclusive from the reports of Eratosthenes and 
 Strabo, respecting the distance between Syene and 
 Alexandria. For these, the reader is referred to 
 p. 31, Voh I. 
 
 ^ Respecting the Delta and its alluvions, we shall speak in a 
 future Section.
 
 AFRICA. 27 
 
 Concerning the course of the Nile, above Egypt, 
 we shall speak hereafter. 
 
 Herodotus divides the inhabitants of Africa, 
 generally, into two races ; (with the exception of 
 strangers, who were the Phcenicians and Greeks.) 
 " The natives," says he, Melp. 197, '' are the Afri- 
 cans and Ethiopians; one of which possesses the 
 northern, the other the southern, part of Africa." 
 By these nations are evidently intended the Moors 
 and the Negroes ; which two classes are as distinct 
 at the present day, as in ancient times ; and ap- 
 parently have not greatly varied their ancient 
 limits ; although the Negroes may, in many in- 
 stances, have received new masters from amongst 
 the Moors. 
 
 The common boundary of the Africans and the 
 Ethiopians, in ancient times, may be placed at the 
 southern border of the Great Desert. Hanno 
 found the Ethiopians in possession of the western 
 coast, about the parallel of 19" : and Pliny, lib. v. 31, 
 places them at five journies beyond Cerne, which 
 agrees nearly with the report of Hanno. At pre- 
 sent, the Negroes are not found higher up than the 
 Senegal river, or about 1 7" ; and that only in the 
 inland parts. It appears that the Senhagi tribe, 
 who are not Negroes, possessed the coast about 
 Cape Verde, in the time of Ptolemy '. 
 
 ' Cape Verde is the Arsinarium promontory of Ptolemy. We 
 learn, that when the Portuguese first explored the western coast 
 of Africa, between Morocco and Guinea, in 144G, the tribes or 
 nations of the Assanhaji and Jaloj's, were separated by the 
 river of Sanhaga (Senegal) ; the former being to the north, the
 
 28 AFRICA. 
 
 The Nasamonian explorers, mentioned by Hero- 
 dotus, ^, when they approached the great inland 
 river of Africa, or that of Tombuctoo and Kasseena 
 (the Niger), found a different race of men, from 
 what they had before seen ; and who spoke a differ- 
 ent language. They indeed called them a dwarfish^ 
 people, and of a hlach colour : the latter particular 
 seems decisive of their being Negroes ; as they 
 must have been much blacker than the people of the 
 coast of the Mediterranean to have warranted the 
 
 other to the south of it *. The Assanhaji are the Zenhaga of 
 our maps ; and the Sanhagse of Edrisi and Abulfeda : a nation 
 which, in the times they describe, appear to have occupied the 
 tract between Morocco and the Senegal river, and between the 
 shores of the ocean and Agadez inckisive. The early voyagers 
 speak of the Sarrah of the Assanhagi ; meaning the Sahara, or 
 Great Desert ; Abulfeda also mentions them as the governing 
 people in Audagost (Agadez) : and as possessing the southern 
 part of Morocco. They are, therefore, properly the people of 
 the Great Desert and its environs. Doubtless the Portuguese 
 named the river now corrupted into Senegal, from them, as 
 Ptolemy did the Promontory Arsinarium (Cape Verde), whence 
 we may infer that they then possessed both sides of the Senegal 
 river, called by Ptolemy, Daradus. 
 
 At present the Sanhaga tribe are placed, by geographers, at 
 no great distance from the coast of the ocean, between the rivers 
 of Nun and Senegal ; and the Jalofs between this latter and the 
 river Gambia : both of them in the position in which the early 
 discoverers found them. 
 
 ^ Euterpe, 32. Of these more will be said presently. 
 
 ^ Sataspes also reported that he saw a dwarfish people on the 
 coast of Africa, far to the south. Melpom. 43. 
 
 (Astley's Collection, Vol. i. p. 13, 14.)
 
 AFRICA. 09 
 
 distinction *. They must also have been humane, in 
 that they do not appear to have ill-treated the 
 strangers, who came amongst them, in an odd, if not 
 in a suspicious manner : and this trait of character 
 belongs to the Negroes in their natural and unmixed 
 state. They may, indeed, not unaptly be styled the 
 Hindoos of Africa. 
 
 Again, Ethiopia approached to the boundary of 
 Upper Egypt, in the eastern part of Africa, in the 
 idea of Herodotus ^ : and this may, perhaps, be 
 styled Ethiopia proper; answering to Nubia and 
 Abyssinia. " Ethiopia," says he ", '' which is the 
 extremity of the habitable world, is contiguous to 
 Arabia, on the SW. It produces gold, in great 
 quantities ; elephants, with their prodigious teeth ; 
 trees and shrubs of every kind, as well as ebony : its 
 inhabitants are also remarkable for their size \ their 
 beauty, and their length of life." Thalia, 114 ^. 
 
 The Macrohiau Ethiopians appear as if meant 
 by our Author for a different people from those 
 bordering on Upper Egypt ; for, in Thalia, 17, they 
 
 * Herodotus says of the Ethiopians of Africa, Polym. 70, that 
 they " liave their hair more crisp and curhng than any other 
 
 men 
 
 5 
 
 Thaha, 97, and Euterpe, 29. 
 ' Thaha, 111. 
 ' This is poetically expressed by Thomson, 
 
 • The floods 
 
 In which the full-formed maids of Afric lave 
 
 Their jetty limbs ; Summer, v. 811. 
 
 * Herodotus remarks, that " whatever may be the cause, the 
 Africans are more exeiiqU from disease than any other men." 
 Melp. 187.
 
 30 AFRICA. 
 
 are said " to inhabit that part of Libya which lies 
 towards the Southern ocean (Indian sea)." But as 
 the people of Elephanta understood their language ; 
 and as the description of them in Thalia, 97, agrees 
 with that of the Ethiopians above Egypt (in 114) ; 
 we conclude the Macrobians to be the Ahyssinians 
 (whose dominion might even extend south-eastward 
 to the ocean) ; and that the Ethiopians which were 
 conquered by Cambyses in his march towards the 
 Macrobians, and who also served in the war of 
 Greece, under Xerxes, Thalia, 97 and 17, were the 
 Nuhicms, situated between Upper Egypt and Abys- 
 sinia ^. 
 
 It is certain, however, that Herodotus (like the 
 rest of the ancients) gives a wide range to Ethiopia ; 
 since he designs by it, the whole southern part of 
 Africa ; extensive, as from his own descriptions, he 
 must have conceived it to be. For, it was with him 
 " the extremity of the habitable world ;" and in- 
 cluded all those countries, which, for want of the 
 means of discrimination, he was compelled to com- 
 prize in one mass ; as ive may do, by the remote 
 inland parts of North America, or New Holland. 
 
 The exaggerated length of course of the Nile, 
 strengthened his error respecting the extent of 
 
 ® Mr. Bruce (we know not what authority he had for the 
 supposition) is of opinion, that the Gongas and Guhas are the 
 Macrobians, Vol. iii. p. 259. These people inhabit two small 
 provinces or districts of Abyssinia. But from the context of 
 the history, the Macrobians must be regarded as a considerable 
 nation ; since their monarch sent a message of defiance to 
 Cambyses.
 
 AFRICA. 31 
 
 Ethiopia 'proper ; although the remote sources of 
 this famous river were regarded as unknown to 
 strangers then, as they truly appear to be at the 
 present day. Speaking of the sources of the Bory- 
 sthenes, INIelp. 53, Herodotus says, — " the sources of 
 this river, like those of the Nile, are to me un- 
 known, as, I believe, they are to every other Greek." 
 But it was, nevertheless, supposed by Herodotus, 
 '' that the course of the Nile, without reckoning 
 that part of it which flows through Egypt, was 
 known to the extent of four months' journey, partly 
 by land, partly by water :" that is, to the country of 
 the Aiitomoli ', which was so far distant, that the 
 city of Meroe lay midway between it and Upper 
 Egypt. — " It is certain (says he) that the Nile 
 rises in the ivest, but beyond the above point all is 
 uncertainty ; this part of the country being, from 
 
 ' The Egyptian garrisons stationed in Upj>er Egypt, against 
 the Ethiopians, having been kept without relief three years, 
 with one consent revolted to the enemy, and received from their 
 new masters a district for their maintenance ; situated, as we 
 might have supposed, in a very remote part from Egypt. They 
 are said to have had a sensible effect in civilizing the Ethiojnans. 
 Eut. 30. These were named Automoli ; meaning Deserters. 
 
 Being at first pursued by Psammeticus, wlio adjured them not 
 to desert their country and their wives and children, they are 
 said to have signified, in an indecent way, that wherever they 
 went, they should doubtless obtain both wives and children. 
 During the late distressing mutiny, and revolt of a part of the 
 fleet, it is said that a like answer was made by some of the inuti- 
 neers, though not accompanied by the act of indecency, recorded 
 by Herodotus. It is worthy of remark, that Bruce mentions 
 certain people who had revolted, or deserted, in modern times, 
 and formed a conamunity in Abyssinia.
 
 32 AFRICA. 
 
 excessive heat, a rude and uncultivated desert." 
 Euterpe, 29, 30, and 31. 
 
 Herodotus then proceeds to state the adventures 
 of certain Nasamones (before alluded to) who came 
 from the neighbourhood of Cyrene, and made an 
 expedition into the interior part of Africa, with a 
 view to extend their discoveries beyond all preceding 
 adventurers ; and who may therefore with propriety 
 be styled the African Association of that day. The 
 distance to which they penetrated is not told ; but it 
 was, apparently, very far ; " first proceeding through 
 the region which was inhabited, they next came to 
 that which was infested by wild beasts ; leaving 
 which, they directed their course ivestwarcl, through 
 the Desert" and were finally taken prisoners, by 
 hlack men of a diminutive stature, and carried to a 
 city " washed by a great river, which flowed from 
 ivest to east, and abounded in crocodiles ^ .'" Eu- 
 terpe, 32. 
 
 He adds, Euterpe, 33, " that according to the 
 opinions of Etearchus, sovereign of the state of 
 Ammon (from whom this relation came), the river in 
 question was the Nile." This, continues Herodotus, 
 *' probability confirms — the Nile certainly rises in 
 Libya, which it divides : and if it be allowable to 
 draw such a conclusion, it takes a similar course 
 with the Ister" 
 
 ' In the description of the Indus, Herodotus calls it the second 
 river that produced crocodiles, meaning the Nile as the first. 
 But here we have a third : and Hanno, who doubtless preceded 
 him, mentions the Senegal river (though not hy name), which 
 makes, of course, the fourth.
 
 AFRICA. 3S 
 
 It may, however, with great probability, be sup- 
 posed, that the river seen by the Nasamones, was 
 that which, according to the present state of our 
 geography, is known to pass by Tombuctoo, and 
 thence eastward, through the centre of Africa (in 
 effect, the river commonly known by the name of 
 Niger) ; but which we cannot agree with Hero- 
 dotus, in supposing to be the upper part of the Nile, 
 from the following circumstances : 
 
 First, the great difference of level that must neces- 
 sarily exist, between the Niger and the Nile, admit- 
 ting that the former reached the country of Abys- 
 sinia. For, by that time, it would have run at least 
 2300 G. miles, in a direct line ; and near 2000, 
 after it had descended to the level of the Sahara, or 
 Great Desert. And the Nile, at the point where the 
 White River (which alone can be taken for the Niger, 
 if such a confluence can be supposed) falls in, has 
 more than 1000 such miles to run, before it reaches 
 the sea ; and has, moreover, two or more cataracts 
 to descend, in its way. Besides, Abyssinia is posi- 
 tively a vei'ij elevated tract. Mr. Bruce, Vol. iii. 
 p. 642, inferred from his barometer, that the level 
 of the source of the Nile, in Gojam, was more than 
 tivo miles above the level of the sea : and this is 
 repeated in pages 652 and 712 ; where he says 
 " fully" two miles. 
 
 Again, in page 719, he says, that i\\c flat country 
 of Sennar is more than a mile lower than the high 
 country of Abyssinia. 
 
 The second circumstance is, that the Niger, 
 throughout the tract of Nigritia, in common with 
 
 VOL. II. D
 
 34 AFRICA. 
 
 all the rivers of that region, swells with the periodical 
 rains, and is at its highest pitch, when the Nile is 
 under the like circumstances in Egypt ^ Now, 
 considering how long a time it would require for the 
 waters of Nigritia to reach Egypt, the effect ought 
 surely to be, that instead of what happens, at pre- 
 sent, the Nile ought to be kept up to nearly its 
 highest point, a very long time after the Niger. 
 
 It should also be remarked, that the reports of the 
 Arabian geographers state, that the western streams, 
 which they suppose to communicate with the Nile, 
 are derivations from, instead of adjuncts to, that 
 river ^. 
 
 To us, it appears more probable that the remote 
 sources of the Nile are rather to the south than the 
 ivest ; or nearer to the meridian of Abyssinia (though 
 by no means within that country) ; in which posi- 
 tion Ptolemy, Edrisi, and Abulfeda place them; 
 though greatly too far distant to the southward : 
 for Ptolemy places them in 12^'' south latitude, 
 Edrisi, in IB" : and Abulfeda appears to follow Pto- 
 lemy \ If the four months' journey allowed by 
 
 ^ This is a circumstance mentioned both by Mr. Park, and by 
 Major Houghton, late in the service of the African Association. 
 It was also known to Pliny ; who says, *' that the Niger swells 
 at the same season with the Nile, and that its products are the 
 same." (Lib. v. c. 8.) 
 
 * Such were the opinions of Edrisi, and — Abulfeda, of which 
 more presently . 
 
 * If it be supposed, as it ought, that Ptolemy placed the 
 remote head of the Nile according to certain data, and that he 
 erred only in the adjustment of his scale of distance, and in the 
 bearing, his error may, in a great measure, be corrected, by com-
 
 AFRICA. 35 
 
 Herodotus, be reckoned at no more tlian 10 G. 
 miles per day, on a straight line, and this distance, 
 equal to 1200 miles ", be laid off in the direction of 
 the general course of the Nile ; it will reach to the 
 parallel of three or four degrees north, which yet 
 leaves a vast extent of course for a river of no 
 greater bulk than the Nile ; for this river, great as 
 it is represented, yet when compared with some of 
 the capital rivers of Asia, sinks very much in the 
 estimation of its grandeur and bulk ^ Ptolemy, a 
 
 paring his position of the Coloe lake (the Tzana and Damhea of 
 others, and the head of the Abyssinian branch), with the modern 
 accounts. We find this lake in Ptolemy, too far to the south by 
 12 degrees ; that is, at the equator, instead of 12° N, as in Bruce's 
 Map. If we apply this difference as a corrective to the position 
 of Ptolemy's SW source, it should be placed about half a degree 
 to the south of the equator. This is, indeed, a coarse way of 
 making the correction, but it has appeared that the statement of 
 Herodotus carries the remote knoivn part of the Nile to about 
 three or four degrees north latitude, whilst the source was yet 
 more remote ; and, probably, in his idea, near to the equator. 
 
 It may however be proper to remark, that Ptolemy was not 
 aware, that the eastern Nile performed the early part of its course 
 in a curvilinear direction, southward, for the space of more than 
 four degrees, before it finally turned to the north (for he allowed 
 those deep indentings between Syene and Meroe) ; and as he 
 evidently supposed this part of its course to point to the north ; 
 it must be supposed, that had he known the contrary, he would 
 have placed the lake, and eastern source of the Nile, in 4" north, 
 instead of placing them at the equator. 
 
 ° If these four months' were taken on the footing of the three 
 months' jo\n-ney from Sardis to Susa, they would produce about 
 1250 G. miles, although these appear to be no more than the 
 marches of an army. 
 
 ' Let the reader compare the descriptions of the Nile, in most 
 
 D 2
 
 30 AFRICA. 
 
 native of Africa, and a resident at Alexandria ; who 
 had probably the best opportunities of knowing the 
 general state of the geography of that continent ; 
 and who, moreover, wrote posterior to the inquiries 
 made by the Romans concerning it ^ had no idea 
 that the sources of the Nile were in the west. Not 
 that he was ignorant of the western rivers of Africa, 
 as well the inland ones, as those which communicate 
 with the Atlantic ; yet none of these waters are de- 
 scribed to communicate with the Nile, in his geo- 
 graphy. And when there is found, on a comparison 
 of that part of his geography of Africa, between the 
 Red sea and the greater Syrtis, a great deal of re- 
 semblance to the modern maps ; we must surely 
 regard him as a person not ill informed : not to 
 mention the general truth of his delineation of the 
 courses of the Senegal and Gambia rivers, which he 
 conducts into the Atlantic, on different sides of Cape 
 Verde ; whilst the Niger, which, in his geography, 
 answers to the Joliba, or river of Tombuctoo, is 
 described to terminate as it begins, in an inland 
 lake ^. 
 
 It has appeared, that Herodotus expresses, in the 
 strongest terms, his belief that the Nile rises in the 
 
 of the books of travels ; and more particularly in the intercepted 
 French Correspondence ; with that of the Ganges, in the Memoir 
 of the Map of Hindoostan. 
 
 Both Augustus and Nero had sent persons to explore the 
 sources, or to inquire concerning them. Plin, vi. 29. 
 
 ' The reader is referred to the Proceedings of the African 
 Association ; and to the Appendix to the Travels of Mr. Park, 
 for an account of the Niger.
 
 AFRICA. 37 
 
 ivest ; but, like all other geographers who do not 
 put their materials to the test, by a geometrical con- 
 struction, he (if he does not, in effect, contradict him- 
 self, yet) renders his own account improbable, by 
 his reasonings, and by his different statements. 
 For, he supposes in one place, Euterpe, 31, 32, 33, 
 that the Nile rises in the ivest ; and that beyond the 
 greater Syrtis and the country of the Nasamones ; 
 whilst in other places he pointedly derives it from 
 the south. For example, he says that the upper 
 part of its course, situated at four months' journey 
 (equal to 1200 G. miles) from Egypt, is occupied by 
 a nation who extend to the southern ocean : for the 
 Maci'ohian Ethiopians who are here meant, can be 
 no other than those amongst whom the Automoli 
 settled : Euterpe, 30, 31 ; and who must be the 
 Ahyssinicms of modern times ; since Meroe lay 
 midway between them and Ujyper Egypt. Euterpe, 
 29, 30. 
 
 Again, he gives another proof of his belief that 
 the Nile came from a place far to the south ; for, in 
 Euterpe, 24, 25, he thought its waters were ab- 
 sorbed by the presence of the sun, when in the 
 south. It matters not how absurd the argument 
 that is meant to be supported may be : it is the 
 sentiment manifested in the course of it that is to 
 the present purpose. 
 
 Perhaps the difficulty may be solved, by supposing 
 that Herodotus first conceived a just idea of the 
 course of the Nile, on being told that it came from 
 the south ; but that afterwards he blended with it, 
 the story of the Nasamones, and the ivestern river.
 
 38 AFRICA. 
 
 without weighing the circumstances properly. Had 
 he not declared, Melpom. 50, that the Nile had no 
 adjunct streams, we might have supposed that he 
 meant to describe two distinct branches ; referring 
 them respectively to the river seen by the Nasamones, 
 and to that of the Ethiopians in the south ^ Or he 
 might have heard of the White River, and have 
 taken that for the continuation of the one seen by 
 the Nasamones. 
 
 As to the place of the remote sources of the Nile, 
 it seems to have been destined to remain long a 
 secret. That it has remained unknown so long, is 
 probably occasioned by its being situated within the 
 deep recesses of a tract (either desert or mountain- 
 ous, or both) which no strangers have had occa- 
 sion to visit ; nor ever will, until it may become 
 their sjiecial business so to do. Whensoever the 
 traversing of this tract shall turn to as much advan- 
 tage as the crossing of other deserts or mountains, 
 then will the true source of the Nile be found, and 
 not before. For it may be conceived, that it is 
 situated in a country that lies far out of the track of 
 any caravan that visits the marts frequented by 
 Europeans, 
 
 That source in Abyssinia, called by Mr. Bruce, and 
 by some others before him, the head of the Nile, 
 
 * Juba led Plimj into a mistake, that the Nile sprang from 
 the west, and even from Mauretania ; and that it lost itself 
 under ground, and afterwards rose up again. (Lib. v. c. 9.) By 
 this mode of reasoning, any river that is lost in the sand may 
 undergo a transmigration, and appear again in the shai^e of 
 another river, two or three thousand miles distant !
 
 AFRICA. 39 
 
 appears to be, in reality, nothing more than the 
 eastern and least remote ; as well as the least in 
 point of bulk ; of the two principal branches of the 
 Nile which unite below Sennar ^ Concerning this 
 fact, we shall adduce some evidence, which although 
 presumptive only, cannot be disproved by any posi- 
 tive evidence ; since no such exists : and it is no 
 inconsiderable point in it, that Mr. Bruce himself, 
 although undesignedly, has furnished a principal 
 part. We begin with M. Maillet. 
 
 This gentleman collected his information from 
 travellers ; and there is no reason to suspect a design 
 to mislead, having no system to support. Nor does 
 he pretend to have any correct ideas respecting the 
 geography of the upper part of the Nile, but relates 
 merely what he had heard, without comparing the 
 evidence. Nay, he even supposed the Nile to rise in 
 Abyssinia ; for by the lake Gamhea, he doubtless 
 intended Damhea, the Tzana of Bruce and others ; 
 but then he appears to confound it with the lake of 
 the western branch. The chief point in his descrip- 
 tion is, that at two or three journies below Sennar 
 (it should rather be seven or eight) the Nile, or 
 Abyssinian branch, receives a great river, named 
 
 ^ The reader will not suppose that we entertain a shadow of 
 doubt respecting the fact of Mr. Bruce's having visited the 
 eastern sources of the Nile. We only mean to deny that these 
 are the proper heads of the Nile ; because it may be believed, 
 that there are other sources more remote. His opinions only, 
 not his facts, are controverted. But the question respecting 
 the place of the source of the Nile, rests precisely as it did be- 
 fore Mr. Bruce wrote.
 
 40 AFRICA. 
 
 Bahr Ahiad, (or the White river,) which he says is 
 at least as considerahle as the Nile. He says, 
 moreover, that it runs nearly parallel to the Nile, at 
 the distance of 12, 15, and 20 journies from it. He 
 does not, however, pretend to fix the source of the 
 White river : he only remarks, that it is easy to per- 
 ceive that " the source of the Nile is not unique ; 
 and that its origin is not beyond the equator." 
 (Desc. Egypt, pages 40 and 41.) 
 
 Mr. Bruce's words are the following. " The river 
 Ahiad, which is lai'ger than the Nile, joins it here, 
 &c. — Still the Nile preserves the name of the Blue 
 river ^ — The Ahiad is a deep river : it runs dead, 
 and with little inclination, and preserves its stream 
 always undiminished, because rising in latitudes 
 where there are continual rains, it therefore suffers 
 not the decrease the Nile does, by the six months' 
 dry weather;" (vol. iv. 516.) Thus Mr. Bruce goes 
 beyond M. Maillet, by allowing the White river to 
 be oi greater bidJe than the Nile : but what is more, 
 he admits that it always continues in the same state ; 
 whilst the Nile suffers a diminution half the year. 
 He says, moreover, that its bed has little descent, 
 whence it may be concluded that it runs through 
 its own alluvions in that part; which particular im- 
 
 * The White river is so named from the muddy colour of its 
 waters, whilst the Ahyssininn branch is named the Blue river ; 
 probably from its comparative clearness. Some have supposed 
 that the word Neel or Nile is meant to express the blue colour 
 of its waters, but it rather appears to be an appellative ; there 
 being at least three large rivers in Africa of this name ; as the 
 Nile of Egypt, of the Negroes, and of Makadsh.
 
 AFRICA. 41 
 
 plies a considerable length of course. But Mr. 
 Bruce accounts for its bulk, and equal state, from 
 the continual rains that fall in the countries con- 
 tiguous to its source ; which is saying, in other 
 words, that it springs from a different region from 
 that which gives rise to the Abyssinian branch ; 
 whence, by his account, the source of the White 
 river should be very remote from that of the Blue 
 river in Abyssinia. But what says his map ? There 
 the limits of the p^r/orZ/cY// rainy seasons lie between 
 16 degrees of latitude ; and those of the perpetual 
 rains between 4 degrees, on each side of the equator. 
 There also the source of the White river is placed in 
 8" north, and that of the Blue river in 11" only, with 
 a difference of meridians of no more than 2^" : and 
 one of the springs of the latter is even near the 8th 
 degree. Do tJiese differences then constitute 
 different regions ? We may add, that the White 
 river is drawn on his map much smaller than the 
 eastern branch ; which differs, as we have seen, 
 totally from the description *. 
 
 The fact we should conceive clearly to be, that 
 the White river has a much more distant source than 
 the other. Some light is thrown on this particular, 
 by Maillot's saying that the White river runs nearly 
 parallel to, and at the distance of, 12, 15, and 20 
 journies from the Nile, which can only be true of 
 two rivers that spring at a great distance from each 
 
 ■' It is certain that Liulolplius describes a river by the name 
 of Maleg or Meleg, which has a course perfectly simihir to the 
 ?f7«7e river of Bruce. But M. D'Anville regards it as one of 
 the branches of the Abyssinian river.
 
 42 AFRICA. 
 
 other. We are of opinion, therefore, that Mr. Bruce, 
 who saw the White river, has admitted its superior 
 bulk, and state of fuhiess, at all seasons, properties 
 which the other branch does not possess : (as to its 
 being in the same state all the year, that we cannot 
 suppose of any tropical river ;) and hence, as he 
 appears not to have made out his system of a con- 
 stant rainy season, to supply the river in question, 
 the reader will probably be inclined with us, to sup- 
 pose that a stream, at all times confessedly larger 
 than another, has, in all probability, a more remote 
 source. 
 
 We come next to Mr. Ledyard. This observant 
 traveller furnishes notices, which induce a strong 
 belief that'the remote source of the Nile is situated 
 very far to the south-west of Abyssinia. 
 
 During Mr. Ledyard's residence at Cairo, in 1788, 
 he repeatedly visited the market-place, where the 
 slaves from the interior part of Africa were exposed 
 to sale \ He saw a considerable body of them, 
 which came from Darfoor (as he writes it), a coun- 
 try, says he, well known on account of the slave 
 trade, as well as that in gum and elephants teeth ; 
 and, it appears (page 54,) that there is a caravan, 
 specifically from Darfoor ; that is, distinct from the 
 Sennar caravan. By his manner of speaking, these 
 people were, in appearance uncouth, even amongst 
 Africans : but he adds, that *^ they appeared a 
 harmless wild people." He represents Darfoor as a 
 very distant country, even in respect of Sennar ; for 
 
 '^ African Association, cliap. ii. page 50, et seq.
 
 AFRICA. 43 
 
 he says, that the slaves came from the interior parts 
 of Africa. And he was told by one of them, that he 
 came from the west of Sennar 55 days' journey, or 
 four or five hundred miles : and a Negro chief, i?/i- 
 2)liecl to be of the party, said that " tJie Nile had 
 its source in his country." Mr. Ledyard's descrip- 
 tion of these people is particular. They had the 
 true Guinea face ; and their curly hair was plaited 
 in tassels, and plaistered with claij and paint. 
 
 Although we cannot fix the precise position of the 
 great body of this country, yet we are in some de- 
 gree enabled to approximate it, by means of some 
 notices in Mr. Bruce's map ; and which will turn out 
 equally in favour of our argument. 
 
 Mr. Bruce places Kordofan, a frontier province of 
 Dar-Foiir , said to be conquered by the king of 
 Sennar, to the west of, and adjacent to, the country 
 of Sennar, whose capital lies in 13^- degrees north 
 latitude. Hence it must be supposed that the 
 country of Darfoor extends from thence to the west- 
 ward : and as Mr. Browne *^ has obligingly informed 
 the Author that the capital of Darfoor, visited by him, 
 lies about the parallel of 15", it may be concluded 
 that the country itself extends some degrees in every 
 direction around it ; and consequently to the south, 
 amongst the rest. 
 
 Other notices respecting the direction of the cara- 
 van routes to Darfoor and Soudan, occur in the map 
 of Mr. I>ruco's travels ; and which assist in giving 
 some idea of the position of Darfoor. He states, 
 that the caravan from Darfoor to Mecca, passes the 
 
 \ The reader is referred lo the Travels of Mr. Browne, for 
 further inlbnnatiou respecting Darfoor, or Darfur,
 
 44 AFRICA. 
 
 Nile at Dongola, (in lat. 19^0 ^^^ thence to a port 
 on the Red sea, where it crosses to Judda. This 
 route appears to be a branch of the one from Soudan ^ 
 to Cairo, described also on the same Map ; by which 
 we must conclude, that it is the track of the caravan 
 of Darfoor, spoken of by Ledyard. This track 
 passes in a NNE direction from the parallel of 15", 
 and about the meridian of Seewah, and falls into the 
 road from Sennar to Cairo, at a point short of the 
 Greater Oasis, or El Wah. 
 
 From these notices collectively, it may be inferred 
 that the country of Darfoor lies between the meri- 
 dians of Cairo and Seewah generally ; but its ex- 
 tent southward we can have no idea of: nor is it a 
 clear point, that the Negro chief seen by Ledyard, 
 was of Darfoor, although the slave was. Mr. Browne 
 says that Darfoor is not a country of rivers, so that 
 the White river must pass to the south of it, of 
 course, and may be supposed to spring from the 
 great chain of mountains ; the continuation of those 
 which, according to Mr. Bruce, separate the heads 
 of the northern and southern waters, in the parallel 
 of 8*^ north, in Abyssinia ; and which extend west- 
 ward to Manding. 
 
 Combining the distance reported by M. Maillet, 
 between the eastern and western branches ; that is, 
 20journies; with the above reported distance, of 
 four or five hundred miles from Sennar ; the remote 
 
 ^ The Moors and Arabs call Nigritia by the general name of 
 Soudan. Abulfeda includes all the known part of Africa, south 
 of the Great Desert and Egypt, in Belad Soudan, or the country 
 of Soudan. With him, Soudan is the southern quarter of the 
 globe.
 
 AFRICA. 45 
 
 source of the Nile should be looked for, very far to 
 the SW of the latter place : but it is evident, that 
 nothing critical can be determined in the present 
 state of our knowledge, save that the distant source 
 of this celebrated river is certainly not in Abyssinia, 
 but in some country to the westward of it. To us 
 it appears probable, that it may be as far to the 
 south as the parallel of 6" ; which is nearly that 
 assigned it by M. D'Anville ; but less remote than 
 Herodotus, Ptolemy, or the Arabian geographers, 
 supposed. 
 
 Since then it appears that the Nile is formed of 
 tivo distinct branches, or heads, of which, the 
 White river is by far the most remote, as well as the 
 largest stream ; the Abyssinian branch, or Blue 
 river, cannot be the true head of the Nile, according 
 either to reason, or to common acceptation ; as by 
 the head, or source of a river, nothing else can be 
 understood but the most distant spring, where there 
 is a palpable difference in the length of the branches. 
 A river may have many branches, and each of those 
 will have its proper head : but the river itself, which 
 is formed of those collective waters, must necessarily 
 have for its head, that spring which is the most dis- 
 tant of all. The Kennet and Lea, for instance, are 
 branches of the Thames; but the heads of those 
 streams, near Marlborough and Dunstable, are nei- 
 ther of them the head of the Thames, Where the 
 branches are nearly of equal length, it may bear a 
 dispute ivhich of them forms the proper head of the 
 river ; but this appears to be out of all question 
 here ; as Ptolemy, Edrisi, and Abulfeda, will be
 
 46 AFRICA. 
 
 found to agree witli the authorities we have adduced, 
 in the main point of placing the head of the Nile, in 
 a remote parallel, southward, and very far to the 
 SW of Abyssinia; although the three first have 
 doubtless exaggerated, very greatly, the quantity of 
 the distance. 
 
 Ptolemy, who perhaps knew more than any other 
 person amongst either the ancients, or the moderns, 
 (of those whose reports have reached us ^) knew the 
 eastern, or Abyssinian branch, which he describes to 
 flow from the lake Coloe, (answering to the Tzana 
 of Bruce) under the name of Astapus ; as well as 
 the Taca%%e of Bruce (the lesser of the two eastern 
 heads,) by the name of Astaboras ^ But at the 
 same time he describes a more western branch, as 
 the continuation of the great river of Egypt. So 
 that the best informed of the ancient geographers, 
 on this point, will be found to agree with the mo- 
 
 ^ The interior of Africa was so little known in the times of 
 Eratosthenes and Strabo, that their authority concerning the 
 sources of the Nile is of little value. They both appear to de- 
 scribe the Abyssinian branches as the only heads of the Nile 
 known to thera ; and to which they give the same names as 
 Ptolemy does ; Astapus, and Astaboras. 
 
 According to M. Gosselin's projection of their geographical 
 systems, they placed the head of the Nile in about 8" north, 
 which is not very different from M. D'Anville's position of the 
 eastern source. 
 
 " Mr. Bruce (Vol. iii. 648.) appears to say, that Athara is a 
 modern name of the Tacazze, or ancient Astaboras. Can Astapus 
 be a corruption of Azerak, or Azrak ? 
 
 The Coloe of Ptolemy seems intended for the Galla of 
 D'Anville and Bruce. Galla is the southern division of Abys- 
 sinia.
 
 AFRICA. 47 
 
 dern Oriental geographers, and with the reports of 
 modern travellers : although it appears that none of 
 tliem had any knowledge concerning the precise 
 situation of the fountain itself ; having taken it from 
 the general information of others. Now, to quote 
 the sentiments of M. D'Anville, '' in a case where 
 we are all ignorant, we ought not to reject entirely 
 the reports of Ptolemy, and the Oriental geogra- 
 phers, until we can obtain some knowledge of the 
 subject ourselves." 
 
 Since the copies of Edrisi and Abulfeda are not 
 common, we shall extract from them their ideas on 
 the present subject. 
 
 Edrisi, who is the first of the two authors, in 
 point of chronology, speaks of tivo rivers of the 
 name of Nile ; that of Egypt, which flows to the 
 NE : and that of the Negroes, or of Nigritia, 
 which flows from east to west : and both of these 
 he derives from the same fountains. (See page 15, 
 et seq.) 
 
 " These two parts of the Nile fsays he) spring 
 from the mountains of the moon, which are situated 
 IG** beyond the equator. From these mountains, 
 the Nile issues in 10 streams, five of which flow 
 together into one great lake, and the remainder 
 into another such lake. From each of these lakes 
 flow three rivers, the whole of which by their con- 
 flux, form a very large lake, near which is the city 
 of Tumi, which is populous. — The lake is situated 
 under the equator. — A mountain shuts up the greater 
 part of the north side of this lake, and separates the 
 courses of the two rivers that flow from it, the Nile 
 
 13
 
 48 AFRICA. 
 
 of the Negroes passing by it to the NW, and 
 thence westward, through the territories of the 
 Nigritce, the greater part of which lie adjacent to 
 it : and the Nile (of Egypt) passing on the east 
 side of the mountain, flows to the northward, wa- 
 tering in its course, the countries of Nubia and 
 Egyptr 
 
 He remarks also, that the distance between the 
 two smaller lakes is six journies ; (say 114 G. 
 miles ;) and between the sources of the Nile, and 
 the lake under the equator, 10 journies, or about 
 three degrees of latitude, only ; which, if true, con- 
 tradicts the former statement, but may yet be the 
 most probable of the two accounts. 
 
 Abulfeda says, from Ibn Sina (Prolegomena, 
 article rivers) that " it springs from those deserts 
 which extend southward beyond the equator ; 
 wherefore it is diflicult for us to investigate its 
 sources ; of which, as of the whole river, we are 
 indebted to the Greeks for all our knowledge. 
 They relate that Ptolemy informs them, that they 
 flow from the mountains Al Komri ^, in ten distinct 
 streams, each of which is distant from the other, the 
 space of a degree : so that the most western being 
 in Ion. 48", and the second in 49", the eastern one of 
 all must be in 57", (rather 58"). That these ten 
 streams run into two lakes ; five into each. (He 
 then refers back to his descriptions of these lakes, 
 where he has placed them both in lat. 7" south : 
 and the most westerly of the two in 50" Ion.) The 
 
 ' Meaning the mountains of the moon.
 
 AFRICA. 49 
 
 longitude of the eastern lake is 57^ From each of 
 these lakes spring four rivers, or eight in all : ttvo 
 of ivJiich are lost in other rivers, but the other 
 six run northward, and form a round lake at the 
 equator, which lake is named Kawar, and has also 
 been mentioned above \ Its longitude is 53^^ and 
 it lies under the equator, (though other people 
 speak differently.) The Nile emerging from this 
 lake, and being named the Nile of Egypt from its 
 running through that country, waters the countries 
 of Nigritee in the following order : first it visists 
 Zagawan ^ ; then Nubia, and its capital Donhala, 
 
 ' There is a considerable variation between the statement 
 here, and in the place aUuded to. For not only the lake is there 
 called Cura ; (as it is also called in tab. xxvii.) but there is also 
 described the efflux of a third river from it, namely, that called 
 the Nile of Makadsh *, and which is said to run out from the 
 east side, as the Nile of Ganah on the west, and that of Egypt 
 on the north. However, it is Ibn Said who speaks here, but it 
 is llm Sina who furnished Abulfeda with the above description 
 of the course of the Nile. The Nile of Makadsh is said, tab. 
 xxvii. to swell at the same period with the Egyptian Nile ; and 
 that it flows into the sea of India. In effect, all the great rivers 
 of Africa swell at the same season, because their sources are all 
 in the same climate. 
 
 ^ It is called Zagawah, in Abidfeda, tab. xxvii. Soudan, and 
 described to occupy a position correspondent to the NE part of 
 Nubia. 
 
 Our Author also says, that " the Nile, that great and cele- 
 brated river, is unequalled by any other in nature." That it 
 has the longest course of any river in the world, its waters the 
 
 * The Machidas of the Maps. It is also named the river of 
 Zebee. 
 
 VOL. II. E
 
 50 AFRICA. 
 
 situated in lat. IS*' N. Ion. 52' E."— He adds, that 
 after many flexures, it descends to Aswan, (Syene) 
 and thence passes on to Misraim (or Cairo), &c. 
 
 It may be perceived that neither of these authors 
 had any positive information concerning it, and that 
 Abulfeda, in particular, follows Ptolemy, in a great 
 measure. It ought to be of some weight, that the 
 opinion of Ptolemy, considered generally, should 
 have stood so long uncontroverted. 
 
 It also appears that Edrisi places the source in 16** 
 south, whilst Abulfeda only marks the parallel of 
 the two first lakes, which he places in 7°. Both, 
 however, agree in placing the third, or greater lake, 
 at the equator : but there can be little doubt but 
 that both are in an error, as well as Ptolemy, in 
 respect of the parallel ; though it would be losing 
 time to enlarge upon it. 
 
 Both of them also, in effect, allow the Nile of the 
 Negroes (Niger) to be derived from the same source 
 as the Nile of Egypt : but Edrisi's statement is the 
 most positive of the two. And again, Abulfeda 
 quotes Ibn Said ^, who says that Ganah, situated in 
 the heart of Africa, is on the bank of a river of the 
 
 most pure, that stones do not become green in it, as in other 
 rivers, and that its increase is occasioned by the rain that falls in 
 the countries near its sources. But he is mistaken in saying 
 that its waters increase, as the days shorten ; since the contrary 
 is a well-known fact. Accuracy is not the praise of Oriental 
 writers. 
 
 * Abulfeda, Tab. xxvii. Soudan.
 
 AFRICA. 51 
 
 name of Nile, which springs from the same place as 
 the Nile of Egypt. He indeed calls it the tivin 
 hrother of the Nile ; though if Edrisi was right, it 
 would be rather the offspring, or a derivative from 
 it. The same Ibn Said again speaks of the Nile "*, 
 at Tocriir in the country of the Negroes ; but as 
 Tocrur is situated on a continuation of the river of 
 Tombuctoo, the Niger must be the river meant ; 
 that is, the Nile of the Negroes, and not that of 
 Egypt. And as he also says that the Nile of 
 Ganah (still meaning the Niger) fell into the ocean, 
 in lat. 14" ; by which it is evident that he took the 
 Senegal river for it, his authority goes for nothing ; 
 since the late discoveries of Mr. Park prove that the 
 river of Tombuctoo, (intended by the Niger) runs 
 from ivest to east, agreeing with Herodotus. As 
 the authorities both for this fact, and for the conti- 
 nuation of this river, to the country of Wangara, 
 are already before the public ; being detailed in the 
 Proceedings of the African Association (1798), and 
 in the Appendix to the Travels of Mr. Park, it will 
 be needless to repeat them here. 
 
 Edrisi's account also, for the above reasons, goes 
 for nothing, when he describes the derivation from 
 the Egyptian Nile, at the lake Kawar, to run to the 
 west, through the greatest part of the territories of 
 the NigritcB. It is, however, very possible that a 
 stream from the neighhourhood of the lake Kawar 
 (although not from the lake itself), and perhaps, 
 separated from it only by a ridge of mountains, may 
 
 * Abulfeda, Tab. xxvii. Soudan. 
 E 2
 
 52 AFRICA. 
 
 flow to the west ; and that it may join the river of 
 Tombuctoo, by the medium of a lake ; possibly that 
 of Kauga : (See Proceedings African Assoc. 1798, 
 p. 146, and App. to Park's Travels, p. Ixxix. ;) but 
 neither does the great midland river of Africa run to 
 the west ; nor does it communicate with the Atlantic. 
 
 It is worth remarking, that Ptolemy describes a 
 river springing from the SE, about the parallel of 
 10" N, amongst the Nuhi, and flowing to the NW, 
 into the river Gir ; apparently meant for the river 
 of Bornou. This may be the river meant by Edrisi ^ 
 
 We shall conclude this part of our subject by 
 remarking, that neither Edrisi nor Abulfeda take 
 any notice of the eastern head of the Nile, which 
 rises in Abyssinia. This would have been entirely 
 in favour of that system, which places the principal 
 source of the Nile there, had not both of these au- 
 thors known, and treated of, the country of Abyssinia, 
 in their respective works. At the same time, it may 
 be observed, that the line of course of the great 
 Abyssinian branch, and the position of the lake 
 T%ana, in respect of it, are so totally different from 
 the descriptions of the head of the Nile, by Ptolemy, 
 Edrisi, and Abulfeda, that, in our idea, it is scarcely 
 possible to confound them together. 
 
 Since Herodotus believed that the sources of the 
 
 ° It is certain that Abulfeda remarks (Prolegomena, lake 
 CuraJ that although Ibn Said and Edrisi have wrote that the 
 Nile of Ganah issues from the lake Cura (or Kawar), yet that 
 Ptolemy denies that any other river but the Egyptian Nile issues 
 from that lake : and that the Nile of Ganah (i. e. the Niger) flows 
 from some other source.
 
 AFRICA. 5S 
 
 Nile were much more remote than four months' 
 journey from Upper Egypt ; whether to the soutli, 
 or south-westward ; this bespeaks a behef of the 
 extension of the continent of Africa^ to the neigh- 
 bourhood of, if not to, the equator itself. And as it 
 may naturally be supposed that he does not limit the 
 Continent absolutely to the place of the source, a far- 
 ther extension must be reckoned on ; and we may 
 assume that Herodotus believed that Africa extended 
 beyond the equator, southward. But even this ex- 
 tent does not come up to the idea which naturally 
 arises, on the comparison made by him of the lengths 
 of the different Continents of Europe and Africa : 
 for the expression is, '' Europe, in length, 7nuch ex- 
 ceeds the other two, but is oifar hiferior breadth :" 
 Melp. 42 : which may be understood to mean, that 
 the length o^ Africa and Asia bear at least some 
 degree of proportion to that of Europe. The rela- 
 tive proportion certainly cannot be fixed, but it may 
 be understood, as on other occasions, generally ; as 
 for instance, i^ or i would be thought a considerable 
 proportion of excess. 
 
 The length of Europe, under its accustomed 
 boundaries. Cape St. Vincent and the river Tanais, 
 would reach a few degrees only, to the south of the 
 equator ; from the northern point of Africa near 
 Carthage : but Herodotus, as we have seen, assumed 
 a different limit for Europe, and included the Isse- 
 dones in it ; whence, the length of Europe, accord- 
 ing to his system, would have reached from Carthage, 
 to about the 20th degree of south latitude, in Africa. 
 If therefore \ or | of this extent, be assumed as a
 
 54 AFRICA. 
 
 proportion, Africa will be extended to five or eight 
 degrees south of the equator. Nor could a person, 
 who believed that the circumnavigation of it em- 
 ployed more than two years, well suppose a less 
 extent. 
 
 It appears on the whole, as if the knowledge of 
 Herodotus, respecting the detail of the interior parts 
 of Africa, extended only to the upper part of the 
 course of the Nile, southward; and on the SW, to 
 the Niger. And although he knew the fact, simply, 
 that Africa was surrounded by the ocean, yet he 
 seems to have known no particulars relating to the 
 coasts, beyond the places to which the Carthaginians 
 traded, on the west side; perhaps to the neighbour- 
 hood of Sierra Leona : nor on the east, beyond the 
 Macrobian Ethiopians, who appear to have extended 
 to the ocean, beyond the outlet of the Arabian gulf. 
 So that it seems as if the extent of the geographical 
 knoM^ledge in detail, possessed by Herodotus, cor- 
 responded pretty nearly with that of Ptolemy : 
 bating the western rivers that fall into the Atlantic, 
 and the coasts of Mozambique and Sofala : although 
 they respectively formed very different conclusions, 
 concerning the termination of the Continent, south- 
 ward.
 
 SECTION XVIL 
 
 CONCERNING THE ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, AND THE ANCIENT 
 CANALS THAT UNITED THE TWO SEAS. 
 
 The ancients inhtaken in the breadth of the Isthmus of Suez, 
 which they reckoned much too wide — Source of the error — 
 Opinions of the ancient geogr a jyhers severally — The moderns 
 generally in the same error — The question determined by the 
 difference of latitude — Construction of the geogra2^hy of the 
 Isthmus, and of the positions on which the lines of the canals 
 depend — Arrangement o/Telusium, Heroopolis, and the head 
 of the Arabian gulf, in respect of the Egyptian Babylon — 
 Conjecture respecting the site of Heroopohs, or Heroum — 
 Salhia the Sile of the Antonine Itinerary — Mount Casius — 
 Pelusiac branch of the Nile, no longer exists, than as a peri- 
 odical stream ; and in a different line of course — Bubastis, at the 
 head of the canal of Necho, ptlaced — General idea of the 
 courses of the ancient canals across the Isthmus — All drawn 
 from the Nile, and not from the Mediterranean Sea — History 
 of the different canals, according to Herodotus, Strabo, Dio- 
 dorus, and Pliny — Doubts resjiecting the person who first com- 
 rileted the communication — Herodotus to be credited, when he 
 reports that Necho began, and Darius completed it — Ptolemy 
 Philadelphus probably renewed, and improved it — Investiga- 
 tion of the particular line of the first canal, from the Pelusiac 
 branch, to the Red Sea — Considerable traces remaining — The 
 canal of Trajan, and of the Caliphs, no more than a branch 
 added to the former one — Causes of the retreat of the Sea, from 
 the head of the Arabian Gulf — Rise of the tide in it — Idea 
 
 13
 
 56 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 that the Red Sea was higher than the Mediterranean, perhaps 
 
 founded — Descent of the different canals compared — Complete 
 
 failure of the p)roject of uniting, permanently, the two Seas — 
 
 The floods of the Nile favourable to it — Reported dimensions 
 
 of the canals of Necho, Darius, and Ptolemy. 
 
 The breadth of the Isthmus of Suez, was by no 
 means correctly known to the ancients : on the con- 
 trary, they all supposed it to be much wider than it 
 really is. The Arabian geographers fell into the 
 same error ; although it be a question that depends 
 on the difference of latitude between the approxi- 
 mating parts of the two seas. 
 
 In Herodotus, the source of the error may be 
 traced, in the supposition that mount Casius, which 
 was situated on the shore of the Mediterranean sea, 
 at about half a degree to the eastward of Pelusium, 
 lay opposite to the head of the gulf of Heroopolis 
 (or of Suez). The same kind of error is observable 
 in Ptolemy ; in whose geography mount Casius and 
 Heroopolis appear nearly under the same meridian, 
 although there is nearly a degree of longitude, as 
 well as of latitude, between them. Pliny, who was, 
 however, ignorant of the distance, appears to have 
 known that the narrowest part of the Isthmus lay 
 between Pelusium and Arshioe ; which latter stood 
 near the present Suez. 
 
 The distance between Casius and the head of the 
 gulf, appears to be about 64 G. miles, at this time \ 
 Some of the ancients allowed 83 ; and reckoned this 
 
 ' The Red sea is constantly retiring to the south : therefore 
 the distance must alter.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 57 
 
 space the breadth of the Isthmus : but it will be 
 found to exceed the truth, by much more than half 
 the actual breadth. 
 
 Herodotus allows (in Euterpe 158. and Melpom. 
 4.) 1000 stadia between the two seas, by the shortest 
 passage ^. This number of stades, on our scale, is 
 equal to about 83 G. miles ; which is exactly the 
 space allowed by Ptolemy, between the narrowest 
 part of the land, between the two seas. 
 
 Pliny, lib. ii. c. ^'^, allows 115 MP. ; perhaps 
 meant for 920 stades : but he says, lib. v. c. 11. that 
 Agrippa allowed 125 M.P. (that is, 1000 stadia) 
 between Arsinoe, at the head of the Arabian gulf, 
 and Pelusium. 
 
 Strabo allows 900 stadia (equal to 77 G. miles on 
 his scale), for the breadth of the Isthmus between 
 Pelusium and Heroopolis : but he says that Posi- 
 donius supposed it to be 1500. See pages 491 and 
 803. Heroopolis, however, lay considerably wide to 
 the north and west of Arsinoe. One is surprised 
 that a great geographer, and one who had visited 
 Egypt, should have obtained no better intelligence. 
 
 ^ He says, (Euterpe, 158.) " From the northern to the 
 southern, or as it is generally called, the Red sea, the shortest 
 passage is over mount Casius, which divides Egypt from Syria ; 
 from whence to the Arabian gulf are a thousand stadia. The 
 way by the canal, on account of the different circumflexions, is 
 considerably longer." 
 
 Here he seems to regard the whole water communication 
 between the two seas, a great part of which was by the Nile 
 itself, as the canal. He also says in the same chapter, that 
 " the length of the canal was equal to a four days' voyage :" 
 but it appears to have been considerably more.
 
 58 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 In effect, the breadth of the Isthmus, between Suez, 
 (near the ancient Arsinoe,) and the sea coast of the 
 bay of Farama, near the site of Pelusium, (between 
 which places the breadth of the Isthmus must pro- 
 perly be reckoned) appears to be Httle more than 48 
 G. miles. The latitude of Suez is correctly known 
 to be 30'' 2' ^ : and M. D'Anville, who ought, from 
 his local situation, to have known more concerning 
 the subject than most men, fixes the latitude of 
 Farama at 30^ 50' : consequently, the difference of 
 latitude, which is equal to the breadth of the 
 Isthmus (within a fraction of a mile, as Farama hes 
 only five or six miles to the eastward of the meridian 
 of Suez), is no more than 48 geographic miles ; and 
 therefore 5Q miles of British standard may be taken 
 for the distance across. M. Volney allows 18 or 19 
 French leagues ; which, at a mean, may be reckoned 
 57 British miles. 
 
 M. D'Anville, probably on a supposition that the 
 statement of Ptolemy was just, allowed 83 G. miles 
 between Casius and Suez ; and thus placed the latter 
 in the parallel of 29" 45', which is 17 min. too far to 
 the south. Ptolemy allowed 29° 50'. 
 
 As it may be satisfactory to the reader, as well in 
 respect of the Isthmus, as of the famous canals that 
 intersected it, to have before him the authorities on 
 which the positions in and about the Isthmus, and 
 between it and the Nile, are determined, they are 
 here subjoined in detail. 
 
 ' Mr. Dalrymple took an observation there in 177C ; and 
 Captain White in 1795.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 59 
 
 The distance between Cairo and Suez forms the 
 base of this construction. Cairo lies in lat. 30" 3' ; 
 Suez in 30" 2' ; both by celestial observation ; and 
 by extending the line to the site of the Egijj)tian 
 Babylon, an opportunity offers of using the distances 
 in Ptolemy, and in the Antonine Itinerary. Those 
 in the Theodosian Tables are imperfect. 
 
 The distance between Cairo and Suez is taken at 
 32 hours' caravan travelling ; of which seven or more 
 lie so wide of the direct line, as to reduce the direct 
 distance to little more than 30 hours. And accord- 
 ingly, 60,4 G. miles are allowed, on a proportion of 
 two per hour ^. The site of Babylon, taken for 
 Fostat, is about three miles to the SW of Cairo ; 
 so that the whole length of the base will be 61,9, or 
 62 miles. Ptolemy allows Q6, but it is well under- 
 stood that his longitudes are always in excess ^. He 
 places Herotun, or Heroopolis, 55 to the east of 
 Babylon, 13^ to the NW of the inmost recess of 
 the Arabian gulf. If these distances be corrected 
 
 * The Lake of the Pilgrims lies at a bearing of E 30° N from 
 Cairo, and Ajeroud at NW from Suez ; whilst the general direc- 
 tion of the road is due east. 
 
 ^ The longitude of Suez, according to the observations of 
 Captain White, in 1795, is 32° 28' 30" east of Greenwich. The 
 60,4 G. miles of easting between Cairo and Suez, give 1" 9' 45" 
 diff. Ion. placing Cairo in 31" 18' 45" : but in the Con. des 
 Temps, it is given at 31" 29'. M. Niebuhr's Chart of the Delta 
 allows 00^ G. miles of westing between Cairo and Alexandria ; 
 equal to 1" 10' 30" diff. Ion. ; consequently, Alexandria should 
 be in 30" 8' 15". And the Con. des Temps has actually 
 27" 50' 22" east of Paris, or 30" 9' 22" from Greenwich; 
 differing little more than one minute.
 
 GO ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 by the rule just given us, they ought to be respec- 
 tively 52i and 12f ; and Heroopolis will also be 
 found to occupy nearly this position, by the notices 
 afforded by the Antonine Itinerary ". 
 
 That Itinerary has a route from the Egyptian 
 Babylon to Pelusium: another from Babylon to 
 Heroopolis ; branching out from the former, at a 
 point nearly midway between the two places, and 
 extending onward to Serapiu ; presumed to have 
 been situated near the head of the gulf at Arsinoe ; 
 and a third from Serapiu to Pelusium. From these 
 lines of distance, together with the latitude of Pelu- 
 sium, (as it is found in M. D'Anville) the breadth of 
 the Isthmus, together with the intermediate posi- 
 tions, on which the lines of the canals depend, may 
 be approximated. 
 
 The latitude of Tinah, the ancient Pelusium, be- 
 ing given at 30" 48' ; and that of Farama \ at the 
 mouth of that branch of the Nile, 30° 50' ; conse- 
 quently, the difference of latitude between Suez and 
 Pelusium, is 46 min. : and between the approximat- 
 ing parts of the two seas, 48. 
 
 The Antonine Itinerary allows 112 MP. equal to 
 80 G. miles, in direct distance (when allowance is 
 
 ® This place is more commonly named Heroum than Heroopo- 
 lis, by the ancient geographers. Strabo universally names it so : 
 so do Ptolemy and Pliny generally. The Antonine Itinerary 
 has it Hero. Josephus mentions it under the name of Heroo- 
 polis, (Antiq. lib. ii. c. 7.) and says, it is the place where the 
 patriarch Jacob, in his way down to Egypt, met his son Joseph. 
 It is situated on the inland road from Egypt to Syria. 
 
 ' See Abulfeda's Egypt, article Farama.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. Gl 
 
 made for the inflexions of the road ; as is to be 
 understood in every instance where the Itinerary dis- 
 tances are apphed^ in the course of the present dis- 
 cussion), between Babylon and Pelusium ^ If this 
 distance be extended between the parallels of 
 30" 0- 30", and 30'^ 48' (those of Babylon and Pelu- 
 sium, respectively), it will place the latter about two 
 miles to the eastward of the meridian of Suez (or 
 Arsinoe). M. D'Anville's construction has 13, and 
 he also allows 86 instead of our 80. 
 
 The same Itinerary has 60 MP. equal to 43 G. 
 miles, direct, between Serapiu and Pelusium ^. The 
 position of the former is unknown ; but, by circum- 
 stances, it ought to be near the head of the gulf of 
 Suez; and to Arsinoe, of course ; but this latter must 
 have been more to the north than Suez, as the sea 
 has retreated, and is constantly retreating to the 
 south : and has even left Kohoimi, which was a port 
 in the time of the Caliphs, three quarters of a mile 
 inland '. Therefore, Arsinoe may have been a full 
 mile to the northward of Suez : and Patiunos, the 
 place where the canal of Darius entered the gulf. 
 
 * Seethe Itin. pages 162 and 169. — Pelusium 16 Daplino, 18 
 Tacasarta, 24 Thou, 26 Scenas Veteranorum, 14 HeHu, 12 
 Babylonia : total 110. But the distance between Seen. Vet. and 
 Heliu is -given a second time at 18, which gives a total of 114. 
 The mean is 112. 
 
 N. B. The 112 MP. would give near 90, if taken as direct 
 distance. 
 
 '' Page 170.— Serapiu 8 Thaubasio, 28 Sile, 12 Magdolo, 12 
 Pelusio : total GO MP. 
 
 ' I'his will be spoken of, more at large, in the sequel.
 
 Q2 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 (Euterpe, 1 58.) still more to the north : or nearer 
 to Pelusium. Arsinoe, then, may have stood at 45 
 miles only, from Pelusium, which is within two miles 
 of the distance collected from the Itinerary, accord- 
 ing to our usual practice of deducting ^th part for 
 inflexions of the road ; although it is certain that, 
 in the present case, the road has an uncommonly 
 deep bend to the west, through Salhia, the Sile of 
 the Itinerary. For both Pliny and the modern 
 travellers say, that the track in the direct line across 
 is covered with a deep shifting sand, on which no 
 traces of footsteps remain ; wherefore, in order to 
 keep on the solid ground, it is necessary to make a 
 great circuit to the west ^. (See the map at page 
 55.) 
 
 The circumstances that lead to a supposition that 
 Serapiu must have been near the head of the Ara- 
 bian gulf, are the following. It is doubtless implied, 
 in the first instance, that a place to which the only 
 road from the capital of Egypt, eastward, and from 
 Pelusium southward, led, must have been of some 
 importance : and it being situated within the De- 
 sert, no other kind of importance can well be ascribed 
 to it, save what arose from its connection with the 
 port of the Red sea. 
 
 In the next place, the distance of Serapiu from 
 Heroopolis, in the Antonine Itinerary, is the same 
 with that of the Arabian gulf in Ptolemy : that is, 
 about 13 G. miles in the latter ; 18 MP. answering, 
 
 ^ Pliny, lib. vi. 29. Volney, who visited Suez, says much the 
 same. Vol. i. lett. 14.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. G3 
 
 within a fraction, to the same distance, in the Iti- 
 nerary. 
 
 And lastly, the Itinerary is silent respecting Arsi- 
 noe ; or any other place, at the head of the gulf. 
 Several places of the name of Serapiu, appear in the 
 Theodosian Tables, but none near Arsinoe, which is 
 itself noted in the Tables. They were evidently 
 temples of Serapis : they are distinguished by the 
 same marks as the temples of Diana, of Hercules, 
 and of Esculapius, in other parts of the Tables ; and 
 as those of Isis, within the very same country. In 
 our idea, therefore, no other can be supposed, than 
 that the Serapiu in question was a temple of Serapis, 
 near the port of Arsinoe. 
 
 With respect to the trifling difference of two or 
 three miles in the distance, that is not worth regard- 
 ing in a discussion of this kind. 
 
 On the road from Serapiu to Pelusium, Thauhasio, 
 at 8 MP. equal to about Q\ G. miles, is the first 
 place that occurs : and this being very little less 
 than the distance of Ajeroud from the head of the 
 gulf, at present, may perhaps have been the same 
 station under another name : especially as the road 
 must have led in that direction towards Salhia ; 
 Ajeroud being to the NW of Suez ^ The vestiges 
 of an ancient canal are moreover stated to be visible 
 in this track. Whilst the waters of the Nile con- 
 tinued to run, although they might only fill, perio- 
 
 * This is almost universally allowed. The reports of the dis- 
 tance vary from 2t\ to 4 hours. IVI. Niebuhr gives the bearing 
 at NW nearly : Pococke more northerly. We adhere to M. 
 Niebuhr.
 
 Q4> ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 dically, the reservoirs adjacent to the canal, the road 
 would certainly have been contrived to pass by 
 them. 
 
 By a reference to the Itinerary, (or see above, 
 page 60,) Thou will be found at 54 MP. from Ba- 
 bylon, or38i G. miles: 58 MP. or 41^ G. miles, 
 short of Pelusium. At Thou, the road turned off 
 to the right, or SE,24 MP. or 17]: G. miles, to Hero 
 (Heroopolis) ; which sum, added to the 13 of Pto- 
 lemy, gives an aggregate of 30^ for the distance of 
 Thou from the head of the gulf (at or near the pre- 
 sent Suez) ; or if the 18 MP. of the Itinerary, to 
 Serapiu, be taken, the result will be much the same. 
 Thou will then lie about seven miles to the right, or 
 eastward of a line drawn from Babylon to Pelusium ; 
 and which is a probable position for it : the modern 
 road, which passes through Salhia, taking much the 
 same direction. And here it is proper to repeat, 
 that the position of Heroopolis, reduced from the 
 authority of the Antonine Itinerary, accords gene- 
 rally with the result arising from the distance in 
 Ptolemy. This result was 52^ G. miles ; and by 
 the Itinerary it is 51. 
 
 Dr. Pococke (vol. i. p. 131, 132.) gives a position 
 which he names Haraminteleh, ^ust where we should 
 look for Heroum, or Heroopolis. The Doctor 
 places it in a valley, near the edge of the great plain 
 that opens towards Ajeroud ; and at 3^ hours short 
 of that place ; whence it may be reckoned about 
 7 G. miles to the WNW of it ; and as Ajeroud is also 
 about 3i hours or 7 miles short of Suez, the distance 
 agrees very nearly with that in Ptolemy ; and also
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 65 
 
 with the Ithierary, if it be admitted that Serapiu 
 stood near Arsinoe *. 
 
 Both Pococke and Shaw took Ajeroud itself for 
 Heroopolis ; although we can perceive no ground for 
 such a supposition : for Strabo, who says that it was 
 near Arsinoe, could only speak generally ; since its 
 situation appears so clear in Ptolemy. M. D'Anville 
 has gone into the other extreme, and placed it to 
 the west of the Bitter lake \ 
 
 Salhia, taken for the Sile of the Itinerary, is a 
 well known station ; as well from its being situated 
 on the last firm ground in Egypt, towards Syria and 
 Arabia, as from its having been in the present times 
 one of the out-jwsts of Buonaparte's army. Salhia 
 is given at 24 MP. or 17^ G. miles, short of Pelu- 
 sium, from Serapiu : and it lies very little wide of 
 
 * The time is thus made out : the first station from Cairo, 
 towards Ajeroud and Suez, was at 13 hours from the former. 
 The second station w^as Ajeroud, after 16 hours, without stop- 
 ping. Eleven of these brought Dr. Pococke to Tearosaid, 
 seated between very low hills ; and one hour and half more to 
 Haraminteleh. Of course 3| hours remain out of the 16, for the 
 distance of Haraminteleh from Ajeroud. 
 
 Dr. Pococke speaks thus of Haraminteleh, p. 131. " There 
 seem to be ruins of a wall built across (the narrow valley) to de- 
 fend the pass. After I left the place, I thought possibly the 
 canal might pass this way, and that this wall might be the remains 
 of the buildings of one of the flood-gates : we after came into 
 the open plain, and saw Ajeroud," &c. 
 
 The distance allowed by Ptolemy, between the head of the 
 gulf and Heroopolis, was 13^; here 14 is the result. It must 
 be recollected that the sea has retired to the southward since the 
 time of Ptolemy. 
 
 ° Concerning this lake much more will be said presently. 
 VOL. II. F
 
 QQ ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 the road from Babylon (or say Cairo,) to Pelusium. 
 It should therefore be 88 MP. or 63 G. miles from 
 Babylon; 60 from Cairo. Travellers allow 27 to 
 28 hours of the caravan, between Cairo and Salhia ; 
 which may be taken at 56 miles ; whence the dis- 
 tance falls short only 4 miles : and as Thevenot 
 reckoned 10 hours, or 20 miles, between Salhia and 
 a deep inlet of the sea, which appears to be a conti- 
 nuation of the lake Men^ala, opposite Tinah, or 
 Pelusium, we have here the deficiency supplied 
 pretty satisfactorily. Perhaps a part of the deficiency 
 arising on the road from Serapiu to Pelusium, may 
 be accounted for in the same manner. 
 
 We shall not pursue the discussion of the road to 
 Syria any farther in this place, than just to men- 
 tion, that 16 hours beyond the inlet brought 
 Thevenot to Catieh, the ancient Casium, situated 
 under mount Casius ; and which is therefore 26 
 hours beyond Salhia. The Itinerary, p. 152, has 
 only 40 MP. in two equal stations, from Cassio to 
 Pentaschoenon and thence to Pelusio : and these 
 can only be taken at 28^ or 29 G. miles ; although 
 the time would give considerably more ^ The dif- 
 ference may well arise from the sandy nature of the 
 road, which requires a longer time, and more exer- 
 tion, to travel it ; as appears on the whole of the 
 road across this desert ; which is composed of loose 
 
 * Abulfeda reckons one journey, or 19 G. miles, between 
 Farama and Catieh. The former being placed at 3 to 4 miles 
 to the north eastward of Pelusium, there should remain 244 at 
 least for the space between Farama and Catieh.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. (J7 
 
 sand \ Thus, mount Casius, it appears, should not 
 be quite 29 G. miles to the eastward of Pelusium. 
 And this being the case, the space between mount 
 Casius and Suez ought not to be taken higher than 
 64 G. miles, if any dependence can be placed on the 
 latitude of the mount, as it appears in M. D'Anville, 
 at 30*' 58'. 
 
 Thus, there appears to be a general agreement 
 between the Roman Itinerary, and the reports of 
 modern travellers, in the line between Babylon 
 (Cairo,) and mount Casius. But, on the road be- 
 tween Serapiu and Pelusium, we have no modern 
 Itinerary to compare with the ancient : and it is 
 certain that, although the distance given by the 
 ancients agrees generally in the aggregate, with the 
 difference of latitude, yet that the detail does not 
 agree, if Salhia is to be taken for the Site of the 
 Itinerary ; as in our idea, it ought to be. 
 
 The positions of Phaccusa and Biihastis ^ two 
 towns situated, according to Ptolemy, on or near 
 
 ' Thevenot reckons 53 hours of the caravan between Catieh 
 and Gaza. By the difF. Ion. between these places, the distance 
 between them in a direct hne should be 85 G. miles ; or, 
 taking the bend of the coast, the straightest line on which a road 
 can be made between them, is 88. This allows only 1,7 G. 
 miles per hour, whilst 2 is the common caravan rate : besides, 
 the last 7 hours are over solid ground. The Antonine Itinerary 
 has 96 MP. only, or less than the distance on a right line ; so 
 that some omission has happened. An observation for the 
 longitude at Gaza, or some other place in its neighbourhood, 
 would remove the doubt that now exists concerning the 
 distances. 
 
 * Called indifferently Bubastis, and Bubastus. 
 
 f2
 
 QS ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, are of considerable 
 importance, from their connexion with the canal 
 drawn from the Nile to the Red sea. 
 
 From the report of Herodotus, Euterpe, 17, it 
 appears that the Pelusiac branch struck to the east- 
 ward, immediately from the head of the Delta of the 
 Nile; at which place the Canopic inclined to the 
 west, and the Sebennitic to the north. More will be 
 said concerning these different branches, in the 
 sequel ; at present it will be necessary to speak of 
 the Pelusiac branch alone. 
 
 Herodotus is by no means distinct in respect of this 
 description ; and therefore it can only be concluded 
 generally, that there were three principal branches 
 of the Nile, which opened to the sea, at that time (as 
 there are two at present ;) one or more of which, like 
 the present ones, were subdivided near the sea, so as to 
 form seven openings altogether. The three branches 
 are described to be nearly of equal bulk and depth ; 
 and, it may be inferred that the Pelusiac one, although 
 perhaps not equal to the others, must have been of 
 considerable bulk, and preserved the form of a river 
 during the whole year ; otherwise, it could neither 
 have been regarded as a bulwark to the kingdom, 
 on the side towards Syria, nor could it have furnish- 
 ed a supply of water for a large canal. At present, 
 it no longer exists as a river, than during the season 
 of the swelling of the Nile. 
 
 That this branch had its origin from the head of 
 the Delta, in ancient times, and not, as at present, 
 at a point more than sixteen miles below it, appears 
 certain from the ancient descriptions : but as the
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 69 
 
 discussion belongs more properly to the subject of 
 the Delta itself, we shall request the reader to take 
 the fact for granted here, since it does not affect the 
 question concerning the place of outlet of the canal, 
 from the Pelusiac river ; that part of it appearing 
 to have preserved its ancient place. It is the upper 
 part only, which has either gradually removed down- 
 wards, or the portion of water that flows to the 
 eastward, has fallen into the bed of an ancient canal, 
 that led from the Sebennitic branch into the Pelu- 
 siac : of which kind of canals, many are known to 
 have existed. 
 
 This river is known by the name of Terraet 
 Miles, and strikes off from the Damietta branch (or 
 ancient Sebennitic) a little below Trieh or Atrib, 
 the ancient Athribis. The line of direction between 
 the outlet of this branch and Pelusium is E b. N or 
 ENE ; and such is the direction of the river itself, 
 in the chart of M. Niebuhr \ The town of Bastiis, 
 taken for Bubastis, lies also in this direction, which 
 adds strength to the supposition, that the lower part 
 of the Terraet Miies is in the line of the ancient 
 Pelusiac river; since Bubastis itself was enclosed 
 between two branches of that river. (Euterpe, 138.) 
 It is well known that the outlets of the branches of 
 
 ^ Sanuto has a branch called the river of Tenes, meant for 
 Tineh, or Tina, the modern name of Pelusium ; which appears 
 to answer to the Terraet Miies, and to the ancient Pelusiac 
 branch, in the lower part of its course. It indeed terminates in 
 the lake of Menzala in the quarter of Pelusium ; but this place 
 is known to have been surrounded by lakes and marshes.
 
 70 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 rivers, in alluvial soils, have a tendency to move 
 downwards, both from the elevation of the soil, and 
 other circumstances : so that the outlet of the river 
 in question, was doubtless much higher up, in ancient 
 times, than in the present : and the same change 
 has taken place at the head of the Delta itself, as 
 will be proved in the sequel. 
 
 Ptolemy places Phaccusa at the side of the Pelu- 
 siac branch, at 22^ G. miles, and Bubastis at 32^, 
 above Pelusium. The Theodosian tables allow 36 
 MP. for Phaccusa, equal to 26 geographic ; and if 
 Bubastis be only 10 miles above it, as Ptolemy 
 allows, this latter should be 36 only from Pelusium 
 towards Atrib. D'Anville has Bastus, probably 
 the same place in modern geography, at 20^ to the 
 east, somewhat north from Atrib ; which appears in 
 the chart of M. Niebuhr, in lat. 30° 28' 30", and at 
 one mile to the east of the meridian of Cairo. But, 
 as the space between Pelusium and Atrib appears to 
 be 65 miles, there is of course a deficiency of nearly 
 9 miles : and Bastus should rather be 45, than 36, 
 above Pelusium. Phaccusa, by the same rule, will 
 be more than 10 below Bubastis. 
 
 Sanuto has Al Besia in the place of Bastus, at 1 7 
 miles to the NW of Belbesa ; meaning Bilbeys, a 
 well known station on the road from Cairo to Salhia. 
 Belbesa, in the same geography, is 30 to the NW of 
 Suez ; that is, Al Besia is 47 from Suez ; agreeing 
 generally with the foregoing construction. Belbesa 
 is, moreover, 30 short of Salhia, in the same author ; 
 and by the report of travellers, it is from 13^ to 15
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 71 
 
 hours travelling : so that the whole may be deemed 
 consistent '. 
 
 Herodotus says, that the canal from the Nile to 
 the Red sea led out of the Pelusiac branch, a little 
 above Buhastis : Strabo says at Phaccusa. Pliny, 
 Avho is silent respecting the^^/r/c^, says that the whole 
 length of the canal, from the Nile to the Arabian 
 Gulf, was 62 MP. If these are to be taken for the 
 road distance across the country, they produce 44 
 to 45 G. miles, in direct distance : and the space, on 
 the construction, is 48 miles, according to the data 
 adopted for the position of Bubastis. This may be 
 reckoned a near coincidence, taken in a general 
 point of view. 
 
 We feel no hesitation in preferring the authority 
 of Herodotus, in this matter ; and for this reason in 
 particular, that Phaccusa appears to be situated too 
 low down the Pelusiac branch, that is, too near the 
 JNIediterranean sea to admit of a current of water, 
 from the Nile to the Red sea ; even admitting that 
 the two seas might be on the same level, which is 
 doubted. But Bubastis is actually at equal distances 
 from them, and the canal is said to have been drawn 
 from a point a little above Bubastis : so that, on a 
 supposition that the canal was formed on a straighter 
 line than the natural course of the Pelusiac branch 
 
 * We may doubtless recognise in the Ahhasa of Abulfeda 
 (Tab. Egypt.) a recent foundation, situated at about a day's 
 journey to tlie north of Bilbeys, the Al Besia of Sanuto, and the 
 Bubastis of Herodotus. 
 
 The Pibeselh of Ezekiel, ch. xxx. 17, is taken for the Bubas- 
 tis of the Greeks.
 
 72 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 (and which can hardly be doubted), a current, al- 
 though perhaps not of the requisite strength to keep 
 the canal open, would certainly have run into the 
 Red sea, even admitting that it might have been a 
 few feet higher than the Mediterranean. It is pro- 
 per to add, that there appears in Sanuto a water 
 communication between the present Damietta branch 
 and Bilbeys ; passing by Besia (Bubastis), and which 
 is likely to have been the course of the upper part of 
 the canal of Necho ^. The canal attributed to 
 Trajan, and described in Ptolemy as the Q'iver of 
 Trajan ; and which led from Babylon to Heroum, 
 most probably joined that of Necho at Bilbeys, the 
 PJiarhcEthus of D'Anville ^ 
 
 Thus we have endeavoured to arrange the posi- 
 tions on which the breadth of the Isthmus of Suez, 
 and the extremities of the canal depend. As it is 
 obvious that this arrangement could only be made 
 by a combination of the authorities generally ; and 
 as these frequently differ in a small degree from 
 each other, the distances and positions on the map 
 cannot be expected to accord with any particular 
 authority. But a description of the process would 
 be tedious, and of no particular use. The positions 
 
 ^ It will appear presently, that there exists in the present 
 times, during the swelling of the Nile, a water communication 
 between the lake Menzala, and the Bitter lake, near Heroopolis ; 
 the very line of Necho's canal. 
 
 ^ Ahulfeda describes a river that passes by Bilbeys, during the 
 swelling of the Nile, and which appears to be a continuation of 
 the canal of Kcclmb, named Abul Menagee. (Tab. Egypt. Ar- 
 ticle Belbais.)
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 73 
 
 whicli determine the lines of the canals, will be 
 spoken of in the succeeding part of the Section. 
 
 Having disposed of the question respecting the 
 Isthmus itself, we come next to the canals that were 
 drawn across it, in order to unite, by an inland navi- 
 gation, the two seas that washed the opposite sides 
 of it. 
 
 From the relative positions of the head of the Red 
 sea, and Pelusium, at which place the eastern branch 
 of the Nile discharged itself, in ancient times, it ap- 
 pears clearly, that a canal drawn across the narrowest 
 part of the Isthmus must have intersected some part 
 of the course of the Pelusiac branch ; or, at least, 
 must have fallen in at the embouchure of it. (See 
 again, the map at page 65.) Consequently, regard 
 being had to the general geography, and particularly 
 to the course of the eastern branch of the Nile, it 
 will be understood that some part of that branch 
 must be nearer to the Red sea than either Pelusium 
 itself, or any part of the coast near it ; had it been 
 advisable to cut it by the shortest hue. 
 
 But, independent of any other consideration, a 
 current of water from the Nile towards, and into 
 the Red sea, was absolutely necessary, in order to 
 effect the measure of keeping open the mouth of the 
 canal, in that sea ; and was no less useful, in respect 
 of a supply of fresh water, throughout a navigation 
 that not only led through, but even terminated in, 
 an arid desert. But it was believed that the Red 
 sea lay on a much higher level than the Mediterra- 
 nean, or even than Lower Egypt ; and which, if 
 true, rendered it a measure of necessity, to draw the
 
 74 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 canal from a point in the course of the Nile, high 
 enough to insure a current into the Red sea ; since 
 a contrary course of the stream would both spoil the 
 waters of the Nile, and ruin the agriculture of the 
 lower part of Egypt. 
 
 In the next place, the soil of the Isthmus itself is 
 a loose sand, which could not long preserve the form 
 of a canal ; because the country on both sides of the 
 Delta, as we advance from the banks of the Nile, 
 quickly becomes a desert ; being, in effect, a conti- 
 nuation, either of the Arabian, or of the Libyan 
 Desert. 
 
 Howsoever the ancients may differ, in respect of 
 the particular line of course of the canal, or in the 
 name of the first projector of it, they appear to be 
 agreed in this point, that the canals made by the 
 Egyptian and Macedonian kings originated from 
 the Pelusiac (or Bubastic *) branch of the Nile ; and 
 that they were by no means drawn in a direct line 
 between the approximating parts of the two seas ; 
 throughout which tract, as has been already said, 
 the soil consists of a deep sand, in which the very 
 tracks of travellers were obliterated by the winds. 
 And, on the other hand, the canals of Trajan (or 
 Adrian), and of the Caliph Omar, both originated 
 from a point near to, or above, the head of the 
 Delta. 
 
 We shall here set forth in abstract, the descrip- 
 tions given by the different authors, who have 
 
 ^ That branch was indifferently called by both those names. 
 Bubastis from its temples, and situation, was a place of great 
 importance : of which, more in the sequel.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 75 
 
 written on the subject ; that is, Herodotus, Dio- 
 dorus, Strabo, and Pliny : referring for particulars to 
 the extracts from the authors themselves, in the 
 note ^ It may be remarked, by the way, that 
 
 ^ Herodotus, Euterpe, c. 158, says the following : 
 
 " Psammitichus had a son, whose name was Necos, by whom 
 he was succeeded in his authority. This prince first commenced 
 that canal leading to the Red sea, which Darius, King of Persia, 
 afterwards continued. The length of this canal is equal to a 
 four days' voyage, and is wide enough to admit two triremes 
 abreast. The water enters it from the Nile, a little above the 
 city Bubastis : it terminated in the Red sea, not far from Pa- 
 tumos, an Arabian town. They began to sink this canal in that 
 part of Egypt, which is nearest to Arabia. Contiguous to it is 
 a mountain which stretches towards Memphis, and contains 
 quarries of stone. Commencing at the foot of this, it extends 
 from west to east, through a considerable tract of country, and 
 where a mountain opens to the south, is discharged into the 
 Arabian Gulf" 
 
 " In the prosecution of this work, under Necos, no less than 
 one hundred thousand Egyptians perished. He at length de- 
 sisted from his undertaking, being admonished by an oracle, 
 that all his labour would turn to the advantage of a barbarian." 
 
 Sti-abo says, pages 803 and 804, to the following effect. 
 " There is another canal terminating at the Arabian Gulf, and 
 the city Arsinoe, sometimes called Cleopatris. It passes througli 
 those called the Bitter lakes, whose waters indeed were formerly 
 bitter, but wliich have been sweetened, since the cutting of this 
 canal, by an admixture with those of the Nile ; and now abound 
 with delicate fish, and are crowded with water-fowl. This canal 
 was first made by Sesostris, before the war of Troy : some say 
 that the son of Psammitichus (Necho) just began the work, and 
 then died. The first Darius carried on the undertaking, but 
 desisted from finishing it, on a false opinion that, as the Red sea 
 is higher than Egypt, the cutting of the Isthmus between them 
 would necessarily lay that country under water. The Ptolemies
 
 76 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 Herodotus and Diodorus both refer the original 
 design, and commencement of the work, to Necos 
 (or Necho), the son of Psammitichus ; but Strabo 
 and Pliny, to Sesostris. Darius Hystaspes, how- 
 ever, is allowed, on all hands, to have continued the 
 work ; and, by Herodotus, to have completed it : 
 
 disproved this error, and by means of wears or locks, rendered 
 the canal navigable to the sea, without obstruction or inconveni- 
 ence. Near to Arsinoe stand the cities Heroum and Cleopatris ; 
 the latter of which is on that recess of the Arabian gulf, which 
 penetrates into Egypt. Here are harbours, and dwellings, and 
 several canals, with lakes adjacent to them. The canal leading 
 to the Red sea, begins at Phaccusa ; to which, the village Philon 
 is immediately contiguous." 
 
 Diodorus, lib. i. ch. 3. " From Pelusium to the Arabian 
 gulf a canal was opened. Necho, son of Psammitichus, first 
 began the work ; after him, Darius the Persian carried it on, 
 but left it unfinished, being told that if he cut through the 
 Isthmus, Egypt would be laid under water ; for that the Red 
 sea lay higher than Egypt. The last attempt was made by Pto- 
 lemy the Second, who succeeded by means of a new canal with 
 sluices, which were opened and shut as convenience required. 
 The canal opened by Ptolemy was called after his name, and 
 fell into the sea at Arsinoe." 
 
 Pliny, lib. vi. c. 29. " Sesostris, king of Egypt was the first 
 that planned the scheme of uniting the Red sea with the Nile, by 
 a navigable canal of 62 MP. ; which is the space that intervenes 
 between them. In this he was followed by Darius, king of 
 Persia : and also by Ptolemy of Egypt, the second of that name, 
 who made a canal of 100 feet wide by 30 in depth ; continuing 
 it 37^ MP. to the Bitter fountains. At this point the work was 
 interrupted ; for it was found that the Red sea lay higher than 
 the land of Egypt by three cubits ; and a general inundation was 
 feared. But some will have it that the true cause was, that if 
 the sea was let into the Nile, the water of it, of which alone the 
 inhabitants drink, would be spoiled."
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 77 
 
 whilst Diodorus and Strabo agree that Ptolemy, 
 (the second of the name) and he alone, was the 
 person who actually completed it. 
 
 Diodorus says pointedly, that Darius left it unfi- 
 nished, fearing the consequences of the higher level 
 of the Red sea ; but that Ptolemy made the matter 
 secure, by constructing a sluice, or sluices. Strabo 
 also says, that Ptolemy completed the navigation, 
 without leaving any impediment. Pliny, however, 
 does not allow that it was ever finished ; but says 
 that Ptolemy carried it on, as far as to the Bitter 
 lake. It was then found, says he, that " the Red 
 sea was three cubits (say 4^ or 5 feet) higher than 
 the low lands of Egypt ; and, in consequence, the 
 work terminated at that place." Pliny also makes 
 this observation — that, although the water commu- 
 nication was not completed, yet that the land route 
 was perfect, between Pelusium and other places on 
 the coast of the Mediterranean sea, and the head of 
 the Red sea : and then he describes it ". However, 
 
 * Pliny says, lib. vi. 29. that the roads between the two seas 
 are much frequented, on the score of traffic : and that there 
 were three different ones. First, from Pelusium across the 
 sands of the Desert ; in which, unless there be reeds stuck in 
 the ground, to point out the line of direction, the way could not 
 be found ; because the wind blows up the sand and covers the 
 footsteps. The second road begins at two miles beyond M. 
 Casius, and, after sixty more, falls into the former ; passing 
 through the Arabian tribe of Autei. The third begins at Gerlo 
 (or Adipson), probably intended for Gerrha, near Pelusium ; 
 and also passes through tlie Autei. This is said to be a shorter 
 road by GO miles, but leading through a rough country, and des- 
 titute of water. It has been shewn, that the whole distance 
 directly across the Isthmus is little more than 60 Roman miles.
 
 78 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 it must not be omitted, that further on, in the same 
 chapter, he speaks of " the river named PtolemtBus, 
 that passes by Arsinoe :" and which one can hardly 
 refer to any other than the artificial river or canal, 
 in question ; as surely, no natural river passes 
 through that quarter. Strabo also says, that the 
 canal of Ptolemy led into the Red sea at Arsinoe. 
 
 If, however, the fact really be, that Darius did 
 7iot complete the canal, it seems extraordinary that 
 Herodotus, who visited Egypt at no great distance 
 of time after Darius, should have been imposed on 
 respecting the existence of a canal, said to have 
 been made by the orders of the same Darius. No- 
 thing can be more positive than his assertion con- 
 cerning it, in Euterpe, 158 : " The length of the 
 canal (says he) is equal to a four days' voyage — the 
 water enters the canal from the Nile — and termi- 
 nates in the Red sea." Again, he says, '' it is dis- 
 charged into the Arabian gulf." And again, speak- 
 ing of the same gulf, in Melpom. 39, he says, " into 
 which Darius introduced a channel of the Nile." 
 And yet Diodorus, Strabo, and Pliny, flatly deny it. 
 Who shall decide ? If we credit Herodotus, Darius 
 performed it : if Diodorus and Strabo, Ptolemy alone 
 executed it : and if Pliny, it never was completed at 
 all! But as it was certainly completed during the 
 caliphate of Omar, in the seventh century, the prac- 
 ticability cannot be questioned. Nor has it been 
 doubted, that either Trajan (or Adrian), opened a 
 canal which, in the upper part, lay much in the same 
 line with that of Omar, (as to the lower part, that 
 seems to have been the same in all.) If, then, 
 
 13
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 79 
 
 Trajan and Omar executed such works, why might 
 not Darius and Ptolemy have done the same ? 
 
 Possibly the matter respecting Darius may be 
 thus explained : that his canal, made about two cen- 
 turies before the time of Ptolemy, had been choaked 
 up at the opening towards the Red sea, so as to give 
 the appearance of its having never been completed \ 
 A want of attention to the management of the hack 
 wafer, at the opening into the sea, would soon have 
 produced this effect : and the work of Darius might 
 either have been forgot, or Ptolemy might have 
 wished to discredit the behef of the fact. 
 
 The authority of Herodotus, individually, must be 
 deemed, at least, equal to that of either of the others ; 
 and has also the advantage of being perfectly free 
 from inconsistency : but as his visit to Egypt was so 
 near the time of the transaction itself, it ought, on 
 this ground, to be far superior. Besides, Darius 
 appears to have formed plans of discovery and con- 
 quest in the Indian sea and its branches ; and his 
 fleet from the Indus, conducted by Scylax, terminated 
 its voyage at Suez (see IVIelpom. 44.) : so that it is 
 very probable he might have persevered in a plan 
 that had for its object the junction of the two seas ; 
 and of which, the most difficult part had been ac- 
 complished to his hands. It must also be recollected 
 
 ' It would seem that the canal of Ptolemy did not remain open 
 to the time of Cleopatra, since her ships were dragged across 
 the Isthmus. Plutarch says, the distance was 36 miles, that is^ 
 MP. Possibly, that portion of the canal between the Bitter 
 lake and Arsinoe may be the part intended. (Life of Antony).
 
 80 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 that he was master of the whole coast of the Medi- 
 terranean, from Libya to the Hellespont. 
 
 The reason given for his discontinuing the work, 
 does not appear to be of weight, even admitting 
 that the Red sea lay higher than the Mediterranean ; 
 for it has been already shewn, in page 74, that the 
 head of the canal was at a sufficient elevation to 
 obtain a current of water into the Red sea \ Why 
 then should it not obtain credit, that Darius, as well 
 as Ptolemy and others, completed the navigation ; 
 since Herodotus both asserts the fact, and gives a 
 detail of the operation ? 
 
 We proceed next to the inquiry concerning the 
 position of the head of the canal, which originated 
 from the Pelusiac, (that is, the eastern) branch of the 
 Nile. 
 
 Herodotus says, that it was at a point a little 
 above the city of Bubastis ; Pliny, at the Delta ; 
 and Diodorus, from the Pelusiac branch : but 
 without particularising the place. But Strabo says 
 at Phaccusa, which, as we have said in page 70, 
 is not more than 26 G. miles above Pelusium ^ : and 
 
 ' If Bubastis be, as may be supposed, 54 British miles in di- 
 rect distance from the sea, the level of the surface of the Nile, in 
 the dry season, at that place, may be taken at 27 to 30 feet. The 
 descent of the Ganges, through its alluvions, is about six inches 
 per mile, reckoned on a straight line. 
 
 * Pelusium itself stood at a few miles above the embouchure, 
 at the side of the lake of Tanis, now Menzela. Farama, a mo- 
 dern place, stands near the present embouchure, which is com- 
 mon both to the lake, and to the branch called Terraet Miles.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 81 
 
 therefore the account appears improbable, from the 
 Avant of descent, towards the Red sea. We there- 
 fore follow the authority of Herodotus, and place the 
 head of the canal a little above Bubastis, which M. 
 D'Anville has recognised in the modern Bastus, or 
 Besia ; and which, as we have seen in the geography 
 of Sanuto, has the bed of a river passing by it to the 
 southward, in the supposed line of the ancient canal 
 of Necho. 
 
 It has also been remarked, in page 71, that the 
 distance assigned by Pliny, between the places of 
 commencement and termination of the canal, have 
 an agreement with the report of Herodotus, and 
 with the actual geography. 
 
 It is proper to observe, in this place, that M. 
 D'Anville, by placing Arsinoe (say Suez) about 17 
 miles too far to the south, has falsified the relative 
 positions all the way between it and Cairo : as well 
 as between it and the coast of the Mediterranean 
 sea. 
 
 It being admitted that the head of the canal was 
 near Bubastis, which stood at about 48 G. miles to 
 the NW of Arsinoe, whilst this latter (taking in a 
 general way, SueTi for it) is nearly in the same 
 parallel with Cairo, and at about Q0\ G. miles to the 
 eastward of it : moreover, that the border of the 
 hilly tract, (Mokattam) terminating from the south, 
 extends in a curvilinear direction, between Cairo and 
 Suez ; at which latter place it again turns to the 
 south, conforming to the w^estern shore of the Red 
 sea, as before its arrival at Cairo, it did to the course 
 of the Nile : we say, all these circumstances being 
 
 VOL. II. G
 
 82 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 considered, the meaning of Herodotus will easily be 
 understood, when he describes the course of the 
 canal, in respect of the hilly tract. " They began 
 (says he) to sink this canal in that part of Egypt 
 which is nearest to Arabia. Contiguous to it is a 
 mountain, that stretches towards Memphis, and con- 
 tains quarries of stone. Commencing at the foot 
 of this (mountain), it extends from west to east, 
 through a considerable tract of country ; and where 
 a mountain opens to the south, is discharged into 
 the Arabian gulf." Euterpe, 158. 
 
 In the map, facing page 55, will be found a 
 sketch of Lower Egypt, &c. in which the course of 
 the hilly tract, and of the canals, together with the 
 branches of the Nile, are described. There, the 
 border of the hilly tract appears conspicuous, being 
 described from the observations of M. Niebuhr, Po- 
 cocke, and others : and it is known, from the de- 
 scriptions of travellers in general, that to the north 
 of this hilly tract, there begins a plain, which extends 
 to the N and NE to the opposite coast of the Medi- 
 terranean. It will then be understood that Necho 
 began the canal, in this plain near the foot of the 
 hills, about midway between Cairo and the Red sea, 
 (but considerably to the northward of both, because 
 the hilly tract bends that way), and extended it east- 
 ward, inclining to the S, until he came opposite to 
 the head of the Gulf of Suez, w'here the hills turn 
 rapidly to the south, to form the bed of that gulf; 
 and where the canal, conforming to the edge of the 
 high land, bends also to the south, to enter the head of 
 the gulf: or, according to the words of the historian,
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 83 
 
 the canal, after " extending from W to E, through a 
 considerable tract of country, the mountain, opening 
 to the south, admits its discharge into the Arabian 
 gulf." 
 
 What proportion of the work Necho performed, 
 we are not told ; but it would appear, from the vast 
 number of lives sacrificed in it, that he performed the 
 most arduous part : since a great proportion of it, 
 near the foot of the hills, must have passed through 
 gravelly or rocky soil (this we are warranted to say, 
 from the reports of travellers) : whilst the part con- 
 tiguous to the course of the Nile, was probably 
 through its alluvions : and between the two, through 
 the sandy, or gravelly, soil of Arabia ^ 
 
 It appears, as well from the geography of Sanuto, 
 as from a very curious fact related by M. Niebuhr, 
 that there is a deep hollow in that quarter, between 
 the lake of Menzala, and the border of the hilly tract 
 on the east of Cairo ; and which is rendered mani- 
 fest by the chain of lakes and watercourses : in other 
 words, that the Nile has not yet filled it up by its 
 depositions, as it has the western quarter of the Delta. 
 It is possible that this state of things may have ori- 
 ginally suggested the idea of a canal to the Red sea, 
 when nature had already done so much towards it '. 
 
 ® We ought by no means to receive implicitly the repoi'ts con- 
 cerning the particular portions of the canal, that were said to be 
 executed by different princes ; because the accounts themselves 
 are not always consistent. 
 
 * Strabo, page 804, speaks of several lakes in this quarter ; 
 and which communicated with each other by canals. One, in 
 particular, in the Sethreitic province of the Delta ; and which 
 
 G 2
 
 84 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 The passage alluded to in M. Niebuhr (Desc. of 
 Arabia, p. 361), is the following. Speaking of the 
 lake of Menzala, called also Baheire, he says, that 
 from this lake, pursuing the course of a branch of 
 the Nile, perhaps the Terraet Miles, (concerning 
 which, see above, page 69, and also the map at 
 page 55,) small boats may go within one day's 
 journey of Suez, when the waters of the Nile are 
 high. He was also told that the country was hilly 
 in that quarter : so that no doubt can be entertained 
 that the termination of this navigation was at the 
 lake Sheih, or the Bitter lake, so often mentioned ; 
 and which is actually at the distance of about one 
 journey from Suez. Doubtless this communication 
 lies in the track of the old canals, and passes by the 
 ancient Bubastis and Bilbeys. 
 
 Herodotus says, that the line of the canal " was 
 lengthened by different circumflexions ;" whence it 
 may be collected, that although the general line was 
 south-east, yet that it first pointed very much to the 
 south ; that is, by the shortest line to the solid 
 ground, near the foot of the hills ; and which is the 
 course of the present water communication, between 
 Bastus (or Besia) and Bilbeys. This portion might 
 be 20 G. miles, or more. Then comes the part 
 which skirted the foot of the hills ; extending east- 
 ward to the Bitter lake and Heroopolis, whose posi- 
 tion has been already given, (we conceive satisfac- 
 
 may be placed between Bubastis and Pelusium ; and within the 
 Delta. Consequently, it may be regarded as a part of this 
 hollow space ; and answers more particularly to the lake through 
 which the Tenes river of Sanuto flows.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 8o 
 
 torily), in page 62, at 13 miles to the north-west- 
 ward of Arsinoe, at the head of the Red sea : and as 
 Pliny allows 37^ MP. from the head of the canal, (or 
 from BubastiS;,) to the Bittei' fountains (Bitter lakCy 
 in Strabo, and the Theodosian Tables), out of 62, 
 which is given as the whole distance to Arsinoe, this 
 lake should, of course, be 2 i\ MP. short of the latter 
 place : and the distance being reckoned by the road, 
 and not on a straight line, will be found to agree. 
 Hence, this lake must lie to the west, and not to the 
 east, of Heroopolis, as M. D'Anville describes. 
 
 At this place, according to Pliny (though Herodo- 
 tus says otherwise) the work of Darius terminated : 
 because it was feared, either that the low lands of 
 Egypt would be inundated by the waters of the Red 
 sea ; or that the waters of the Nile would be ren- 
 dered unfit to drink. Both Strabo and Pliny agree 
 that the waters of the Nile were led into the Bitter 
 lake : and M. D'Anville finds this Bitter lake in 
 the modern lake of Shieh or Abid Menagee, 
 situated, according to its geography, at 15 G. miles 
 east, somev>'hat southerly from Bilbeys : and which 
 position accords with the 37^ MP. of Pliny, given as 
 the length of that part of the canal which extended 
 between the Nile and the Bitter lake. The lake is 
 said to have the same bitter taste at present. M. 
 D'Anville, however, by placing Suez so far to the 
 south, has lengthened the line of the canal to 35 G. 
 miles between Heroopolis and the Red sea, although, 
 by our construction, it should be no more than 13 or 
 14 ; which would make a wonderfid difference in a 
 speculation of opening the canal anew.
 
 8G ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 The Trajamis Amitis ^ described by Ptolemy, to 
 run between Babylon and Heroopolis, must doubt- 
 less have fallen into the same line with that of Ne- 
 cho and Darius, along the foot of the hills : so that 
 he had no occasion to open the ground, but in the 
 space between Babylon and the site of the modern 
 Bilbeys ; a great part of which, as will hereafter 
 appear, lay through a deserted bed of the Pelusiac 
 river. This matter seems perfectly clear : Trajan, 
 as well as Necho, would naturally keep to the plain : 
 and regard being had to the course of the hills, there 
 appears to have been no choice in the line proper for 
 a canal. Whatsoever applies to the subject of Tra- 
 jan, in this place, applies equally to Amrou, the 
 general of the Caliph Omar, who is known, from the 
 authority of the Arabian historians, to have opened 
 a canal between the capital of Egypt and the head of 
 the Red sea ^ 
 
 It is well understood that certain parts of these 
 canals, remain still open in the quarter towards the 
 Nile ; which may reasonably be attributed to their 
 usefulness, in watering the adjacent lands, and in 
 supplying the reservoirs ; though without any re- 
 gard to navigation : and therefore, labour has been 
 regularly applied to keep them clear, in order to 
 receive a portion of the annual increase of the Nile. 
 It appears that there are two canals derived from 
 
 ' It seems to remain a matter of doubt, whether Trajan or 
 Adrian executed this work. We believe that the sole authority 
 rests with Ptolemy, who says that the river of Trajan runs from 
 Babylon to Heroopolis. 
 
 ^ Elmakin, in particular.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 87 
 
 this river, in the quarter of Cairo : the one, which 
 passes through the whole length of the city itself, 
 and thence to a very considerable distance to the 
 north-east \ filling by the way the lake of the Pil- 
 grims : the other, at about four miles lower down, 
 passes through the village of Kaliub, and thence by 
 the north of the site of Heliopolis, far into the plain ; 
 where it is said to join the other. It seems to have 
 been a matter of doubt, with some, which of these 
 respectively, was the work of the celebrated persons 
 above-mentioned. Savary is of opinion, and quotes 
 Macrizi in his favour, that the canal which runs 
 through Cairo, is the work of Amroii, and the one 
 lowest down, that of Trajan. D'Anville was of a 
 contrary opinion ; and we agree with him : first, 
 because Ptolemy leads the river of Trajan through 
 Babylon, which, there appears every reason to be- 
 lieve, was situated at Fostat, or Old Cairo ; and 
 secondly, because the canal of Kaliub seems to be 
 regarded by the people of the country as the work 
 of the Mahomedans \ 
 
 It is confidently reported that the traces of the 
 eastern extremity of the canal are also visible near 
 
 * M. Maillet was told that it watered tlie plain to the extent 
 of 20 leagues, to the north-eastward ; p. 73 : and M. Niebuln-, 
 that in the season of the floods, it led to Gaza : meaning doubt- 
 less, by the Terraet Mues and lake of Menzala ; (Desc. of Arab, 
 p. 362.) Pococke's information was much to the same purpose. 
 Doubtless it leads by Bilbeys and Bubastis, the old course of 
 the canal of Necho. 
 
 * The two canals of Foslat and Kal'iuh must have joined be- 
 tween Hank and Bilbeys ; but the place of junction is not 
 known to the Author.
 
 83 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 Ajeroud, and thence towards the bay of Suez. Aje- 
 roud, as we have seen, stands at no great distance 
 from the edge of the hilly tract which extends to the 
 NW, from the shore of that bay. Pococke says. 
 Vol. i. p. 134, " Part of the way from Adjeroiite to 
 Suez, is in a sort ol fossee, that is thought to be 
 the canal of Trajan ; and seems to have run close to 
 the west end of the old city :" — (by which city, it 
 may be concluded Kohoiirn is intended ; although 
 in page 133, he seems to consider these ruins as 
 belonging to the ancient Arsinoe.) M. Niebuhr 
 remarked the same appearance, but was in doubt 
 whether it was a part of a canal, or the bed of a 
 torrent ; for, by the herbage growing in it, water 
 must recently have flowed through it ; (Voyage en 
 Arab. Vol. i. page 204.) But he was told by a 
 Mahomedan of Damietta, that he had seen, in the 
 quarter towards Suez, the canal by which an attempt 
 had been made to join the Nile with the Red sea ; 
 (Desc. Arabia, p. 361 :) and, in effect, it is a com- 
 monly received opinion, that the traces of it are yet 
 visible. 
 
 Dr. Pococke also says, (p. 132.) that from Ajeroud 
 he " went on south towards Suez, in a sort of hollow 
 ground, in which, as I shall observe, the sea might 
 formerly come." And his observation afterwards 
 (p. 133), is, " if Heroopolis was on the most 
 northern height I have mentioned ^, the Red sea 
 must have lost ground : and indeed by the situation 
 of places there is a great appearance of it ; the val- 
 
 •^ He took Ajeroud for Heroopolis.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 89 
 
 lies, and the high gToiind, with hrohen cliffs, look- 
 ing very much like such an alteration" Sic. M. 
 Niebuhr and others ^ describe the same kind of 
 hollow, to the extent of four or five miles to the 
 northward of Suez, (Volney says two leagues,) and 
 which appears from all accounts to be the deserted 
 bed of the sea : or rather that bed filled up with 
 sand, to a height above the ordinary level of the sea, 
 in the course of its gradual retreat, since the earliest 
 times ^ 
 
 It may be conceived then, that from the Bitter 
 lake, which might be situated five or six miles to 
 the NW of Heroopolis, the course of the canal began 
 to bend more to the southward ; passing the latter 
 place, as well as Ajeroud (taken by us for the Thau- 
 hasio of the Itinerary), and finally bending still more 
 to the south from Ajeroud, it passes onward to Suez, 
 in which neighbourhood, according to Pococke and 
 others, the traces of a canal still exist. He indeed 
 ascribes the work to Trajan ; but, it may be sup- 
 posed, that, whatsoever variations may have taken 
 place, in the course of the upper part of the canal^ 
 (from the various plans of the several monarchs who 
 undertook it,) the part along the foot of the hills, 
 and thence to the Arabian gulf, was in all cases the 
 same, or nearly so ; and more especially in the part 
 in question. M. Niebuhr, in his plan of the Bay of 
 
 ' Desc. Arabia, p. 354 : and Volney, Vol. i. ch. 14. 
 
 " If an opportunity should offer of describing with precision 
 the plans and sections of tlie ground adjacent to the head of this 
 gulf, they will doubtless afford nuich satisfaction respecting the 
 subject of the retreat of the sea.
 
 90 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 Suez, &c. has marked the same traces, during three 
 or four miles, in a SE by S direction. The people 
 on the spot call it Mosheiha, and Diisra. 
 
 That the head of this gulf should retire, appears 
 consonant to reason and experience ; as well from 
 the operation of the tides, as of the strong south 
 winds, that are known to occasion inundations of the 
 hollow space above mentioned : and although an op- 
 posite wind may, in its turn, occasion the sea to 
 retire beyond its accustomed bounds, yet, on flat 
 shores, waters ever deposit more matter than they 
 carry off. The surge also has a perpetual tendency 
 to wash the sand up to a higher point : and even 
 the tide, which rises higher at the inmost recess of 
 this sea, than in any other part, must operate towards 
 the same end ^. 
 
 Concerning the superior level of the Red sea, to 
 the Mediterranean, we cannot help regarding the 
 report, as being founded on fact ^ ; and that the 
 
 " As tlie highest tide in the Red sea is found at Suez ; so are 
 those of the Mediterranean, at the upper ends of the gulfs of 
 Venice, and of Kabes. The conformation and position of the 
 land is much the same in all ; being such as to arrest, and also 
 to compress the nave of the tide moving westward. Accordingly, 
 the land appears to have gained considerably on the sea, in all 
 those places ; the wave having a perpetual tendency to cast up 
 sand, or pebbles. 
 
 The rise of the tide at new and full moon, is about 3^ feet at 
 Suez ; but less than one foot, in the middle part of the Red sea. 
 At the entrance it is 4 feet : see Niebuhr's Desc. of Arabia, at 
 the end. More will be said respecting the tides in the Mediter- 
 ranean, under the article Syrtes. 
 
 ' The words are, " higher than Egypt :" meaning, doubtless.
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 91 
 
 ancients had ascertained it. Since the waters of the 
 North Atlantic eternally flow into the Mediterranean, 
 this latter ought to be the lowest ; as water can only 
 run from a higher to a lower place. Again, the 
 Indian sea, of which the Red sea is a branch, runs 
 into the South Atlantic, round the Cape of Good 
 Hope, by a constant, copious, and rapid stream : 
 and is more particularly rapid during the southerly 
 monsoon, when the surface of the whole Indian sea 
 is impelled northward by the general wind ; and 
 cannot escape, in the form of a current, as in the 
 other oceans, because the land prevents it. At this 
 season, therefore, the difference of level between the 
 Red sea and the Mediterranean, must be greater 
 than at others : and it may have been at this time 
 that the comparison was made. No one can doubt 
 the great difference of levels between the gulf of 
 Mexico and the North Atlantic, although parts of 
 the same ocean. 
 
 It has been observed in the course of this discus- 
 sion, that the head of the canal of Necho, at Bubastis, 
 was equidistant from the two seas ; and that it was 
 doubtless contrived for the purpose of securing a 
 current all the way to the Red sea, to prevent the 
 admixture of sea water with the Nile ; which was 
 distributed through Lower Egypt, by means of a 
 tissue of canals, for the purposes of agriculture, and 
 domestic uses. That the water ran into the Fted 
 sea is proved from our Author, who says that " it 
 
 tlie lower parts of the Delta, and which are only just raised 
 above the level of" the Mediterranean.
 
 92 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 entered the canal from the Nile, and discharged 
 itself mio the Arabian gulf." 
 
 The canal attributed to Trajan, and that of Omar, 
 led out of the Nile at a much higher point than 
 those before-mentioned : that is, above, or near to, 
 the head of the Delta ^ Perhaps it had been dis- 
 covered that, in the former ones, the current, from 
 the smallness of the descent, was too weak to cleanse 
 and keep open the bed of the canal, particularly at 
 the place of its discharge into the Red sea, where so , 
 many causes operated to choak it up : and that, in 
 consequence, it had remained open but a short space 
 of time. Or it may have originated in the decay of 
 the Pelusiac branch itself, which rendered it neces- 
 sary to draw the supply of water from the main 
 river. The elevation of the level at Bubastis has 
 been supposed, in page 80, to be about 30 feet 
 above the level of the Mediterranean, in a course of 
 54 B. miles : but from the neighbourhood of Cairo 
 (Babylon), although the difference of level from the 
 sea would be increased to about 50 feet, or two- 
 thirds ; the distance by the line of the canal, to the 
 Red sea, would be increased no more than one- 
 third part. Consequently, the descent of the water, 
 in the canals of Trajan and Omar, would be one- 
 third rnore than in that of Necho, &c ^ But even 
 
 ^ The head of the Delta was probably opposite to Heliopolis 
 at that time. 
 
 ^ The modern canal of Alexandria leads out of the western 
 branch of the Nile, at Rahraanie ; from which, to the ancient 
 mouth of Canopus, is about ^ less distance than to Alexandria. 
 Admitting that it was made nearly straight, the descent of the
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 93 
 
 Avith this advantage, the canal does not seem to have 
 continued long navigable ; and if we may judge 
 from circumstances, for there do not appear to be 
 any historical notices relative to the decay of the 
 canals, none of them produced any lasting advan- 
 tages : otherwise, for what purpose were the land 
 communications established at so vast a labour and 
 expence, between Coptos and Kosire, and between 
 Coptos and Berenice, across the desert of Thebais ; 
 and that so shortly after the completion of Ptolemy's 
 canal ? Nor have we an idea that, at any rate, such 
 a work would be lasting, although it might flatter 
 the vanity of those who executed it : for, it may be 
 remarked, that the canal of Darius did not remain 
 open to the time of Ptolemy Philadelphus ; nor that 
 of the latter, to the time of Cleopatra. And, more- 
 over, that Ptolemy the geographer, does not describe 
 any water communication between the Nile and the 
 Red sea, although he lived within 50 years of the 
 time of Trajan, whose canal or river he extends only 
 the length of Heroopolis. And, finally, that the 
 Theodosian Tables, supposed to have been formed 
 in the second century of our era, are equally silent 
 respecting any such communication. So that there 
 is no reason to believe that any of the ancient canals 
 remained open during a course of two centuries : 
 and that Trajan's was of a very short duration in- 
 
 watercourse might be nearly equal to that of the natural course 
 of the river, and was well arranged. At present the water only 
 flows at the time of high Nile : the rise may probably be 9 or 
 10 feet at that place.
 
 94 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 deed, notwithstanding the apparent advantage in 
 point of descent *. 
 
 It is proper to observe, that in stating the differ- 
 ence of levels, that of the Nile is taken at its lowest 
 pitch : and as it is known to swell periodically more 
 than 25 British feet at the head of the Delta ^ this 
 gave an advantage in favour of the current towards 
 the Red sea; increasing the quantity of the descent, 
 at high Nile, to nearly one half more, than at the 
 season when it is lowest ; and in proportion during 
 the intervals of rising and falling. But as the floods 
 of the river, from about this point to the sea, de- 
 crease gradually, so as to form a regular slope down 
 to the level of the latter, a great part of the advan- 
 tage was lost at Bubastis, where the river cannot be 
 
 * The pilot of Solyman's fleet, in 1537, a Genoese, speaks of 
 cisterns at Suez, that had in former times been filled by an aque- 
 duct from the Nile. But he says nothing concerning any navi- 
 gable canal ; whence it may be inferred, that the canal of Omar 
 had so long ceased to be navigable, that it vs^as forgot : and also, 
 that the waters of the Nile, during its floods, had continued to 
 run to Suez, long after the navigation had ceased. The canal of 
 Alexandria also, has long served as an aqueduct, after it was 
 grown too shallow for navigation : but the existence of the city 
 itself, depending on this supply, there has been a regular system 
 of management, by which it has been kept open. Suez, in latter 
 times, has been of too little importance to demand such an atten- 
 tion towards its canal. 
 
 * M. Niebuhr's observations prove that the variations in the 
 height of the Nile amount to at least 25 English feet at the 
 height of Cairo. There is little doubt but that it rises very 
 much more in some years. 
 
 13
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 95 
 
 supposed to swell more than 14 or 15 feet \ The 
 advantage above was, however, attended with a vast 
 increased expence in the article of excavation, which, 
 of course, kept pace with the elevation of the ground 
 raised by the depositions of the floods : and the engi- 
 neer of Trajan must have dug, in the first instance, 
 to the depth of 25 feet at least, before he came even 
 to the surface of his canal, during the dry season, 
 whilst the engineer of Necho had only 14 or 15 feet 
 to remove. So that the quantity of the excavation 
 in the canal of Trajan, to the point of junction with 
 the old canal, (with the increased length and depth, 
 and the slope of the sides, occasioned by the latter 
 ■circumstance) must have been nearly double that of 
 Necho and Darius. Perhaps a regard to expence 
 may have regulated, in some degree, the position of 
 the head of the canal of Necho. 
 
 It remains, that a word should be said respecting 
 the different reports of the dimensions of the canals. 
 Herodotus, Euterpe, 158, says, that the canal begun 
 by Necho, and completed by Darius Hystaspes, was 
 '•' wide enough to admit two triremes abreast." 
 Strabo, (p. 804.) says, that the canal of Ptolemy, the 
 only one admitted by him to have been executed, 
 was 100 cubits broad, and had a depth sufficient for 
 
 " The reader is referred to the Appendix to the Memoir of 
 the map of Hindoostan ; or to tlie Philosophical Transactions of 
 1781, for further satisfaction respecting the rise of rrver floods. 
 It will he found under the article Ganges. 
 
 M. Niebiihr says, that the Nile swells about four feet at Ro- 
 setta and Damietta. Others say still less, and this ai)pears the 
 most probable.
 
 96 ISTHMUS OF SUEZ, 
 
 the largest merchant ships. Phny, lib. vi. 29, allows 
 only lOOjeet for the breadth, but 30 for the depth ; 
 which relative proportions are as improbable as the 
 absolute statement of the depth is exaggerated. 
 
 *^* Since this Section went to the press, the 
 Author has had the satisfaction to peruse Mr. 
 Browne's Travels in Africa, which, he conceives, will 
 be classed amongst the first performances of the 
 kind. The aids it brings to geography are great, 
 and will probably lead to further discoveries, as it 
 forms a link between Abyssinia on the east, and 
 Bornou on the west. Moreover, it confirms, in a 
 great degree, two positions advanced in the present 
 system of African geography ; first, that the Niger 
 does not join the Nile : and, secondly, that the most 
 remote head of the Nile is not situated in the quarter 
 of Abyssinia, but far to the south-west of it. These 
 remarks belong properly to Section XVI. 
 
 Mr. Browne has also a remark, which applies to 
 the present Section. He says (p. 177), that although 
 his guides refused to accompany him, when he wished 
 to view the eastern portion of the canal, which ex- 
 tends from Birket-es-Sheih to Suez, as they had 
 previously agreed, yet that '' all consented that 
 marks of the canal existed, and some of them arose 
 to his own observation." He adds, that " remains 
 exist of a stone pipe for conveying water to the site 
 o^Kolsiim, from Bir Naba." This is a well, situated 
 some miles to the east of Suez, and on the opposite
 
 AND ITS CANALS. 97 
 
 side of the shallow inlet of the sea that passes before 
 it. (Niebuhr, vol. i. 178.) One may conclude that 
 this work was unnecessary during the existence o-f a 
 canal from the Nile. 
 
 VOL. II. H
 
 SECTION XVIII. 
 
 GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE FLOODS AND ALLU- 
 VIONS OF RIVERS ; APPLIED MORE PARTICULARLY 
 TO THE NILE AND ITS DELTA : WITH THE CHANGES 
 THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN THE FORM AND DI- 
 MENSIONS OF THE DELTA ; AND AN INQUIRY CON- 
 CERNING THE SITE OF THE CITY OF MEMPHIS. 
 
 Preliminary Observations — All capital Rivers do not form 
 Deltas ; these being composed of Alluvions, deposited only in 
 shallow Seas — Two different Degrees of Slope in the beds of 
 Rivers — no arguments required to prove the progress of Allu- 
 vions ; but the rate of their progress uncertain — vast length of 
 Time required to form them — Manner in which they are ex- 
 tended into the Sea — Bars of Rivers, how formed, with Remarks 
 on them — The Alluvion, which is originally formed on a Level 
 ivith the Sea, is raised by the Surge : and afterwards formed 
 into a regular Slope, by the Dep>ositions of the Land Floods — 
 Sea alluvions, slope a different way from those of Rivers — 
 The Delta of the Nile, originally covered with water ; and was 
 afterwards in the state of a Marsh ; according to Herodotus — 
 Sesostris drains the Land by means of Canals, and distributes 
 it — Deltas comprise Tracts of Land, in an imperfect State of 
 Formation — their progress towards Completion, shewn by the 
 Rivers confining themselves to fewer Channels — Some of the 
 Causes that produce the Changes in the Courses of Rivers — 
 Pos^f ion o/" Memphis, deduced from ancient authorities, and 
 proved by modern Travellers — A Branch of the Nile turned 
 aside to prei^are the ground for it — Report of Herodotus re-
 
 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, &c. 99 
 
 garding this fact, conjirmed by appearances — Ancient course 
 of the Nile traced along the foot of the Libyan Hills — Con- 
 jecture respecting the Lahe Mceris — Proofs of the change of 
 Place of the Apex of the Delta ; which has advanced down- 
 jvards — opposite to Heliopolis, in the time of Strabo — The 
 western arm of the Nile grows shallower — Proofs of the 
 Rise of the soil in Egypt — Remarks on the Inundations of 
 Rivers. 
 
 At a time when some new matter respecting the 
 geography of Egypt may reasonably be expected, it 
 would be premature to enter into any other kind of 
 dissertation respecting it, than such as may serve 
 merely to render the present subject intelligible. 
 The construction of the geography of the Delta, &c. 
 that appears in the map, at page 55, is therefore to 
 be regarded as an outline only ; though, as such, it 
 is formed of the best materials that we have been 
 able to procure. Those furnished by M. Niebuhr 
 are the first in point of value, as they not only in- 
 clude the whole form of the Delta, and the relative 
 situations of the city of Cairo, the Pyramids, and the 
 sites of Memphis and Heliopolis, to the upper angle 
 of that celebrated tract ; but are also adjusted by 
 the aid of celestial observations '. A chart of the 
 coast, between Alexandria and Rosetta, brought to 
 England by a naval officer of great distinction, from 
 Lord Nelson's fleet, adds very much to the accuracy 
 
 * See M. Niebubr's Voyage en Arabic et en d'autres Pays 
 Circonvoisins, &c. vol. i. p. 71, &c. — Frencb edition. 
 
 The Map, No. VII. at page 55, contains both the ancient and 
 modern Delta ; the former according to the ideas of Herodotus, 
 the latter according to the latest observations. 
 
 H 2
 
 100 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 of that part : and for the rest, we have referred to 
 M. D'Anville's map of Egypt. 
 
 It has been stated that we do not profess to enter 
 farther into the geography of Egypt, than what re- 
 lates to the alluvions of the Nile, and certain other 
 particulars, since M. D'Anville has already entered 
 so deeply into the subject of the geography at large, 
 ancient as well as modern ; and, moreover, that when 
 a new body of materials does appear, the subject will 
 require more time and room than can be allotted to 
 any particular division of this work. What we pro- 
 pose, therefore, to undertake in this and the suc- 
 ceeding Section, is to remark the changes in respect 
 of form and extent that have happened to the Delta, 
 since the early times of history, together with the 
 probable cause of those changes : and also to inquire 
 into the position occupied by the city of Memphis, 
 and the change of course of the Nile in its neigh- 
 bourhood. The Egyptian Oases, and the position 
 of the temple of Jupiter Ammon, will form the sub- 
 ject of a future Section. 
 
 It is a circumstance well known to the generality 
 of readers, that rivers which deposit great quantities 
 of matter, do also very often separate into two or 
 more branches, previous to their discharge into the 
 sea ; thus forming triangular spaces, which the 
 Greeks aptly called Deltas, from the resemblance 
 they bore to the form of that letter of their alpha- 
 bet : and also that these Deltas almost universally 
 encroach on the sea, beyond the general, and it may 
 be supposed, original line of the coast. 
 
 However, the formation of such Deltas, even by
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. JQI 
 
 rivers of the first magnitude, is by no means universal ; 
 on the contrary, some of them terminate in deep 
 inlets, or Estuaries, instead of projecting forms : or, 
 if the expression may be allowed, they terminate ne- 
 gatkehj, instead of positivehj. Of this class may be 
 reckoned the great rivers of the Amazons, Plata, and 
 the Oronol'o ; besides many others, which perhaps 
 bring down an equal quantity of the matter of alluvion, 
 with the Nile, the Ganges, or any other river, that 
 may form the most projecting Delta. This difference 
 appears to be owing to the original conformation of 
 the adjacent coast, and to the depth of the sea beyond 
 it. If the Estuarium into which the river discharges 
 itself, and the sea beyond it, are exceedingly deep, 
 the alluvial matter will be lost in the profundity ; 
 ■whilst in a shallower sea, not only the bed of the 
 inlet itself will be filled up, but the matter will form 
 a projecting tract beyond it. And here it may be 
 observed, that the increase of Deltas will almost 
 necessarily be slower in modern than in ancient 
 times ; since the farther the work advances the 
 deeper the space to be filled up must be. 
 
 The Nile is amongst that class of rivers which has 
 the most remarkable, and most prominent Deltas : 
 and its Delta, from the celebrity of the country, of 
 which it forms so considerable a part, has been the 
 theme of history, from the earliest times. Accord- 
 ingly, we are enabled to trace many of its changes, 
 from positive records ; whilst those of other rivers 
 can only be traced from the appearances which they 
 exhibit. 
 
 Before we endeavour to trace these changes, it
 
 IQ2 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 will be proper to offer some general observations on 
 the courses of rivers, through their own alluvions ; 
 on the original formation of Deltas, composed of such 
 alluvions ; and on their subsequent changes. 
 
 All Deltas, as would appear by the sections of the 
 river banks, as well as of the ground itself, to a great 
 depth, are formed of matter, totally different from 
 that of which the adjacent country consists; proving 
 that they are the creation of the rivers themselves ; 
 which rivers, having brought down with their floods, 
 vast quantities of mud and sand from the upper 
 lands, deposit them in the lowest place, the sea ; at 
 whose margin the current, which has hitherto 
 impelled them, ceasing, they are deposited by the 
 mere action of gravity. 
 
 It is no less certain, that during the progress of 
 forming by its depositions, the low land which is to 
 constitute the future delta, the river, by its over- 
 flowings above, also raises such parts of the adjacent 
 countries, as are subject to be overflowed by its 
 waters. And hence it must be conceived, that such 
 rivers must gradually raise their beds : since, in 
 order to run at all, they must have a continued de- 
 clivity, the whole way to the sea : so that the very 
 act of extending their course, by forming new land 
 in the sea, requires a gradual elevation of the ground 
 the whole way from the margin of the sea, upwards. 
 Thus, alluvial countries must continue to rise, by slow 
 degrees, whilst the alluvions encroach on the sea ; 
 and the rivers themselves continue to overflow and 
 deposit. 
 
 The declivity, or slope, of the neiv formed land.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 103 
 
 as well as of the old, will be regulated by the 
 influence of the level of the sea, on that of t\\e floods 
 of the river : for although the river may swell 30, or 
 more feet, with the periodical rainy season, in the 
 parts removed from the sea, yet at the point of its 
 junction with the sea, it cannot rise at all ; since 
 water cannot be retained in a heap, but must form a 
 common level with the mass with which it mixes. 
 The land flood will therefore form a slope of such a 
 nature, as its gravity, combined with the declivity of 
 the stream, will admit: and it appears from experi- 
 ment, in another river, (the Ganges) that the slope 
 commences about the head of the Delta. But in 
 the Nile, we are told that it begins much higher ; 
 which is very probable, as its Delta is so much 
 smaller than that of the Ganges. Below the point 
 in question, at any given place, the elevation of the 
 periodical flood, as well as the level of the country, 
 bears a pretty just proportion to its distance from 
 the sea. This matter is abundantly proved by ex- 
 periment, and may be verified with ease. 
 
 But as the Delta of the Nile, in common with 
 other tracts of the same nature, was founded in the 
 sea ; and, in consequence, the course of the river 
 itself must have been prolonged through a tract, 
 which cannot, in the nature of things, be formed 
 (notwithstanding the regular and constant deposi- 
 tions of the floods) into so gi'eat a slope as that 
 part of its bed, which lies through the original land ; 
 it must of necessity happen, that there will be tivo 
 different degrees of slope, in the beds of sucli 
 rivers : the steepest over the original land ; and the 
 
 13
 
 104 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 least steep, over what was originally the bed of the 
 sea. 
 
 This opinion seems to receive confirmation from 
 the history of the river before us ; although other 
 instances of the like kind could be adduced. For, 
 it will appear, that the head of the Delta of the Nile 
 has absolutely moved doivnwards, several miles, 
 since the date of history : which must, doubtless, be 
 owing in part to the extension of the greater slope 
 downwards by the depositions of the floods ; if we 
 admit them to have raised the original land every 
 where equally, and to have formed in a course of 
 time, a stratum of vast depth ; by which operation, 
 the angle formed by the termination of the greater, 
 and the commencement of the lesser, slope, is, in 
 effect, removed downwards. These two slopes may 
 be compared to the slope of a hill, and that of a 
 gently declining plain, at the foot of it. A stream 
 will run down the hill, in a channel nearly straight, 
 but having reached the plain, it wanders, and sepa- 
 rates into different branches. If the hill could be 
 removed within the edge of the plain, the place 
 where the windings and separation began, would 
 advance in the same proportion : and thus we regard 
 the two slopes, and their operation. 
 
 It appears quite unnecessary to offer any argu- 
 ments in proof of the assertion, that alluvial countries 
 gradually rise ; or that they gradually encroach on 
 the sea ; since the sea coasts of all Deltas project 
 beyond the general line of the coast : that islands in 
 the sea, have in several instances been joined to the 
 main land, by the matter deposited by rivers : and
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 105 
 
 tliat not only history, but ocular demonstration 
 teaches us, that the levels of different alluvial tracts, 
 are very considerably raised \ But, it is probable 
 that the progress of the elevation, as well as of the 
 encroachment, has been very much over-rated, in 
 many instances ; and in none more than in the case 
 of the Nile, by modern travellers. That the Delta 
 has increased in the part towards the sea, since the 
 days of Herodotus, cannot be questioned ; when the 
 increase oi such coasts, in other countries, are per- 
 ceptible to the senses. The quantitij of the increase, 
 in a given time, is, however, a desideratum : for it 
 happens that the record of the distance of the sea 
 coast from Heliopolis, (in Herodotus) on which an 
 argument has been founded, is quite erroneous ^ It 
 
 ^ Pliny has a catalogue of islands that have been thus joined 
 to the main land ; lib. ii. c. 85, 89. More will be said concern- 
 ing the elevation of the soil in the sequel. 
 
 ' Our Author says, Euterpe 7, that the distance from Helio- 
 polis to the sea, differs only 15 stadia, from that betwixt Athens 
 and Pisa: 1500 stadia being the exact distance betwixt Heliopo- 
 lis and the sea. Now, it has appeared in p. 21, vol. i. that Athens 
 and Pisa are distant from each other*, 105 G. miles; but Helio- 
 polis is no more at this present time than 88 miles from the 
 Canopic mouth of the Nile, which was probably the part meant 
 (for the sea is, at present, much nearer in some directions) ; and 
 from the supposed point of the Delta opposite to Heliopolis, 8(5 ; 
 which was probably the place reckoned from. Hence, it may 
 be clearly perceived, that no comparison can be drawn between 
 the j)resent, and the former extent of the Delta ; since the num- 
 ber of the stades is wrong in the first instance. (See the rea- 
 sonings of M. Savary and M. Volney on this fact, in their re- 
 spective books of Travels.) But M. Volney has, however, made 
 some excellent observations on the Nile, and its inundations and 
 alluvions.
 
 106 ALLUVIONS or THE NILE, 
 
 has been noticed before, that the farther the Delta 
 advances, the deeper the sea that is to be filled up ; 
 and consequently the slower the rate of encroach- 
 ment must be^ There seems to be little or no 
 alteration at the Canopic and Pelusiac mouths of 
 the Nile, since the time of Herodotus ; which has 
 been owing to the choaking up of those branches ; 
 in which no water now runs, but during the season 
 when the Nile is svvoln. But the intermediate part 
 of the coast, between those branches, has doubtless 
 received great additions, by the waters of the Rosetta 
 and Damietta branches : though, perhaps, a few 
 miles only may have been added ^ 
 
 Herodotus says, that Busiris (taken for Ahus'ir) is situated in 
 the middle of the Delta. Euterpe, 59. It is remarkable, that 
 Abusir stands so precisely in the middle of the ancient Delta, 
 that there is no sensible difference between the distance at which 
 it lies from Pelusium, and from Canopus, respectively, on the 
 east and west ; and from the site of Cercasora, at the apex of 
 the Delta, and the most prominent points on the Delta, on the 
 N. and S. 
 
 There is something very remai'kable in this coincidence. 
 
 There was a celebrated temple of Isis, near Busiris. Herod- 
 otus says, at Busiris ; but the magnificent remains of the temple 
 at Baalbeit, (no doubt those of the temple of Isis) which are 
 particularly described by Pococke, appear to be situated at 4^ 
 G. miles to the NW of Abusir, which stands at the side of the 
 Sebennitic river, as Busiris did. See Pococke, Vol. i. p. 21. 
 
 * The sea is now eleven fathoms deep, at a little more than 
 three miles from the shore, between the ancient Canopic and 
 Bolbitine mouths. 
 
 ^ It is by no means certain, how far the city of Bolbitine 
 stood from the sea ; but probably much nearer than the ruins of 
 Abumander (taken for Bolbitine) now are ; these being upwards
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 107 
 
 Considering, then, the extreme flatness of the 
 Delta ; the quality of its soil, which is totally differ- 
 ent from that of the adjacent countries ; its form, 
 Avhich projects so far into the sea, beyond the gene- 
 ral line of the coast, on the one hand ; and on the 
 other, filling up a space, which, reasoning from 
 appearances, looks like a bay or gulf of the sea ; one 
 can hardly doubt that the space which it occupies, 
 was originally a part of the sea, from the neighbour- 
 hood of Pelusium, or of mount Casius, to that of 
 Alexandria ; and southward to the foot of the hills 
 of the Pyramids, and of Mokattam : which is yet 
 allowing little more for the depth of the bay, from 
 the supposed line of the coast, than the lower point 
 of the Delta now advances beyond it. 
 
 No doubt, when we carry back our ideas to the 
 time when the sea washed the base of the rock, on 
 which the Pyramids of Memphis stand, the present 
 base of which is washed by the inundation of the 
 Nile, at an elevation, most probably, of 70 or 80 
 feet above the surface of the same sea ; we are lost 
 in the contemplation of the vast interval of time, 
 that must necessarily have elapsed since the foun- 
 dation of the Delta was first laid. But appearances 
 speak too clear a language to be misunderstood : and 
 we are borne out in the supposition that the Delta has 
 been formed piece-meal, by a process which we shall 
 now endeavour to describe. The following may ac- 
 
 of eight G. miles; and M. D'Anville places Bolbitino less than 
 four from the sea. More than twenty marble colunnis had 
 been dug up from the sand at this place, about the time of 
 M. Niebuhr's visit to Egypt. (Niebuhr, Vol. i. p. 45.)
 
 108 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 cording-ly be taken as a specimen of the <progress of 
 alluvion ; and which may be seen, in all the different 
 stages of the process, at the mouth of any large river, 
 that deposits rapidly and plentifully. 
 
 All rivers preserve, to a certain extent of space, 
 which is proportioned to the velocity of their streams, 
 a current of water, into the sea, beyond the points 
 of land, that form their embouchures ; when, by 
 the continued resistance of the sea, they at last lose 
 their motion. The mud and sand suspended in these 
 waters, during their motion, are deposited, when 
 that motion ceases ; or rather, they are gradually 
 deposited, as the current slackens : according to the 
 gravity of the substances that are suspended. This 
 deposition, then, will form a bank or shallow, in the 
 sea ; and which will be of a fan-like shape, con- 
 sistently with the form in which the water of the 
 river disperses itself. This bank is of very consider- 
 able breadth ; and is, of course, constantly on the 
 increase, in height, as well as extension : and the 
 additions constantly made to its hreadth, will be on 
 the side towards the sea. Until the bank rises up 
 nearly to the surface, the river water, which is con- 
 tinually poured into the sea, escapes freely over it : 
 but when the bank has risen so high, as to inclose 
 the water in a kind of lake, it is then compelled to 
 force its way through the bank : although the pas- 
 sage will be both narroiv and shalloiv, whilst the 
 bank remains under water. This passage is techni- 
 cally named a Bar : for such it is, in respect of the 
 channel of the river, although it be the deepest part 
 of the entrance to it.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 109 
 
 The position of this opening through the bank, 
 will be regulated by the direction of the stream of 
 the river, at the place where it terminates in the 
 sea ; and this direction, again, by the prevalent mo- 
 tion of the sea, along the coast ; the mouth of the 
 river always falling obliquely into the line of the sea 
 current ". Accordingly, when the river enters the 
 sea obliquely, the bar will be at one side of the 
 bank ; and on that side which is the farthest down, 
 in respect of the sea current. But if the river enter 
 the sea, in a line perpendicular to its shore, the open- 
 ing, or bar, will be through the middle of the bank ^ 
 
 ^ Here it is proper to observe, that although the general 
 motion of the sea is to the east, along the coast of Egypt, yet 
 that there is a counter current, from the Rosetta river, through 
 the bay of Abukeir ; at whose point, it falls into the general 
 easterly current, which is thrown off from the coast by the pro- 
 jecting form of that point. 
 
 ' The position of the bar of any river may commonly be 
 guessed, by attending to the form of the shores at the embou- 
 chure. The shore on which the deposition of sediment is going 
 on, will hejiat, whilst the opposite one is steep. It is along the 
 side of the latter, that the deepest channel of the river lies ; and 
 in the line of this channel, but without the points that form the 
 mouth of the river, will be the bar. If both the shores are of 
 the same nature, which seldom happens, the bar will lie opposite 
 the middle of the channel. See the Map, No. VII. at page 55. 
 
 Rivers, in general, have what may be deemed a bar, in respect 
 of the depth of the channel within ; although they may not rise 
 high enough to impede the navigation : for the increased deposi- 
 tion that takes place, when the current slackens, through the 
 want of declivity, and of shores to retain it, must necessarily 
 form a bank. 
 
 Bars of small rivers may be deepened, by means of stockades 
 to confine the river current, and prolong it beyond the natural
 
 110 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 As the bank rises to the surface, the opening 
 increases in depth and width, until it becomes abso- 
 lutely a continuation of the course of the river ; since 
 its waters require the same breadth and depth to 
 escape here, as in the inner parts of its course. And 
 thus the upper part of the bank becomes gradually 
 a portion of the firm land ; whilst the outer part 
 goes on accumulating, and the bar is gradually re- 
 moved farther out : in effect, there will be a repeti- 
 tion of the same order of things. And hence it will 
 clearly appear, that the bank thus laid in the sea, by 
 the current of the river, is, in reality, the germ of 
 the growing alluvion. 
 
 The bars of certain rivers are swept away every 
 season, by the periodical flood ; which, although it 
 cannot rise to a higher level than the sea, is in- 
 creased in velocity, by the increase of the body of 
 water above ; and also by that of its descent ; as 
 the flood swells to a greater height above, and 
 therefore forms a slope towards the sea. These 
 floods also bring the greatest addition to the grow- 
 ing alluvion : and, not unfrequently, change the 
 direction of the channel, and with it, of course, the 
 position of the bar : their depositions being laid 
 farther out in the sea, by reason of the greater velo- 
 city of the current. 
 
 Having endeavoured to explain the mode in which 
 the alluvion gains on the sea^ we shall next endea- 
 vour to explain the manner in which the changes 
 
 points of the river's mouth. They would operate to remove the 
 place of deposition farther out, and into deeper water.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 1 1 1 
 
 and modifications of the existing alluvions are 
 wrought. 
 
 The alluvions thus formed in the sea, are, in their 
 original state, flat, and are also on a level with the 
 ordinary surface of the sea : but as the surge repels 
 that part of the deposited matter, which rises to the 
 surface, it will be raised somewhat above the level : 
 and as this agency has regularly operated on all the 
 new made alluvion ^ it must have formed one conti- 
 nued level, but for the interposition of the periodical 
 floods, which have formed it into a regular slope, 
 corresponding with their own ^. 
 
 As the alluvion, then, is extended into the sea, so 
 is its level gradually raised into a slope : an opera- 
 tion that is constantly going forward, but which 
 cannot keep pace with the extension, because every 
 addition to it, occasions a deficiency in the slope. 
 
 Until the new formed alluvion was considerably 
 raised, it must have partaken very much of the cha- 
 racter given it by Herodotus ; who says, that in 
 
 * An exception will be stated in the sequel. 
 
 ^ The sea alluvions differ from those of rivers, in that they 
 form a slope towards the land ; the muddy sea, like the muddy 
 river, depositing more matter on the bank, than at a distance 
 from it. But the matter itself may have been first carried by a 
 river into the sea, and afterwards cast up in the most convenient 
 place. It cannot be doubted but that the flat part of the island 
 of Trinidada is formed of the mud of the river Oronoko, &c. 
 which the perpetual westerly current, that ranges along the 
 coast, deposits. Romney Mai'sh appears to owe a part, at least, 
 of its extension, to a like cause. The general motion of the sea 
 is more easterly, than westerly, along the south coast of Eng- 
 land ; as is proved by the general state of the alluvions.
 
 112 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 ancient times, " the whole of Egypt, except the 
 province of Thebes, was one extended marsh ;" 
 Euterpe, 4 : and that when " the Nile rose to the 
 height of 8 cubits, all the lands above Memphis were 
 overflowed." (Eut. 13 \) Both of these traditions 
 clearly point to a state of things that had existed ; 
 although, probably, at a period too remote to be 
 fixed : for there must have been a time when the 
 Delta was not only a marsh, but was even covered 
 with water ; and when the sea must have advanced 
 so near to the site of Memphis, as to allow the 
 annual flood to rise no higher than 8 cubits, or 12 
 to 14 feet, at that place. He afterwards remarks, 
 that it rose 15 or 16 cubits in his time ; which was 
 the natural progress of things ; as the point of con- 
 tact of the land waters, with those of the sea, was 
 removed farther out. 
 
 So long as the alluvion of the Delta remained in 
 the state of a marsh, the waters of the Nile, through 
 the want of declivity to carry them off, and the pres- 
 sure of the sea water from without, when the river 
 was low, may be supposed to have formed a tissue 
 of canals, interspersed with lakes and marshes. But 
 when the land began to acquire some degree of 
 solidity in the upper parts of the Delta, canals, in 
 the nature of drains, would be formed by the hands 
 of men, and dykes raised along the banks of the 
 rivers, in order to exclude the redundant waters 
 
 ^ In Euterpe, 15, he says, " the Delta, as I was myself con- 
 vinced by observation, is still liable to be overflowed, and was 
 formerly covered with mater.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 113 
 
 from the appropriated lands. And this is probably 
 the period referred to by Herodotus, when he de- 
 scribes " the vast and numerous canals by which 
 Egypt is intersected ;" and which he attributes to 
 Sesostris. Euterpe, 108. He was also told, that 
 the same prince made a regular distribution of the 
 lands of Egypt, assigning to each Egyptian a square 
 piece of ground ; and that his revenues were drawn 
 from the rent, which every individual annually paid 
 him. (109 -.) 
 
 As the land rose by depositions, the waters would 
 naturally confine themselves to fewer channels ; since 
 the land, when in a firmer state, would require a 
 greater force to divide it. At a time when the upper 
 part of the Delta had acquired a degree of firmness 
 and elevation, we learn from our Author, that three 
 natural channels, alone, conveyed the waters of the 
 
 ^ The date of this event was doubtless beyond the reach of 
 history ; but it has been the general custom, to refer every 
 transaction, however remote, to some person, whose name is 
 celebrated in the history of the country in which it happened. 
 
 Herodotus adds, that " whoever was the sufferer by the inun- 
 dation of the Nile, was permitted to make the king acquainted 
 with liis loss. Certain officers were appointed to inquire into 
 the particulars of the injury, that no man might be taxed beyond 
 his ability. It may not be improbable to suppose that this was 
 the origin of geometry, and that the Greeks learned it from 
 hence. As to the pole, the gnomon, and the division of the day 
 into twelve parts, the Greeks received them from the Baby- 
 lonians." Euterpe, 109. 
 
 The like kind of humane and judicious attention to the 
 damages sustained by individuals, by the floods or incroachments 
 of rivers, prevails in Bengal, as in Egypt. The changes of pro- 
 perty, by alluvion, are equally attended to. 
 VOL. II. I
 
 114 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 Nile to the neighbourhood of the sea ; a quarter in 
 which the alluvial land must ever be regarded as in 
 an imperfect state of formation. At present, two 
 alone convey it to the same quarter, during the 
 season when the river is not swoln ; and one of these 
 is growing shallow. Can it be doubted, then, that 
 a delta, is (comparatively speaking) land in an im- 
 perfect state of formation ; that the natural progress 
 towards completion, is that of the river's confining 
 itself to fewer channels ; and that the inundation, 
 from being a complete mass of water, spread uni- 
 formly over the country, becomes merely an over- 
 flowing of the river, extending to a certain distance, 
 and forming the country adjacent to each bank, into 
 a slope of several miles in breadth, of which the 
 highest part is the crest of the bank itself ; from the 
 circumstance of its depositing more sediment near 
 the bank, than at a distance from it ? But as long as 
 the alluvion continued too flat to communicate a suf- 
 ficient velocity to the river, when in its low state, it 
 would continue to separate itself into many different 
 streams, although one of them would probably sur- 
 pass all the rest in bulk. On the above principle, 
 then, as the greater slope, described in page 103, 
 extends itself downwards, the Delta ought to retire 
 from it ; or, in other words, the river, in its course 
 through the high level, should flow unique ; and the 
 hase of the Delta should gradually contract : and 
 this, we trust, will be satisfactorily proved in the 
 sequel. 
 
 It has been said, that in early times, the place of 
 separation of the branches that formed the Delta,
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 115 
 
 was much higher up than at present. To satisfy 
 ourselves on this head, Httle more is necessary than 
 to refer to the ancient accounts of the situation of 
 the cqjex of the Delta. This is, indeed, a fact that 
 ought to be impressed on the mind of the reader ; as 
 without this conviction, he may not readily give 
 credit to the reports of other changes that have 
 taken place. This is a point, therefore, on which 
 we mean to enlarge ; but as, besides the notices con- 
 cerning its position, in respect of the cities of Helio- 
 polis and Cercasora, which stood very near it, its 
 distance from Memphis is also given. So that it 
 becomes necessary to ascertain the position of this 
 latter, as a point of outset : in the course of which 
 inquiry, several very curious circumstances will arise, 
 respecting the ancient course of the Nile, in that 
 quarter ; which will be perfectly illustrative of our 
 subject, at large. 
 
 Position of Memphis ^. 
 
 Herodotus, speaking of the inundations of the 
 Nile, says, Euterpe, 97, as long as the flood conti- 
 nues, vessels do not confine themselves to the chan- 
 nel of the river, but traverse the fields and plains. 
 They who go from Naucratis to Memphis, pass by 
 I the Pyramids : this, however, is not the usual course, 
 which lies through the point of the Delta, and the 
 
 ' The reader is referred to Map, No. VIII. for the explana- 
 tion of this part. 
 I I 2
 
 IIQ ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 city of Cercasoriis" Pliny also says, lib. xxxvi. 12. 
 " The Pyramids are situated between Memphis and 
 the Delta." Consequently, by both of these authori- 
 ties, Memphis was situated above, that is, to the 
 southward of the Pyramids. 
 
 The Antonine Itinerary gives 24 MP. between 
 HeUopolis and Memphis, of which 12 are taken up 
 between Hehopolis and Babylon. See pages 215, 
 223, vol. i. The former of these places is univer- 
 sally allowed by travellers to have been at Matarea^ 
 where, amongst other remains, an obelisk is yet 
 standing : and the latter is presumed to have been 
 at Fostat, or old Cairo, where the canal attributed 
 to Trajan, led out of the Nile, according to the 
 authority of Ptolemy, and where a canal still exists. 
 These places are distant from each other about 8i 
 G. miles in direct distance ; answering to 12 MP. 
 allowing the windings of the road *. 
 
 * Besides the remains at 3Iatarea, which are by no means 
 equivocal, in respect of the fact which they indicate, there are 
 other circumstances, which must be allowed in proof of the posi- 
 tion. The fountain at Matarea is named ^in Schams, or the 
 Fountain of the Sun. A modern town, situated so near to the 
 site of the remains at Matarea, as that the skirts of the two are 
 within a mile and half of each other, is named Kel'mh ; which is 
 no doubt the same name with HeUopolis, a little changed. The 
 province is also named Keliubie ; and answers to the ancient 
 prefecturate of Heliopolis ; bounded by the Nile, and, its Pelu- 
 siac branch, on the west and north. 
 
 The mound of Heliopolis, according to Dr. Pococke, is about 
 a mile in length by half that breadth. The obelisk, now stand- 
 ing, occupies nearly the centre of it. 
 
 Good water is obtained by digging to the depth of a few feet
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 117 
 
 The site of Memphis, then, ought to be 8-^ G. 
 miles from Fostat ; or 17 from Heliopolis, through 
 Fostat : consequently, its general position is on all 
 hands admitted to be to the south of the Pyramids ; 
 since these are no more than three or four such miles 
 to the south of the parallel of Fostat. And, follow- 
 ing the authorities of Strabo and of Pliny, in addi- 
 tion to that of the Itinerary, the particular position 
 may be ascertained. Here it is necessary to remark, 
 that, as INJemphis is said to have been a city of 150 
 stadia, or at least 14 English miles, in circumfer- 
 ence ; and that, it may probably have extended 
 along the bank of the Nile, four or five miles, and 
 inland from it, two, or more ; it may be somewhat 
 difficult to apply the distances given. It is, how- 
 ever, most probable that the measures in the Roman 
 Itinerary, apply to the centre of Memphis ; as it ap- 
 pears to have been the practice of the Romans to 
 reckon the Milliaria from the centre of Rome. 
 And again, the measures of Pliny and of Strabo are 
 likely to have been from the extremity of the city, 
 towards the Pyramids ; when they spoke of the space 
 between the Pyramids and Memphis. Ptolemy, per- 
 haps, reckoned his latitude and longitude from the 
 centre. 
 
 at Matarea, and in the country between it and the foot of the 
 liills ; but towards the river they go deeper to find the springs. 
 (Pococke, VoL i. p. ?4.) It is by no means usual to find good 
 water by digging in Lower Egypt. It may be observed, that 
 HehopoUs is not lar from the visible base of the liills, and which, 
 it may be supposed, extends much nearer, although covered with 
 alluvion.
 
 il8 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 Pliny says, that the Pyramids were six MP, from 
 Memphis : Strabo, 40 stadia ^ : and as his stades are 
 of 700 to a degree, the mean of the two accounts 
 will be about 4^ G. miles : and if to these be added 
 li more to the centre of the city, we have an aggre- 
 gate of 5i miles ; which will intersect the line of 
 distance from Fostat and Heliopolis, at a point some- 
 what less than three miles to the NNE of Sakkara ; 
 two from the present western bank of the Nile ; and 
 in a SE direction from the Pyramids *'. 
 
 The accompanying Map has been constructed 
 chiefly on the authorities found in Niebuhr and Po- 
 cocke ; but with some additions from Norden, Bruce, 
 and Savary ; and is extended on a distinct scale, from 
 the head of the Delta, to a point far above the site of 
 
 * Pliny, lib. xxxvi. c. 12 : and Strabo, pages 807, 808. 
 
 ^ The Pyramids, denominated from Giza, are always intended 
 by the Pyramids, and Herodotus describes no others. There 
 are pyramids at intervals along the edge of the rising ground, or 
 sand hills, that skirt the western bank of the Nile, all the way 
 from G'lza to Meduun, a space of 26 G. miles. Next to the 
 Pyramids of Giza, those of Sakkara are the largest, and also the 
 most numerous. 
 
 M. Niebuhr places the Pyramids of Giza in a direction of W 
 35 S from Giza : and the distance, according to the mean of the 
 different authorities, is about seven G. miles. Most persons 
 have placed them on a less southerly bearing : but it may be 
 observed in M. Norden's Views, that the north face of the Great 
 Pyramid is seen from Deir Eteen, which is half a league to the 
 S. of old Cairo, or Fostat: consequently this could not be, if 
 the Pyramids, as M. Norden says, lay WSW from Giza; as 
 their sides front the four cardinal points. Probably he omitted 
 to allow the variation, which was 12 degrees westerly, in 1762. 
 (M. Niebuhr.) This allowance would bring it near to W 25 S.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 119 
 
 Memphis. The positions of Mohanan, Metrahenmj, 
 and Meiif, which are particularly connected with 
 that of Memphis, are ascertained in part from the 
 text and map of Dr. Pococke ; from the report of 
 Mr. Bruce, who also visited them ; and from that 
 of Mr. Savary, who collected his information from 
 report only ; but which agrees with the others. 
 (See the Map, No. VIII. at page 115.) 
 
 It appears then, that Memf, Menf, or Menouf\ 
 which is rather a position, than a milage, as per- 
 haps referring to the site of the latest remains of 
 Memphis, lies within half a mile (and that to the 
 NE) of the position above pointed out, by the meet- 
 ing- of the two lines of distance from Fostat and the 
 Pyramids \ And that this Menf is on the site of 
 Memphis, there is little doubt ; since Abulfeda de- 
 scribes the situation of that capital, which existed as 
 a considerable city, so late as the seventh century, 
 when Egypt was conquered by the Mahomedans. 
 This Author says, that it stood at a short day's 
 journey from Cairo : and as the site of Menf may be 
 taken at 14 road miles from Cairo, it agrees very 
 well ^ 
 
 ' M. Savary says, that Men/ is two (French) leagues to the 
 southward of the Pyramids. He speaks of Giza as being on tlie 
 cant, the Nile and Menf on the south, when looking from the 
 Pyramids. Bruce remarks, that the Pyramids of Giza bore 
 about NW, and those of Sakkara, SW, when he was at Metra- 
 lienny. As Menf lies at no great distance to the W of Metra- 
 henny, tliis authority for Menf agrees with that of Savary. 
 
 " Abulfeda's Egypt, article Memf.
 
 120 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 To this may be added, that M. Maillet, Dr. Po- 
 cocke, Mr. Bruce, and Mr. Browne, agree that there 
 are remains which prove the existence of a former 
 city \ 
 
 ^ Dr. Pococke, Vol. i. pages 40 and 41. 
 " I conjecture this city (Memphis) was about Mohanan and 
 Metrahenmj, which are rather nearer to the Pyramids of »S'aA;- 
 kara than to those of Giza ; for at Mokanan 1 saw some heaps 
 of rubbish, but much greater about Metrahenny, and a great 
 number of grottos cut in the opposite hills, &c. — I observed also 
 a large bank to the southward of Metrahenny, running towards 
 Sakkara," &c. P. 40. 
 
 "I saw near Sakkara a sort of wood of the Acacia tree : this 
 and Dendera being the only places in Egypt, where I saw wood 
 grow without art : and it is possible this wood may be some 
 remains of the ancient groves about Memphis." P. 41. 
 
 He crossed the Nile at St. George's Convent, five miles to the 
 S of old Cairo, and going on to the west, " came to the large 
 village of Mokanan, with fine plantations of palm trees, and 
 heaps of rubbish to the N of it. About two miles further to the 
 SW we arrived at Metrahenny ; about this place also I observed 
 several heaps, and a mound, extending a mile N and S, and then 
 towards the Pyramids at Sakkara." P. 55, 5Q. 4 
 
 Mr. Bruce, Vol. i. p. 53. 
 
 " All to the W andS of Mohannan, we saw great mounds and 
 heaps of rubbish, and caHshes (canals) that were not of any 
 length, but were lined with stone, covered and choaked up in 
 many places with earth. 
 
 " We saw three large granite pillars, SW of Mohannan, and a 
 piece of a broken chest or cistern of granite ; but no obelisks, 
 or stones with hieroglyphics ; and we thought the greatest part 
 of the ruins seemed to point that way, or more southerly. 
 
 " These, our conductor said, were the ruins of Mm?/, the 
 ancient seat of the Pharaohs, kings of Egypt. 
 
 " Memphis, if situated at Metrahenny, was in the middle of
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 121 
 
 We may surely rest the proof of the position of 
 Memphis here : and it is very extraordinary how an 
 
 the Pyramids ; three of them to the NW, and above threescore 
 of them to the south." P. 56. 
 
 M. Maillet, p. 265. 
 
 " The most probable opinion is, that this superb city was built 
 at the entrance of the plain of Mummies ; at the north of which 
 the Pyramids are placed. Tlie prodigious ruins which present 
 themselves in this spot will serve for a long time, as proofs of 
 the greatness of that city, of which they are the remains ; and 
 the incontestible evidences of its true position." 
 
 Again, he says, p. 274, that out of so many superb monuments. 
 See. " there remain only at present some shapeless ruins of 
 broken columns, of ruined obelisks, and some other buildings 
 fallen to decay, which one still discovers at the bottom of a lake, 
 when the increase of the Nile is too small to furnish it with its 
 usual supply of water. This circimistance has twice happened 
 during the 1 7 years of my Consulship : particularly in the year 
 1697, when the surface of the lake sunk five or six coudees, and 
 discovered at the bottom of this vast reservoir, a kind of city, 
 which excited the admiration of every one. This lake can never 
 be dried up, or drawn oft' again, as before, because they have 
 neglected to keep up the canal, which served to drain oft' the 
 water ; and because also, the general bed of the river must have 
 risen like the bed of all other rivers. There are also some heaps 
 of ruins inu the plain, of three leagues in width, that separates 
 the northern from the southern Pyramids ; and in which this 
 ancient city extended, from the borders of the lake, towards the 
 Nile, eastward. These are the faint traces of so much magni- 
 ficence," &c. 
 
 Mr. Browne, page 173. 
 
 " I visited the pleasant site of the ancient Memphis, on 
 
 the left bank of the Nile, about two hours to the south oi' Kahira, 
 in a plain a})ove three miles broad, between the river and the 
 mountains. The land is now laid down in corn, with date trees 
 towards the mountains. Nothing remains except heaps of 
 rubbish, in which arc found pieces of sculptured stone. 'J'he
 
 122 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 idea ever came to be entertained, that it was situated 
 at Giza. The words of Herodotus alone ought to 
 disprove it, as well those which are quoted above, as 
 in Euterpe, 99, where he says, that " it was situated 
 in the narrowest part of Egypt." Let any one cast 
 their eyes on the Map ; this description cannot ac- 
 cord with Giza. 
 
 It is very uncertain whether, in the time of Hero- 
 dotus, the Nile ran exactly in the same bed it now 
 does, in the part about Memphis. It is certain, that 
 Pliny says, that the Nile ran at the distance of 4 
 MP. only, from the Pyramids ; which seems un- 
 likely, as Memphis was half as far again from them ; 
 although there is no question but that the Nile, in 
 early times, ran between the site of Memphis and 
 the Pyramids. This, however, must have been 
 previous to the foundation of Memphis, and before 
 the operation described by Herodotus ; and which 
 appearances abundantly justify. He says, Euterpe, 
 99, " Menes, as I was informed, effectually detached 
 the ground on which Memphis stands, from the 
 water. Before his time the river flowed entirely 
 along the sandy mountain on the side of Africa. 
 But this prince, by constructing a bank, at the dis- 
 tance of 100 stadia from Memphis, towards the 
 south, diverted the course of the Nile, and led it, 
 
 spot has been surrounded with a canal, and seems every way a 
 more ehgible situation than that of Kahira (Cairo). Its extent 
 might be marked by that of the ground where remains are dug 
 up, and which is always overgrown with a kind of thistle, that 
 seems to thrive amongst ruins. It is most conveniently visited 
 from the Coptic Convent called Ahii Nemrus."
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 123 
 
 by means of a new canal, through the centre of the 
 mountains. And even at the present period, under 
 the dominion of the Persians, this artificial channel 
 is annually repaired, and regularly defended. If the 
 river were here once to break its banks, the town of 
 Memphis would be inevitably ruined. It was the 
 same IMenes, who, upon the solid ground thus res- 
 cued from the water, first built the town now known 
 by the name of Memphis, which is situate in the nar- 
 rowest part of Egypt. To the north and the west 
 of Memphis, he also sunk a lake ', communicating 
 with the river, which, from the situation of the Nile, 
 it was not possible to effect towards the east." 
 
 From this description (a part of which, however, 
 is obscure), together with the description of the 
 ground, in Dr. Pococke, and the aid of our own 
 observations, on other capital rivers, it appears very 
 clearly that the Nile, in ancient times, ran through 
 the Plain of Mummies, near Sakkara ; and thence 
 along the foot of the rising ground, on wliich the 
 Pyramids of Giza stand ; and finally, in the line of 
 the canal of Behe'ira, into the bay of Abukeir, or 
 Canopus. This appears more particularly, from the 
 following remarks of Dr. Pococke. 
 
 He says (Vol. i. p. 40, 41. J that " he saw several 
 large lakes to the north and west of Metrahenny ;" 
 and that he thought it probable that " the canal of 
 the Pyramids, and the western canal, some miles 
 beyond Metrahenny, and which at present runs 
 
 * Perhaps for lake, we should rather read canal. The old 
 bed of the Nile would leave lakes enough, probably : a canal 
 would have been useful, and such is found there at this day.
 
 124 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 under the hills, may, at least, in some parts, be the 
 remains of the ancient bed of the Nile." And again, 
 (page 42.) he describes a great causeway of 1000 
 yards in length, and 20 feet wide, built of, or faced 
 with, hewn stone, extending across a hollow part of 
 the country, and terminating at the distance of a 
 mile to the NE of the Pyramids, where the ground 
 begins to 7'ise ^ 
 
 He further says, " the country over which the 
 causeway is built, being low, and the water lying on 
 it a great xvhile, seems to be the reason for building 
 it at first, and continuing to keep it in repair." 
 There are included in its length, two bridges, each of 
 about 12 arches of 20 feet wide, on piers of 10 feet ; 
 and the bridges are separated by a portion of the 
 causeway. What so probable, as that this hollow 
 part, of 1000 yards in breadth, which is so deep in 
 all places, as to require a causeway, and in some, as 
 to require bridges which occupy more than 700 feet 
 of space, was the ancient bed of the river ? The 
 lakes, too, on the N and W of Metrahenny, are in 
 the line of the same canal : and it appears probable, 
 that advantage was taken of the hollow ground 
 formed by the remains of the ancient bed, in the 
 construction of the canal ; whose course seems 
 throughout, to be that which the Nile would na- 
 turally take if no impediment had presented itself ^ 
 
 ^ See again the Map at page 115. 
 
 ^ M. Niebuhr also remarks these bridges and causeway, Vol. 
 i. p. 154, 155. He regards the whole work, as of Mahomedan 
 origin ; and estimates the length at about 1600 double paces, or
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 125 
 
 And on the whole, we conceive that the fact men- 
 tioned by our Author, respecting the change of 
 course of the Nile, may be understood in the follow- 
 ing manner : 
 
 That the Nile, having gradually raised its bed too 
 high to allow the whole of its waters to run with 
 freedom in the old bed, along the foot of the western 
 hills, sought a new one for Ziiiart of its waters, in a 
 lower place, nearer to the centre of the valley; and 
 thus, by a division of its waters, formed an island. 
 From the date of this separation, the original cause 
 still continuing to operate, the old channel gradually 
 filled up, whilst the new one, in like manner, became 
 deeper. A proof of the length of time required to 
 fill up such a channel (if ever it be comjjleted at all,) 
 is, that the deserted bed just mentioned, remains 
 visible, although the change happened before the 
 foundation of Memphis! It must, however, be con- 
 sidered, that the mound, by preventing the free 
 access of the Nile water, charged with its mud, has 
 doubtless retarded the operation in this instance. 
 
 It may be conceived, that the separation took 
 place at, or above Dashour, which stands about 100 
 stadia above the centre of Memphis ; and that the 
 mound described by Herodotus, was thrown across 
 the head of the ancient, or western channel, so as to 
 
 about a mile and half. He also calls the hollow space, across 
 which it is built, a " considerable branch of the Nile." 
 
 M. Norden has introduced the causeway and bridges in his 
 View of the Pyramids, Plate XLII. This, and the Plan XLIII. 
 give a very good idea of the ground on which the Pyramids 
 stand, &c.
 
 12(5 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 point the course of the great body of the Nile, into 
 the new channel. M. Savary, indeed, (Vol. i. Letter 
 26.) reports that the remains of such a work actually 
 exist, between Sakkara and Dashour : but it does 
 not appear that he saw it ; nor does he quote his 
 authority. The fact is, however, very probable. 
 
 According to these ideas, we may conceive that 
 Memphis might have been in some danger, by the 
 breaking of the mound * : but by no means can such 
 danger be understood, had the Nile been turned 
 from the valley named Bahr-hela-ma, into that of 
 Memphis ; for had the Nile run in any other valley 
 than that of Memphis, how could the ground of that 
 city have been previously covered by the waters of 
 the Nile ? By the expression of " turning the course 
 of the river through the centre of the mountains," 
 should therefore most surely be meant, into the 
 middle, between the two chains of hills that form the 
 proper valley of Upper Egypt ; instead of the course 
 it before held along the foot of the sand hills, that 
 form the western boundary of it. 
 
 This seems to be the true meaning of our His- 
 torian, or of those who communicated the informa- 
 tion to him : and this is rendered the more probable, 
 by the expression, that " before the time of Menes, 
 the river flowed entirely along the sandy mountain 
 on the side of Africa." What can be understood, 
 
 * Mr. Browne says, that " of the fact of Memphis having 
 been surrounded by water, some evidences appear even at this 
 day. Parts of the banks of the canal are yet visible towards 
 the mountains, and at the extremities of the ground, where 
 ruins are distinguishable." Page 1 IS. 
 
 J3
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS, I07 
 
 but the line of sandy hills, which are known to 
 extend by Sakkara, and along the course of the 
 Nile? 
 
 It has certainly been supposed, by some persons, 
 that the Nile, at an early period, passed to the NW, 
 through a hollow space or chasm, in the just men- 
 tioned hills ; and thence either through the lake 
 Kairun, or by a more direct passage into the gulf 
 of the Arabs. Mr. Browne and Dr. Pococke each 
 remarked a chasm in the hills ; the former near 
 Sakkara, the latter nearer to the late Kairun ^ ; but 
 neither of these are ancient beds of the Nile ; for 
 Mr. Browne informs the Author, that " there is 
 absolutely nothing resembling a course for ivater, 
 through the hills between Bedis and Tamieh." This 
 remark is of great importance to our subject, as it 
 tends to remove the doubt, (if any remained) re- 
 specting the meaning of Herodotus ; and to shew 
 that the change which he had in contemplation, was 
 merely from one part of the valley to another. 
 
 The Bahr-hela-ma intended by Mr. Browne, p. 
 170, appears to be a part of the ancient communica- 
 tion (whether natural or artificial) between the canal 
 of Joseph and the lake Kairun ; leading out of the 
 former at lUaJion, (the only communication, indeed, 
 that has ever existed between it and the country of 
 Faiume) but which, in its course towards the lake, 
 now passes more to the west, leaving the bed of the 
 Bahr-bela-ma dry. 
 
 As Bahr-hela-ma (or river ivithoiit ivater) ap- 
 
 * See Dr. Pococke, Vol. i. p. 50 : and Mr. Browne, p. 167 : 
 also the Map No. VII. at p. 55.
 
 128 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 pears to be a general term for a deserted channel of 
 a river, it may be conceived that the one just men- 
 tioned, has no connection with the supposed bed of 
 a river situated to the west of the Natron lakes. 
 Mr. Browne says, " on the coast, in going to Siwa» 
 I recollect no place where a channel could possibly 
 have issued, unless it be near the bottom of the gulf 
 of the Arabs ; on the east of which gulf the ground is 
 elevated ; but to the S, or S a little west, consider- 
 ably lower ; but hardly enough to persuade me that 
 the river could ever have had its egress at that place ; 
 nor are there any visible marks of water having 
 flowed there." 
 
 Wheresoever such a river as the Nile has flowed, 
 there ought to have been marks of alluvion ; and 
 particularly near the sea. No such, however, ap- 
 pear : on the contrary, the channel of the Bahr- 
 bela-ma is said to be formed in part of petrified sub- 
 stances. And with respect to the channels through 
 the sand hills, their levels appear to be far above that 
 of the present river, whose bed must once have been 
 a vast deal lower than it now is. We return to the 
 subject of Memphis, and the head of the Delta ^ 
 
 ^ It is difficult to believe that the course of the Nile ever lay 
 through the lake of Kairun (Moeris) : first, because the lake is 
 said to be shut up by elevated lands : and secondly, because it 
 is probable, that in early times, the bed of the Nile was too low 
 to admit its waters to flow into the hollow tract which now con- 
 tains the lake. 
 
 Concerning the lake Moeris, the ancient stories are so impro- 
 bable, that one naturally looks for a more rational account of its 
 formation. Might not the opening of a canal for the purpose of
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 129 
 
 Having thus established the site of the centre of 
 Memphis, which falls in the parallel of 29" 53' \ 
 and its northern skirt in about 29** 55' ; (being 8 mi- 
 nutes of latitude south of Cairo, 18 south of the 
 point of the Delta; which latter is fixed by the 
 celestial observation of M. Niebuhr, in 30** 13') ; we 
 proceed to examine the ancient authorities for the 
 position of the point of the Delta, in respect of 
 Memphis and Heliopolis. 
 
 Herodotus, unluckily, is silent concerning this 
 matter ; but it may be inferred from circumstances, 
 that in his time, the point of the Delta was nearly 
 opposite to Heliopolis; of which more will be 
 said presently. Had he fixed it positively, it 
 would have given an idea what change, or whether 
 any material one, took place between his time and 
 that of Strabo ; an interval of between four and five 
 centuries. 
 
 Strabo says, (p. 807) that the head of the Delta 
 was three schoenes below Memphis ; and these we 
 
 filling the hollow space which now contains the lake, be the great 
 work of forming the lake Moer'is ? They might have built the 
 edifices, described by Herodotus (Euterpe, 149.) previous to the 
 final influx of the water. The circumstance of the water flowino- 
 alternately into the lake, and back again into the Nile, accord- 
 ing to the seasons, is perfectly reasonable ; since the passage to 
 it was narrow, and the expanse of water very great. Pococke 
 reckons it 50 miles in length by 10 wide: Mr. Browne says, 
 (p. 169.) the length may be between 30 and 40 miles; the 
 breadth nearly 6. " Nothing (says he) can present an appear- 
 ance so unlike the works of men — On the NE and S is a rocky 
 ridge, in every appearance primeval." 
 ^ Ptolemy allows 29" 50'. 
 VOL. II. K
 
 130 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 regard as equal to 12 MP ^ Pliny says, (lib. v. 
 c. 9.) 15 MP. Taking these respectively, at 10 and 
 12 G. miles, we come next to Ptolemy, (Africa, Tab. 
 III. Append.) who allows 13^ such miles from the 
 centre of Memphis ; or reduced to the same point 
 with the others (the northern skirt, as may be under- 
 stood), Hi. Here, the utmost given distance of the 
 head of the Delta from Memphis, is 12 G. miles ; 
 which is 6 G. miles, or 7 British, above the place 
 where it is at present; or, taking a mean of the 
 different reports, nearly 8. There is every reason to 
 suppose, that in the time of Strabo, it was at least as 
 high up as Heliopolis : but in order to make it agree 
 with his report of the distance from Memphis, it 
 ought to have been at the head of the canal oiKeliuh : 
 which is nearly 10, from the present head of the 
 Delta \ 
 
 The same Author, in his description of Helio- 
 polis, takes occasion to say, page 803, that Eudoxus, 
 who studied astronomy there, had an observatory 
 near it ; which observatory was also near to the city 
 of Cercasora ; at which place the Nile, according 
 to Herodotus, (Euterpe, 15 and 17,) separated, in 
 order to form the Delta. 
 
 Although Herodotus describes the city of Cerca- 
 
 ^ See page 25 of this work, where the schoene is fixed at four 
 Roman miles, or 40 stadia nearly. 
 
 ® The head of the Delta was found by Niebuhr, who took an 
 observation of latitude there in 1764, to be in 30" 13'; whilst 
 Cairo was in 30" 3'. Heliopolis, by reference to the last place, 
 lies in a little above 30" 7'. See Niebuhr, Vol. i. p. 46, 80, 
 and 91.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 1;3I 
 
 sora (or Cercasoras) to be opposite to the head of the 
 Delta, yet he does not say how it was situated, in 
 respect of HehopoHs. But as he says that the 
 Delta commenced at Cercasora ; and as this place is 
 so satisfactorily fixed by Strabo, in a position oppo- 
 site to Heliopolis, it must be concluded that the head 
 of the Delta was in much the same place in the time 
 of Herodotus, as of Strabo : both of whom wrote 
 from actual observation. However, a slight variation 
 ^yould have passed unregarded ; and although He- 
 rodotus might have seen the separation at a point a 
 little above Cercasora, and Strabo somewhat below, 
 no distinction might have been made ; and thus, a va- 
 riation of a mile, or two, might have taken place with- 
 out any particular remark. Cercasora too, might 
 have extended a great way along the river bank \ 
 
 ^ Strabo also remarks, (p. 806.) that the prefecturate of He- 
 liopolis occupied the Arabian, and that of Litopolis, the Libyan 
 side of the Nile. Ptolemy has the same arrangement with the 
 city of Latone for the capital of the latter. In the Antonine 
 Itinerary is found Letus, at 20 MP. to the northward of Mem- 
 phis, or about 14iG. miles direct. If this distance is to be 
 reckoned from the centre of Memphis, Letus will fall nearly 
 opposite to Heliopolis ; that is, in the position assigned to Cer- 
 casora. It appears not improbable, that Letus or Latone may 
 have succeeded to Cercasora, on the same, or nearly the same 
 site, before the date of the Itinerary ; for Letus is not mentioned 
 by Strabo, although tlie prefecturate is ; and it may be con- 
 ceived, that he intended Cercasora for its capital. 
 
 Ptolemy places Latone helow the head of the Delta ; and tlie 
 boundary of the prefecturate, of which it is the capital, at the 
 head of the Delta ; whilst the prefecturate of Heliopolis is ex- 
 tended above it. 
 
 Tliese circumstances furnish at least some iiresumiUive evi- 
 
 K 2
 
 132 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 It is worthy of remark, that Diodorus says (lib. i. 
 c. 4.) that Memphis was founded at the place of 
 separation of the two branches of the Nile ; but 
 whether this relates to the separation above the city, 
 which was done away by the mound ; or to a sepa- 
 ration lower down, cannot be ascertained ; but the 
 assertion is a remarkable one, and had very probably 
 a foundation in truth, considering how long an inter- 
 val passed between the foundation of Memphis, and 
 the time when the Delta had its commencement 
 opposite to Heliopolis ; and that in 1800 years it 
 has advanced seven English miles downv^ards ^. 
 
 The mode by which this downward movement of 
 the derivations from rivers is effected is well under- 
 stood, and is of two kinds ; the one, exceedingly 
 slow, and gradual ; the other, more sudden, in re- 
 spect of its change of place, although the means by 
 which the preparation is accomplished may likewise 
 be slow. 
 
 With respect to the first, it must be observed, 
 that in all great rivers, one branch may be regarded 
 as the main trunk, or river, and the rest as deriva- 
 tions ; they being always of less bulk and depth than 
 the former, and also separating from it, with an oh- 
 
 dence in favour of the change of position of the head of the 
 Delta. 
 
 ^ Had the apex of the Delta always remained in the same 
 place, Memphis should indeed be looked for at Giza, opposite to 
 Cairo ; where Dr. Shaw, M. Norden, and some others place it. 
 But then it would not have been in the narrowest part of Egypt ; 
 nor could vessels from Naucratis have passed by the Pyramids 
 in their way to it.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 133 
 
 liqidty of course, or elbow. It is the nature of all 
 water-courses that run through alluvions, and which 
 have also a winding course, to form a flat shore on 
 the projecting side of each elbow, and a steep one 
 on the indented side: the first, being occasioned by 
 the slackness of the current, on the projecting side, 
 which allows the water to deposit its sediment, and 
 thus to form a shelving bank, with shallow water 
 adjacent to it ; the latter, by a strong current and 
 deep water, which insensibly corrodes the indented 
 bank. It will easily be understood, that the con- 
 stant deposition on the shelving side, will cause the 
 parts of it to rise successively to the surface of the 
 W'ater, and to become, in time,j^r;« land ; and that it 
 must of course compel the stream to borrow on the 
 opposite side, in order to supply the deficiency in its 
 bed, caused by the encroachment of the new land. 
 And hence, the channel of the river must ever be 
 verging towards the indented side. 
 ■ Now, to apply this to the outlets of the branches 
 of rivers, it is to be considered, that the iqjper angle 
 of separation being in the predicament of the pro- 
 jecting part of the bank just mentioned, the shore 
 will constantly receive an increase there ; and that, 
 in consequence, the opposite side, that is, the point of 
 the Delta, (or island), must wear away in the same 
 proportion : for, most infallibly, the weakest part of 
 the stream will ever be at the upper point of separa- 
 tion ; because the body of a stream cannot suddenly 
 change its course, to turn round a sharp point, but 
 can only effect its change of direction gradually. 
 So that the water will be, comparatively, still near
 
 134 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 the point ; and will there deposit its sediments, and 
 thus, the outlet, in effect, will be removed lower and 
 lower down, by very slow degrees ^ 
 
 This gradual change in the position of the outlet 
 has the natural effect of producing, in time, an entire 
 change in the general direction of the arm of the 
 river that helps to form the Delta : for, as the 
 direction of the upper part must gradually become 
 more and more oblique to that of the main river, it 
 at last becomes too ohlique to the general slope of 
 the alluvion, (which is regulated by its floods,) to run 
 any longer as it ought, for want of declivity : and 
 then it is that the stream, thus become languid, and 
 more particularly, during the falling state of the 
 river, deposits out of measure, and raises its bed so 
 
 * See the account of the Ganges and Burrampooter rivers, in 
 the Appendix to the Memoir of the Map of Hindoostan ; and in 
 the Philosophical Transactions for 1781. 
 
 Here it may be proper to remark, (by the bye), that as the 
 outlets of rivers, in alluvial tracts, have a tendency to form obtuse 
 angles at the place of separation ; so the confluences of such 
 branches have a direct opposite tendency ; as they form very 
 acute angles at the point of conflux : it being the effect of the 
 mutual repulsion that takes place on the collision of the two 
 str€ams. This operation will produce a shallow at the angle 
 where the water is either still, or moves with little velocity. If 
 the adjunct stream bear any proportion to the principal one, it 
 will give a new direction to it, partaking more of that of the 
 adjunct. 
 
 It happens sometimes, that the acute angle just mentioned is 
 so small, that the confluent rivers appear like one, long before 
 they actually join. M. Condamine says of the river Negro, that 
 for several leagues, it would be taken for an arm of the Amazon, 
 but for the different colour of its waters.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 135 
 
 high, that the next year's flood seeks an easier pas- 
 sage, at least for a part of its waters, at a lower 
 place. And this is the sudden operation alluded to 
 above, as the second of the modes, by which the head 
 of the Delta is removed lower down. 
 
 In order to render the latter operation more in- 
 telligible, it will be proper to advert to what has 
 been said concerning the slopes formed by the over- 
 flowing of the rivers, in page 114, sup. It has been 
 said, that the crest of this slope is at the river bank, 
 and that it declines towards the country : so that 
 the several diverging branches of a river have the 
 eflect of forming the Delta into alternate ?'idges and 
 hollows. Whensoever, therefore, the branches of a 
 river corrode and destroy their banks, which consti- 
 tute the higher part of the slope, a jKirt of their 
 waters, at least, will throw themselves into the 
 hollows, and gradually form them into new chan- 
 nels ; which channels, by the direction of the slopes, 
 must needs be parallel, or nearly so, to the old chan- 
 nels : so that every change will be productive of a 
 loss of ground to the Delta. 
 
 The period required for this operation is, however, 
 of great length ; for it may be conceived that the 
 Canopic branch has not varied, otherwise than par- 
 tialis/, since it quitted the line of the canal of Bakeire ; 
 which seems to have been before the days of Herodo- 
 tus. There appears to be little doubt, that when- 
 soever any change happens, it originates in some 
 cause existing above, and not below ; that is, at the 
 outlet of the branch from the main river : and that, 
 being once thrown out of its ancient bed, in the 
 
 13
 
 136 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 part above, it often happens that it cannot regain its 
 bed at a lower point, for want of a sufficient decli- 
 vity to give velocity to the stream. 
 
 It is said that the artificial canal of Menoiify 
 which leads obliquely from the Damietta branch, at 
 five or six miles below the head of the Delta, into 
 that of Rosetta, at a place nearly 30 miles below the 
 same point, is now on the increase, whilst that por- 
 tion of the Rosetta branch which lies parallel to the 
 same canal, is grown very shallow, and continues to 
 do so *. It will probably happen then, that by de- 
 grees, the upper part of the Rosetta branch will be 
 filled up (for this operation generally goes on when 
 begun) ; and the canal of Menouf will become the 
 upper part of the Rosetta branch. This, at one step, 
 would remove the Delta five or six miles lower down \ 
 
 * It appears by the letter of M. Perree in the Intercepted 
 French Correspondence, that he was compelled to leave the 
 largest part of the flotilla at a place 1 3 leagvies below Cairo (or 
 above Terane) after the middle of July (1798) ; that is, after the 
 Nile had begun to rise. He says, that only vessels of five feet 
 (French) draught of water could pass. 
 
 ^ Since the above was written, Mr. Browne's publication has 
 furnished the following very curious facts and observations re- 
 specting these rivers : 
 
 In May 1792, the water was so shallow between Terane and 
 Cairo, that a small boat (a Canjia) could with difficulty pass. 
 Page 44. 
 
 In November 1796, " The waters of the Nile having almost 
 abandoned the eastern branch, which leads to Damiatt, pursuing 
 the more direct course of the canal of Menuf, after a neglect of 
 many years, it became necessary to apply a remedy. — The pur- 
 pose was at length effected by driving piles, and the river 
 returned to its former course." P. 1.56.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 137 
 
 It appears unquestionable, that a like change took 
 place between Om Waratik and Om Dinar ^ about 
 five miles above the present outlet : although some 
 other cause than the want of declivity must be 
 assigned ; probably by gradual additions. M. 
 Niebuhr, (who is convinced that the head of the 
 Delta has changed its position), says that the chan- 
 nel between the just mentioned places, and w^hich is 
 eight or nine Enghsh miles in length, is not an arti- 
 ficial one, but is very wide, and during the time of 
 high Nile, very deep. Vol. i. p. 84. 
 
 Thus far the removal of the outlets of rivers, or 
 the heads of Deltas, downwards, is occasioned by the 
 immediate operation of the current of the river, and 
 its depositions : and, it might be supposed, that if 
 no other cause operated to prevent it, the river 
 would restore itself to its ancient state : and that, 
 whatsoever cause had originally occasioned it to 
 divide, at a certain point, would in time occasion it 
 to break out again there. But here, we conceive 
 that the extension of the greater slope, downward 
 
 Speaking of the Papyrus plant in the quarter of Damietta, he 
 says, " Of late years, the channel of the Nile, which ought to 
 flow to Damiatt, pursued the straighter course offered to it by 
 the canal of Menuf, deserted its bed, and left access to the sea 
 water. Hence, the plants of the Papyrus, &c. were deprived of 
 the prolific influence of the Nile, and expired in the noxious 
 effluvia of a marine marsh." Pages 353, C5 1. 
 
 •' Edrisi mentions Om Dinar, Daraue, and Akass, which are 
 found in the Map of M. Niebuhr, as places existing in his time 
 near the head of the Delta, but without any indication of their re- 
 lative position to the head of the Delta.
 
 138 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 (as spoken of in page 104), by raising the level of 
 the country, prevents the return of matters to their 
 original state. 
 
 It appears then, that the heads of deltas move 
 downwards ^ : and that the consequence of this 
 change is, a contraction of the Delta itself, on the 
 side towards the sea : because that, as the outlets of 
 the branches of rivers have a perpetual tendency to 
 move downwards, so that movement has a tendency 
 to produce an obliquity of course, which destroys 
 the velocity of the stream, and compels it to seek a 
 line of greater declivity ; which hne can only be 
 found within the former Delta. And finally, that 
 the extension of the greater slope, downwards, pre- 
 vents the branches from breaking out again, in a 
 higher situation. And hence it may be supposed, 
 that the state of a delta, is that of an imperfectly 
 formed country : and that the progress of matters 
 towards completion, is that of the river forming 
 itself into one channel. That is, from a mud bank, 
 it becomes a marsh; then a field, intersected by 
 drains, and deeply inundated at particular periods : 
 and finally, a firm field, subject to slight inundations, 
 but without any natural derivations from the river. 
 We do not presume to say under which of these cir- 
 cumstances the lands are best fitted for the use of 
 man, but merely remark, that such are the changes *. 
 
 '' During the Author's residence in Bengal, the head of the 
 Jellinghy river, or western arm of the Delta of the Ganges, 
 moved lower down. It was also the case of other outlets and 
 inlets, of the branches of the Ganges. 
 
 * Mr. Browne gives this general idea of the Delta, p. 352,
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 139 
 
 Before we dismiss the subject of alluvion, it will 
 be proper to say a word more concerning the gra- 
 dual rise of the soil, by deposition. 
 
 The instances that might be given in proof are 
 very numerous, in every quarter ; but we shall select 
 a few only. The obelisk yet standing, at Heliopolis, 
 is immersed more than 5^ feet above its base (mean- 
 ing the level of the ground ; for it is not known 
 how deep it may go into the ground), in the pe- 
 riodical inundation of the Nile. Now it cannot be 
 supposed that Heliopolis stood originally on ground, 
 that was subject to be overflowed : on the contrary, 
 Strabo says, page 805, that it stood on a great 
 mound. The height of the mound is not men- 
 tioned, but it must probably have been several feet 
 above the inundation ; and now the inundation is 
 several feet above the mound : unless, indeed, Strabo 
 meant the dam or dyke that inclosed it : and even 
 the necessity for that dyke proves the rise of the 
 general level ^ 
 
 Another instance occurs in the digging out of the 
 sand the marble columns near Rosetta, mentioned 
 by IVI. Niebuhr. But the fact is much more point- 
 edly established by what Herodotus says concern- 
 ing the level of the temple at Bubastis ; and by the 
 
 " The reader may conceive a vast plain, intersected, in all direc- 
 tions, by minute channels, (the canal of Menuf being almost the 
 only important stream,) by which, and by pumps, the interstices 
 are watered, and brought to the utmost fertility." 
 
 " Possibly, the inundation may have found its way within the 
 dyke, through the entrances described by Dr. Pococke, page 23.
 
 140 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 necessity of raising the ground of the different cities 
 of Egypt. 
 
 He says then, that during the reign of Sabacus, 
 King of Ethiopia, (who possessed Egypt 50 years,) 
 the ground on which the cities of Egypt stood, was 
 more and more elevated, by manual labour : and 
 that, although they were somewhat raised under the 
 reign of Sesostris, by the digging of canals, they be- 
 came still more so under the Ethiopian. Moreover, 
 this was more particularly the case with the city of 
 Bubastis, in which stood a famous temple of Diana. 
 This temple, he observes, was in the centre of the 
 town, and in every part a conspicuous object; its 
 situation having never been altered, although every 
 other part of the city had been elevated ; Euterpe, 
 137, 138 \ 
 
 Hence we collect, that the gradual elevation of 
 the soil of Egypt was such, as that it was necessary, 
 at that early period (for it was so early as the fifth 
 reign, after the building of the great pyramids), to 
 raise the ground of the cities ; which, no doubt, had 
 been originally placed in elevated situations. But 
 by what is said concerning the mode of raising the 
 ground, as well as the appearances that now present 
 themselves, it may be understood, that in most cases, 
 the operation was that of raising a lofty dyke round 
 
 ^ The description of the temple is worth attention. Its re- 
 mains do not appear to have been visited by modern travellers. 
 It would be curious to know how far the description of the 
 ground plan of Bubastis, by Herodotus, agrees with modern ap- 
 pearances.
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 141 
 
 the existing city : and not that tbe houses were ge- 
 nerally taken down, in order to rebuild them on 
 higher ground. 
 
 Dr. Pococke remarks, that the site of Heliopolis, 
 as W'ell as those of the temple of Isis, near Busiris ; 
 and of another city which he took for Buhastis, but 
 which can be no other than Athrihis " ; were encom- 
 passed by high mounds of earth. See Vol. i. p. 21, 
 22, 23. Mounds for the villages and towns are 
 universally raised in the lower parts of Bengal, 
 and they often consist of one long narrow street 
 only. One of the mounds seen by Pococke was 
 about a furlong in breadth. 
 
 These particulars appear to be perfectly decisive, 
 respecting the gradual rising of the soil. The temple 
 of Isis stood a little below the centre of the Delta : 
 Athribis about one fourth part down, and Heliopolis 
 opposite to the head of it : so that the operation went 
 on every where. But the degree in which it rises, 
 any more than the extent formed in the sea during 
 any given time, must remain undetermined. It 
 may, however, be concluded, that, in early times, 
 the extension of the alluvion was more rapid in pro- 
 portion to the elevation of the soil, than in latter 
 times.' 
 
 It is highly probable that those parts of the city 
 
 ^ The site in question is very close to Trieb, or Atrib, and 
 on the Sebennitic branch : whereas Bubastis stood on the Pelu- 
 siac branch, which was also called the Bubastic. M. Nicbuhr 
 speaks of the remains in question, as belonging to Athribis ; 
 Vol. i. p. 79. He names the place Benha Asset; Pococke, 
 Benelhassa)-.
 
 142 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 of Memphis, which lay very low, have been covered 
 with deposition : that the lake spoken of by M. 
 Maillet, and which had ruins at the bottom of it, 
 was a part of that ground, surrounded by a dyke : 
 and that the country without was raised by deposi- 
 tion, whilst the inclosed ground remained a hollow ; 
 and finally, that the inundation flowed over it, and 
 formed it into a lake. (See notes to p. 120, 121.) 
 
 We might adduce abundance of instances from 
 other countries. When the great reservoir was dug 
 in the city of Calcutta, whole trees were found at a 
 great depth. At Utrecht^ at the side of the ancient 
 bed of the Rhine, edifices have been found at a great 
 depth below the present level ^ 
 
 It may be proper to add a few words also, con- 
 cerning the overflowing of rivers, in order to shew 
 that, notwithstanding the continued rising of the 
 soil, the river must still continue to overflow. 
 
 All rivers and streams must at times overflow, 
 because there is no provision made in their beds for 
 a sudden increase of water : for this sudden increase, 
 being immediately diffused over the country, can 
 have no effect in deepening and enlarging the river 
 beds. But where the situation admits of a regular 
 system of dykes, to retain the surplus waters, the 
 
 Dr. Pococke found the level raised, in almost every place 
 in Upper Egypt, where there are buildings, whose proportions 
 help to shew it. This appeared more particularly at Tbebes. 
 But there are no means of knowing, whether it be occasioned by 
 rubbish, by drifting of sand, or by deposition ; or whether all 
 the three may not have had a share. The Doctor thought the 
 ground had risen 17 feet, at Thebes,
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 143 
 
 bed will doubtless be enlarged beyond its natural 
 size. This operation, however, will prevent the 
 general surface of the land from rising ; and hence 
 it is, that mankind, by a too hasty occupation of allu- 
 vions, and by tampering with the courses of rivers, 
 have not only entailed endless expence, but brought 
 destruction on their posterity, on occasion of a 
 higher land, or sea, flood than ordinary ^. Under 
 these circumstances, the whole river bed will rise by 
 degrees, above the surface of the country, in places 
 remote from the sea : and the dyke must be gra- 
 dually raised, as well as strengthened, to a degree 
 proper for resisting the pressure. 
 
 Mr. Browne, who travelled into Upper J^gypt, 
 speaks in the following manner concerning the inun- 
 dations of the Nile generally, page 64 : 
 
 " In Upper Egypt, the Nile is confined by high 
 banks, which prevent any inundation into the ad- 
 jacent country. This is also the case in Lower 
 Egypt, except at the extremities of the Delta, where 
 the Nile is never more than a few feet below the sur- 
 face of the ground, and where the inundation of 
 course takes place." Again, he says, of the inunda- 
 tion in the Delta, page 352, " As to real inundation 
 
 * Thus the Zuyder Zee, or sea of Amsterdam, has been 
 increased chiefly by breaches of the sea, from a small lake, to its 
 present size. It is probable that the admission of so large a 
 portion of the waters of the north branch of the Rhine, into the 
 })ed of the Isel, may have originally increased the lake, and pre- 
 pared the ground for some of the changes that have followed. It 
 was Drusus, the Roman general, who cut a canal from the Rhine 
 to the Isel, between Arnheim and Doesburgh.
 
 144 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE, 
 
 on the rise of the Nile, that must be regarded as 
 confined to a small space, bordering on the sea." 
 It appears from the dates, that Mr. Browne did not 
 travel during the season of the floods of the Nile, 
 and therefore he must have heard this from others ; 
 and we suspect that his information has not been 
 correct. In respect of the Delta, it might relate to 
 the neighbourhood of the principal branches of the 
 river, where the ground is the most raised by depo- 
 sitions : for we have not only seen the like in other 
 countries, but have heard that inundations do really 
 take place over the lower part of the Delta generally, 
 though in a greater degree on the eastern, than on 
 the western, side. 
 
 As to the question of Upper Egypt, it can only be 
 said that authors, in general, either describe an in- 
 undation, or leave us to understand that an inunda- 
 tion does take place there ; although some of them 
 admit that it is not universal. Some of the pas- 
 sages that occur in Pococke and Norden are very 
 pointed, as may be seen in the notes, and the exist- 
 ence of an inundation appears to admit of no doubt ^ 
 
 * Dr. Pococke says, p. 79, " We passed several little lakes 
 of water, made by the overflowings of the Nile." This was near 
 Achmim, in Upper Egypt. In page 197, speaking of Upper 
 Egypt generally, he says, " If the hills are above four or five 
 miles from the Nile, they have villages in the middle, between 
 the hills and the river, which are built on raised ground, where 
 the Nile overflows" What follows, in the same place, is curious 
 in respect of the inundations in Lower Egypt. 
 
 In p. 199, he says, " It seemed visible to me, that the land 
 of Egypt is lower at a distance from the Nile, than it is near it ;
 
 AND SITUATION OF MEMPHIS. 145 
 
 M. Norden also speaks of a dyke generally in 
 Upper Egypt, and describes it in his plan of a part 
 of the ground of Thebes. And from all the circum- 
 stances considered, it appears probable that the 
 present inundation is eifected by means of canals 
 that lead from the river towards the hills, and that 
 the use of the grand dyke is to command the period 
 of the inundation, which might prove inconvenient, 
 if left to operate casually. We are told of various 
 canals that are opened at different periods, depending 
 on contingencies. It is, however, a subject con- 
 cerning which one naturally wishes to receive more 
 information. It may be remarked, that whatsoever 
 might be the state of the case at present, the slope 
 
 and I imagined that, in most parts, it appeared to have a gradual 
 descent from the Nile to the hills ; that is, to the foot of them, 
 that may be said to begin at those sandy parts, a mile or two 
 distant from them, which are gentle ascents, and for that reason 
 are not overflowed by the Nile." Here, from the circumstance 
 of the hills, Upper Egypt must of course be intended ; and it is 
 implied in the strongest manner, that the space between the crest 
 of the banks and the base of the hills is overflowed. At the same 
 time, he says, in p. 198 and 200, that many parts of Egypt are 
 not overflowed. 
 
 M. Norden, speaking of the country above Cairo, Vol. i. 
 p. 57, says, " These canals they carry quite to the mountains — 
 so that when the Nile increases, its water enters into the canals 
 — when the river has swoln to its pitch, and diffused its waters 
 on the surface of the ground, they then think of retaining tliem 
 for some time, in order that the earth may be sufficiently soaked. 
 For this purpose they make banks, which hinder the water from 
 Jlorving off, &c. At length, when the earth is sufficiently 
 moistened, they cut the bank to facilitate the removing off of the 
 waters." 
 
 VOL. II. L
 
 146 ALLUVIONS OF THE NILE. 
 
 described by Dr. Pococke, from the margin of the 
 river bank, to the foot of the hills, plainly proves 
 that inundations have regularly taken place in former 
 times. This is the slope spoken of in pages 114, 
 and 135 ; and which is found in the course of every 
 river that runs through an alluvial tract.
 
 SECTION XIX. 
 
 CONCERNING THE NUMBER, ORDER, AND POSITION OF 
 THE BRANCHES OF THE NILE, ANCIENT AND MO- 
 DERN : WITH VARIOUS PARTICULARS RESPECTING 
 THEM. 
 
 Description of the Branches and Mouths of the Nile, hij Herodotus 
 — Doubts respecting some of the inferior Branches — Seven 
 navigable Mouths allowed generally by the Ancients — Dimen- 
 sions of the Delta well known to them — Watch Tower q/" Per- 
 seus — Number, Order, and Position of the Branches and 
 Mouths of the Nile — Canopic, <//e most western — much ancient 
 History belonging to it, and the city o/Canopus — the latter no 
 less celebrated as the modern Abukeir, the scene of the glorious 
 Battle ofthe^iL^ — Sites of the ancient cities of Metelis, Nau- 
 cratis, and Hermopolis, ascertained — Error of modern Geo- 
 graphers respecting the Lake Mareotis — Naucratis, the an- 
 cient emporium of Egypt — Greek Establishments in Egypt 
 — Change of Course of the western Branch of the Nile — Bolbi- 
 TINE, or second of the ancient Branches, become the first — 
 Sebennitic, or third Branch ; now the Outlet of the Lake 
 Brulos — PiiATMETic, or fourth Branch ; now the Damietta, 
 or eastern branch — Mendesian and Tanitic, anciently the 
 fifth a7id sixth Branches ; now only Outlets to the Lake Men- 
 zala — Pelusiac, the seventh and last : now a periodical Stream 
 only — its ancient Course traced — Temple and City o/'Onias — 
 Situations of ancient Jewish Establishments in Egypt known — 
 that of Onias fixed — Lake of Menzala, anciently Tanis — Re- 
 marks on the Lakes and Hollows, formed in the Alluvions of 
 Rivers. 
 
 L 2
 
 148 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 It has been said that our Author describes three 
 7icitural branches of the Nile, as existing in his time, 
 and which separated at Cercasora, situated at six 
 or seven miles above the present head of the Delta. 
 At this point, says he, Euterpe, 17, " it separates 
 itself into three branches ; that which directs itself 
 towards the east, is called the Pelusian mouth ; the 
 Canojnc inclines to the west : the third, in one con- 
 tinued line, meets the point of the Delta, which 
 dividing into two parts, it finally pours itself into the 
 sea. This arm is equally celebrated, and not inferior 
 in the depth of its w^aters ; it is called the Sehen- 
 nitic mouth, and this again divides itself into two 
 branches ; one is called the Saitic, and one the 
 Mendesian channel ; both empty themselves into 
 the sea. There are two other mouths, the Bolhi- 
 tinian and the Bucolic ; these are not produced by 
 nature, but by art." He also speaks (in Euterpe, 
 10.) of " the Jive arms of the Nile ;" but it is cer- 
 tain that he has enumerated no less than six ; and 
 later authors, seven \ 
 
 As we learn from Strabo, page 802, that the 
 Tanitic mouth had also the name of Saitic given it, 
 no difficulty arises concerning the identity and posi- 
 tions of the several branches above described, the 
 
 ' Pliny, lib. v. c. 10, speaks of eleven mouths of the Nile, be- 
 sides four others which he calls false ones : but he allows seven 
 lirincipal ones only ; agreeing thus far with Strabo. 
 
 The reader is referred to the Map. No. VII, page 55, for 
 what relates to the Delta of the Nile ; and for the general course 
 of this river through Egypt, as well as the countries bordering 
 on Egypt, to No. IX.
 
 BRANCHES OF HE NILE. 149 
 
 Bncolic excepted. But Herodotus seems to have 
 been guilty of an omission in stating two mouths 
 only, as the number of subdivisions of the Seben- 
 nitic branch : and it is probable that he should have 
 said three. For he has in fact described the Seben- 
 nitic mouth, most clearly, in saying that it met the 
 point of the Delta ; that is at Berelos, or Brulos, 
 ^vhe^e also, the Sebennitic mouth of Strabo and 
 Phny must be looked for. Therefore, he ought, 
 probably, to have said, that besides the emhouchure 
 properly named Sebennitic, it formed two others ; 
 the JNIendesian and Saitic, (or Tanitic). For as, 
 after he had spoken of " the jive arms of the Nile," 
 he enumerates six, it is probable that he had not a 
 distinct idea of the subject. Nor is it extraordinary 
 that a stranger should have been ill informed con- 
 cerning such a matter, when the Europeans settled 
 on one of the arms of the Ganges remained in total 
 ignorance respecting the mouths of that river for near 
 two centuries. Seven was the number of navigable 
 mouths of the Nile, according to the ancients in 
 general. 
 
 The Bucolic cannot be placed : and he omits the 
 Pliatmetic, which is known to be represented by 
 the modern emhouchure of Damietta. This may 
 possibly have been the Bucolic. 
 
 Concerning the smaller subdivisions of the branches, 
 near the sea, it is said by Strabo (page 801), that 
 many of them were only navigable for boats : so that 
 they may be regarded in the nature of creeks of the 
 sea, rather than as the mouths of rivers : and it may 
 be sufficient for the present purpose, to regard the
 
 150 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 three branches above specified, as the proper arms 
 of the Nile, in the time of our Author, and which 
 were subdivided, near the sea, into several others. 
 And unless we were to suppose that the Nile carried 
 a greater body of water in ancient times than in the 
 present, one does not easily comprehend how three 
 branches could be so copiously supplied as the de- 
 scriptions of our Author seem to imply ^ 
 
 It is true, that the ancient ships were very flat, 
 and required but a small depth of water, com- 
 pared with the modern ones : and this makes a great 
 difference in the question. The Canopic branch, 
 whether from its greater depth, and more convenient 
 position, or from political reasons, was originally 
 " the sole emporium of Egypt," according to our 
 Author, and strangers were not allowed to enter the 
 other branches. He is silent respecting the naviga- 
 tion of the Sebennitic and Pelusiac branches, although 
 it cannot be supposed otherwise, than that they were 
 used by the Egyptians themselves : and it may be 
 suspected that he knew very little concerning the 
 lower part of the Delta, since he omits to mention 
 
 ^ Mr. Browne's general description of the Nile, and its banks, 
 merits attention, and may be easily referred to, in pages 63 to 
 ^Q) ; as also in 352. In particular he says, that " the greatest 
 breadth of this majestic river may be computed at 2000 feet, or 
 about §^ of a geographic mile. Its motion is even slower than 
 the Thames, and does not exceed three miles per hour." This 
 rate has been observed to be that of the Ganges and Burram- 
 pooter (in Phil. Trans, for 1781) ; and perhaps is that in general 
 of rivers that run through beds formed of their own alluvions. 
 This is to be understood of the season, when they are not swoln 
 by the periodical rains.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 151 
 
 some of the great lakes that occupy so considerable 
 a proportion of it ^. 
 
 The Pelusiac branch has long ceased to be a peren- 
 nial stream ; the eastern and principal part of the 
 Nile, being now collected in the Damietta, or ancient 
 Sebennitic branch. By this change, about one half 
 of the Delta has been lost, not only in the geographi- 
 cal arrangement, but in its use as cultivable land : 
 the tracts which the river has left, having for the 
 most part become sandy deserts, as has happened 
 on the opposite side, by the change of course of the 
 Canopic branch. 
 
 The ideas of the ancients, respecting the dimen- 
 sions of the base of the Delta, were accurate enough, 
 if we suppose that some spoke of the circuit of the 
 coast, others of the direct line between the two ex- 
 tremities. 
 
 Herodotus says (Euterpe, 15), " This region, 
 (that is the Delta) from the Watch Tower erected 
 by Perseus, extends along the coast to the salt-pits 
 of Pelusium, to the length of 40 schoenes." Taking 
 these, as before, at 40 stadia each *, we have 1600 
 
 ^ He knew the lake of Butos (or Brulos), for he speaks of it 
 (Euterpe, 156) as hemg spacious and deep; but he omits the 
 lake of Tarns, as well as that ofMareotis. 
 
 Respecting the lotus, which he says abounded in the inundated 
 parts of Egypt, (Euterpe, 92) it may be suspected that he has 
 confounded together different species of plants. At all events, 
 however, the Egyptian lotus, whatsoever it may be, is totally dis- 
 tinct from that from whepce the Lotophagi were denominated. 
 More will be said concerning this subject when we speak of the 
 Lotophagi. 
 
 * See above, pages 24 and 25.
 
 152 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 stadia for the extent of the coast. But where was 
 the Watch-tower of Perseus ? Strabo places it (page 
 801), at the eastern point of the Bolbitine branch, 
 on a projecting sandy point. But the Canopic, and 
 not the Bolbitine, mouth terminated the Delta on 
 the west : and there, surely, we ought to look for 
 the tower. The words of Herodotus could have no 
 meaning, unless the tower stood at the opposite ex- 
 tremity of the Delta to Pelusium : and therefore the 
 rocky promontory of AbuJeeir, on which Canopus 
 stood, was probably the site of the Watch-tower of 
 Perseus : and which at present contains a romantic 
 castle and tower, views of which may be seen in 
 Norden, Plate XIV. There appears to be more 
 reason to expect a watch-tower on an elevated rock, 
 near the mouth of the Canopic branch, which led to 
 the grand emporium of Egypt, than at the entrance 
 of an artificial canal, and on a sandy shore. The 
 reading in Strabo may therefore be suspected. 
 
 The 1600 stadia, calculated on our mean scale of 
 718 to a degree, produce nearly 134 G. miles ; and 
 the curvilinear border of the coast, between Pelusium 
 and Canopus, measures 138. 
 
 Strabo, page 791, allows 1300 stadia ; Pliny, 
 lib. V. c. 9, 170 MP, which were probably calculated 
 from stades at 8 to a mile, whence 1360 stades will 
 be the result. The 1300 of Strabo, on his scale of 
 700, are equal to 111|^ G. miles; and those of 
 Pliny, on our mean scale, to 113^: and as it must 
 be conceived, that these measures are intended for 
 the base of the Delta, reckoned in a direct line be- 
 tween the two before-mentioned embouchures, they
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 153 
 
 fall short by a few miles only ; the actual length of 
 the base being 117 ^. 
 
 Herodotus is silent respecting the length of the 
 sides of the Delta : and his statement of the distance 
 between Heliopolis and the sea, is evidently errone- 
 ous, as we have shewn. (See the note to page 105). 
 Strabo also omits to give the dimensions : he only 
 says that the sides are not equal to the base, which 
 is true. (Page 701). Pliny allows 146 MP. for 
 the length of the Canopic branch : but it could 
 never have exceeded 89 G. miles ; which falls short 
 about 300 stadia of Phny's calculation. 
 
 The present Delta appears to have a base of 61 
 G. miles, and the sides, 83 and 86, respectively ; of 
 which the eastern is the longest ; and it is pretty 
 certain, that its area is only equal to one half of the 
 ancient Delta ^. 
 
 Having thus stated the ideas of our Author, re- 
 specting the general subject of the Nile, and its 
 Delta, we shall bring into one point of view, the 
 
 * According to our Author, Euterpe, 6, the sea coast, properly 
 reckoned to Egypt, extended from the bay of PlhUh'uie which 
 betrins about 20 G, miles to the SW of Alexandria, to the lake 
 Sirhonis, close to M. Casius ; and was in length 60 schoenes : 
 that is, half as much again as the sea coast of the Delta. Accord- 
 ingly, the whole length of the coast of Egypt should be 201 G. 
 miles, by this account : and we measure on the Map at page 
 55, 199. 
 
 Scylax allows 200 stadia between Pharos and the bay of 
 ninthine. 
 
 * This tract appears to have lost about 70 British miles of its 
 base on the east, 18 on the west : making, in all, a defalcation of 
 88 B. miles : and leaving about 71 for the present base.
 
 154 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 number, and order of position, of the several 
 branches of the Nile ; according to the ancient 
 authorities in general ; together with the modern 
 ones that correspond to them. 
 
 I. The Canopic branch. This was also named 
 Heraclean, from the town of Heracleum, situated 
 near the entrance : for the city of Canopus lay 
 beyond it to the west '' ; and in the time of Scylax, 
 the site of it was a desert and rocky island. For he 
 says (p. 43), that at the Canopic mouth of the Nile, 
 there is a desert island, which they name Canopus ; 
 and that the sepulchre of the pilot of Menelaus, by 
 name Canopus, who came from Troy, is shewn there. 
 By this account the city of Canopus was not built 
 till after the time of Scylax, who is supposed to have 
 been cotemporary with Darius Hystaspes. Scylax, 
 who wrote a Periplus for the guidance of navigators, 
 is likely to have been correct in such a matter : and 
 
 ' Critically speaking, Canopus was situated at 120 stadia, or 
 12 British miles to the eastward of Alexandria : (Strabo, p. 801 : 
 Pliny, 12 MP. lib. v. c. 10.) : and the Canopic mouth at SO 
 stadia, or 3 miles beyond the town : for according to Strabo it 
 was 150 froin Alexandria; and the same from the Island of 
 Pharos, according to Scylax. 
 
 It must be noted, that these measures respect the ancient 
 Alexandria, which stood to the eastward of the modern city ; so 
 that the centres of the two cities were at least two miles asunder. 
 Reckoning from the modern Alexandria, the distances, respec- 
 tively, should be increased to 14 and 17 miles. 
 
 Schcdia, a city of note on the Canopic branch, was situated at 
 about 6 G. miles above the entrance. This may be collected 
 from Strabo. A canal connected this part of the Canopic 
 branch with Alexandria.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 155 
 
 therefore, the existence of an island, and that island 
 a desert one, seems to be proved ^. Since that time, 
 it hai been joined to the main by alluvions, which 
 appear to be hardly yet consolidated into firm land. 
 The Island of Pharos is also spoken of by Scylax ; 
 since which it has also been joined to the main land, 
 by sea alluvions, aided in their operation by a cause- 
 way, built by Alexander : and on which alluvions, 
 the modern city of Alexandria stands. 
 
 When Paris was driven by contrary winds to 
 Egypt, he came to the Canopian mouth of the Nile, 
 and to Tarichea ; and in that situation was a temple 
 of Hercules, which remained to the days of Hero- 
 dotus. This temple, it may be supposed, afterwards 
 gave name to the town of Heracleum, mentioned by 
 Strabo ; and which might be the same with the 
 Tarichea of Herodotus, four centuries before. To 
 this temple the servants of Paris repaired, and gave 
 the information that led to the seizure of Paris and 
 his effects, and the detaining of Helen. After this, 
 Menelaus himself visited Egypt, and received back 
 his wife, and his effects from the king ^. 
 
 ® It is worthy of remark, that when Nearchus passed the 
 Island of Ormus, afterwards famous for its city and emporium, 
 it was uninliabited ; and is described by him as a desert island, 
 under the name of Organa. 
 
 " See Euterpe, 113, et seq. where the story of Paris is given ; 
 and which is well worth the attention of the reader. There will 
 also be found our Author's ideas respecting the true history of 
 the war of Troy. It may be remarked, that the conduct of the 
 king of Egypt, in the matter of Paris, was that of a just and 
 magnanimous prince, doing honour to himself and his country 
 at the same time.
 
 156 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 Thus the classic importance of Canopiis is very 
 great, considered either as a place visited by the 
 heroes of the Trojan war; as the reputed burial- 
 place of the pilot of Menelaus : or in respect of the 
 rank which it held amongst the cities of Egypt ^ : 
 but as some ancient places have been so fortunate as 
 to renew their classic importance in modern times, 
 as if to insure the certainty of a longer term of 
 celebrity ; so this place, under the modern name of 
 Abukeir, has received a new, and perhaps a more 
 lasting impression, of " the stamp of fate," by its 
 overlooking, like Salamis, the scene of a naval battle, 
 which, like that of Salamis, may lead to a decision 
 of the fate of Europe. This most brilliant victory, 
 achieved solely by Britons, Europe felt as her own ; 
 and Frenchmen alone mourned the defeat. To 
 this spot the genius of Britain conducted his favou- 
 rite Nelson, who at one blow destroyed the fleet of 
 the enemy, and cut off, for ever, the veteran army of 
 France from her shores. 
 
 But what secluded shore of the ocean has not, in 
 its turn, reverberated the British thunder ? During 
 
 ' From the Travels of M. Sonnini, just published at Paris, it 
 appears that very considerable remains of Canopus are now 
 visible at Abukeir : such as broken columns of granite, vast 
 foundations, mutilated statues, and heaps of rubbish. Some of 
 the foundations extend into the sea : and, according to the opi- 
 nion of M. Sonnini, the sea gains on the land there ; which is 
 contrary to the ideas of the people of Alexandria respecting 
 that city, as we learn from Mr. Browne. The people of Abu- 
 keir call the ruins those of the city of Pharaon, or Pharaoh. 
 See Vol. i. p. 390, et seq, ; and also the volume of plates for 
 the drawings of the ruins, &c.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 157 
 
 the present struggle what walls have resisted, save 
 the WOODEN WALLS of Britain ? Nor shall history, 
 although she delights more to record a brilliant vic- 
 tory than the councils that produced it, sink to 
 posterity the name and character of the naval 
 MINISTER, who so succcssfully directed the great 
 engine of British power ! Devoted to her service, 
 his country shall claim him for her own, to the latest 
 times ; whilst France shall recognize in the de- 
 scendant of Marlborough, the hereditary foe to her 
 schemes of ambition and aggrandizement " ! 
 
 The Canopic was the most westerly of all the 
 branches of the Nile, at the date of our Author's 
 history. Varying its course more and more to the 
 east, in the part near the sea, it formed at last a 
 deep winding, which approached so near to the sea 
 
 ^ The answer of the Delphic oracle to the Athenians, when 
 threatened by Xerxes, (Polymnia, 141) was thought to be so 
 applicable to the circumstances of this country, that the phrase 
 of " wooden walls" is in every one's mouth, without a conscious- 
 ness of its first application. However, as it respects mere de- 
 fence, it must be taken in a qualified sense ; a fleet operating 
 rather as a systematic check on the designs of the enemy, than 
 as an effective shield or weapon, in the last resort. Its perfec- 
 tion appears, in the subjection of an enemy's foreign possessions, 
 and the protection of our own : but in respect of our own island, 
 its vicinity to the coasts of the enemy is such, that no security 
 can be derived from a fleet, without the presence of a consider- 
 able land force also. Neither of the two, singly, to any reason- 
 able extent, would avail ; but the compound preparation, 
 although moderate in each department, produces absolute secu- 
 rity. By doubling the hazard, on the part of the enemy, they 
 compel an increase of preparation, even to unwieldiness, and thus 
 narrow the chance of an opportunity to strike a blow.
 
 158 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 in the quarter where Rosetta now stands, that a 
 canal was opened in that direction, and took the 
 name of Bolbitine, from a city, whose ruins are 
 found a little above Rosetta, at a place named Abu- 
 Mander ^ This branch is also named Tali, by 
 Ptolemy. Not far below the separation of these 
 branches, stood the city of Metelis (according to 
 Ptolemy) ; whence, it may probably have occupied 
 the position of the present town of Mentuhes, eight 
 miles above Rosetta ; for there M. Niebuhr saw the 
 traces of an ancient city *. M. D'Anville places 
 Metelis at Fua, which is considerably above the 
 division of the branches. 
 
 The Canopic channel gradually filling up, that of 
 Bolbitine became deeper, until it assumed the place 
 of the former : so that the ancient passage, which 
 at all times led through a series of shallow lakes, is 
 now dry during the low state of the Nile \ The 
 present branch that passes by Rosetta, must there- 
 fore be regarded, generally, as that of Canopus, in 
 the part between the head of the Delta, and the 
 
 ^ See above, page 106 of Section xviii. ; and M. Niebuhr's 
 Voyage en Arable, &:c. Vol. i. p. 45. 
 
 * See the same volume, page 1^, 
 
 The Milesian wall spoken of by Strabo, page 801, 802, was 
 probably built across the narrow tract between the Bolbitine 
 branch of the Nile and the lake of Butos ; so as to oppose any 
 attack from the Egyptians from the side of Memphis. Butos, 
 which stood at the side of the lake, was at no great distance 
 from the river, so that the extent of the wall need not to have 
 been very great. 
 
 ^ The course of the ancient river is well known to the people 
 of the country, who point it out to travellers.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 159 
 
 outlet of the branch that leads to the bay of Abu- 
 keir. However, it has doubtless undergone many 
 changes, in particular parts of its course ; and is 
 also shortened by the change of place of the apex of 
 the Delta. 
 
 At the side of this branch were also situated, 
 amongst others, the ancient cities of Naucratis, the 
 emporium of Egypt, and Hermopolis the lesser. It 
 will be proper to speak of both of these situations, 
 as we differ exceedingly from D'Anville concerning 
 the latter ; and as the former appears to be recog- 
 nised in the ruins seen by M. Niebuhr at Salhadjar. 
 M. D'Anville places Hermopolis at Damanhur, a 
 town situated on the canal of Alexandria, about 10 
 or 12 miles below its outlet from the Canopic 
 branch at Rahmamj. The ancients however place 
 it, not at the side of the canal, but at the river itself*^: 
 and this is justified by the Antonine Itinerary, and 
 by its application to the actual geography. Hermo- 
 polis, therefore, should be placed at Rahmany. 
 
 The Antonine Itinerary allows 159 MP. between 
 Alexandria and Memphis: and the Theodosian 
 Tables have the same number. The road, in the 
 former, leads through Chereu, Hermopolis, Andro- 
 polis, Niciu, and Latojmlis ^ ; and the distance will 
 be found to agree, if reckoned through Rahmany, 
 considered as Hermopolis : as will that in the Tables, 
 if reckoned through Rahmamj and Naucratis, 
 
 " Ptolemy, Africa, Tab. III. Appendix : and Strabo, page 
 803. 
 
 ' Alexandria 24 Chereu 20 Hermiipoli 21 Andro 31 Niciu 
 28 Letus 20 Memphi : total, 144 only ; but in the road from 
 
 13
 
 IQQ BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 There appears to have been a necessity for the angle 
 in the road, at Hermopolis, because of the interven- 
 tion of the lake Mareotis ; which we conceive to 
 have extended in a different direction from that 
 assigned to it by M. D'Anville. For Strabo allows 
 it a length of 300 stadia, or about 30 British miles, 
 with a breadth of 100 stadia, or 10 miles : and he 
 also speaks of several canals, which led to it, from 
 the Canopic branch of the Nile. Moreover, he 
 speaks of this lake and its islands, as lying on the 
 Q'ight of those who go from ScJiedia to Memphis ^ 
 A slight inspection of the Map will shew, that the 
 lake in question must have extended to the ESE, 
 from Alexandria ; for had it extended to the SW, 
 appearances would manifestly shew its site, by a soil 
 differing totally from the natural soil of Libya. Mr. 
 
 Pelusium to Alexandria 36 are allowed between Andropolis and 
 Hei'mopolis : as, 
 
 Andro 12 Nitliine 24 Hermupoli : and the corrected total 
 will be 159. See Ant. Itin. pages 154, 155, 156. 
 
 The Theodosian Table has, Alexandria 24, Melcati S2, Nau- 
 crati 43, Niciu 36, Aideu 24 Memphis: total also 159. 
 
 Although the totals agree with each other, and with the actual 
 geography, yet the reader will perceive a considerable difference 
 between the details. 
 
 ® Strabo, page 803. 
 
 Phny, lib. v. c. 10, allows 30 Roman miles for the extent of 
 the lake Mareotis ; or 60 in compass ; but he says that some 
 allowed it a much greater extent. No doubt, it had been con- 
 stantly on the decrease : it having now totally disappeared, and 
 the site of it become a plain, with palm trees in divers places. 
 
 Ptolemy allows it a length of 34 G. miles ; which would reach 
 upwards to the parallels of Naucratis and Sais ; and beyond the 
 ruins which we take for those of Momemphis.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 161 
 
 Browne says, " In my excursions about Alexandria, 
 the low ground and some verdure, which I considered 
 as marking the former extent of the lake Mareotis, 
 appeared to me to reach S W, a league ; or perhaps a 
 league and half, and no more. In going along the 
 coast we saw little or nothing that could assist in fix- 
 ing its extent." 
 
 Of necessity then, both the land road, as well as 
 the canal which supplied the cisterns of Alexandria 
 with the water of the Nile (for that of the lake we 
 may suppose was not proper for keeping), must have 
 led by the north of the lake, and at a great angle 
 with the line of direction between Alexandria and 
 Memphis. The navigation from the Nile to Alex- 
 andria was no doubt by those canals described by 
 Strabo, from a point above Hermopolis, to the lake 
 Mareotis ; which might approach within a few 
 miles of the Nile, on one side, and close to the walls 
 of Alexandria, on the other ^. There appears, there- 
 fore, no necessity for supposing a canal navigation of 
 more than 35 British miles, between the Canopic 
 branch and the lake Mareotis ; as M. D'Anville 
 describes. The use of this lake, as a medium of 
 direct communication, with the Delta, and Upper 
 Egypt, without the hazard of putting to sea, was, no 
 doubt, one of the advantages reckoned upon by 
 Alexander, in his new establishment '. 
 
 " Scylax says that the distance from the lake to tlie Island of 
 Pharos was very small. 
 
 * It has been said, that Herodotus does not appear to have 
 heard of the lake Mareotis. It must be recollected that he 
 visited Egypt before the foundation of Alexandria ; and when 
 
 VOL. IT. M
 
 IQ2 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 To return to Hermopolis, and the road to Mem- 
 phis — Hermopohs is 44 MP. from Alexandria, and 
 therefore agrees in distance, to Rahmany, at the side 
 of the Canopic branch. Karavi, which hes between, 
 agrees to the Chereu of the Itinerary, 24 MP. from 
 Alexandria : and at least seems to prove that the 
 first 24 miles lay in the line towards Rahmany ^ 
 
 Sah, the site of the ancient Sais, stands, accord- 
 ing to M. D'Anville, at five miles to the east of Lah- 
 hen, a position in M. Niebuhr's Chart. Strabo says, 
 page 803, that Naucratis stood at two schoenes by 
 water from Sais : and as the latter lay inland, to the 
 east, from the Canopic river, but the former on that 
 river itself, the water passage must have been by a 
 canal, crossing the Delta : and as the canals at pre- 
 sent run to the NW, at that very place, Naucratis 
 should have been to the NW of Sais: and at the 
 distance of about eight miles from it. 
 
 Again, Naucratis, by the Theodosian Tables, is 
 56 MP. from Alexandria, towards Memphis : and as 
 this road must also be supposed to lie through Rah- 
 many (taken for Hermopohs), Naucratis should be 
 12 MP. beyond Hermopohs, towards Memphis. In 
 other Avords, Sais and Hermopohs should be 20 MP. 
 
 the lake in question had not excited the attention of the Greeks, 
 as it afterwards did, on occasion of its connection with that city. 
 Probably, it was even more extensive in the time of Herodotus, 
 than of Strabo ; and might have approached very near to the 
 Canopic branch. 
 
 ^ The march of Buonaparte from Alexandria towards Cairo, 
 was along the road described in the Roman Itinerary to Hermo- 
 pohs, or Rahmany.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 1G3 
 
 asunder : of which, 12 are between Hermopolis and 
 Naucratis : eight between the latter and Sais : and 
 the construction, founded on the above-mentioned 
 data, allows 22 : which is sufficiently exact for the 
 purpose in hand. Naucratis should then be 103 
 MP. by the road, from Memphis, and the construc- 
 tion actually allows 101. 
 
 This position of Naucratis falls precisely at Sal- 
 hadjar, about 28 G. miles above Rosetta ; at the east 
 side of the river, or within the Delta. M. Niebuhr 
 says. Vol. i. p. 78, that there are indications of an 
 ancient and extensive city at that place ; and that, 
 in consequence, he visited the spot. But he found, 
 little to repay his curiosity, although he satisfied 
 himself as to the fact of the remains : lie does not, 
 however, appear to have referred them to Naucratis. 
 Such are the remains of this once celebrated empo- 
 rium, the seat of wealth and beauty, and the resort 
 of merchants from every quarter ! Even Alexandria, 
 which succeeded it, has long lost its consequence. 
 
 " Formerly (says our Historian) Naucratis was 
 the sole emporium of Egypt. Whoever came to 
 any other than the Canopian mouth of the Nile, was 
 compelled to swear that it was entirely accidental; 
 and was in the same vessel obliged to go thither. 
 Naucratis was held in such great estimation, that if 
 contrary winds prevented a passage, the merchant 
 was obliged to leave his goods on board the common 
 boats of the river, and carry them round the Delta 
 to Naucratis ;" Euterpe, 179. Perhaps this restric- 
 tion originated in the same jealousy, which in the 
 empire of China limits the trade of Europeans to 
 
 M 2
 
 164 BRANCHES OF THE NILE, 
 
 the port of Canton : and one cannot help remarking 
 how parallel the two cases are, in this respect. 
 The Greeks were permitted to have a commercial 
 settlement at Naucratis, and they were allowed 
 places for the construction of temples for their reli- 
 gious rites. 
 
 Strabo attributes to the Milesians the foundation 
 of the city Naucratis, after they had established 
 themselves near the mouth of the Bolbitine branch, 
 in the reign of Psammitichus : (pages 801, 802.) 
 
 Amasis is said to have been " very partial to the 
 Greeks, and to have favoured them upon every occa- 
 sion. Such as wished to have a regular communi- 
 cation with Egypt, he permitted to have a settle- 
 ment at Naucratis. To others, who did not require 
 a fixed residence, as being only engaged in occasional 
 commerce, he assigned certain places for the con- 
 struction of altars, and the performance of their 
 religious rites ;" Euterpe, 187. Amasis reigned at 
 about a century after Psammitichus, and was of the 
 city of Siiq^h, in the district of Sais ; (172.) Saucife 
 is perhaps the place intended ^ 
 
 ^ Sais was a city of very great note, far down the Delta, and 
 towards the Canopic branch. Here the kings of Egypt had a 
 magnificent palace ; Euterpe, 163, 169. Edrisi mentions it 
 under the name of Sah. 
 
 Some circumstances in the history of Amasis, furnish a general 
 idea of the position of Alomemjihis, at which place the battle 
 that transferred the dominion of Egypt from Apries to Amasis 
 was fought. From Euterpe, 161, 163, 169, it would appear to 
 have been at no great distance from Sais, on the road to Cyrene. 
 The ruins of a city are noticed at 12 G. miles to the westward of
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 165 
 
 It appears from the same book (180), that on 
 occasion of the destruction of the temple of Delphi, 
 by fire, collections were made for the purpose of re- 
 building it : and that the Greeks who resided in 
 Egypt made a collection of 20 min£e. Thus may be 
 seen in all ages, the same patriotism and generosity 
 towards the mother country, in their foreign com- 
 mercial establishments. The British subjects re- 
 siding in the East and West Indies have manifested 
 the same spirit in these times as the Greeks did in 
 Egypt. However mistaken the object in the latter 
 case, the motive, as well as the praise, is the same in 
 both. It was to perpetuate the ancient system under 
 which they had flourished. On the above occasion, 
 Amasis presented the Delphians with 1000 talents of 
 alum *. 
 
 Herodotus remarks that the courtezans of Naucra- 
 tis were generally beautiful. Amongst them was 
 Rhodojiis, whose beauty was universally cele- 
 brated ; and to whom the Greeks, erroneously, 
 attributed the building of one of the pyramids of 
 
 Sais, and about four from the western bank of the Canopic 
 river. Ramsis is the nearest village to the ruins. (Niebuhr, 
 vol. i. p. 78.) 
 
 * Mr. Browne informs us that " Slieb is marked by the produc- 
 tion of a great quantity of native alum, as the name imports. 
 The surface, near which the alum is found, abounds with a red- 
 dish stone : and in many places is seen argillaceous earth," 
 p. 186. This place is situated in the Desert of Selime, six days 
 to the S of the Great Oasis, three short of Selime : (lat. 22" 35'); 
 and consequently within the boundary of ancient Egypt. 
 
 Water is found there, by digging to the depth of a few feet in 
 the sand.
 
 166 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 Memphis. Our Author, by way of refuting this 
 assertion, says, that although her beauty procured 
 her considerable wealth, it was by no means equal to 
 the construction of such a pyramid : and he adds, 
 that " whoever pleases may now ascertain the sum 
 of her riches ; for that, wishing to perpetuate her 
 name in Greece, she contrived what had never 
 before been imagined, as an offering for the Delphic 
 temple : she ordered a tenth part of her property to 
 be expended in making a number of iron spits, each 
 large enough to roast an ox ; they were sent to 
 Delphi, where they are now to be seen, behind the 
 altar presented by the Chians." Euterpe, 135. 
 
 It is worthy of remark, that in this short history 
 of Rhodopis, our Author has introduced several cele- 
 brated personages, with some curious particulars 
 relating to them. Rhodopis, who was of Thracian 
 origin, was fellow-servant to Ksop : and had her 
 liberty purchased by Charaxiis, the brother of 
 Sappho : and, finally, on his return to Samos, his 
 sister treated him (we must suppose on occasion of 
 this transaction) with great severity, in a copy of 
 verses. The resort of so many beautiful females to 
 Naucratis, may perhaps be admitted in proof of the 
 general opulence of the place, and of the people who 
 resorted to it. We now return to the subject of the 
 Canopic river. 
 
 Doubtless the Canopic branch may at least be 
 regarded as one of the deepest, if not the deepest, 
 in ancient times ; for the city of Naucratis stood at 
 more than 30 G. miles, in a direct line from the 
 sea, or perhaps about as far as London from the
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE, 167 
 
 Nore. Its course appears to have been originally 
 in the line between Memphis and Canopus ; passing 
 at no great distance from the foot of the hills or 
 eminences that bound the flat country of Egypt to- 
 wards the west ; for the canal of Baheira, which 
 passes in that track, appears to occupy part of an 
 ancient bed of the Nile. (See above, page 123.) By 
 degrees it has verged eastward ; has completely 
 deserted that part of its bed which led into the sea 
 at Canopus, and occupies the Bolhltine channel, 
 which was originally an artificial one. By this 
 change the Delta has been abridged, as has been ob- 
 served before, about 18 British miles of the western 
 part of its base, and which is become as barren a 
 desert as the adjoining one of Libya \ 
 
 II. The BoLBiTiNE mouth. This, from its con- 
 nection with the former, has already been amply dis- 
 cussed. The ancient authors are perfectly agreed 
 respecting the position and nature of both. They 
 are about 16 miles distant from each other. This 
 is at present named the Rosetta branch, from a city 
 of that name (or rather Raschid) near its junction 
 with the sea. It may be remarked, that the bar has 
 no more than six feet depth of water on it at present; 
 and as there is scarcely any tide in this part of the 
 Mediterranean, either the ancient Canopic branch 
 
 '•' This seems to be the natural progress of things in the neigh- 
 bourhood of a sandy desert. The southern and principal branch 
 of the Oxus, which ran into the SE part of the Caspian, has 
 deserted its bed ; and according to Abulgazi Khan, the tract it 
 ran through, from the condition of fertile and well planted field, 
 is become a sandy desert !
 
 168 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 must have carried a greater body of water, or ships 
 must have visited it only during the season that the 
 bar, or hogas, was swept away by the floods, and 
 before it again accumulated. 
 
 III. The Sebennitic mouth. There appear, as 
 we have seen, some doubts respecting the position of 
 this emhouchiire : nor is it a matter of surprise, that 
 there should have been some confusion amongst the 
 descriptions of the different openings of this branch, 
 as it separated into so many channels, previous to 
 its falling into the sea. We find no such confusion 
 respecting the Canopic, the Pelusiac, or the Bolbi- 
 tine : whence it may be concluded, that the ^jr/wc«- 
 pal channel of the Sebennitic, had varied its course 
 in different ages, in the part towards the sea ; as well 
 as in the number of its openings. Strabo, as well 
 as Herodotus, regards that as the Sebennitic mouth, 
 which lies next to the Bolbitine, eastward ; and the 
 latter says, that it runs to the point of the Delta ; 
 but then he also says, Euterpe, 155, that Butos, 
 which is known to have been at no great distance 
 from the Canopic river, stood at the side of the Se- 
 bennitic. Ptolemy says the same : so that here is a 
 proof that the name was applied to different branches; 
 for Butos is so far from being opposite the point of 
 the Delta, that it is rather three-fourths of the dis- 
 tance across, from Pelusium towards Canopus. A 
 branch of, or a canal drawn from, the Sebennitic 
 river, appears to have passed by Butos, into the lake 
 of the same name. It would therefore be wasting 
 time to go into any farther inquiries concerning the 
 application of the term Sebennitic, as far as respects
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 169 
 
 the opening to the sea, more especially as Herodotus 
 had not a clear idea of the subject, when he spoke of 
 the same river, as passing in one continued line to 
 the point of the Delta, and also as passing by Butos. 
 In effect, whatsoever he has said concerning the 
 bulk and course of this branch, appears to apply to 
 the upper part of it ; or, at least, not to the part 
 near the sea : and it is well known, that it divides 
 itself into a number of channels about the parallel 
 of Busiris, (or Abusir) ; some running to the NW, 
 others to the ENE. Of these, the one that passes 
 to the point of the Delta, at Brulos, is the one ap- 
 parently intended for the Sebennitic by our Author, 
 and probably by Strabo and PHny also ; and may 
 have been the principal channel of this branch in 
 early times : Strabo, however, allows the Pliatmetlc 
 the pre-eminence. The Sebennitic mouth is about 
 30 G. miles to the E of the Bolbitine. 
 
 IV. The Phatmetic, which answers to the mo- 
 dern Damietta mouth, succeeds the former, at the 
 distance of about 32 G. miles ; and is a continuation 
 of the ancient Sebennitic branch of Herodotus. At 
 present it is also the principal channel of the Nile : 
 and whatsoever variations there may have been, in 
 the state of the different embouchures of this 
 branch, in different ages, it appears from the state 
 of the alluvions, that this, and the Canopic, have 
 kept their general line of course the longest. The 
 quantity of firm land formed by these, in the parts 
 towards the sea, whilst so great a space remains in 
 the form of lakes, in other parts, furnishes much 
 internal evidence, concerning this question ; and
 
 170 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 indeed, the general course of the Nile being to the 
 northward, it might have been expected to produce 
 a greater effect in the direction of the Sebennitic 
 and Canopic branches, than in any other. 
 
 With respect to the depth of the Phatmetic open- 
 ing, it has been shewn from the arrangement con- 
 cerning the fleet of Antigonus, that it was then a 
 deep river. 
 
 It is worthy of remark that the modern Egyptians 
 denote the tracts on different sides of this branch, 
 and within the ancient Delta, the eastern and 
 western divisions : but whether this distinction ob- 
 tained during the existence of the Pelusiac branch, 
 and meant to express the different portions of the 
 Delta ; or whether it was adopted in more modern 
 times, and had a reference to the Damietta branch, 
 as the proper Nile, we know not ^. 
 
 V. and VI. The Mendesian and Tanitic, (or 
 Saitic) branches. These are situated at the eastern 
 side of the Delta; the first at 21, the other at 38 
 
 ® The body of the 'present Delta is named Gharhia, or the 
 western quarter ; and the opposite tract, which formed the 
 eastern part of the ancient Deka, Sharkia and Shurruck'ia, or 
 the eastern quarter. Keliube answers to the province of Heho- 
 pohs, to the eastward, and Giza to that of Latopolis, to the 
 westward ; of the upper part of the Delta. It would appear, 
 that, as the Pelusiac branch has moved downwards, the province 
 of Keliube has advanced with it, and that of Shurruckia has re- 
 treated : so as to keep their places, respectively, the one without, 
 the other within, the branch that formed the Delta. 
 
 Baheira commences helow Giza ; and appears to have been 
 named from the lake Mareotis and its canals ; Bahr being the 
 term amongst the Arabs for lakes or waters.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 171 
 
 G. miles beyond the Phatmetic, or that of Damietta. 
 Towards the sea these are merely openings from the 
 great lake of Menzala, or Tanis ; but the IVlendesian 
 branch, supposed to answer to the modern canal of 
 Mansura, is represented by travellers, as a pretty 
 considerable river, although it has no great length 
 of course before it enters the just mentioned lake. 
 This is also the river that presents itself in so cri- 
 tical a position, in the war of Louis IX. in Egypt. 
 (See Savary's Travels.) 
 
 Very little is known concerning the modern state 
 of the lake Menzala, which is generally named in 
 the country, Bahelra, a name given, as we have 
 just seen, to lakes, or waters. During the floods of 
 the Nile, the lake Menzala is fresh ; at other times, 
 either salt, or brackish. It extends, either in a con- 
 tinued surface, or in a congeries of lakes, joined 
 together by narrow straits, about 60 English miles, 
 between Damietta and Pelusium ; and contains 
 islands which have in them the ruins of towns and 
 cities. Strabo speaks of these lakes (page 802) ; 
 and it is probable that they have undergone little 
 alteration since his time ; as the principal course of 
 the waters has been more to the west, and the depo- 
 sition here, in consequence, lessened. 
 
 The modern name of the Mcndesian mouth, is 
 Dihe, or Pescheira ; and that of the Tanitic, 
 Eiumme-faregge. 
 
 Vllth. and last, the Pelusiac ^ In point of situ- 
 
 '' It was also called the River of Bubaslis, from whence the 
 importance of that place may be inferred.
 
 172 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 ation, it is about 23 G. miles to the SE of the Ta- 
 nitic : and in bulk, although it was a principal 
 branch, in ancient times, yet it may be supposed 
 that it never equalled the Phatmetic and Canopic 
 branches. 
 
 Concerning the present Pelusiac fiver, we have 
 already spoken, under the name of Terraet Mues ^ ; 
 and which is no more than a periodical stream, sepa- 
 rating from that of Damietta, at 16 or 17 G. miles 
 below the present head of the Delta. But the an- 
 cient Pelusiac river, in the time of Herodotus, (as 
 we have shewn), separated from the others, about 
 the parallel of Heliopolis, and at the town of Cerca- 
 sora ; from whence we trace its course to the north- 
 east, towards Bubastis ; in which neighbourhood 
 the canal of Necho to the Red sea commenced. It 
 is certain that there are no positive notices respect- 
 ing the distance at which Cercasora stood, from He- 
 liopolis ; but from the manner in which Strabo 
 speaks of the relative positions of those places, and 
 of the Observatory of Eudoxus, one cannot suppose 
 the Nile to have passed, as at present, near four 
 English miles and half from Heliopolis. The main 
 body of the river, therefore, must have verged more 
 to the west, in that part, since the times of Hero- 
 dotus and Strabo, as it is apparent the Sebennitic 
 branch has. And this variation in its course may 
 have been the immediate cause of the defalcation of 
 the waters of the Pelusiac river. 
 
 One may naturally suppose, that, at a time when 
 
 ^ See above, page 69.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 17^ 
 
 the separation of the arms of the Nile was yet higher 
 up, than in the time of Herodotus, the Pekisiac 
 branch passed successively in the line of the canals 
 of Trajan and Omar ; which canals appear to have 
 been made through the hollow ground left by the 
 river at different times. This appears no less by the 
 direction of those canals, than by the small lakes that 
 seem to mark the ancient beds of the river, in differ- 
 ent places ^ But, to descend to later times — the 
 Pelusiac branch, when it separated at Cercasora, 
 must have passed near the ancient city and temple 
 of Onias, situated to tlie north-eastward of Helio- 
 polis, at the distance of about eight G. miles. As 
 this is very much to the point of our subject, and as 
 M. D'Anville seems to have mistaken the site of that 
 famous establishment of the Jews, the reader may 
 not be displeased at our giving the detail of its posi- 
 tion. 
 
 It is well known that Onias, the High Priest of 
 the Jews, founded a temple, and a small city in 
 Egypt, by permission of Ptolemy Philometor, in 
 the Nomos or province of Heliopolis. This city, as 
 well as the district immediately around it, took the 
 name of Onias, or Onion, and as such appears in the 
 
 " In Plate XVIII. of M. Norden's Views in Egypt, where 
 the ceremony of the opening of the canal of Cairo is described, 
 the appearance of the ground is that of an ancient bed of the 
 Nile, of which the canal makes a part. 
 
 It appears that Mr. Browne considered all the soil as alluvial, 
 below Cairo. He says, page 40, " From the north (of Cairo) a 
 plain extends to the Delta, which it resembles in soil and pro- 
 ductions."
 
 174 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 geography of Ptolemy. The ancient notices con- 
 cerning its position, are not so precise as could be 
 wished, that of Ptolemy excepted. Josephus, from 
 whom the whole history of the place is collected, 
 says \ that it stood at 180 stadia from Memphis : 
 but as this points to a situation nearest to Helio- 
 polis, it is, no doubt, a mistake. However, some 
 have, from this circumstance, referred it to Helio- 
 polis itself; which arrangement is not authorized, 
 either by the history, or the geography. 
 
 Ptolemy's report allows a distance of 17 G. miles 
 between Babylon and Onii Metropolis, which latter 
 stands at, or very near to, the river of Pelusium ; 
 and in a north-easterly direction from Babylon (that 
 is, Fostat, or ancient Cairo). That this was the 
 general position of Onion, is evident, from its lying 
 in the road between Pelusium and Memphis ; and 
 not witJmi the Delta, although the plain denomi- 
 nated from the Jews, was situated within that tract ; 
 as appears from the same authority ^. 
 
 There occurs in the Antonine Itinerary (p. 169), 
 a Jewish town or village, at 30 MP. from Heliopolis, 
 towards Pelusium ; but this is not only much too far 
 removed from Heliopolis, but, by the construction in 
 page 59, must be situated on a different road from 
 Pelusium. M. D'Anville, however, regards this as 
 the position in question ; but he had not the advan- 
 tage of M. Niebuhr's observations, to set him right ; 
 
 ^ History of the Jewish War, lib. vii. 10, 3. 
 ^ For both of these notices, see Jewish War, hb. i. 9, 3 ; and 
 Antiquities, hb. xiv. 8, 1. 
 
 13
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 175 
 
 for this gentleman's inquiries lead to a perfect con- 
 firmation of the above report of Ptolemy ; without 
 discrediting the authority of the Itinerary ; since 
 there are the rem.ains of other Jewish establishments, 
 besides the one formed by Onias. 
 
 M. Niebuhr, then, w^as informed that the people in 
 and about Cairo, knew from tradition, the situations 
 of several towns that had heretofore been inhabited 
 by the Jews ; and of which some remains were still 
 visible. The Jews in question, might either be a 
 part of those who fled into Egypt, on occasion of the 
 murder of Gedaliah ; or who might be attracted 
 thither by the temple and establishment of Onias. 
 N. Niebuhr gives the names of seven such sites, at 
 the distance of two to eight leagues from Cairo, to 
 the north-east ; and, apparently, all of them within 
 the Nomos of Heliopolis ; or, as it is named at pre- 
 sent, (no doubt corrupted from the ancient name) 
 Keliiibie. 
 
 It appears probable that the original establish- 
 ment of the Jews in Egypt, was in this province of 
 Heliopolis ; as the family of Jacob was no doubt 
 placed at no great distance from the then capital, 
 whether Heliopolis or Memphis ; and indeed the his- 
 tory of Moses shews, that the place of Ids nativity 
 could not be far from the capital, by the circumstance 
 of the king's daughter finding him in the course of 
 her walks. There were also reports that Moses 
 himself was of Heliopolis '\ If the original settle- 
 
 * Heliopolis, supposed to be the On of tlie Scriptures, was 
 celebrated as a school of science from very early times. Hero-
 
 176 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 ment of the Jews was in this quarter, it appears 
 natural enough that Onias should select a place for 
 his temple within the same tract *. 
 
 Amongst the remains of Jewish establishments, 
 one in particular was pointed out to M. Niebuhr, 
 under the name of Tel el Jehiid, or Kahar Jehiicl 
 Bemderuthe, at eight G. miles to the NNE or NE 
 b. N of Heliopolis ; and which he himself saw, at 
 the distance of four miles to the northward, on his 
 way from Cairo to Suez^. It was reported to 
 have been a considerable city, and it forms at present 
 a great heap of ruins, conspicuous from afar. Jo- 
 
 dotus says, (Euterpe, 3.) that the inhabitants of this place " are 
 deemed the most ingenious of all the Egyptians." We learn, 
 moreover, from Strabo (pages 805, 806,) that it was afterwards 
 the school of Plato and Eudoxus. Moses is said to have been 
 " skilled in all the learning of the Egyptians." If he obtained 
 it at Heliopolis, it must have very long indeed preserved its con- 
 sequence ; for Moses lived about eleven centuries before Hero- 
 dotus : but it might nevertheless have been so. 
 
 The Israelites, when they began their march out of Egypt, 
 must have been on the east side of the Nile ; for they certainly 
 did not cross it, in their way to the Red sea. 
 
 * There had been a heathen temple there originally. Pro- 
 bably the site might have been chosen for the sake of the mound 
 of earth already raised there. Such mounds appear at Helio- 
 polis, and other places : and such a one is described by Hero- 
 dotus, at Bubastis, &c. See above, page 140. 
 
 Was it not, that the context of the geography renders it quite 
 improbable, one might have suspected that Bubastis itself was 
 the place intended by Josephus, when he places it in the dis- 
 trict of Bubastis, or country of Diana ; and also on the site of 
 an ancient heathen temple. But the Geography of Ptolemy has 
 in it, Bubastis, as well as Onias. 
 
 ' See M. Niebuhr's Voyage, Vol. i. p. 81, 82, and 172.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 177 
 
 sephiis relates that some parts of the temple were 60 
 cubits in height. It was also fortified. 
 
 It is certain that the situation of this heap of 
 ruins answers to the above-mentioned place in Pto- 
 lemy ; for it is about 16^ G. miles to the NE b. N. 
 of Babylon, whilst Ptolemy's is 17, about NE ^ E^ 
 He also leads the Pelusiac or Bubastic arm of the 
 Nile, by the west side of it ; and such is really the 
 course that it may be expected to have taken, from 
 Cercasora to Bubastis : and it must be allowed, that 
 this circumstance furnishes a presumptive proof, in 
 favour of the assertion of Herodotus, that " the 
 Pelusiac arm of the Nile directs itself towards the 
 east from Cercasora." It may be remarked, that 
 Ptolemy derives the branch that passed before 
 AtJunbis from that of Bubastis, a little below the 
 apex of the Delta : which appears probable, and fur- 
 nishes another presumptive proof that the great hochj 
 of the Nile has gone to the west, in that quarter. 
 
 The bulk of the Pelusiac branch of the Nile may 
 be inferred, as well from the security it afforded to 
 the eastern frontier, as from its being able to furnish 
 a copious supply of water for the canal of Suez. It 
 may be conceived that whilst the separation of the 
 arms of the Nile was high up towards the entrance 
 of, or within, the valley, the Pelusiac river ran in 
 such a direction, as to have a proper descent along 
 the general slope of the alluvion : but that when the 
 
 " It is proper to remark, that M. Niebuhr himself conceived 
 that the ruins were those of the city and temple of Onias. See 
 Vol. i. p. 81. 
 
 VOL. IL N
 
 178 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 Nile continued its course in a collective stream to a 
 much lower point, that of the Pelusiac branch became 
 almost at right angles with the general course of the 
 Nile ; so that it was deprived of the declivity neces- 
 sary to preserve its course to the sea. And hence, 
 probably, we are to account for the failure of this 
 once copious stream. 
 
 When we regard the general arrangement of the 
 lands of the Delta, and the adjoining tract ; in the 
 lower part of which, towards the sea, is found a lake, 
 and a portion of land, alternately ; with a large arm 
 of the Nile passing through each of those portions of 
 land ; it appears almost certain that these narrow 
 tracts of land have been extended so far beyond the 
 great body of the Delta, by the long continued 
 courses of the rivers through them ; as the lakes are 
 occasioned by the absence of the rivers ^ 
 
 The lakes may be considered as portions of the 
 sea, not yet filled up ; but which are daily filling, 
 though in different degrees, according to situation 
 and circumstances. For it may be perceived, that 
 the operation of filling up the lakes, and raising the 
 soil of the lands, has gone on the most rapidly, in 
 the western part of the Delta, and its adjacencies ; 
 the lake of Mareotis, which formed an expanse of 
 thirty miles in the time of Strabo, being now filled 
 up, nearly to the level of the country ; and the lakes 
 
 ' The mouths of the Rhone seem to furnish the same kind of 
 examples ; together with appearances of the change of place of 
 the head of its Delta, downwards. Probably, an examination on 
 the spot would substantiate the fact beyond dispute.
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 179 
 
 by Canopus much in the same state : whilst that of 
 Butos (or Brulos), near the middle of the maritime 
 part of the Delta, remains ; although it be much 
 smaller than that of Tanis (or Menzala), which is 
 the furthest removed from the general line of course 
 of the Nile. 
 
 It may therefore be inferred, by the hollow and 
 imperfect state of the Delta on the east, that much 
 less of the matter of alluvion has been carried that 
 way, than towards the north and north-west : and it 
 seems agreeable to reason, that the issue of the 
 waters should be in the direction of the general 
 course of the Nile, which is northerly : and that the 
 greatest deposition should follow the greatest dis- 
 charge of water. In the eastern quarter, therefore, 
 the new land is found in the most imperfect state : 
 large lakes and morasses lying midway down the 
 Delta : and a vast lake (that of Baheira, or Men^alci) 
 near the sea, inclosed on that side by a bank, formed 
 apparently of the sediment carried to the eastward, 
 by the prevailing current, along the coast ; and de- 
 posited along the edge of its track, in the form of a 
 narrow dam ; and which has been raised higher 
 than the mere act of deposition could have placed it, 
 by the surge of the sea. The progress of filling up 
 has been very slow ; for Strabo speaks of it, page 
 802, much in the same way as modern travellers do. 
 It is possible, however, that breaches of the sea may 
 have protracted this operation, as they have enlarged 
 the Zuyder Zee in modern times. 
 
 Besides the instance of the Mareotis, history fur- 
 nishes several examples of the filling up of lakes, by 
 
 N 2
 
 180 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 
 
 depositions. The Tigris and Euphrates in the time 
 of Nearchus formed an extensive lake near the sea. 
 That lake is no more to be found. The upper part 
 of the Paludes, into which the Pallacopa led, below 
 Babylon, now forms a plain, although it retains its 
 former name of Bahr Nedjvff ; that is, the sea, or 
 lake of Nedjiiff. It has also been remarked, that 
 the site of the lake Mareotis still bears the name of 
 Baheira, or the lake. 
 
 Travellers have remarked chains of sand hills 
 along various parts of the coast of the Delta ; and 
 more particularly in the parts opposite to the lakes 
 of Brulos and Menzala. It may be conceived that 
 these have remained for ages, in the nature of 
 mounds, to retain the waters of the lakes ; the pro- 
 gress of extending the alluvions into the sea, in these 
 places, having been so slow as to leave the margin 
 of the coast so long exposed to the operation of the 
 surge raised by strong northerly winds, as to produce 
 the effect above described. This opinion, if founded, 
 overthrows the idea of a rapid extension of the 
 Delta ; at least, in the parts removed from the 
 mouths of the river. Such chains of sand hills are 
 also found in other alluvial countries, and sometimes 
 many leagues inland ; though always, we believe, 
 extended in a direction parallel to the sea coast. In 
 these cases, it may be supposed that the lakes to 
 which they served as mounds have been filled up ; 
 and the alluvions (either of the sea or of rivers) 
 extended beyond the sand hills, which, in conse- 
 quence, would be left inland. 
 
 Considering the maritime lakes of Egypt as
 
 BRANCHES OF THE NILE. 181 
 
 having been originally parts of the sea, one ought 
 not to treat lightly the tradition preserved by Homer, 
 that the Island of Pharos, in early times, lay at the 
 distance of a day's sail from the mouth of the Nile ^. 
 The lake Mareotis is described by Strabo and Pliny 
 to have an extent of about 30 Roman miles ; and by 
 Ptolemy, who lived on its banks, of 34 G. miles 
 inland from Alexandria : and 35 was the space 
 sailed through in a day by the ancient ships ! Who 
 can help supposing, when he considers the disposition 
 of the land and water, in the Delta of the Nile, and 
 the process of forming new alluvions, however slow, 
 that such was once the state of things ? 
 
 ^ It has been shewn that Canopus, as well as Pharos, was 
 anciently an island.
 
 SECTION XX. 
 
 CONCERNING THE OASES OF EGYPT, AND LIBYA, DE- 
 SCRIBED BY THE ANCIENTS I AND FIRST OF THE 
 EGYPTIAN OASES. 
 
 The Term Oasis, applied by the Ancients, generally, to those 
 Islands of the Desert alone that were subject to Egypt — rvell 
 known to the Arabian Geographers. — General Description of 
 the Oases; with their supposed Origin — their Fertility, 
 Beauty, and Celebrity — owe much, however, to the Contrast, 
 arising from their singular Situation — instrumental to Super- 
 stition in ancient Times — used by the Caravans as places of 
 Refreshment — like some Islands of the Sea, they have been 
 Places of Banishment for Offenders — The Tract which con- 
 tains the Egyptian Oases, denominated Al Waliat ; from Wah, 
 the Arabic Term for such Islands — Position and Extent of 
 Al Wahat — Of the Oases, two belong to Egypt; one to 
 Libya — general Ideas of the Arabian Geograjohers, and of 
 the Ancients, concerning them — First, or greater Oasis, de- 
 termined — its Position opposite to Abydos, and not far from 
 Thebes — named Al Wah by the Moderns — Second, or lesser 
 Oasis, nearest to the Lake Moeris : and is the Bahnasa of the 
 Desert — less known than the other, to the Moderns — Investiga- 
 tion of the principal Points iii the Geography of Libya ; an 
 Operation necessary to the final Adjustment of the Position of 
 the Third Oasis; or that of Ammon — The Positions of Fez- 
 zan, Augela, and Seewa ; with the Route between Fezzan and
 
 •rv 
 
 L
 
 > -iiiiL/./vv /!• .fir '■^'^j£__,rt„ 
 
 £^ 
 
 m m^ 
 
 ^
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 183 
 
 Egypt, determined — Proofs that the Santariah of the Arabian 
 Geographers is the Seevva of the present time. 
 
 Much has been said, as well by the ancients as the 
 moderns, concerning the number and position of the 
 Oases, or Islands of the Desert, in and about Egypt 
 and Libya : but, as might be expected, in a matter 
 where so many have written, and so few have under- 
 stood the subject, simple as it really is in itself, there 
 has been much difference of opinion, and much error. 
 It may be conceived that this has chiefly arisen from 
 their having confounded certain of the L'lhyan Oases 
 with those oi Egypt. For, it is proper to remark, that, 
 although islands are scattered over the whole Libyan 
 Desert, yet that the ancient geographers in general 
 (Strabo, however, is an exception) applied the term 
 Oases to those alone which formed a part of the 
 Egyptian dominion along the west of the Nile, and 
 between it and Libya ; and this rule appears to have 
 been generally followed by the Arabian geographers. 
 Even the latter syllable of Seewa, it appears, does 
 not express the term Wall or Oasis. '. 
 
 Every one knows that the Oases are insulated 
 fertile sjoots, like islands, in the midst of an expanse 
 of desert, and surrounded by higher lands. Abul- 
 feda calls them, in the most unqualified terms. 
 Islands of the Desert : and applies the term also 
 to large tracts, such as Fezzan, Augela, Wadan, 
 &c. for although the general character of the Oases 
 is that of very confined tracts, yet some of them are 
 
 ' There seems to be no question, that the Greek term Oasis 
 is derived from the Arabic Wah.
 
 184 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 very large ; and Fezzan, in particular, is equal to a 
 small kingdom ; notwithstanding that, by its being 
 completely enveloped in deserts, it is in every re- 
 spect to be deemed an Oasis. 
 
 The ancients also appear to have had a most per- 
 fect idea of the face of North Africa, by their com- 
 paring it to a leopard's skin '. Probably it is spotted, 
 more or less, with Oases, over the whole extent of 
 the desert : for even in the Sahara, which has a 
 breadth of more than 50 journies, there appear to be 
 certain spots interspersed, which peep above the sur- 
 face of the sandy waste, like islands rising above the 
 face of the deep. 
 
 The description of the Oases is very brief. They 
 are aptly compared to islands in a sea of sand ^ ; 
 but they surpass those of the ocean, in that they are 
 almost universally fruitful, whilst the others are 
 more commonly naked and barren : the one, pro- 
 bably, owing their very growth and existence to that 
 principle which fertilizes them ; namely, fountains of 
 water springing up in the desert ; whilst the others 
 are either the ruins of ancient lands ; the produc- 
 tion of volcanoes, or accumulations of marine sub- 
 stances. 
 
 The Oases, with very few exceptions, are plenti- 
 fully supplied with fountains of pure water : and 
 
 ^ Strabosays so, p. 130, quoting Cneius Piso. 
 
 ^ Thomson thus poetically styles them, 
 
 the tufted isles, 
 
 That verdant rise amid the Libyan wild 
 
 Summer, ver. 912.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 185 
 
 seem to possess a greater proportion of that useful 
 element than falls to the share of small tracts of 
 land in other situations. Is it then too much to sup- 
 pose, that the foundations of these islands were first 
 laid by vegetation, occasioned by springs ; the decay 
 of which vegetation produced soil, until it gradually 
 increased to the state in which we behold them? 
 They appear universally to be surrounded by higher 
 lands, which may well account for the springs. In 
 particular, Fezzan ^ is nearly encircled with moun- 
 tains : and the descent from the western barrier of 
 Egypt, into the middle level of the Greater Oasis, is 
 strikingly marked by Mr. Browne, page 184. 
 
 It is not improbable, however, that the Oases might 
 derive a part of their reputed superiority in foun- 
 tains, verdure, and fruits, from the striking contrast 
 between them and the surrounding waste ; as they 
 can only be visited by persons who have been at 
 least four or five days, perhaps twice that number, 
 in the midst of burning sands, and who are conse- 
 quently prepared to set a high value on the comforts 
 of shade and cooling streams, which abound in 
 those secluded spots ; and the want of which had 
 constituted the chief evil of the journey. To these 
 solid advantages is to be added, the effect produced 
 on the mind by the romantic nature of the situa- 
 tion ; for we are apt to regard a beautiful scene in 
 an insidar situation, as more interesting than one of 
 the same kind, in an ordinary, and an accessible 
 situation. Probably the island of St. Helena, how- 
 
 ^ African Association for 1790, chap. IV.
 
 186 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 ever beautiful its scenes, or its women, may derive 
 a part of its praise from the length of time to which 
 its visitors are confined to the watery waste in their 
 
 way to it. 
 
 It can hardly be doubted, that the temple of Jupi- 
 ter Ammon was placed in the most retired of the 
 Oases, with a view to derive advantages from the 
 effects of various impressions made on the minds of 
 its visitors by its singular situation. It is remarked 
 by Arrian, that Alexander himself was surprised at 
 the nature of the place. The perilous nature of the 
 journey to it (that of Alexander, and the army of 
 Cambyses are examples) would subdue the minds of 
 ordinary persons, and fit them for the operations of 
 priestcraft. The island itself, situated in the midst 
 of a boundless tract of moving sand, would appear 
 to such minds a kind of continued miracle : and the 
 temple may possibly have had a history belonging to 
 it, something like that of Loretto ! 
 
 Mr. Browne's description of the Greater Oasis, 
 however, lessens somewhat of the importance at- 
 tached to it, from the reports of former travellers, 
 Poncet in particular ; for Mr. Browne's praises are 
 bestowed chiefly on the Oasis of Seewa (and, no 
 doubt, very deservedly) ; and of the other he says little 
 more than that there is good water, and plenty of 
 dates. It appears to consist of a number of detached 
 fertile spots or islands, extending in a line parallel to 
 the course of the Nile, and of the mountains that 
 border the valley of Upper Egypt ; separated from 
 each other by deserts of two to fourteen hours' 
 traveUing ; so that the whole extent of the chain may
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 187 
 
 be 100 English miles ; but by far the greatest part 
 of it desert. 
 
 M. Poncet, who visited it in his way to Abyssinia, 
 in 1698, agrees in his description with the Arabian 
 geographers, and also with those of the ancients. 
 M. Poncet says, " Here are to be seen a great num- 
 ber of gardens, watered by brooks, and forests of 
 palm-trees, that preserve a continued verdure." 
 
 Mr. Browne describes one principal town, Charje, 
 and several villages. The whole Oasis is subject to 
 Egypt, and has ever been reckoned an appendage 
 to it. 
 
 It appears that the Greater Oasis, and that of 
 Seewa or Siwa, are made use of by the caravans, as 
 places of refreshment, by the way. The former 
 occurs in the road from Egypt to Abyssinia and 
 Darfoor ; the latter, in that from Egypt to Fezzan, 
 and Western Africa in general, and is the most in 
 use of the two, not only as the trade to the west is 
 more extensive than that to the south, but because 
 the pilgrims to Mecca form a part of these caravans. 
 The Greater Oasis, indeed, occurs too near to Egypt 
 to be of the same advantage as that of Seewa, which 
 is 15 or more journies from Egypt, whilst the other 
 is only five. Perhaps the Oasis of Seewa may not 
 be unaptly compared, in respect of the caravans, 
 with the Island of St. Helena, in respect of our 
 India fleets : as, like that, it affords water, refresh- 
 ments, and a convenient place of rest. It is possible 
 too, that it may often afford that kind of intelligence, 
 respecting the political and commercial state of the 
 countries, which the caravan means to visit, as to 
 
 13
 
 188 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 enable the merchants to arrange their plans with 
 more security and advantage, than if they had kept 
 to the Desert through the whole route : for it is to 
 be observed, that Seewa does not lie in the direct 
 route ^ 
 
 The Lesser Oasis appears to be but imperfectly 
 known to the Egyptians, as it lies quite out of the 
 track of the caravans ; and is therefore seldom 
 visited by any but the Arabs of the Libyan Desert. 
 Consequently, a traveller who visits Egypt is likely 
 to hear less of this, than of the others. 
 
 Mr. Browne's inquiries, however, have brought out 
 some new lights concerning it ; but notwithstanding, 
 the subject is far from being clear. P. Lucas was 
 told that it had no springs, and that the inhabitants 
 were supplied from wells only. But this circum- 
 stance does not accord with probability, since by 
 what Mr. Browne and Horneman heard of it, it is 
 much the same kind of place with the Greater 
 Oasis ; which, as well as that of Seewa, seems evi- 
 dently to owe its existence to springs. 
 
 It is a matter of great satisfaction that Mr. Browne 
 has visited the two principal Oases ; so that we have 
 descriptions that may be depended on. The Oasis 
 of Seewa (taken for Amnion) appears to be by far 
 the finest spot : but what is singular, this favoured 
 
 * Seewa lies about two-thirds of the way from the plentiful 
 country of Fezzan, towards Egypt. That the caravans go out 
 of their way, to Seewa, is plain, from what Mr. Browne tells us ; 
 for El Sogheir lies two journies to the NE of Seewa, and the 
 Plain of Gegabib three to the NW of it ; and the general line of 
 the road from Egypt to Augela is west.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 189 
 
 place is inhabited by a most unquiet race of beings ; 
 perhaps rendered so by the nature of their govern- 
 ment, which is placed in the hands of certain tur- 
 bulent chiefs, whose elections and intrigues frequently 
 produce civil broils and bloodshed ''. In the days of 
 Herodotus, as well as of Alexander, they were go- 
 verned by a king: and we hear of no troubles or 
 dissensions at that time. The religion of Ammon 
 might also be milder, and more tolerant, than that 
 of Mahomed. 
 
 The Greater Oasis, and that of Ammon, were 
 used as places of banishment by some of the monarchs 
 of the lower empire. Athanasius, Bishop of Alex- 
 andria, the champion of the doctrine of the Trinity, 
 was banished in the fourth century to the Oasis of 
 Ammon, and died there. Nestorius, Bishop of Con- 
 stantinople, was also banished in the succeeding 
 century, to the Greater Oasis ; which w^as invaded 
 and destroyed by the Blemmyes, an Ethiopian tribe, 
 during his residence there. Others of less note suf- 
 fered a similar fate, in both these Oases. The prac- 
 tice of banishing people thither for ordinary offences, 
 had probably been in use amongst the ancient 
 Egyptians. The islands of the Persian gulf, as we 
 have seen, were places of banishment under the Per- 
 sian monarchs : and it is probable that people 
 would find it even less difficult to escape from the 
 islands of the sea, than from those of the Desert. 
 
 " See Proceedings Afr. Assoc, for 1790, Chap. X. ; and Mr. 
 Browne's Travels, page 24.
 
 190 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 In order to collect any precise ideas respecting 
 the positions of the Oases, as they are described by 
 the ancients, one must first lay down as a ground- 
 work, the descriptions given by the Arabian geo- 
 graphers ; together with the information collected by 
 intelligent modern travellers ; as from these, col- 
 lectively, we are likely to obtain a greater mass of 
 information than is to be found in the writings of 
 the ancients, how much soever they may have known 
 concerning the subject. 
 
 It appears that the Arabian geographers ^ express 
 by the collective term Al Wahat, the desert which 
 contains the WaJis or Oases dependent on Egypt; 
 although no such collective idea appears amongst 
 the ancients. This tract of Al Wahat claims our 
 first attention ; not only as it included the Oases 
 belonging to Egypt, but because the discrimination 
 of it leads to some important geographical con- 
 clusions ^. 
 
 Edrisi says, p. 18 and 19, that Al Wahat lies near 
 or adjacent to Assouan {i. e. Syene : it may be sup- 
 posed that the district is meant), and extends 
 downwards along the border of Egypt. In p. 43, it 
 is said also to border on the canal of Menlii ; that is, 
 oi Joseph ; which opens into the lake Faiume, or 
 Mceris. Again, p. 97, it touches the border of 
 Nubia, near the southern extremity of Egypt ; and. 
 
 '' Edrisi, Abulfeda, Jacutus, and Tbn al Wardi. 
 * The reader is referred, for geographical explanation re- 
 lative to this Section, to the Map, No. IX, at page 183.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. ]91 
 
 p. 18 and 19, also touches on the countries of Kucu 
 and Kavar ^ Thus far Edrisi. 
 
 Abulfeda says, that Al Wahat lies to the SE of 
 Santariah (that is, Seeiva) : and that the district of 
 Augela is situated between Magreh (Muggreb, or 
 Western Africa) and Al Wahat \ Again, the com- 
 mon boundary of Egypt and Magreb, is a line drawn 
 from a certain mountain on the coast, (implied to be 
 the lesser Catahathmus) to the tract of Al Wahat, 
 and thence along it, to the boundary of Nubia ^ 
 Al Wahat is there said to be composed of a number 
 of tracts like islands, surrounded by the Desert : and 
 that there is a space of three journies between it 
 and Sdide (Upper Egypt). And quoting Jacutus, 
 he says, that it is composed of th7'ee cUstr'icts on the 
 west of the Saide, and beyond the mountains ; ex- 
 tending in a direction parallel to the course of the 
 Nile. 
 
 Jacutus (quoted by Hartmann) ^ says, that " it 
 extends from a point opposite to the lake of Faiume, 
 to Assuan." 
 
 Ibn al Wardi, Hartmann, 491, only says of the 
 situation, that " there are places (or tracts) named 
 Alouhat, situated along the mountains, which are 
 between Egypt and the Desert." He is singular in 
 arranging Al Wahat as a division of Africa, and not 
 of Egypt. He makes that division, which he calls 
 
 ' These countries will be found in the new Map of Nortli 
 Africa, published by the African Association, in 1798. 
 ' Tab. III. Africa, marginal notes. 
 ^ Tab. II. Egypt, marginal notes. 
 * Hartmann's Edrisi, p. 494.
 
 192 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 the third, to consist of Al Waliat, Barca, Alexandria, 
 and the Desert on the west : and names it Siis al 
 Adna, or tJie nearest ; meaning-, it may be pre- 
 sumed, in respect of Egypt. 
 
 Thus we have before us the ideas of the Arabian 
 geographers, concerning the position and extent of 
 the tract called Al Wahat ; which, however, we 
 must conceive to be included within imaginary 
 boundaries, except on the side towards the Nile. 
 For, it will be found, that the Oases occupy only a 
 part of it ; and we can conceive no distinction of 
 boundary, in a trackless desert. Taking it, how- 
 ever, according to the descriptions, one may suppose 
 it to have an extent of 350 G. miles from north to 
 south ; and 150 from east to west : and it appears 
 certain, that it contained no other Oases than those 
 properly belonging to Egypt ; that is, the greater 
 and lesser. 
 
 We come next to the consideration of the number 
 and 'particidar situations of the Oases or Wahs. 
 And here the Arabian geographers fail us ; for not 
 one of them is accurate and decided, with respect to 
 all ; and it is not without great difficulty, and by 
 help of modern travellers, that the truth is unra- 
 velled. And, in effect, it will appear that the 
 Oriental geographers, taken separately, either Imew 
 less, or have expressed less, concerning the general 
 subject, than some of the ancient geographers. 
 However, it will be very satisfactorily made out (we 
 trust) that the most consistent descriptions, ancient 
 and modern, agree in fixing three Oases ; two of 
 which properly belong to Egypt, and the third to
 
 OASES OF EGYPT, I93 
 
 Libya. We solicit a patient hearing from the reader, 
 as he will have to attend to much dry, and intricate 
 discussion. 
 
 The positions of the Oases given by Jacutus (as 
 quoted by Hartmann, p. 494.) may easily be shewn 
 to be so erroneous, that it would be taking up the 
 time of the reader to no purpose, were we to state 
 them in detail. In effect, he describes the three 
 Oases to extend in three lines, which are parallel 
 to the Nile, and to each other ; and separated by 
 ridges of mountains. Moreover, he extends them in 
 length, from the lake Moeris to the parallel of 
 Assouan. Nothing can be more unlike the truth. 
 
 Ibn al Wardi (Hartmann, 491.) does not specify 
 the number, or particular situation. He appears to 
 speak only of Al Wahat, or the Egyptian Oases, col- 
 lectively. 
 
 It would prove both tedious and useless, to quote 
 indiscriminately the information respecting the Oases, 
 contained in the ordinary books of European travel- 
 lers. We shall therefore content ourselves with 
 having recourse to M. Maillet, and a very few 
 others, whose information seems to be of a superior 
 kind to the rest. M. Maillet says, p. 303, 304, that 
 Al Wah is nearest to Manfoulct, at the left of the 
 Nile : and that the caravans of Nubia pass to it, 
 from Egypt, after 13 journies. These notices apply 
 to the Greater Oasis ; which indeed appears to have 
 been the only one known to M. Maillet. M. Poncet, 
 who passed through it, in his way to Abyssinia, in 
 1698, made five journies to it, from the bank of the 
 Nile, near Manfoulct, which agrees with M. Mail- 
 
 VOL. II. o
 
 194 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 let's report ; as his 13 journies are reckoned from 
 Cairo. Dr. Pococke speaks of two Oases only ; but 
 then he must be understood to speak of Egyjit 
 merely : and the omission of the third cannot there- 
 fore be charged as a deficiency. His remarks are 
 drawn from the ancients, save in the single parti- 
 cular, respecting the distance between the two Oases ; 
 "which he reports to be 1 00 miles *. Lucas appears 
 to have heard of one only, and that the Lesser 
 Oasis. 
 
 We are concerned to state, that M. Savary, whose 
 opinions and writings in general are entitled to much 
 respect, has given no authorities of his own collecting, 
 for the number, or the position of the Oases ; and 
 that, moreover, he has, in our idea, failed in the 
 mode of digesting, if not in the construction, of the 
 materials which he has drawn from the ancients, 
 and from the Arabian geographers. 
 
 Mr. Browne having visited both the Greater Oasis, 
 and that of Ammon ; and having also heard some 
 particulars respecting the lesser one, during his resi- 
 dence in the former of these ; much light will be 
 thrown on the subject, by the aid of his remarks : 
 and there is little doubt but that the three Oases, 
 spoken of by the ancients, may be very satisfactorily 
 placed in modern geography. 
 
 In the next place, we shall adduce the principal 
 authorities from the ancient authors. 
 
 Strabo (p. 813.) speaks distinctly of three Oases. 
 
 * As Ptolemy allows 115 miles between them, we must infer 
 that Pococke spoke from some modern authority.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 195 
 
 The FIRST situated opposite to Ahydos, at the dis- 
 tance of seven journies ; abounding with water, 
 vines, and other productions ; and well inhabited. 
 The SECOND was near the lake Moeris ; and the 
 THIRD, near to, or at, the Oracle of Ammon, He 
 had previously said, in p. 791, that there were three 
 Oases subject to Egypt ; which might very well 
 have been the case in his time ; when Ammon was 
 included in the Egyptian province, subject to Rome. 
 He confesses his ignorance of what lay beyond 
 Ammon, and also of the Oases in Libya. P. 839. 
 The Egyptians, says he, p. 791, call those tracts 
 AuASis, which are surrounded by the wide Desert, 
 like islands in the sea ^ 
 
 Ptolemy has two Oases only, which he so names ; 
 the Greater and Lesser ". The first, he places in 
 the parallel of Abydos ; and the other, not far from 
 the lake Moeris, but to the south of its parallel. Of 
 course, these have a pretty exact agreement with the 
 Jirst and second Oases of Strabo : and that of Ju- 
 piter Ammon answers to the third, although not by 
 him denominated an Oasis. 
 
 Ptolemy's Greater Oasis is placed in latitude 26° 
 55' ; The Lesser in 28" 45'. It may reasonably be 
 supposed that these points or stations, are meant to 
 represent some principal place, or town, in Ptolemy's 
 Geography : perhaps the principal town of each of 
 the Oases. 
 
 * "Aj/ao-ic, instead of Avamq, is found every where in the text 
 of Strabo (particularly in page 813); but there can be no 
 doubt that the v has been substituted for the v. 
 
 " Savary erroneously gives three Oases to Ptolemy. 
 
 o 2
 
 196 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 Pliny speaks of two Oases only, bordering on 
 Egypt. He also knew the position of Ammon, lib. v. 
 5 and 6, but confines the term Oasis, like most 
 others, to those of Egypt. 
 
 Herodotus appears to have known but of one. In 
 Thalia, 26, he describes the Greater Oasis, under the 
 name Oasis, as apiwopriate to it ; not having, we 
 may suppose, heard of its application generally to 
 the islands of the Desert. But he, nevertheless, 
 describes those of Amman, Angela, the Gat'a- 
 mayites, &c. ; though not under the name of Oasis. 
 
 Thus the ancients are generally agreed, in Hmiting 
 the Egyptian Oases to two only ; placing the third 
 at the Oracle of Ammon in Libya : and, in this idea, 
 the best informed modern writers appear to be agreed. 
 We shall now bring together the principal authori- 
 ties, aricient as well as modern, for the positions of 
 them, severally ; adding our own opinion to each. 
 
 I. The Greater Oasis : the best known of all to 
 the Egyptians and Arabs, and generally intended by 
 Al Wah ; or The Oasis, by way of excellence. 
 
 This is established in modern geography by the 
 tracks of the caravans from Egypt to Abyssinia. 
 The caravans leave the Nile in the neighbourhood of 
 Siout, or of Manfoulet, in Upper Egypt, situated at 
 75 to 80 G. miles short (northward) of ancient 
 Abydos, to which the centre of the Great Oasis is 
 nearly opposite. M. Maillet informs us that Man- 
 foulet is the nearest point of the Nile to Al Wah : 
 and that the distance from the place of departure of 
 the caravan (i. e. Cairo) to Al Wah, is 13 journies. 
 We find on D'Anville's Map of Egypt, about 220
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 197 
 
 miles between Cairo and the NE part of Al Wah ; 
 equal to 17 miles per day ; agreeing very well. It 
 also appears that the same part of Al Wall is 80 
 miles from Manfoulet (about SW b. W) ; and M. 
 Poncet's caravan employed five days between those 
 two points ; which is equal to a rate of 16 miles per 
 day : and differs but little from M. Maillet. 
 
 Mr. Browne fixed the position of Slout, or Assiuf, 
 by celestial observations, both of latitude and longi- 
 tude : and it is remarkable, that it differs but a shade 
 from the position assumed in the Map of North Africa 
 (1798), published in the Proceedings of the African 
 Association. This affords much satisfaction, in re- 
 spect of the remaining positions in Upper Egypt, 
 which rested on the truth of Mr. Bruce's observation 
 of longitude at Assuan. Mr. Browne fixed the Greater 
 Oasis, that is, the principal town in it, Charje, by an 
 observation of latitude ; and calculated its longitude 
 by his bearings and distance from Siout. The result 
 of both will be found in the note ; where it will be 
 seen that Charje, in our map, stood only 4 min. of 
 lat. more to the south, and 5 of Ion. more to the 
 east, than by Mr. Browne's calculation ^ 
 
 The Nubian and Darfoor caravans appear to 
 travel nearly 100 British miles ^, through the Great 
 
 / / 
 
 ' Mr. Browne places Siout, in . lat. 27 24 Ion. 31 24 
 
 The Map of Africa, 1798, has . — 27 22 31 19 
 
 Mr. Browne places Charje . . — 26 25 29 40 
 
 The Map — 26 21 29 45 
 
 * That is, including the interniecliate intervals of desert, 
 which separate the fertile spots.
 
 198 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 Oasis, in a direction of south, a little west ; so that 
 it reaches considerably to the south of the parallel of 
 Thebes. But this being yet near a degree and half 
 short of that of Assouan, Jacutus, as we have said 
 before (page 193), is incorrect in extending the first 
 Wall so far to the south : as is Edrisi, in saying that 
 it lies to the west of Assouan : unless they both 
 might intend the tract of Al Wahat merely. 
 
 It appears pretty certain that Al Wah extends 
 very little either to the N or S beyond the space 
 which the caravans travel through it : for they ap- 
 pear to go out of their way, in order to profit as 
 much as they can, of the advantages which it offers, 
 in point of refreshment. 
 
 It may be perceived that the j^r^^ Oasis of Strabo, 
 placed opposite to Abydos, and at seven journies 
 from it, is evidently meant for Al Wah : but the 
 distance is rather too great, it being only about 95 
 G. miles from Abydos to the nearest point of the 
 Oasis. Ptolemy has 96, exactly. 
 
 Herodotus allows seven journies between Thebes 
 and the Greater Oasis (the only one known to him). 
 He says that this journey was *' across the sands ;" 
 which well expresses the idea of the road to it. The 
 approximating parts of Thebes, and of the Oasis, 
 may be reckoned 140 G. miles, which require 20 
 such miles per day direct ; which is above the com- 
 mon rate, although it be lower than that of the 
 journies from Seewa, according to the information 
 communicated by Mr. Browne. He was told that 
 Al Wah was distant 12 journies only, which requires 
 a rate of more than 20. He was told the same of
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 199 
 
 Cairo, which requires 22 ; and that Derna was 
 only 14 journies distant. But as all of these journies 
 are of the same length as those of Mr. Browne, from 
 the sea coast to Seewa, in which they travelled 11 
 or 12 hours each day, they must be regarded as 
 forced marches : for he tells us, page 17, that there 
 being little or no water in that track, " they were 
 obliged to use all possible diligence in the route ;" 
 and the other tracks being much of the same kind, 
 it may be supposed that by these journies are meant 
 such as are undertaken by very small parties lightly 
 equipped. 
 
 Our Author adds, that " the Oasis was said to 
 be inhabited by Samiatis, of the JEscliryonian 
 tribe :" and that the country was called, in Greek, 
 ** the happy Islands." Thaha, 26. 
 
 It appears that no part of the Oasis approaches 
 nearer than 75 or 80 G. miles, to the Saide, or 
 Upper Egypt ; which is understood to include only 
 the narrow valley through which the Nile runs, and 
 which is bounded on either side by a ridge of hills 
 or mountains. However, Abulfeda says, that the 
 Wahs are no more than three journies, (or less than 
 60 miles) from the Saide. Either the calculation 
 may be coarse, or the Saide may extend farther from 
 the Nile than we suppose ; but the question is of 
 little importance ; for, in effect, nothing appears 
 more certain than that, by the Greater Oasis, the 
 ancients intended the Al Wah of the moderns : and 
 it is equally certain that the position assigned to each 
 respectively, by the ancients and moderns, is one and 
 
 13
 
 200 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 the same ; so that not a shadow of doubt ought to 
 remain regarding the identity of the place. 
 
 II. The Lesser Oasis. 
 
 Since this does not He in the track of any of the 
 caravans, it happens that we know much less about it 
 than the other Oases. It has appeared that Strabo 
 and Ptolemy, amongst the ancients : Pococke and 
 Lucas, amongst the moderns, have placed it towards 
 the lake Kairun or Moeris : and that the descrip- 
 tions of the Arabian geographers imply an inhabited, 
 or at least an liahitable tract, in that quarter. But 
 its exact site, any more than its extent, cannot be 
 ascertained, and we must be content with approxi- 
 mating certain points in it. 
 
 Ptolemy, who alone of the ancients, gives any 
 positive information concerning its site, places it in 
 the parallel of 28" 45'. He also places it 75 G. 
 miles to the westward of Oxyrynchus, a city which, 
 according to M. D'Anville °, stood on the site of the 
 present BaJinasa, at the canal of Joseph (called also 
 Menhi) ; but it happens that Ptolemy, by an utter 
 derangement of the position of Oxyrynchus, and the 
 
 ° Respecting Egypt, M. D'Anville is our guide in such mat- 
 ters as have not been otherwise explained by M. Niebuhr, and 
 other travellers, whose observations have been made since the 
 date of M. D'Anville's writings. The apparent accuracy, and 
 great critical knowledge displayed in the geography of Egypt, 
 by M. D'Anville, as far as he was master of the actual geography, 
 appear to have rendered this department of ancient geography 
 as perfect as any one whatsoever.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. OQ] 
 
 lake Moeris, in respect of Alexandria, places this 
 Oasis in the meridian of the lake, when it ought 
 rather to be 70 miles to the west of it. That is, he 
 places Oxyrynchus very much too far to the east- 
 ward of Alexandria : and the lake to the west, in- 
 stead of the north, of Oxyrynchus. But there is 
 still no reason to suppose that he mistook the general 
 position of the Oasis itself. 
 
 However, the position thus assigned by Ptolemy 
 must relate to some single point, which might pro- 
 bably be the principal town of the Oasis ; a conjec- 
 ture rendered still more probable, by our learning 
 from Abulfeda, that a city named Bahnasa stands 
 in the tract of Al Wahat, and in this quarter ; and 
 from Edrisi, that it lies on the road from Cairo, 
 towards the quarter of Fezzan and Morocco. 
 
 This matter of Bahnasa, however, not being per- 
 fectly clear in all its circumstances, the reader must 
 determine for himself, after we have set the parti- 
 culars before him. 
 
 Abulfeda then (article Bahnasa), says, that " be- 
 sides the city of Bahnasa, at the canal of Faiume, 
 (and which he distinguishes by calling it the Egyp- 
 tian Bahnasa), there is another of the same name in 
 Al Wahat, near the frontiers of Nigritce '." 
 
 Edrisi, p. 106, places Bahnasa at seven journies 
 from Cairo towards Segelmessa, in Western Africa. 
 But the reader should be informed that Edrisi, in 
 another place, allows seven days between Cairo and 
 the Egi/ptia?i Bahnasa : an evident mistake, as it is 
 
 '- Here Nigritia seems to be interpolated for Libya.
 
 202 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 no more than about 4^, according to his ordinary- 
 scale. 
 
 With respect to the road from Cairo to Segel- 
 messa, we conceive there must either be some error 
 or omission in Edrisi : for there are no more than 41 
 journies given between the two places, although the 
 distance be near 100. The road would doubtless 
 pass through the country of Fezzan, probably through 
 its capital also ; and in that case too, through Te- 
 missa, (a considerable town in the same country of 
 Fezzan) at seven journies to the east, or ENE of the 
 capitaP. Now, we find, in the route just men- 
 tioned. Tamest, or Tamaset (for it is differently 
 spelt in the different translations of Edrisi), at 40 
 stations out of the whole 41, from Cairo, which is 
 actually the distance between Cairo and Temissa, on 
 the map constructed for this work, at page 183, 
 following the scale of Edrisi. And hence it may be 
 supposed, that he might originally have given the 
 whole route from Cairo to Segelmessa, and that the 
 remainder of it is lost. 
 
 To this may be added, that the mountains of 
 Salahan, in Edrisi, occupy the position of those 
 of Ziltan on the same map; besides, there being 
 a general accordance in the nature of the coun- 
 try to a considerable extent. Perhaps, therefore, 
 from the coincidence of so many particulars, we 
 may well assign to Bahnasa its proportion of the 
 distance on the same route ; which being 7 days 
 at 19, equal to 133 G. miles from Cairo, will, if laid 
 
 ^ See Proceedings of Afr. Assoc, for 1790, chap. iv.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. OQQ 
 
 ofF to the parallel of 28° 45' (that of Ptolemy's 
 Lesser Oasis), place the Bahnasa of the Wah at 83 
 G. miles to the westward of the Egtfptian Bahnasa; 
 whence, of course, it falls only eight to the west of 
 the Lesser Oasis of Ptolemy ; which, as has been 
 shewn, he places at 75 miles from Oxyrynchus, 
 whose site is now occupied by the Egyptian Bah- 
 nasa ^. 
 
 We also collect from Edrisi, p. 41, that Al Wah 
 is nine journies * from Santrie (or Santariak) a 
 known position, (the data for which will be given in 
 its place, and which will appear to answer to the 
 Oasis of Seewa and of Jupiter Ammon), at about 
 254 G. miles to the westward of the Egyptian 
 Bahnasa ; so that the Bahnasa of the Wah, or in 
 other words, of the Lesser Oasis, lies immedi- 
 ately between them. Now, as we have seen that 
 this latter is about 83 miles from the Egyptian 
 Bahnasa, and is precisely in the line towards San- 
 tariah, it is evident that the complement of the dis- 
 tance to 254, which is 171, will just answer to the 
 nine days between Santariah and Al Wah. So that 
 the Lesser Oasis is certainly intended by Edrisi ; and 
 it may be the particular point in it, Bahnasa, which 
 
 ^ See D'Anville's Egypt, ancient and modern. 
 
 * Edrisi says, from Bahrein (or the ttvo lakes) to Giofar, two 
 stations ; and thence to Al Walt, tliree ; the country dry and 
 sterile. Again, from Bahrein to Santariah, four stations ; 
 Bahrein therefore lies between Santariah and Al Wah, i. e. the 
 Lesser Oasis, which, by the distance, should be meant. There 
 are two lakes in Ptolemy, but nmcli too far to the south, for 
 Bahrein.
 
 204 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 minutely coincides with the distance from Cairo, in 
 the opposite quarter. 
 
 M. Maillet, although he is silent respecting Bah- 
 nasa in the text of his book, places a district of this 
 name in his map. It is described to lie to the west- 
 ward of the lake Kairun (Moeris), and about the 
 parallel of 29" : and it bears about SW by S from 
 Alexandria, which is actually that of our Bahnasa, 
 from the same place. 
 
 Dr. Pococke had heard that the two Oases of 
 Egypt were 100 miles distant from each other. 
 These were probably meant for British, and in road 
 distance ; and therefore may be taken at about 77 
 G. miles in direct distance ; and would reach from 
 the northernmost point of the Greater Oasis to about 
 the parallel of 28^ or short of Bahnasa by about 45 
 miles. But as this points to no particular part of 
 the Oasis, all that can be inferred from it is, that it 
 extends so far to the south. 
 
 P. Lucas had heard of this place whilst in the 
 neighbourhood of the lake Kairun. He appears not 
 to have heard of the Oases of Egypt under that 
 name; and therefore his testimony ought to have 
 more weight, as being unconnected with any system. 
 He speaks merely of an inhahited spot in the Desert. 
 He says, ^^ There is, in the Desert, at the distance 
 of *om^ journies from Faiume (the city so named) a 
 place of inconsiderable extent, full of palm trees, 
 which bear the hest dates in all Egypt ^ The 
 
 '' The same is said by Jacutus, respecting the superior quality 
 of the fruits of the Oases.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 205 
 
 Arabs, who possess and cultivate this spot, draw 
 their scanty supplies of water from wells, which they 
 have, with much labour and industry, dug in the 
 Desert, and water them with great care. They pay 
 their tribute to the Pacha in dates." (Vol. ii. of the 
 Third Voyage of Lucas, p. 206.) 
 
 A position, at some jour nies' distance fromFaiume, 
 and in the Desert to the west, can answer to no 
 other place than the Lesser Oasis ; which, by our 
 data, falls at about five journies from the town of 
 Faiume ; four from the nearest part of the lake of 
 the same name. And it may readily be conceived, 
 that the city of Bahnasa, (or what remains of it) is 
 situated within the tract intended by Lucas and 
 Pococke. 
 
 It is not unworthy of remark, that the assumed 
 position of Bahnasa (in the Wah) is removed to 
 much the same distance to the west of the Nile as 
 the Greater Oasis. In effect, the ridges of moun- 
 tains in this part, and to which these Oases seem to 
 owe their position, run parallel to the general course 
 of the Nile, which is from S to N ; and appear to 
 terminate on the coast of the Mediterranean, after 
 bending somewhat more to the west, from the Lesser 
 Oasis. This termination answers to the Lesser 
 Catahatlimus of the ancients, situated opposite to 
 the Hermcean Promontory, and about 40 miles to 
 the eastward of Para^tonium. 
 
 The road of the caravan from Angela to Seewa 
 and Cairo, lies across this range of mountains, for 
 seven days' journey, between See wah and the Con- 
 vent of Lottron. The line of the road passes at the
 
 206 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 distance of 70 or 80 miles to the northward of 
 Bahnasa ; and ascertains the fact, that the Lesser 
 Oasis does not extend so far to the north. 
 
 Thus we have given our authorities for the general 
 position of the Lesser Oasis ; but which are infinitely 
 less conclusive than those for the Greater. How- 
 ever, concerning the question of Bahnasa, there 
 seems little doubt. The nine journies from San- 
 tariah (which is Seewa), the three from the Saide, 
 and the seven from Cairo, point generally to the 
 samq, place : and the whole is strengthened by the 
 report of its being near the parallel of the lake 
 Moeris, as well by the ancients as the moderns. 
 
 M. D'Anville has omitted the Lesser Oasis in his 
 modern geography, although he had before him the 
 same materials as we have made use of, Mr. Browne's 
 excepted. Of course, we may conclude that he 
 doubted the authorities. There can, however, be 
 no doubt respecting the existence of an Oasis in this 
 general situation, in proof of which we shall now 
 adduce the information recently obtained from the 
 observations of Mr. Browne. 
 
 This gentleman was informed by the Muggrabin, 
 or western Arabs, whilst in Al Wah, that the Lesser 
 Oasis (called by them Al-WaJi el-GJierhi, which 
 appears to mark poverty or inferiority, perhaps on a 
 comparison with the other) approached, at its southern 
 extremity, within the distance of 40 G. miles of the 
 northern extremity of the Greater. Mr. Browne 
 also says, that the Lesser Oasis " forms a kind of 
 capital settlement, if I may so speak, of the Muggra- 
 bin Arabs, who extend even to Fezzan and Tripoly."
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 207 
 
 (Page 132.) He adds, that " several ruins are said 
 to be found there :" (perhaps those of Bahnasa 
 amongst the rest). Again, in page 170, he speaks 
 of these Arabs passing from the Lesser Oasis to the 
 western extremity of the lake Kairun, whose shore, 
 on that side, is also in their possession. 
 
 This information, of course, ought to have its due 
 weight ; but although a part of the Lesser Oasis 
 may approach southward to the neighbourhood of 
 Al Wah, yet there is no reason why it may not ex- 
 tend northward to the parallel above assigned. 
 Even the circumstance of the Arab possessors of the 
 Oasis, passing from it to the lake Kairun, seems to 
 shew that a part of the Oasis lies well up towards 
 the neighbourhood of that lake. INIr. Browne de- 
 scribes the Greater Oasis to consist of laro-e detached 
 spots : or a number of islands extending in a chain, 
 separated by intervals of desert. Probably the 
 Lesser Oasis may be of the same nature ; as the 
 same mountains that impend over the Greater one, 
 are known to continue northward : i. e. in the same 
 direction with the Lesser Oasis. Bahnasa may be in 
 one of the spots, and the most northerly of all ; and 
 the southernmost spot may lie within 40 miles of the 
 northernmost of those of the Greater Oasis : and the 
 two, collectively, may form, in effect, one long chain. 
 And, finally, the interval of 40 miles, by being very 
 much greater than the intervals between the other 
 islands, may occasion the division into Greater and 
 Lesser Oases ; each consisting of a number of islands 
 separated by narrow deserts. According to Mr.
 
 208 OASES OF EGYPT, 
 
 Browne, the greatest interval between the islands of 
 the Greater Oasis is about 28 G. miles. 
 
 No idea is given any where of the breadth of the 
 islands ; but it is probably small. 
 
 It is certain that the above supposition will give a 
 greater extent to the Lesser than to the Greater 
 Oasis : but the titles may have been bestowed more 
 from the quantity or quality of the produce than the 
 mere extent, and it seems to be allowed that the 
 lands of the lesser Oasis are far inferior to the 
 other \ 
 
 Before we proceed to fix the place of the third 
 Oasis, it will be necessary that the positions, in 
 respect of which it is to be placed, should be arranged ; 
 and as these extend in a regular chain, from Egypt 
 to Fezzan, and have a mutual dependence on each 
 other, it will be proper to enter into a discussion of 
 the whole in the first instance : and although the 
 length of the discussion may occasion some inter- 
 ruption to the matter immediately in hand, yet some 
 time will be saved in the end, by going through the 
 whole at once : since it must otherwise have been 
 resumed, when the subject of Libya came under con- 
 sideration. 
 
 There will be found, in the accompanying note, 
 the latitudes and longitudes of the several places, on 
 
 " The Author is indebted to his friend, Mr. Wilkins, for the 
 following interpretation of the word Gherbi. 
 
 " The word Gherbi signifies distant, afar off, western. It is 
 derived from the same root as Gherib, a man from a distant 
 country, a stranger, a poor man, &c. Meghreb, the place where 
 the sun sets ; the west ; Africa.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 209 
 
 which the construction of the Map, No. IX. at page 
 183 sup., is founded; several of which are from ce- 
 lestial observations, and others from the Con. cles 
 Temj)s, &c. The Map in question serves to explain, 
 not only the relative positions of the Oases to each 
 other, and to the neighbouring countries, but exhibits 
 also the whole coast of Libya, and that of Syria ; 
 together with the eastern bason of the Mediterranean 
 sea''. 
 
 ' The Map in question contains, besides the geography of the 
 countries, a separate dehneation of the positions, according to the 
 several authorities. The reader will be pleased to observe, that 
 although in this il/«jj of Positions, the different results of the 
 separate authorities are shewn (and which is the principal use of 
 it), yet that in the geographical Map it was necessary to fix the 
 positions, according to the most approved mode of combination. 
 Consequently, some small differences will appear, in certain cases, 
 between the two Maps. 
 
 Table of latitudes and longitudes of the leading positions in the Map. 
 
 
 
 
 Lon. 
 
 
 
 
 Lon. 
 
 
 La 
 
 t. 
 
 East. 
 
 
 Lat. 
 
 East. 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 
 o 
 
 , 
 
 / 
 
 Aleppo 
 
 *3G 
 
 11 
 
 *37 9 
 
 Selime 
 
 *22 
 
 15 
 
 30 15 
 
 Jerusalem 
 
 31 
 
 46 
 
 35 20 
 
 Seewa . . 
 
 *29 
 
 12 
 
 26 18 
 
 Gaza .... 
 
 31 
 
 30 
 
 34 32 
 
 Paraetonium . . 
 
 31 
 
 9 
 
 26 49 
 
 Suez .... 
 
 *30 
 
 2 
 
 *32 28 
 
 Angela 
 
 30 
 
 3 
 
 22 46 
 
 Cairo .... 
 
 30 
 
 3 
 
 31 19 
 
 Koseir . . 
 
 *26 
 
 8 
 
 *34 8 
 
 Alexandria . 
 
 *31 
 
 12 
 
 *30 8 
 
 Cyrene . . . 
 
 32 
 
 48 
 
 21 22 
 
 Bahnasa, in Egypt 
 
 28 
 
 48 
 
 30 48 
 
 Barca 
 
 32 
 
 20 
 
 20 28 
 
 Siout, or Assiut 
 
 *27 
 
 24 
 
 *31 24 
 
 Mesurata . . 
 
 32 
 
 10 
 
 15 3 
 
 Tliebes . . . 
 Assouan, or Syene 
 
 25 
 *24 
 
 32 
 
 
 32 26 
 *33 30 
 
 Fezzan . . 1 
 Mourzouk . 5 
 
 27 
 
 48 
 
 15 3 
 
 Charje . . . 
 
 •^•6 
 
 25 
 
 29 40 
 
 Tripoly 
 
 32 
 
 52 
 
 13 20 
 
 Sheb .... 
 
 *23 
 
 35 
 
 30 10 
 
 Tunis . . . 
 
 36 
 
 44 
 
 10 20 
 
 1 
 * These 
 
 1 1 
 mark the c 
 
 elestial observation 
 
 3. 
 
 
 
 VOL. II.
 
 210 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan, is placed, 
 according to the report of modern travellers, in a 
 clue south direction from Mesurata ; a town situated 
 on the coast of the Mediterranean, and within the 
 district of Tripoly. The distance is given at 11 \ 
 caravan journies, taken at 15 G. miles each in direct 
 distance ; or 262 for the whole. Hence Mourzouk 
 falls in latitude 27° 48' : and being under the same 
 meridian with Mesurata, its longitude will be the 
 same, which is 15" 3' east of Greenwich ^. 
 
 The bearing and distance of Fezzan (Mourzouk) 
 from Mesurata, receives some degree of confirmation 
 from certain notices in Edrisi. JVadcm is situated 
 on this road, at eight caravan journies southward 
 from Mesurata, 9^ short of Fezzan. Now Edrisi 
 says, page 135, that Wadan is five journies from 
 Sort, which is known to be situated at the shore of 
 the Greater Syrtis ; distant from Tripoly, according 
 to the same authority, in page 88, 210 Arabic miles, 
 equal to 222 geographic. The five journies being 
 equal to 90 or 95 such miles, Wadan must of 
 
 * This is the calculation. Mr. Beaufoy, Afr. Assoc. 1790, 
 chap. V. says, that the caravan (which is understood to be that of 
 Tripoly), travels only seven or eight hours per day, and at a rate 
 of three miles in the hour. But we have ascertained in the Phil. 
 Trans, for 1791, p. 142, that 2^ miles is nearly the rate. It is 
 shewn also, in the same place, that the heavy or loaded caravan 
 across the Arabian Desert, travels about 7^ hours per day ; 
 agreeing with Mr. Beaufoy's Tripoly caravan. Then about 19 
 British miles will be a day's journey, by the road, and 15 G. 
 miles in direct distance. This statement of the rate of the 
 Tripoly caravan falls short of that of the African caravans in 
 general, which has been shewn to be upwards of 16.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 211 
 
 necessity lie in a southerly direction from Mesurata, 
 in order to preserve its proper distance from Sort. 
 Again, Zuela, which is a known position, at about CO 
 G. miles to the east, somewhat north, from Mourzouk, 
 is stated by Edrisi, to be eight journies from Wadan ; 
 nine from Sort : and Abulfeda adds, to the south- 
 ward of the latter. From these data collectively, 
 one may rest satisfied that the capital of Fezzan lies 
 very much southerly, if not directly south, from 
 Mesurata ". 
 
 The difference of longitude between Fezzan (thus 
 arranged) and Cairo, as will appear by a reference 
 to the foregoing table, is IG*^ 16' ; giving a direct 
 line of distance between them of 861 G. miles. 
 
 Between Fezzan and Cairo, there are certain 
 notices, which enable us to arrange the intermediate 
 positions with some degree of general accuracy. In 
 the first place, Edrisi and Abulfeda furnish, between 
 them, a complete chain of distance in journies ; 
 together with three cross lines of distance, from the 
 coast, at very convenient intervals for determining 
 the direction of the longer line ; which is far from 
 being straight, since it leads through several Oases, 
 or fertile tracts, in order to obtain refreshments and 
 water for the caravans. A second aid is derived from 
 the number and arrangement of the caravan journies. 
 
 The principal bend in the line between Fezzan 
 
 * M. D'Anville has greatly misplaced the capital of Fezzan : 
 for it stands in his Map of Africa, about 2-j degrees of longitude 
 too far to the west; 1 "3- of latitude too far to the north. In 
 effect, it is made to bear to the south-westward, instead of the 
 south, of Mesurata. 
 
 p 2
 
 2\2 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 and Cairo, is nearly about the middle of it, at 
 Angela : and at this place, fortunately, a line of dis- 
 tance from Barca (situated near the sea coast of 
 Libya PentapoUs) to Angela, determines the posi- 
 tion of the latter \ 
 
 Hadjee Abdalla reckons 53 journies of the caravan 
 between Fezzan and Cairo ; of which 26 arise 
 between the former and Angela ; 27 between the 
 latter and Cairo ^ These give, on the direct line, 
 a proportion of 16,3 G. miles per day, nearly : but 
 as the distance is increased by the angle, at Angela, 
 from 861 to 869 miles, the mean rate will be 
 increased to 16,4. The process of fixing the exact, 
 or rather approximated, position of Angela, although 
 tedious, must be gone through in the first instance ; 
 otherwise, neither the intermediate positions, nor the 
 place of the Oasis of Ammon, the ultimate object, 
 can be arranged with precision. 
 
 Edrisi allows 10 journies between Barca and 
 Angela. His ordinary scale is 19 G. miles for each 
 day, but as it appears that the mean rate is no more 
 than 18, on 44 journies between Bahnasa in Upper 
 Egypt, and Zuela in Fezzan, through Angela, it 
 may be proper to adopt it here ; and then 180 miles 
 will be the distance between Barca and Augela^ 
 
 * See the position of Barca, in the Map at page 183. 
 
 ^ See Proceedings of the Afr. Assoc, for 1790, chap. x. Leo 
 allows 60 journies ; Mr. Browne and Mr. Ledyard, 50 each. 
 The mean of \\\efour accounts, is 53^ : differing only a fraction 
 from Hadjee Abdalla. 
 
 ^ The following is the statement of the road froin Edrisi and 
 Abulfeda. 
 
 Bahnasa to Santariah, 14 journies : (Abulf. Tab. Egypt,
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 213 
 
 Here then are given tivo sides oi each of the two 
 triangles, formed by the points of Cairo, Barca, and 
 Angela ; and by Fezzan, Barca, and Angela ; the 
 third sides of which triangles are to be found in the 
 proportioned distance between Cairo and Fezzan, 
 through the point of Augela : and the result is, that 
 the 27 journies between Cairo and Augela, give 443 ; 
 and the 26, between Fezzan and Augela, 426 G. 
 miles ; and that the mean caravan journey comes out 
 16,4, on each of these lines; although on the direct 
 line between Fezzan and Cairo, it fell short of 16,3. 
 Moreover, it appears, that Augela falls in latitude 
 30'' 3' ; longitude 22'^ 46' ; by this result. 
 
 It may be proper to remark, that although it be 
 true, that the country in the line of the road on the 
 west of Augela, is more mountainous and rough than 
 that on the east ^ yet that the circuitous nature of 
 the road, on this side, by its leading through Seewa, 
 so fully balances the loss of direct distance on the 
 other, that Augela may be allowed to stand in the 
 position assigned to it. 
 
 We shall next examine how this position accords 
 with the distances allowed by Edrisi and Abulfeda. 
 
 The former, it has appeared, page 212, allows 20 
 journies between Zuela and Augela ; or, according 
 to the mean rate above adopted, 360 G. miles. 
 
 article Bahnasa) : to Angela, 10 (Edrisi, p. 41.) : to Zala, 10 : to 
 Zuela, or Zawila, 10 (Ed. p. 40.): total 44 days. The distance 
 through these points, on the construction, is 795 G. miles ; and, 
 consequently, the daily rate 18. 
 
 * See Proc. Afr. Assoc. 1790, chap. x. Eleven of the jour- 
 nies are through rocky deserts, and over mountains.
 
 214 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 Zuela is a known position, 60 miles from tlie capital 
 of Fezzan, to the east somewhat north ; and in the 
 road towards Angela. Of course, 420 miles are to 
 be taken for the distance between Fezzan and An- 
 gela ; and 426 has appeared to be the result arising 
 on the proportioned caravan journies : or 6 only, 
 more than the other. That the 20 journies lie in 
 one direct line, is proved by the position of Zala ; 
 and the 60 miles from Fezzan to Zuela, differ so 
 little in bearing from the other, as to render any 
 allowance unnecessary ^ In effect, then, the posi- 
 tion of Angela rests on three lines of distance which 
 intersect each other nearly in the same point ; that 
 is, the 10 journies from Barca, and the 20 from 
 Zuela ; together with the proportioned distance 
 from Cairo and Fezzan. 
 
 Nothing can well be more satisfactory than this 
 general result : but besides this, the data on the 
 side of Egypt agrees to the interval, although those 
 data can only be admitted as such, on a supposition 
 that the author (Abulfeda) has by mistake substi- 
 tuted Bahnasa of the Wah, for that of Egypt ; a 
 supposition extremely probable, as the position ac- 
 
 * Zuela is said to be eight days from JVadan, nine southward 
 from Sort ; (Edrisi and Abulf.) : and Zala is nine SE from 
 Sort ; ten NE, or between the east and north, from Zuela. 
 Consequently, Zala falls in the line between Fezzan and Augela. 
 • See also the Map at page 183. Care must be taken not to con- 
 fovmd Zuela and Zala ; the former lies within Fezzan ; the 
 latter midway between Fezzan and Augela. There are several 
 places of the name of Wadan. 
 
 The position of Sort has been given in page 211.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 215 
 
 cords perfectly with the one, and differs more than 
 a third, from the other ^. 
 
 If then it be admitted, that Abulfeda meant to 
 say, that Santariah (a celebrated Oasis, and no 
 doubt that of Seewa), was situated at 14 journies 
 from the Egyptian Bahnasa, instead of that of Al 
 Wahat, the distance between Angela and Cairo 
 will be clearly made out. For the position of the 
 Egyptian Bahnasa is well known, in respect of 
 Cairo (being 83 G. miles to the SSW of it, and at 
 the canal of Joseph) ; and the interval on the con- 
 struction, between this Bahnasa and Augela, is 428 ; 
 whilst Abulfeda and Edrisi allow 24 journies, equal 
 to 432. The space between Augela and Santariah 
 being 10 journies, according to Edrisi ; 14 will of 
 course remain between Santariah and Bahnasa \ 
 
 At all events, the position of Santariah in respect 
 of Augela, remains uncontroverted. For the re- 
 ported distance of 10 journies, or 180 miles east- 
 ward from Augela, is conveyed as a positive notice ; 
 and Abulfeda allows eight journies to it, from the 
 lesser mountains on the sea coast ; taken unques- 
 tionably for the Lesser CatahatJimus, near the 
 
 * The subject of Bahnasa has been amply discussed, in page 
 201, et seq. 
 
 ' As a farther confirmation of the interval of distance between 
 Cairo and Fezzan, we learn from Edrisi (see above, p. 202.) that 
 it is 40 journies between Cairo and Tamest, or Temissa, in 
 Fezzan. The space on the construction is 749 G. miles ; allow- 
 ing a rate of 18f per day ; or only I of a mile short of Edrisi's 
 general scale, which is 19: and I short of the result between 
 Bahnasa and Zuela.
 
 21(3 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 Hermcean Promontory. Edrisi allows nine joiirnies 
 from the sea coast, but without any discrimination 
 of place. If we meet the line of 180 from Angela, 
 with the 144 from the Hermeean Promontory, San- 
 tariah will fall in latitude 29" 9', longitude 26" 5'. 
 
 It appears very certain that the Santariah thus 
 spoken of by Abulfeda and Edrisi, is the same place 
 with the Seewa or Siwa, of our Maps ; since the 
 route and observations of Mr. Browne prove it. It 
 will appear also to be the Oasis that contained the 
 temple of Jupiter Amnion, the remains of which 
 have been recently discovered by Mr. Browne, 
 although he declines to regard them as such, in his 
 book. It will be proper, therefore, as the next step 
 of this investigation, to compare the position of San- 
 tariah, with that of Seewa; for in adducing the 
 evidence for the position of Jupiter Ammon, it is 
 highly important that the reader should not be left 
 in doubt, whether there is more than one place that 
 might suit the general position and description. It 
 will no doubt appear very clear to him, that Seewa 
 and Santariah are one and the same place. We 
 shall here compare the geographical positions alone ; 
 meaning to compare the descriptions afterwards. 
 
 Mr. Browne set out from Alexandria, for the 
 Oasis of Ammon, with an intention of following the 
 same general line of direction, described by the his- 
 torians of Alexander, to have been pursued by that 
 prince. Accordingly, he went along the coast, west- 
 ward, to a station, about 20 G. miles short of Al 
 Bareton (the ancient Parcetonium), and then struck 
 inland to the SSW, and afterwards more westerly.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 217 
 
 On the first line, along the coast, he travelled 75i 
 hours ; and on the latter, 62^. The rate was regu- 
 lated by the pace of the camels ; which experience 
 points out to be about two G. miles per hour, in 
 direct distance, on ordinary ground, and on lines of 
 this length ^. Perhaps, along an indented coast, 
 like the one in question, (for Mr. Browne seldom 
 lost sight of the coast), something may be deducted : 
 and the more so, because Paraetonium stands at 169 
 G. miles from Alexandria, in M. D'Anville's Map ; 
 and the 75^ hours, at two miles per hour, would 
 leave only 18 for the distance of the last station on 
 the coast, from Parastonium. Accordingly, 149 only 
 are allowed ^. 
 
 Mr. Browne had furnished himself with a compass, 
 amongst other instruments, and attended to the di- 
 rection of the route the whole way. The particulars, 
 he has very obligingly communicated, since the pub- 
 lication of his valuable Book of Travels ; and they 
 supply the following information, respecting his line 
 of course inland : 
 
 * The rate is 21 British miles per hour on the road, which 
 produce somewhat above two G. miles in direct distance. But 
 this depends on tlie nature of the ground. 
 
 '■' Alexander is said to have travelled IGOO stadia along the 
 coast, to Paraetonium (Arrian, lib. iii.) : these may give 137 G. 
 miles, which distance is yet 12 miles short of Mr. Browne's 
 station, and 32 short of Paraetonium. It should rather be 2000 
 stadia, or even more. There is reason to suppose that Alex- 
 ander did not leave the coast, as Mr. Browne did, before he 
 came the length of Paraetonium. 
 
 Pliny, lib. v. 5, allows 200 MP. between Alexandria and 
 Paraetonium ; or just IGO G. miles.
 
 218 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 That the bearing of Seewa, was south 19 W, 
 (clear of variation) from the station 20 miles to the 
 eastward of Pareetonium : and the distance, 124-1- G. 
 miles, (being two per hour) on that course, gives 
 117^ difference of latitude, 40^ of westing : conse- 
 quently, as the station appears to have been in 31" 7', 
 the latitude of Seewa, by account, should be 29** 9' 30" : 
 and the longitude 26' 25' 15" \ 
 
 The latitude of Seewa, by Mr. Browne's obser- 
 vation, was however 29'^ 12' : so that if any depen- 
 dance could be placed on the truth of the latitude of 
 the sea coast, the distance infers a more westerly 
 bearing by 3^ degrees ; and an addition to the diff. 
 long, which would place Seewa in 26** 18', or 7^ 
 west of the former. 
 
 ' Mr. Browne, on leaving the coast, went SSW for the first 
 (lay and half; but then more to the W, so as to make a course 
 of about S 31 W to the village of Karet-um-el-Sogheir ; and 
 from thence to Seewa, about S 40 W. The variation is taken at 
 15° westerly : and as Sogheir appears to be situated at about 
 two parts in three of the whole 621 hours, from the station on 
 the coast, one short of Seewa ; the general course, clear of 
 variation, will be S 18f, or say 19 degrees W. Hence arises a 
 diff. lat. of 1" 57' 30" ; departure 4O5 ; and Seewa, by account, 
 would be in 29" 9' 30" lat. and 20* G. miles west of the meridian 
 of Paraetonium. 
 
 i^ It does not appear that Mr. Browne noted the variation 
 in this track : but in Darfoor, he found it to be 16 degrees. 
 His station was about the parallel of 14" N, and Ion. 28 E. In 
 our Variation Chart in the Proceed. Afr. Assoc. 1798, 173 is 
 found in the same spot. Mr. B.'s observation is in proof of the 
 SYSTEM, there advanced: the difference of li degree, whether 
 arising from the difference of compasses, or from error in the 
 calculation, is of little importance to the system.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 219 
 
 A third result arises from the given number of 
 journies of the caravan, from Cairo to El Sogheir ; 
 combined with Mr. Browne's distance, from the sea 
 coast to the latter place ; and thence to Seewa. It 
 is to be observed, that the village of Karet-um-el- 
 Sogheii' is the Vmseqiiir of Hadjee Abdalla ; and 
 although placed hy him, or very possibly by the mis- 
 take of the interpreter, at one journey only to the 
 NE of Seewa, was found by Mr. Browne to be two 
 long journies from it. Thirteen journies of the 
 caravan are reckoned between Cairo and the above 
 village ; and these, from the angle made by the road 
 at Seewa, require 16,9 G. miles in the detail. The 
 13 journies, then, are equal to about 220 miles ; 
 w^hich line of distance intersecting the route of Mr. 
 Browne at a point two parts in three, from the coast, 
 towards Seewa (see the last note), or in positive 
 distance 84f G. miles, places El Sogheir in lat. 
 29" 42', Ion. 27" 6'. The remaining \ of the route 
 to Seewa, equal to 42^ miles, laid off to the parallel 
 of 29" 12', places that town in Ion. 26" 32'. 
 
 It is proper, however, to remark, that although 
 this statement is admitted, in order that the route 
 may be considered in every point of view, yet that it 
 is manifestly erroneous on the face of it : because it 
 supposes El Sogheir to bear only four degrees to the 
 W of S from Mr. Browne's station on the coast ; and 
 he found it to bear about S 13 W true. And there 
 can be no question that the other results should be 
 preferred. 
 
 The difference of Q\ G. miles (or 7' 15" of longi- 
 tude) between the two former results, is hardly to be 
 
 13
 
 220 OASES OF EGYPT. 
 
 regarded in this question : and it is somewhat re- 
 markable, that a bearing and distance taken in so 
 coarse a way, should agree so nearly to the difference 
 of latitude ^ The general result is therefore very 
 satisfactory ; and it may be preferable to take the 
 mean of the two calculations, which places Seewa at 
 a bearing of S 11 W from Paraetonium, distance 
 119 G. miles : and in longitude 26" 21' 30". At 
 the same time the Author is strongly of opinion, that 
 Seewa is somewhat more to the west ; and the reason 
 is, that in cases of this kind, where the rate is deter- 
 mined by camel travelling, the distance is more 
 susceptible of accuracy than the hearing. The 
 operation of the distance, simply, carries it, as we 
 have seen, more to the west : and it is possible that 
 even the rate of two G. miles per hour, may be too 
 low ; but it would require a very critical knowledge 
 of the ground to determine the question with accu- 
 racy. Such are the authorities for the position of 
 Seewa. 
 
 Now, as it has appeared that Santariah, accord- 
 ing to the authorities, is situated in lat. 29*^ 9', and 
 Seewa in 29" 12' ; and also that the former is 
 situated in Ion. 26" 5'', the latter in 26" 21' 30"; 
 which difference is equal only to 14^ G. miles in 
 easting, and 3 in northing ; whilst the place itself 
 occupies a space nearly equal to six miles, by four 
 and a half, and is surrounded by a wide desert ; no 
 
 ^ It may however be recollected, that Mr. Carmichael, on a 
 line of 720 miles between Aleppo and Bussora, erred no more 
 than six or seven degrees in the bearing. See Phil. Trans, for 
 1791.
 
 OASES OF EGYPT. 221 
 
 kind of doubt can be entertained that both names 
 are apphed to the same place. It may also be 
 remarked, that 18 G. miles only have been taken 
 for each of the 10 journies between Angela and 
 Santariah, because such was the proportion arising 
 on the whole line of 44 journies between Egypt and 
 Fezzan : but it is evident that, in the detail of a 
 route of which we have not a competent knowledge, 
 places often lie wider of the direct line, and thus 
 occasion larger intervals than are allowed for in the 
 gross : and, moreover, that the intervals are not 
 always well proportioned to each other, although 
 one is compelled to arrange them as if they were. 
 The ordinary day's journey, in Edrisi, is 19 G. miles, 
 and if this be allowed to operate between Angela 
 and Santariah, this latter would fall precisely at 
 Seewa, according to Mr. Browne's distance and 
 parallel. 
 
 Thus we conclude the construction of the Libyan 
 geography ; and proceed to the examination of the 
 authorities given by the ancients for the Oasis and 
 Temple of Amnion, which will be found in the next 
 Section.
 
 SECTION XXI. 
 
 THE SUBJECT CONTINUED — OASIS OF JUPITER AMMON ; 
 ITS TEMPLE AND ORACLE. 
 
 The Third Oasis, that which contained the Temple of Jupiter 
 Ammon — Country of Amnion distinct from Egypt — Position 
 of the Oasis, as determined by the authorities of the Ancients 
 collectively — General Agreement of these Authorities — Seewa, 
 lately visited by Mr. Browne, answers decidedly to the Oasis 
 o/" Ammon : and the Remains found there, appear to be those of 
 the Temple — No other Oasis in that quarter — Elucidations of 
 the Subject, from Ptolemy — Ancient Descriptions of Ammon 
 compared with those of Seewa ; and that of Seewa with San- 
 tariah — Some Remarks on the Temples and Oracles of Jupiter 
 Ammon — Greeks borrow their Mythology from the E gyptians 
 — Ammon, in Africa, the same as Jupiter — The Oracles of 
 Jupiter at Thebes, Ammon, and Dodona, similar to each other 
 — Stupendous Remains at Thebes — Silence of Herodotus re- 
 specting them, remarkable — The Edifice discovered at Seewa 
 resembles certain of those at Thebes and Hermonthis — Remark 
 on the Style of Egyptian Architecture — The Remains at Seewa, 
 unquestionably Egyptian — Mr. Browne entitled to great praise 
 for the perseverance and zeal which led to this interesting dis- 
 covery. 
 
 This Oasis, as it contained the celebrated oracle of 
 Jupiter Ammon, visited by Alexander, although in 
 dimensions the least, is of the greatest importance 
 of the three as it respects public curiosity.
 
 OASES AND TEMPLE OF JUPITER AMMON, OQS 
 
 The state, or kingdom of Ammon, occupied, in 
 the time of Herodotus, a considerable extent of 
 space in Libya, between Upper Egypt and the Desert 
 of Barca, on the E and W (Melpom. 181, 182), and 
 between the Nomadic tribes along the coast of the 
 INIediterranean, on the N, and the great Libyan 
 Desert on the south. It included, therefore, of 
 course, a part of the tract of Al WaJiat, before 
 described : althouo'h the Oasis of Ammon is not 
 included in Al Wahat, in the modern division of 
 Africa. (See the map at page 183^). 
 
 The position of the Temple of Ammon will first 
 be ascertained by the authorities derived from the 
 ancients : after which it will be seen how far it 
 agrees with any of the Oases, or Wahs, described by 
 the moderns. And we have little doubt but that 
 the reader will finally agree with us, in fixing it at 
 the modern town of Seewa, known to the Arabian 
 geographers, as we have shewn, under the name of 
 Santariah. 
 
 Herodotus places it at ten journies to the east- 
 ward of Angela : but it is remarkable that he does 
 not say how it lies with respect to any place in the 
 opposite quarter. He merely says, " that the ter- 
 ritories of the Ammonians, who possess the temple 
 of the Theban Jupiter, are the people nearest to 
 Thebes ; from which they are a ten days' journey 
 
 ' One is naturally induced to inquire what habitable lands, 
 besides the Oasis of Amnion, were included in this kingdom. 
 No satisfaction, however, can be obtained. It is possible that 
 the Oasis itself might form the most populous part of it.
 
 224 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 distant." Melpom. 181. But this has no reference 
 to the temple itself, which is more than twice that 
 distance from Thebes. It appears singular, that he 
 should not have mentioned its distance, either from 
 Thebes, or from Memphis ; since he gives it from 
 Augela, a more uncertain situation : and more 
 especially, too, as he speaks of the march of the 
 army of Cambyses to it, from Thebes. For in 
 Thalia, 25, 26, he relates that this prince *' sent an 
 army against the Ammonians, with orders to burn 
 the place, or temple, from whence the oracles of 
 Jupiter were delivered ;" at the same time that he 
 himself set out on an expedition against the Ethio- 
 pians. Both were unsuccessful : and the only dif- 
 ference was, that a remnant of the latter returned ; 
 but the former, according to the Historian, were 
 never more heard of. They arrived at the Greater 
 Oasis, in their way to Ammon ; to which it was at 
 least 20 days' march ; but were either overwhelmed 
 with sand, or left by their guides to perish in the 
 Desert ^ 
 
 It is unquestionable that the route from Thebes to 
 Ammon must have lain through the Greater Oasis ; 
 but the proper and safe route would have been from 
 Memphis ; from whence it was also about one-third 
 nearer than from Thebes. 
 
 "^ M. Savary and M. Poncet have both given a frightful idea 
 of the journies across the Libyan sands. Nothing, however, 
 appears more likely, than that the armies perished tlirough 
 fatigue and want of water. Mr. Browne does not so readily 
 give into the belief of the possibility, of a living person being 
 overwhelmed with sand. See his book, pages 248, 249.
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. 005 
 
 Pliny fixes the temple at twelve journies from 
 Thebes, and as many from Memphis, but whatso- 
 ever truth (if any) there may be, in the latter parti- 
 cular, the statement of the distance from Thebes is 
 evidently wrong. But laying out of the question 
 (at present) the position of it, in respect of any place 
 to the eastward, it will be found that the statements, 
 in respect of places on the north and west, will be 
 satisfactory enough ; taken in a general point of view. 
 
 Pliny, then, lib. v. c. 5 and 6, gives the distances 
 between Cyrene and the Temple ; Cyrene and Alex- 
 andria ; Alexandria and Parcetonium, respectively ; 
 and it was from ahout the latter place that Alex- 
 ander struck off inland, towards the temple. Again, 
 Strabo, Diodorus, and Curtius, furnish the distance 
 between Parjetonium and Ammon, which Pliny and 
 Arrian omit. Herodotus, as we have shewn, gives 
 its distance from Angela ; the position of which has 
 already been very well approximated, from the 
 papers of the African Association, and from Edrisi. 
 From all these, collectively, we hope at least to 
 approximate the situation of this celebrated temple 
 and oracle. 
 
 There can be little doubt but that Pliny's dis- 
 tances are given from computation only, and not 
 from mensuration ; so that it will be satisfactory to 
 compare them with known distances, in the same 
 quarter, which he gives us an opportunity of doing. 
 For he says, lib. v. 6, that the distance is 525 MP. 
 from Alexandria to Cyrene by land : in which is also 
 included a separate line of distance of 200 MP. from 
 Alexandria to Paraetonium. Now, it appears by 
 
 VOL. II. Q
 
 226 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 M. D'Anville's map of the coast of Africa, that the 
 former distance, direct, is 460 G. miles, and the 
 latter, 169 : whence there results a proportion of 70 
 MPo to a degree on the former, 71 on the latter, 
 whilst 75 is the acknowledged rate of proportion \ 
 There are, moreover, some other distances in this 
 quarter, given by the same author in which there 
 appears a similar excess, in point of scale. But the 
 difference, notwithstanding, is not great ; and we 
 may therefore allow Pliny to have been tolerably 
 well informed on the subject. Solinus allows pre- 
 cisely the same distance as Pliny, lib. v. 5, between 
 Cyrene and the temple ; that is, 400 MP. : and 
 these, at 75 to a degree, are equal to 320 G. miles. 
 
 Strabo, page 799, gives 1300 stadia (of 700 to a 
 degree) between the sea coast, near Parastonium, 
 and the temple; which are equal to about 111^ G. 
 miles. But besides this authority for the positive 
 distance in stades, there are notices in Diodorus and 
 Curtius, from whence it may be collected, that 
 Alexander was seven or eight days on the road. 
 And as these are not to be taken on the footing of 
 ordinary marches of an army, but rather as approach- 
 ing to ordinary journies, 16 G. miles per day may 
 be allowed (10,6 is an ordinary march) : whence 
 112 to 128 miles will be the result : or taking the 
 mean of the three, about 117. It would have been 
 absurd not to have prepared for a more expeditious 
 movement than common marching, when delay 
 threatened destruction *. 
 
 ^ D'Anviile, Mes. Itin. p. 44, etseq. 
 
 * From Diodorus, lib. xvii. c. 5, eight journies may be in-
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. 227 
 
 According to the historians of Alexander, that 
 prince kept along the sea coast, from the site of 
 Alexandria to Paraetonium ; and then struck directly 
 inland towards the temple ; thereby making the 
 shortest line of course across the Desert. Strabo 
 says, from Callisthenes, p. 816, that his course was 
 southward, or south, from Parcetonium to the 
 temple : and it will appear that our geographical 
 construction, founded on the general result of the best 
 authorities, makes it little more than a point and 
 quarter to the west of south. 
 
 Mr. Browne appears to have followed nearly the 
 same line with Alexander, but not exactly, as he left 
 the coast at about 20 miles short of Paraetonium (Al 
 Bareton), where a fine well afforded the means of 
 recruiting their stock of water : p. 16. Moreover, 
 Alexander, whilst on the way, was supplied from 
 casual sources ; Mr. Browne from the wells of a 
 village (El Sogheir, p. 17.) ; and somewhat wide of 
 the direct route. This gentleman observes, on leav- 
 ing the well at the sea coast, that from " thence to 
 Seewa, there being little or 7io water, we were 
 obliged to use all possible diligence in the route." 
 Alexander's route lay still more wide (to the west) of 
 El Sogheir ; and it appears probable that there are 
 no springs whatsoever in that line. But his guides 
 do not appear to have managed so well as those of 
 Mr. Browne. 
 
 ferred : and from Curtiiis, iv. 7, about seven. It is said by the 
 former, that having expended their stock of water at the end of 
 four days, they came to a valley, in which, from the abundant 
 rain that had just fallen, they filled water for four days more. 
 
 Q 2
 
 228 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 To return to the lines of distance. It will be 
 found that those of 320 from Cyrene, and 117 from 
 Pargetonium, fall together in latitude 29'^ 19' ; long. 
 26" 3' : and that they leave an interval of 175 miles 
 between the position thus pointed out, for the temple, 
 and Angela ; falling short by several miles of the 10 
 journies allowed by Herodotus ; but which difference 
 does by no means impeach the general agreement of 
 the authorities \ So that it may with truth be said, 
 that the t/u'ee lines from Augela, Cyrene, and Parse- 
 tonium, coincide within five miles ; and leave no kind 
 of doubt respecting the position in which the ancients 
 meant to place the oracle of Ammon ^ 
 
 The reader will be pleased to recollect that the 
 position of Seewa, as placed above (page 220), on 
 the authority of Mr. Browne, is in latitude '29" 12' 
 by observation ; and in longitude, by deduction from 
 his place of outset, 26" 21' 30"; whilst that of 
 Santariah, deduced from the Arabian geographers, 
 was lat. 29" 9', long. 26" 5' : so that the whole differ- 
 ence of parallel is only ten miles, and of longitude 
 18' 30", equal to 16 G. miles. In this arrangement, 
 we have adhered literally to the ancient authorities ; 
 but it will be found, on a more liberal discussion of 
 
 ^ Ptolemy allows 157 only. 
 
 •^ It is certain that Mr. Browne was told that Cairo and the 
 Greater Oasis were both of them but 12 journies from Seewa; 
 but this could mean only such journies as Mr. Browne made 
 from the sea coast to Seewa, as we have before remarked in 
 p. 199, which see. The 12 journies reported by Pliny, may 
 have been of the same kind. Hadjee Abdalla reckons 13 cara- 
 van journies from El Sogheir to Cairo ; and El Sogheir is two 
 long journeys from Seewa; as Mr. Browne proved.
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. ooC) 
 
 thenij, that the position of the oracle, will approximate 
 to that of Seewa, as pointed out by Mr. Browne. 
 
 In the above calculation, we admitted the longer 
 line of distance from Cyrene, in preference to the 
 shorter one from Angela ; because the former was 
 reported as a positive quantity of distance (that is, 
 in Roman miles), but the latter, in days' journies 
 only. It has been shewn, that the distance between 
 Angela and Santariah, in the Arabian geographers 
 of modern times, is calculated also at 10 journies : 
 that is, no doubt, just the same as the ancient 
 reckoning, between Angela and the oracle. And 
 these cannot, according to Edrisi's scale, be taken at 
 the lowest, at less than 18 G. miles in direct distance ; 
 or 180 for the whole line ; and possibly 190. See 
 above, page 212. 
 
 Again, it has appeared, that in the distances 
 reported by Pliny, in this quarter of Africa, the scale 
 appears to be greater than that of 75 MP. to a 
 degree; and that 70 to 71 were the general pro- 
 portions. It is probable that Pliny, generally speak- 
 ing, assumes his numbers of Roman miles, from the 
 stades reported by the Greeks ; but it is certain that, 
 in the present instance, he must have reckoned 
 otherwise. But taking his scale as we find it, in 
 this quarter, the 400 MP. between Cyrene and the 
 temple will produce more than 820 G. miles : and 
 this will also have the effect of approximating the 
 position of Ammon to that of Seewa; which falls 
 about 18 miles beyond the line of 320 miles from 
 Cyrene : agreeing nearly with the 190 from Angela. 
 There is little question but that this result ought to
 
 230 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 be preferred to the former one; although the dif- 
 ference is not so great, but that either of them might 
 be received. 
 
 In effect, then, the coincidence of the authorities, 
 generally, must be allowed to be very close : for 
 when it is considered that all the distances are given 
 by computation ; the points of outset very far distant 
 from each other, and some of them not very exactly 
 defined ; that the latitude of Paraetonium, or of the 
 coast near it, may not be very correct in the charts ; 
 in short, that the only exact point to be reckoned on 
 in the whole matter, is the latitude of Seewa, as 
 taken by Mr. Browne ; no greater satisfaction could 
 be expected. The variations between all the autho- 
 rities, ancient and modern, amount to little more than 
 a space equal to thrice the length, and twice and a 
 half the breadth of the Oasis in question ; which is 
 itself, at the utmost, only six miles long, and four and 
 a half or five in breadth. And it is pretty clearly 
 proved, that no other Oasis exists in that quarter, 
 within two, or more, days' journey ; but, on the 
 contrary, that Seew'a is surrounded by a wide desert : 
 so that it cannot be doubted that the Oasis of 
 Seewa is the same with that of Ammon ; and the 
 edifice found there, the remains of the celebrated 
 temple, from whence the oracles of Jupiter Ammon 
 were delivered. 
 
 The people of Seewa know of no other Oasis, or 
 of any ruins in that quarter ; for the small rocky 
 spot, surrounded by a lake of salt water ; which was 
 also visited by Mr. Browne, is by no means to be 
 regarded as an Oasis. As they have " a communi-
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. Ogl 
 
 cation with Egypt and Fezzan ; and the wandering 
 Arabs pass the Desert in all directions, in their visits 
 to Seewa, from Al Wah, Faiume, Thebes, from 
 Fezzan, Tripoly, Cairo, and Alexandria, it is very 
 unlikely that any considerable ruins should exist 
 within three or four days of Seewa, and unknown to 
 them ; still less so, that they should be ignorant of 
 any fertile spot, where might be found water, fruits, 
 and other acceptable refreshments :" since their visits 
 to Seewa appear to be for the purpose of " furnish- 
 ing themselves at a cheaper rate, with many articles 
 of food, than they can be in the towns of Egypt ^" 
 It may be added, that Mr. Browne himself ap- 
 proached it by the NE, left it by the NW, and fairly 
 made a tour round it, at the distance of two or three 
 days' journey, from his station in the NW, passing it 
 to the south, at the distance of 32 G. miles (for he 
 went into the parallel of 28" 40') ^, and thence falling 
 again into the route to Alexandria. 
 
 Thus he gained a parallel, y«r beyond the utmost 
 range allowed by the ancient writers, to the Oasis of 
 Ammon ; we mean those who describe its position by 
 distances from known places. Ptolemy indeed, in 
 his tables, carries it so low as 28" ; but then he 
 places Angela, which is known to be in about 30", in 
 the same parallel with Ammon. Two of the people 
 of Seewa accompanied Mr. Browne, in his expedi- 
 tion to the south-west, and as they originally pro- 
 posed to carry him to a watering-place, in that 
 quarter, it is obvious that they know the country to 
 
 ' Mr. Browne's Travels, p. 22. * lb. p. 27.
 
 232 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 the distance of two and a half or three days. Be- 
 sides, it is altogether improbable, that, from their 
 habits of life, and communications with those who 
 traverse the Libyan Desert, they should be unac- 
 quainted with any fertile spot that may exist in that 
 quarter. 
 
 Before we quit the subject of the geographical 
 position of this place, it will be proper to say a word 
 concerning Ptolemy's geography of this quarter 
 (since his residence in the neighbourhood ought to 
 add weight to it) making due allowances for a dis- 
 torted construction, arising from excess of longitude : 
 and in the present case, to errors of latitude, almost 
 equally gross : so that relative jyosition, and not the 
 scale of distance, is to be regarded. 
 
 In Ptolemy (Africa, Tab. III.) we find Siropum % 
 answering to Karet-um-el-Sogheir, in its relative 
 position to Ammon, the Fons Soils, and the Lesser 
 Oasis ; if we allow the three latter to be represented 
 in modern geography by Seewa, (or Santariah) Kin 
 Ca'is, and the Oasis which contains Bahnasa. 
 
 Between Siropum (say El Sogheir) and Memphis, 
 in the position in which we should look for the 
 mountainous Desert otLe Magra, which is seven 
 journies across^, there is found in Ptolemy a cor- 
 responding tract of mountainous country under the 
 name of Ogdamos. Again, at the distance of 64 
 miles on Ptolemy's scale, to the SW of Siropum, 
 stands the city of Hammon, unquestionably meant 
 
 ® Sirpicum, in Solinus. 
 
 * Proceedings Afr. Assoc, for 1790, chap. x. and xii.
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. O^;^ 
 
 for the temple and capital of the Ammonians. The 
 reader will perceive, by a slight reference to the 
 Map, at page 183, sup. that these places lie in respect 
 of each other, as Seewa and El Sogheir do. Ptolemy 
 has 205 G. miles between Paraetonium and Ammon, 
 instead of our 120: and it will appear that the 64 
 bear much the same proportion to the 205 ^ as the 
 distance between El Sogheir and Seewa, does to our 
 120. This is a marked circumstance, and worthy of 
 attention ^. 
 
 And lastly, though not less to the purpose, the 
 bearing of Ammon from Paraetonium, in Ptolemy, 
 has a general agreement with the bearing of Seewa, 
 from the same place, according to the observations 
 of Mr. Browne : the former being S 22 W, and the 
 
 ^ It may not be amiss also to state a particular or two, that 
 occurs in the road from Cairo through Temissa, &c. given by 
 Edrisi, as they throw some light on Ptolemy's geography of the 
 parts near Ammon. 
 
 From Bahnasa (in the Wah) four stations, according to Edrisi, 
 reach to A'in Ca'is (or fountain of Cais) which, therefore, should 
 be about five days short of Seewa or Santariah : for although the 
 road does not appear to lead through that town, or Oasis, yet, 
 from circumstances, it cannot pass far to the southward of it. 
 Now we find in Ptolemy, much in the same relative position, and 
 at the same proportions of space, respectively, from the Lesser 
 Oasis and from Ammon, (that is, ^ from the Oasis, f from 
 Ammon) the Fons Solis ; which therefore agrees to A'in Ca'is. 
 
 A«-ain, at a station eijiht iournies from Bahnasa, which sliould 
 be about one journey short of being opposite to Seewa, the river 
 Costara occurs in the same route : and it being the only running 
 water mentioned in the whole route, nothing appears more 
 likely, tlian that it should be formed of the springs that rise in 
 the Oasis of Seewa.
 
 234 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 latter S 11 W ; whilst the bearing of Ammon, 
 resulting from the ancient authorities, generally, is 
 S 20 W ; and Santariah, by the Arabian geogra- 
 phers, S 18 W ^ 
 
 The three Oases, then, will form nearly a right- 
 angled triangle, whose legs, facing the N and E, 
 will be nearly equal ; that is, the Lesser Oasis will 
 represent the right angle at the north-east, the 
 Greater Oasis the southern extremity of one leg, 
 and the Oasis of Ammon the western extremity of 
 the other. 
 
 Thus far we have proceeded merely on the ground 
 of geographical agreement, between the position of 
 the Oasis of Seewa and that of Ammon. But there 
 are so many circumstances of agreement also between 
 the ancient and modern descr'q^tions, that had the 
 former proofs been less strong, these alone might, 
 perhaps, have sufficed : so that there is an agree- 
 ment throughout. 
 
 We shall therefore collect the scattered notices 
 that occur in the ancient authors, and compare them 
 with those furnished by Mr. Browne ; whose candid and 
 modest exposition of them, entitles him to the firmest 
 belief: and who, whilst he only contends for the an- 
 tiquity of the edifice, so adventurously discovered ; 
 and its originality, as a work of the ancient Egyp- 
 
 ' It should be recollected that Mr. Browne had no opportu- 
 nity of comparing the relative positions of Paraetonium and 
 Seewa : it is possible, therefore, that Seewa may bear more to 
 the west. It is placed in the Map, according to its latitude, and 
 distance from the coast ; whence it bears about S 1 3 W from 
 Paraetonium, and stands in longitude 20" 1 8'.
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 tians ; allows the facts to speak the strongest lan- 
 guage for themselves, and to pronounce it the verit- 
 able remains of the temple of Ammon. 
 
 Dioclorus (lib. xvii. c. 
 5.) says, that the Oasis of 
 Ammon is 50 stadia in 
 length, and the same in 
 breadth. Arrian, (lib. iii.) 
 says, little more than 4-0. 
 [^The highest of these 
 statements, supposing the 
 Roman stade to be meant, 
 is rather short of six B. 
 miles.]] It lies in the 
 midst of an extensive and 
 arid desert. 
 
 —'' It is full of plea- 
 sant fountains : watered 
 with running streams, and 
 planted with all kinds of 
 trees ; most of them bear- 
 ing fruit." (Diodorus.) 
 
 " It is planted with 
 olive and palm trees, and 
 watered with dews." (Ar- 
 rian.) 
 
 " It is watered with 
 many streams, and en- 
 compassed with trees, 
 that grow so thick as to 
 skreen it on all sides 
 
 Mr. Browne, (p. 23,) 
 says, ** The Oasis which 
 contains the town of Siwa, 
 is about 6 miles long, and 
 4i or 5 wide." And (p. 
 17,) " Siwa answers the 
 description given of the 
 Oases, being a small fer- 
 tile spot, surrounded on 
 all sides by desert land." 
 
 " Water, both salt and 
 fresh, abounds : but the 
 springs which furnish the 
 latter are most of them 
 tepid." (P. 24.) 
 
 *' A large proportion 
 of the space is filled with 
 date trees (palms) ; but 
 there are also pomegra- 
 nates, figs, and olives, 
 apricots and plantains ; 
 and the gardens are re- 
 markably flourishing. — - 
 They cultivate a consi- 
 derable quantity of rice : 
 
 13
 
 236 
 
 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 from the rays of the sun." 
 (Curtius, hb. iv. c. 7.) 
 
 And, '' The temple 
 and palace stand in the 
 middle of a wood : and in 
 a second wood, is the 
 Fountain of the Sun." 
 
 (lb.) 
 
 Strabo only speaks ge- 
 nerally of its abounding 
 with water and palms. 
 Page 838. 
 
 " In the middle of the 
 sacred grove, inhabited 
 by the Ammonkms, is a 
 castle fortified with a 
 triple wall, &c. contain- 
 ing the temple, palace, 
 and a place of arms ; and 
 not far from the castle, 
 stands another temple of 
 Amnion, shaded round 
 with many fruit trees ; 
 next to which is a foun- 
 tain called Soils," &c. 
 (Diodorus.) 
 
 Herodotus speaks of 
 the temple, the oracle, 
 and the kingdom of Am- 
 mon, in different places : 
 as in Euterpe, 32, 42, 
 
 — the remainder of the 
 cultivable land furnishes 
 wheat enough for the 
 consumption of the inha- 
 bitants." (P. 23, 24.) 
 
 — '^ It was about half 
 an hour from the time of 
 our entering on this ter- 
 ritory, by a path sur- 
 rounded with date trees, 
 that we came to the town, 
 which gives name to the 
 district." (P. 17.) 
 
 " We passed along 
 some shady paths be- 
 tween gardens, till at 
 the distance of about two 
 miles, we arrived at what 
 they called the ruins, or 
 Birber (P. 19.)—" It 
 resembles too exactly 
 those of the Upper 
 Egypt, to leave a doubt 
 that it was erected and 
 adorned by the same in- 
 telligent race of men. 
 The figures of I sis and 
 Anubis are conspicuous 
 among the sculptures : 
 and the proportions are 
 those of the Egyptian 
 temples, though in minia-
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 237 
 
 55 : Melp. 181. *' The 
 Eg-yptians, (says he) call 
 Jupiter, Ammoun ;" and 
 it appears that its anti- 
 quity was equal to that of 
 the oracle of Dodona : 
 Euterpe, 54, 55. 
 
 Diodorus says, (xvii. 
 5.) that " it was reported, 
 that this temple was built 
 by Danaiis the Egi/j)- 
 tian." 
 
 It may be remarked, 
 that the Arabian geogra- 
 phers are silent respect- 
 ing any remains of anti- 
 quity, in Santariah (i. e. 
 Seeiva) ; but M. Schlich- 
 tliorst, (in his Geogra- 
 jphia African Herodotea, 
 p. 151, 152.) says, that 
 " some remains of the 
 temple of Ammon are 
 still to be seen, if the 
 travellers to Mecca may 
 be credited ; the place is 
 called Hesach-hir, or 
 Moles Lapidum" 
 
 Herodotus describes, 
 Melp. 181, *' the Foun- 
 
 ture. The rocks which 
 I saw in the neighbour- 
 hood, being of a sandy 
 stone, bear so little re- 
 semblance to that which 
 is employed in this fabric, 
 that I am inclined to be- 
 lieve the materials cannot 
 have been prepared on 
 the spot." (P. 27, 28.) 
 In p. 19, he says, " it is 
 built of massy stones, of 
 the same kind as those 
 of which the pyramids 
 consist *." — 
 
 " The soil around 
 seems to indicate that 
 other buildings have 
 once existed near the 
 place ; the materials of 
 which either time has 
 levelled with the soil, or 
 the natives have applied 
 to other purposes. I 
 observed, indeed, some 
 Jiewn stones wrought in 
 the walls of the modern 
 buildings."- (P. 20.) 
 
 " One of those springs, 
 which rises near the 
 
 ' More will be said in the sequel respecting this remark- 
 able edifice.
 
 23S 
 
 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 tain of the Su7i" at Am- 
 nion ; said to vary in its 
 temperature, so as to be 
 warm in the morning, 
 but excessively cold at 
 noon, &c. — He adds, that 
 when it is coldest, they 
 
 use it to water their gar- 
 dens. 
 
 Arrian, Diodorus, and 
 Curtius, all speak of it 
 much in the same way. 
 The two latter agree with 
 Herodotus in saying that 
 the water is boiling hot 
 at midnight. And this 
 remarkable spring, Dio- 
 dorus places at, or near, 
 the lesser temple : but 
 Curtius, in a grove, which 
 was distinct from the 
 larger grove : and it is 
 Diodorus alone, who 
 speaks of a second tem- 
 ple ; and therefore it is 
 probably a mistake. 
 
 Herodotus and Strabo 
 speak generally concern- 
 ing the saltness of the 
 soil, of this region : and 
 Strabo speaks also of the 
 oyster and other shells. 
 
 building described, is 
 observed by the natives 
 to be sometimes cold, 
 and sometimes warm" 
 (P. 24.) 
 
 '' Approaching Siwa," 
 p. 17.) Mr. Browne says, 
 " I observed through a 
 large portion of the road, 
 that the surface of the 
 earth is perfectly covered
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON, 
 
 239 
 
 that abound in the quar- 
 ter about Amnion. (P. 
 49.) 
 
 Arrian says, that the 
 country about Ammon 
 produces a kind of fos- 
 sile salt. — Lib. iii. 
 
 " The Ammonians 
 are composed partly of 
 Egyiotians, and partly of 
 JLth'iop'ians : and their 
 dialect is formed promis- 
 cuously of both those lan- 
 guages \" (Euterpe, 42.) 
 
 with salt." And p. 26, 
 " After the rains, the 
 ground in the neighbour- 
 hood of Siwa is covered 
 with salt for many weeks." 
 
 " The complexion of 
 the people is generally 
 darker than that of the 
 Egyptians. Their dia- 
 lect is also different — 
 among those whose cos- 
 tume was discernible, it 
 approaches nearer to that 
 of the Arabs of the De- 
 sert, than of the Egyp- 
 tians or Moors ^." 
 
 In the next place, we shall give the short de- 
 scriptions of Santariah, that are found in the Ara- 
 bian geographers. 
 
 Jacutus (quoted by Hartmann, in his Edrisi, p. 
 495), speaking of the three regions of Al Wahat, or 
 
 * The Arabian geographers say of Santariah, that tlie inha- 
 bitants are a mixture oi Berbers, (Barbarians) and Arabs. 
 
 * Mr. Browne visited certain catacombs, in a rocky hill, close 
 to the Oasis of Siwa. (P. 21.) They were about 30 in num- 
 ber: of dimensions 12 feet in length, 6 in breadth, and about 
 the same height. This is mentioned merely to shew, that 
 
 Egyptian customs had prevailed there.
 
 240 OASIS AND TEMPLE 
 
 the Oases, says, " The third is named the Wah (or 
 Oasis) of the city of Si?imaria, or Sanmaria, (mean- 
 ing no doubt SantariaJi), in which are abundance of 
 pahns ; and mineral waters, which the inhabitants 
 drink; but which are prejudicial to the health of 
 strangers ^" 
 
 Edrisi (Hartmann, p. 303, from the Parisian MS.) 
 says, " Santariah is a small city, where there is a 
 Minher : (pronounced Mmtber : a pulpit or raised 
 place, from whence the Koran, &c. is read) ^ The 
 inhabitants are a mixture of Berbers and Arabs. 
 Palms are in abundance, but there are few foun- 
 tains." 
 
 Abulfeda says that it is " an island in the arid 
 Desert, surrounded with hills. That it is watered, 
 and abounds with palms. Moreover, that it pro- 
 duces a pomegranate, that is at first bitter, but 
 becomes sweet, when ripe ; and that it proves 
 unwholesome to strangers." ^(Africa, Tab. III. mar- 
 ginal notes). Perhaps this latter particular was 
 originally meant to be applied to the water ; as it 
 
 ^ Mr. Browne says of Seewa, p. 24, " Such is the nature of 
 the water, air, and other circumstances, that strangers are often 
 affected with agues and mahgnant fevers." 
 
 * The Author is indebted to his friend Mr. Wilkins, for this 
 exphcation. It is to be recollected that Edrisi wrote early in 
 the 12th century, at which time, the Mahomedan religion might 
 not long have been introduced into this place. It may be ob- 
 served that the inhabitants " are not in the habitual use either 
 of coffee or tobacco ;" (Mr. Browne, p. 25) ; which seems to 
 arise from their secluded situation.
 
 OF JUPITER AMMON. 241 
 
 then agrees with Jacutiis. Part of the sentence 
 might have been misplaced. 
 
 Lastly, Ibn al Wardi thus speaks of Santariah : 
 Hartmann, p. 303. 
 
 " Schantaria is a tract of country, which has a 
 city of the same name. It is inhabited by Berbers 
 mixed with Arabs. In it are found iron mines. 
 Between this city and Alexandria, there is a great 
 desert," &c. — Thus far the brief descriptions of San- 
 tariah ; which, as far as they go, apply equally to 
 Seewa. We shall add to these, two remarks : the 
 one, that those authors who have mentioned Santa- 
 riah, have been silent respecting Seewa ; a place, 
 surely, of too much importance to have been passed 
 over. The other, that M. Delisle, in his Geography 
 of Africa, 1707, has a city which he names Si-ouak, 
 ou Sant-rie, in the position proper to Santariah. It 
 is possible that M. DeHsle had positive information 
 to this effect. 
 
 To this may be added, that the people of Seewa, 
 appeared to Mr. Browne to be ignorant of the name 
 Santariah. 
 
 On the whole, it will be difficult to overthrow the 
 weighty evidence, in proof of our position, that 
 Seewa is the long sought for Oasis of Jupiter 
 Ammon ; and that Santariah is only another name 
 for Seewa ; a fact of considerable importance in the 
 question, as it precludes that doubt and uncertainty, 
 which a choice of places, possessing equal preten- 
 sions to the claim of preference, must have necessa- 
 rily occasioned. As it may be conceived that the 
 truth will appear yet clearer, by a close comparison 
 
 VOL. II. R
 
 242 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 of the edifice at Seewa, with the Egyptian architec- 
 ture, and more particularly with that of the remains 
 of the temples in Upper Egypt, we shall enter some- 
 what at large into the subject ; prefacing it with 
 some observations on the oracles and worship of 
 Ammon. 
 
 Temples o/* Jupiter Ammon. 
 
 Herodotus speaks of four oracles of Jupiter ; 
 that is, at Egyptian Thebes ; at Libyan Ammon ; 
 at Dodona in Greece ; and at Meroe the capital of 
 Ethiopia. He says, that the one at Thebes was the 
 original temple of that worship ; and those of 
 Ammon and Dodona, were derivations from it. 
 
 If Herodotus was rightly informed concerning the 
 establishment of the oracles at Dodona and Ammon, 
 his report allows a high degree of antiquity to them : 
 for he says, that when the Pelasgi consulted the 
 oracle of Dodona, it was the only one in Greece, 
 and was also by far the most ancient of them all. 
 Euterpe, 52. And, in 54, 55, he tells us, that the 
 oracle of Ammon was established at the same time 
 with that of Dodona ^. 
 
 ® Herodotus was told by the priests of the Theban Jupiter, 
 (Euterpe, 54, 55,) that the two oracles of Dodona and Ammon 
 were first established by two priestesses, who were violently car- 
 ried away by the Phoenicians ; and at Dodona, that they were 
 established by two black pigeons which flew from Thebes. He 
 infers, not improbably, (57) that by these are meant two black 
 women. It has been observed, that the same word in the Thes~ 
 salian language signifies dove and prophetess.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 243 
 
 He gives an instance, Euterpe, 52, of the simpli- 
 city, as well as the good intentions of the Pelasgi. 
 " These (says he), as I was informed at Dodona, 
 formerly offered all things indiscriminately to the 
 gods. They distinguished them by no name or sur- 
 name, for they were hitherto unacquainted with 
 either ; but they called them gods, which, by its 
 etymology, means disposers, from observing the 
 orderly disposition and distribution of the various 
 parts of the universe. They learned, but not till a 
 late period, the names of the divinities from the 
 Egyptians, and Bacchus was the last whom they 
 knew. Upon this subject, they afterwards consulted 
 the oracle of Dodona, &c. They desired to know 
 whether they might with propriety adopt the names 
 which they had learned of the Barbarians, and were an- 
 swered, that they might ; they have accordingly used 
 them ever since in their rites of sacrifice ; and from 
 the Pelasgi they were communicated to the Greeks." 
 It had perhaps been better for mankind, if they had 
 been content to follow the example of the Pelasgians, 
 in agreeing not to dispute about matters, concerning 
 which the wisest are so ignorant, that pretended 
 explanations only serve to provoke fresh disputes. 
 
 He allows that the Greeks derived from Egypt 
 not only the names of almost all the gods, but with 
 them, many circumstances of religious worship also. 
 And, says he, " that they are of barbarian origin, I 
 am convinced, by my different researches," Euterpe, 
 50. Much the same is also said, in Euterpe, 4 '. 
 
 ' There were, in Egypt, not only oracles of Jwpiier^ but also 
 
 R 2
 
 244 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 It must be acknowledged that the heathen mytho- 
 logy appears to ordinary readers, to be not only a 
 collection of childish fables, but also contradictory to 
 itself, in many important points "; as it is related by 
 the different authors who have attempted to give 
 systems of it. The less therefore, perhaps, that is 
 said about it, the better. But since Herodotus him- 
 self allows that the Greeks borrowed so largely from 
 the Egyptian mythology ; and since also, Diodorus 
 says, that the Egyptians, in imitation of the Ethio- 
 pians, DEIFIED their good kings ; why may not this 
 Jupiter have been the king of Egypt and Libya, 
 mentioned by Diodorus ; the same who, he also 
 says, was named Ammon ; and the establishment of 
 whose temple and oracle he refers to his son Diony- 
 sus ? Diod. lib. i. c. 1 : and iii. c. 4. 
 
 The name Ammoun or Ammon, is universally 
 explained by the ancients, to mean the same as 
 Jupiter, amongst the Africans^. " The Egyptians, 
 (says Herodotus, Euterpe, 42), call Jupiter, Am- 
 moun ; and I should think, this was the reason why 
 the above people named themselves Ammonians." 
 (He was speaking of the Ammonians of Libya). 
 
 He observes (58), that the two oracles of Egyp- 
 tian Thebes and Dodona, " have an entire resem- 
 blance to each other ^" And although he does not 
 
 of Hercules, Apollo, Minerva, Diana, Mars, and Latona. (Eu- 
 terpe, 83.) 
 
 ^ Jupiter was named Ammon at Carthage as well as in Libya. 
 Diodorus. 
 
 ^ " And thus," says he, " the art of divination, as now prac- 
 tised in our temples, is derived from Egypt : at least, the Egyp-
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 245 
 
 say the same of Ammon, yet no other idea can be 
 inferred, from what is said of it. For laying out of 
 the question, the story of the two priestesses, and 
 of the two hlack cloves, (allegorical of the same 
 story) it is certain, that he speaks in other places, 
 as if the oracle of Ammon resembled at all points, in 
 respect of its religious ceremonies and institutions, 
 that of Thebes. Tluis he styles it, equally with that 
 of Thebes, '' the temple of the Theban Jupiter :" 
 Clio, 182. " The Ammonians, who possessed the 
 temple of the Theban Jupiter, ten journies from 
 Thebes :" INIelpom. 181. '' The oracle of Jupiter 
 amongst the Ammonians :" Thalia, 25. " The 
 Ammonians borrowed from Thebes the custom of 
 covering the head of the statue of Jupiter with the 
 skin of a ram's head :" Euterpe, 42. From all 
 which, we should conclude, that the temple or oracle 
 of the Libyan Jupiter, like that of Dodona, resem- 
 bled the temple of Thebes. 
 
 Herodotus and Diodorus assign different reasons 
 for placing the head of a ram on the statues of Ju- 
 piter ; and for using the representation of the same 
 animal, or a part of it, as the symbol of the Deity. 
 
 tians were the first who introduced the sacred festivals, proces- 
 sions, and supplications ; and from them the Greeks were 
 instructed. Of this, it is to me a sufficient testimony, that 
 these religious ceremonies are in Greece but of modern date, 
 whereas in Egypt they have been in use from the remotest 
 antiquity." Euterpe, 58. 
 
 Herodotus himself was a believer in divination ; or feigned to 
 be such. See his declaration, in Urania, 77 ; and the account of 
 Melamjius, in Euterpe, 49.
 
 248 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 Herodotus says, Euterpe, 42, that " before Jupiter 
 shewed himself to Hercules, he covered his head 
 with the skin taken from the head of a ram : and 
 hence (says he) the Thebans abstained from eating 
 of sheep ; esteeming the ram as sacred, and only 
 killing one on the annual festival of Jupiter, in order 
 to place the skin on the image of the god." But 
 Diodorus says, lib. iii. 4. that it was done, because 
 h'mg Amnion wore a helmet in the shape of a ram's 
 head. These possibly may have been stories in- 
 vented, with a view to satisfy the vulgar, after the 
 true reason had been long forgotten. We are 
 aware that the symbol of the ram has been referred 
 to the sign Aries, or the commencement of the year : 
 but to believe this, we must first forget, that we trace 
 more of vulgar prejudice and superstition, than of 
 philosophical and scientific reasoning, in the rites of 
 most of the popular religions that have existed in 
 the world, and do still exist. The fact most proba- 
 bly is, that after the customs and ceremonies had 
 been long in use, men of learning and ingenuity 
 found out analogies that never existed ; and thus 
 formed a system. For mankind begin with experi- 
 ments, and systems are formed afterwards ; and. 
 then, forgetting by what gradual st^ps they pro- 
 ceeded, they are fond of believing that they began 
 with a system ; as that idea flatters their pride, 
 more than the other. 
 
 The ancients speak of four temples in or about 
 Thebes : of which, the one whose remains have been 
 described by Pococke, Norden, and others, is univer- 
 sally referred to Jupiter : and, in effect, the city of 
 
 13
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 247 
 
 Thebes itself was named Dlospolis by the Greeks, 
 from its being considered as the city of Jupiter. 
 Strabo, who had himself visited Thebes, (see page 
 816), speaks of a temple of Jupiter there ^ 
 
 It appears that amongst the remains of two of 
 these temples, there are found certain parts or mem- 
 bers, which bear a resemblance to the edifice disco- 
 vered by Mr. Browne ; and one of them, in parti- 
 cular, bears a most striking resemblance to it. It 
 may be proper to remark here, that we speak not 
 only from the brief description in Mr. Browne's 
 book, but also from a drawing exhibited some years 
 ago in this country, as a copy of that, which this 
 gentleman drew from memory, after he had left the 
 place ; for the history of his reception and treatment 
 at Seewa, plainly prove that it was unsafe to attempt 
 to draw a view of the building on the spot. 
 
 We mean to speak only of the inner temples, or 
 sanctuaries, of the Egyptian temples, since those 
 structures, taken at large, are quite out of the ques- 
 tion, in respect of any similitude to the building at 
 Seewa. 
 
 * Since we learn from Herodotus himself, Euterpe, 3, that he 
 had visited Thebes, (as well as Heliopolis) it is exceedingly dif- 
 ficult to account for his silence respecting its stupendous remains, 
 and the history of its kings. Could the same person who en- 
 tered so far into the history and description of the Pyramids of 
 Memphis, have viewed the remains of the temples, and tlie 
 sepulchres of the kings, at Thebes, without being so deeply 
 impressed, as at least, to speak of them ! 
 
 It may also be remarked, that he says nothing concerning the 
 buildings at Persepolis, or at Pasagarda ; but then it is not pre- 
 tended that he visited these places.
 
 248 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 Within the body of the great temple at Thebes, 
 is a room of granite, supposed by Pococke and 
 others, with some reason, to be the inner temple or 
 sanctuary mentioned by Strabo \ Pococke also, as 
 well as Lucas, saw a building, similar to it, in a 
 ruined temple at Armant, which is the ancient 
 Hermontliis, situated in the environs of Thebes ; 
 and where there was also, as we are told by Strabo, 
 page 816, a temple of Jupiter, This building was 
 surrounded by the ruins of a larger temple ; and 
 appears to have been placed much in the same rela- 
 tive situation within it, as that of Thebes to its 
 temple. The edifice seen by Mr. Browne (or rather 
 the remains of it, as one of the end walls was in 
 
 ^ This is Strabo's brief description of the Egyptian temples ; 
 p. 805. 
 
 " At the first entrance is a court or avenue, paved with stone, 
 about 100 feet wide and 3 or 400 feet long ; sometimes more : 
 this is called the Drovios. On each side are sphynxes, in two 
 rows, about 30 feet asunder. After this, is one, or more, vesti- 
 bules. After that is the temple, which consists of a large court 
 or ante-temple, and an innermost temple, which is not very large, 
 and in which there is no sculpture ; or at least, if there is, it is 
 of some beast, but never of the human figure. At the farther 
 end of the ante-temple are a sort of wings, of the height of the 
 temple ; and the walls as far distant from each other, as the 
 breadth of the foundations of the walls of the temple : and are 
 so built, as to incline totmrds each other" — (Here the original 
 appears to be corrupted. — If it meant that the walls approached 
 each other, on the ground-plan, that is contradicted by the re- 
 mains of the temples at Thebes and Hermontliis : and no other 
 kind of inclination can well be conceived.) He concludes by 
 saying that " on these walls, very large figures are cut, much 
 like- the Etruscan and Grecian works."
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 249 
 
 ruins), was indeed of smaller dimensions than the 
 others, in respect of length, although in breadth and 
 height, not very different. But the points of direct 
 resemblance between those of Hermonthis and 
 Seewa, are in the roofs ; which in both, consisted of 
 vast blocks of stone laid across the vacant space from 
 wall to wall : and in the walls and soffits being co- 
 vered with emblematical figures and hieroglyphics. 
 
 From the description of the temple at Seewa, in 
 the note, its general resemblance to the Egyptian 
 style of building, as found in Pococke, Norden, &c. 
 must strike every one : but the descriptions of the 
 temple at Armant, from Dr. Pococke and P. Lucas, 
 which are also subjoined, will place the matter in a 
 yet clearer point of view ^ We propose also to 
 
 ^ Mr. Browne's description of the edifice at Seewa, pages 19 
 and 20. 
 
 " It was a single apartment, built of massy stones, of the same 
 kind as those of which the pyramids consist, and covered origi- 
 nally with six large and solid blocks, that reach from one wall to 
 the other. The length I fonnd thirty-two feet in the clear ; 
 the lieight about eighteen, the width fifteen. A gate, situated 
 at one extremity, forms the principal entrance ; and two doors, 
 also near that extremity, open opposite to each other. The 
 other end is quite ruinous ; but judging from circumstances, it 
 may be imagined that the building has never been much larger 
 than it now is. There is no appearance of any other edifice 
 having l)een attached to it, and the less so as there are remains 
 of sculpture on the exterior of the walls. In the interior are 
 three rows of emblematical figures, apparently designed to re- 
 present a procession : and the space between them is filled with 
 hieroglyphic characters, properly so called. The soffit is also 
 adorned in the same manner, but one of the stones which formed it 
 is fallen within, and breaks the connection. The other five remain
 
 250 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 enter more at large into the descriptions of the inner 
 temples of the Upper Egypt, as well as into a more 
 detailed comparison, between the temple of Hermon- 
 this, and the remains of that at Seewa. 
 
 entire. The sculpture is sufficiently distinguishable ; and even 
 the colours in some places remain." 
 
 P. Lucas's description of the inner temple at Hermonthis, 
 
 Vol. ii. p. 120. 
 
 " The choir of the temple is still entire ; such as it is seen in 
 the drawing. It is filled within and without, with figures, in 
 which may be recognised the ancient divinities of Egypt. At 
 the end of this choir is a little sacristy, where are discovered 
 some bas-reliefs, which seem the work of a skilful hand, and 
 which are so well preserved, that they appear as if just made. 
 This chapel, or this sacristy, whichsoever name one chooses to 
 give it, is covered with five stones, each twenty feet long, five 
 wide, and two feet eight inches in thickness : supposing them all 
 to be equal to that which I measured." 
 
 Dr. Pococke, Vol. i. p. 110. 
 
 " The ante-temple is very much destroyed ; the inclosure 
 round it, and the temple itself, are very particular, but little 
 remains except the foundations. The inner temple is entire ; 
 there are stairs up to the top, through the wall, which is about 
 25 feet high : it is adorned with hieroglyphicks within and with- 
 out. On the outside are four stories of hieroglyphicks of men, 
 but only three appear within. In the ceiling of the first room 
 there are five hawks with spread wings : in the second room 
 seven, and two rams face to face : the rest of the ceiling is 
 adorned with stars, and on each side are some small hierogly- 
 phicks with human bodies, and the heads of a great variety of 
 beasts," &c.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 251 
 
 It is well known that the Egyptians formed the 
 roofs of their public buildings entirely of stone ; that 
 is, of long blocks laid across the open spaces in the 
 nature of beams, and then laying shorter ones across 
 them to fill up the remainder of the vacant space. 
 This was the ordinary mode ; but in some cases (as in 
 that of Armant, &c.) the roofs were formed entirely 
 of vast blocks, lying parallel to each other. 
 
 The Egyptian mode of roofing, induced, no doubt, 
 the necessity of placing so many columns in the in- 
 terior of their grand edifices. Want of timber gave 
 birth to this system of architecture, which the plenty 
 and choice of good stone enabled them to pursue : 
 and to this state of things we owe the massive style, 
 and consequent duration of their vast piles of build- 
 ing ; unequalled throughout the world, in bulk, so- 
 lidity, and length of existence ! 
 
 Dr. Pococke enters at large into the nature of 
 their roofing. He says, p. 215, that the stones em- 
 ployed in this way, as beams, are about 14 feet long, 
 3 wide, and as many deep ^ This must be regarded 
 as the ordinary practice : but this was nothing in 
 comparison of the vast masses of stone, which the 
 Egyptians were in the habit of using. Dr. Pococke 
 says, page 61, that " the whole building (of the 
 Labijrintli) was covered with stone ; doubtless laid 
 on the massy pillars that were in it." And also, 
 
 ' Diodorus describes much the same kind of roofing, in tlie 
 sepulchre of Osmandyas. (Lib. i. c. 4.) The stones, he says, were 
 8 cubits, say 13 or more feet, in length; and the ceiling azure, 
 bespangled with stars. These stars are noticed by Pococke, at 
 Armant ; and by Mr. Browne at another place.
 
 252 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 page 63, that the four rooms in the building taken 
 for the temple of the Labyrinth, the largest of which 
 has a compass of 25 feet, " are covered with large 
 stones of such a length as to be laid from wall to 
 wall." The great temple at Tentyra, by the plan 
 at page 86, requires blocks of 40 feet in some parts 
 of it. The inner temple at Thebes, which had a span 
 of 19 feet only, might require blocks of 22 : and as 
 P. Lucas says of the edifice at Armant, that it is 
 covered with blocks of 20 (French) feet in length, 5 
 wide, and 3 deep, we have here an example, in the 
 very environs of Thebes, that stones of these dimen- 
 sions were used in roofs. 
 
 But Dr. Pococke has not said how the roof of 
 this edifice was constructed, although he describes 
 its sculptured ornaments. It is Lucas alone, who 
 has given us the important information, which is 
 even more satisfactory, from his not having seen the 
 remains at Thebes ^ He has given a coarse drawing 
 of it, (in vol. ii. p. 119, of his Third Voyage;) and 
 which has a great resemblance to that of the temple 
 at Seewa. 
 
 This, as we have already seen, is also covered with 
 blocks of stone ; which, as the building itself is 15 
 feet in breadth, and as they also form a kind of 
 coniiche without, to which is to be added also, the 
 thickness of the walls, they cannot well be less than 
 21 feet in length. They are described to be five in 
 width, and three in depth ; corresponding almost 
 exactly to those at Armant ; but as this latter was 
 
 * He was prevented by illness.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 253 
 
 covered "with five blocks only, so that of Seewa had 
 six. Not that the number of stones is decisive of the 
 length of the building at Armant ; for by Dr. Po- 
 cocke's plan, at page 110, it appears that it is only 
 the large room in the middle, which requires blocks 
 of that length ; the whole structure being divided 
 into three rooms, of which, the smaller ones at the 
 ends, being mere closets, or slips, might have the 
 stones that formed their roofs, laid in the direction of 
 the length of the building. For, as the principal 
 room occupied 26 feet of the whole length of the 
 edifice, which was 46 only, it is obvious that the end 
 rooms must have been very narrow. 
 
 These inner temples or sanctuaries, at Thebes 
 and Hermonthis, have certain points of similitude to 
 each other, in their individual proportions, which 
 seems to be the effect of design, although their bulk 
 bears no kind of proportion to those of their respec- 
 tive including temples. First, the inner temple at 
 Thebes, which Dr. Pococke calls " the small granite 
 room," is about 60 feet long, by 19 wide, and 20 in 
 height ^ , ivitldn ; divided in its length into two equal 
 apartments of somewhat less than 30 each. That 
 of Armant is 46 by 16, and 22 in height \ So that 
 the proportions of these two, are about three to 07ie, 
 of the length to the breadth ; whilst that at Seewa, 
 as it noiv api^ears, has a proportion of about two to 
 one. It is not, however, certainly known, whether 
 
 " See Dr. Pococke's Plan and Elevation of the Grand Temple 
 at Thebes, at page 92 : and the description of the granite room, 
 in page 95. 
 
 ^ See the Doctor's plan and description, at page 110 of Vol. i.
 
 254 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 it might not have been continued to a greater length, 
 beyond the end that is in ruins ; and whether there 
 might not have been a second room, roofed with 
 smaller blocks, which may have been removed, and 
 applied to other uses ; although those of the large 
 room may be as useless, as they are unmanageable, 
 to the modern inhabitants of the Oasis. It may 
 even be a question, whether the block, said to be 
 fallen down, was not displaced by the operation of 
 removing the end room, and the wall of separation. 
 
 In the next place, the two inner temples of Thebes 
 and Hermonthis, occupy the same relative situa- 
 tions : they both stand apart from the greater tem- 
 ples, and within high walls adjoining to them ; ac- 
 cording to the description of Strabo, p. 805 ^ 
 
 Again, both are built of granite^ ; the most jor^- 
 cioiis material for building, in that quarter, from the 
 excessive cost of the workmanship ; whence may be 
 inferred the important or sacred use to which they 
 were appropriated. Dr. Pococke is of opinion, that 
 it was the residence of the beautiful and noble 
 virgin, who devoted herself to Jupiter. Strabo, 
 page 816. 
 
 Respecting the ornaments of the inner temple at 
 
 ^ See above, page 248. These walls certainly bore no roofing 
 at Thebes. If they had, there would have been no necessity 
 for a particular roof to the sanctuary : and we must conceive the 
 same at Armant. 
 
 * This we learn of the one at Thebes, from Pococke ; but of 
 that at Armant, from Savary alone. It has been doubted by 
 some, whether Savary ever visited Upper Egypt : however, he 
 may have collected this fact from others.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 0^5 
 
 Thebes, we are left in ignorance, by the persons who 
 have visited it ; otherwise than that Dr. Pococke 
 says, that it had a rich corniche ; of which he gives 
 a drawing at page 219 *. This is much to be re- 
 gretted, as it leaves no opportunity of comparing so 
 important a part of the design, with those of Armant 
 and Seewa ; which, as it may be perceived, have on 
 the whole, a nearer agreement with each other, than 
 those of Armant and Thebes : at least, as far as we 
 are able to make a comparison. Such is the nature 
 of the roofs : both of which, as we have seen, are 
 formed of blocks, of the length of about 2 1 feet, by 
 b\ wide, and 3 in depth, indicating nearly an equal 
 breadth between the walls, in both structures, and 
 differing in the length of the part, thus covered by 
 the breadth of one block ; for the temple at Armant 
 lias only five, that at Seewa, six ^ 
 
 In the next place, there are precisely the same 
 number of rows of sculptures, on the walls, within, 
 in both of these edifices ; that is, three. That at 
 Armant, has four without ^ : but as to that at Seewa, 
 Mr. Browne seems to have found the sculptures on 
 the outside, too much defaced to enable him to form 
 
 * Strabo, in his description of the Egyptian temples, says, that 
 there are no sculptures oihuman figures in the inner temples, or 
 sanctuaries. But this does not agree with the reports of Pococke 
 and Mr. Browne. 
 
 * The blocks at Seewa must have been 5-g- English feet broad, 
 in order for six of them to cover a space of 32 feet. The five 
 French feet reported by Lucas, at Armant, would be much about 
 the same. 
 
 " Pococke, page 110. Lucas agrees in his drawing, page 119.
 
 O^Q TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 any judgment of the particulars. It was reported at 
 Rome, that Mr. Browne thought he discovered two 
 figures with rams' heads, which appears highly pro- 
 bable. The materials at Seewa, were not of so 
 durable a nature, as those of Armant and Thebes : 
 and therefore have not preserved the original im- 
 pressions \ 
 
 From what has appeared, a doubt can scarcely be 
 entertained that the fabric at Seewa is of Egyptian 
 origin, and of very high antiquity. Nor can it well 
 be doubted, that it had a relation to the worship of 
 Jupiter Ammon, even by those who may doubt its 
 being that famous temple itself If it be objected 
 that more remains ought to be visible, it can only be 
 answered, that Mr. Browne saw, in the soil around 
 it, indications of the existence of former buildings : 
 and that he also saw some kewfi stones that v^ere 
 wrought into the walls of the modern houses. More- 
 over, it may well be said that the transient view 
 alone, that he was allowed to take of the place, 
 generally, will not warrant a decision of the question, 
 whether there be, or be not, in the island, the mate- 
 rials of the edifices described by the ancients ^. 
 
 There is no reason to suppose that the rest of the 
 
 ^ Mr. Browne says, that the stones are " of the same kind 
 as those of which the Pyramids consist." (Page 19.) 
 
 * As Mr. Hornemann (who is employed by the African Asso- 
 ciation) was to proceed from Egypt to Fezzan, with the caravan, 
 his route would naturally lie through Seewa. Probably some 
 new lights may be afforded by him ; especially if he was ap- 
 prised of Mr. Browne's discovery, whilst he resided in Cairo : 
 which one might expect he would have been.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 257 
 
 temple is buried in the sand, because the description 
 of the site allows no ground of supposition that the 
 level has been raised ; the doors appearing to remain 
 of a proper, and of a proportionable height. A mass 
 of sand sufficient to cover the fallen ruins, must have 
 buried a considerable proportion of the sanctuary; 
 admitting it to have been a constituent part of a 
 large temple. No such state of things appears ; the 
 room is still 18 feet in height, which is about the 
 proportion it ought to bear to the sanctuary at 
 Thebes, but below that of Armant. But could it 
 for a moment be supposed, that the ruins of a temple 
 were covered with sand, in the middle of the Oasis, 
 what must have been the state of the Oasis itself? 
 Had it been the nature of the place for the sand to 
 collect, as it has done against the sides of the 
 Pyramids, and about the Sphynx, it is probable that 
 no Oasis would ever have been formed in that 
 place ; because the vegetation must have been con- 
 stantly choked up, and covered with sand, as often 
 as it appeared. 
 
 It is unquestionable that the worship of Jupiter in 
 Ethiopia, had an establishment of sacella or chapels 
 attached to the principal temple in Meroe ^ And 
 
 ^ Both Herodotus and Pliny, in speaking of Meroe, in Lower 
 Etliiopia, describe a temple, or oracle, of Jupiter there. Hero- 
 dotus says, " the inhabitants pay divine honours to Jupiter and 
 Bacchus only ; but these they worship with the most extreme 
 veneration. At this place, (Meroe) is an oracle of Jupiter, 
 whose declarations, with the most implicit confidence, they per- 
 mit to regulate all their martial expeditions." Euterpe, 29. 
 
 Phny says, (lib. vi. 29.) " In this city is a temple, in honour 
 
 VOL. IL S
 
 258 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 was there any circumstance on which to found a 
 belief of the existence of any other Oasis in the 
 quarter of Seewa, it might perhaps be suspected that 
 the edifice there was a sacellum to the larger tem- 
 ple of Ammon. But we trust that the concurrence 
 of so many particulars in the ancient descriptions, 
 with what appears at present, at Seewa, will 
 effectually do away any such supposition. Such is 
 the striking agreement of the geographical posi- 
 tions ; together with the attendant circumstance of 
 there being no other place, that answers, in any 
 shape, to the description. To this may be added, 
 the accordance, in point oiforin and dh?iensions, of 
 the Oasis itself : the similarity of productions, and to 
 crown all, the fountain which varied in its temperature 
 at different times. 
 
 The discovery of the temple itself, and the circum- 
 stances belonging to the Oasis which contain it ; 
 together with the operation of fixing its geogra- 
 phical position, to such a degree of exactness as to 
 admit of a comparison with the ancient descriptions ; 
 could not, perhaps, have been accomplished, other- 
 wise than by the zeal, perseverance, and skill of an 
 European. Mr. Browne is therefore entitled to 
 great praise, for his spirit of enterprise, which bade 
 defiance to the hardships and dangers consequent on 
 
 of Jupiter Ammon ; a place of great sanctity and devotion : and 
 around that tract, there are many sacella, (or chapels)." The 
 tract meant, is the country between the Abyssinian branch of the 
 Nile, and the river Tacazze ; usually regarded by the ancients 
 as the Island of Meroe ; from whence, possibly, the worship of 
 Jupiter descended to Egypt.
 
 TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMONl 259 
 
 an undertaking, similar to that which has been so 
 much celebrated in the history of the Macedonian 
 conqueror : and which was unquestionably performed 
 with much more personal risk on the part of our 
 countryman, than on that of Alexander \ 
 
 It is possible that the remains so often alluded to, 
 may appear to ordinary readers, to be much too 
 insignificant to interest the mind as a remain of 
 antiquity ; and therefore may not answer the expec- 
 tations formed of the magnitude and grandeur of 
 style of the temple of Jupiter Ammon. To such, it 
 can only be said, that it bears the stamp of Egyptian 
 origin ; and is only pretended, at the utmost, to be a 
 sanctuary of a greater temple, whose materials may 
 probably be found in the form of ordinary habita- 
 tions, or otherwise, in the Oasis. The dilapidations 
 may have been going on for these 1800 years past : 
 the columns may have been converted into mill-stones, 
 as is the practice in Egypt : or split into convenient 
 sizes for walling ^ The part remaining is evidently 
 that which is the least adapted to ordinary occasions ; 
 and which could not, at any rate, be removed with 
 safety ; since the impending blocks of the roof must 
 deter every one from venturing to displace the stones 
 that support them ^ 
 
 * For the account of the journey of Alexander, see A.rrian, 
 lib. iii. ; Diodorus, lib. xvii. c. 5.; Strabo, page 81C; and 
 Curtius, lib. iv. c. 7. 
 
 ^ See Volney's Travels, Vol. i. c. 19 ; and Mr. Browne's 
 Travels, page 10. The latter describes a very ingenious mode 
 of dividing the columns. 
 
 ^ See the Section on ancient Babylon, Vol. I. p. 49G, 497. 
 
 s 2
 
 ggO TEMPLES OF JUPITER AMMON. 
 
 But even considered as a ruin, and independent 
 of its historical importance, the circumstance alone of 
 its. having blocks of stone, which approach towards 
 the dimensions of the uprights of Stonehenge, raised 
 in the air to form its roof, is fully sufficient to give 
 it an air of importance and singularity. 
 
 These sentiments are entirely the effect of convic- 
 tion, on the part of the Author, on occasion of the 
 disclosure of Mr. Browne's route to Seewa, in his 
 Travels, just published. He had previously adopted 
 a contrary opinion ; but it arose from a misconcep- 
 tion of the position of Seewa, which was reported to 
 be at a less distance inland, by three journies. He 
 always supposed Santariah to be the Oasis of 
 Ammon, and as such it is placed in the Map of 
 North Africa, 1798. It now appears, that Seewa 
 is the same with Santariah : and, of course, his opi- 
 nion is not changed in respect of the position of 
 Jupiter Ammon *. 
 
 * Santariah, in the Map of North Africa, 1798, is placed in 
 lat. 29" 5' long. 25" 45'. We have placed it above, on a revision 
 of the authorities, in lat. 22" 9', long. 26" 5'.
 
 SECTION XXII. 
 
 OF THE TRIBES WHO INHABITED THE COAST AND 
 COUNTRY OF LIBYA, BETWEEN EGYPT AND CARTHAGE. 
 
 Libya possessed by Nomadic Tribes — Adyrmachidae — Gilligam- 
 mae — Island of Platea, the first establishment of the Greeks 
 in Africa — Asbystae, Auschisce, and Cabales ; neighbours to 
 the Cyrenians — Cyrenaica, or Libya Pentapolis, the great 
 colony of the Greeks — Garden of the Hesperides — Nasamones, 
 the most porverfid of the Nomadic Tribes — Seize on the lands 
 of the Psylli — gather the dates of Angela — Accordance of 
 modern with ancient customs, a jiroofof our Author's veracity — 
 Psylli, charmers of serjjcnts — Garamantes, the people of 
 Fezzan, or Phasania — hitherto misplaced by Geograp)hers — 
 Splendour of their capital, arising from the profits of mer- 
 chandize — Conquered by the Romans — Its carrying trade 
 comjjared with that of Palmyra — Macae, or Masae — River 
 Cinyps — Gindanes recognised in the people of Gadamis — Lo- 
 tophagi — Observations on different species of Lotus — Remarks 
 on Herodotus' s line of distance through North Africa— Other 
 Tribes along the coast : Machlyes, Ausenses, Maxyes, 
 Zaueces, Zygantes — Honey from the palm tree — Island of 
 Cyranis — Carthaginian Empire, unnoticed by Herodotus — 
 Pliilenian altars — The conquests of Cambyses terminated at the 
 Hesperides — Hills of salt along the north coast of Africa. 
 
 The knowledge of Herodotus, respecting the geo- 
 graphy of the coast of Libya, was extensive, but
 
 2Q2 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 not critical. His description, found in Melpomene, 
 and which occupies a large portion of that book, 
 includes the whole coast between Egypt and the 
 Lesser Syrtis ; being more than half of the northern 
 border of Africa. It appears at first, as if he meant 
 to give a regular chain of distance, marked at 
 intervals of ten days each, by hills of salt, from 
 Egypt to Mount Atlas ; but on examination it proves 
 defective, in more than one place. These intervals 
 will be noticed in the course of this dissertation ; 
 but as nothing can be deduced from the whole, taken 
 as a series, we shall not break the thread of our 
 design, by examining it in this place. However, as 
 it will appear that the latter half of the series, or 
 that between the Lesser Syrtis and Mount Atlas, 
 agrees to the actual geography ; it may be presumed 
 that the other part was equally, or indeed, better 
 known to Herodotus, though not described ; as it 
 seldom happens that the sphere of knowledge 
 increases with the distance. 
 
 The people of this coast ' he represents generally 
 as NoMADES, from Egypt, westward to the lake 
 Tritonis, (by which he means the Lesser Syrtis, 
 Melpom. 186 :) and the country, says he, is low and 
 sandy. The country farther to the west {Africa 
 proper, Numidia, &c.) is mountainous and inter- 
 spersed with wood ; and infested by wild beasts, and 
 serpents of an enormous size ^ : (19L) Within this 
 
 ^ The reader is referred to the Map No. IX, at page 183, for 
 the geography described in this Section. 
 
 ^ The great serpent of Regukis vvas afterwards killed in this
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 2G3 
 
 tract, however, the inhabitants are husbandmen, and 
 hve in houses : and these regions, notwithstanding 
 the unfavourable circumstances related of them, are 
 by much the finest parts of Northern Africa ; being 
 the ancient provinces of Maiiretania, Niimidia, and 
 Africa 'proper, (or Carthage). Mount Atlas is 
 marked by our Author, on the score of its form and 
 elevation : " at every approach, appearing round 
 and steep ; and so lofty, that its summit can never 
 be distinguished, by reason of the clouds that envelope 
 it ; whence (says he) it was called a Pillar of Hea- 
 ven." Melp. 184. He remarks also, that the Greeks 
 borrowed the iEcis, with which they decorated the 
 shield (or shrine) of Minerva, from the neighbour- 
 hood of the lake Tritonis : the name of which JEgis 
 was derived from the fringed and dyed goat-skins 
 employed on the occasion. Melp. 189. 
 
 In our arrangement of the Libyan provinces, we 
 shall follow, as often as we are able, the order ob- 
 served by our Author. 
 
 Beginning from Egypt, says he, Melp. 168, the 
 Africans are to be enumerated in the following man- 
 ner ^ The first are the Adyrmachid^, whose man- 
 ners are in every respect Egyptian ; but their dress 
 is African : they occupied the maritime tract 
 between Egypt and the port of Pleunos, or Plynos. 
 
 quarter. Dr. Shaw had heard of none that were more than three 
 or four yards in length. 
 
 * It has been remarked before, that he excludes Egypt from 
 Africa, in his geographical arrangement. In Euterpe, 65, Egypt 
 is said to be near Africa.
 
 264 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 Plynos, in Scylax, p. 44 *, is two days' sail beyond 
 Apis ; but we suppose this to be a mistake, and that 
 it lay near the Catahathmus Magna \ Scylax con- 
 fines this tribe, whom he calls a Libyan nation, p. 44, 
 between the points of Canopus and Apis : contrary 
 to Herodotus, who appears to include the sea coast of 
 Marmai'ica within their territory. 
 
 In Ptolemy, the Adyrmachidas are placed in the 
 inland tract, opposite to the same coast ; and towards 
 Ammon. Schlichthorst says, they were driven into 
 the higher parts of Libya, by the Greeks, in the age 
 following Herodotus. If the former authorities are 
 correct, the Adyrmachidse must have increased their 
 territories very considerably between the times of 
 Scylax and of Herodotus ". 
 
 Next to the Adyrmachidae, says our Author, 
 Melp. 169, were the Gilligamm^, " who occupied 
 
 ^ See Hudson's Geog. Min. Vol. i. 
 
 ^ Ajns was at the frontier of Egypt towards Libya ; situated 
 1 2 miles beyond Paraetonium ; and was named from a temple of 
 Apis there. The Apis spoken of in Euterpe, 18, should be a 
 different place ; and as it is connected with Marea, may have 
 been adjacent to the lake Mareotis. 
 
 ® An obscene custom is imputed, by Herodotus, to the Adyr- 
 machidce ; such as has also been imputed to the people of a 
 part of our island, in barbarous times ; we mean a certain privi- 
 lege claimed by the superior lord, which all the rest of mankind 
 are agreed in reserving for the bridegroom. It is singular, that 
 a custom should have been introduced here, which was too bar- 
 barous to obtain amongst more than one of the African tribes : 
 and that a privilege reserved for the king alone, there, should be 
 extended to every superior lord, here, in the quarter where the 
 custom prevailed. It is impossible to place the base servility of 
 some of our ancestors in a more striking point of view.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 265 
 
 the coast, as far as the island of AphrodisiasJ" 
 Now, as this island was situated beyond the port of 
 Cyrene, westward, there must needs be a mistake 
 here, because a great part of the fertile and culti- 
 vated district of Cyrenaica, would otherwise be 
 allotted to a Nomadic tribe. Therefore the facts 
 are irreconcileable, and we must seek for some other 
 explanation. Possibly the island of Drei)anu7n, near 
 Derna, might be meant. 
 
 The celebrated island of Platea, (now Bomba) 
 where the Thereans first established themselves, and 
 which continued to be possessed by the Cyrenians, 
 was situated on the coast of the Gilligammte ; as 
 were also the ports of Menelaus and Azijris. See 
 Melpomene, 152, 166, 169. 
 
 The AsBYSTiE were a small inland tribe, situated 
 between the Gilligammae on the east, and the 
 Auschisae on the west, Melp. 170, 171 ; and above, 
 or within, Cyrenaica ; having no communication 
 with the coast, which was occupied by the Cyrenians. 
 (This seems a proof that the Gilligammae could not 
 possess any part of the coast to the west of Derna.) 
 The Asbystae were, beyond all the Africans, remark- 
 able for the use of chariots drawn by four horses : 
 and in most respects they imitated the manners of 
 the Cyrenians ^ (170). 
 
 Pliny places the Asbystae, as well as the Masae or 
 Macae, to the west of the Nasamones ; and of course, 
 is at variance with our Author's description ; but 
 
 ^ Herodotus says, tliat the Greeks themselves borrowed from 
 Africa, the custom of harnessing four horses to a chariot. 
 Melponi. ISU.
 
 2G6 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 Strabo, with more probability, says, p. 838, " After 
 the Nasamones, (who are situated at the Greater 
 Syrtis, and beyond Cyrene) are the Psylli, Getuli, 
 and Garamantes." 
 
 " The AuscHiCiE, who bordered on the west of the 
 Asbystae, extended from above Barca, to the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Hesperides, on the sea coast." 
 Melp. 171. 
 
 The Cabales ^ an inconsiderable tribe, occupied 
 the sea coast, opposite to the centre of the Aus- 
 chicae, and extended themselves to the coast, near 
 Taucliira, a town belonging to Barca, (171.) 
 They had the same customs with the people beyond 
 Cyrene. f 
 
 Thus we have filled up the space along the sea 
 coast between Egypt and the Hesperides, situated 
 at the commencement of the Greater Syrtis, and 
 beyond Cyrenaica : concerning which province, we 
 shall presently speak. 
 
 It is proper to remark that the distribution of 
 this coast is very different in the Periplus of 
 Scylax, and in Ptolemy, from what we have just 
 given on the authority of Herodotus. Ptolemy lived 
 nearly six centuries after our Author : so that great 
 changes must naturally be expected : but Scylax, 
 doubtless, lived within half a century of the time of 
 Herodotus. As Scylax limits the Adyrmachidse to 
 Apis, on the west, so he extends the Marmaridce 
 from thence, all the way to the Hesperides ; including 
 within their territory, the space allotted by Hero- 
 
 * Query, if the Kahyles of Shaw ? 
 
 13
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 267 
 
 clotiis, to the Giliigamm£e, Asbystae, Auscliisas, and 
 Cabales ; all of which names he entirely omits ''. 
 Beyond the Hesperides, the agreement between the 
 two is much closer. 
 
 No doubt, we may thus account for the descrip- 
 tions in Scylax. He must be regarded as a seaman^ 
 or pilot, and the author of a kind of coasting Di- 
 rectory, who confines himself to the description of 
 the coasts ; giving general names to them, as our 
 modern pilots do ; as the coast of Barbary, of 
 Guinea, of Malabar, &c. without regarding the 
 lesser political divisions, or the changes that may 
 take place in them : so that it might have hap- 
 pened, and does happen in the cases just men- 
 tioned, that many such names are unknown in the 
 countries, to whose coasts they are applied by 
 strangers. In effect, we must regard Scylax as a 
 2nlot ; Herodotus as an historian and geographer. 
 
 The province of Cyrenaica (now Kairoan, or 
 Kurin) was situated within the tract of the No- 
 mades : it was the most elevated part of it, and 
 wonderfully fertile. Melp. 199. It contained the 
 first Grecian colony established in Africa : and how 
 interesting it was to the Greeks, may be collected 
 
 " Strabo, p. 838, extends the Marmaridce from Cyrenaica to 
 Ammon ; which agrees nearly to Ptolemy : whilst Pliny (lib. v. 
 5.) extends them between Paraetonium and the Greater Syrtis. 
 
 Diodorus (lib. iii. 3.) divides the Libyans into four tribe's, of 
 which- the Marmaridce possessed the coast from Egypt to 
 Cyrene : the Nasamones on the south, answering to the people 
 of Angela : the Aiisclmce on the west ; and the Macce, the most 
 populous of all, at the Syrtis.
 
 268 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA, 
 
 from the detailed history of the establishment, pro- 
 gress, and subjection of it, given to them by Hero- 
 dotus, in Melpomene, 145, et seq. 
 
 This province is also named Libya Pentapolis, 
 from its having five cities or towns of note in it : 
 that is, Cyrene, Barce, Ptolemais, Berenice, and 
 Tauchira ; all of which, not only exist at present, 
 under the form either of towns or villages, but it is 
 remarkable that their names are scarcely changed 
 from what we may suppose the pronunciation to 
 have been amongst the Greeks \ 
 
 According to the description of its boundaries by 
 Herodotus, Cyrenaica proiier could not have had a 
 greater extent along the coast than about 120 G. 
 miles, from east to west. But it was subsequently 
 extended, so as to include the country of the Nasa- 
 mones, as appears by the famous boundary of the 
 Philenian altars, between the states of Cyrene and 
 Carthage ^ 
 
 The gardens, or orchards, of the Hesperides, and 
 the history belonging to them, are too well known 
 to be repeated here. It is, however, satisfactory to 
 know, that the ancients fixed on a spot that was 
 appropriate ; since there was in more modern times 
 a wood there, according to the testimony of Edrisi : 
 and it being near the sea on the one hand, and on 
 the edge of the Desert of Barca on the other, a 
 wood could hardly have been expected in that 
 situation. 
 
 Strabo, 836, places the lake of Tritonis, which he 
 
 ' As Kur'in, Barca, Tollamata, Bernic, and Taukera. 
 
 ^ Concerning these altars, more will be said in the sequel.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. OQQ 
 
 says is the same with that of the Hesperkles, and 
 which receives the river Ladon, at Berenice. The 
 lake contained an island, in which was a temple of 
 Venus. Pliny also places the groves and gardens 
 at Berenice, at the end of the Sijrtis : lib. v. c. 5 : 
 and Solinus in like manner. Strabo is, however, 
 wrong, in placing the lake Tritonis at the Greater 
 Syrtis, which ought to be at the lesser one, as will be 
 shewn in its place. 
 
 The Tritonian lake of Lucan, was also at the 
 Hesperides, but it may be a doubt whether he did 
 not confound it with the lake Tritonis at the Lesser 
 Syrtis. He was a very bad geographer. 
 
 Bernic is, doubtless, the same with the ancient 
 Berenice. It appears from Edrisi, page 93, that 
 there was in his time a wood at 4 miles from the sea, 
 in the plain of Bernic, at about 40 G. miles to the 
 SW of Barca. From his mentioning the wood, a 
 practice not common with him, one may conclude 
 that it had something remarkable about it ; or that 
 trees were not common on that coast. 
 
 Scylax, p. 46, says that the gardens or orchards of 
 the Hesperides, are situated at 620 stadia, say 50 G. 
 miles from the port of Barce, which is itself 500 
 stadia, or about 40 G. miles from the j^ort of Cyrene. 
 This agrees precisely to Bernic. He allows no more 
 than two stadia for the length and breadth of the 
 garden, which formed a square ^ He gives a cata- 
 logue of the trees in it, which stood so thick as to 
 
 ^ The number is probably wrong.
 
 270 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 entwine with each other ; and it is worthy of remark^ 
 that the lotus is amongst them. 
 
 The Nasamones, according to Herodotus, were 
 the most powerful of the Nomadic tribes on this 
 coast *. They bordered on the Greater Syrtis, and 
 on the district of Cyrene ; and as they had seized 
 on the lands of the Psylli, their territory must have 
 embraced the whole of the south and east sides of 
 the Syrtis. It appears that they also appropriated 
 to themselves the dates produced in the plains of 
 Angela ; whence, the whole extent of their territory 
 may have been about 400 G. miles from east to 
 west, at that time : so that they may well have been 
 denominated the most powerful of the Nomades. 
 But when, in later times, the boundaries of Carthage 
 and Cyrene met at the Philenian altars, situated at 
 the innermost recesses of the Syrtis, it is evident 
 that the Nasamones must have been dispossessed in 
 
 * Melpomene, 172. In Euterpe, 32, he says, " that they 
 inhabited, the Syrtes, and a tract of land which extends from 
 thence to the east." Strabo, 837, places the Nasamones at the 
 Greater Syrtis, and beyond them the Psylli. Pliny (v. 5.) says 
 that they were originally named. Mesamones by the Greeks, as 
 being situated between two quicksands ; meaning perhaps the 
 two Syrtes, but this does not apply. 
 
 Lucan (lib. ix.) reckons them a barbarous tribe, and says 
 that they live by wrecks : the Syrtes supplying their wants, and 
 making up for the barrenness of their soil. Curtius, iv. 7. also 
 speaks of their making a prey of stranded ships. Our country- 
 man, Mr. Bruce, was shipwrecked there, and found them much 
 the same sort of people. See his Introduction ; and also page 
 131, Vol. I. of this work.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 271 
 
 their turn. And accordingly, in Ptolemy, we find 
 them removed to the inland tract of Angela itself : 
 in which Diodorus agrees. Lib. iii. c. 3. 
 
 Concerning the geographical position of Angela, 
 both absolutely and relatively, we have already 
 spoken. Its historical importance too, is consider- 
 able, as it relates to our Author's history ; and it is 
 one of those few places whose name has not under- 
 gone a tittle of change since Herodotus wrote *. 
 Pliny also speaks of it, lib. v. 4. and 8, and brands 
 the inhabitants with the character of worshipping 
 evil spirits. We have seen that it is also spoken of 
 by the Arabian geographers, and by modern travel- 
 lers. Abulfeda calls it an Island in the Desert, 
 abounding with water and palm trees : and we shall 
 find in the reports of modern travellers, a pleasing 
 confirmation of those of our Historian, as they serve 
 to give a confidence in him, when he relates things of 
 greater importance. " The Nasamones (says he) 
 during the summer season, leave their cattle on the 
 coast, and go up into the country, to a place called 
 Angela, to gather dates ; on which spot the palms 
 are equally numerous, large, and fruitful." Melp. 
 172. Modern travellers inform us, that the dates 
 in the plain of Gegabib, five journies to the east- 
 ward of that of Angela, are gathered by the people 
 on the coast of Derna ; so that one may conceive 
 that the same practice prevails throughout the whole 
 region. See Proceed. Afr. Assoc. 1790, ch. x. 
 
 * Much the same has just been said concerning the towns in 
 Cyrenaica.
 
 273 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 The territory of the Psylli is to be regarded as a 
 province of the Nasamonians. Herodotus says that 
 the latter took possession of the lands of the former, 
 in consequence of their being depopulated by an 
 accident. Melp. 173. Phny, with more appearance 
 of probabiHty, says that the PsylH were destroyed, 
 generally, by the Nasamones, lib. vii. 2 ; and that 
 the small remains of them fled. 
 
 The reputation which the Psylli bore for charming 
 of serpents, and for the cure of their stings, is men- 
 tioned by many ancient authors. Cato is said, by 
 Plutarch, to have carried some of the Psylli with 
 him, in his memorable march round the Greater 
 Syrtis ; when he, of course, passed through the for- 
 mer country of the Psylli, which had the reputation 
 of being dreadfully infested with serpents ; and 
 whence, we may suppose, arose the necessity of their 
 learning how to avoid or to subdue them \ From 
 this popular idea, we may suppose that certain jug^ 
 glers professed themselves Psylli, as we learn from 
 Pliny, lib. vii. 2. They are very often mentioned by 
 this author, as in lib. xxv. 10 ; and xxviii. 3 ^ 
 
 It is certain that in India, a country also abound- 
 ing with serpents, there are people who so com- 
 pletely subdue serpents of the most venomous kinds, 
 as to have them entirely at command. They are 
 
 Well in the land of serpents were they plac'd : 
 
 Truce with the dreadful tyrant, Death, they have, 
 And border safely on his realm, the grave. 
 
 Rowe's Lucan, lib. ix. 
 ° See also Savary, Vol. i. ch. iv.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 273 
 
 said to seize on them, with their naked hands, with- 
 out apprehension of mischief: and this, not only on 
 those they have already been accustomed to, but on 
 such as they never saw before. They teach them to 
 dance to a wind-instrument, generally three at a 
 time ; and this the Author has often seen ; as well 
 as the replacing them in their baskets, which the 
 juggler does with the same indifference as if they 
 were eels. But in what state their powers of sting- 
 ing then were, the Author knows not. 
 
 The Psylli were placed between the Nasamones, 
 Mac£e, and Garamantes ; (Melp. 173, 174, 175); 
 that is, at the middle part of the Greater Syrtis ; 
 now the Desert of Sort. 
 
 Scylax omits the Psylli altogether. 
 Beyond these, southward, that is, towards the in- 
 land country of Africa, were the Garamantes, said 
 by Herodotus to be " a numerous nation, situated at 
 lOjournies from Angela," (/. e. westward, of course), 
 and " between the Nasamones and the Macae." (See 
 Melpom. 174, 175, 183.) The present towns of Me- 
 surata and Lebida are situated within the territory of 
 the ancient Macce, or Masce. 
 
 The Garamantes will be clearly made out to be 
 the people of Fezzan, a considerable tract of inland 
 country, situated midway between Tunis and Egypt; 
 and which, notwithstanding its great extent, falls 
 under the description of one of the Oases, or fertile 
 tracts, found in the middle of the desert ; being com- 
 pletely insulated by sandy or rocky deserts, and 
 separated to a considerable distance from any other 
 VOL. n. t
 
 274 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 habitable tract. It may, indeed, be reckoned the 
 largest Oasis known ^ 
 
 Herodotus supposes that the eastern Hmit of the 
 Garamantes approached within 10 journies ^ of the 
 Augelae ; but this can only be true of the approxi- 
 mating parts of the two provinces ; between which 
 lies a frightful and widely extended desert, part of 
 which is sandy, partly naked rocks ^. The extent 
 of the country of Garama is also omitted by Hero- 
 dotus; but this does not invalidate the remaining 
 facts ; and, in our idea, few geographical positions 
 can with more certainty be reconciled to ancient his- 
 tory ; for it will appear that Strabo places the Gara- 
 mantes in the quarter of Fezzan, by positive data, 
 and Pliny, by the strongest implication possible ; that 
 is, by assigning to the Garamantes certain cities, 
 whose remains are amongst the Fezzaners. 
 
 It is true that both Ptolemy and M. D'Anville 
 place the Garamantes nearly in the centre of Africa' ; 
 
 '^ Strabo places the Psylli between the Nasamones and the 
 Garamantes ; which latter agrees to Fezzan. 
 
 * Pliny, lib. v. 4, says 1 2 journies. 
 
 ® See African Assoc. 1790, ch. x. Pliny speaks of burning 
 rocks, &c. 
 
 ' M. D'Anville places Germa so far inland as 24" 15', although 
 it be really in 27" 48' ; since it is no more than 17^ caravan 
 journies from Mesurata. See above, p. 209. Moreover, he 
 extends the Garamantes within the limits of Begarmee, which, it 
 is possible, he might mean for Garamanta. 
 
 Some of the ancients seem to have been much puzzled about 
 the situation of the Garamantes : and as Ptolemy places them
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 075 
 
 and that Pliny supposed, when he spoke of the 
 people oi Phazcuiia, and of the Garamantes, and 
 Gamphasantes, that he was describing different 
 nations ; but the contrary is however true. See 
 lib. V. c. 4, 5, and 8. Mela also calls them Gampha- 
 santes, lib. viii. Pliny describes the conquest of 
 Phazania, and other tracts in Africa, by Balbus, 
 lib. V. c. 5, and says, that it had a fine capital city 
 named Garama ; as also another city named Cil- 
 Iciba : (c. 4.) Garama was no doubt the Germa, or 
 Jerma, a ruined city, w^ell known to the present 
 people of Fezzan ; and Cillaba may be taken for 
 Zuela, or Zaivila (also in ruins -) which afterwards 
 became the capital, and existed as such in the time of 
 Abulfeda. Tab. III. Africa. 
 
 It can hardly be doubted but that Germa, or Gara- 
 ma, the capital, gave name to the country itself, 
 amongst the Greeks and Romans. Abulfeda calls 
 it Karran or Garran, as well as Fazzan ; and Edrisi, 
 p. 39 and 40, Faran. But all kind of doubt is re- 
 moved concerning the place meant : for Abulfeda 
 describes it to be on the east of Gadzamis, {Ga- 
 damis, the Cydamus of Pliny,) and of Wadan ; and 
 
 towards the centre of Africa, so Lucan places them on the sea 
 coast. 
 
 Dr. Shaw observes, p. 13C, that " the Garamantes may be 
 presumed to have been placed either in the districts of Gadamis, 
 Fezzan, or some of the other more distant cities and villarfcs of 
 the kingdom of Tripoly ;" which proves that the Doctor had 
 considered the subject well, although he does not come directly 
 to the point. 
 
 * African Association, 1790, ch. iv. 
 
 T 2
 
 276 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 to be an island, or Oasis, in the great Desert of 
 Sahara, well watered, and fruitful in palms ; and 
 having cities and other edifices. Moreover, he places 
 its then capital, Zaivlla ^ on the south of Sort ; 
 whose position has already been assigned at one of 
 the recesses of the Greater Syrtis. See page 210 *. 
 
 According to the information collected by the 
 African Association, Germa is situated at four journies 
 to the ESE of Mourzouk, and is also 25, of Edrisi's 
 scale, from Agadez, (pages 39 and 40) : so that there 
 is little doubt of its being the Garama of Pliny. 
 
 We shall add to these authorities some ideas of 
 Strabo and Pliny ; and although neither of them 
 appear to be well informed on the subject, yet their 
 ideas coincide as far as they respectively go. 
 
 Strabo says, p. 835, that " above the Getulians 
 is the region of Garamanta, 9 or 10 journies distant 
 from the sea coast (perhaps the capital may be the 
 point reckoned to), and the same distance from the 
 Ethiopians : and also 15 from the Ammonians." 
 And, 838, " after the Nasamones (who are situated 
 near the Syrtis and Cyrenaica) are the Psylli ; a part 
 of the Getulae, and the Garamantes," &c. This 
 proves clearly that Fezzan is intended by the region 
 of Garamanta, by its distance from the sea, and from 
 the Ethiopians. Angela was unknown to Strabo ; 
 and we may suppose that he included the space 
 occupied by the Augelae, in the region of the Ammo- 
 nians : in which case the 15 days will not be much 
 
 3 
 
 Mourzouk is the present capital. 
 See also Abulfeda, Tab. III. Africa.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 277 
 
 out. And with respect to its distance from the sea 
 coast, the report is just. 
 
 Pliny, hb. v. c. 8, says, there is nothing but a 
 desert between the people bordering on the ocean, 
 and the Garamantes, Angelas, &c., meaning the 
 Sahara, which fills the vast space between the Atlan- 
 tic and Fezzan ; and lib. v. c. 4, he says, that the 
 Garamantes are 12 days from Augelse. Had Ga- 
 rama been where Ptolemy and M. D'Anville place 
 it, there would have been the countries of Tombuc- 
 too, Agadez, and Kasseena, (or Kashnah) between it 
 and the ocean. 
 
 In effect, it seems impossible to mistake it ; for 
 Fezzan is the only large tract of fertile land that 
 contains a number of cities and towns in this quarter 
 of Africa : and Garama was deemed of importance 
 enough by the Romans, to induce them to send an 
 army under Balhiis ^ to reduce it. Pliny gives a 
 long list of provinces and towns conquered by this 
 general, the names and representations of which he 
 carried in his triumph on that occasion. But be- 
 sides Fezzan, and its ^jrmc/^9«/ cities, we can only 
 recognise Cy damns (Gadamis), on the NW ; and 
 Tahidium (Tahoo), on the SW of Fezzan. It is 
 probable that most of the other towns were situated 
 within the Oases or territories of Fezzan and Gada- 
 mis : the remainder in the line towards Agadez and 
 Kasseena : for Pliny also says, that '* the Romans 
 
 * Balbus was a Spaniard, and a citizen of Cadiz; and is said 
 by Pliny to liave been the first foreigner who had the privilege 
 of a triumphal chariot. Pliny, v. 5.
 
 278 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 possessed the country, even to the river Niger, 
 which separates Africa from Ethiopia"." Garama, 
 or Fezzan, appears to have been regarded as of the 
 first importance amongst the conquests of Balbus. 
 
 Herodotus was informed that the Garamantes 
 avoided all communication with mankind, and were 
 ignorant of the use of military weapons, but this is 
 doubtless a mistake ; although Pliny says the same 
 of the Gamphasantes, not recognising them in the 
 people of Pliaxania, whom he had before described. 
 
 This character of the ancient people of Fezzan, 
 implying a total seclusion from the rest of mankind, 
 and which their situation in a great island of the 
 Desert might seem calculated to produce ; yet 
 differs so widely from the present character of the 
 Fezzaners, that we cannot admit the truth of it. 
 For their present character, which is that of the most 
 enterprising merchants of Africa, appears to grow 
 out of the physical situation of their country : it 
 being, perhaps, the most advantageously placed of 
 any inland country in Africa for the purposes of 
 commerce ; being not only situated on the line of 
 the shortest and most convenient, and therefore 
 prmcijial communication between the Mediterranean 
 sea and the centre of Africa, but also in the line be- 
 tween Western Africa, Egypt, and Arabia. It may 
 be compared to the ancient state of Palmyra, placed 
 in the midst of deserts, and forming a link of con- 
 nection between other states ; and growing rich by a 
 carrying trade across the Deserts. It is probable, 
 
 * Pliny, V. 4.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 279 
 
 therefore, that they have, in all ages, availed them- 
 selves of these advantages, and have not, at least, 
 been lower in estimation than their neighbours. 
 Besides, to what must they have been indebted for 
 their fine capital, mentioned by Pliny, but to su- 
 perior riches ? Are ornamented cities found amongst 
 such a people as Herodotus describes ? It is true 
 that the establishment of a new superstition at 
 Mecca, in latter times, may have added to the 
 riches of Fezzan, since it is become the rendezvous 
 of the Mahomedan pilgrims from the west and south 
 of Africa '' : but this circumstance has probably made 
 only a part of the difference that is observable be- 
 tween the state of prosperity existing in Fezzan, and 
 that of their neighbours. 
 
 This state of things may be collected from the late 
 Mr. Beaufoy's publication, entitled, " Proceedings 
 of the African Association," 1790, chap. iv. Fezzan 
 is there described to be a circular domain, apparently 
 14 to 15 journies in diameter, and surrounded on 
 all sides by hilly deserts, except on the western 
 border, on which the flat sandy desert, or Sahara, 
 terminates. To these barriers, more than to military 
 strength, it is, no doubt, indebted for its security : 
 but it possesses military strength likewise, as appears 
 by the expedition against the Tihesti mountaineers, 
 described in the same book ^ 
 
 ' See Proceedings of the African Association, 1 790, chapters 
 iv. and x. 
 
 * Pliny says, hb. v. 5, that the Romans found a road over the 
 mountains, into Garama, nearer by four journies than the one 
 
 13
 
 280 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 No rain falls in Fezzan : but, notwithstanding, 
 water is found every where, in wells 8 or 10 feet 
 deep ^. Herodotus appears to be accurate, when he 
 says that in this region (of which Fezzan formed a 
 part) it nev^er rains : he adds, that the houses, some 
 of which are built of indurated salt, are as durable as 
 those of the ordinary materials elsewhere. Melp. 
 185. Mr. Beaufoy says, that the country '' produces 
 a sufficiency of salt for the consumption of its own 
 inhabitants ;" with a variety of useful animals ; a 
 rich vegetation, and great plenty (with some variety 
 also) of grains \ 
 
 The capital, Mourzouk, oftentimes called Fezzan, 
 is situated nearly in the centre of the country, and 
 at about 262 miles southward from Mesurata, as has 
 already been shewn in page 209 ; Wadan, a smaller 
 Oasis, lying nearly midway between them. 
 
 they had formerly used. This short way was probably by 
 Sockna. (See the Map at p. 183.) 
 
 * Mr. Beaufoy accounts satisfactorily for this, from its being 
 surrounded by higher lands. Pliny says, lib. v. 5, of the Ham- 
 mamentes, (who are the Amantes of Solinus, and whom we take 
 for the people of Gadamis, or Cydamus,) that they get water at 
 the depth of a cubit and half. It may be from a like cause ; 
 being an Oasis like Fezzan. 
 
 ^ There is a river of some bulk in Fezzan, which takes its 
 course by Zuela, &c. Edrisi, p. 40 ; but it appears to be after- 
 wards lost in the sands, and does not reach the sea. Ptolemy 
 continues this river to the sea coast, making it the head of the 
 Cinyps, whose course is very confined indeed. 
 
 The Tabuda, or Taboo River, is in like manner represented 
 by Ptolemy as the upper part of the Bagrada, or river of 
 Carthage : an error of still greater magnitude.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA, ogl 
 
 The city of Zawila ^ and that of Germa ^, are 
 situated to the eastward, and ESE of Mourzouk. 
 Each of them contains the ruins of edifices, of which 
 " there are no existing patterns in use" at this time ; 
 (Germa, in particular) : and which can only be re- 
 ferred to the period of the Roman dominion there *. 
 
 It may be conceived that the Nasamonian ex- 
 plorers before-mentioned, (see page 32) would na- 
 turally take their route through the country of 
 Fezzan, to the Niger. For '' they first proceeded 
 through the inhabited region; then came to that, 
 which was infested by wild beasts ; which, also 
 leaving, they directed their course westward, through 
 
 ^ Called also Zuela. It must not be mistaken for Zala : 
 ivhich is 10 days to the eastward of it. Ed. p. 40. 
 
 ' It is Jerma in Beaufoy (p. 130,) and P. Lucas ; but Germa 
 in Edrisi, p. 39. 
 
 * Abulfeda is silent concerning any ruins at Zawila and Germa ; 
 altliough he speaks of some very celebrated remains of Roman 
 buildings at Gadamis, Tab. iii. Africa. The report of the ruins 
 at Germa, &c. is from European travellers. 
 
 Mr. Beaufoy says, (Afr. Assoc. 1790, ch. iv.) " Zdeela, — in 
 which the remnants of ancient buildings, the nvmaber and size of 
 the cisterns*, and the construction of the vaulted caves, intended 
 perhaps as repositories for corn, exhibit such vestiges of ancient 
 splendour, as \\\\\ probably attract, and may highly reward, the 
 attention of the future traveller." 
 
 Again, of Germah, or Jermah — " distinguished by numerous 
 and majestic ruins, that exhibit to the ignorant inhabitants of its 
 clay-built cottages, inscriptions, of wliich they know not the 
 meaning, and vestiges of greatness to which they are perfectly 
 indifferent." 
 
 * We may ask, why cisterns, in a country where water is to 
 be had at 8 or 10 feet deptli ?
 
 282 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 the Desert/' &c. Euterpe, 32. Fezzan would, of 
 course, be that inhabited country ; and westward of 
 it lies the great sandy Desert, beyond which was the 
 Niger, (or Nile of the Negroes) a part of whose 
 course appears to approach within little more than 
 35 caravan journies of the borders of Fezzan. 
 
 Returning to the coast — we find the Mac^ (of 
 Herodotus, Melp. 175,) in possession of it, to the 
 westward of the Nasamones ; or rather of the Psylli, 
 whose districts became a part of the other, and was 
 the part which bordered on the Macag. 
 
 Pliny confirms this situation, generally, by placing 
 the Mas(e (as he writes the name ^) on the west of 
 the Nasamones. Scylax says, p. 47, that the Macas 
 wintered adjacent to the coast of the Syrtis, (and 
 beyond the Nasamones ^, who inhabited the inner- 
 most part of it ; but in summer, on the deficiency of 
 water, retired into the higher parts of the country. 
 (Ptolemy places the Maces Syrtitce much in this 
 position.) 
 
 According to the ideas of Herodotus, the Macse 
 ought to extend westward to the neighbourhood of 
 the present Tripoly. For he says, that their terri- 
 tory included the course of the river Cinyps, which 
 flowed from a woody hill named from the Graces, 
 at 200 stadia inland from the coast. Melp. 175. 
 Pliny, lib. v. 4, mentions a district of the name of 
 Cinyps. Ptolemy, who certainly is oftener right 
 
 ^ It may be supposed from Pliny's writing the name Mascs, 
 that the c was to be sounded soft. Mesurata, which is situated 
 within this tract, may have been formed from Masa. 
 
 " In this place, the lands of the Psylli are included with the 
 other.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 283 
 
 in what relates to the detail of this coast of Africa, 
 than any other person, places the mouth of the 
 Cinyps at no great distance to the eastvvard of Leptis 
 Magna; now Lebida. He says, that this city is 
 also called Neapolis ; in which Strabo agrees; 
 p. 835. And as Scylax, p. 47, places the same river 
 near Neapolis, we must suppose that the Cinyps 
 gained the sea near Lebida, although we do not find 
 any modern notices concerning it. Mr. Lucas ^, for 
 instance, does not mention either the river or the 
 hill, in his account of his journey : and a, fine river, 
 and a woody hill, are objects too remarkable in this 
 quarter of Africa to be passed over unnoticed, where 
 the rest of the country is naked and barren. 
 
 Herodotus again mentions the Cinyps, on occasion 
 of the settlement of Dorieus (brother of the immortal 
 Leonidas, king of Sparta,) in its vicinity. He styles 
 it *^ one of the most delightful situations in that 
 part of the world." Terp. 42. Dorieus was after- 
 wards expelled, by the joint efforts of three tribes, 
 amongst whom was the Maci ; doubtless intended 
 for the Maccu, through whose territory the Cinyps 
 ran ^. 
 
 The Gindanes, Lotophagi, and Machlyes, in the 
 order here mentioned, are said to occupy the remain- 
 der of the space between the Macae, and the lake 
 Tritonis ; by which latter, Herodotus intended 
 
 '' African Association, 1790, ch. iii. 
 
 * Two remarkable customs are attributed to the Macce, 
 (Melp. 175 :) the one is, " their leaving a tuft of hair in the 
 centre of the head ; carefully shaving all the rest ;" the other, 
 that in war they shield themselves with the skins of ostriches.
 
 084 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 either the Lesser Syrtis, or the Syrtis and lake col- 
 lectively. Of this more in the sequel. 
 
 It is not perfectly clear what nation or people, 
 Herodotus intended by the Gindanes, but from very 
 strong circumstances, we conceive those of Gadamis 
 to be meant ^ . In the first place, no other author 
 that we know of, speaks at all of such a people as the 
 Gindanes : and moreover, Scylax, in his Periplus, 
 joins the Lotophagi to the Macas near the city of 
 Neapolis ^ which necessarily excludes the Gindanes 
 from the sea coast. Nor does it at all appear that 
 Herodotus meant to place them on the sea coast : 
 for he by no means keeps to it, in his description, 
 but occasionally diverges inland ; as for instance, 
 from the Psylli, on the coast, to the Garamantes, 
 inland ; and from these again, to the Macas, on the 
 coast. 
 
 In the next place, Herodotus says, Melp. 177, that 
 the Peninsula, or Promontory, which advances 
 from the country of the Gindanes to the sea, is 
 possessed by the Lotophagi : and these are exactly 
 the relative circumstances of the two countries of 
 Gadamis and of the Lotophagi : or, in other words, 
 that projection of the coast between Tripoly and the 
 gulf of Kabes, or Gabbs. 
 
 Gadamis, (the Gadzames of Reiske), is a well 
 known city and territory, situated in the road from 
 
 ^ Herodotus attributes a very singular custom to the women 
 of this district ; which was, to shew by tokens in their dress, 
 the number of their lovers. 
 
 ^ From the description of Scylax, one might suppose Neapolis 
 to have stood nearer to the Great Syrtis than Lcptis is.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 055 
 
 Tunis to Agadez and Kasseena. Abulfeda calls the 
 city an illustrious one, and says, that it contains the 
 ruins of some admirable Roman structures : that its 
 territory is fertile, and watered by running streams ; 
 and that it is celebrated for preparing of skhis ^. 
 
 The city of Gadamis, according to Mr. Magra, 
 lies 23 to 24 journies of the caravan, in the direction 
 of S 4" E from Tunis : (Proc. Afr. Association) : 
 and Abulfeda (Tab. Africa), places it at 14 miles, 
 (he means journies) directly south from Kabes ; 
 which agrees pretty well. We have allowed 15 miles 
 per day, or 360 from Tunis. 
 
 The ruins mentioned by Abulfeda are accounted 
 for, from its having been a Roman establishment, 
 and one of the principal conquests of Balbus : 
 (Cydamus, or Kydamus.) Pliny, v. 5. 
 
 Abulfeda, moreover, says, that the running waters 
 in this province are distributed in certain ^9ro/9or- 
 tions to the cultivator of the soil : we may suppose, 
 from the necessity of husbanding them out, and not 
 suffering them to run to waste ^. 
 
 To return once more to the coast — it will appear 
 
 ^ The skins prepared at Gadamis, are doubtless either those 
 of goats or sheep, stained with different colours, as in some 
 other parts of Africa : a manufacture which is executed with 
 great skill. Dr. Shaw says, p. 241, that there is a particular 
 species of sheeip at Gadamis, which are nearly as tall as fallow 
 deer, and with fleeces as coarse and hairy as those of goats 
 (which are also shorn in some parts of Africa). These may, 
 possibly, supply the skins. We shall speak more of this subject 
 under the heads iEcis and Tritonis. 
 
 ^ The same is said concerning the river of Kabes.
 
 286 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 from what has been said above, that the sea coast 
 between the two Syrtes was divided between the 
 Macce and the Lotophagi, the latter of whom also 
 possessed the island of Menix (or Meninx), now 
 Jerha * : and the coast beyond it, as far as the lake 
 and river of Tritonis, to the Machlyes, who touched 
 on the inner part of the Lesser Syrtis. This tribe 
 also is said to have fed on the fruit of the lotus ; but 
 not so entirely as their neighbours, who were deno- 
 minated from the use of it. Melpom. 177, 178 \ 
 
 Scylax, as we have seen, extends the name of 
 Lotophagi to the tribes generally, between the two 
 Syrtes, p. 47, 48 ; leaving to the Mac£e nothing 
 more than the western shore of the greater of these 
 gulfs. Ptolemy limits them to the neighbourhood 
 of the river Cinyps alone, whilst Herodotus appears 
 to confine them to the west of that river ; or perhaps 
 of the district which is denominated from it. Again, 
 
 * See Dr. Shaw, page 197. 
 
 ' We collect from Strabo, page 835, that the people at the 
 Lesser Syrtis, caught a great deal of fish ; for he describes them 
 as being very ingenious and industrious, in fixing their fishing 
 apparatus ; the rise and fall of the tide, in that particular part, 
 being peculiarly favourable to it, as we learn from Dr. Shaw, who 
 visited the spot, and observed the same mode of fishing at pre- 
 sent. Hence we have an opportunity of finding how accurate 
 Herodotus was, in this quarter : for this is precisely the station 
 of the Machlye tribe, which he describes to inhabit the coasts of 
 the Syrtes, and to use a less quantity of the lotus than their 
 neighbours, the j)i'oper Lotophagi, although he gives no reason 
 for it : but which may possibly be found, in their obtaining sup- 
 plies of fish with greater facility than their neighbours, who 
 border on the open sea.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 037 
 
 Strabo, p. 834, places tliem in the island of Meninx, 
 alone ; although he calls the adjoining Syrtis, that 
 of the Lotophagi, implying that they possessed at 
 least a part of its shores ; as was really the case : 
 and Pliny, lib. vi. 7, assigns them, in addition to the 
 island, the environs of the Syrtis also. In effect 
 then, it appears, that although the Lotophagi of the 
 Greeks, extended generally along the coast between 
 the two Syrtes, yet that the different tribes of them 
 might use it, only in different degrees ; and it is 
 certain that Herodotus confines the proper Loto- 
 phagi to the promontory or projection of the coast, 
 opposite to the Gindanes, (the supposed people of 
 Gadamis) ; in which may be included the aforesaid 
 island of Meninx, or Jerba, which is separated from 
 the coast, by a narrow and shallow channel ; and 
 may possibly have been regarded by Herodotus as a 
 continuation of the main land. If we take the whole 
 extent of the tract thus assigned to the Lotophagi 
 and Machlyes, it may comprehend 200 miles of 
 coast. 
 
 But the allotment of this confined space, alone, 
 to the eaters of lotus, was owing to the want of a 
 more extended knowledge of the countries that bor- 
 dered on the Desert ; for it will be found, that the 
 tribes who inhabit them, and whose habits are in 
 any degree known to us, eat universally of this 
 fruit, in a greater or less degree, according to cir- 
 cumstances : and most of them, apparently, as much 
 as they can obtain of it. The tree or shrub that 
 bears the lotus fruit, is disseminated over the edge 
 of the great Desert, from the coast of Cyrene, round
 
 288 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 by Tripoly and Africa projyer, to the borders of the 
 Atlantic, the Senegal, and the Niger ". 
 
 It is well known, that a great difference of opinion 
 has prevailed amongst the moderns, concerning what 
 the ancients intended by the lotos : for the history 
 of it, as it has come down to us, is evidently mixed 
 with fable, from having previously passed through 
 the hands of the poets ; Homer being the first who 
 mentions it (in the Odyssey, lib. ix. 94.) ; but he no 
 more expected us to believe that the lotus possessed 
 the quality of inducing forgetfulness, than that a 
 race of Cyclops existed, or that men could be trans- 
 formed into swine \ But of the existence of a 
 fruit, which, although growing spontaneously, fur- 
 nished the popular food of tribes or nations, there is 
 no kind of doubt ; as it is mentioned by various au- 
 thors of credit ; and amongst the rest by Polybius, 
 who appears to have seen it, in the proper country 
 of the Lotophagi. 
 
 There appear, however, to have been two distinct 
 species of lotus designed by the term ; because He- 
 rodotus and Pliny, in particular, describe a marked 
 difference between them : the one being an aquatic 
 plant, whose root and seeds were eaten, in Egypt ; 
 
 ® This appears as well from ancient as modern authorities. 
 
 ' The poetical allusions to the oblivious effect of the lotus, are 
 almost endless. Xenophon also mentions it, in one of his haran- 
 gues to the Ten Thousand (Anab. lib. iii.) Those who eat of 
 the fruit of the lotus, we are told, forgot their native country: 
 this may be a poetical allusion to the ease, and (supposed) com- 
 fort and happiness of a people, whose country produced food for 
 them, without the labour of raising it.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 289 
 
 the other, the fruit of a shrub or small tree, on the 
 sandy coast of Libya. The Egyptians, it seems, 
 did not obtain a nickname from tlie Greeks, for 
 eating their lotus, as certain people of Libya did ; 
 the reason of which seems clearly to be, that it con- 
 stituted a part only of the food of the one, but the 
 entire food of the other. And here it may be re- 
 marked, by the bye, that the Greeks appear to have 
 applied the name lotus to such vegetable produc- 
 tions as either grew spontaneously, or were raised 
 with very little art or labour ; and which constituted 
 the food of men. We shall first speak of the lotus 
 of Libya : the one generally intended by the ancients. 
 
 Herodotus certainly had not seen it. In Melpom. 
 177, he calls it " the frtiit of the lotus, which is of 
 the size of the mastick, and sweet like the date ; and 
 of which a kind of ivine is made." This circumstance 
 of the wine is mentioned by all those who have 
 spoken of the lotus of Libya, and marks the dis- 
 tinction between that and the aquatic lotus. Hero- 
 dotus, moreover, speaks of " a species of thor7i, 
 which resembles the lotus of Cyrene ; and which 
 distils a gum." Euterpe, 96. This, therefore, 
 should be the rhamnus lotus. 
 
 Pliny, lib. xiii. c. 17, describes two different kinds 
 of lotus ; the one found at the Syrtis, and amongst 
 the Nasamones, &c. ; the other in Egypt. The 
 former he describes from Cornelius Nepos, to be the 
 fruit of a tree : in size ordinarily as big as a bean, 
 and of a yellow colour, sweet and pleasant to the 
 taste. The fruit was bruised, and made into a kind 
 of paste or dough, and then stored up for food. 
 
 VOL. II. u
 
 290 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 Moreover, a kind of wine was made from it^ resem- 
 bling mead ; but which would not keep many days. 
 Pliny adds, that " armies in marching through that 
 part of Africa, have subsisted on the lotus." Per- 
 haps this may refer to the army of Balbus, which, 
 Pliny informs us, lib. v. c. 5, had penetrated to 
 Gadamis and Fezzan. 
 
 Polybius, who had himself seen the lotus on the 
 coast of Libya ^, says that it is the fruit of a shrub, 
 which is rough and armed with prickles, and in 
 foliage resembles the rhamnus. That when ripe it 
 is of the size of a round olive ; has a purple tinge, 
 and contains a hard stone: that it is bruised or 
 pounded, and laid by for use ; and that its flavour 
 approaches to that of jigs or dates. And finally, 
 that a kind of wane is made from it, by expression, 
 and diluted with water ; that it affords a good 
 beverage, but will not keep more than 10 days. 
 (Polyb. apud Athenaeum, lib. xiv. c. 12.) 
 
 The lotus has been described by two modern tra- 
 vellers, Dr. Shaw and M. Desfontaines, on the side 
 of the Mediterranean ; and by a third, Mr. Park, 
 towards the Niger and Senegal rivers. Dr. Shaw, 
 it is well known, visited the country about the Lesser 
 Syrtis, on the borders of the proper country of the 
 Lotophagi ; and M. Desfontain'es, who resided in 
 the same neighbourhood, did the same, at a much 
 later period. The descriptions given by. these gen- 
 tlemen, agree perfectly amongst themselves, and also 
 
 ^ Polybius was employed by Scipio Africanus the younger, 
 in exploring the coasts of Africa.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 291 
 
 with those of the ancients ; as may be seen in Dr. 
 Shaw, p. 22G; in the Mem. Acad. Roy ale, 1788, 
 page 443, et seq. ; and in Mr. Park's highly inter- 
 esting Book of Travels, p. 99, 100. It seems to be 
 agreed, that it is the fruit of the rhamnus lotus of 
 LinnjEUS ^. 
 
 Dr. Shaw says, that " the fruit is common in these 
 Deserts and other parts of Barbary — is still in great 
 repute, and sold in all the markets all over the 
 
 ^ We here extract Mr. Park's description, as being the most 
 perfect of all. 
 
 " They are small farinaceous berries, of a yellow colour and 
 delicious taste. The natives convert them into a sort of bread, 
 by exposing them some days to the sun, and afterwards poimd- 
 ing them gently in a wooden mortar, vmtil the farinaceous part 
 of the berry is separated from the stone. This meal is then 
 mixed with a little water, and formed into cakes ; which, when 
 dried in the sun, resemble in colour and flavour the sweetest 
 gingerbread. The stones are afterwards put into a vessel of 
 water, and shaken about, so as to separate the meal which may 
 still adhere to them : this communicates a sweet and agreeable 
 taste to the water, and with the addition of a little pounded millet, 
 forms a pleasant gruel calledybnc?i, which is the common break- 
 fast in many parts of Ludamar, during the months of February 
 and March *. The fruit is collected by spreading a cloth upon 
 tlie ground, and beating the branches with a stick." P. 99. 
 
 Mr. Park adds, p. 100, " An army may very well have been 
 fed with tlie bread I have tasted, made of the meal of the fruit, 
 as is said by Pliny to have been done in Libya : and as the taste 
 of the bread is sweet and agreeable, it is not likely that the sol- 
 diers would complain of it." 
 
 * Pliny speaks of their mixing some preparation of the farina 
 of grain with the lotus. Possibly this may refer to the wine, 
 according to the practice just mentioned by Mr, Park. 
 
 u 2
 
 292 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 southern districts of these kingdoms :' and M. Des- 
 fontaines, that " it is spread over the southern parts 
 of the kingdom of Tunis, on the borders of the 
 Desert, and about the environs of the Lesser Syrtis : 
 that the fruit is sold in the markets, their cattle fed 
 with it, and a liquor drawn from it as heretofore :" 
 agreeing pointedly with the description given by 
 Polybius. And, finally, Mr. Park says, " the lotus 
 is very common in all the kingdoms which I visited ; 
 but is found in the greatest plenty on the sandy soil 
 of Kaarta, Ludamar, and the northern parts of 
 Bamharra, where it is one of the most common 
 shrubs of the country. I had observed the same 
 species at Gambia, and had an opportunity to make 
 a drawing of a branch in flower. The leaves of the 
 Desert shrub are, however, much smaller, and more 
 resembling, in that particular, those represented in 
 the engraving given by M. Desfontaines." 
 
 To these accounts may be added that of M. Saug- 
 nier, who was shipwrecked on the coast of Africa in 
 1784?, and was carried, in a state of captivity, along 
 the western border of the Sahara to Morocco. In 
 the part between the Capes Bojador and Nun, he 
 says, the people with him, " eat of nothing during 
 the day time (that is, on the way) but a small wild 
 fruit, resembling the jujube ; which is to be found 
 every where." This was about the middle or latter 
 end of March ; but Brisson, who was in like manner 
 carried across the Desert, during the latter part of 
 the summer and autumn, only remarks abundance of 
 prickly slirubs ; probably the same shrub, after the 
 season of fruit. Mr. Park mentions February and
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 293 
 
 March as the season, on the soiifh of the Desert ; 
 M. Desfontaines says August and September, to the 
 north of tlie Desert \ 
 
 We conceive that the nature of the lotus, from 
 whence the ancients denominated the Lotophagi, 
 Avill appear in future perfectly free from ambiguity, 
 from the clear statement and description given by 
 Mr. Park, compared with those of the ancients ^ 
 
 We come next in order to the aquatic lotus. 
 
 Herodotus describes two kinds of lotus, or wafer- 
 I'lhj, in Egypt, although it will appear, almost to a 
 certainty, that his memory failed him ; and that he 
 refers one of the kinds, which he had seen elsewhere, 
 to Egypt. 
 
 " The water-lily (says he) grows in the inundated 
 lands of Egypt : the seed of the flower, which re- 
 sembles that of the poppy, they bake, and make into 
 
 ^ It is highly probable that the fruit gathered by the Nasanio- 
 nian explorers of the interior of Africa, mentioned by Herodotus, 
 in Euterpe, 32, was the lotus. " After a journey of many days, 
 over a barren and sandy soil, they ac length discerned some trees 
 growing in a plain ; these they approached, and seeing fruit 
 upon them, they gathered it." ' They had passed the Desert 
 from the side of Fezzan, and were arrived at its southern harder, 
 and in the land of the lotus : and were immediately after taken 
 prisoners, and carried to the side of the Niger. It would seem 
 that these men were not accustomed to the lotus in their own 
 country ; living, probably, too far to the east. 
 
 ^ It is worthy of remark, that the same kind of shrub and 
 fruit, or what is exceedingly like it, grows spontaneously in 
 sandy places in Bengal, where it is called Byre. The Autlior 
 has seen them even on the very bank of the Ganges, in dry 
 situations. The people eat them as we may sloes, or wild 
 berries.
 
 294 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA, 
 
 a kind of bread ; they also eat the root of this plant, 
 which is round, of an agreeable flavour, and about 
 the size of an apple. This the Egyptians call the 
 lotus. — There is a second species which grows in the 
 Nile, and which is not unlike a rose. The fruit, 
 which grows J^rom the bottom of the roof, resembles 
 a wasp's nest : it is found to contain a number of 
 kernels of the size of an olive-stone, which are very 
 grateful, either fresh or dried." Euterpe, 92. 
 
 ^ It may be remarked, that the more carefully we 
 examine the descriptions of those objects of natural 
 history, which the ancients had occasion to mention ; 
 and which, in order to aid their descriptions, they 
 were obhged to compare with other things, to which 
 they had a general resemblance, the more we shall 
 be sensible that they were in the habit of marking 
 the particulars in which they differed. Thus, for 
 instance, Herodotus says, that the second kind of 
 water-lily is like a rose : but, says he, the fruit 
 grows from the bottom of the root. It is un- 
 questionable that, in this respect, the nymphcea 
 nelumbo differs from the rose ; for the fruit of that 
 plant grows upon a separate stalk, without having 
 either leaves or blanches, and rises immediately 
 from the root ; but the fruit of the rose is placed 
 amongst its leaves, at the termination of its branches. 
 From the slight manner in which he mentions this 
 second kind of lily ; and his omitting all mention of 
 
 * For the following observations on the aquatic lotus, as well 
 as for some remarks on the subject of the lotus at large, the 
 Author is indebted to a highly distinguished friend, whose name 
 and character have been already commemorated in this work.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 295 
 
 its being in use as a kind oifood, although eaten as 
 a luxury, it seems probable that he had met with 
 the plant in some other country, but was mistaken 
 in the fact of its being a native of Egypt. It is also 
 to be remarked, that he does not assert that (like the 
 first kind) it was named lotus by the Egyptians. 
 
 It has, indeed, been supposed that the Egyptian 
 lotus, of the ancients, is the nenuphar , or mjmphcea 
 nelumbo of Linneeus. Tliis error seems to have 
 originated with Dioscorides ; for in describing 
 Kyamos Aigi/j^tios (lib. ii. c. 128), he plainly refers 
 to Theophrastus's chapter on Kyamos (lib. iv. c. 10), 
 in which, nymphsea nelumbo is described with a 
 degree of botanical sagacity, worthy the most en- 
 lightened age, under the name of O Kyamos. 
 
 Theophrastus says, that his Kyamos is found in 
 Syria, in Cilicia, and at Torana in Colchis ; but he 
 makes no mention of its being known in Egypt '. 
 Dioscorides says, that his Kyamos Aigyptios is 
 found in Syria and Cilicia ; and adds, that it abounds 
 in Egypt : but no botanical traveller, since his time, 
 has met with nympha3a nelumbo in that country. 
 Had it been abundant there, as Dioscorides asserts, 
 Alpinus, who writes very fully on the plants of 
 Egypt, would not have omitted it : nor would 
 Forskiil, the botanist, who accompanied Niebuhr, have 
 failed to insert so curious a plant in the catalogue 
 of Egyptian plants, published in his book. 
 
 The Bengalese have the nymphaea nelumbo in 
 
 ^ Herodotus had visited -Syria and Colchis ; and, possibly, 
 Cilicia also.
 
 296 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA, 
 
 their lakes and inundations ; and its fruit certainly 
 resembles at all points that of the second species of 
 water-lily, described by Herodotus : that is, it has 
 the form of the orbicular wasp's nest ; and contains 
 kernels of the size and shape of a small bean. 
 Amongst the Bramins this plant is held sacred; 
 but the kernels, which are of a better flavour than 
 almonds, are almost universally eaten by the Hindoos. 
 
 It may, however, be a question, whether this has 
 always been the case ; and whether, in the lapse of 
 time that has taken place since the days of Pytha- 
 goras (who is supposed to have visited India, as well 
 as Chaldea, Persia, and Egypt), a relaxation in dis- 
 cipline may not have occasioned the law to be dis- 
 pensed with : instances enough of a like kind being 
 to be met with elsewhere. Kyamos, in the Greek 
 language, appears to signify not only a bean, but 
 also the fruit or bean of the nymphcea nelumho. Is 
 it not probable, then, that the mystery of the famous 
 inhibition of Pythagoras, an enigma of which neither 
 the ancients or the moderns have hitherto been able 
 to give a rational solution, may be discovered in those 
 curious records of Sanscrit erudition, which the meri- 
 torious labours of some of our countrymen in India 
 are gradually bringing to light ? 
 
 In China, where the nymphaea nelumbo grows 
 wild, and is also cultivated in great abundance, the 
 nuts, as well as the roots, are eaten as a luxury ; but 
 they do not supply any food to the poorer classes \ 
 
 ^ " The roots are sliced, and in the summer served with ice. 
 They are also laid up in salt and vinegar for the winter." —
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 297 
 
 The nymphfua loins of Linnseus certainly grew in 
 Egypt in abundance ; and both the roots and the 
 seeds have been, and probably are still, eaten by the 
 inhabitants. LinnjEUS, who has given the name of 
 lotus to this plant, and to the rhaninus, which really 
 produces the lotus of Libya, may generally be relied 
 on for his acuteness ; and he certainly thinks the 
 nymphsea lotus was the lotus of the Nile. This 
 plant is described at large in Alpinus's Dissertatio 
 cle Laserpitiisei de Loto ; and a full account is given 
 in that work of the manner in which it is used as 
 food. 
 
 Theophrastus also describes this plant under the 
 name of lotus (lib. iv. c. 10, immediately after the 
 Kyamos), and describes the manner in which both 
 the seeds and the roots are eaten by the Egyptians. 
 But two circumstances, of no small moment in the 
 present question, are observable in this description : 
 he says that it grew in places where the lands were 
 inundated ; and he describes the root under a differ- 
 ent name from the plant. 
 
 The inundated places near the Nile, produce at 
 present, abundance of the eclclow, or colocassia. 
 The root of this plant is the food of a vast number 
 of persons in the West Indies, and part of the East 
 Indies ; and in the South Sea Islands : it requires 
 very little labour on the part of the cultivator, and 
 is therefore exactly the kind of plant mentioned by 
 
 " The seeds are of a taste more delicate than ahnoiids," — " The 
 Cliinese regard the plant as sacred." — (Sir George Staunton's 
 Voyage to China, Vol. ii. p. 391, quarto edition.)
 
 298 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 the Greeks, when they speak of lotus, as a food pro- 
 duced with little or no labour, on the part of the 
 eaters of it. 
 
 The colocassia, at all times of the year, abounds 
 with broad green leaves, not wholly different from 
 those of the nymph^ea lotus ; yet its flowers are very 
 seldom seen ; the roots are eaten, as the heads of 
 our cabbages are, before the period of the plant's 
 flowering ; and as the colocassia is never propagated 
 by seeds, no one has an interest in making himself 
 acquainted with the flower of the plant, or indeed, to 
 suffer it to grow till it bears one. 
 
 May we not suppose, then, that Theophrastus has 
 confounded the root of the colocassia, with ihefloiver 
 of the nymphaea lotus, and made of them otie plant ; 
 for the root, which he calls corsium, is by the de- 
 scription, larger than the root of the nymphaea, but 
 very conformable to that of the colocassia, which 
 Alpinus calls culcas? If this is admitted, the 
 mystery of the lotus of Egypt vanishes ; and we 
 have the Egyptians of the days of Herodotus sup- 
 plied, as the people of Otaheite, are now, with an 
 abundant food, provided for them, by nature, with 
 httle or no labour. 
 
 Several botanical writers have suspected that the 
 colocassia was in reality, \\\Q,faha j^gyptia ; but no 
 one has solved the difficulty in this way : it is re- 
 markable, however, that in the beautiful edition of 
 Matthioh's Commentaries on Dioscorides (the most 
 magnificent botanical work that appeared in the 
 16th century), a figure is given of ihefaha Mgijptia, 
 evidently compiled from description, and not drawn
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 099 
 
 from nature. In this, the leaves and root clearly 
 belong to the colocassia ; the flower resembles the 
 nymphjKa nelumbo, more than any other; but the 
 seed is entirely the produce of the draughtsman's 
 invention ; as it does not seem to have any prototype 
 in nature. Had the compiler of this figure been 
 acquainted with the orbicular wasps' nests of the hot 
 climates, to which Theophrastus compares the fruit 
 of his Kyamos, I have no doubt that he would have 
 adopted it ; and the figure would then have been 
 tolerably conformable to Theophrastus's description. 
 
 After this long dissertation, we return to the sub- 
 ject of the geography of Libya. 
 
 Throughout the whole extent, from Egypt to the 
 Lesser Syrtis, no idea of distance is given by Hero- 
 dotus ^ ; but as he appears to know, most perfectly, 
 the arrangement and relative positions of all the 
 different tribes, it may reasonably be concluded that 
 he had some idea of the quantity of space also. But 
 to place this matter in the clearest light to the 
 reader, we shall pursue our Author's account of the 
 distance westward, from the Lotophagi (at the Lesser 
 Syrtis) to Mount Atlas, before we conclude our re- 
 marks on the remaining part of his geography of the 
 coast of Africa. 
 
 He says, Melp. 183, that from the Lotophagi it is 
 a journey of 30 days to a nation (whom he does not 
 name ') amongst whom there is a species of oxen 
 
 ® Save those broken lines between the Ammontans and the 
 border of Fezzan. 
 
 ' The thirty journies fall nearly about Curlcnna, now Tenuis, 
 m the western part of Ntnmdia.
 
 300 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 with a singular kind of horns. Immediately after- 
 wards, the same people are called Garamantes 
 (183, 184), and are placed at 10 days short of the 
 Atlantes (or Atrantes ^ ;) beyond which, at the dis- 
 tance of 10 other journies, still going westward, is 
 Mount Atlas; making an aggregate of 50 journies. 
 Now as the distance is really about, though some- 
 what more than, 50 journies from the Lotophagi 
 (at the Syrtis, which is the point meant by Hero- 
 dotus) to Mount Atlas, we may fairly conclude that 
 the name Garamantes has been interpolated in this 
 place ; and that some other name was originally 
 inserted. 
 
 What also seems to prove that the Atlantes (or 
 Atrantes) at 10 journies from the Garamantes, are 
 misplaced, is, that Herodotus says, Melp. 185, " I 
 am able to name all the nations, as far as the 
 Atlantes ; but heijond these, I have no knowledge." 
 Now, admitting the Atlantes to have occupied a 
 position at 10 journies only, beyond the Garamantes, 
 it is evident that he has actually named several 
 nations that ought to have lain beyond them ; as the 
 Lotophagi, the Machlyes, and others ; besides which, 
 the Atlantes are placed so far to the west, as to be 
 at 10 journies only short of Mount Atlas. 
 
 We regard the fact of the 50 journies between the 
 Lotophagi and Mount Atlas, as a strong circum- 
 stance ; as it serves to shew that the length of the 
 JNlediterranean sea was generally known to Hero- 
 
 * It seems there is a doubt concerning the true reading of this 
 word. Can it be the same with the Hamamentes and Amantes 
 of Phny and Sohnus ?
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 301 
 
 dotus and the Greeks, at tliat time : for if the re- 
 mote part was known, it may be at least expected 
 that the nearer part was, though not expressed. 
 Indeed it can scarce be doubted that the Phoenicians, 
 Carthaginians, and Greeks, who were in the constant 
 habit of traversing the Mediterranean, long before 
 the time of Herodotus, were well acquainted with 
 the length of that sea. For the distances given by 
 Eratosthenes, along the Mediterranean, at little 
 more than a century after Herodotus, were most 
 probably according to a system established long 
 before ; since Herodotus himself calls it " the sea 
 frequented by the Greeks ^" Again, Scylax, who 
 certainly appears to have written before the time of 
 our Author, sets forth the number of days' sail from 
 Canopus to the Columns of Hercules ; and which, 
 at the rate of sailing in those days, agrees very well 
 with the known length of the Mediterranean. 
 
 Moreover, our Author's description of the pro- 
 vinces between Egypt and Cyrenaica, seems equally 
 in proof that he had a knowledge of those parts also : 
 and he could not but know, from the frequency of 
 the communication between Greece and Cyrene, that 
 those countries lay directly opjwsite to each other ; 
 which circumstance ought to have pointed out the 
 extent of space between Egypt and Cyrene, as well 
 as between Greece and Egypt. 
 
 Proceeding with the history of the tribes, along 
 the coast of the Mediterranean sea, Herodotus 
 
 ' See the dissertation on the ancient itinerary stade, page 17, 
 Vol. I. of this work.
 
 302 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 further says, (178 and 180) that the Auses, or 
 AusenseSy border on the west of the lake and river 
 of Tritonis, being separated hy them, from the Ma- 
 clilyes, who border on the opposite side ; and amongst 
 whom, according to Scylax, we should look for the 
 temple of Minerva Tritonia \ 
 
 Here it is proper to be observed, that Herodotus 
 differs from his own account, in another place, in his 
 report concerning the occupation of the Ausenses ; 
 for in 191, he makes them the last of the Nomadic 
 tribes, in going westward ; the nation beyond them 
 (that is, the Maxyes) being ihejii'st of the husband- 
 men, in the same order of situation. But in 186 and 
 187, he says, that from Egypt to the lake Tritonis, 
 the Africans lead a pastoral life, but beyond (that 
 is, to the west) of the same lake, they are not shep- 
 herds, and are distinguished by different manners : 
 that is, as he explains himself in 191, they " culti- 
 vate the earth, and live in houses." Now, as the 
 Ausenses are pointedly placed on the west of the 
 lake, there is of course a contradiction. It is possi- 
 ble that he might mean to speak generally in one 
 place, and 'particularly, in the other ; and, in con- 
 sequence, that the lake was entirely surrounded by 
 Nomadic tribes. Scylax tells us (49.) that the lake 
 Tritonis is surrounded by Libyan nations, but that 
 there are cities on the western side, (and it is im- 
 plied there alone :) and that, in the same situation, 
 the country is fertile and plentiful. Dr. Shaw seems 
 to describe much the same state of things. 
 
 ' More will be said on this subject, as well as concerning tlie 
 lake and river of Tritonis, in the succeeding Section.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 303 
 
 Of the name Ausenscs, we find no traces in mo- 
 dern geography. Of the Machhjcs and Maxyes, 
 we meet with several names that have some simila- 
 rity. The JMachryes of Ptolemy occupy the space 
 between Gephes (perhaps the Gqffsa of Shaw) ^ 
 and Jovis Mons : i. e. a mountain to the NNE. of 
 the lake Tritonis. His Machyni are placed to- 
 wards the gulf of Adrumentum. These may possi- 
 bly be meant for the Machlyes and Maxyes of 
 Herodotus : and considering the long interval of 
 time between him and Ptolemy (600 years) the 
 tribes may have altered their position. The Machres 
 of Leo, and Maharess of Dr, Shaw, (196.) at the 
 northern part of the Lesser Syrtis, certainly agree to 
 the supposed position of a part of the Maxyes ^. 
 
 Next to the Maxyes were the Zaueces, or Za- 
 veces, who are marked by the very peculiar custom 
 of having their chariots of war guided by their 
 women. Melp. 123. There are no traces of this 
 name in modern geography, as far as we can learn. 
 We must suppose them to have occupied the space 
 between the Lesser Syrtis and the Gulf of Adru- 
 mentum, since the Zygaiites, or Zugantes, were the 
 next beyond them, Melp. 194< : and these are clearly 
 
 ^ Dr. Shaw does not appear to have been always fortunate in 
 referring the ancient names and positions, to the modern ones. 
 For instance, Gaffsa is more Hke the Gejihes of Ptolemy, in 
 name and situation, than Capsa ; Kisser to Gisira, than to 
 Assurus ; Ilyra to Audira, than Thnnundronum. In Zelcefa, we 
 have too, the Zalapa of Ptolemy, probably. 
 
 ^ Pliny only says of the Machlyes, that tliey lie beyond the 
 Nasamones : lib. vii. 2.
 
 304 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 the Zeugitanians of Pliny, being the inhabitants of 
 the province which contained the city of Carthage ; 
 and whose boundary began on the west, at the river 
 Tiisca, where Numidia ended *. How far this pro- 
 vince extended, southward, we know not : and of 
 course we must remain in ignorance concerning the 
 position of the Zaueces. 
 
 Of the Zygantes, our Author says, " that a great 
 deal of honey is found amongst them, the pi'oduce 
 of their bees ; but of this, they say, a great deal 
 more is made by the natives. They all stain their 
 bodies with vermilion, and feed upon monkies, with 
 which animal their mountains abound." Melp. 194. 
 
 The circumstance of the honey is well explained 
 by Dr. Shaw, in his account of the countries of 
 Algiers and Tunis, as it is there made occasionally 
 from the palm tree ^ 
 
 Here the description of the maritime provinces of 
 Africa, in Herodotus, ends. 
 
 The island of Cyranis lays in the neighbourhood 
 of the Zygantes, (Melp. 195.) and is said to be 
 200 stadia in length ; of trifling breadth, and of 
 easy communication with the continent. We can 
 only suppose the islands of Querkyness, or KerJci- 
 
 * Dr. Shaw, with much plausibiHty, supposes that the name 
 Zygantes, or Zugantes, may have been derived from that of the 
 town and mountain of Zow-aan, or Zagwan ; situated about 40 
 G. miles to the SW of Carthage. See p. 184, 185; and his 
 Map at p, 139. 
 
 Pliny has the Lihyphcenices beyond Zeugitania ; lib. v. c. 4 : 
 Ptolemy at the river B'agrada. 
 
 ' Page 225.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 305 
 
 7iess, the Cercina and Circinitis of the ancient 
 geographers to be meant. Dr. Shaw (p. 193.) calls 
 them " two flat and contiguous islands" at five 
 leagues or less, from the continent, near the northern 
 extremity of the Lesser Syrtis. He gives them, in 
 his map, an extent (collectively) of about 80 stadia, 
 but gives no description in his book. It appears that 
 Diodorus mistook Cyranis for Cerne, (the modern 
 island of Ai'gu'ni) ; in ancient times a Cartliagi- 
 niatt, in modern times, a Portuguese, settlement, 
 on the western coast of Africa, near Cape Blanco. 
 But Herodotus unquestionably intended an island in 
 the JNlediterranean, and that near Carthage ". 
 
 At Cyranis, gold sand was drawn up from the 
 bottom of a lake, by means of a bunch of feathers, 
 besmeared with pitch. (Melp. 195.) 
 
 From the variety of the matter relating to the 
 Syrtes, we have purposely omitted to speak of them 
 here, that we might not interrupt the course of the 
 geographical detail : it will therefore be given sepa- 
 rately. 
 
 It appears a remarkable circumstance that Hero- 
 dotus should be utterly silent respecting the bounda- 
 ries of the Carthaginian empire, although he was not 
 only describing the continent which generally con- 
 tained it, but also some of its provinces. It is true, 
 
 ® The difference of the two islands in point of size, is not 
 great, Cyranus being about six or seven miles long, Cerne, five. 
 Cyranis must not be confounded with Cyrniis, or Corsica, to 
 which the Phocceans retired after the Persian invasion of Ionia. 
 VOL. II. X
 
 306 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 that the history of their state, formed no part of his 
 plan ; nor was he writing a system of geography ; 
 but one is surprised to find that, as he mentions cer- 
 tain transactions of these people \ he should have 
 omitted to describe the position and extent of their 
 empire. Perhaps there was a design in it. Nothing 
 that was Carthaginian could sound pleasant' in the 
 ears of the Greeks, as the Carthaginians had leagued 
 themselves with the Persian, the implacable enemy 
 of the Greeks. For Xerxes, to facilitate his views 
 on Greece, had encouraged the Carthaginians to 
 traverse the plans of the Greeks, in Sicily. But he 
 is silent respecting this circumstance also, although 
 he speaks of the defeat of the Carthaginian army, 
 sent to Sicily, on the above occasion. Polym. 166. 
 It is from Diodorus that we learn the important fact 
 of the treaty. 
 
 It does not appear that, in the time of Herodotus, 
 the Carthaginians had extended their territory so 
 far to the east, as to occasion disputes with the 
 Cyrenians : for unquestionably, the incident of the 
 PhilcBni, at the Greater Syrtis, was posterior to the 
 age of Herodotus, when the Auschisce and Nasa- 
 mones possessed the coast beyond the Hespericles, 
 and round the greater part of the Syrtis. And we 
 must conclude that matters were in much the same 
 state when Scylax wrote his Peripliis ; for at that 
 
 ^ That is, their commerce ; and their contests with the 
 Phocceans, in Cyrniis ; and with the Sicilians. Also the medi- 
 tated attack on them by Cambyses, which they escaped through 
 the manly conduct of their ancient brethren the Phoenicians. 
 Thalia, 19.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 307 
 
 time the Carthaginian boundary extended from the 
 Greater Syrtis, to the Columns of Hercules, (p. 52.) : 
 and it also appears, (p. 47.) that the first place 
 within their territory, going westward, was Neapolis, 
 near the western point of the Syrtis **. 
 
 We have inserted in the Map the names and posi- 
 tions of the several nations between Egypt and Car- 
 thage, from the descriptions of our Author ; and as 
 many of these are corroborated by Scylax, and other 
 authors, it appears that Herodotus knew, in eflPect, 
 all the different divisions of territory, although he 
 has not left us sufficient notices to arrange them 
 geographically, without the aid of others. 
 
 * At the date of Hannibal's expedition to Italy (B. C. 217.) 
 the Carthaginian empire extended eastward to the Philaenian 
 altars, Avhich stood at the SE extremity of the Greater Syrtis. 
 The story of the Philaeni, as it is told, is in some points very 
 improbable. It is said that the parties set out from their re- 
 spective capitals, Carthage and Cyrene, and met at the place 
 where the altars afterwards stood. Now, the altars wei'e situ- 
 ated at about ^ of the way from Carthage towards Cyrene ; and 
 the deception would have been too gross, had it been pretended 
 tliat the Carthaginian party had travelled 7 parts in 9, whilst the 
 Cyrenians had travelled no more than two such parts of the way. 
 Would either party have trusted the other with the adjustment 
 of the time of setting out 1 Perhaps, they mutually set out at the 
 op2)osite extremes of the territory in dispute, and not from their 
 respective capitals ! 
 
 Pliny says (lib. v. 4.) that the Philaenian altars were of sand 
 or earth : t])at is, no doubt, they were Tumuli. 
 
 Strabo (p. 83C.) names the Euplirata tower, as the common 
 boundary of Carthage and Egypt, under the Ptolemies. This 
 stood far to the west of the altars. 
 
 X 2
 
 308 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 The conquests of Cambyses extended no farther 
 westward than to Cyrene and the Hesperides. Melp. 
 204. Herodotus says, Melp. 168, " the nations of 
 Africa are many and various : few of them had ever 
 submitted to Darius (Hystaspes) and most of them 
 held him in contempt:" which disposition towards 
 the Persians continued also to the time of our 
 Author. (See 197.) 
 
 Herodotus seems to have been fully apprised of 
 the saline quality of the soil of Africa, in the quarter 
 bordering on the Mediterranean ; although he ex- 
 presses some very odd ideas respecting the subject. 
 For he describes a regular succession of vast pillars 
 or mountains of salt, situated at 10 journies distant 
 from each other, from the territories of the Ammo- 
 nians to the neighbourhood of the Atlantes ; Melp. 
 181, et seq. : and from thence, westward, heels of 
 salt, at the same regular intervals, to the columns 
 of Hercules. (lb. 185.) 
 
 Now, although it is very improbable that either 
 mountains, or beds of salt, should be placed in the 
 above-mentioned regular order ; yet we learn from 
 Dr. Shaw, that both hills and beds, or lakes of salt, 
 do exist in the country between Tripoly and Maure- 
 tania : also that the soil is generally impregnated 
 with it, and that it sends forth a great immber of 
 copious salt springs. Shaw, p. 228, et seq. We 
 learn too, from other authorities, that there are vast 
 lakes of salt in other parts of the country ; and it 
 would appear that scarcely any country whatso- 
 ever contains so much salt on its surface, as that
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. ^09 
 
 region of Africa which borders on the Mediter- 
 ranean ^. 
 
 Dr. Shaw enumerates three mountains of salt 
 only ; but Herodotus five. The Doctor went no 
 farther eastward than the Lesser Syrtis ; otherwise 
 it is possible that he might have told us of more. 
 The Doctor's three, are: 1. Alhiiss, on the sea 
 coast, near Tennis, (Cartenna) ; 2. Livotaiah, 
 situated inland at about 160 G. miles to the SSW of 
 Algiers ; and 3. Had-deffa, between the lake Triton 
 and the Lesser Syrtis. The five of Herodotus, are 
 as follow : the first, amongst the Ammonians ; a 
 second at Angela ; and others amongst the Gara- 
 mantes, and Atlantes, and at Mount Atlas. As 
 the intervals of distance given are quite wrong, we 
 shall say nothing concerning that particular ; other- 
 wise, than that one cannot, from those notices, refer 
 either of the mountains in the one series, to any 
 particular one in the other. Herodotus, however, 
 speaks of salt of a purple colour, Melp. 185, and of 
 a degree of hardness fit for building of houses ; and 
 as Dr. Shaw gives a like description of the salt of 
 the mountain Had-deffa, one might suppose this 
 to be the purple mountain intended by Herodotus. 
 
 Dr. Shaw says (p. 229), " The salt of the moun- 
 tain Had-defFa is as hard and solid as stone, and of 
 a reddish or purple colour. Yet what is washed 
 down from these precipices by the dews, attaineth 
 another colour, becoming as white as snow, and 
 
 ' Pliny and Strabo also were boili aware of the saline quality 
 of the soil of this part of Africa.
 
 310 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 losing that share of bitterness, which is in the parent 
 rock-salt '. The salt of the mountains near Lwo- 
 taiah and Jebbel MinisS;, is of a grey, or blueish, 
 colour. — See a farther account of the salt mountains 
 and salines, in pages 35, 116, and 230. He speaks 
 of no other purple salt whatsoever, but says (230), 
 that he had seen some large pieces of sal gem 
 brought from the country of the Beni Me%^ah (that 
 is, on the border of the Sahara, to the south of 
 Algiers), but he is silent with respect to the colour. 
 
 In effect, Herodotus has spoken truly with respect 
 to the Jiouses of salt. He also fixes the scene in a 
 tract where, says he, " it never rains ; for if it did, 
 these structures of salt could not be durable." (185.) 
 This remark is true of the country, generally, along 
 the Mediterranean, between Africa proper, (which 
 ends at the Lesser Syrtis) and the Red Sea ; and 
 more particularly in the Jereed, which is the tract 
 bordering on the Syrtes, where the purple mountain 
 stands. 
 
 Dr. Shaw says, page 219, " In most parts of the 
 Sahara, particularly in the Jereed, (or dry coun- 
 try, p. 210.) they have rarely any rain at all. 
 When I was at To%er, at the lake Lowdeiah, or 
 Tritonis, A.D. 1727, we had a small drizzling 
 shower, that continued for the space of two hours ; 
 and so little provision was made against accidents of 
 this kind, that several of the houses (built only with 
 palm branches and tiles baked in the sun) fell down, 
 
 ' Strabo says much the same of the Spanish rock salt, page 
 155.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 311 
 
 by imbibing the moisture. Nay, provided the drops 
 had been either larger or the shower of longer conti- 
 nuance, the whole city w'ould have undoubtedly dis- 
 solved and dropt to pieces ^" 
 
 In the order in which Herodotus enumerates the 
 hills of salt, this is the fourth, or that situated 
 amongst the Atlantes, 10 journies beyond (/. e. west 
 of) the Garamantes, or people of Fezzan ^ Whe- 
 ther the term Atlantes be falsely written, we know 
 not ; but it appears to be the same with the llam- 
 manians or Hammanientes of Pliny ^ (lib. v. o.) 
 situated at 11 journies to the west of the Greater 
 Syrtis, and who had houses built of rock salt. It is 
 certain that both accounts agree, in respect of posi- 
 tion, to the province or Oasis of Gadamis : but we 
 are ignorant of the fact of there being rock salt 
 there. 
 
 Pliny indeed marks the country of the Hamman- 
 ientes by a very striking particular, if true ; that 
 
 ^ But rain falls in the western provinces along the coast of the 
 Mediterranean, during winter, but not in summer. The Doc- 
 tor's journal, at page 219, notes no rain but between 7th Octo- 
 ber and 2d May in 1732-3 : and between September and May 
 in 1730-1. The quantity was 44,3 inches in the first; 30,7 in 
 the last. 
 
 Mr. Beaufoy makes no mention of rain in Fezzan ; but in 
 Bornou, within the Tropic, there is a regular rainy season ; as 
 there is also, apparently, through Africa in general, within a great 
 part of the torrid zone, 
 
 ^ The people of Fezzan have salt enough, it is said, " for 
 their own consumption:" Afr. Assoc. 1790, ch. iv. 
 
 * These are the Ammantes of Solinus.
 
 312 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 
 
 they find water after digging to the depth of a 
 cubit \ 
 
 One is surprised to find Herodotus believe that 
 " streams of water, equally cool and sweet,'' flowed 
 from the summits of some or all of the hills of 
 salt. (Melp. 181.) That water runs down from 
 Had-defFa (from dews not rain), we are told.by Dr. 
 Shaw ; but he tells us also, that it left, on evapora- 
 tion, a beautiful white salt on the plain. (Page 229.) 
 The salt plai?is or vallies of Ar%eiv and the Shott 
 (Shaw, 114. 229.) may be supposed to be two of 
 those meant by Herodotus ; and which in their 
 nature, may be compared to the salt plain near 
 Ale})j)o ; that is, the water, which at certain seasons 
 flows into and covers them, is so deeply impregnated 
 with salt, as to leave a thick crust over them, when 
 evaporated. The Shott is described to be 50 miles 
 in length, in the map : the valley of Arzew is only 
 six miles in compass. Part of the lake Lowdeiah 
 (Tritonis) is also a saline. (P. 230.) 
 
 But it would appear, that the region which con- 
 tains so great a portion of salt, is confined to the 
 7iortliivard of the Tropic ; since salt is universally 
 carried from that region, to the central and southern 
 states. The kingdom of Kasseena, and the countries 
 bordering on it to the south, are supplied from the 
 salt lake of Domhoo, a district of the kingdom of 
 Bornou, situated within the vast desert of Bilmah, at 
 45 journies from Agadez, the ancient capital of 
 
 In the Oases, generally, the water lies very near the surface.
 
 COAST AND COUNTRY OF LIBYA. 313 
 
 Kasseena, and nearly under the Tropic. The people 
 of Agadez possess this carrying trade, and employ 
 1000 camels, which form an annual caravan ". 
 
 The salt consumed in the inland part of Western 
 Africa, is brought from mines situated on the 
 southern edge of the Sahara. The reader will find 
 many particulars relating to this subject, in the Tra- 
 vels of Mr. Park ; and particularly in the Appendix 
 to that work. 
 
 This inquiry, on the whole, gives a degree of cre- 
 dit to the assertions of Herodotus ; since some of his 
 mountains and beds of salt are found really to exist : 
 and it is satisfactory to find such coincidences be- 
 tween him and modern authors. 
 
 ® See Proceedings of the Afr. Assoc, for 1790; chap. vii. 
 
 The salt lake of Domboo agrees generally to the position of 
 the Chelonides Palus of Ptolemy, in respect of Cyrene. Pliny 
 mentions a lake within the country formerly belonging to the 
 Psijlli, which was surromided by deserts. Its name was Lyco- 
 medis. Pliny, lib. v. c. 4.
 
 SECTION XXIII. 
 
 CONCERNING THE TWO GULFS, ANCIENTLY DENOMINATED 
 THE SYRTES ! AS ALSO CONCERNING THE LAKE AND 
 RIVER TRITONIS ; THE TEMPLE AND ^EGIS OF 
 MINERVA; AND THE ANTIQUITY OF THE MANUFAC- 
 TURE OF DYED SKINS IN AFRICA. 
 
 The Syrtes, the terror of ancient mariners — Irregular tides and 
 quicksands, the causes of the danger — Position and extent of 
 the Syrtes — Lake Serbonis, a kind of Syr tis — General ideas 
 of the ancients respecting them — Imperfect state of the ancient 
 navigation, an additional cause of danger — Greater Syrtis, 
 or Gulf of Sidra — Poetical description of it by Liican — Good- 
 win Sand, compared to the quicksands of the Greater Syrtis^ 
 Lesser Syrtis, or Gidf of Kabes — Its description hy the 
 ancients, agrees pointedly to that hy the moderns — Its Tides — 
 Lake o/'Tritonis, or Lowdeiab, anciently communicated with 
 the Syrtis — Herodotus included both under the name o/'Tritonis 
 — Jason driven amongst its shallorvs — Difficulties resjJecting 
 the river Tritonis, attempted to be solved — ^Egis and Temple 
 o/ Minerva, at the Lake Tritonis — Greeks borrow the JEcris 
 from Africa — Antiquity of the manufacture of dyed skins, in 
 Africa — Used in i/«e Tabernacle in the Wilderness — That and 
 the iEgis covered with the same kind of skins. 
 
 The Syrtes, which were the terror of ancient 
 mariners, are two ivide, shallow gulfs, which pene-
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 315 
 
 trate very far within the northern coast of Africa, 
 between Carthage and Cyrene ; in a part where it 
 already retires very far back, to form the middle 
 bason, or widest part of the Mediterranean sea. 
 The north and east winds, of course, exert their full 
 force on these shores, which are entirely exposed to 
 them : at the same time that not only certain parts of 
 those shores are formed of moveable sand, but the 
 gulfs themselves are also thickly sown with shallows 
 of the same kind, which, yielding to the force of the 
 waves, are subject to variation in their forms and 
 positions. To this must be added the operation of 
 the winds, in checking or accelerating the motions 
 of the tides ; which are therefore reducible to no 
 rules. And from these causes, combined, the depths 
 are so uncertain, that experience, it would appear, 
 proved of no avail to mariners '. 
 
 The two Syrtes are more than 200 G. miles 
 asunder, and were distinguished by the terms 
 Greater, and Lesser; of which it would appear, 
 Herodotus knew only the former by the name of 
 
 ^ It is a common idea, that there are no tides in' the Mecliter- 
 ranean. Nor do they indeed rise in any part of that sea, in a de- 
 gree sufficient either to effect the usual purposes of laying ships 
 on shore to careen ; or even in many places so as to affect the 
 senses of those who are accustomed to view the ordinary rise 
 and fall of tides on the coasts of the ocean. But that a tide 
 does exist, is certain ; and that it rises five and six feet in parti- 
 cular places. Herodotus speaks of the ebbing and flowing of 
 the tide in the gulf of Mciis ; which, he says, " may be seen 
 every day." Polym. 198. This is the small gulf on which 
 Therrnopyloe stands. 
 
 13
 
 316 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 Syrtis, the latter by that of the Lake Tritonis ^. 
 Not but that both were known, and had obtained the 
 above distinctive names, in the time of Scylax % whom 
 we may conceive to have written before the time of 
 Herodotus *. But it is remarkable that our author 
 is entirely silent concerning the properties of the 
 Syrtis which he thus mentions by name, whilst he 
 speaks of the dangers of the other in a pointed 
 manner. We are not, however, from this silence, to 
 infer that he was ignorant of the dangers of the 
 Greater Syrtis \ 
 
 The greater Syrtis bordered on the ivest of the 
 province of Cyrenaica, and penetrated to the depth 
 of about 100 miles within the two capes, that formed 
 its mouth, or opening ; which were, that of Boreum 
 on the east, Cephalus, or Trieorium on the west ". 
 In front, it was opposed to the opening of the 
 
 ^ Scylax (page 48) also names it Sinus Tritoniciis ; and Syrtis 
 ■parva ; and Strabo, p. 834, tlie gulf of the Lotophagi. 
 " Pages 48, 49. 
 
 * Scylax appears to have lived in the time of Darius 
 Hystaspes. 
 
 * The Serbonitic lake, near Mount Casius, situated between 
 Palestine and Egypt, appears to have been a kind of inland 
 Syrtis. Diodorus describes its borders as being formed of a 
 very dangerous kind of quicksand, (lib. i. 3.): and says (lib. xvi. 
 9.) that Artaxerxes Mnemon lost part of his army there, in his 
 march into Egypt ; about 350 B.C. 
 
 M. Maillet, p. 103, supposes it to be quite filled up. 
 
 " The boundaries of the greater Syrtis cannot well be misun- 
 derstood, as the capes which confine it are so marked and pro- 
 minent. See Strabo, p. 836. Ptolemy, Africa, Tab. II.
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 317 
 
 Adriatic sea : and the Mediterranean in this part 
 expanding to the breadth of near 10 degrees, (which 
 is its greatest breadth) exposed this gulf to the vio- 
 lence of the northerly winds. 
 
 Scylax reckons it a passage of three days and 
 nights across its mouth, which, however, measures no 
 more than 180 G. miles, on the best modern maps ^ 
 It is not, however, pretended, either that the whole 
 extent of this space was equally dangerous, or that 
 there were dangers in every part : on the contrary, 
 there is every reason to suppose that the dangers 
 were confined to particular parts of it. 
 
 The lesser Syrtis lay opposite to the islands of 
 Sicily and Malta. It appears to be no more than 40 
 to 50 G. miles in breadth, but penetrates about 75 
 within the continent ; and we have Scylax's word, 
 that it was the most dangerous of the two ^ The 
 islands Cercina and Cercinnitis {Cyranis of Hero- 
 dotus °), bounded its entrance to the 7iorth ; Meninx, 
 
 '' This allows about 60 for each day and night, collectively. 
 Pliny, from Polybius, says, lib. v. c. 4. that it is 313 MP. 
 (rather 213) across. The numbers in Strabo, expressive of the 
 dimensions of both Syrtes, are corrupted, p. 834, et seq. 
 
 •* Page 48. 
 
 ^ Melp. 195. The boundaries of the lesser Syrtis are not so 
 marked as those of the greater. Strabo (123 and 834.), fixes 
 on the islands of Cercinna and Meninx ( KerMness and Jerha). 
 He allows it a breadth of 600 stadia, or 51 G. miles only. Shaw 
 has 76 : D'Anville, 42 : a mean would come near to Strabo. 
 
 Pliny, from Polybius, allows 100 MP. say 80 G. miles. The 
 whole extent of bulk Syrtes, together with the intermediate space 
 of 250 MP., is collectively, according to Pliny (lib. v. c. 4.) 
 G67 MP. : and the distance is not much short of it.
 
 318 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS, 
 
 or that of the Lotoj)hagi, on the south. It was here, 
 that Jason is said (by Herodotus) to have been in 
 imminent danger of shipwreck, previous to his set- 
 ting out on the Argonautic expedition. Melp. 179. 
 
 There are several short descriptions of the Syrtes 
 on record, but that of Lucan is the most pointed ; 
 and, making allowances for the colouring given by 
 a poet, not very different from that given by Edrisi 
 in latter times, or indeed what may be collected 
 from Strabo. 
 
 Pliny informs us that Polybius had written a de- 
 scription of them ; which, perhaps, from the acute- 
 ness and accuracy of that author, might have been a 
 better one than any that has come down to us. It 
 may be supposed to have been a part of the informa- 
 tion collected by him whilst employed in exploring 
 the coasts of Africa, by Scipio, lib. v. c. 1 . Pliny 
 has quoted, from this description, little more than 
 the bare dimensions of the Syrtes, which we have 
 already given. It appears that Pliny, in some 
 degree, confounds the tivo Syrtes together, lib. v. c. 4 ; 
 but it is clear that the nature of the dangers which 
 they present, were essentially different ; those of the 
 Greater Syrtis being produced by the quicksands, 
 both on the shore and in the offing ; and which 
 were rendered more formidable by their great extent : 
 but the dangers of the Lesser Syrtis arose more 
 particularly from the variations and uncertainty of 
 the tides, on a flat, shelvy, coast. 
 
 In effect, Pliny supplies no description at all of the 
 Syrtes ; he just says, that they are horribly danger- 
 ous (Hb. V. c. 4). Neither does Solinus : but both of
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 319 
 
 them seem to consider the irregularity of the tides, 
 as the sole, or chief cause, of the dangers. 
 
 Strabo (836.) imputes them not only to the tides, 
 but to the flatness and ooziness of the bottom : and 
 he observes, that ships, whilst navigating this part, 
 kept as wide as possible of the indraught of the gulfs. 
 He seems to consider the two Syrtes as nearly on a 
 par, in respect of the dangers which they presented. 
 
 It appears that the improved state of navigation, 
 amongst the moderns, has stripped the Syrtes of the 
 greatest part of their terrors ; since most of the 
 dangers must probably have arisen from the difficulty 
 of working off a lee shore ; for which purpose the 
 ancient ships were very ill calculated, in comparison 
 with modern ones. The slow progress of those ships, 
 which kept them so long in the neighbourhood of 
 dangers of every kind, would add to that risk ; and 
 these deficiencies combined, must very often have 
 proved fatal in stormy weather ; although a modern 
 ship, well fitted, would, under similar circumstances 
 of situation, have been unconscious of any danger '. 
 It is also to be considered Jiere, that the coast being 
 in many parts bordered by quicksands, their ac- 
 customed refuge of drawing up their ships on the 
 beach could not be resorted to. Thus, modern im- 
 })rovements may be said to have removed that 
 which was the greatest terror of ancient navigations, 
 when a lee shore happened to be inaccessible. 
 
 * This equally applies to other dangers, as those of Scylla 
 and Chanjhdis, &c.
 
 320 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 Of the Greater Syrtis in particular. 
 
 Marmol says that the natives still call this gulf 
 Syrte al Kihheer, which has precisely the same 
 meaning with the ancient name : and it certainly 
 continues to be known to mariners by the name of 
 Sidra or Seedra ^ The oriental geographers re- 
 port, that the remains of the city of Sort or Serte, 
 are found at the inner part of the gulf; and the 
 position answers to that of the Macomades Syrtis 
 of the Antonine Itinerary (p. 63.) ; that is, at 232 
 MP. from Leptis Magna, or Lebida ; 208 from 
 Titiiodori, or Tineh ^ 
 
 ^ Rowesays, Soloco. There is a place of this name in Edrisi, 
 said to be situated on the east side of the Syrtis. 
 
 ^ Edrisi, p. 88, 92, 93, has a route along the coast from Tri- 
 poly to Sort, or Serte ; between which places, the distance given, 
 is 230 A. miles, or 246 geographic, in the gross ; but the detail 
 allows no more than 210 A. miles, or 222 geographic. He says 
 also, that it is travelled in 1 1 days, which would give about 200 
 such miles only. Probably, we ought to adopt the 222, and then 
 the interval between Sort and Wadan, which Edrisi fixes at five 
 journies, or 95 G. miles, will agree ; Wadan being situated 
 directly south from Mesurata, according to Mr. Beaufoy's MSS. 
 
 Abulfeda mentions the remains of the city of Sort, in his 
 Africa, Tab. III. at the end ; and also says, that on the west of 
 this city is a gulf of the sea, named Rodaik, or Rodakiah, ap- 
 parently the same with the Zadic Sinus of Edrisi, p. 92, near to 
 which stands the town oi Asna, 102 A. miles, or 108 G. miles, 
 to the SE of the promontory of Kanam, taken for the west point 
 of the Greater Syrtis ; near Mesurata. It must here be noted, 
 that Edrisi allows 46 A. miles between Asna and Sort, (p. 88.) ; 
 but we suspect that it should be 26 only, and that the excess of
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 321 
 
 How dangerous soever certain parts of this gulf 
 were, yet it appears from Strabo amongst the 
 ancients," and P. Lucas amongst the moderns, that 
 more than one port within it was frequented by 
 trading ships ; so that notwithstanding the mouth 
 of it was thickly sown with shallows, yet bold and 
 enterprizing navigators made their way through 
 them. And it may be pretty clearly collected, that 
 the part so much dreaded and avoided was at the 
 SE of this Syrtis, where the Philcuniau altars were 
 situated, and where the sea enters deepest into the 
 land. 
 
 Edrisi informs us, p. 93, that about 70 G. miles 
 of the road leading along the gulf, is through land 
 which is in a manner in a state of solution, occa- 
 sioned either by the sea-ivafer, or by the natural 
 moisture of the soil. Now, as the part in question 
 borders on an extensive desert of sand (that of the 
 Psylli and Nasamones), the moisture can only arise 
 from the sea-water. The site of this tract is pre- 
 cisely at the place where the deepest part of the 
 gulf strikes to the SE, and where the Philaenian 
 altars are placed by Ptolemy ; around which the 
 road makes a wide detour between Tripoly and 
 Cyrene. How much more than 70 miles this kind 
 of ground may extend to the westward, we know 
 
 20 miles in the aggregate, over the detail, arises in this place. 
 There is no line of distance to be depended on between Sort and 
 tlie head of the Syrtis ; but from thence to Barca, the distance, 
 153 A. miles (p. 92), agrees. 
 
 VOL. n. Y
 
 Q22 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 not, for the road, for many journies, thence strikes 
 inland ^. 
 
 A second gulf, bordered by shores of the same 
 nature, but of much less extent, penetrates the coun- 
 try at Asnah, in the SW part of the Syrtis ^ This 
 is the Sinus Zadic of Edrisi ; Rodaik of Abulfeda. 
 Sort is situated between these two quicksand gulfs. 
 
 Strabo states, p. 836, that Aspis was the best 
 port in all the Syrtis. This place is found in Pto- 
 lemy, on the west side, at about 60 miles within the 
 promontory of TricBorium (near Mesurata). Strabo 
 next places the Carthaginian emporium of Charax, 
 doubtless the Pharaxa of Ptolemy, and perhaps the 
 AsnaJi of Edrisi, though the nature of the gulf of 
 Zadic seems unfavourable to the establishment of an 
 emporium. The Isporis of Ptolemy answers to the 
 site of Sort, although in this latter we should look 
 
 * Edrisi, p. 92, also mentions five towers in different positions 
 in the desert tract, west of the quicksand. One of these, (Hasan,) 
 at four journies within the western point of the Syrtis, agrees to 
 the Ewphratas Turris of Strabo, (Euphranta Ptol.) between 
 Aspis and Charax, said to be the common boundary of the 
 Egyptian empire (under the Ptolemies ) and Carthage, (p. 836.) 
 One of the other towers, ( Aaras,) said to be very large, con- 
 tained within it a deep well, or reservoir for rain water. The 
 others may have been to cover wells also, and to serve at the 
 same time for sea-marks. It is not unusual in the East to build 
 a kind of tower over wells in the Deserts, to shelter them from 
 the drift sand. The Castilian ambassadors to Tamerlane, in 
 1399, mention them. 
 
 ' Edrisi says (p. 92.) that the sea, by penetrating, occasioned 
 the land to sink into pits or holes.
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 303 
 
 for the emporium of Strabo, as he mentions no 
 place between it and the Philasnian altars. How- 
 ever, the nature of the information is such, that no 
 position can be critically placed from it. But, at 
 all events, Strabo's words imply, that there are no 
 ports in the SE part of the Syrtis, which is perfectly 
 consonant to the descriptions of the coast, ancient as 
 well as modern ; and hence we may justly conclude 
 that this was the part avoided by mariners. 
 
 Pliny and others, in speaking of the Nasamones, 
 brand them with the character of being infamous 
 for plundering of wrecks. This of course bespeaks 
 a dangerous coast ; and the quicksands are precisely 
 on the shore inhabited by these people ". 
 
 Strabo furnishes another fact relating to this Syr- 
 tis. He says that Cato, in marching from Berenice 
 round the Syrtis (towards Carthage) was compelled, 
 together with the army which he led, to pass through 
 deep sands, and inundations caused by the tides ; 
 in effect corroborating what Edrisi says. 
 
 This event happened after the battle of Pharsalia, 
 and the retreat and death of Pompey in Egypt. 
 The object of Cato was to join his forces to those of 
 Juba and Scipio, in the neighbourhood of Carthage. 
 Strabo says, that Cato had 10,000 men, which he 
 divided into separate bodies, that they might more 
 conveniently obtain supplies of water in that arid 
 region, (p. 836). That they marched on foot, and 
 
 " It has already been mentioned, that our traveller, Mr. 
 Bruce, was shipwrecked here, and proved the truth of this re- 
 mark. 
 
 Y 2
 
 324 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 completed the tour of the Syrtes from Berenice in 
 30 days. Those who examine the distance will find 
 that the rate of marching was 1 1^ G. miles in direct 
 distance, or about one mile above the mean of ordi- 
 nary marches, which is 10,6. 
 
 Plutarch says, that Cato marched in winter from 
 Cyrene, and that he took with him some of the 
 Psylli (whose former dominions, which had been 
 usurped by the Nasamonians, he was compelled to 
 pass through) to charm the serpents, which were said 
 to abound there, and to cure their stings. 
 
 We trust that the reader is by this time abund- 
 antly satisfied, as to the consistency of the ancient 
 descriptions of this Syrtis. 
 
 Lucan appears to believe, that the bottom of the 
 Syrtes was ^xoWmg firmer and the water shallower, 
 and surmises that they (or rather the Greater Syrtis 
 alone, for of that only he seems to speak) may here- 
 after become dry and sohd. What changes, in point 
 of form and extent, they may have undergone, or if 
 any, we know not ; but it is certain that they have 
 hitherto preserved their original properties. 
 
 The description of the Syrtes by Lucan ^ has a 
 
 ^ Translated by Mr. Rowe. 
 
 The Syrtes, nor quite of sea nor land bereft, ^ 
 A mingled mass uncertain still she left ; 
 For nor the land with seas is quite o'erspread, 
 Nor sink the waters deep their oozy bed, 
 Nor earth defends its shore, nor lifts aloft its head. 
 The site with neither, and with each complies, 
 Doubtful and inaccessible it lies ; 
 
 }
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 305 
 
 boldness peculiar to it ; and it is possible that he 
 may not, in any great degree, have heightened the 
 description, for our Goodwin Sand possesses much 
 
 Or 'tis a sea with shallows bank'd around, 
 
 Or 'tis a broken land with waters drovvn'd ; 
 
 Here shores advanced o'er Neptune's rule we find, 
 
 And there an inland ocean lass behind. 
 
 Perhaps, in distant ages, 'twill be found. 
 
 When future suns have run the burning round, . 
 
 These Syrtes shall all be dry and solid ground : / 
 
 Small are the depths their scanty waves retain, 
 
 And earth grows daily on the yielding main. 
 
 Lib. ix. 
 
 I 
 
 It may be remarked that the geography of this part of Lucan's 
 poem is somewhat confused ; but we are of opinion that some 
 of Mr. Rowe's notes are founded on misconceptions, either of 
 the geography itself, or of Cato's progress, and therefore do not 
 even render to the author his due merits. 
 
 The palpable errors of Lucan in this part of the geography 
 are, the conducting of Cato by the oracle of Amnion, in his way 
 from Cyrene to Carthage ; the placing of the Garamantcs on 
 the sea coast, and the gardens of the Hesperides at the lake Tri- 
 tonis, an error into which Strabo himself falls (836.), by placing 
 that lake at Berenice, in Cyrenaica. Pliny and Solinus are in 
 the same error : Ptolemy places it at the Lesser Syrtis. 
 
 We are aware that many totally disregard geographical con- 
 sistency in poetical description ; but for the sake of youth, 
 whose minds frequently receive the first ideas of classical geo- 
 graphy from the poets, one could wish that truth had been 
 attended to, we mean where human agency is given as the 
 means, for there things should be represented naturally. In 
 this poem the Romans are represented to have passed by the 
 oracle of Ammon, although they had left it a month's march 
 behind them, at their setting out. It ought not to have been 
 through ignorance on the part of Lucan ; for the position of the 
 temple of Ammon was well known at Rome in his time.
 
 S26 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 the same properties as the shallows and coasts of the 
 Greater Syrt's. 
 
 The Goodwin Sand is so firm and cohesive, at 
 low wafer, that Mr. Smeaton found it difficult to 
 insert in it an iron crow to fasten his boat to ; 
 although, as soon as the tide flowed up, it would not 
 bear the weight of a man. We cannot help remark- 
 ing a vulgar error, respecting the origin of this sand- 
 bank. It is unquestionably not a remnant of landy 
 but an accumulation of sea sand, by the meeting, 
 and eddy motions of the opposite tides, near the 
 Strait of Dover. 
 
 The same cause, operating more remotely, has 
 probably occasioned a general accumulation of matter 
 along the coast, to the westward ; but more particu- 
 larly at Dungyness, and in the bay between it and 
 Hastings. Dungyness has gradually increased, and 
 is still rapidly increasing ; partly by means of artifi- 
 cial works, partly by the operation of the tides. 
 This great projection of the coast has been fatal to 
 the ports of Rye and Winchelsea ; and we account 
 for it, in this way : the more the point projected, 
 the more the stream of the flood tide would strike 
 obliquely from the shore near Hastings, leaving 
 more and more still water, in the bay of Rye ; 
 where the sand would continually settle, and fill it 
 up, as we now see it. The ebb tide would in like 
 manner be thrown obliquely from the shore of Hythe 
 and Dimchurch ; even more so than the flood from 
 Hastings and Fairlight. Thus the accession of a 
 vast tract of rich land in Romney Marsh, has been 
 at the expence of the ports above-mentioned. But it
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. $27 
 
 is perhaps a matter of little consequence ; as the 
 increased size of ships of war, would have rendered 
 Rye of no use at present, had it continued in its 
 former state. 
 
 The Goodwin Sand has no doubt been forming, 
 ever since the happy disruption of our island from 
 the continent. Many thousands of years may have 
 passed away before it appeared above water ; and 
 when it did, we were not a naval power, and took 
 little notice of it. The story of Earl Goodwin was 
 probably invented after that ; and there can be no 
 doubt of the increase of the Goodwin, at the pre- 
 sent moment, and of its slow progression towards 
 the state of firm land. 
 
 Let those who doubt the facts here set forth, 
 attend to the changes at Ephesus, at Miletus, at 
 Myriaridrus in the gulf of Issiis, and various other 
 places. 
 
 Lesser Syrtis. 
 
 Dr. Shaw, p. 194-, gives a short description of 
 this gulf *, and its tides ; but which, notwithstand- 
 ing, enables us to judge sufficiently of the nature of 
 the dangers which it presented. After stating that 
 it properly begins at Cajye Capoudla (that is. Caput 
 Vad(i) he says, '' from this cape all along to the 
 island of Jerba (i. e. of the Lotopliagi) we have a 
 succession of httle flat islands, banks of sand, oozy 
 
 ' Now tlie gulf of Kahes : by him called Gabbs.
 
 328 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 bottoms, or small depths of water. The inhabitants 
 make no small advantage of these shallows, by 
 wading a mile or two from the shore, and fixing, as 
 they go along, in various windings and directions, 
 several hurdles of reeds, frequently inclose a great 
 number of fishes. Something like this has been 
 taken notice of by Strabo ^. 
 
 It is certain that the single fact of wading a mile 
 or two into the sea, does away all idea of quick- 
 sands, in this place : so that these must necessarily 
 be confined to the other Syrtis, although this one 
 may be equally, or even more dangerous (as indeed 
 Scylax reports it to be), from its exceeding flatness, 
 the intricacy of its channels, and its particular expo- 
 sure to the raging east winds ; but more particularly 
 from the variation and uncertainty of its tides, occa- 
 sioned by the winds. 
 
 Dr. Shaw vv^as informed (p. 194.) that frequently 
 at the island of Jerba, on the south side of the 
 Syrtes, the sea rose twice a day, a fathom or more 
 above its usual height : but during his stay on the 
 coast, the easterly winds were too violent to enable 
 him to notice it : that is, we may suppose, the sea 
 was kept up to a pitch nearly equal to high water- 
 mark, by the pressure of the wind on the waters, in 
 the mouth of the gulf\ 
 
 ^ What Strabo says, p. 835, is indeed a most perfect corrobo- 
 ration of Dr. Sliavv's report. 
 
 ■ The Marquis de Chabert, during his short stay on this 
 coast in 1766, remarked that the tides rose three feet : but the 
 marks on the shore shewed a rise of five (Frencli) feet, at the 
 highest tides ; agreeing nearly with the report of Dr. Shaw.
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 329 
 
 The tides in the Syrtes are spoken of by several 
 of the ancient authors, as well as by Edrisi, amongst 
 the moderns ; but none of them mention the height 
 to which they rise. 
 
 The reports of Dr. Shaw and of the Marquis de 
 Chabert, the one from the information of the natives, 
 the other from his own observation of high water- 
 mark on shore, agree very nearly with those made 
 at Venice, where the tide is generally supposed to 
 rise as high as in any part of the Mediterranean. 
 
 Strabo, Polybius, and Phny, all speak of a tide in 
 this place, but are silent respecting its height. It 
 appears doubtful whether the former (p. 835.) meant 
 to say that it prevailed in both Syrtes, or only in 
 the lesser one : but we suspect that he extends it to 
 both, which is contrary to the idea expressed by M. 
 Cliabert. Polybius gives a striking instance of the 
 rise and ftill of the tide, near the island of Meninx, 
 adjacent to the Lesser Syrtis, by their effects on the 
 Roman fleet, (commanded by ServiUus and Sempro- 
 nius) which grounded on the sands, and thereby lost 
 their equipage and necessaries. Lib. i. c. 3. Phny 
 speaks with much clearness on the subject of tides 
 in general, and particularly, of those in the Medi- 
 terranean. He remarks, lib. ii. 97, that although 
 
 The Marquis perceived the rise and fall to be more sensible 
 along the coast of Africa proper, between C. Bon and Kabes, 
 than elsewhere ; and that it diminished all the way eastward to 
 the Greater Syrtis. {Hist, de VAcademie des Sciences, 17G7.) 
 This might reasonably be expected. The wave of tide is sud- 
 denly opposed in front liy the eastern coast of Tunis ; and also 
 compressed hiterally l)y the Island of Sicily.
 
 330 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 the tides are weaker in inland seas, as yielding less 
 to the power of the sun and moon, yet that these 
 seas are also in some degree affected : more espe- 
 cially in the wider parts, which afford some scope to 
 the attraction of those bodies ; but that those effects 
 are more obvious near the shores, than in the open 
 sea. Having instanced the high tides near to, or 
 about Britain, he also observes that the Syrtes, 
 from the form and position of their shores, give rise 
 to very irregular tides, reducible to no rule ; whilst 
 those in the mouth of the strait of Messina, and in 
 the Euripus, return at stated intervals ; although 
 those intervals may be different from those in the 
 ocean, or in other parts of the Mediterranean ". 
 
 But Pliny gives, in one instance, as the effect of 
 the tide, what should rather be imputed to a current : 
 for he says, that during calm weather, ships have 
 been carried by the tide in three days from Italy to 
 Utica (more probably from Sicily.') This was, no 
 doubt, a westerly current, occasioned by the return 
 of the water from the middle and eastern basons of 
 the Mediterranean, after a long continued westerly 
 wind. A current of this kind, is noticed in the Me- 
 moirs of the French Academy, in the neighbourhood 
 of Tunis ; and happens very frequently in the Cas- 
 pian sea, on a change of wind. 
 
 Edrisi, p. 87, mentions the tide in the Lesser 
 Syrtis, and in the river of Kabes ; but at no other 
 place in the Mediterranean sea ; which shews, at 
 
 ^ He also mentions the tide in tlie Syrtes, in lib. v. c. 4. 
 Scylax, p. 49, also mentions the different heights of the sea in 
 the Lesser Syrtis.
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 331 
 
 least, that it is much more perceptible at Kabes, 
 than in other places. Edrisi resided in the island of 
 Sicily. 
 
 Modern observations point out a rise of about five 
 feet at Venice, but only twelve or thirteen inches at 
 Naples ^, and at the Eurijnis. One would certainly 
 expect from the form and position of the gulf of 
 Kabes, and of the head of the Adriatic sea, that the 
 tide should attain its maximum there : since the 
 wave raised by the attraction of the moon, in the 
 eastern part of the INIediterranean, would in those 
 places, not only receive a cJiecJc, in front, but be also 
 compressed laterally, by the contraction of the 
 shores. 
 
 From the authorities which we shall presently 
 adduce, we can suppose no other than that this 
 Syrtis did once enter much deeper into the land ; 
 and that it even formed a junction with the lake 
 Loivcleah within it ; the Tritonis Paliis of the 
 ancients. Otherwise we must not only reject the 
 reports of Herodotus and Ptolemy, but that of Scylax 
 also, the writer of a Periplus, and w^lio ought to have 
 known the truth. But before we set forth the opi- 
 nions of those authors, concerning the lake and river 
 Tritonis, we shall examine Dr. Shaw's account of 
 them, as well as of the adjoining country, to the 
 borders of the Syrtis. 
 
 This lake, to which the Doctor allows an extent 
 of 20 leagues (in his text, p. 212, but upwards of 
 
 * My friend, Sir Charles Blagden, made observations to this 
 effect in 1792. 
 
 13
 
 332 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 24 in his map at p. 139,) in length, and six in 
 breadth, is rather, as he observes, three lakes in 
 one ; for, says he, '' it is not all of it a collection of 
 water, there being several clr?/ places, which like so 
 many islands, are interspersed over it." He also 
 endeavours to account for Ptolemy's triple division 
 of it, by taking the parts thus separated, for the dif- 
 ferent lakes of Libya, Pallas, and Tritofiis. He 
 adds (211.), that "the lake is named Lovvdeah, or 
 the Lake of Marks, from the number of trunks of 
 palm trees, that are placed at proper distances, to 
 direct the caravans in their marches over it. With- 
 out such assistances, travelling would be here both 
 dangerous and difficult, as well from the variety of 
 pits and quicksands, that could no otherwise be 
 avoided ; but because that the opposite shores (as we 
 may call them) have no other tokens to be known 
 by, but their date trees. And as these are rarely 
 seen at above 16 miles distance, great mistakes 
 might be committed in passing over a plain of this 
 extent, (where the horizon is as proper for astrono- 
 mical observations, as at sea;) without such conve- 
 nient marks and directions." 
 
 It appears by his map at p. 139, and his descrip- 
 tions, that the space between the east end of the lake, 
 and the inmost recess of the Syrtis, is also Jlat, and 
 but little raised above the level of the sea ; and is of 
 such a loose sandy nature, as to absorb the waters of 
 a river, that runs into it : for the rivulet of El Ham- 
 mali, which runs from the higher grounds, towards 
 the east end of the lakes, for some miles, loses itself 
 in the sand: page 214. This space between the
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS, 2^;^^ 
 
 lake and the sea, appears to be about 22 miles in 
 length ; 10 or 12 in breadth, between the foot of a 
 remarkable mountain of salt {Had-deffa ') on the 
 north, and the chain of hills which shuts up the Syrtis 
 to the southward \ passing by El Hammah, in its 
 course from the lake of Lowdeah. We are aware 
 that JNl. D'Anville shuts up the lake from the sea, 
 with a chain of hills : but for this, however, no 
 shadow of authority appears ; and Dr. Shaw, on the 
 contrary, describes the intermediate space as being 
 low and flat. 
 
 Thus, the lake itself, and its environs, seem to 
 compose a great mass of scmd and ivater, intermixed 
 in various proportions. Of the whole sea coast of 
 the Syrtis we have already given a description, from 
 the Doctor's own words : " a succession of little flat 
 islands, banks of sand, oozy bottoms, or small depths 
 of water ; in fact so flat, that the people wade a 
 mile or two miles into the sea, to fix their fishing 
 apparatus." P. 194. And at Ungha, the shore 
 itself is a morass, or imjyerfect land, to the extent 
 of several miles : p. 195. 
 
 Again, he describes the land to have gained, and 
 to be still gaining, on the sea, at Kabes ; where the 
 ancient town taken for Tacape, is left half a mile 
 inland. P. 196. But Kabes lies beyond the lake : 
 for the part of the coast opposite, and nearest to, 
 the lake, is that where the river Achroude falls in. 
 
 * See before, page 309. 
 
 ^ This chain terminates on tlie coast, opposite to the island of 
 Jerba (Meninx, or LotophagUis) where it forms the boundary 
 of Tunis, on the one hand, and Tripoly on the other. Shaw, 
 pages 139, 197, 229.
 
 334 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 This is, however, a periodical stream, and its bed 
 was dry when Dr. Shaw was there. It must be 
 here, that the ancient place of communication with 
 the lake is to be looked for, if at all : and we have 
 little doubt but that such a communication did 
 actually exist. It is described by Scylax, as well as 
 by Ptolemy. This latter geographer, who had much 
 knowledge of the detail of the coast (as far as re- 
 lates to description, how much soever he may fail 
 in geometrical exactness), positively describes a 
 passage from the Syrtis into the lake, on the north 
 of Tacape, (or Kabes) : in effect, in the very posi- 
 tion just mentioned. Ptolemy, we may conceive, 
 had heard of it, although his information might be 
 vague : but we may suppose Scylax to have been in 
 possession of information of a more practical kind 
 from navigators ; or even from his own observations. 
 Scylax says, " In this Syrtis (the lesser one) is the 
 island and river of Triton, and the temple of Mi- 
 nerva Tritonia. The mouth (or opening) of the 
 lake, is small, and in it, on the reflux of the sea, is 
 an island." Then follows a corrupted passage ; 
 but which perhaps should be thus : " When the 
 island is covered (that is, when the tide is up) 
 ships may enter the lake." He continues to say, 
 that the lake is large; being about 1000 stadia 
 in circumference (it is, however, much larger) ; 
 that it is surrounded by Libyan nations, and 
 has cities on its western border, as also fertile and 
 productive lands. P. 49. This particular agrees 
 with Herodotus, who places, as we have seen above 
 (page 302), husbandmen on the west of the lake. 
 Now, to what can the above refer, but to a lake
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITOXIS. 335 
 
 ivithhi the Syrtis ; for the Syrtis itself, has, as we 
 have shewn, a very ivide opening, and grows 
 ncij'rower within 9 Therefore, the description, if a 
 just one, cannot be meant for the Syrtis, but for a 
 lake within it. 
 
 It is unquestionable that Herodotus did not know 
 the Lesser Syrtis by any other name, than that of 
 the lake Tritonis ; for it is clearly what he describes 
 for that lake; or more probably an extension of it. 
 Melp. 179. Nor is the idea peculiar to him. Scylax, 
 p. 48, according to the probable reading of the word 
 Ajoovi'rr/c, rendered by Vossius, Tritonites, calls the 
 whole gulf of Kahes, " the great lake of Tritonis ;" 
 and in which, the Lesser Syrtis, called also Cercin- 
 nitica, is included as a part of it. Hence, it would 
 appear, that, in the times of Scylax and of Herodo- 
 tus, it was the custom to call the whole Syrtis and 
 lake, collectively, the lake or gulf Tritonis ; although 
 in later times, i. e. those of Polybius, Strabo, Pliny, 
 and Ptolemy, the term Syrtis was applied separately 
 to the bay or gulf; Tritonis to the lake". The 
 application of the same particular name, by Scylax 
 and Herodotus, whilst the authors posterior to Hero- 
 
 * Strabo, it appears, had not heard of any other lake Tritonis, 
 than that at Berenice. (836.) (His lake of Zuchis, p. 835, is 
 near the island of Jerba.) Solinus thought as Strabo did : Pliny 
 believed the same, but says that others said it was on the west of 
 the Lesser Syrtis. Lucan, as we have seen, refers the lake, and 
 its whole history, to the neighbourhood of Berenice. 
 
 It is remarkable that neither Edrisi nor Abulfeda speak of the 
 lake of Lowdeah, although the former mentions the city of Tuzer, 
 or Tozer, which stands on its very banks.
 
 336 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 dotus, use a different name, furnishes at least a pre- 
 sumptive proof, that Scylax wrote very early. 
 
 We must therefore regard the lake Tritonis of 
 Herodotus, as the Lesser Syrtis and lake of Lowdeah, 
 united: and must conclude that he either knew, or 
 tooh for granted, that the dangerous gulf, into 
 which he describes Jason's ship to have been driven ; 
 together with the water which received the river 
 Triton, and which also contained the island of the 
 same name, were one and the same. He relates, 
 that Jason's ship, the Argo, built at the foot of 
 mount Pelion, was driven amongst the shallows of 
 that lake by a storm from the promontory of Malea 
 in Peloponnesus : for he says, that before Jason 
 could discover the land, he got amongst the shallows 
 of the lake Tritonis, &c. Melp. 179. Indeed, it 
 might be asked, how a storm from the northward 
 could effect this transit at all ; since the Lesser Syrtis 
 bears to the ivest of Malea ? Had he said that 
 Jason was driven to the Syrtis, instead of the lake 
 Tritonis, we must of course have looked to the 
 Greater Syrtis, in which case a northerly wind might 
 have done it. But it is not, in the present case, the 
 consistency of the history, but the combinations 
 which that history gave rise to, in the mind of Hero- 
 dotus, that we are to attend to^ He believed that 
 a ship had been driven by a storm, into the lake of 
 Tritonis ; and therefore must have supposed it, of 
 
 '' Mr. Bryant well observes, that references to the Argonautic 
 expedition are interspersed in most of the writings of the ancients, 
 but that there is scarce a circumstance concerning it, in which 
 they are agreed. [Mr. Beloe.]
 
 SYRTE8 AND LAKE TRITONIS. 337 
 
 course, to be a gulf of the sea, not an inland lake : 
 and the Lesser Syrtis answers to the gulf intended, 
 but must necessarily have undergone the change 
 above-mentioned. 
 
 Dr. Shaw was clearly of opinion that the lake in 
 question was the Tritonis, but seems to have had no 
 suspicion of its ever having communicated with the 
 outer gulf. See page 212 ; and also his map at 
 p. 139. A large island in this lake, situated 40 
 miles from the gulf, he supposes to be the Phla of 
 Herodotus, Melp. 178; or the Triton Island of 
 other authors. But if we are to suppose an ancient 
 communication, now closed up by sand gradually 
 thrown up by the surge of the sea, as has been be- 
 fore remarked at Arsinoe, we may naturally suppose 
 that a great deal of the lake itself has been filled up 
 by the same operation ; and that a large portion of 
 the flat space, between the eastern part of the lake 
 and the Syrtis, was anciently a part of the lake, 
 which might have been separated from the sea by a 
 bar of sand only, through which the narrow opening 
 described by Scylax passed. If this be admitted, 
 we may conceive the island of Phla to make a part 
 of this 7iew-made plain, examples enough of which 
 are to be found in other places. And such an idea 
 gives the more consistency to the expressions of 
 Herodotus, and Scylax, when they speak of the 
 island of Tritonis as being in the Syrtis. 
 
 To us nothing appears more probable, than that 
 such a change should have taken place, in a situa- 
 tion where the continued operation of the surge of 
 the sea (on a flat coast, bordered by moveable sands), 
 
 VOL. n. z
 
 338 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 is that of depositing sand in every hollow part ; and 
 where there was no back-water to sweep it away : 
 for whilst the communication existed, we should ex- 
 pect a current running into the lake rather than out 
 of it ; as the evaporation would be, in all probability, 
 greater in the lake than in the open sea ; and as very 
 little water is received into it from rivers. 
 
 Respecting the river Tritonis, in our idea, some 
 difficulty occurs. Dr. Shaw takes for granted, that 
 it discharged itself into the outer gulf or Syrtis ; and 
 therefore naturally fixes on the river of Kabes (or 
 Tacape) ; a fine stream, said to be of the size of the 
 Cherwell (p. 197), and springing from the hither 
 side of the chain of mountains before-mentioned ; 
 which mountains approach within about three or 
 four leagues of Kabes, on the SSW. But this river 
 is quite wide of the position of the ancient communi- 
 cation with the lake, admitting it to have existed ^. 
 
 The lake itself is, at present, as salt as the sea, 
 p. 213, which may arise either from the sea-water 
 oozing through the sand, or from the salt rivulets, 
 which flow into it from a soil strongly impregnated 
 
 ^ Dr. Shaw says of this river, p. 197, that the waters of it are 
 " cantoned out into a number of artificial channels," to water the 
 plantations. Pliny remarked the saine, lib. xviii. c. 22 ; for he 
 says, that the waters of a copious fountain at Tacape, (the same 
 place with Kabes or Gahbs) were divided in portions to the cul- 
 tivators : that is, each had the use of the water during a certain 
 interval of time. The chief culture at present, according to Dr. 
 Shaw and Abulfeda, is the Alhenna or Henna plant, which re- 
 qviires much water. 
 
 It has appeared that Abulfeda says the same of the waters of 
 Gadamis : so that the arrangement appears to be systematical.
 
 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 339 
 
 with that mineral ; or even from the salt washed 
 down by dews and occasional showers from the salt 
 mountain of Had-defFa, on the border of the lake. 
 See p. 309. It cannot, therefore, be imagined that, 
 even if the water of the lake had ever run into the 
 sea, that such an opening could have been deno- 
 minated a river ; and, indeed, Scylax speaks of the 
 opening, and of the river, as two distinct objects. 
 
 If it be allowed that an extension of the lake, as 
 well as a communication with the sea, ever existed, 
 we have no difficulty in supposing the rivulet of El 
 Hammali to have been the river Tritonis. At pre- 
 sent this rivulet, formed of several liot springs, which 
 furnish a number of baths, (and whence its name El 
 Hammali) , runs several miles towards tlie lake, 
 and there loses itself in the sand. If, then, this 
 loose sandy tract occupies a portion of the ancient 
 lake, here we have the river Tritonis. Herodotus, 
 it is true, calls it a great stream, or a considerable 
 river ; but as there is no choice, but between the 
 river El Hammah and that of Kabes, the Tritonis 
 could at no rate be larger than the Cherwell ^ Dr. 
 Shaw makes no comparison of the Hammah rivulet 
 with any other ; but says, that '^ it is conducted in 
 a number of suhdivisiojis through the gardens, and 
 united again," after which it directs its course, &c. 
 If it is of bulk enough to allow of these subdivisions, 
 and after losing so much by the operation, as it 
 
 ' The well known small river, that passes on the east of the 
 city of Oxford, and unites with the Isis. 
 
 Lucan's description of the river Triton (be it where it may) is 
 that of a spring or fountain merely. 
 
 z 2
 
 340 SYRTES AND LAKE TRITONIS. 
 
 necessarily must, it still preserves its character of a 
 rivulet, it cannot be very small. Nor is it necessary, 
 on the score o{ celehi'ity , to have been a large stream : 
 small fountains being by the ancients equally cele- 
 brated with large rivers ; perhaps more so, from a 
 more intimate connection with religious worship : 
 and we may suppose that its warmth, and medicinal 
 qualities, may have contributed more immediately to 
 its fame. But Dr. Shaw allows it to be of magni- 
 tude enough to be mistaken for the Tritonis, by 
 what he says, in p. 213. 
 
 Herodotus and Pliny certainly conduct the river 
 Tritonis into the lake of the same name : but 
 Ptolemy stands alone in calling that the river which 
 leads from the lahe into the Syrtis : possibly, on a 
 supposition that the lake was fresh. Herodotus, 
 Melp. 178, says, the Machlyes " extend as far as a 
 great stream called the Triton, which enters into an 
 extensive lake named Tritonis, in which is the island 
 of Phla \" Of course, the river should run into the 
 lake, not into the sea. And as it appears (in 180), 
 that the temple of Minerva was situated amongst the 
 Machlyes, it should have been on the east side of the 
 lake, which would agree also to the position and 
 course of the rivulet of El Hammah. 
 
 Pliny says, lib, v. c. 4, after speaking of the Phil^e- 
 nian altars, " Near to them the great lake, denomi- 
 nated from the river Triton, receives into it that 
 
 ^ In this place he represents the river Triton as the boundary ; 
 but in 180, the lake itself. There is perhaps but little difference. 
 This is Mr. Beloe's translation : Littlebury puts the river in 
 both cases.
 
 SYRTES x\ND LAKE TRITONIS. ^41 
 
 river. But Callimachus calls it PallantiaSf and 
 places it on this side the Lesser Syrtis, though 
 many place it hetween both" Thus Pliny, evidently, 
 was doubtful of the situation of the river Triton, 
 although he knew the relative circumstances of the 
 lake and river to each other. 
 
 In effect, the ancients, as Dr. Shaw justly ob- 
 serves, p. 213, seem to have described this quarter 
 from report, or uncertain information only ^ ; and, 
 therefore, we are hardly to expect consistent, much 
 less critical, descriptions. They appear, however, to 
 have furnished us with very good grounds for be- 
 lieving that the Syrtis and lake Tritonis communi- 
 cated in former times ; and that the communication 
 continued even to the time of Ptolemy. We think 
 it equally probable, that the river Triton flowed into 
 the lake : and that the island, called by some, Tri- 
 ton, by Herodotus, Phla ; together with the temple 
 of Minerva, (in which the Triton is said to have 
 deposited Jason's tripod ^ J, was situated near the 
 mouth of it : moreover, that the island in question is 
 now a part of the sandy plain, in which the rivulet 
 of Hammah, the supposed river of Triton, loses 
 itself. For it appears to us, that the difference be- 
 tween the present state of things at this place, and 
 the ancient description of the lake and Syrtis, may 
 be reconciled, by merely adverting to the changes 
 
 ^ Possibly, with an exception to Scylax, as a professed guide 
 to others. Tlie observations of Polybius would probably have 
 saved us much conjecture, had they come down to us. 
 
 ^ Melpom. 179.
 
 342 ^GIS AND TEMPLE OF MINERVA, 
 
 that have taken place on other sandy shores ; and 
 more particularly at the head of a gulf, where the 
 tide exerts its greatest power of casting up the sand 
 to a higher point. That which has happened at the 
 head of the Red sea, may be adduced in point ; 
 and as the shore of the Syrtis is much flatter than 
 the other, the operation has probably gone on with 
 greater rapidity ^ 
 
 Of the ^^Gis cmd Temple of Minerva, at the Lake 
 
 Tritonis. 
 
 Herodotus and Scylax both speak of a temple of 
 Minerva at the lake Tritonis : the first, not positively 
 indeed, but by such strong implication as to induce 
 belief ^ ; but the latter positively, in page 49. 
 
 Herodotus informs us, that the lake Tritonis 
 forms the boundary between tribes of different man- 
 ners and occupations ; those on the east being shep- 
 herds and Nomades ; on the west, hushandmen. 
 Melp. 186, 187, 191. Of course, that lake is a 
 very marked boundary : and the two nations or 
 
 * See above, page 90. 
 
 * Herodotus says, '* It is pretended that Minerva was the 
 daughter of Neptune, and the divinity of the lake Tritonis." 
 (Melp. 180.) 
 
 " The Machlyes at the lake Tritonis, have an annual festival 
 in honour of Minerva." (lb. 180.) 
 
 " A Triton placed the trijwd obtained from Jason, in his 
 temple." This was at the lake of Tritonis. (Melp. 179.)
 
 AT THE LAKE TRITONIS. 343 
 
 tribes separated by the lake, are the Maclilyes on 
 the east ; the Aiises, or Ausenses, on the west. 
 
 It was amongst the Machlijes that Minerva was 
 particuhirly worshipped ; Melp. 180 ; whence, we 
 should infer, of course, that her temple stood on the 
 eastern side of the lake ^ \ as we have observed in 
 the last Section. 
 
 Again, Herodotus observes, in 188, speaking of 
 the Africans on the west of the lake, *' the only 
 deities to whom they sacrifice, are the sun and moon, 
 "who are adored by all the Africans ; they who live 
 near lake Tritonis venerate Triton, Neptune, and 
 Minerva ; but particularly the last." 
 
 " From these Africans (continues he), the Greeks 
 borrowed the vest and the j^gis, with which they 
 decorate the shrine of Minerva : the vests, however, 
 of the African Minervas, are made of skin, and the 
 fringe hanging from the ^gis is not composed of 
 
 " " They have (says the Historian, Melp. c. 180,) an annual 
 festival in honour of Minerva, in which the young women, 
 dividing themselves into two separate bands, engage each otlier 
 with stones and clubs. These rites, they say, were instituted by 
 their forefathers, in veneration of her whom we call Minerva ; 
 and if any one die in consequence of wounds received in this con- 
 test, they say that she was no virgin. Before the conclusion of 
 the fight, they observe this custom : she who, by common con- 
 sent, fought the best, has a Corinthian helmet placed upon her 
 head, is clothed in Grecian armour, and carried in a chariot 
 round the lake. How the virgins were decorated in this solem- 
 nity, before they had any knowledge of the Greeks, I am not 
 able to say ; probably they might use Egyptian arms. We may 
 venture to affirm, that the Greeks borrowed from Egypt, the 
 shield and the helmet."
 
 344 -iEGIS AND TEMPLE OF MINERVA, 
 
 serpents, but of leather ; in every other respect the 
 dress is the same : it appears by the very name, that 
 the robe of the statues of Minerva was borrowed 
 from Africa. The women of this country wear be- 
 low their garments goat-shins, without the hair, 
 fringed, and stained of a red colour ; from which 
 part of dress, the word j^gis '' of the Greeks is un- 
 questionably derived." Melp. 189. Here he must 
 be understood to mean the people on the east of the 
 lake ; because it appears by the paragraph which 
 follows (190), that he was speaking of African 
 Nomades ; who, by his own account, were confined 
 to the east side of the lake of Tritonis. (186). 
 
 The circumstance of the dyed goat-skins is curi- 
 ous, and shews the antiquity of the art of dressing 
 skins in Africa, an art that has always, or at least 
 till very lately, been executed with greater skill 
 there than in Europe. 
 
 It appears from the Scriptures that rams^-shins 
 dyed red, formed a covering for the tabernacle in 
 the wilderness, in the days of Moses, near 1500 
 years before Christ ^ : and we may be pretty con- 
 fident that these were brougJd out of Egypt by the 
 Israelites, for it happened early in the very first 
 year of their wanderings ; and it is not very pro- 
 bable that the skins could be collected in the wilder- 
 
 ' " From ad, aiyog, a goat, the Greeks made atytg aiyi^og, 
 which signifies hoth the skin of a goat, and ihe^gis oi Minerva." 
 Mr. Beloe's Herodotus, Vol. ii. 346, note. 
 
 ' Exodus, ch. XXV. ver. 5 ; ch. xxxv. ver. 7 and 23 ; and 
 xxxvi. ver. 19.
 
 AT THE LAKE TRITONIS. 345 
 
 ness. We are told that the Israelites borrowed of 
 the Egyptians not only gold, silver, and raiment, 
 but also '' such things as they required ; so that 
 they spoiled the Egyptians '■'." Now amongst the 
 offerings we find hliie, and purple, and scarlet, and 
 fine linen, and goats' hair ", (besides the red skins 
 before mentioned), all of which they must surely have 
 taken from the Egyptians ; and by the use to which 
 these skins were a23plied in the wilderness, we must 
 suppose them to have been considered as an elegant 
 luxury in Egypt, from whence doubtless they were 
 brought. 
 
 Whether they were manufactured in Egypt, or 
 otherwise, cannot be known ; but the contrary is the 
 most probable, not only because the animal which 
 produces the skin seems to be a native of the Libyan 
 provinces, but because the manufacture is at this day 
 in the greatest repute there. And as the Fe^^aners 
 at present fetch them from the centre of Africa, so 
 might the Egyptians of old : and Mr. Maillet in- 
 forms us (p. 199), that moroquins, meaning the 
 dyed skins of Western Africa, are amongst the 
 articles imported into Egypt in modern times ". 
 
 " Ch. xii. ver. Z^. 
 
 ^^ Cli. XXXV. ver. 23 and 2G ; and xxxvi. ver. 14. 
 
 " We learn from Mr. Beaufoy (Afr. Assoc. 1790, ch. vii. viii. 
 and ix.) that goat-skins of beautiful red and yellow dyes are the 
 produce of the country of Kasseena and the adjoining countries 
 on the south, and are a considerable article of traffick ; as also 
 that they are purchased by the Fezzan traders ; who, no douljt, 
 distribute them along the coasts of the Mediterranean, and con- 
 sequently in Egypt.
 
 346 ^GIS AND TEMPLE OF MINERVA, 
 
 Dr. Shaw mentions both sheep and goats in the 
 countries of Barbary, p. 241, although he is silent 
 respecting any manufacture of their skins. He 
 speaks moreover of a particular breed of sheep in 
 the neighbourhood of Gadamis, Wurglah, and 
 other places of the Sahara, which are nearly as tall 
 as our fallow deer, and with fleeces as coarse and 
 hairy as those of goats. He speaks, however, from 
 information only. Pliny, lib. viii. c. 50, says that 
 the goats about the Si/rtes are shorn like sheep. 
 Goats' hair is mentioned as one of the offerings in 
 the wilderness : this, too, was probably brought from 
 Africa ; and here we are even told where it was pro- 
 duced. 
 
 Abulfeda informs us of a celebrated manufacture 
 of dyed skins in Gadamis, probably of the very kind 
 described above by Dr. Shaw ; for speaking of Ga- 
 damis (concerning which see above, page 284), in 
 his account of Africa, Tab. HI. he says, that '* the 
 people of Gadamis are celebrated for preparing of 
 skins." But he gives no particulars, a defect we 
 have often occasion to remark. It is proper to 
 remind the reader, that Gadamis is situated in the 
 same quarter with the lake of Tritonis, or Lowdeah, 
 where the dyed skins were in use at the temple of 
 Minerva. 
 
 It is doubtless a curious fact, that the tabernacle 
 of the Deity in the wilderness, and the shrine of 
 Minerva at the lake Tritonis, should have been deco- 
 rated, not only with the same kind of manufacture, 
 but that also of the same colour. We know not the 
 date of the custom in Africa, but it was clearly ante- 
 
 13
 
 AT THE LAKE TRITONIS. 347 
 
 rior to the invention of the Grecian ^gis, so that 
 it carries us back to a very high period of antiquity, 
 perhaps not far short of that of the institutions of 
 Moses. 
 
 The modern state of this manufacture in Africa, 
 and more particularly in the quarter assigned to the 
 temple of Minerva, furnishes a strong presumptive 
 proof of a curious fact adduced by our Author : and 
 if, as appears probable, the skins mentioned in Exo- 
 dus were brought from Africa ^^ we are furnished 
 with another curious fact in the history of manufac- 
 tures ; for in that case the manufacture must have 
 existed in the same quarter about 3300 years : and 
 even if the Greeks borrowed the ^gis from the Mi- 
 nerva Tritonia, or any other of the African Minervas, 
 it gives a duration of about 3000 years to the manu- 
 factory. 
 
 ** The Egyptians, from the nature of their country and habits 
 of life, are more likely to have drawn this article from Africa, 
 than to have had it amongst themselves ; and the system of sup- 
 plying themselves from Africa, as at present, has probably ex- 
 isted from the earliest times.
 
 SECTION XXIV. 
 
 CONCERNING THE CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, BY 
 THE SHIPS OF PHARAOH NECHO, KING OF EGYPT. 
 
 The ancient Authors divided in Opinion, respecting the Fact of 
 the Circumnavigation of Africa — Believed by Herodotus and 
 Pliny ; but doubted by Strabo, Polybius, and Ptolemy — Gene- 
 ral belief of a Communication between the Atlantic and Indian 
 Seas — Probability of the Circumnavigation liaving been pier- 
 formed — Slow rate of sailing of ancient Ships, with some of 
 the supposed Causes — Time required to surround Africa, at 
 that rate of sailing — Brief Description of the Voyage set on 
 foot by Pharaoh Necho — The Naval Power of Egypt at that 
 Period increases the probability of the story — The Ancients 
 had an early knowledge of the coasts of Africa, as far as 
 Guinea and Sofala — The subject illustrated by a reference to 
 the Portugueze and Spanish Voyages of Discovery in the 15th 
 Century ; those of the Portugueze, prompted by the Information 
 communicated by the Arabian Geographers : that of Columbus 
 induced by a prodigious Error in the existing Systems of 
 Geography — Globe of Nuremberg — Proof that the Arabs 
 knew the general Extent of Africa so early as the \^th Cen- 
 tury, at least — Monsoons and Seasons in the Indian Ocean, 
 known to the Phoenicians and Egyptians — Date of the Enter- 
 prise '. 
 
 It was a matter of undoubted belief with Herodotus, 
 tliat Africa had been circumnavigated, for he not 
 
 ' TJie reader is referred to the Map No. X, opposite to this
 
 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, &c. 349 
 
 only gives a short history of the navigation itself, 
 undertaken by order of Necho (or Pharaoh Necho), 
 and accomplished by the aid of Phoenician mariners; 
 but in a second place remarks, that the Atlantic, 
 the Indian, and the Mediterranean seas, formed but 
 ONE OCEAN : and moreover, in a third place, says 
 that Xerxes commuted the capital punishment of an 
 individual of high rank into that of sailing round 
 Africa. And as no guilt is imputed to the ships' 
 crews so employed, we must suppose that the mea- 
 sure was deemed, and perhaps was hioivn, to be 
 practicable, although difficult and tedious. 
 
 We cannot conclude any other, than that Herodo- 
 tus was then addressing himself to a people who 
 believed in the truth of the discovery, and may sup- 
 pose that he collected the particulars concerning it 
 during his residence in Egypt, about 175 years, or 
 less, after the discovery, and whilst it remained fresh 
 in the minds of the people at large ^. 
 
 Nor was Herodotus the only author of antiquity, 
 amongst those whose works have come down to us, 
 who believed that Africa had been sailed round ; for 
 
 Section, for explanations respecting the navigation, and the 
 direction of the general winds and currents. 
 
 ^ We observe in a French literary journal lately published, 
 that M. Gosselin has given a decided opinion that the ancients 
 never went more than 180 leagues to the southward of the strait 
 of Gil)raltar ; that is, short of Cape Bajador. Can we doubt, 
 then, the truth of the representations of the Senegal and Gambia 
 rivers, in Ptolemy ; or of the coast, to about the lengtli of Scrra 
 Leona ? Or the notices concerning the river Gambia (Bam- 
 bolus) in Pliny?
 
 S50 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 Pliny believed that it had been achieved by Hanno, 
 Eudoxus, and others, but he is silent concerning the 
 voyage of Necho, whence it may be suspected, that, 
 as this navigation was made much about the same 
 time with that of Hanno, Pliny may have confounded 
 them together, referring the actions of the Egyp- 
 tian to the Carthaginian. 
 
 It is equally remarkable that Herodotus appears 
 to be ignorant of the voyage of Hanno, unless he, in 
 turn, may be supposed to confound it with the trad- 
 ing voyages noticed by him, of the Carthaginians 
 to the western coast of Africa. 
 
 Pliny says, lib. v. c. 1. " that Hanno, a great com- 
 mander amongst the Carthaginians, during the most 
 flourishing times of Carthage, was directed to ex- 
 plore the whole extent of the coast of Africa." And, 
 lib. ii. 67, *' that Hanno sailed round from Gades to 
 the utmost extent of Arabia, and wrote an account 
 of the voyage ; at which same time Hamilcar was 
 sent to discover the remote coasts of Europe ^" 
 
 In the same place he relates from Cornelius Nepos, 
 " that, in his time, Eudoxus, a great mariner, sailed 
 
 ^ It may be suspected that Pliny had never read the journal 
 of Hanno itself, but took his ideas of it, either from extracts, or 
 the comments, or remarks of others. Otherwise, how could he 
 have been mistaken so far as to suppose that Hanno had sailed 
 round Africa ? or, as to disbelieve the fact of his founding of 
 cities on the coast of Africa ? lib. v. 1 . Probably he collected 
 his ideas from Xenophon of Lampsacus, as he quotes him, 
 respecting the Gorgon, or Gorillean women, whom Hanno is said 
 to have killed and flayed, and whose skins were hung up in a 
 temple in Carthage. These were, in effect, a species of baboons, 
 concerning which more will be said in a succeeding Section.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 351 
 
 from the Arabian ^vi\i to Gades." Lib. v. 1. Poni- 
 ponius Mela has preserved the same fact *. Lib. iii. 
 c. 10. 
 
 It is equally certain that Eratosthenes believed 
 (and perhaps kneiv, from circumstances) that Africa 
 was surrounded by the ocean (Strabo, p. 56), as 
 also that Strabo believed it, but doubted the fact of 
 its having been sailed round. His idea was, that 
 Africa formed a triangle, the base of which extended 
 along the Mediterranean sea, and whose vertex was 
 situated at no great distance beyond the fountains of 
 the Nile. P. 825, 826. Thus he conceived that the 
 western side was straight, or rather concave, instead 
 of swelling out ; as also that the Mediterranean lay 
 nearly in the direction of the parallel, and the Ara- 
 bian gulf, as near to the meridian ; consequently he 
 must have supposed that the western side of Africa 
 lay in a south-easterly direction •\ 
 
 Lastly, Scylax, p. 55, says that it was an opinion 
 with some, that Libya was a peninsida. 
 
 However, we do not mean to conceal, that others 
 of the ancients either doubted, or totally denied the 
 fact. We shall mention as the most respectable of 
 that class, Polybius and Ptolemy. The former, who 
 
 * Tliis was something more than a century before our era. 
 Eudoxus was in the service of Ptolemy Lathjms, king of 
 Egypt. 
 
 ^ It was the opinion of most of the ancient geographers, ni 
 which tliey have been followed by the Arabians, that the coast of 
 Africa, from about the termination of mount Atlas, trended to 
 the south, or eastward of south. None suspected its swelling 
 out 12 degrees nearly, beyond the straits.
 
 S52 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 it appears, had been employed by Scipio Africanus 
 the Second, called also iEmilianus, in a voyage of 
 discovery, or observation, and had penetrated, at 
 least, to the point from whence Hanno returned, 
 (about Serra Leona) says, " It has never been 
 known with any certainty, whether Ethiopia be a 
 continued tract, extending to the south, or whether 
 it be surrounded by the sea." Lib. iii. 4. The 
 infirmities of human nature might induce him to 
 hope that no one had gone farther than himself : for 
 certainly, a voyage to Serra Leona makes no figure 
 when compared to the circumnavigation of Africa ". 
 Ptolemy not only denies the junction of the Atlan- 
 tic and Indian seas, in which almost all the rest are 
 agreed, however they may doubt of a circumnaviga- 
 
 " Pliny relates, lib. v. 1, that PolyUus the historian had been 
 sent by Scipio /Emiliamis, during his warfare in Africa, with a 
 fleet to discover the coasts of that continent : and that many 
 particulars of this discovery were committed to writing. (As 
 neither this description, nor that of the Syrtes, or of Cerne, 
 quoted by Pliny, lib. vi. 31, from the same author, is to be found 
 amongst the remains of his works, we must suppose that they 
 once existed, but are lost.) Pliny speaks of this voyage in an 
 obscure manner ; but it may be collected from the circumstance 
 of the hill or mountain, called the Chariot of the Gods, (men- 
 tioned also by Hanno,) that the voyage of Polybius was continued 
 to about the same extent, with that of Hanno : that is, to the 
 neighbourhood of Serra Leona. 
 
 Polybius himself, doubtless, alludes to this voyage, when he 
 says, " I have exposed myself to great dangers and fatigue, in 
 traversing Africa, Spain, and Gaul, and in making voyages on the 
 exterior sea (the Atlantic), by which this part of the world is 
 bounded ; that we might be able to correct the mistakes of former 
 writers," &c. Lib. iii. c. 6.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 353 
 
 tion having been effected, but by his system, shuts 
 them completely up from each other, by giving such 
 a direction to the opposite coasts of Africa, as to 
 make them diverge from each other ; instead of con- 
 verging as others did. 
 
 Since so many of these authorities concur in the 
 belief that Africa had been sailed round, we cannot 
 readily guess why it should be doubted at present; 
 unless the moderns wish to appropriate to themselves 
 all the functions and powers of nautical discovery. 
 Few persons, we presume, are inclined to doubt that 
 voyages were undertaken by the Phoenicians, to 
 Britain, for tin ; by Hanno, to the western coast of 
 Africa, for the purpose of establishing colonies, and 
 to discover new lands ; by Scylax, from the Indus to 
 the Red sea, to explore the intermediate coasts ; and 
 by Nearchus, from the Indus to the Euphrates for 
 the same purpose. And to this list, may well be 
 added the voyages made at a yet earlier date than 
 any of the others, by the fleets of Solomon and of 
 Hiram, to OpMr and other places, for gold, ivory, 
 &c. : voyages, some of which, in point of duration, 
 are said to have equalled that of Necho ^ 
 
 ' It seems to be past a doubt, that two distinct kinds of 
 voyages were performed by these fleets : that to Opiiir, from 
 the Red sea ; and to the coast of Guinea, from the Mediterranean. 
 The reader may convince himself of this fact, by attending to 
 
 1 Kings, chapters ix. ver. 26 ; and x. ver. 22 : and also to 
 
 2 Chron. ch. viii. ver. 17; and ix. ver. 21. Although gold 
 made a part of each return, yet some of the other articles differ 
 in one fleet, from those in the other. See also Josephus, Antiq. 
 lil). viii. ch. 7. 
 
 It is difficult to fix the place intended by Oj^hir. Bruce, per- 
 
 VOL. II. A a
 
 354 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 Now as the difficulties of coasting voyages do not, 
 in respect of their length, increase beyond arith- 
 metical proportion, what should have prevented 
 Scylax, Hanno, or the Phoenicians, from extending 
 their voyages, had their employers been so inclined, 
 and preparations had been made accordingly ? It is 
 certain that the detailed voyage of Nearchus, and 
 other histories of ancient navigations, shew that the 
 ships of those times advanced at a remarkably slow 
 rate : and Nearchus slower than almost any other ; 
 perhaps, because his fleet was in a great part com- 
 posed of vessels that were ill calculated for sea 
 voyages ; being such merely as could be procured : 
 for his equipment was in some degree casual ; and 
 therefore, doubtless, in many respects deficient. 
 Nor does it alter the case that a part of his fleet was 
 composed of long ships, built for the purposes of 
 war and distant voyages ; for the rate of the slow 
 goers must necessarily have determined that of the 
 whole fleet. 
 
 However, the disadvantages of delay might be 
 compensated by security ; as the nature and con- 
 struction of those vessels were such, as to enable 
 them to procure shelter in most situations. The 
 difficulty of procuring provisions in long voyages 
 
 haps, may be right in supposing Sofala, in despite of his errors 
 and blunders respecting the monsoons, &c. The Author has a 
 tract on this subject, but he forbore to insert it, in a work 
 already much too bulky. 
 
 The Phoceans are said, Clio, 163, to have been the first of the 
 Greeks who made long voyages : but these appear to have been 
 confined to the Mediterranean and the coasts of Spain.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 355 
 
 along hostile shores, appears the most arduous part 
 of the task ; and it was morally impossible to store 
 those vessels with provisions for such long intervals 
 as are described. But when we read of voyages of 
 two and three years, both in sacred and profane his- 
 tory, we ought to suppose that suitable arrangements 
 w^ere made to meet the exigencies of the occasions, 
 although we may not be able to guess the mode of 
 accomplishing them ! 
 
 Herodotus, indeed, comes directly to the point, by 
 saying that the vessels of Necho waited in Libya, 
 the ripening of a harvest, from grain which they 
 themselves had soivn. This account, we have no 
 doubt, will be discredited by many ; from the obvious 
 difficulty of pursuing the whole process undisturbed, 
 even in a climate where the interval between seed 
 time and harvest, is only three months. We shall 
 say no more, than that we are unacquainted with the 
 particular habits and oeconomy of the navigators of 
 that day : that they had plenty of time allowed them 
 to perform their navigation in, had they even waited 
 tivo harvests, instead of the one, which the history 
 records. It may, however, be remarked, without 
 attempting to defend the truth of the assertion 
 absolutely, that such an idea, as that of travellers 
 depending in some shape on a harvest of their own, 
 is not confined to this instance alone ; for amongst 
 the preparations made by Tamerlane for his march 
 to China, in 1405, there were waggon-loads of seed 
 corn, to sow the fields on the road. See Sheref. 
 Timur, Book vi. c. 28 \ 
 
 ' As also, a vast number of she camels, for milk. A geiitle- 
 
 A a 2
 
 356 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 We have collected a number of examples of the 
 rate of sailing, of the ships of the Phoenicians, Gre- 
 cians, and Egyptians ; that is, of the best managed 
 and best constructed ships of those days ; as also a 
 number of particulars respecting that part of their 
 oeconomy, which relates to sheltering themselves, and 
 communicating with the shore ; in order that we may 
 have before us sufficient data, to determine the rate 
 of movement, and a general idea of their mode of 
 navigating ^ . 
 
 man who has been at Morocco, reports that the horses in the 
 Tombuctoo caravans, are often fed with the milk of camels. 
 
 ^ 1. " Miltiades, under ^azJOMr of an easterly wind, passed 
 in a single day from El(Sos in the Chersonese (of Thrace) to 
 LemnosJ" Herodotus, Erato, 140. The distance is 38 G. 
 miles only. 
 
 2. The fleet of Xerxes sailed in three days from the Euripus 
 to Phalerus, one of the ports o? Attica. Urania, 66. This is 
 about 96 G. miles, or 32 per day. The fleet was unusually great. 
 
 3. Nearchus reckoned the promontory of Maceta a day's sail 
 from him, when he first discovered it ; and it is shewn by cir- 
 cumstances, that the distance was about 38 G. miles. (Arrian's 
 Voyage of Nearchus.) 
 
 4. Scylax allows 75^ days for the navigation between Canoims 
 and the Pillars of Hercules ; equal to about 32 per day. (Peri- 
 plus of Scylax, p. 51.) 
 
 5. The Red sea is 40 days of navigation. Euterpe, 11. The 
 track which a ship must necessarily make through it, is about 
 1300 G. miles, or less ; so that the rate may be taken at S2 per 
 day. 
 
 6. The Euxine, is said by the same Author, Melpom. 186, to 
 be 16 days' navigation, from the Bosj^horus to the Phasis ; pro- 
 ducing about 38 per day. He says, indeed, nine days, and eight 
 nights ; which, according to his own rule, given in the same place, 
 is equal to 16 days.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 357 
 
 It is conceived that the fact of the slow progress 
 will be readily admitted ; since, in addition to so 
 many other examples, we have the reports of Near- 
 chus and Herodotus ; the first, respecting the lengtli 
 of a day's sail ; the latter, the space actually sailed 
 through, in the course of a day, and remarked as an 
 
 7. The Casjy'ian sea is said, by the same Author, Clio, 203, to 
 be 15 days' navigation, for a s7v/ft rowing vessel : and being 
 about 630 miles long, this allows a rate of 42. 
 
 8. Pliny, lib. vi. 23, says, that it was 40 days' sail from the 
 outlet of the Red sea, to the coast of India (Malabar), which is 
 about 1750 G. miles, equal to 44. 
 
 (He also reckons it 30 days' sail from Berenice, to the outlet of 
 the Red sea : this would give about 30 per day only.) 
 
 Mean of the 8 examples 37 
 
 Mean of the 6 first, which may be reckoned the 
 fairest and are most to the purpose . ... 35 
 
 ^ We may add, that the mean rate of Nearchus, was no 
 more than 22i, during his whole voyage ; and less than 30, 
 through the Persian gulf. But we regard his rate as unusually 
 low, for the reasons above stated. 
 
 It appears from Procopius (Vandal War, lib. i. c. 12.) that 
 the fleet of Belisarius was 16 days on its passage from Zante to 
 Caucana in Sicily. The distance being about 320 G. miles, 
 gives 20 such miles per day, or about 250 stadia. This must 
 be regarded as the effect of the oars, generally, there being very 
 little wind, or almost a continued calm. 
 
 Diodorus, lib. v. c. 2, says, that tin was carried across, in four 
 days, from Britain to Gaul, where it was landed, and carried 
 across to the mouth of the Rhone, in 30 journies. From the 
 descriptions, and the circumstances altogether, it appears to 
 have been embarked at St. Michael's Mount, in Cornwall, and 
 landed near the other mount of the same name, in France ; per- 
 haps at St. Maloes. This would give a rate of about 40 miles 
 per day. But he says that the western promontory of Britain is 
 four days' sail from the opposite continent,
 
 358 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 uncommon long run, in those days : as also the time 
 required to navigate the Red sea and the Euxine : 
 the latter of which appears to be reported from 
 Herodotus's own experience. In effect, none of 
 them differ materially from the rest. The mean of 
 all, then, being so low as 37 G. miles, we are natu- 
 rally led to inquire why there should be so great a 
 disproportion between the sailing of ancient and 
 modern ships ; since a day's sail (of 24 hours) of a 
 modern ship, cannot be reckoned at less than three 
 times that of the ancient ones ? Even the worst 
 description of modern vessels, of which we have any 
 knowledge, seems to be superior to the ancient ones 
 in respect of their daily progress ; and therefore we 
 suppose that some cause is to be looked for, besides 
 merely that of dulness of sailing. That this had a 
 considerable share in the delay, is evident from the 
 circumstance mentioned by Pliny (if we may depend 
 on his numbers) of the Roman ships sailing no more 
 than about 44 G. miles per day across the open sea, 
 between Arabia and India, in which we cannot sup- 
 pose them to have absolutely stopped at night, as in 
 their coasting voyages, and in soundings. We may 
 reckon, at a medium, 13 to 14 hours of daylight 
 throughout the year, in that parallel ; so that 3 
 miles per hour for the daylight, makes up the whole 
 sum, (bating 3 or 4 miles), which is a very slow rate 
 of sailing before the brisk monsoon that prevails in 
 that sea ; and leaves little or nothing for the night : 
 and although it is possible, or even probable, that 
 they may have lain to, during that interval, yet 10 
 or 11 hours drift, must amount to something.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. J59 
 
 However, we shall not lay so much stress on this 
 instance, (being a solitary one of the kind) as on the 
 others, in the coasting navigation. In these, it 
 appears almost certain, that the ordinary mode of 
 sailing, was confined to daylight ; for without a 
 compass, or a substitute for it, great danger must 
 have been incurred, in the night, where a small 
 error in the angle of the course would be fatal. 
 Light-houses on prominent parts of the coast, would 
 doubtless direct them, but this could not be a ge- 
 neral arrangement, and must have been confined to 
 particular coasts only. Notwithstanding, sailing by 
 night was doubtless practised occasionally, as in clear 
 moonlight, or at other times, when necessity pressed. 
 For, in the case of Nearchus, it was done more than 
 once, when he was assisted by a pilot, and on a 
 pretty straight coast ; and perhaps by the aid of 
 moonlight also. But then, famine pressed ; or the 
 nature of the shore, as at the mouths of the Eu- 
 phrates and Tigris, prevented his coming to an 
 anchor, or landing. 
 
 Sailing by night is also implied, where Scylax 
 admits ?ugkts as well as clai/s, in his calculation of 
 the distance between Carthage and the Columns of 
 Hercules ; a navigation by no means intricate, and 
 perhaps assisted by light-houses, or signal fires. It 
 must also have been occasionally practised in the 
 Euxine. See note to page 35G, article 6. 
 
 In effect, then, we must suppose a rate of sailing, 
 of only 2i sea (or geographic) miles per hour, or 
 less than 3 at the utmost. The cause might eitlier 
 be the defective form of the ship's hull, or the faulty
 
 360 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 disposition of the cargo or ballast, which might not 
 permit them to spread sail enough. Certainly, the 
 sails of ancient ships are represented on medals, as 
 being remarkably small, and do not seem to be on a 
 par, in that respect, even with the Chinese junks : 
 which, like the others, have generally lower masts 
 only. 
 
 If we reject the examples given by Herodotus, on 
 the Caspian sea ; and by Pliny in the open sea, as 
 being both out of rule; we have 35 only, for the 
 mean rate per day, of the Grecian, Egyptian, Phoe- 
 nician, and Carthaginian ships, between the time of 
 Darius Hystaspes and Alexander generally, and in 
 which none rise above 38, or fall below 32, sea 
 miles. 
 
 Now the distance from Suez, at the head of the 
 Red sea, to the mouth of the Nile, round Africa, 
 coastwise, may be about 224 degrees of a great 
 circle : and if we allow 23 miles per day as a mean 
 rate of sailing, since 38 appears to be a rate greater 
 than ordinary, for a single day ; and as there are 
 foul winds, and delays of various kinds to be taken 
 into the account, such as procuring water and pro- 
 visions by the way ; the former of which may be 
 regarded as a constant care, and practised whenso- 
 ever an occasion offered ' ; it appears that 585 such 
 sailing days, or say 19^ months, would be sufficient 
 for the performance of the voyage. And if to this 
 
 ^ For instance, Nearchus records, as an unusual circumstance, 
 his taking on board five days' water at the river Arosis ; because 
 he would not be able to land at the mouths of the Susicm and 
 Babylonian rivers. (Arrian's India.)
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. S6l 
 
 we add a twelvemonth more for the harvest, for re- 
 pairs of the ships in different ports, and for rest and 
 refreshment, we have an aggregate of no more than 
 two years, and somewhat more than half of the 
 third year, which comes within the time specified. 
 However, we do not hy any means intend to commit 
 ourselves in an opinion respecting the (economical 
 detail of voyages, for which there appear no data 
 to guide us ; but which voyages, notwithstanding our 
 ignorance of the detail, it may have been very pos- 
 sible to execute. 
 
 Herodotus's short narrative of this remarkable 
 transaction is as follows : 
 
 *' Except in that particular part which is conti- 
 guous to Asia, the whole of Africa is surrounded by 
 the sea. The first person who has proved this was, 
 as far as we are able to judge, Necho, king of Egypt. 
 When he had desisted from his attempt to join by a 
 canal the Nile with the Arabian gulf, he dispatched 
 some vessels, under the conduct o^ Phoenicians, with 
 directions to pass by the Columns of Hercules, and 
 after penetrating the northern ocean, to return to 
 Egypt. These Phoenicians, taking their course from 
 the Red sea, entered into the southern ocean : on 
 the approach of autumn they landed in Libya, and 
 planted some corn in the place where they happened 
 to find themselves ; when this was ripe, and they 
 had cut it down, they again departed. Having thus 
 consumed two years, they in the third passed the 
 Columns of Hercules, and returned to Egypt. Their 
 relation may obtain attention from others, but to me 
 it seems incredible, for they afhrmed, tliat having
 
 SG2 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 sailed round Africa, they had the sun on their right 
 hand. — Thus was Africa for the first time known." 
 Melpomene, 42. 
 
 The enterprising spirit oiNecho is further marked 
 by historians. Besides his commencing the canal 
 above-mentioned, and which he is said to have dis- 
 continued, because admonished by an oracle, he built 
 ships of war in both seas (Mediterranean and Red 
 sea) ; his fleets were occasionally employed, and 
 vestiges of his naval undertakings were still to be 
 seen in the time of Herodotus ^ He marched through 
 Palestine and Syria to attack the Assyrians near the 
 Euphrates ; and in his way defeated and slew the 
 king of Judah (Josiah) who opposed his march at 
 Megiddo ^ Defeating also the Assyrians (or Baby- 
 lonians) he took Carchemish, a large fortified city on 
 the Euphrates, and placed in it a strong garrison * : 
 and in his way homewards, took possession of Jeru- 
 salem ^ which Herodotus names Cadytis, and de- 
 
 ^ See Euterpe, 158, 159. How his fleets were employed, we 
 are not told. The voyage of discovery, no doubt, is one of the 
 services alluded to. 
 
 ^ 2 Kings xxiii. ver. 29. Euterpe, 159. 
 
 * Carchemish is doubtless intended for Circesium, now Kar- 
 kesia, in ruins. It is a pass into Mesopotamia, from Syria ; 
 situated at the conflux of the rivers Kabour and Euphrates. For 
 Carchemish, see 2 Kings xxiii. ver. 29 ; and 2 Chron. xxxv. 
 ver. 20. Procopius describes it in his Persian war, lib. ii. c. 3 : 
 and Amm. Marc. lib. xxiii ; who says it was fortified by Diocle- 
 sian. When Xenophon passed that way, there seems not to 
 have been any town or fortress. Anab. lib. 1. — Recalls the 
 Kabour the Araxes. 
 
 * 2 Chron. xxxvi. ver. 3 and 4. Euterpe, 159.
 
 oao 
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 36, 
 
 scribes as a considerable city, equal to the size of 
 Sardis. We may estimate the naval strength of 
 Egypt, about this period, by the wars entered into 
 with the Tyrians and Sidonians, by Apries •"', who 
 succeeded to tlie throne six years only after the death 
 of Necho. He took Sidon, and reduced Phoenicia 
 and Palestine generally. 
 
 Thus, in respect of naval power and enterprise, 
 the Egyptians appear to have been on a most re- 
 spectable footing at that day ; and, aided by the yet 
 superior skill and experience of the Phoenician com- 
 manders, who are said to have conducted the expe- 
 dition, every success might naturally have been 
 expected from their joint efforts. 
 
 It would be idle to suppose that a voyage of this 
 extent had been undertaken without a previous 
 knowledge of the positions of the coasts of Africa, as 
 well in the Atlantic as in the Indian ocean, to a very 
 considerable extent southward : on the contrary, we 
 should rather conclude that it was such a state of 
 knowledge alone, (and of which we trust we have 
 given sufficient proofs) which dictated the measure. 
 Moreover, it may be supposed that the people of 
 Africa communicated with each other by caravans, 
 at that day, as they do at present, in some degree at 
 least ; whence some general ideas of the extent, if 
 not of the form of the continent, must have been 
 collected by the Egyptians, who were not only a 
 commercial people, but had, as we have seen, in 
 
 ^ Euterpe, 161 : and Diodorus, lib. i. c. 5. Apries is the 
 Pharaoh Hophra of Jeremiah, cl). xliv. ver. 30.
 
 3G4 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 earlier times, extended their conquests into Ethiopia, 
 and were by no means a people who wanted curio- 
 sity. It is probable, therefore, that no part of 
 Africa remained unknown, save that which is at pre- 
 sent the least Jenown to Europeans ; and that is the 
 part beyond the mountainous belt which runs across 
 it, about the height of the sources of the Nile. It is 
 also to be supposed that this knowledge existed, 
 even before any progress was made in exploring the 
 coasts of the ocean. 
 
 In effect, we conceive it to be probable, that the 
 Phoenicians and Egyptians had, at different times, 
 explored the shores of this continent, as far as the 
 coast of Gu'mea on the one hand ; Mosamhique and 
 Sqfala on the other; before even the idea of the 
 great undertaking of the circumnavigation presented 
 itself. Such partial discoveries on each side of the 
 continent, were likely not only to prompt the in- 
 quiry, but to encourage the hopes of the adventurers 
 also ; in the first instance, by extending the sphere 
 of their knowledge on the side from whence they 
 departed ; and by affording a prospect of returning 
 the sooner within it again on the opposite side. 
 And, in our idea, much more probabiHty attaches to 
 the account, from its describing the navigation to 
 commence in the east, than in the west ; since it 
 seems to prove that the determination arose from a 
 previous experience of the winds and seasons : for 
 the undertaking would have been a much more dif- 
 ficult one from the west in the then state of navisra- 
 tion than from the east, as will be shewn in the 
 sequel.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. S65 
 
 The progress of the Portuguese discoveries of this 
 very continent, in latter times, under the patronage 
 and direction of the immortal Prince Henry of Por- 
 tugal, was consonant to these ideas. The works of 
 Ptolemy would inform the Portuguese that the coasts 
 of Africa were known in his time, as far at least as 
 Serra Leona on one side ; Mozamhiqiie, or more 
 probably, Sqfala, on the other ; and although it 
 might remain a doubt, how much farther the conti- 
 nent extended southward, yet Herodotus and Pliny 
 would inform them that it had been circum- 
 navigated ; Strabo and others, that the Atlantic and 
 Indian seas formed a junction on the south of Africa ; 
 facts, which must have had great weight with those 
 who projected the discovery, even if they had not 
 read the work of Abulfeda. 
 
 It is well known that a considerable interval 
 elapsed between the settling of Congo and the dis- 
 covery of the Cape of Good Hope ; as well as that 
 the latter discovery preceded by a considerable 
 interval (that is, about 11 years) the arrival of De 
 Gama in the Indian seas ^ 
 
 The progress of the Spanish discoveries in South 
 America, was exactly similar. That continent was 
 discovered by piecemeal ; and the passage into the 
 
 ' De Gama is said to have consumed 13 months in his 
 voyage from Lisbon to the hither part of India, althoujrh 
 ships very commonly go from London to the Ganges, in four 
 months, in the present times. Therefore the difference in the 
 lengtli of the voyages, between the ancient navigators and 
 De Gama, is not more striking than that between De Gama and 
 the navigators of our times.
 
 S66 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 south sea by the strait of Magellan, not till very long 
 after the coast had been explored to the parallel of 
 35" S, which was itself effected within 10 or 11 years 
 after Columbus's first discovery of the Bahama 
 islands. 
 
 It is not, perhaps, so universally known, that the 
 splendid discoveries of Columbus were prompted by 
 a geographical error of a most extraordinary magni- 
 tude, which placed the farther extremity of Asia, at 
 so great a distance to the east, as to encourage a 
 hope of reaching it more speedily by the west. This 
 error amounted to no less than one hundred and 
 fifty degrees of longitude ; as appears by the famous 
 globe of Nuremburg, made, by Martin Behaim, in 
 1492, the date of Columbus's voyage. Nay, some 
 at least of the geographers of that time believed 
 that Columbus's new discovery was really a part of 
 Asia; for, in a map made early in the 16th century, 
 it is joined to the eastern extremity of that conti- 
 nent. Errors have seldom been productive of so 
 much good ; but it has happened in some other 
 instances, that ignorance of impending difficulties, 
 and of the labour to be encountered, has ultimately 
 occasioned success, in the most difficult enterprises ^ 
 
 Even the system of Ptolemy, exceeds in longitude, 
 
 ® The Nuremberg globe allows no more than about 90 degrees 
 of v\-est longitude between Ferro and the eastern part of India ; 
 which is rather 240. Between Ferro and Cathai, Ferro and 
 Cipcmgu, (meant for northern part of China and Japan), he 
 allows only 70 degrees ; but they are, respectively, 220, and 
 200: consequently, the general error is 150 degrees; or 10 
 hours of the 24, in time.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 307 
 
 one third of the truth, between Cape St. Vincent 
 and the western part of China. This error may be 
 estimated at about 58 degrees ^ : but the maker of 
 the Nuremburg globe, IMartin Behaim, seems to 
 have disdained all bounds ; as if he wished to in- 
 spire his friend Columbus with the certain hopes of 
 reaching Asia by the ivest : since he allows little more 
 space between Europe and India, ivestward, than 
 there really is between them, in the opposite direction. 
 However, it is very clear that had not Columbus 
 effected the discovery of America when he did, the 
 Portuguese must, in the course of their voyages 
 southward, and at no great distance of time pro- 
 bably, have fallen in with the coast of Brazil ; in 
 which case. South America would have been the first 
 part discovered of the neiv continent \ But these 
 circumstances do not in the least diminish the merit 
 
 ' Eratosthenes and Strabo, great as their errors are, in parts 
 of their details, are not out more than about 10, and 5 degrees, 
 respectively, in the length of the two continents, in the parallel of 
 Cape St. Vincent and Rhodes ; and their errors are of the oppo- 
 site kind to those of Ptolemy and Behaim. The sentiment of 
 Eratosthenes, therefore, was of a different kind from that of the 
 modern navigator, as being prompted by a diffLrcnt idea of the 
 state of things : for he says (^Strabo, 61.) that " if it was not for 
 the vast extent of the Atlantic sea (all was Atlantic to him, from 
 west to east) ships might navigate from Simui to India, keeping 
 nearly in the same parallel ; or find new lands during their 
 course" See the statement of the distances, as given by the 
 above authors, in p. 225, Vol I. of this work. 
 
 1 The Cape of Good Hope was discovered in 1 186 ; America 
 in 1492 ; and De Gama sailed round the Cape to India in 1497 ; 
 so that the discovery of Columbus came between that of the 
 Cape, and the first voyage into the Indian sea. 
 
 J3
 
 368 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 of Columbus, the plan of whose voyage was entirely 
 unconnected with any other. 
 
 The speculation of Columbus, then, was to reach 
 a hnown distant country, by a supposed shorter road 
 than the one which the Prince of Portugal had 
 recently explored. This speculation was not only 
 deep, but was also such an one as could receive but 
 Httle aid in the execution from the preceding labours 
 of others. But Prince Henry was both prompted in 
 the design, and assisted in the execution, by such 
 labours ; but to what extent we cannot trace. How- 
 ever, we strongly suspect that he had received the 
 most positive assurances of the extent of the African 
 continent, southward, and of the consequent commu- 
 nication of the eastern and western seas, from the 
 Arabians; and more particularly from the works of 
 Abulfeda. 
 
 From what is set forth by this Author, who wrote 
 a century and a half before the Portuguese discovery 
 of the passage round the Cape of Good Hope ^ ; and 
 probably from notices that had existed amongst the 
 Arabs, for many ages prior to the date of his work ; 
 it appears, not only that \\iQfact of Africa being sur- 
 rounded by the ocean, was well known in the East, 
 but the general form of that continent also. This 
 
 ^ D'Herbelot says, that Abulfeda was born in the year of the 
 Hejera 672, and died in 732. According to the very useful 
 table, which exhibits the correspondence of the years of the 
 Hejera, with those of the Christian era, framed by my friend 
 Mr. Marsden, the above years of the Hejera correspond to 
 1273 and 1331 of the Christian era.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 369 
 
 applies with great force to the Portuguese scheme of 
 discovery, as it can scarcely be doubted, that, even 
 if copies of this author were not found in the hbraries, 
 in Spain and Portugal, yet that at least Prince 
 Henry of Portugal, who had travelled in Mahome- 
 dan countries, and had read and inquired so much, 
 with a view to promoting his favourite object of 
 discovery, must have seen them ^ 
 
 It appears, however, that Abulfeda's geography 
 was not known in England, in 1583 ; for we learn 
 from Mr. Newbury (then in Syria), that he was 
 commissioned by Mr. Hakluit to inquire after it, but 
 was unsuccessful. Probably his business did not 
 carry him amongst that class of people wdio were 
 acquainted w'ith such authors *. 
 
 Unless we are to suppose, that the knowledge of 
 African geography was more confined, in the flourish- 
 ing and commercial times of ancient Egypt, than 
 during the Caliphate, we may conceive that the 
 people of that country, and of Arabia, knew generally, 
 during the former period, those facts which are set 
 forth by Abulfeda. 
 
 For the same reason as we have extracted from 
 Abulfeda and Edrisi, in a former part of our work', 
 
 ' It is admitted by Be Barros, that Prince Henry collected mucli 
 information concerning the continent of Africa from the Arabs, 
 from the people of Fez and xMorocco, and from travellers in gene- 
 ral. He was himself at tlie siege of Ceuta in 1415, and is said to 
 have brought home with him from Africa, a strong inclination to 
 discover new lands and seas. He was then only in his 21st year. 
 
 * Hackluit's Collection of Voyages, Vol. ii. 
 
 '- That is, concerning the Nile. See p. 47. 
 VOL. II. B h
 
 370 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 we shall here extract from the former, his account of 
 what he styles the Great, or Ambient sea. 
 
 '' It is called the Ambient sea, because it surrounds 
 the ivhole extent of the continental lands. And 
 hence Aristotle calls it the Crowyi sea, as if it sur- 
 rounded the earth, just as a crown does the head. 
 In the description of this sea, we shall observe the 
 following method ; namely, in setting out from the 
 western side, and proceeding thence to the southern, 
 and successively to the eastern and northern, and at 
 last complete the circuit, by returning to the west, 
 from whence we set out. 
 
 " The western border, then, of this ambient sea, 
 namely, that which washes Africa and Spain, is 
 called the Ocean ; in which are the Fortunate islands, 
 ten degrees distant from the shore of Africa ^ Some 
 reckon their longitude from these islands, others from 
 the (western) shore of Africa. — This sea begins to 
 extend itself from the most southern shore of Mau- 
 retania, till it has passed the Desert of Lamtim, 
 which is a vast wilderness of barbarians, situated 
 between the borders of Mauretania, and those of 
 the various tracts of country, belonging to the 
 
 ® Here is a proof, amongst others, that Abulfeda thought the 
 coast of Africa lay very much in the direction of the meridian, 
 from the strait of Gibrahar, southward : and this accounts for 
 his idea, that the sea passes at the back of the mountains that 
 give rise to the Nile. 
 
 Another proof is, that when he speaks of the mouth of the 
 western Nile, intended for that of the Senegal river, he says, that 
 it is situated at 10| degrees to the east of the Fortunate (i. e. 
 Canary) islands. He perhaps took this general idea of the bear- 
 ing of the coast from Ptolemy.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 371 
 
 Nigritce. From thence it stretches (yet further) 
 towards the south, along uncultivated, un'mhahlted, 
 and unfrequented countries, until it has passed 
 beyond the Equator : after which, it bends to the 
 east, behind the mountains El Komri \ from whence 
 the Nile of Egypt has its sources. Again, it pro- 
 ceeds southward, and afterwards turns again to the 
 eastern quarter, passing by uncultivated shores, be- 
 hind the regions of the Zeiigitce; whence it takes a 
 north-easterly course to its junction with the seas of 
 India and China. It then takes an easterly course, 
 till it reaches the eastern extremity of the continent ; 
 that is, the region oi China; whence it bends north- 
 ward, and in its progress shuts up the eastern quarter 
 of China, till \i faces the mound or rampart of Jajuje 
 and Majuje (Gog and Magog ^). Thence it bends 
 westward, passing by regions of which we are igno- 
 rant, — and having passed the territories of the Rus- 
 sians'^, it takes a SW direction, and then again 
 ivestward, along the coast of various Injidel nations, 
 till it comes opposite to Italy, on the west. [^Per- 
 haps it should be north, as the German ocean seems 
 to be meant.^ Thence bending southward, it washes 
 the countries lying between Italy and Spain \ which 
 
 ' That is, the lunar mountains, or Mountains of the Moon, 
 as they are called by Ptolemy. And it appears from Mr. 
 Browne, that they are really so called in Africa. 
 
 » See before, page 201, Vol. I. 
 
 ® At this time, Siberia was not known even to the Russians. 
 
 ' Sxicitn and Italy were better known to the Mahomedans, 
 than the rest of Europe, in general ; and Spain, particularly, 
 from its having been in their possession. This is, in fact, the 
 only European kingdom particularized by Abulfcda. 
 
 Bb 2
 
 372 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 having passed, it proceeds to the shores of S^jain; 
 and finally, having extended itself along its western 
 side, it comes opposite to Sahta (Ceuta), which is 
 situated at the passage or crossing place [oi the 
 strait of Gibraltar^ from whence we set out ^" 
 
 Although this account is satisfactory, in respect 
 of the mode in which the ocean encircles generally 
 the old continent, yet it will be perceived that beyond 
 the western part of it, Abulfeda knew but little. 
 
 One particular is striking. He had an idea, in 
 common with the Greeks, that the eastern ocean 
 turned very short round to the ivest, after it had 
 ascended to the parallel of Rhodes ; for so he de- 
 scribes it. On the north of Europe he is very ob- 
 scure : and Siberia, as we have before observed, 
 was not known at that time to exist ; even by the 
 people of Europe. 
 
 With respect to Africa, we find him extending 
 the great body of it to the south of the Equator, 
 before it turned to the east, (an error of about four 
 degrees), but as he had placed the sources of the 
 Nile to the south of the Equator, and supposed also 
 that the ocean advanced to the back of the moun- 
 tains that contained them, he could not well do 
 otherwise. For the rest, as the southerly position 
 of Sofala seems to have been well known, it is not 
 improbable that he might, in idea, allow to Africa 
 the full extent which it is now known to have. We 
 now return to the subject of the circumnavigation. 
 
 ^ See Prolegomena, in Reiske's translation of Abulfeda, in 
 Buscliing's Hist, and Geogr. Mag. Vol. iv. p. 140.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 373 
 
 It must be allowed, that such a degree of know- 
 ledge as has been supposed, of the two seas which 
 w ash the opposite coasts of Africa, would have fur- 
 nished the ancient navigators with opportunities of 
 acquiring a general, if not a particular, knowledge 
 of the monsoons, as well as of the NE trade wind : 
 and although they might not have penetrated so far 
 into the Atlantic, as to have known the SE trade, 
 yet from having experienced a southerly monsoon in 
 the Indian sea, on the south of the equator, they 
 might expect a like wind in the Atlantic, at least 
 half the year. 
 
 The want of a substitute for the mariner's com- 
 pass, is insisted on by many, as having been a prime 
 obstacle to the accomplishment of such a navigation. 
 But we do not view the matter in such a light ; for 
 although it may be admitted as an insurmountable 
 obstacle to the discovery of America, in the way to 
 which an extensive ocean was to be crossed, yet the 
 voyage in question was a coasting voyage ; (although 
 indeed, on a scale very different from those to which 
 the term is at present applied, and nearly appro- 
 priated '\) Nor were the voyages of discovery of 
 the Portuguese, in this quarter, any other than 
 coasting voyages, the only mode in which they could 
 well be prosecuted ; where the object was to trace 
 the coast of a continent, with a view to discover and 
 to double its extremity. So that the discovery of 
 this passage might have been effected, had the 
 
 ' The voyages of the Phoenicians to Britain, as well as those 
 of Hanno, Nearchus, &c. were doubtless confined very closely to 
 the shore.
 
 374 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, &c. 
 
 magnet never been applied to the compass ; but, in 
 all probability, that of America, never. This, in 
 our idea, is the true state of the matter ^. But it is 
 however certain, that the Egyptian and Roman fleets 
 sailed on a direct course from the outlet of the Red 
 sea to the coast of Malabar, 1750 miles, without a 
 compass, although it took them up 40 days. They 
 were, however, certain of a fair wind both in going 
 and returning, for they took advantage of the mon- 
 soons : but those who embarked in the American 
 discoveries, had to contend with variable winds, and 
 had also a wider ocean to cross. 
 
 We may at least suppose that those Phoenicians 
 who directed the voyage, had their wits about them, 
 like other men, and profited by their knowledge of 
 seasons, obtained during their voyages in the Indian 
 sea, and in the Atlantic ; and though they might be 
 unable to guess the circumstances of i\{\n^s, further 
 on, they would not, at least, have made so great a 
 mistake at the outset, as to attempt to sail against 
 the monsoon ; since the changes must have been 
 familiar to them : for periodical winds prevail even 
 in the Red sea. 
 
 The date of this first circumnavigation of Africa, 
 may be supposed to be about 600 years before our 
 era; 175 before Herodotus wrote; and perhaps 
 about 400 after the voyages made by the fleets of 
 Solomon and Hiram. 
 
 * It cannot be doubted that the progress would have been 
 expedited by the aid of the compass ; because by its help, a ship 
 might sail on, during the night, as far as their knowledge ex- 
 tended during the day : whilst, under other circumstances, they 
 must have lain still.
 
 SECTION XXV. 
 
 THE CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, CONTINUED. 
 
 Supposed Progress of the Voyage, according to known circum- 
 stances and the nature of things — Great advantages in favour 
 of a Voyage by the West — Winds and Currents generally 
 favourable the whole way from the Red Sea to the Coast of 
 Guinea — Difficulty respecting Provisions — Current generally 
 adverse along the coasts of North Africa — General idea of the 
 Streams of Current in the Atlantic Ocean — a knowledge of 
 them highly important to modern Navigators — Progress of the 
 Expedition along the Coast of Guinea to Senegal — The Navi- 
 gators wait a Harvest on the Coast of Libya — Difficulty of the 
 Passage from Senegal to <Ae Region of westerly Winds — Dis- 
 advantages of ancient Ships in resjiect of Capacity for Stow- 
 age : Advantages in respect of obtaining Shelter — Facts illus- 
 trative of the Economy of ancient Ships ; proving that they 
 were generally secured by being drawn up on the Beach — Re- 
 marks naturally arising from the foregoing Navigation — For- 
 gotten in Egypt in the time of Ptolemy — J parallel instance 
 in Europe — Voyage of Sataspes to circumnavigate Africa by 
 the ^ast, fails — Carthaginian Voyages of Traffic to the western 
 Coast of Africa — The Narrative of the Expedition q/'Necho, 
 perhaps discredited by reason of its brevity. 
 
 It may be conceived that the Phoenicians employed 
 in this voyage of discovery by Ncclio, taking advan- 
 
 13
 
 376 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 tage of the proper seasons, entered the Erythrcean 
 (or Indian) sea, during the early part of the nortlieidy 
 monsoon ; that is, at the latter end of October, or 
 beginning of November ; when they might be cer- 
 tain of a fair wind, as far as the soiithern tropic ; 
 and also of a strong current in their favour the whole 
 way round the Cape of Good Hope. They might 
 arrive at the southern tropic by the end of January ; 
 that is, in the midst of the summer of the southern 
 hemisphere ; and, of course, during the best time to 
 accomplish the most difficult part of their voyage, 
 the doubling of the southern promontory of Africa ; 
 and overcoming the difficulties of a navigation of 
 more than 20 degrees of a great circle, through a 
 tract of variable winds, and most commonly in 
 winter, a stormy sea also. For this service then, 
 they had a great part of the summer and the autumn 
 before them : and it is to be noticed, that, through 
 the principal and most critical part of this space, the 
 sea along the coast has a regular motion in their 
 favour to the westward or SW ; as indeed had been 
 the case the greatest part of the way from the Red 
 sea,- at the season in which they navigated it : 
 although such a circumstance would have been felt 
 of less importance there, because of the constant fair 
 wind. 
 
 It is a circumstance as generally known, that, in 
 the south Atlantic, from about the 30th degree of 
 south latitude to the equator, or beyond it, a regular 
 SE wind (thence named the trade wind) prevails in 
 the open sea ; and, within the influence of the land, 
 a southerly wind, varying only some points to the
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 377 
 
 eastward or westward, according to the season or 
 time of day ; partaking, in some degree, of the 
 nature of land and sea-breezes. (This is more par- 
 ticularly the state of things in Ajyril and May.) 
 Throughout this space, then, they would find ixfair 
 wind, and but little bad weather : and such a wind, 
 as we have said before, it is probable they would, 
 from analogy, have calculated on, at the season in 
 which they might expect to arrive in this parallel in 
 the Atlantic. This is, however, reasoning on the 
 supposition that the Egyptians had the same general 
 idea of the extent of Africa southward, that the Por- 
 tuguese might have had, previous to tJieir expedi- 
 tions ; and which we believe to have been really the 
 case. 
 
 Thus far, then, circumstances have appeared to 
 be clearly in favour of a circumnavigation from the 
 east, in preference to that from the west; the 
 northerly monsoon in the Indian seas, correspond- 
 ing with the summer of the southern hemisphere ; 
 and the wind having at all times an inclination to the 
 southward, along the western coast of Africa, within 
 the same hemisphere, together with a current to the 
 northward for the most part. For, admitting that, 
 in the summer season, the variations of the wind 
 might enable them to ivork down this coast to 
 the Cape of Good Hope (in which perhaps we have 
 admitted a great deal, considering the structure of 
 ancient ships), yet neither could they, in all proba- 
 bility, have borne the bulfetings of the storms there, 
 when assailed by a strong adverse current at the 
 same time ; or have coasted the eastern side of the
 
 378 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 continent, with the additional obstacle of an adverse 
 monsoon. 
 
 At what season they arrived at the equator, it is 
 difficult to guess, as it must have depended chiefly on 
 the delays consequent on the state of the ships, and 
 the facihty of procuring water ; and, it may be, pro- 
 visions also, by the way \ Had they been able to 
 proceed directly onward, they might probably have 
 completed their navigation to the bay of St. Thomas 
 (beyond the equator) by the middle of July at 
 farthest : that is, allowing two months and a half 
 between their passing out of the monsoon, and their 
 enteri7ig the SE trade ; and nearly three months 
 more, from thence to the bay before-mentioned ^ 
 But the probabilities are, that they arrived there 
 very much later ; and had they arrived ever so early, 
 the navigation to the westward, along the coasts of 
 Guinea and Serra Leona, could not well be begun 
 till late in October. For, in this quarter, probably 
 owing to the position of the land (which, as in India, 
 is confined to one hemisphere only), much the same 
 changes, and those changes nearly at the same 
 periods, take place as within the limits of the mon- 
 soons : a SW wind and rainy weather beina: sue- 
 ceeded by a NE wind and dry weather, some time in 
 the month of October. The currents 7iear the shore, 
 and in the ocean, run in opposite directions : along 
 
 ' More remarks on the subject of provisions occur in the 
 sequel. 
 
 ^ Equal to about S5 degrees in distance, including tlie wind- 
 ings of the coast.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 379 
 
 the former, they appear to run to the east during 
 the whole year ; in the latter to the west : and as the 
 course of our navigators must have been confined 
 very near to the shore, the current would of course 
 be adverse to them at all times ; and in the SW 
 monsoon, the wind also ; and probably with an ac- 
 celeration of current. 
 
 It appears then, that had they arrived at the equa- 
 tor in July, they could not have made their way 
 westward till October at least ; and, on the other 
 hand, it is more than probable that, after a naviga- 
 tion of such length, great repairs must have been 
 necessary to the ships, besides rest and refreshment 
 to the crews : for a coasting voyage, even in the 
 improved state of modern navigation, is infinitely 
 more fatiguing than the longest voyage in the open 
 sea ^ Wherefore, the interval of 3-^ months between 
 the earliest j)ossihle time of arrival at the bay of 
 St. Thomas, and that of the commencement of the 
 season for sailing westward, appears even too short 
 for the above purposes. It seems, therefore, that 
 the beginning of November was the earliest prohahle 
 time of their departure, westward, along the coast of 
 Guinea. Arguing therefore. on this ground, we 
 shall have disposed of one whole twelvemonth, to 
 this period, since the ships entered the Indian ocean 
 at Cape Guardafui : to which is to be added, the 
 time consumed in the navigation down the Arabian 
 gulf, &c. to that point. Herodotus reckons the gulf 
 
 ^ See the history of the coasting navigation of Captain Cook, 
 in the Endeavour, along the eastern coast of New IIoHand, in 
 Hawkesvvorth's Voyage, Vol. iii.
 
 380 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 itself 40 days of navigation ; wherefore we may take 
 the whole, to Cape Guardafui^ at full two months *. 
 But then it is to be considered, that a ship which 
 w^ould require 40 days to sail the length of the Red 
 sea, must leave the head of it earlier than the latter 
 end of August or beginning of September (which the 
 anticipation of two months from Guardafui would 
 bring the point of departure to), or the season would 
 not admit of her getting into the ocean. Therefore, 
 we should rather date the commencement of the ex- 
 pedition at the end of July or beginning of August, 
 in the year preceding that of the arrival of the fleet 
 in the bay of St. Thomas : so that fifteen months 
 would have elapsed since they left their original 
 place of outset. 
 
 We wish the reader, however, to understand, that 
 our object is rather to shew the possibility of exe- 
 cuting the plan of this ancient expedition, by point- 
 ing out the steps by which it might have been ac- 
 complished, and by which so long an interval might 
 
 * The whole is about 30 degrees, equal to 78 days, at 23 
 miles per day. Perhaps this rate is too low ; as that arising on 
 the 40 days of Herodotus is too high for so long an interval, it 
 being 32 miles per day. It is probable that he stated what 
 might be done, rather than what was usually done. Pliny's 30 
 days, between Berenice and the ocean, give a rate of 30 miles. 
 It would appear that the rate of Nearchus, in the Persian gulf, 
 approaches very nearly to this calculation of Pliny, in the 
 Red sea. 
 
 The winds in the Arabian gulf are favourable to the naviga- 
 tion downwards, during the greatest part of the year : and in this 
 portion of it, the season in which we have supposed the Egyiitian 
 fleet to navigate it, is included.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 381 
 
 have been consumed, than to affect to describe the 
 exact progress of it, which it is impossible for any one 
 to know, at this time. We have therefore mentioned 
 a determinate time, more for the sake of prosecuting 
 the calcuhition than otherwise ; but it is highly pro- 
 bable that the fleet of discovery was directed to sail 
 to the point, proper for taking advantage of the 
 earliest part of the north-east monsoon, at a period 
 so early, as to preclude all danger of losing that 
 advantage by accidental delays. The probabilities 
 therefore are, that they departed from the head of 
 the Arabian gulf even earlier than we have stated : 
 and that they staid some time at the outlet of the 
 gulf, waiting for the change. Such a delay would 
 necessarily reduce the long interval allowed for the 
 navigation. 
 
 Before we proceed with the remaining particulars 
 of the route, we shall say a word concerning the sub- 
 ject oi provisions ; by much the most difficult point 
 to comprehend. 
 
 During the early part of the voyage, we may sup- 
 pose a constant and regular supply. A king of Egypt 
 who possessed the power and spirit of enterprise 
 attributed to Necho, could surely command, either 
 by means of influence or negociation, a supply of 
 provisions and necessaries for his fleets through the 
 Red sea. With equal probability, we may conclude 
 that the habits of intercourse with the people along 
 the eastern coast of Africa, would, by means of the 
 accustomed medium of commerce, procure them the 
 necessary supplies ; so that the fleet might be nearly 
 as well victualled when it arrived at Mozambique, or
 
 382 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 Sofala, as when it left the head of the Red sea. 
 Much perhaps, in this way, is not to be reckoned on, 
 between Sofala and Benguela, or Angola, where 
 they might arrive in 4, or 4-i- months afterwards ; 
 and where, it is probable, they made their ^r .9^ long 
 halt, after leaving the Arabian gulf; this being a 
 fruitful and productive country, and situated in the 
 heart of the southerly trade wind \ It appears that 
 along the rest of the western coast, as well as that of 
 Guinea, &c. and even to the rivers Gambia and 
 Senegal, there is at present, and no doubt was at 
 that time, a considerable degree of population ; and 
 plenty of provisions, in their seasons ". We return 
 to the voyage. 
 
 * That is, SE in the open sea ; south or SSW near the shore. 
 
 " Here it is proper to observe, that Captain Thompson and 
 Sir Home Popham found n(T fresh water in rivers or ponds, 
 between the parallels of 16" and 31" S : that is, in an extent of 
 900 miles, or more. But it is probable that the ancient naviga- 
 tors, who were accustomed to renew their stock of water conti- 
 nually, were possessed of more knowledge in this way than our 
 modern navigators, who fill their casks so seldom. They pro- 
 bably dug wells in the sea beach, as Nearchus did, and as is now 
 done on the desert coast of Persia, and other places. 
 
 Here we shall mention that the above named officers, whilst 
 exploring the western coast of Africa in 1786, saw a marble 
 cross on a rock near Angra Pequina, in lat. 26° 37' S. The 
 cross had on it the arms of Portugal, but the inscription was not 
 legible. It appears to be the southernmost of the two crosses 
 erected by B. Diaz in 1486, the year in which he discovered 
 the Cape of Good Hope. He called the place Santa Cruz. — 
 The marble had been taken from the adjacent rocks. 
 
 We learn from Barros, that Diaz sailed during this voyage 
 140 leagues to the eastward of the Cape, where he set up his 
 last cross, on one of the groupe of small islands in the Bay de
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 383 
 
 Let the next interval be supposed to have been 
 between the hight or bay of St. Thomas, and the 
 river of Senegal : a distance, along shore, of about 
 39 degrees. This perhaps might have been accom- 
 plished, at a proper season, in about four months ; 
 and probably not in less, because the motion of the 
 sea is generally adverse to the progress westward 
 and northward, along the whole extent of Africa, 
 from St. Thomas to Cape Bojador. 
 
 The streams of current in the Atlantic are so 
 extensive and intricate, as to deserve a most minute 
 investigation on the score of navigation : but such an 
 investigation would be out of place, in a work already 
 too much extended, by matter that may perhaps be 
 deemed extraneous. A short view of the currents is 
 however absolutely necessary ; in order that the 
 reader may be enabled to form an opinion respect- 
 ing the just mentioned impediments to the remain- 
 ing part of the navigation in the Atlantic. 
 
 The currents in question, as well as those every 
 wdiere else, appear to be, in the first instance, the 
 effect of general winds, combined with the positions 
 of the different sea coasts ; after which, in some 
 
 Lagoa ; and which islands, from this circumstance, we may 
 suppose, were named Santa Cruz. Perestrello describes these 
 islands ; with the additional circumstance of there being shelter 
 at all times, within them, in 12 or 13 fathoms, clear sandy 
 around. He describes the small islands of Chaons to be some- 
 what farther to the east ; and these answer to the Doddington 
 rocks, which are, by the map, just 140 leagues to the eastward 
 of the Cape of Good Hope. See a French translation of Peres- 
 trello's Directory, in the Neptune Orientate of M. d'Apres, 2d 
 edition.
 
 384 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 caseS;, the confluences of different currents^ in the 
 ocean, occasion them to take new lines of direction : 
 and in others, by the separation of the stream, the 
 parts of the same original body, flow in lines, very 
 wide of each otlier. Much knowledge respecting 
 this subject has been obtained, since the invention 
 of time-keepers ; but even yet, the subject is new. 
 We shall endeavour to compress our discussion into 
 as short a compass, as is consistent with perspicuity ; 
 and trust that it will not prove absolutely useless, 
 as it respects modern navigations ^ 
 
 Those navigators who have attended strictly to 
 their reckonings, and have also had opportunities of 
 comparing them with coelestial observations and 
 time-keepers, find that there is a constant motion of 
 the sea to the southward, along the western coasts 
 of Europe and Africa, from the parallel of Ireland, 
 at least, to the borders of the south-east trade-wind ; 
 which, in the Atlantic, is generally found to the 
 northward of the equator : and, on the other hand, 
 a motion of the sea to the north, from the southern 
 extremity of Africa, to the equator, or rather beyond 
 it. It will be understood that we here mean, the 
 general direction of the great body of each of these 
 streams ; and that we except those particular veins 
 of them which are influenced or produced by inlets 
 or projections of the coast, or other local circum- 
 stances. Such is the counter current in the Bay of 
 Biscay ; the indraught of the Strait of Gibraltar ; 
 
 ' There will be found in the Map No, X, at page 348, drawn 
 for the purpose of explaining the present subject, the direction 
 of the currents in the part of the Atlantic under discussion.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 385 
 
 and the ohliquities and eddies produced by Cape 
 Blanco, Cape Verde, and Cape Palmas. The same 
 is to be said of the tides. We shall begin with the 
 current on the north of the equator. 
 
 This motion of the sea is felt in the line between 
 the west side of Ireland, Madeira, the Canary, and 
 Cape Verde islands ; but to what distance into the 
 ocean, westward, we know not. Between Ireland 
 and the Canaries, it inclines but little to the west of 
 south : between that and latitude 12°, in the meri- 
 dian of St. Jago (Cape Verde Islands), it bends more 
 to the west, owing probably to the projection of the 
 intermediate coast ; but from the latter point to the 
 border of the SE trade, it turns considerably to the 
 eastward of south ; conforming again, in some de- 
 gree, to the shape of the continent, although pro- 
 tected to a greater distance from it, than before, by 
 the prominent form of Cape Verde. The sea within, 
 as far to the south as Cape Monte, is occupied by 
 uncertain and perplexing currents, influenced also 
 by the periodiccd winds ; for the seasons along the 
 coast of Guinea, and Serra Leona, (as we have said) 
 very much resemble the monsoons of India ; per- 
 haps from the same cause, the land being chiefly 
 on one side of the equator. So that, in effect, Cape 
 Verde, which is the western extremity of the great 
 belt of high land, that runs through North Africa, 
 is also the boundary between the fixed and the 
 periodical winds on the coast. 
 
 This is the great outline of the stream of current 
 from the northward; which, having reached the 
 parallel of two or three degrees nortli, about the 
 
 VOL. II. c c
 
 386 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 meridian of Cape Verde, (that is, the middle of the 
 stream), it there meets the great southern stream in 
 its escape from the gulf of Ethiopia. 
 
 This stream, which was originally impelled by the 
 southerly trade along the coast of South Africa (in 
 like manner as the other stream by the NE trade), is 
 increased by the continuation of the current round 
 the Cape of Good Hope, from the Indian sea ; and 
 also in its progress northward, by the strong southerly 
 winds that force the water into the Ethiopian gulf. 
 This accumulation of water escapes westward, in a 
 direction nearly parallel to the coast of Guinea ; but 
 not so near it as to prevent a narrow vein of easterly 
 current from passing within it ; although it ap- 
 proach in great strength within 35 or 40 leagues of 
 Cape Palmas, on the SW. This vein of easterly 
 current is a part of that which came originally from 
 the north, and which falls in again with the coast at 
 Cape Monte, near Sherbro' ; and thenceforward 
 conforms generally to the line of the coast, till it has 
 advanced beyond the equator ; when meeting the 
 southern stream, it is of course lost in it. It is ob- 
 vious, that the vein of current in question is the one 
 which obstructed our navigators in their progress 
 westward : it is said to run constantly during the 
 whole year ; and it was in the month of February 
 that the observations on which we principally depend 
 were made. 
 
 It is of much more importance to modern navi- 
 gators than to the point of our subject, that the re- 
 sult of the meeting of the two streams from the north 
 and south, near the equator, should be given. What
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 337 
 
 we shall detail respecting it, is collected from the 
 admirable journal of my friend Mr. Dairy mple, kept 
 on board the Grenville East Indiaman, in 1775 ; and 
 from the journal of Captain Cook, which latter, 
 although highly valuable, could not be published 
 throughout in so detailed a form as the other. 
 
 The junction of these almost opposite streams 
 produces a new direction of the confluent waters ; 
 but, as the stream from the east is, out of all pro- 
 portion, stronger than the other, the new line of 
 direction, instead of being a mean between the two, 
 which may be about S by W or SSW, becomes 
 WSW or SW by W only : on which points, or be- 
 tween them, this great body of water crosses the 
 equator in its passage towards the approximating 
 point of South America, nearly in the meridian of 
 St. J ago : that is, about midway between the two 
 continents. As it approaches America, it bends more 
 to the west, and by degrees to the north of west, as 
 it mixes with the northerly current that is formed by 
 the south-east trade wind, which blows obliquely 
 against the coast of Brazil. This northerly current 
 appears to be nearly equal in strength to the other : 
 and having passed Cape Roque, the new confluent 
 stream takes its course westward, along the coasts of 
 Brazil and Guiana ; and being continually augmented 
 by the operation of the NE trade, aided by the posi- 
 tions of the coasts and islands, it finally produces 
 that wonderful stream, called the Gulf Stream ; 
 concerning which it will be unnecessary to speak in 
 this place. 
 
 It is impossible to determine the breadth of the 
 
 cc2
 
 388 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 great equatorial stream : but we guess it to be no 
 less than five or six degrees^ where it crosses the 
 line ; although it is probably less, w^here it first 
 approaches the coast of Africa ; and where it also 
 acquires (as it would appear) its greatest degree of 
 velocity. In its track through the Ethiopic gulf, 
 where Captain Price crossed it in his way from Cape 
 Lopez to St. Helena, it appears to be eight to ten 
 degrees broad, from NE to SW. 
 
 The velocities of these currents differ very widely 
 in different places ; but the stream from the south 
 is almost every where the strongest. Where Cap- 
 tain Price crossed it, the greatest velocity was 22 
 miles in 24 hours to the north-westward ; and the 
 strongest part was nearest the African shore, the 
 weakest towards St. Helena. Nearly opposite Cape 
 Monte, in 2*^ to 3" north latitude, the rate was about 
 40 : thence to the meridian of the Bissago islands, 
 and at 1^ north of the hue, it increased to the sur- 
 prising rate of 76 and 77, during two days, but after- 
 w^ards diminished to 62 : and thence to 19^ or 20" 
 west, in 1" S latitude, to 35 and 30. It seems to 
 hold nearly the same rate till within 120 or 130 
 leagues of Cape Roque, when it abates in point of 
 strength as it declines to the west, until it is again 
 quickened by the northerly current of Brazil and the 
 NE trade. 
 
 It would appear that this stream of equatorial 
 current does not extend beyond two or three degrees 
 north of the line, or more than three or four south of 
 it in the part where it crosses. 
 
 From what has appeared, it seems certain that
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 389 
 
 navigators cannot cross the equator without crossing 
 this strong and wide stream of current also ; and 
 that they must lay their account with being carried 
 several degrees to the westward, unless they kept 
 close to the coast of Guinea, which is likely to prove 
 much more inconvenient, from other causes. 
 
 It has also appeared, that the current runs 
 strongest between 10 and 18 degrees west longi- 
 tude : there also it runs rather to the norths than to 
 the south of west ; to which may be added, that the 
 SE trade wind is more southerly there than farther 
 west : so that every circumstance is against this 
 track. On the other hand, within 5^ of longitude of 
 the coast of America, the current begins to turn to 
 the west and north of west. But between 18 and 
 30" of longitude, the current is the most moderate, 
 and also sets to the southward of west : and the 
 winds, the farther we go to the west, blow more 
 from the east : that is, are more favourable to a 
 southerly course. Within this space, therefore, is 
 the best track for crossing the equator and its cur- 
 rent ; and rather towards the eastern than the 
 western side of this space : perhaps the meridian of 
 St. Jago, 23|-^ may be the best of any. 
 
 The velocity, and other circumstances of the 
 stream from the northern hemisphere, are next to be 
 spoken of. From about Cape Cantin, northward, 
 the indraught of the strait of Gibraltar occasions a 
 motion of the sea that way ; but, on the opposite 
 side of this cape, the current runs to the southward, 
 and increases in velocity as it approaches Cape Boja- 
 dor. However, the general current from the north
 
 390 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 is much weaker than that from the south ; and 
 therefore the passage round Africa, from the Red 
 sea to the Mediterranean, appears at every step, as 
 we advance in the inquiry, to have been an easier 
 task than a different order of proceeding. 
 
 In the open sea, between the island of Madeira 
 and the south-east trade, the velocity does not appear 
 to exceed 10 to 14 miles per day ; but in approach- 
 ing the land of Cape Blanco, it is found to be in 
 some places 24. Along the coast of Guinea it varied 
 from 30 to 10, or 17 at a medium : and on that of 
 Serra Leona (or Western Guinea), it was about 12 
 southward, during the northerly monsoon ; eight or 
 nine northward, during the opposite one ; reckoned 
 at a medium of the northern and southern sets, 
 during the number of days that the ships were ex- 
 posed to it. But it is proper to observe, that no 
 degree of current was observable between the parallel 
 of 10", and that of the mouth of the Gambia, in 
 either season ; which still water appears to be owing 
 to the form of the land of Cape Verde, which throws 
 the current so wide into the ocean, as to prevent its 
 return in any shape, so as to disturb the quiet of the 
 sea, to the distance of several degrees beyond it. 
 And it may be remarked, that within the space sub- 
 ject to periodical winds and currents, the extensive 
 cluster of islands and shallows, named Bissagoes, 
 and also those of St. Anne, are found ^ 
 
 * Although tlie motion of the sea be, on the whole, more to 
 the nortli, in one season, and to the south in the other ; yet so 
 near the shore as a coasting vessel would navigate, the tide has 
 a considerable influence. In the offing, some of the old naviga-
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 391 
 
 Cape Blanco occasions a similar degree of quiet 
 in the bay of Arguin, which lies to the SE of it. 
 There also islands and shallows are accumulated to 
 a great extent : and the current does not close with 
 the shore for 50 or 60 leagues ; but it evidently 
 comes in to the north of the river Senegal ; since the 
 singular deviation in its course, near the sea, is the 
 effect of a southerly current, which has hurried its 
 depositions lower and lower down. 
 
 The singular form of Cape Verde is no doubt 
 owing to the general current on the north, and the 
 counter current on the south, which have corroded 
 the land on both sides, until nothing remains, save 
 the sharp termination of the base of the great moun- 
 tainous belt of North Africa. Concerning the 
 effect of the obliquity of the current, occasioned by 
 it, we have just spoken : but it may also be proper to 
 mention, that, as the conformation of the land affects 
 the water below, so it docs the atmosphere above : 
 for the trade winds during the winter of the northern 
 hemisphere, are inflected by it, from NE to NW. 
 
 These are the general outlines of the streams of 
 current in the south and east parts of the Atlantic ; 
 and which, to explain in a detailed manner, would 
 require a volume. It is highly probable that the 
 seasons may occasion a very considerable degree of 
 variation, in the length, and perhaps also in the 
 
 tors have remarked, that the currents are very uncertain and 
 distracting. Possibly a part of this seeming uncertainty arose 
 from bad reckonings ; for in the modern reckonings, checked by 
 time-keepers, and good observations of latitude, the currents 
 appear pretty regular here.
 
 392 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 breadth of the three principal streams ; that is, the 
 northern and southern ; and the equatorial current, 
 formed by the confluence of the two first : but there 
 is no reason to suppose that any alteration takes 
 place in their line of course. As for the particular 
 veins of current that are derived from the main 
 streams, and which conform to the indentings of the 
 coast, there is no question but that great changes 
 take place, as well in their courses, as in their 
 velocities, in such places as are subject to the 
 influence of periodical winds and of tides. We trust 
 that the length of this discussion will be pardoned 
 on the score of its applying as much to the business 
 of modern navigations, as to the elucidation of 
 ancient ones. 
 
 From the result of this inquiry, it appears, that 
 our circumnavigators, who could have navigated 
 the coast from the bay of St. Thomas to Senegal, 
 only in the seasons of the NE winds, or of the sea 
 and land breezes that prevail in the winter of the 
 northern hemisphere, must have had, generally, an 
 adverse current as far as ihe Bissagoes ; and again, 
 every where to the north of Cape Verde, (the bay of 
 Arguin excepted) as far as Cape Cantin. Moreover, 
 that from the Senegal river, to the end of the NE 
 trade, the wind, as well as the current, was against 
 them ; so that the latter part of the passage through 
 the ocean, must have been tedious indeed. We 
 return to the consideration of the detail of the 
 voyage. 
 
 The beginning of November has been fixed as 
 the earliest time of moving westward; and the dis-
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 393 
 
 tance, following the windings of the coast, has been 
 taken at 39 degrees (of a great circle). It has been 
 stated in page 390, sup. that they were opposed by 
 currents of different degrees of strength, and also 
 that there is a space (about five degrees) on the 
 south of Cape Verde, where the sea is still. There- 
 fore the impediment, calculated at a medium 
 throughout, may be taken at 13 miles per day. 
 
 It has also appeared that 35 miles was the medium 
 rate of sailing of the ancient ships (see page 360 sup.) ; 
 from which, 13 being deducted, leaves 22 for the net 
 progress. But even from this, there are to be 
 deducted all kinds of delays, whether casual, or 
 growing out of the ordinary wants of the crews, 
 and also accidents ; so that it is probable, that no 
 more than 18 can be allowed for the regular and 
 constant progress : and, it may be remarked, that 
 Nearchus advanced at no greater rate than 22^ per 
 day through the ocean ; although no current is 
 supposed; and very often 17 was the result of a 
 hard day's work ^. 
 
 The 39 degrees, at 18 per day, require 130 days, 
 or upwards of four calendar months ; so that they 
 could not arrive at the river of Senegal before the 
 beginning, or towards the middle, of March. 
 
 Here we may conceive the navigators to have 
 been again within the sphere of their knowledge ; on 
 a supposition that this part of the coast had been 
 already explored, in a general way, either by the 
 
 " It is proper to remark that the rate of Nearchus is founded 
 on the number of sailing days ; had it been on tlie gross number, 
 it would have been still lower.
 
 394 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 Egyptians or Phoenicians : and that they would be 
 apprised, in consequence, of their relative position to 
 the pillars of Hercules, and to their native country. 
 
 According to the foregoing calculation, they had 
 been about 19 months, or more, from the head of 
 the Red sea, vi^hen they arrived in the Senegal river ; 
 and might yet have a voyage of five months to per- 
 form, in order to complete their circumnavigation. 
 For although the distance from the Senegal to the 
 mouth of the Nile, along the coast, in the usual 
 way, does not exceed 57 degrees, yet they had to 
 contend (as we have shewn) with an adverse trade 
 wind, as well as a current, propagated by it, during 
 the first part of their voyage from Senegal home- 
 wards ; and which, from these circumstances, may 
 perhaps have been the most arduous part of the 
 whole \ And it may also be supposed, that, waiting 
 the September harvest, at the Senegal river, they 
 could not profit so much from the land and sea 
 breezes, as at an earlier period. 
 
 The space occupied by the still water in the bay 
 of Arguin, &c. being deducted, 10 or 11 degrees 
 remain, of a navigation, impeded by an adverse 
 current ; and where the wind, although subject to 
 hiflexions, from the alternate influence of the land 
 
 ^ The existence of this current, which is allowed on all 
 hands, is proved by the error of Hanno, who calculated that 
 Cerne, (Arguin) was just as far to the south of the Straits, as 
 Carthage was to the east of it. The difference, which is very 
 considerable, is occasioned by the current, of which Hanno 
 appears to have been ignorant ; he calculating merely by the 
 ship's reckoning. More will be said concerning it in the next 
 Section.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 395 
 
 and sea, is yet unfavourable. Perhaps^ less than 
 40 clays cannot be allowed for clearing the limits of 
 the NE trade wind ; or about 15 miles per day. 
 But beyond the trade, the 2wevalent winds would be 
 fair the whole way to the Nile : a distance calcu- 
 lated to be about equal to 80 sailing days, at the 
 mean rate of 35. However, allowing for the usual 
 delays and impediments, it may be taken at 110-; 
 and then we have 150 days, or about five months 
 from the Senegal to the Nile. 
 
 Here then, the aggregate of the time consumed 
 during the voyage to the Senegal, together with the 
 five months to the Nile, is just equal to two years ; 
 but we are told by the Historian, that " they con- 
 sumed two years hefore they set out from their 
 place of harvest in Libya, to return to Egypt ; where 
 they [of course] arrived in the third year." So that 
 on their arrival at Senegal, there would be wanting 
 of the two years, an interval of about five months, 
 or less, if we suppose this to be the place at which 
 they waited for a harvest, either of their own 
 raising, or (which is more likely), the ordinary har- 
 vest of the people of the country ^ 
 
 It may be contended, that there was no more 
 reason to wait a harvest here, than at any other 
 
 * We would be understood to mean in that auARTER only, and 
 not in any particular spot. The place may have been either the 
 Gambia or Senegal river, or even some place between the two ; 
 but sucli rivers were likely to attract the attention of the 
 voyagers •, and moreover, they would doubtless wish to return 
 within the limits of their knowledge, before they made another 
 considerable stay. 
 
 13
 
 396 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 point of their voyage : but it may be said, that 
 having now ascertained the probable length of the 
 remaining part of their voyage, they might resolve to 
 victual themselves at once for that whole interval ; 
 and that, without the aid of the expected harvest, 
 the people of the country might not have had a stock 
 sufficient for themselves and for the strangers also. 
 And in the mean time, the ships might have been 
 repaired, and every thing deficient replaced. Such 
 repairs are called for in all ships after their being a 
 long time at sea : (and even Nearchus was compelled 
 to repair his ships at the Sittacus river, although he 
 was then advanced within ten days' navigation of his 
 destined port.) We do not, in this place, advert to 
 such repairs as may be called for through common 
 accidents ; the time required for those being allowed 
 for in the ordinary calculation of sailing days. 
 
 We confess that no situation appears more proba- 
 ble than this, to wait the harvest described in the 
 history : for the period of two years (the interval 
 mentioned in the history, which, as a text, must be 
 our professed guide), would, apparently, expire in 
 this part of Africa, provided they made any great 
 stay. And although we have calculated the dates, 
 on the principle of their arriving at, and proceeding 
 along the coast of Guinea, at the beginning (nearly) 
 of the NE wind, yet they might, as we have hinted 
 before, have been delayed longer on the way, and 
 consequently have arrived later. They might also 
 have been longer on their voyage down the Arabian 
 gulf, than we have calculated, and might have sailed 
 earlier than necessity required, in order to secure the
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 397 
 
 full benefit of the NE monsoon in the Indian sea. 
 In consequence, the time of waiting at the place of 
 harvest, might have been not only short of five or six 
 months, but may have been three or four only. 
 
 ^ The harvests in this quarter are said to be in 
 September ; and the seed time in June, or the 
 beginning of July. Of course, our voyagers had a 
 long time to wait : and it may appear to those who 
 form their opinions of ancient navigations, by what 
 they see practised in their own times, to be highly 
 improbable that such arrangements should have 
 taken place. But the act of shortening by nearly 
 one third, the time employed in passages to and 
 from India, within these few years, at a time when 
 the art of navigation was supposed to be in a very 
 highly improved state, may prepare us for believing 
 that much greater changes and improvements had 
 taken place previous to that period. 
 
 If we suppose that they completed their store of 
 provisions, and were ready to sail, by the end of 
 September, tv;o years and two months would have 
 been consumed, since their departure from Egypt ; 
 and no one will suppose that the Historian meant to 
 be critically exact, when he mentioned the term of 
 two years. But, in fact, the truth of the tvhole 
 story does not rest on the consistency of this parti- 
 cular, any more than the truth of Hannibars expe- 
 dition into Italy, on the story of the effect of vinegar 
 on the Alpine rocks. No one believes the story of 
 the vinegar ; and no one disbelieves the history of 
 the expedition ^. 
 
 ' Perhaps it may not be known to many, lliat Sherefeddin,
 
 398 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 Thus it appears, that the principal difficulty to 
 be surmounted, in ancient voyages, arose from the 
 impracticability of storing the ships with provisions, 
 adequate to the vast length of time required for their 
 navigations ; where the rate of sailing was so remark- 
 ably slow. They were ill adapted to distant voyages ; 
 (and which, indeed, it appears, they seldom under- 
 took) : but did very well in situations where they 
 could land, and command provisions, almost at plea- 
 sure ; or at any rate, by compulsion, when they sailed 
 in fleets. But, on the other hand, they were better 
 adapted to those coasting voyages, which constituted 
 almost the whole of their navigations. The flatness 
 of their bottoms required much less depth of water 
 than modern vessels of the like tonnage ; whence 
 arose an incredible advantage over ours, in finding 
 shelter more frequently ; and indeed, almost every 
 where, except on a steep or rocky shore ; since in 
 default of shelter, afloat, they drew their large shij^s 
 upon the beach, as our fishermen do their large boats. 
 And we may certainly conclude that vessels of a con- 
 struction and size the best adapted to the service of 
 discovery and long voyages, were chosen on occa- 
 sions like the present. 
 
 In effect then, even the nature of their shelter, 
 oftentimes differed essentially from ours. Moreover, 
 by keeping close to the shore, they ran less hazard 
 
 the historian of Tamerlane, says, that vinegar was used in the 
 siege of Damascus (in like manner as by Hannibal) : that is, 
 they heated the stones of the wall, and then threw vinegar on 
 them ; after which, says he, they easily broke them to pieces 
 with hammers. Lib. v. c. 27.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 399 
 
 of missing such ports as suited them ; but which 
 would escape the observation of modern navigators ; 
 who, unable to profit of such advantages, endeavour 
 to balance the account, by avoiding the dangers of 
 lee shores and shallow waters. We conceive that 
 people sometimes entertain wrong ideas of the circum- 
 stances of ancient navigations ; reckoning amongst 
 the greatest difficulties, those which w^ere the easiest 
 surmounted. The voyage of Nearchus, the only 
 ancient one given in detail, convinces us, that the 
 perils of coasting navigations were not so great 
 amongst the ancients, as amongst the moderns. 
 Their ships, from the nature of their construction, 
 not only required less depth of water, but they got 
 off easier, and suffered less, when aground : and 
 when at anchor, they exposed a less surface to the 
 wind, from the lowness of their masts ; and, from 
 their lightness, rode with less strain. It will here 
 be necessary to enter into some details, relative to 
 the management of ancient ships, when near to, or 
 at the shore ; in order to shew that even the ships of 
 war were drawn up on the beach : and as it may 
 reasonably be supposed, that a smaller class were 
 employed in voyages of discovery, this circumstance 
 would render the operation yet easier. 
 
 Historians, as well as poets, are in the habit of 
 mentioning the practice of drawing up the ships on 
 the beach ; and oftentimes of inclosing them within 
 a rampart, on the land side. The fleet of Nearchus 
 was so drawn up, and fortified, twice during their 
 voyage ; and at other times drawn on shore to be 
 repaired.
 
 400 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 On many occasions, where the landing of the 
 crews of other fleets, in a body, is mentioned, we 
 cannot readily distinguish whether the ships' heads 
 were merely put to the shore, or whether the ships 
 were drawn up on the beach. 
 
 The grand fleet of Xerxes, consisting of 1200 
 triremes, and a vast number of smaller vessels, when 
 at Doriscus, " were brought to the shore, and the 
 crews enjoyed an interval of repose, whilst Xerxes 
 was reviewing the army," &c. Polym. 59 : after 
 which, (100) " the ships were pushed from the land, 
 and moored at 400 feet distant, with their jjf'ows 
 towards the shore, in an uniform line ; whilst Xerxes 
 reviewed them, passing between them and the shore 
 in a Sidonian vessel." 
 
 The crews of the combined fleet of Greece were 
 on shore at Salamis, when the news of their being 
 surrounded by the enemy arrived. Urania, 83. 
 
 But the most pointed notice concerning their mode 
 of procedure, on occasions that required shelter, is 
 that which occurs in the same fleet of Xerxes, pre- 
 vious to the storm on the coast of Magnesia, in which 
 400 ships were lost. Polymo 188. 
 
 '' As the shore was of no great extent, the fleet 
 was ranged in eight regular divisions, with their 
 heads to the main sea, in which situation they 
 passed the night." (He had before said, that the 
 foremost rank was drawn close to the land, and that 
 the others lay at anchor behind.) On the approach 
 of day, a furious storm arose, attended with a violent 
 gust of wind from the east, which the inhabitants of 
 these parts call a Hellesponticm wind. They who
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 401 
 
 foresaw that the tempest would still increase, and 
 'whose situation was favourahle, prevented the 
 effects of the storm, hy drawing their vessels 
 ashore ; and with them preserved their own persons. 
 Of those whom the hurricane surprised, farther 
 out at sea, some were driven to the Straits of 
 Pelion;' &c. 
 
 Here it appears that the want of a sufficient extent 
 of that kind of shore, on which ships might be drawn 
 up, prevented the whole fleet from being placed in a 
 state of security on the sea beach ; and which proba- 
 bly fell to the lot of few besides those in the front 
 line. It appears also that the crews only of such 
 ships as touched the shore were permitted to leave 
 their ships ; and which crews, on the increase of the 
 gale, were in a situation to draw them up, out of the 
 reach of the body of the siuf. No doubt, on other 
 occasions, it was likewise the practice to draw the 
 ships up, when threatening appearances were per- 
 ceived. 
 
 As this fleet was composed of the prime ships and 
 seamen of the Mediterranean at that time (the Phce- 
 nicians, lonians, and Egyptians), we may suppose 
 that every precaution was taken that skill and ex- 
 perience could suggest. 
 
 But to be enabled to accomplish the above pre- 
 cautionary step, the vessels must necessarily have 
 been very flat, since they are said to have been of 
 such bulk, as to require crews consisting of 200 
 mariners and 30 soldiers. Such a form, indeed, the 
 shape of the rudders of ancient ships sufficiently 
 
 VOL. II. D d
 
 402 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 testifies : a kind of oar, by which alone, projecting 
 far beyond the eddy water formed by the passage of 
 so full built a vessel, they could be steered with 
 effect. We may suppose, on the other hand, a 
 prow projecting far beyond the stem ; which facili- 
 tated the landing of the crew, or boarding an 
 enemy *. 
 
 Nearchus had long ships (or ships of war pur- 
 posely built), in his fleet ; and yet these ships came 
 down the Hydaspes and Indus ; a certain proof of 
 the flatness even of the ships of war. 
 
 The Chinese junks, whose structure we have ex- 
 amined, may be somewhat like the ancient ships ; 
 and may not have varied much amongst that wonder- 
 ful nation ; who, like the Hindoos, so early attained 
 the necessary point of improvement, but have never 
 reached the summit of it. 
 
 It appears improbable that voyages of circumnavi- 
 gation were repeated ; as well from the great delays 
 attending them, as that the articles of merchandize, 
 the most in request (particularly gold and ivory), 
 were to be had much nearer home. Hence, it would 
 appear, the discovery itself came to be forgotten 
 before the time of Ptolemy, even in Egypt, the coun- 
 try from, whence it was undertaken ; and in Alex- 
 andria, the greatest commercial mart in the world, 
 where one might have expected an event of a nature 
 
 * Whether such large ships as those described by Polybius, 
 lib. i. c. 2, in the contests between the Romans and Carthaginians, 
 in the second Punic war, and which carried 420 men, were drawn 
 ashore, like the others, we know not ; nor is it, indeed, to our 
 present purpose.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 403 
 
 SO interesting to navigation, would have been care- 
 fully treasured up \ 
 
 To those who may infer, from the silence of 
 Ptolemy, that the history of the expedition is to be 
 regarded as an imposition, we can say nothing 
 stronger in answer, than that the knowledge of the 
 discovery of the eastern side of New Holland, at a 
 period, perhaps 150 years before the voyage of 
 Captain Cook, was lost in Europe, until the chart of 
 the discovery was noticed in the British Museum a 
 few years ago, and posterior to the death of that 
 GREAT NAVIGATOR. Now, if tliis fact could be for- 
 gotten throughout Europe, in a century and a half, 
 and after the invention of printing, we cannot wonder 
 that the other should meet a similar fate, especially 
 after such circumnavigations had been long out of 
 use ; and at a time when registers of facts were with 
 more difficulty preserved ! 
 
 Herodotus gives, on the authority of the Cartha- 
 ginians, an account of voyages made to the western 
 coast of Africa, which contains some curious parti- 
 culars. These voyages may be considered as the 
 suite of those of Necho and Hanno. One of them 
 is the voyage of Sataspes (before-mentioned) in 
 order to circumnavigate Africa by the west ; but 
 which failed. Melp. 43. The others appear to be a 
 part of the regular commercial iiitercourse with 
 
 ^ Polybius, who lived 250 years before Ptolemy, cither did 
 not know it, or did not believe it. Lib. iii. c. 4. 
 
 The foundation of Alexandria was about 270 years after the 
 circumnavigation in question. 
 
 D d 2
 
 404 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 the people in the quarter towards the Senegal and 
 Gambia rivers. The former seems to confirm his 
 account of the expedition of Necho, and is as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 During the reign of Xerxes, Sataspes, of royal 
 descent in Persia, was condemned to death for an act 
 of violence ; but his punishment being commuted 
 into the task of sailing round the continent of Africa, 
 he was directed to set out from Egypt ^ by the 
 Mediterranean, and to return to it by the Arabian 
 gulf. As there is no intimation given that the crew 
 of his vessel (or vessels) were considered as criminals, 
 we must suppose that the punishment of the princi- 
 pal was to arise from the disgrace of banishment '^ 
 for two or three years ; together with the hardships 
 and fatigue attendant on so long continued a service, 
 to a man of high rank, and perhaps accustomed to 
 habits of luxury and ease. It may be conceived, 
 that some measure of utility was also intended, 
 though not expressed, by the Historiayi ; and that 
 the expence of an establishment was not incurred for 
 the sole purpose of punishing an individual. It is 
 possible, indeed, that a part of the punishment might 
 have been a fine equal to the cost of the expedition ; 
 although the Historian does not record it ". 
 
 ® Egypt then composed a part of the Persian empire. 
 
 ^ It was the practice to banish persons to the islands of the 
 Persian gulf: but the same persons were, notwithstanding, 
 called on to accompany Xerxes to the Grecian war. Thalia, 
 93; Polym. 80. 
 
 * It seems as if this story had been well known in Greece; for 
 Herodotus alludes, it seems, to a well-known anecdote concerning
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 405 
 
 Tlie narrative of that voyage sets forth, " that 
 passing the Columns of Hercules, he doubled the 
 promontory of Syloes, or Soloeis, (probably Cape 
 Canthi^) and steered a southerly course. That, 
 continuing his voyage for several months, in which 
 he passed over an immense tract of sea, and seeing 
 no probable termination of his labours, he returned 
 back to Egypt, and thence to the court of Xerxes, 
 giving as an excuse for the non- performance of his 
 instructions, that he could not advance any farther, 
 (or that his vessel was unahle to proceed). In con- 
 sequence of this, his former sentence was executed on 
 him ' " 
 
 Throughout this short narrative, nothing appears 
 that would lead us to suppose otherwise than that 
 the voyage was deemed lyracticahle^ although 
 difficult and tedious. For Sataspes did not deny 
 the physical possibility of executing the measure, but 
 only the possibility of performing it ivith his vessels. 
 And, on the other hand, Xerxes gave no credit to 
 his assertions ; that is, we may suppose, he hiew 
 that the measure had been accomplished by others, 
 and thought, of course, that it might have been per- 
 formed again. 
 
 It is very probable that Sataspes was discouraged 
 from prosecuting his voyage by the adverse winds and 
 currents that prevail on the coast of Serra Leona, 
 &c. from April to October, see page 385 ; and which 
 
 one of Sataspes' servants. Herodotus perhaps had seen some 
 of tlie parties concerned ; as the dates will allow of it. 
 
 '•• See above, page 1 9, et seq. 
 
 • This reminds us of the fate of Sir Walter Raleigh.
 
 406 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA 
 
 would be felt by those who left Egypt or Carthage 
 in the sjwiiig ; a more likely season to undertake an 
 expedition of this sort than in winter, when the 
 order of things is different. We can assign no 
 better reason for the failure, in this stage of the 
 undertaking : and it is the more likely, because the 
 duration of Sataspes' voyage, southward from So- 
 loeis, being " several months," will allow him to 
 have reached the coast in question. 
 
 The other account is, that the Carthaginians 
 traded with a people situated heyond the Columns ; 
 but with whom they had no personal communica- 
 tion. The mode of intercourse was effected by one 
 party leaving their merchandize to be exchanged on 
 the sea-beach ; and the other the gold in return : 
 and these exchanges (says our Author) were con- 
 ducted with good faith on both sides. Melp. 196. 
 The seat of this commerce may be guessed to have 
 been near the mouths of the above-mentioned 
 large rivers ; in the first place, because gold is more 
 commonly found to the southward of the Great 
 Desert ; and secondly, because it is said by Dr. Shaw, 
 that a like mode of trading exists at present, between 
 " the western Moors, and some barbarous nations, 
 bordering on the river Niger; and without the 
 least instance of dishonesty or perfidiousness on 
 either side^" 
 
 We conclude that the date of this traffic v/as 
 
 * Shaw's Travels, page 302. Dr. Wadstrom says the same of 
 certain people on the windward coast of Guinea : and Cadamosto, 
 of the people of Melli.
 
 BY THE EGYPTIANS. 407 
 
 posterior to the establishment of the colonies along 
 that coast, by Hanno : for in that voyage, the Senegal 
 river appears as a new discovery, and the mouth of 
 the Gambia was reckoned only a great opening of 
 the sea. And by other notices it appears probable 
 that the river Lixus (taken for the river St. Cijj)i'ian, 
 at about 90 G. miles to the northward of C. Blanco), 
 or the possessions of the tribe of Lixitce on its banks, 
 formed the boundary of the Carthaginian knowledge, 
 previous to Hanno's expedition. 
 
 As the journal of Hanno must be regarded, not 
 only as a curious document respecting the Cartha- 
 ginian settlements on the western coast of Africa, 
 but also as an immediate consequence of the Egyptian 
 discoveries ; and moreover, as it appears to have 
 been misunderstood by some, and its truth ques- 
 tioned by others, it is intended, in the succeeding 
 Section, to enter into an examination of certain 
 particulars of it, with a view to shew its consistency. 
 
 Thus, we conceive, the assertion of Herodotus 
 concerning the circumnavigation of Africa, will no 
 longer appear in the light of a mere tale ; since there 
 existed no physical impediment to its accomplish- 
 ment: and moreover, as it has been proved that it 
 was undertaken in a manner the most favourable to 
 its execution. Perhaps the brevity of the narra- 
 tion has been the occasion of its being rejected by 
 many ; at the same time that inscriptions or legends 
 of medals, though infinitely more brief, are implicitly 
 received as proofs of the facts recorded. Brief, 
 however, as the narration may be, it contains, as 
 M. Larcher justly remarks, a circumstance which is
 
 408 CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF AFRICA, &c. 
 
 an evidence to the truth of the voyage; namely, that 
 of the sun being on their right handy in saiUng 
 round Africa: and which, says he, could never have 
 been imagined in an age when astronomy was yet 
 in its infancy.
 
 SECTION XXVI, AND LAST. 
 
 AN EXAMINATION OF THE ACCOUNT OF THE VOYAGE OF 
 HANNO, ALONG THE WESTERN COAST OF NORTH 
 AFRICA. 
 
 Brevity of the Periplus — Consistency of its facts, generally, 
 ivhen tried by the test of geography, and local descriptions — 
 Stories of the streams of fire arid savage women accounted 
 for — Design of the expedition, to form commercial settlements — 
 Interval of time empiloyed, not correctly given — The Capes 
 Blanco and Verde ; the rivers of Senegal and Gambia ; and 
 the Island of Arguin, or Cerne, recognised in the Journal — 
 Evidence iyi favour of the truth of the Periplus, arising from 
 the effect of the southerly current — Cerne — Progress of the 
 expedition southward from the Gambia river — The Bay of 
 Bissago, ansrvers to the first Port : called the Western Horn — 
 Fires, from burning the herbage, appear terrifc to the 
 voyagers — The mountain named the Chariot of the Gods, 
 referred to that of Sagres, or Sangaree — Second Port, or 
 Southern Horn, taken for Sherbro' Sound or Bay — Termina- 
 tion of the voyage at this place — Agreement of the distance 
 sailed, with the time, according to the ancient rate of sailing — 
 Elucidations from Pliny and Ptolemy — Ideas of D'Anville, 
 Bougainville, and Gosselin, concerning this subject — General 
 remarks on the voyage — Probably undertaken in consequence 
 of the Egyptian discoveries — Commercial jealousy — The 
 southern expedition had probably for its object, the commerce of 
 the gold and ivory coasts of Guinea — Conclusion of the work. 
 
 It is a subject of much regret, that this curious
 
 410 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 remain of antiquity ^ should be so exceedingly brief; 
 and that it had not come down to us in its original 
 form ; as it is evidently no more than a very brief 
 abstract of a larger work. There appears, however, 
 much consistency in those facts which are susceptible 
 of trial, either by the test of geography, or a com- 
 parison with the descriptions of travellers ; although 
 they may be blended with stories oi fiery torrents y 
 and ivoynen covered with hair ; which stories, 
 altogether, do certainly give a cast of fable to it ; 
 and, at first sight, seem to rank this part of the 
 narrative with some of the voyages in the Arabian 
 Tales. 
 
 Certain persons have therefore endeavoured, and 
 that not without some degree of plausibility, to shew, 
 that the facts which thus cast a shade of fable over 
 the narrative, may be accounted for without having 
 recourse to fiction : and as it is of importance to an 
 author, that his reader should set out with a good 
 opinion of his veracity, we shall mention these 
 apologies in the outset. 
 
 First, of the streams of fire ; some of which were 
 said to run into the sea. This has been conjectured 
 
 ' The Periplus of Hanno will be found in Hudson's Geog. 
 Minores, Vol. i. Mr. Falconer, of C. C. C. Oxford, favoured the 
 public with an English translation of it, accompanied with the 
 Greek text, and explanations, in 1 797. The title of the Periplus 
 is " An Account of the Voyage of Hanno, Commander of the 
 Carthaginians, round the parts of Libya beyond the pillars of 
 Hercules, which he deposited in the temple of Saturn." 
 
 For the hydrography of this voyage the reader is referred to 
 the Map No. XI, opposite to this Section
 
 VOYAGE OF IIANNO. 411 
 
 to be nothing more than the burning of the dry 
 lierhage ; a practice which takes place, more or 
 less, in every country situated in the warm climates ; 
 and where vegetation is also rank. Its taking the 
 appearance of a river of fire, running into the sea, 
 is accounted for, from the more abundant herbage of 
 the vallies, or ravines ; which, as Mr. Bruce observes, 
 are shaded by their depth, and remain green the 
 longest. Consequently, being the last burnt, the 
 fire will, at that period, be confined to the hollow 
 parts of the country only; and when fired from 
 above, will have the appearance of rivers of fire, 
 running towards the sea. In other places, they saw 
 the whole surface of the country on fire ; from all 
 which may be inferred that this was the season of 
 burning the herbage. Mr. Park speaks very point- 
 edly to this purpose : and, it may be remarked, that 
 the scene of his observation was nearly in the same 
 parallel with that of Hanno : Mr. Park's being in 
 Manding, and Hanno's on the opposite coast ^. 
 
 ^ " The burning of the grass, in Manding (says Mr. Park,) 
 exhibits a scene of terrific grandeur. In the middle of tlie 
 night, I could see the plains and mountains, as far as my eye 
 could reach, variegated with lines of fire ; and the light reflected 
 on the sky, made the heavens appear in a blaze. In the day- 
 time, pillars of smoke were seen in every direction : while the 
 birds of prey were observed hovei-ing round the conflagration, 
 and pouncing down upon the snakes, lizards, and other reptiles, 
 which attempted to escape from the flames. This annual burn- 
 ing is soon followed by a fresh and sweet verdure, and the 
 country is thereby rendered more healthful and pleasant." 
 P. 259, 2G0. 
 
 He also remarks, that " in Ludamar and other Moorish 
 
 13
 
 41^ VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 The adventure of the hairy women presents 
 much less difficulty than the other ; since it is well 
 known, that a species of ape, or hahoon, agreeing in 
 description with those of Haiino, is found in the 
 quarter referred to, which must have been near 
 Serra Leona. Nor did the interpreters call them 
 women, but gorillcB : meaning no doubt to describe 
 apes, and not human creatures, possessing the gift 
 of speech. This part of the narrative, therefore, 
 admits of no difficulty, otherwise than that of won- 
 dering how the Carthaginians could be so far mis- 
 taken as to denominate them women ^. 
 
 countries, this practice is not allowed ; for it is upon the withered 
 stubble that the Moors feed their cattle, until the return of the 
 rains." Page 259. It may be remarked, that the first fires 
 seen by Hanno were at the entrance of the river Gambia ; that 
 is, after he had quitted the neighbourhood of the Desert : in 
 other words, the Moorish countries. If Mr. Park had written 
 with a design to illustrate the journal of Hanno he could hardly 
 have done it more effectually. 
 
 As this operation takes place after the rainy season ; perhaps 
 in November and December, this may be allowed to mark the 
 season of Hanno's visit to the coast of Serra Leona. 
 
 ^ The description of the ape found in Africa, called Pongo, 
 by M. de Bulfon (Vol. xiv.), and that which occurs in Dapper's 
 Travels, p. 249, and in Purchas (Vol. ii. page 982), are suffi- 
 cient to shew that an animal of the ape species, and which bears 
 a deformed resemblance of the human kind, is found in Western 
 Africa : .but a testimony of a yet more satisfactory nature, and 
 more to the point, as it comes from the very quarter, almost the 
 very spot, in which the above adventure of Hanno is placed, is 
 before us. Dr. Afzelius has brought with him from Serra Leona, 
 a dead specimen of this ape, which not only approaches nearer 
 to the human form, than any other kind of ape, but whose de-
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 413 
 
 The principal object of the expedition is set 
 forth in the journal, which opens with the following 
 information : 
 
 " It was decreed by the Carthaginians, that 
 Hanno should undertake a voyage beyond the 
 Pillars of Hercules, and found L'lbyplioenician 
 cities. He sailed accordingly with 60 ships of 50 
 oars each, and a body of men and women, to the 
 number of 30,000, and provisions and other necessa- 
 ries. 
 
 It is certain, that the numbers appear very great, 
 as well in respect of the extended scale of coloniza- 
 tion, as of the number of ships. However, the 
 Roman and Carthaginian ships of war, had crews of 
 420 men, according to Poly bins (lib. i. c. 2.) : and 
 the first city was founded at no great distance beyond 
 the Strait of Gibraltar, the rest short of Cape Boja- 
 dor ; so that the passengers did not continue on 
 board any great proportion of the time employed in 
 the voyage. But had the numbers been represented 
 greater, or the ships fewer in number, still there 
 might have been a corruption of the text. And as 
 numbers are so liable to corruption, it would be 
 
 portment and habits, whilst living, bespoke a superior degree of 
 intelligence to that of mere brute animals. 
 
 In the description given by Purchas, it is said that the Pon- 
 gees " are never taken alive, because of their great strength ; 
 unless by killing the females, they take the young ones that hang 
 fast upon the mother." It has been observed that those were 
 females which Hanno took ; but which " attacked their con- 
 ductors with their teeth and hands," so that they were, in effect, 
 compelled to kill them. Perhaps these nu'ght have been a dam 
 with its female young.
 
 414 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 unfair to allow such an error to preponderate against 
 a series of probable events. 
 
 The date of the expedition has been supposed to 
 be about 570 years before Christ ; but of this, more 
 will be said, after the circumstances of the expedition 
 have been fully discussed. 
 
 We shall first proceed to inquire into the interval 
 of time employed in the act of sailings and the 
 space gone through, as far as they can be collected 
 from the journal ; as these facts, combined with the 
 circumstances of description, will enable us to refer 
 the matter to a geographical test. 
 
 The aggregate of the time employed during the 
 voyage cannot, however, be obtained ; for we are 
 left totally in the dark during the early and greater 
 part of the voyage, respecting both the rate of sail- 
 ing, and the number of days they were in motion. 
 This interval includes the space, generally, between 
 the strait of Gibraltar and the river St. Cyprian 
 (taken for the greater Lixus), with the exception of 
 the two first days' sail, between the strait and Thy- 
 miaterium, supposed to be Marmora. But from 
 the Lixus, the time seems to be regularly given, to 
 the conclusion of the voyage, southward. 
 
 As in the discussion of the position of the promon- 
 tory of Soloeis, it became necessary to enter into the 
 particulars of the early part of this voyage from the 
 strait, southward, to the river Lixus, we shall beg 
 leave to refer the reader to Section XVI, page 10, 
 et seq. for our observations on that part. 
 
 The particulars of the time from the greater 
 Lixus, southward, are as follow :
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 415 
 
 From the Lixus, along the coast 
 of a desert country, sonthivard . 2 days. 
 
 From thence, eastward, to the 
 
 island of Cerne 1 
 
 - — o 
 
 From Cerne, coasting the shore 
 of the Ethiojnans, to the neigh- 
 bourhood of some mountains . . 12 
 
 Sailing round the mountains, to 
 a vast opening of the sea, bordered 
 
 hy j^^aiiis 2 
 
 — 14 
 
 To a large hai/ or gulf, called 
 the Western Horn .... 5 
 
 (N. B. Here, although there 
 seems to be an omission of time, 
 yet it is probably occasioned by the 
 mode of expression in the text.) 
 
 To the Chariot of the Gods, a 
 high mountain, which had fire on it 4 
 
 To a bay called the Southern 
 
 Horn 3 
 
 — - 12 
 
 Total 29 
 
 In our idea, it is impossible to refer the first 17 
 days to any part of the coast of Africa, except to 
 that between the river St. Cyprian, and the mouth 
 of the Gambia. The two first days, southward, 
 from the Lixus, and the third, eastward, to the 
 island of Cerne, express the sailing round the land
 
 416 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 of Cape Blanco \' and from that Cape, across the 
 haij to Arguln ; which they found situated " in a 
 recess of a hmjr Next, the 12 days southward, 
 coasthig the shore of the Ethiopians, on the last 
 of which days, " they approached some large moun- 
 tains covered with trees, (the wood of which was 
 sweet-scented and variegated)," agrees to the de- 
 scription of the coast between Arguin and Cape 
 Verde ; for, sailing round these mountains, in two 
 days, they came to " an immense opening of the 
 sea ; on each side of which, towards the continent, 
 was a plain .•" now this is perfectly descriptive of 
 sailing round the high land of Cape Verde, which is 
 covered with trees, of a lively verdure ; and of their 
 arrival at the wide embouchure of the Gambia river, 
 known to them only as '' a great opening of the sea." 
 
 Cape Verde appears to have been re-discovered in 
 modern times, by the Portuguese, about the year 
 1447. Here are the descriptions of it, by Cada- 
 mosto and Le Maire, at a subsequent period. 
 
 " It is a high and beautiful cape, which runs a 
 good length into the sea, and has two hills, or small 
 mountains, at the point of it. It is covered with 
 trees, which continue green all the year round." 
 (Cadamosto.) 
 
 " This famous promontory is named from the 
 
 * The distance is, in fact, about 90 miles between St. Cyprian 
 and C. Blanco ; but the current is known to run with great 
 velocity round the projecting shore between C. Barbas and C. 
 Blanco : and, of course, along a part of the way from the latter, 
 towards Arguin also.
 
 ^ VOYAGE OF HANNO. 417 
 
 perpetual verdure of the adjacent country, abound- 
 ing with beautiful lofty trees. It is very distinguish- 
 able in coming from the north, which side is some- 
 what mountainous. The south side, though low, 
 is pleasant, the strand being adorned with long rows 
 of large trees, standing as regularly as if planted by 
 art." (Le Maire.) 
 
 Perhaps, the contrast between the low, flat, desert 
 coast of Senegal, and the elevated land of C. Verde, 
 might have led Hanno to describe the land of the 
 cape more lofty than it really is. 
 
 The mouth of the Gambia (or Gambra) is 
 described by Cadamosto to be no less than six or 
 eisrht miles wide at the entrance, with low shores. 
 It may be added, that in this quarter Hanno first 
 saw the fires occasioned by the burning of the 
 herbage ; agreeing with Mr. Park's account, as we 
 have remarked, in page 412, sup. ^ 
 
 ^ The statement of the date of Cadamosto's voyage, given 
 by the Author, in the Appendix to Mr. Park's Travels, having 
 been flatly contradicted in the Critical Review for August, 1799, 
 the Author finds himself called on to say a word in defence of it, 
 since it was necessary to quote the same Author again in this 
 place. 
 
 The Reviewer says, *' Major Rennell supposes that the 
 Venetian Cadamosto wrote in the 15th century; and indeed he 
 expressly assigns him to the year 1455. If the Major could not 
 have recourse to the first edition of Cadamosto's Voyages, 
 •printed at Venice in 1507, he might at least have consulted the 
 old Latin translation, in that common book, the Novus Orhis of 
 Grynveus. He would there have found, that Cadamosto left 
 Venice in 1504, in the 21st year of his age, and that he sailed to 
 Africa in March, 1505." 
 
 The Reviewer is perfectly right in saying that Grynaeus lias 
 
 VOL. II. i^ e
 
 418 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 Here it is necessary to remark, that this was the 
 second time that our voyagers had sailed to the 
 
 the date 1505 : but the matter is far otherwise in the original 
 edition of 1507, printed at Venice, and to which he so confidently 
 refers ; as also in Ramusio ; and we beheve every w here else, 
 except in Grynceus. In those it is clearly 1455. The original 
 edition is a scarce book, and the Author could find it no where, 
 but in the library of his friend Mr. Dalrymple. Whose copy 
 the Reviewer examined, we are not told : but it would, to be 
 sure, be an odd coincidence, if the same faulty copy which misled 
 Grynseus, should also have fallen into the hands of our Reviewer ! 
 He, perhaps, will inform the public where it is, that it may not 
 mislead others. 
 
 The Reviewer, by the bye, has betrayed no small degree of 
 ignorance of his subject, by allowing these dates (if the supposed 
 faulty copy really exists) to mislead him so widely : for a Critic 
 should have known that the date 1505, could have no reference 
 to the voyages of Cadamosto. The suite of voyages of discovery 
 made by order of the Portuguese, along the western coast of 
 Africa, in which those of Cadamosto, in 1455, and 1456, are 
 included, terminated in 1486, by the discovery of the Cape of 
 Good Hope, by B. Diaz : and De Gama sailed round it to India, 
 in 1497. Moreover, Prince Henry, who employed Cadamosto, 
 died in 1463. 
 
 It is unpleasant to be thus compelled to solicit the attention of 
 the reader to personal matters ; but in a case where palpable 
 ignorance must be placed to the account, either of the Author, 
 or of the Reviewer (who has gone very far indeed out of the 
 way, in order to pass an unmerited censure), it is proper that the 
 reader should know on whose side the blame lies. The reader 
 may satisfy himself, by a reference to the history of the above 
 voyages ; and of the fact of Cadamosto being employed by 
 Prince Henry of Portugal (who, we repeat, died in 1463), at the 
 beginning of the history of the voyage itself, either in Ramusio 
 or Grynseus : the latter of which authors was no doubt well 
 apprised of the true date, notwithstanding the slip in his book. 
 
 As to the other remarks on his geography of Africa, in the
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 419 
 
 southward, from Cerne: and that the first time 
 they went no fartlier, apparently, than the Senegal 
 river. Leaving Cerne, the first time, they sailed up 
 the river Chretes, by whicli we understand the river 
 of St. John, situated at about 60 miles southward 
 from Arguin, or Cerne. This river led them to a lake, 
 which had in it " three islands, larger than Cerne ; 
 from which, proceeding a day's sail, they came to 
 the extremity of the lake, that was overhung by 
 large mountains inhabited by savage men, clothed 
 in skins of wild beasts, who drove them away by 
 throwing stones, and hindered them from landing." 
 At present, there are four large islands in the space 
 of about 30 miles, surrounded partly by the coast, 
 partly by banks in the sea ; and which space may 
 probably be meant for the lake ; but it is certain 
 that the river of St. John, at this time, falls into 
 that part of the lake which is the most distant 
 from Arguin. The land at the extremity of the 
 
 same Review, the Author cannot, with propriety, enter into an 
 examination of them, in this place ; otherwise than to say, that 
 they chiefly arise from the Reviewer's pinning his faith on Leo, 
 whose authority we have disregarded, in much of what relates to 
 the interior of Africa ; because he seems to have written from 
 hearsay. A man who says that the river of Tombuctoo runs to 
 the west, can hardly expect to be believed, at this time, concern- 
 ing what he relates of that quarter of Africa. 
 
 The Reviewer " advises the Major to read books, instead of 
 merely consulting them." On this occasion it is almost needless 
 to remark, that it is better even to consult books, than to read 
 them with so little effect as the adviser has done. But we beg 
 pardon of the reader for intruding so long on his time and 
 patience. 
 
 E e 2
 
 420 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 lake, may well be understood by Cape Mirie ; 
 which is about a day's sail (of the ancient standard) 
 from the opposite side of the above described 
 inclosed space. 
 
 " Sailing thence, they came to another river, 
 which was large and broad, and full of crocodiles 
 and river horses; whence returning back, they came 
 again to Cerne." In this river then, we recognise 
 the Senegal. At present its embouchure is more 
 than 200 miles beyond Cape Mirie; but it has 
 been shewn that there is reason to suppose that it 
 once joined the sea, at a place 60' higher up, towards 
 Mirie. (See page 391). 
 
 Had the great river in question been the Gambia, 
 we should have heard oi sailing round the mountains 
 (i. e. Cape Verde) in the Jirst voyage. On the 
 contrary, it appears that Cape Verde was a 7iew 
 object in the second voyage. 
 
 Besides the agreement of so many particulars, in 
 regular succession, the distances on the intervals of 
 time, will be found to agree likewise. Thus for 
 instance, on the 14 days' sailing from Cerne, to the 
 great opening, the first 12, on a southerly course, 
 brought them to the mountains covered with trees : 
 that is, to Cape Verde ; and 2 more to the great 
 opening, or mouth of the Gambia river. The space 
 on the map is 480 G. miles coastwise ; which allows 
 
 34 and a fraction per day. It has appeared that 
 
 35 was the mean rate of sailing, on ordinary occa- 
 sions: hef^e their business was discovery ; and it is 
 said that they coasted the shore very close, and with 
 a view to a communication with the natives ; who.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 4^1 
 
 however, eitlier kept aloof, or only approached to 
 prevent their landing. This necessarily delayed 
 them : and we must therefore account for their quick 
 progress, from the southerly current already described 
 to run along the coast, from the parallel of Cape 
 Cantin to Cape Verde; and which balanced the loss 
 by delay. 
 
 In effect then, the suite of positions may be re- 
 garded as fixed, as far as the Gambia : and, indeed, 
 it seems to be established by common consent, that 
 Arguin represents Cerne, and the river of Senegal 
 that of the crocodiles and river horses ; but 
 M. Bougainville supposes the high land to be that 
 of Serra Leona. To have reached this point, how- 
 ever, in 13 or 14 days from Cerne, they must have 
 sailed every day from 60 to 61 miles, which is highly 
 improbable, as their object could only have been pur- 
 sued with effect in day-light ". 
 
 It was necessary, in order to establish clearly the 
 position of Cerne, in this discussion, to extend the 
 chain of distance to the Gambia, in the first instance, 
 in order to shew its relative situation, both ways : 
 and regarding Cerne as the term of the^r*^ division 
 of the voyage, and where the plan of colonization 
 ended, we shall detain the reader here a moment, 
 whilst we mention some particulars concerning it, 
 and its supposed relative position to Carthage. 
 
 An assertion occurs in the journal, which has 
 hitherto passed unregarded (we believe) : for if 
 taken absolutely it is not true ; and no one has 
 
 " Sec Mein. Acutl. liiscrip. Vol. xxvi.
 
 422 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 thought of explaining it. It is said, " we judged 
 from our voyage, that this place lay in a direct line 
 with Carthage : for the length of our voyage from 
 Carthage to the Pillars, was equal to that from the 
 Pillars to Cerne." It seems then, that by their sea 
 reckoning, they had only advanced as far, since 
 leaving the strait, as from Carthage to the strait : 
 but the map shews that the line from the strait to 
 Arguin, is 320 G. miles longer, than that to Car- 
 thage ^ Now, it has appeared, page 385, that a 
 constant current runs to the south, along the western 
 coast of Africa ; and this accounts most completely 
 for the error of the reckoning ; and is, indeed, no 
 contemptible evidence in favour of the general 
 truth of the journal. But the expression of being 
 on a line with Carthage is singular, when it was 
 neither on the same parallel, nor under the same 
 meridian. What then constituted the line in ques- 
 tion ? Was it the base of a su})posed isosceles 
 triangle ; and that the Author meant to say nothing- 
 more, than that they had come down from the vertex 
 of that triangle, as much as they had gone up ? One 
 thing appears certain ; that is, that no ideas of 
 latitude and longitude existed at that time. 
 
 If we suppose (as before) the southern current to 
 commence about Cape Canting the fleet of Hanno 
 might have been subject to its influence near a 
 month, considering the nature of the service in 
 hand ; which we may conceive to be that of examin- 
 ing the coasts for places of shelter for ships ; and for 
 
 ' See again, No. XI, at page 409.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 423 
 
 situations proper to found cities in ; as also of making 
 inquiries concerning objects of commerce. Hence it 
 will not appear extraordinary, that they should have 
 been carried 320 miles beyond their reckoning. In 
 the offing, between Madeira and Cape Verde, the 
 Grenville was set to the southward 97 miles in 10 
 days ; and from England to Madeira, 206 in 16 
 days, in the month of May. 
 
 Cerne, or rather KernCy called by the modern 
 Europeans Arguin, and by the people of the oppo- 
 site continent Ghir, is in extent only a few miles. 
 The journalist allows it a circuit of five stadia only ; 
 an evident mistake, as it contained a city and colony. 
 As the Carthaginians and Phoenicians possessed it in 
 ancient times, so have several of the European na- 
 tions, in succession, in modern times : and amongst 
 the rest, the English. It is at present deserted, as 
 the establishments on the Senegal river answer the 
 purpose better : but the ancients seem to have pos- 
 sessed no settlement beyond Cerne ^. The articles 
 of commerce collected by the traders at this place, 
 were chiefly ivory, and the skins of lions, panthers, 
 and other animals '\ No mention is made of gum, a 
 staple article in modern times, or of gold ; but this 
 latter is collected farther to the south. 
 
 We shall now enter on the second division of the 
 voyage of Hanno, which seems to have been confined 
 solely to objects of discovery. As far as the Gambia, 
 
 ^ For an account of Arguin, see Labat's Voyages, and also 
 Astley's Collection of Voyages, Vol. ii. 
 " Scylax, p. 54.
 
 424 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 this part has been already considered : and we shall 
 continue it from that point. 
 
 " Having supplied themselves with water, they 
 sailed onwards five days, keeping near the shore ; 
 and then came to a large hay, which their inter- 
 preters (the LixitcB) told them was called the 
 Western Horn, In this was a large island, and in 
 the island a salt water lake ; and in this another 
 island, where, when they had landed, they could 
 discover nothing in the day time except trees ; but 
 in the night they saw many fires burning, and heard 
 the sound of pipes, cymbals, drums, and confused 
 shouts. They were then terrified, and their diviners 
 order them to abandon the island." 
 
 The bay or gulf of Bissago (or Bissao) is about 
 190 G. miles from the mouth of the Gambia, and the 
 island of Bulam, which forms a part of its southern 
 shore, short of 200. There are several islands 
 within the bay, and opposite to the coast lies the 
 extensive range of islands and shallows known by 
 the name of the Bissagoes ; sheltering the coast for 
 about 120 miles \ The distances just mentioned 
 agree well to five ordinary days' sailing ; and what 
 is more to the purpose, no other part of the coast, 
 within such a distance as is at all applicable to the 
 question, forms a sound of such a shape as answers 
 in any degree to the idea of a horn ; as will appear 
 by inspecting the chart at page 409. We are aware 
 that Ptolemy and Pliny, in which they are followed 
 by M. D'Anville and M. Bougainville, refer the 
 
 ' These are the Gorgades of Phny, vi. 31.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 425 
 
 horns to promontories, and not to inlets of the sea. 
 However probable such an idea might have been, 
 had the term been given without the description, 
 yet here the description is perfect in both the western 
 and southern horns : they were bays or gulfs, and 
 contained islands ; and the western horn, in parti- 
 cular, w^as said to be a large hay. Moreover, the 
 description of the island in the latter, is that of a flat 
 alluvial tract, covered with trees ; agreeing to that 
 of the islands in and about this gulf, which are 
 formed of the depositions of the Rio Grande, and 
 other streams, that roll down vast quantities of mud 
 and sand, when swoln by the periodical rains ; and 
 which have been distributed in the form that we now 
 see, by the periodical currents. 
 
 Considering the vast changes that alluvial tracts 
 undergo, it would be idle to expect to find the lake 
 and island above described ; as the one may be long 
 ago filled up, and the other become a part of the 
 continent ; and that, without any material change 
 having taken place in the general form of the sound 
 itself '. 
 
 Leaving the western horn, " they passed by a 
 
 ^ An island in this gulf or sound, is now named Sorcerer's 
 Island ; for what reason is not said. This was the term of the 
 voyage of Cadamosto, in 1456 : and which is said to have been 
 discontinued, because the interpreters had got out of their 
 knowledge. Those of Hanno (the Lixitce) failed him, before he 
 doubled Cape Verde ; although he took the name of this Western 
 Horn from the same interpreters. It is not said who told him 
 the name of the Southern Horn : but it is certain that the inter- 
 preters furnished him with the name of the Gorillcc, which are 
 also found higher up the coast, towards the Gambia.
 
 426 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 country which was on fire ; and streams of fire 
 appeared to run into the sea ^ They sailed quickly 
 thence, and at the end of four days, discovered at 
 night a country j^z^// of fire. In the middle was a 
 lofty fire, larger than the rest, which seemed to 
 touch the stars. When day came, they discovered 
 it to be a large hill, called the Chariot of the 
 Gods \ On the third day after their departure 
 thence, having sailed by those streams of fire, they 
 arrived at a bay called the Southern Horn; at the 
 bottom of which lay an island, as in the former, 
 having in it a lake, and in that lake another island ^, 
 full of savage people," &c. It was here, that the 
 GorillcB were taken (of which we have already 
 spoken) ; and this w^as the term of the voyage of 
 Hanno southward. We shall now examine the suite 
 of positions, from the bay of Bissago, or the Western 
 Horn, southward. 
 
 Twelve days are enumerated between the Gambia 
 and the Southern Horn ; of which five had elapsed 
 at their coming to their station in the Western 
 Horn ; and we remarked that the distance to Bissago 
 from the Gambia was 190 miles ; being equal to 38 
 miles per day ; which exceeds but little the mean 
 rate. If the amount of seven more such days' sailing, 
 equal to 266 miles, be extended southward along 
 shore, it reaches to Plantain Island, situated at about 
 
 ' See above, page 410. 
 
 * It does not appear who named this mountain : probably the 
 Carthaginians themselves. 
 
 ' What has been said respecting the changes by alluvions in 
 the Western Horn, applies equally here. See the last page.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 427 
 
 40 miles beyond Serra Leona; and if this island, 
 together with the chain of islands that extend from 
 Cape St. Anne, may be allowed to form the entrance 
 of Sherbro' Sound, we have in that sound, in point 
 of form, a southern horn, which is much on a par 
 with the western one ; and it may be added, that, 
 between the two, no bay or sound of such consider- 
 able depth and extent occurs, that can be compared 
 with either : and that of Serra Leona, which has the 
 fairest claim of any, does not accord with the situa- 
 tion *'. 
 
 A suspicion might arise that an interval of time 
 has been omitted between the Western Horn and 
 the hill named the Chariot of the Gods ; but be- 
 sides that a mountain, answering to the description 
 and position, is found in that of Sagres (vulg. San- 
 garee), there is a notice in Pliny, that serves to con- 
 firm the statement of the four days' sailing only 
 from the Western Horn, For Pliny says this in 
 positive terms, lib. vi. c. 30. Moreover, the moun- 
 tain being situated at about ISO G. miles "' from the 
 NW part of the bay of Bissago, agrees very well to 
 the four days' sail ; as they came in sight of it only 
 on the evening of the fourth day. It is true, that, 
 at the rate at which they sailed between the Gambia 
 river and Bissago, they should have been 28 miles 
 short of Sagres on that evening ; but although it 
 be necessary to calculate a mean rate for the great 
 portions of distance, yet it is obvious, that at any 
 
 * See again the Map at page 409. 
 
 ' If reckoned from the SE part of tlie bay, the distance will 
 be 17 or 18 miles less.
 
 428 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 given time, the fleet might have been more or less 
 advanced than that mean rate may point out. 
 Moreover, along this whole coast, owing doubtless 
 to the great number of sounds, rivers, and inlets, 
 that penetrate it to a great depth, regular and 
 strong tides prevail ; which, of course, might have 
 been made use of to aid the progress. 
 
 The description of the mountain of Sagres, com- 
 bined with that of the adjacent coasts, impresses 
 more conviction respecting its being the hill intended 
 by the Chariot of the Gods, than the measure of the 
 distance alone ; whether that might be either four or 
 five days' sail. 
 
 Lieutenant Matthews' Chart of the coast between 
 Rio Nunez and Sherbro', together with his descrip- 
 tion (in page 10, et seq.), shews us that this coast, 
 which extends 65 leagues, or near 200 G. miles, is, 
 with the exceptions which we shall presently state, 
 exceedingly low, to the extent of 5 to 20 miles in- 
 land (he compares it to the land at the mouths of the 
 Ganges, which he had probably seen) ; when it rises 
 gradually, and at 30 to 40 miles, swells into lofty 
 mountains, that may be seen 20 or 25 leagues off at 
 sea. The exceptions to this flat shore are, first, a 
 lateral chain of high hills, which strikes ofl" from the 
 great inland mountains, by the straightest line to the 
 neighbourhood of the coast, where it terminates in a 
 lofty conical mountain, before spoken of under the 
 name of Sangaree, or more properly Sagres. The 
 other exception is, the mountainous coast of Serra 
 Leona, which is about 24 miles in extent along the 
 coast, and is connected with the great inland ridge.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 429 
 
 by lateral chains of hills. The space between Sagres 
 and the nearest part of this mountainous coast, ap- 
 pears to be 50 to 55 G. miles ; so that Sagres itself 
 rises from a coast, which is perfectly flat, to such an 
 extent inland, as to render this mountain the great 
 marked feature of the coast. As such it is therefore 
 regarded ; and JVl. Bellin calls it in his chart, the 
 land-mark for the coast : for in approaching it from 
 the sea, it has the appearance of a single mountain : 
 and at a distance, along shore, of a lofty promontory. 
 Piedro de Cintra discovered this mountain, and 
 the point of Tumha ^ (within which it stands, at the 
 distance of a few miles) in 1462. His seamen 
 thought it the highest land they had seen. They 
 gave it the name of Sagres, from the fortress of that 
 name, built by Prince Henry of Portugal, on one of 
 the points of Cape St. Vincent : a situation appa- 
 rently chosen by him, because it commanded a grand 
 and extensive prospect of the ocean, to which his 
 magnificent views were extended. This Sagres was 
 distinguished from the other, by being called Cape 
 
 * The Portuguese called it Cape Sagres, from the mountain 
 seen over it. The islands De Loss lie opposite to it in the 
 offing. 
 
 Lieutenant Matthews places Sagres in lat. 9" 17'; Dr. Wad- 
 strom's Chart, in 9" 24'. The maps of this whole coast are 
 generally bad : an instance of which may be seen by comparing 
 Governor Dawes's survey of a part of the coast in Dr. Wad- 
 strom's map, with the ordinary ones. In constructing that of 
 North Africa, in 1798, it was found that the general charts erred 
 several degrees of longitude in the extent of the coast of Guinea.
 
 430 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 Sagres of Guinea. Prince Henry died in the fol- 
 lowing year ^. 
 
 This mountain then, may justly be regarded as 
 the Theon Ochema, Deorum Cur r us, or Chariot of 
 the 6^or/5, of our voyagers. What the nature of the 
 fire on it might be, we know not : but Dr. Afzelius, 
 who visited it during his residence in that country, 
 pronounces that it is not a volcanic mountain. As 
 w^e may conclude that the extensive fires beloiv 
 were occasioned by the burning of the rank herbage 
 in the alluvial plains, for the purposes' mentioned by 
 Mr. Park, it is easy to conceive that the fire might 
 ascend tlie mountain, and burn the dry herbage there 
 also. Pliny, however, certainly regarded it as a 
 volcano ; lib. vi. c. 30. The Portuguese discoverers 
 remarked no fires till they came into the neigh- 
 bourhood of Cape Monte: but it might have been 
 during a different season from that in which Hanno 
 visited it. 
 
 The next, and last, interval of distance, is between 
 this mountain and the Southern Horn ; and was 
 three days' sail. 
 
 Serra Leona is 50 miles only from Sagres, and 
 therefore is too near. But Sherbro', as we have 
 said, agrees. For if the entrance of this sound, or 
 inlet, is admitted to be formed by Plantain Island 
 on the one side, and the islands of St. Anne on the 
 other, the distance is no more than 92 miles from 
 
 ® It appears that the first discoverers, in modern times, the 
 Portuguese, extended the name of Guinea to the coast of Serra 
 Leona, and apparently as far as Rio Grande.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 431 
 
 Sagres : but admitting the sound to commence at 
 Cape St. Anne, then 112; which allows 31 miles 
 per day : or taking the whole distance from the 
 Gambia, 482 miles \ this divided by 12, the number 
 of sailing days, gives a rate of about 40 per day ; 
 which does not much exceed the mean rate. 
 
 Sherbro', as nearly as can be judged from the im- 
 perfect charts now in use, is a kind of sound formed 
 by one large island, and a great many small ones ; 
 and receives into it three principal rivers, from the 
 side of the continent. Its whole length appears to 
 be fifty miles, and breadth, at the western entrance, 
 more than fifteen. Jenkin's Town lies towards the 
 most retired part of it, in which there are some other 
 small islands. 
 
 We feel no hesitation in pronouncing this to be 
 the Southern Horn, described by Hanno ; and the 
 term of his expedition southward ; for, it may be 
 repeated, small differences, whether in point of dis- 
 tance, or of time, are not to be regarded. And if a 
 mean be taken on the whole voyage from Cerne to 
 Sherbro', the result will not exceed the mean of all 
 the examples of the rate of sailing of ancient ships, 
 set forth in the notes to page 356 : that is, 37 G. 
 miles. 
 
 In effect, two bays or sounds, answering to those 
 described by Hanno ; and which have between them, 
 at the prescribed distance, a mountain answering to 
 that called the Chariot of the Gods ; that is, at four 
 
 * That is, from the Gambia to Bissago, 190 ; to Sagres, 180 ; 
 and thence to St. Anne's, 112 : total, 482. 
 
 13
 
 432 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 days' sail from the one, and three from the other, can 
 only be found at Bissago and Sherbro'. 
 
 Those who may be inclined to consider Serra 
 Leona as the Southern Horn, must recollect that the 
 position of the mountain of Sagres will not suit the 
 length of the intervals ; and the other high lands are 
 too near to Bissago. 
 
 Ptolemy's Western Horn is a cape, agreeing 
 pointedly to that of Sagres, or Tumba ; his Deorum 
 Curriis is a ridge of mountains, very far inland 
 (and to the south of the Horn') ; and the point at 
 which he places the utmost limit of the knowledge of 
 navigators in the ocean, is about nine degrees, or 
 540 miles in distance, to the SE of the Arsinarium 
 promontory, or Cape Verd ; whence it has almost 
 exactly the same relative agreement with that cape, 
 as the point of termination of the voyage of Hanno 
 has in our geography. It cannot, however, be 
 known from what sources Ptolemy drew his know- 
 ledge : but if from the voyage of Hanno, it cannot 
 well be accounted for why he should have described 
 as a promontory, what the journalist of Hanno 
 describes as a bay or sound. One must conclude, 
 that any person who had read that journal, could 
 not have made such a mistake. 
 
 Pliny had heard of the voyage of Hanno, but be- 
 lieved that the account of it was lost : for he says, 
 lib. V. c, 1, that no memorial of that voyage, or re- 
 mains of the cities, were to be found. But he had, 
 notwithstanding, collected several particulars relat- 
 ing to it, which he must therefore have found in 
 other authors, who perhaps extracted them from the
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 433 
 
 original journal, without quoting the authority. It 
 is also to be remarked, that he had heard many par- 
 ticulars relating to the voyage of Polybius, and may 
 have referred some of them to that of Hanno. 
 
 He had also heard (see the same chapter) that the 
 Ethiopians kept within doors in the day, and re- 
 created themselves abroad, with music, in the night ; 
 as Hanno says. It has also been remarked, that he 
 had heard of the Western Horn, and of the moun- 
 tain that was on fire. 
 
 There is also a remark in the same author, which 
 shews his idea of the position of the Western Horn ; 
 which he supposed (naturally enough, as he had not 
 read Hanno's journal), to have been a promontory. 
 Says he, lib. vi. 31, " Here (/. e. at the Western 
 Horn) the coast Jirsf begins to face the west ; or to 
 look towards the Atlantic sea : that is, as we under- 
 stand it, the coast there turned from ivest to north. 
 Applied critically, this answers only to Cape Roxo, 
 which is situated about 120 G. miles to the WNW 
 of Bissago, the supposed bay, or hoiii, intended by 
 Hanno. 
 
 Pliny says further, that opposite to this horn, are 
 the islands of the Gorgades, two days' sail from the 
 continent ; and where Hanno caught the two savage 
 women, whose skins he carried back to Carthage. 
 The islands intended, are therefore the Bissagoes, 
 an archipelago which extends two degrees along the 
 coast, and some part of which is certainly near two 
 days' ancient sail from the nearest shore. But as the 
 archipelago extends all the way from a point oppo- 
 site Cape Roxo, to the bay of Bissago, one of these 
 
 VOL. II. F f
 
 434 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 places is as much opposite to the islands, as the other ; 
 therefore nothing can be collected from this circum- 
 stance, towards proving which of the two places is to 
 be taken for the Western Horn, intended by Pliny : 
 but the former observation, respecting the change of 
 direction of the coast, points clearly to Cape Roxo. 
 Perhaps, the registers of the times had confounded 
 together the islands that lay off the bay of Bissago 
 (Western Horn) and the island in the bay of Sher- 
 bro' (Southern Horn) ; where the Gor'illce, called 
 by Pliny, Gorgades, were taken. 
 
 It may therefore be conceived, from a combination 
 of the notices in Pliny, that the Western Horn which 
 he, as well as Ptolemy, had heard of, was a promon- 
 tory : although the context proves, by the relative 
 position of the mountain of Sagres, that the bay of 
 Bissago is the place to be fixed on for the Western 
 Horn described by Hanno. 
 
 Again, this mountain of Sagres has been shewn 
 to be the Western Horn, intended by Ptolemy ; and 
 which, in his geography, is succeeded by a ridge of 
 mountains named Deorum Currus, (or Chariot of 
 the Gods ^) ; and this again, by the termination of 
 the discoveries southward, in regular and proper 
 order : and what is more, the latter station is at such a 
 distance from Cape Verde, as to agree with Sherbro'^ 
 This circumstance is of no inconsiderable weight, in 
 favour of our opinion, respecting the position of the 
 
 * This ridge appears to be meant for the high land of Serra 
 Leona. 
 
 ^ On the map of Ptolemy, it is 9 degrees, or 540 miles ; and 
 on ours, 9^, or 560.
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 4^5 
 
 Southern Horn, and the term of Hanno's expedition. 
 But even if, following Pliny, we take Cape Roxo, or 
 following Ptolemy, we take Cape Sagres, for the 
 Western Horn, it will be found that the bay of Bis- 
 sago is nearly at a mean between the two : and, 
 according to the text of Hanno, the Hoim ought 
 unquestionably to be a bay or inlet of the sea. And, 
 on the whole, the term of the voyage of Hanno 
 cannot, in the view of general geography, be greatly 
 misunderstood. And this term was doubtless either 
 at Serra Leona or Sherbro' ; but far more probably 
 the latter, as well from position as description. 
 
 Here it may be proper to add a remark or two, 
 on Ptolemy's geography of this quarter. 
 
 Although his chart of the western coast of Africa, 
 has, in its composition, the materials furnished by 
 navigations posterior to those of Necho and Hanno ; 
 yet the tei'm of those navigations, in other words, 
 the boundary of discovery, appears clearly to be the 
 same with that of Hanno. 
 
 Now, it seems improbable that other navigators 
 should have terminated their progress precisely at 
 the same point with Hanno ; when the circumstance 
 that arrested his progress, was the want of provi- 
 sions ! Indeed, had it been at a promontory which 
 formed the termination of a continent, and in a 
 stormy sea withal, this might have happened re- 
 peatedly : but the tei'm of discovery in question was 
 situated on a straight coast, which presented no ob- 
 stacles to their progress. 
 
 The chart of Ptolemy may even have received aids 
 from the observations of Polybius : but, at all events, 
 
 Ff 2
 
 436 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 there arise in it strong proofs that parts of it were 
 formed of materials of a date posterior to Hanno. 
 For instance, in the journal of this commander, the 
 river Gambia is no otherwise noted, than as a great 
 opening of the sea, with a plain on each side of it ; 
 but it appears in its proper form, and with a name to 
 it, in Ptolemy. Other instances might be adduced. 
 Hence it appears that other voyagers had filled up 
 some of the blanks left by Hanno, although none 
 of them might have proceeded so far as he had : and 
 these might have conducted the traffic in gold, men- 
 tioned by Herodotus. See page 406. In effect, 
 Ptolemy's geography of this coast, may be supposed 
 to mark the extent of the Egyptian and Carthaginian 
 traffic, at a period long after the famous voyage set 
 on foot by Necho ; probably whilst it was yet re- 
 membered, although it might have been forgot in 
 the time of Ptolemy. 
 
 We shall close our geographical remarks with 
 some strictures on the opinions of some celebrated 
 modern geographers on the subject of this voyage. 
 Amongst these, M. D'Anville, (who, if not always 
 right, is, for the most part, nearer to it than others), 
 agrees with our ideas generally, as to the extent of 
 the voyage, but differs in the detail. 
 
 M. D'Anville has not ventured to place the pro- 
 montory of Soloeis in his Orhis veterihus notus. 
 The Western Horn, according to him, is Cape 
 Roxo ; the southern one. Cape St. Anne, or the 
 point of Sherbro' sound : and the mountains of 
 Serra Leona represent the Chariot of the Gods, 
 Hence it appears evident, that this great geographer
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 437 
 
 followed the authorities of PHny and Ptolemy, in 
 preference to that of the journal of Hanno. 
 
 As to M. Bougainville, his judgment appears to 
 have forsaken him entirely. The foundation of his 
 principal error lies in the supposition that the ancient 
 ships sailed at much the same rate as the modern 
 ones. In the journal, 26 sailing days are reckoned 
 between Cerne and the place of the Gorillae. M. 
 Bougainville places the latter in the bay, or bight, of 
 Benin, nearly 1900 G. miles from Cerne (or Ar- 
 guin) ; so that he transports the voyagers in 26 
 days, as far as Capt. Price, in the Royal Charlotte 
 East Indiaman, in 1793, sailed in 23 days, with a 
 fair wind and favourable current : for this was the 
 interval of time employed, between the parallel of 
 Arguin and the meridian of Benin ! This might 
 suffice : but we shall also remark that M. Bougain- 
 ville's tivo Jiorns are Cape Palmas and Cape Three- 
 Points ; between which he finds the hill Deorum 
 Currus. These points are 270 miles asunder ; so 
 that, as seven days' sail are allowed between them, in 
 the journal, a rate of 39 only per day arises here, 
 notwithstanding he is so extravagant elsewhere. 
 But there is no end to his mistakes. 
 
 As M. Bougainville doubles the extent of the 
 voyage from Cerne, so Mr. Gosselin contracts the 
 whole extent of it within Cape Nun : for it seems, 
 he confines all the ancient navigations within this 
 boundary *. Mr. Gosselin confines it to less than f 
 of the space allowed by Bougainville ; -\- of that 
 
 * See note to page 349,
 
 438 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 allowed by D'Anville. What a contrariety of opi- 
 nions ! Not to insist on the improbability of Hanno's 
 employing 32-|^ days (the specified number, although 
 the voyage was certainly longer) in sailing from the 
 strait to Cape Nun, which allows a rate of about 17 
 per day only ; it may be asked where, within Cape 
 Nun, are to be found the deep bays with islands ; 
 the island of Cerne, situated in a deep recess of the 
 land, which was a day's sail across ; the great river 
 which contained crocodiles and river horses ; the 
 Ethiopians, and the Gorillse ? Certainly not in the 
 kingdoms of Morocco and Sus. 
 
 Having, we trust, arranged the geography, or 
 rather the hydrography, of the voyage, we shall add 
 a few remarks which naturally arise on the subject of 
 the voyage itself. 
 
 It has appeared that the Carthaginian or Liby- 
 phoenician cities, founded by Hanno, were all situated 
 between the strait of Gibraltar and the river Sene- 
 gal ; and of these, all but Cerne, to the north of 
 Cape Bojador. It does not appear that any attempt 
 was made to fix an establishment to the southward 
 of Cerne, notwithstanding that they sailed into the 
 river of St. John (Chretes), as well as into that of 
 Senegal, which we must naturally suppose to be the 
 one which was said to be " large and broad, and 
 full of crocodiles and river horses." This was the 
 extent of the first expedition of discovery, south- 
 ward from Cerne : and it may be supposed, with a 
 part of the fleet only (as they were repulsed in their 
 attempt to land in the river Chretes) whilst the 
 crews of the rest might have been employed in the
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 439 
 
 formation of the new settlement, and in collecting- 
 provisions. 
 
 In tlie second expedition southward, they double 
 Cape Verde, and sail across the mouth of the Gambia, 
 called by them " an immense opening of the sea," 
 bounded by plains. As discovery seems to have 
 been at least a^x/r^of their object, it appears strange 
 that they should not have sailed into it : and equally 
 so that they should not have discovered, by appear- 
 ances, that it was the mouth of a large river. This 
 circumstance seems, at least, to establish a fact, re- 
 specting the season in which they visited this coast : 
 which was probably when the waters of the Gambia 
 ran pure, and with an easy current, into the sea. It 
 was therefore the season of northerly winds, and dry 
 weather, that is, after October : and this has already 
 appeared by the fires, which can only be referred to 
 the annual burning of the dry herbage, some time 
 after the rainy season. 
 
 It is indeed remarkable, that beyond that of Sene- 
 gal, no mention is made of any river ; although they 
 certainly entered the mouth of the Rio Grande and 
 that of Sherbro' : but perhaps this ought to be 
 placed to the account of the extreme brevity of the 
 abstract. 
 
 As far as the scanty notices in the journal allow a 
 judgment to be formed, one may certainly suppose 
 that the greater river Lixus, (taken for that of St. 
 Cyprian, upwards of 90 miles to the northward of 
 Cape Blanco) was the utmost bounds of the Cartlia- 
 ginian knowledge previous to this expedition. They 
 seem to have been well acquainted with the Lixitcc ;
 
 440 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 and therefore, it must be supposed, had visited that 
 coast before. Beyond this tribe their knowledge 
 seems to have been extremely vague, and rested on 
 the information of others. 
 
 Next to the LixitaB were the Ethiopians, styled 
 " inhospitable" by the journalist : and it appears that 
 these extended along the whole coast to Cape Verde. 
 As their language is said to have been unintelligible 
 to the Lixitag, who performed the office of interpre- 
 ters to the Carthaginians, they must of course have 
 been a different nation ; but it may be questioned 
 whether they were Negroes. Their being blacker 
 than the northern tribes, with whom the Carthagi- 
 nians were accustomed to communicate, might alone 
 occasion the application of Ethiopian to them : and 
 they may have been either the LeiiccBthiopes, whom 
 Pliny places to the northward o^ Nigritia (lib. v. 8), 
 or the Sanhagi, or Assanhagi, from whom the pro- 
 montory of Cape Verde is named in Ptolemy. (See 
 above, p. 27). In all probability the Negroes were 
 never settled very far to the north of the arable 
 lands. The ideas of Herodotus respecting the two 
 nations of Africans and Ethiopians (Moors and Ne- 
 groes), will be found, in p. 27. 
 
 No kind of traffic was opened with any of the 
 southern tribes during this voyage. All was hostility 
 on the south of Cerne. 
 
 Considering, then, the nature of this voyage, is it 
 an improbable conjecture that it was a consequence, 
 either immediate or remote, of the voyage set on foot 
 by Necho ; and which discovered to the Carthagi- 
 nians, though perhaps unintentionally, certain
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 441 
 
 sources of traffic, (gold particularly), as well as pro- 
 per stations for colonial establishments ? The his- 
 torical facts are so scanty here, that we are even left 
 to conjecture the cause of an extensive system of 
 colonization, executed at once, so contrary to the 
 usual practice, which proceeds gradually in such a 
 work ^ 
 
 We suspect that the Egyptians, at that period, are 
 to be regarded as rivals in commerce and discovery to 
 the Cartliaginians : that the celebrated voyage of 
 the former, in which they were aided by Phoenician 
 experience and skill, must have excited a great de- 
 gree of commercial jealousy amongst the Carthagi- 
 nians, who would doubtless seize on every oppor- 
 tunity of contravening the trading schemes of others ; 
 and were alive to every nautical discovery. Let it 
 be recollected what rivalship was excited in Europe 
 by the discoveries of the Portuguese and Spaniards 
 at the close of the loth century, as well as, in a 
 degree, by the more recent discoveries of Cap- 
 tain Cook ; and we may then readily conclude that 
 the Carthaginians, who were more commodiously 
 situated for a commerce beyond the straits than the 
 Egyptians ; perhaps also more in habits of traffick- 
 
 ^ Dr. Franklin supposed that no more than 80,000 Enghsh 
 people had been brought over to America, out of the million 
 which it was supposed to contain in 1751. The Doctor adds, 
 " This million doubling, suppose but once in 25 years, will, in 
 another century, be more than the people of Enghuid ; and the 
 greatest number of Englishmen will be on this side the water." 
 But it seems that the increase has proceeded even ujore rapidly 
 than the Doctor expected.
 
 442 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 
 
 ing, would be industrious at once to avail themselves 
 of new advantages by the discoveries of a rival. The 
 placing of colonies, or, in other words, of garrisons, 
 in favourable situations, along the western coast of 
 Africa, would have been a decisive stroke in favour 
 of such a policy ; and a measure of this nature, com- 
 bined with a further examination of the coast, south- 
 ward, beyond the limits of their colonization, was, as 
 we find, the scope of the Carthaginian plan, executed 
 in part by Hanno. Whether the expedition imme- 
 diately followed the discoveries of Necho, or whether 
 the subsequent reduction of Egypt and Tyre, under 
 one master (the Assyrian), 30 or 40 years afterwards, 
 might render the measure necessary to the Cartha- 
 ginians, cannot now be known : but circumstances 
 may have determined the moment of execution, 
 although the measure might have been decided on 
 from the date of the first report of the Egyptian dis- 
 coveries. But, at all events, we regard the date of 
 Hanno's expedition, to be subsequent to that of the 
 Egyptians under Necho, though not long after it. 
 
 We have remarked, that some of the descriptions 
 of the lands seen by Hanno belong to former dis- 
 coveries, and others to those made during that voy- 
 age. There can be little doubt of their having a 
 pre-knowledge of a coast, on which they had not 
 only determined to plant colonies, but had actually 
 sent the colonists in the fleet. However, their know- 
 ledge seems to have been so slender, in the part 
 beyond Arguin, that it could only have been derived 
 from hearsay. 
 
 As to the immediate object of the southern expe- 
 ls
 
 VOYAGE OF HANNO. 443 
 
 ditioii, althougli it was so far a voyage of discovery, 
 as that the coast was new to them, yet they appear 
 to have been in quest of some interesting object more 
 remote, and which is not expressed in the journal ; 
 and the knowledge of which object might have 
 transpired from some of the Egyptian circumnaviga- 
 tors. How far they intended to proceed, we know 
 not : but it seems very unlikely that Hanno, at this 
 time, intended to sail romid the continent, as Pliny 
 says he actually did, (lib. ii. 57.) The practicability of 
 it had already been decided ; so that no question of 
 curiosity remained ; and their views of profit were 
 nearer home ; probably in those parts known at 
 present by the names of the Gold and Ivory Coasts. 
 Towards that quarter they were proceeding, when 
 the want of provisions prevented their further pro- 
 gress ; a circumstance very likely to have taken 
 place in a fleet which had been crowded with pas- 
 sengers, during a part of their voyage : and which 
 deficiency they had not been able to supply, because 
 they had failed in their attempts to open a communi- 
 cation with the natives along the coast.
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Thus having drawn from the great and celebrated 
 work of the Father of profane History, the various 
 geographical notices with which it abounds, the 
 Author has endeavoured to form the whole into a 
 general system, such, as it may be conceived, existed 
 amongst the Greeks of that day : and having com- 
 pleted the plan, with great deference has submitted 
 it to the inspection of the public, from whose tribunal 
 he hopes for a favourable judgment, since its decrees 
 admit of no appeal. 
 
 It is possible that some readers may have con- 
 demned the work for its containing matter, in their 
 opinion, foreign to the main subject ; and others for 
 its being, altogether, too diffuse. With respect to 
 the first class, it may be remarked, that any system, 
 in order to be understood, must be regularly gone 
 through ; and it happens that the dryness of geo- 
 graphical detail is such, that a continued series of 
 them would rather be referred to, than read: so 
 that the intention of explaining a system, would of 
 course have been frustrated. It has, therefore, been 
 the study of the Author, to intermix with the geo- 
 graphical matter, such ingredients, as, whilst they 
 served to consolidate the whole mass into a regular 
 form, would also give it the most agreeable colour- 
 ing : in other words, that by the addition of history.
 
 CONCLUSION. 44 
 
 which it is the proper office of geography to explain ; 
 by misceUaneous remarks and observations ; and 
 occasionally by remarks on the physical geography ; 
 he might supply in part that interest, which the 
 generality of readers must ever find wanting in 
 books of science. 
 
 In respect to objections to the hulk of the work, 
 taken absolutely, the Author can only answer in the 
 words of an eminent historian, that " he, who in the 
 description of unknown things, affects too much 
 brevity, seeks not so much ilint which should be 
 plainly told, as that which should be passed over \" 
 In effect, a great many of the notices afforded by 
 Herodotus, pould not be so well explained, or illus- 
 trated, as by a reference to the works of other 
 authors ; or by the introduction of foreign matter. 
 
 It is a remark of Polybius on this very subject of 
 geography, that the ancient authors who had written 
 concerning it, had fallen into so many errors, that it 
 was necessary to enter into a full and deliberate 
 examination of them; but, at the same time, he with 
 great candour allows, " that their labours deserve 
 on the whole rather praise than censure ; and that 
 their errors are ever to be corrected in the gentlest 
 manner ; since it is certain that they would them- 
 selves retract or alter many passages in their works, 
 if they were now alive ".*' 
 
 The Author will receive that reward for which he 
 has toiled, if the public, during the perusal of his 
 work, have regarded it with the same sentiments 
 
 ' Ammianus MarccUinus. ^ Lil). iii. c. 5.
 
 446 CONCLUSION. 
 
 as tliose which possessed the mind of Polybius : and 
 which may be productive of more advantage in the 
 present, than in the former case ; since the Author 
 hopes that he may be enabled, in person, to retract, 
 or alter, what the discernment of his judges may 
 condemn.
 
 ADDENDA. 
 
 I. Concerning Babyi,on. 
 
 ti 
 
 Captain Cuninghame passed over the site of Baby- 
 lon, in his way from Aleppo to Bussorah, in 1785; 
 and thus describes what he saw : 
 
 " Approaching within a few miles of Hillah, on 
 the east side of the Euphrates, and without any 
 expectation of seeing the ruins of any city, my 
 attention was suddenly arrested by the sight of long 
 mounds of earth, running parallel to each other, and 
 having others crossing them at right angles. Frag- 
 ments of bricks or tiles, some of variegated colours, 
 were scattered about, and lying in the hollows be- 
 tween the ridges ; and at intervals, remnants of 
 foundation walls appeared. My guides told me it 
 was Macloiihe; but as I could speak little Arabic, 
 and did not meet any one at Hillah who could 
 speak English, I knew not, until I reached Bussorah, 
 what place I had seen : and that it was unquestion- 
 ably the site of ancient Babylon that I had passed 
 over. 
 
 " I remarked one mound that was very large, and 
 of a circular form, and which had round its base 
 pieces of coloured tiles or bricks : the blue colour.
 
 448 ADDENDA. 
 
 in particular, attracted my attention. This mound 
 could not be far from the river, as we soon after came 
 on its bank." {Refers to page 485, Vol. I.) 
 
 " The greater part of Hillah appears to be built 
 of furnace-baked bricks, which is different from "what 
 I saw in other places. All Bussorah is built of sun- 
 dried bricks : so that after heavy rain, the falling of 
 houses into the streets is no unusual sight." (Refers 
 to page 482, Vol. I.) 
 
 *^ The city of Bussorah is certainly more than 
 seven, but less than twelve miles in circuit. It has 
 corn-fields, date-groves, and gardens, within its 
 v^'^alls. Near half of the area, I conclude, is built 
 on." {Refers to jjage 454, Vol. I.) 
 
 II. Concerning the Oases o/* Egypt and Ammon. 
 
 Mr. Browne adds to his former description, the 
 following circumstances : 
 
 " Even in that part of the district of El-Wah, 
 called Charje, the vegetable soil by no means occu- 
 pies the whole space ; but each spring forms an 
 insulated mass, round itself. Near the town, and 
 between the gardens, is a sandy surface, in which 
 the palm grows, but which, in great part, is not fit 
 for gardens. There are irregularities of surface; 
 and in the lowest ground rice is cultivated. At 
 Siwa, the soil is not so interrupted by sand, but con- 
 tinuous and level." {Refers to i^age 186, sup.)
 
 ADDENDA. 44,9 
 
 " There are some other villages besides those I 
 have marked, in El-Wah, but not immediately in our 
 route, and in themselves inconsiderable. A few 
 scattered palm-trees are also met with at intervals." 
 {Refers to page 206, sup.) 
 
 "■ The word Gherhi, in the vulgar dialect of 
 Egypt, is commonly used to signify western ; why 
 applied to the Lesser Oasis, I cannot positively say. 
 Though they sometimes, if I mistake not, call the 
 Greater Oasis by the name of El- Wall el Kihli, 
 which in that dialect means the southern." {Refers 
 to page 208, sup.) 
 
 " In saying (p. 29.) that ' the temple may be 
 buried in the sand,' I meant not to suggest that this 
 could have happened at Siwa ; but on the suppo- 
 sition of its having belonged to some other Oasis, 
 that both island and temple might thus have pe- 
 rished." {Refers to page 257, sup.) 
 
 The Committee of the African Association have 
 just received the following short notice respecting 
 the remains at Seewa, from Mr. Hornemann (see 
 note to p. 256, sup.) contained in a letter from 
 Tripoly, dated 19th August, 1799. His journal, 
 which contains the details, is not arrived. 
 
 " Siwah is, without doubt, the country of the 
 ancient Ammonians. I found some ruins and a great 
 number of catacombs there. Of one part of the 
 ruins there are only the foundation walls to be seen. 
 Another part consists of the foundation walls of a 
 large building, within which, and near the middle of 
 it, are seen the ruins of a remarkable edifice. 
 " It stands on an eminence, composed of limestone ; 
 
 VOL. II, G g
 
 450 ADDENDA. 
 
 and is, as I conceive, the same that Mr. Browne saw. 
 I should take these ruins for those of the Temple of 
 Jupiter Ammon, if the description of it in Hero- 
 dotus was not so unlike what I saw. I entered 
 more than eighty catacombs. They were in four 
 different places ; but there was a fifth, said to be 
 under ground, which I could not get any body to 
 shew me. I could find no whole mummies, but 
 abundance of skulls, and other bones." 
 
 III. Variation of the Magnetic Needle at 
 Alexandria. 
 
 By observations made there by the French, in 
 1798, the variation was 13° 6' westerly. M. Nie- 
 buhr reports 11° 4' there, in 1761 ; and M. Chazelles, 
 from 13" 7' to 12° 30', in 1694. (See Zach's Geog. 
 Ephem. for July 1799, p. 62). It is probable, there- 
 fore, that the variation is not taken too high, at 15°, 
 in the meridian of Parsetonium. {Refers to p. '^IS, 
 sup.) 
 
 IV. Further Notices respecting the Lotus Fruit 
 appear in Mr. Broivne's Travels. 
 
 He saw two kinds in Darfoor, (Dar-Fiir) named 
 Nehhech. (See the description in p. 270.) He 
 adds, " the natives eat the fruit, fresh or dry ; for 
 it dries on the tree, and so remains great part of 
 the winter months. In that state it is formed into a
 
 ADDENDA. 451 
 
 paste of not unpleasant flavour, and is a portable 
 provision on journies." 
 
 Here then we have the lotus at the eastern, as 
 well as the western extremity of the African Desert. 
 {Refers to p. 292, sup.) 
 
 Gg2
 
 INDEX.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 » * 
 * 
 
 The Names belonging to ancient Geography arc in Italics. The 
 Roman Figures refer to the Preface, the Arabic ones to the Book 
 generally. 
 
 gc?» Abbreviations. — I. Island. R. or Rs. River, or Rivers. Mt. or Mts. 
 Mountain, or Mountains. C. Cape, or Promontory. L. T.ake. Tr. Tribe. 
 
 Abdul Kurreem, vol. i. 341, note. 
 
 Abiatis, supposed to be the people of 
 the Steppe of Ablai, vol. i. 298. 
 
 Abukeir, ancient Crtwo/;;/.?, vol. ii. 15G. 
 
 scene of the glorious bat- 
 tle of the Nile, ibid. 
 
 Abulfeda, his description of the Nile, 
 vol. ii. 48 ; cited, vol. i. 521, 524 ; 
 vol. ii. 28, 52. «fi, 71, 101. 
 
 Ahi/rio.t, at the Hcllesijont, vol. i. 157. 
 
 in Egy})t, vol. ii. 100. 
 
 Achilles, course of, vol. i. 84. 
 
 Acra, or Area, vol. ii. 22. 
 
 Adyrmachidee, a Libyan tr. vol. ii. 
 2G4. 
 
 an indecent custom 
 
 amongst tliem, il)id. )t'ile. 
 
 ^gis of Minerva, liorrowed l)y tlie 
 Greeks from Africa, vol. ii. ;i4.'{, 
 note. 
 
 ALglos, supposed to mean Kil, or 
 Kilan, vol. i. .394. 
 
 /Enotria, (Italy) vol. i. 55. 
 
 Afghans, taken for the ten tribes of 
 tlie Jews, vol. i. 51.'{. 
 
 Africa, a small part of it known in 
 detail to Herodotus, vol. ii. 2; 
 divided into three regions, 24 ; 
 the Sahara and Niger known to 
 him, 24, 25; the inhabitants di- 
 vided into two races, Africans 
 
 (Moors), and Ethiopians (Ne- 
 groes), 27 ; his idea of the extent 
 of Africa, southward, 53 ; Scylax, 
 Erastosthenes, Strabo, and Pliny, 
 believed it to be surrounded ))y 
 the ocean, 351 ; discredited by 
 Polybius and Ptolemy, 352. 
 Africa, ancient circunniavigation of, 
 by the Egyptians, vol. ii. 348, 349; 
 believed by Herodotus and Pliny 
 to liave been accom])lished l)y dif- 
 ferent persons, il)id. ; lengtli of the 
 route, 359 ; brief descri})tioii of tlie 
 voyage, 3(i0 ; naval ))o\vcr of I'-gypt 
 about that time, 3(J2, 303 ; a pre- 
 vious knowledge of the coasts of 
 Guinea and Sofala sup))osed, 304 ; 
 also of the reigning winds, ibid, 
 and 373 ; illustrated by a coinj)a- 
 risou witli tlie Portuguese dis- 
 covi-ries, 305 ; voyage of Colum- 
 bus induced by a vast error in the 
 existing systems of geography, 300; 
 errors of Ptolemy, ibid. ; the ge- 
 neral geogra))hy of Africa known 
 to the Arabian geographers of the 
 14th century, 309; deseriiJtion of 
 tlie ocean lly Abulfeda, 370, 371 ; 
 the circumnavigation entirely a 
 coasting voyage, 373 ; date of the 
 enterprize, 374 ; directed by Pha-- 
 nician mariners, ibid.; circum- 
 stances much in favoiu* of a voy-
 
 456 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 age from the East, 37G, 377 ; Dif- 
 ficulty respecting provisions, 378 ; 
 the ancient navigators in the habit 
 of finding water, 382, 7iote ; op- 
 posed by a current in the North 
 Atlantic, 383, 384 ; time consumed, 
 to the Senegal river, 394, 395 ; 
 wait a harvest on the coast of 
 Libya, 395 ; season of harvest 
 there, 396 ; disadvantages of an- 
 cient ships in respect of stowage ; 
 advantages in respect of obtaining 
 shelter, 398, 399 ; facts illustrative 
 of the economy of ancient ships, 
 400 ; the voyage of circumnaviga- 
 tion forgot in Egypt in the time of 
 Ptolemy the geographer, 402 ; pa- 
 i-allel case in Europe, ibid. ; nar- 
 rative of the voyage discredited by 
 reason of its brevity, 407- 
 
 African Association, vol. ii. 36, 7iote, 
 51, 52. 
 
 Afzelius, Dr., vol. ii. 412, note, 430. 
 
 Agatlujrsi, voL i. 109, 114. 
 
 Aggarkuf, a Chaldean building, vol. i. 
 504. 
 
 Agreement of sacred and profane 
 history, vol. i. 356, note. 
 
 Ajeroud, vol. ii. 63, 64, 65 ; not He- 
 roopolis, 65. 
 
 AJarodians, vol. i. 367. 
 
 Alexander's visit to Asia had the 
 effect of contracting its geography, 
 vol. i. 222 ; falsified it also in 
 some cases, 226; Alexander ap- 
 pears to great advantage in his 
 communications with Calanus, 410 
 —412. 
 
 Alexandria, canal of, vol. ii. 92. 
 
 ancient and modern, dif- 
 ferent sites of, vol. ii. 154. 
 
 Alluvions of rivers, remarks on, vol. 
 ii. 98, et seq. ; progress of, 107, 
 108 ; sea alluvions difter from those 
 of rivers. 111, note. 
 
 Al Wahat, tract of, vol. ii. 190. 
 
 Altai (or golden) mountains, vol. i. 
 178, 170- 
 
 Amanus, Mt. vol. i. 237. 
 
 Amazons, vol. i. 120. 
 
 Amber, country of, Herodotus, (Prus- 
 sia) vol. i. 4, 46, 7iote. 
 
 Amnion, Oasis of, used as a place of 
 banishment, vol. ii. 189; suite of 
 positions on which its situation 
 rests, 222, et seq. ; remains of its 
 temple discovered by Mr. Browne, 
 258. 
 
 Amnion, in Africa, the same as Ju- 
 piter, vol. ii. 244. 
 
 Anacharsis, deemed by Herodotus 
 the only person of superior en- 
 dowments amongst the Scythians, 
 vol. i. 107, note ; mentioned, 212. 
 
 Androphagi, vol. i. 109 — 114. 
 
 Anglo-Americans, their conduct 
 praised, vol. i. 423. 
 
 Antigonus, his expedition to Egypt, 
 vol. i. 345. 
 
 Antonine Itinerary, vol. i. 25, 29 ; 
 voL ii. 10, 14, 60,61, 159. 
 
 Apis, on the western frontier of Egypt, 
 vol. ii. 264. 
 
 Arabia, the most southerly part of 
 Asia, according to Herodotus, vol. 
 i. 218. 
 
 its extent under- rated, vol. 
 
 i. 253. 
 
 Arabian gulf, vol. i. 260 ; the sea re- 
 tires from the head of it, vol. ii. 
 88 ; probably higher than the Me- 
 diterranean, 91 ; tides in, 90, note. 
 
 auxiliaries in Xerxes' army, 
 
 vol. i. 337. 
 
 Arabians supply Cambyses' army 
 with water, vol. i. 339 ; mode of, 
 described, 340. 
 
 Arabkir mine, vol. i. 371 . 
 
 Aral lake, confounded with the Cas- 
 pian sea, vol. i. 174, and note. 
 
 Ara.res R. the Jaxartes so called by 
 Herodotus, vol. i. 269. 
 
 of Armenia, and the Jaxar- 
 
 tes confounded, vol. i. 272, tiote. 
 
 and Cyrus Rs. anciently 
 
 kept distinct courses to the sea, 
 
 vol. i. 364. 
 Argana mine, vol. i. 370. 
 Argipjpai, vol. i. 172, 177. 
 Arguin I. (Cerne) vol. ii. 419, 421. 
 Arlmaspians, vol. i. 172, 178; de- 
 scription of, 192. 
 Arimphcei, vol. i. 182. 
 Arians, in the 16th Satrapy of Darius 
 
 Hystaspes, vol. i. 387- 
 Aristagoras, his intrigues, vol. i. 427. 
 Aristeas, some account of his travels, 
 
 vol. i. 98. 
 Armenia, the loth Satrapy, vol. i.368, 
 
 369. 
 
 a colony of Phrygians, 368. 
 
 Armant, or Hermonthis, vol. ii. 248. 
 Arrian, a striking remark of his, 
 
 vol. i. 411. 
 Arsinarium promontory, (C. Verde), 
 
 vol. ii. 27, note.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 457 
 
 Arsinoe, (near Suez) vol. ii. CI, 
 
 Arttel, a Persian tr. vol. i. 379. 
 
 Ashi/stce, a Libyan tr. vol. ii. 265. 
 
 Asia, extent and boundary of, accord- 
 ing to Herodotus, vol. i. 21G, ct 
 seq. ; placed by liini rather to the 
 soutli than the east ofEurope, 221 ; 
 thought to have been less than 
 Europe, 218; divided into four 
 regions by Herodotus, 244 ; re- 
 marks on this division, 251, et seq. ; 
 regarded by the Persians as their 
 peculiar territory, 305 ; supposed 
 lengtli of, by the ancients, 224. 
 
 Asia, Eastern, on a higher level than 
 the Western, vol. i. 241. 
 
 Asiatic ChersonesHs, or Asia Minor, 
 vol. i. 251 ; contained four Satra- 
 pies, vol. i. 303, 307. 
 
 Assyria, the 9th Satrapy, vol. i. 347 ; 
 included Syria, Babylonia, and 
 Mesopotamia ; besides Assyria 
 proper, ibid. ; named KIR in the 
 Scrij)tures, 515. 
 
 Assyria/is, synonymous to Babyloni- 
 ans, vol. i. 347. 
 
 Athamisins, St. banished to the Oasis 
 of Amnion, and died there, vol. ii. 
 189. 
 
 Alhrihis, vol. ii. 141. 
 
 Allantcs, or Atrantes, vol. ii. 300, 
 311. 
 
 Alias Major, promontory of, vol. ii. 
 15, IG. 
 
 Minor, promontorv of, ibid. 
 
 Mt. vol. ii. 202, 203. 
 
 Atropa/ia, vol. i. 233. 
 
 Angela, position of, vol. ii. 212. 
 
 , its dates gathered by the 
 
 Nasamones, vol. ii. 271. 
 
 Atischisee, a Libyan tr. vol. ii. 260. 
 
 Ausenses, an African tr. vol. ii. 302. 
 
 B. 
 
 Baalbeit, (Tem])lc of I.iis), vol. ii. 
 141, 169. 
 
 Babel, (the modern name of the 
 tract which contains Babylon), 
 Vol. i. 459—405, 492. 
 
 Babylon, vast revenue of. Vol. i. 
 348, 9 ; uselul institution at, 352 ; 
 site and remains of, 441, et seq.; 
 founder unknown, 442 ; eai)ital of 
 Assyria, ibid ; description of, by 
 Herodotus, 44.*t, note; enormous 
 dimensions of, respect only tiie 
 emienie, 444 ; different reports of 
 
 its extent, 447 ; gveat extent of 
 Asiatic cities in general, 450; 
 only a part of the enclosed space 
 built on, 453 ; an example in 
 Bussorah, 454 ; idea of the num- 
 ber of inhabitaiUs in Babylon and 
 Seleucia, 456; size of inland cities, 
 limited by circumstances, 458 ; 
 geographical position of Babylon, 
 459 — 464 ; public works in, 404 — 
 466 ; tunnel under the Euphrates, 
 468, note ; gates, 47O ; temple and 
 tower of Belus, 471 — 476; com- 
 pared in height witli the great 
 l)yramid of Memphis, 474 ; remains 
 of Babylon, seen in the eastern 
 quarter, by Delia Valle, 476, et 
 seq. ; and by Beauchamp, 482, 
 486 ; breadth of the Euphrates, 
 490; vast embankment, 491; po- 
 sition of the exterior of the walls 
 of Babylon, 492 ; ruins seen in the 
 western quarter, 493 ; materials of 
 ancient cities, how employed, 497 ; 
 dimensions and nature of the 
 bricks, 498, 499; cements, 500; 
 modern mode of building in Bag- 
 dad and Bengal, illustrative of the 
 subject, 502 ; layers of reeds used, 
 505; decline of Babylon, 508 ; its 
 materials used to build other cities, 
 509 ; the remains of Babylon, ac- 
 cessible, and worthy of research, 
 511 ; further notices from Captain 
 Cuninghame, 447, 
 
 Babylon of Egypt, (Fostat) Vol. ii. 59. 
 
 Babylonians, (synonymous to Assy- 
 rians) vol. i. 347. 
 
 Bactearis, vol. i. 384. 
 
 Bactria, or Bactriana, (the modern 
 Balk) the most eastern province 
 of the Persian empire, vol. i. 392 ; 
 the Macedonian empire there, by 
 whom destroyed, 292, 299, 300 ; a 
 place of banislunent, 3})2, note. 
 
 Bartrians, the 12th Satrapy, vol. i. 
 392. 
 
 Bahr-Abiad, or White lliver, the 
 true head of the Nile, vol. ii. 40. 
 
 Bahr Bela-ma, vol. ii. 126, 127. 
 
 Ball)us, his conquest of Eezzan, 
 &c. vol. ii. 275. 
 
 Balcl.atz lake, (Palkati Nor) vol. i. 
 275. 
 
 Balk, (liaclria) vol. i. 3!»2. 
 
 Banks, Right Hon. Sir Joseph, vol. i. 
 212. 
 
 Barranii, \ol. i. 401.
 
 458 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Bars of rivers, how formed, vol. ii. 
 110. 
 
 Bastarnian Alps, vol. i. 112, 139. 
 
 Bastus, or Besia, (Bithastis) vol. ii. 
 69. 
 
 Beauchamp, M. vol. i. 482, 483, 
 vofe. 
 
 Beaufoy, Mr., vol. ii. 279. 
 
 BectUeth, . tr. in Mesopotamia, vol. i. 
 
 Begdelley,J 184. 
 
 Bell, Mr. vol. i. 106, note, 134, note. 
 
 Beloe, Mr. vol. i. 11, 46, 193, 343. 
 
 Bilbeys, town and R. of, vol. ii. 72. 
 
 Bifhi/niatis, vol. i. 315, 16. 
 
 Bitumen fountains at Hit, or Is, vol. 
 i. 443, note, 461. 
 
 ■ at Babylon, vol. i. 485, 
 
 7iote. 
 
 Blagden, Sir Charles, vol. ii. 331, 
 7iote. 
 
 Boats of willows in the Euphrates, 
 vol. i. 349, 350. 
 
 Boeotian emigrants, where placed in 
 Persia, vol. i. 355. 
 
 Bojador, C. vol. ii. 15 — 17. 
 
 Bolbitine mouth of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 1G7. 
 
 Borijsthenes R. vol. i. 73 ; idea that it 
 formerly ran into the Palus Mceotis, 
 88. 
 
 Bosphorus of Thrace, description of 
 its narrowest part, vol. i. 156, 159, 
 note; strong current through it 
 from the Euxine, 162, note. 
 
 ——^— Cimmerian, vol. i. 159, 
 7iote ; 207, 208. 
 
 Bougainville, M., vol. ii. 22 ; his 
 misconceptions respectingthe voy- 
 age of Hanno, 437. 
 
 Boursa, (or Broussa) ancient Borsip- 
 pa, or Barsita, vol. i. 487 arid note. 
 
 Bridge of Darius, over the Bospho- 
 rus of Thrace, vol. i. 152, et seq. 
 
 Bridges of Xerxes, over the Helles- 
 pont, described by Herodotus, 
 vol. i. 160 72ote ; remarks on the 
 description, ibid, et seq. ; idea of 
 their position, 165, et seq. 
 
 Britain, and the islands of Scilly, 
 intended by the Cassiterides of 
 Herodotus, vol. i. 5. 
 
 British, their descendants will be 
 more numerous than those of any 
 other nation in the world, vol. i. 
 423, note. 
 
 Broussa, see Boursa. 
 
 Browne, Mr. furnishes information 
 respecting the remote head of the 
 
 Nile, vol. ii. 96 ; his information 
 in proof that the Nile and Niger 
 hold separate courses, ibid. ; dis- 
 covers the remains of the temple 
 of Jupiter Ammon, in Seewa, 256 ; 
 great praise due to his perse- 
 verance, and spirit of enterprize, 
 260 ; his description of Seewa, 
 &c., 233. 
 
 Bruce, Mr. vol. ii. 33, 38, 39, 40. 
 
 Buhastis, position of, vol. ii. 67 ; river 
 of, the same as that of Pelusium, 
 171. 
 
 Budini, vol. i. 110 — 123; country 
 
 of, answers to Woronez, &c. 122; 
 
 abounds with forests, ibid. 
 Busiris, or Abusir, temple of Isis 
 
 near it, now Baalbeit, vol. ii. 141, 
 
 169. 
 
 Cabales, a Libyan tr. vol. ii. 266. 
 
 Cadamosto, his voyage of discovery, 
 vol. ii. 416, 417, J'ote. 
 
 Cadytis, a name of Jerusalem, vol. i. 
 324 ; vol. ii. 362. 
 
 Cairo, authorities for its position, 
 vol. ii. 59. 
 
 Calanus, the friend and companion 
 of Alexander, vol. i. 410 ; burns 
 himself alive on a funeral pile, 411. 
 
 Callipidcc, a Scythian tr. vol. i. 95. 
 
 Cambyses, characterised by the Per- 
 sians as a despot, vol. i. 306. 
 
 , extent of his conquests in 
 
 Africa, vol. ii. 308. 
 
 Canals to join the Nile with the 
 Arabian gulf, vol. ii. 73; none 
 drawn from sea to sen, across the 
 isthmus, ibid. ; description of the 
 canal begun by Necho, by Hero- 
 dotus, 75, note ; by Strabo, Dio- 
 dorus, and Pliny, 15, 6, notes ; 
 canal attributed to Trajan, 86, 87; 
 to the Caliph Omar, 86 ; part of 
 the latter remains open, towards 
 the Nile, ibid. ; traces of canals to- 
 wards Suez, 87, 88 ; the canals led 
 into the lake Sheib ; the passage 
 to which is now open during the 
 swelling of the Nile, 84. 
 
 Canopus, (Abukeir), vol. ii. 156; its 
 site anciently an island, 154. 
 
 Canopic branch of the Nile, ibid. 
 
 Cantin, C. (Soloeis, or Syloes), vol. 
 ii. 18—22.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 459 
 
 Cappadocia, vol. i. 315. 
 Caravanserais, an ancient establish- 
 ment in Persia, vol. i. 439. 
 Carchemish, (Circeslum), vol. ii. 362 
 
 and note. 
 Carmanians, vol. i. 378, 9. 
 Carpathian Mts. vol. i. 13!). 
 Carthaginian empire unnoticed by 
 Herodotus, vol. ii. 305. 
 
 voyages of traffic for 
 
 gold, to Western Guinea, vol. ii. 
 406. 
 
 expedition under Hanno, 
 
 vol. ii. 409. 
 Cashgur. — See Kashgur. 
 Casia, (or Kashgur) intended by 
 Caspia, in the 15th Satrapy, vol. i. 
 394—399. 
 Casius, Mount, (of Antioch), vol. i. 
 
 321. 
 — — of Egyi^t ; the boundary of 
 Egj'pt and Syria, vol. i. 323, 
 344 ; vol. ii. 56. 
 Caspians, &c. the 11th Satrapy, vol. i. 
 
 3G3, 4. 
 Caspian sea, rightly desci-ibed as a 
 lake, by Herodotus, vol. i. 255 ; 
 succeeding authors to Ptolemy, 
 reckoned it a gulf of the northern 
 ocean, 256 ; its dimensions given 
 by Herodotus, 255. 
 
 strait, described, vol. i. 229. 
 
 Cassiterides, meant for Britain, and 
 
 the islands of Scilly, vol. i. 4, 5. 
 Cato leads an army round the Syrtes, 
 
 vol. ii. 323. 
 Caucasus, Mount, the boundary of 
 Persian influence, vol. i. 367 ; 
 number of languages in and about 
 it, ibid, note ; its people have sup- 
 plied the soutliern countries, in all 
 ages, 327, 416, note. 
 Caucasus of India, vol. i. 234. 
 Celance, vol. i. 421. 
 Celona, vol. i. 355 — 359, note. 
 CeltcE of Herodotus, vol. i. 55. 
 Cercasora, opposite the head of the 
 
 Delta of the Nile, vol. ii. 130. 
 Cerne, island of, its situation and de- 
 scription, vol. ii. 415 — 423. 
 Ceteus, or Keeteus, an Indian com- 
 mander, his widow burns herself 
 alive, vol. i. 413 and note. 
 Chabert, Marquis de, vol. ii. 328, 
 
 ■note, 329. 
 Chalcedon, vol. i. 154, 5. 
 Chalchal, (taken for Halah or Cha- 
 lacho), vol. i. 521, 2. 
 
 Chardin, Sir John, vol. i. 521, note. 
 Chersonese, Asiatic, (Asia Minor so 
 
 named), vol. i. 251. 
 China, empire of, unknown to the 
 
 Greeks, vol. i. 220—222. 
 , more elevated tlian Western 
 
 Asia, vol. i. 242. 
 Choaspes, or river of Susa, vol. i. 268. 
 Chorasmians, in the 16th Satrapy, 
 
 vol. i. 387. 
 CiUcia, the 4th Satrapy, vol. i. 318. 
 military importance of, vol. i. 
 
 319. 
 Cimmerians, vol. i. 97, et seq. 
 Cimmerian antiquities, vol. i. 98, 
 
 note. 
 strait, or Bosphorus, 
 
 breadth of, vol. i. 158, 9 ; frozen 
 
 over in winter, 208. 
 
 darkness, vol. 209, note. 
 
 Cini/ps, R. vol. ii. 282. 
 Circumnavigation, ancient, of Africa, 
 
 vol. ii. 348. — See also Africa. 
 Cissia. — See Susa. 
 Cleomenes, king of Sparta, firmness 
 
 of, vol. i. 428, and note ; wise 
 
 saying of his daughter, 428, note. 
 Colchians, not classed in any Satrapy, 
 
 vol. i. 369 ; have their hair crisp, 
 
 and curling, vol. i. 324. 
 Columbus, vol. ii. 366. 
 Comisene, vol. i. 389. 
 Cook, Captain, not the first explorer 
 
 of New South Wales, vol. ii. 403. 
 Copper mine, in Armenia, vol. i. 
 
 371. 
 Correa de Serra, M. vol. i. xvi. 
 Course of Achilles, vol. i. 84. 
 Cremnis, vol. i. 121. 
 Crestona, vol. i. 59, and note. 
 Crews of ships, vol. i. 166, 167, 335, 
 
 336. 
 Crimea. — See Krimea. 
 Croesus, his riches, and impolicy, vol. 
 
 i. 3)1. 
 
 his empire, ibid, note. 
 
 Cruelty of removing tribes from one 
 
 country to anotlier, vol. i. 356. 
 Cuningliame, Ca))tain, vol. ii. 447. 
 Currents in tlie Atlantic ocean, and 
 
 round tlie Cape of Good Hope, 
 
 vol. ii. 3«6. 
 Curtius, vol. ii. 236, ct seq. 
 Cutheans, vol. i. 517. 
 Cijdamus, or Gadamis, vol. ii. 284, 5. 
 Ci/ranis. I. (Qucrkyncss), vol. ii. 
 
 301, 5; gold sand drawn up there, 
 
 305.
 
 460 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Cijrenaica, or Libya PentapoUs, a 
 Greek colony, vol. ii. 2C7 ; limit 
 of the conquests of Cambyses, 308. 
 
 Cyrene, or Kurin, vol. ii. 267. 
 
 CynetcB of Herodotus, vol. i. 55. 
 
 Cyniits, (Corsica) vol. i. 55, 56, notes. 
 
 Cyrus, his unfortunate expedition 
 against the Massagetse, vol. i. 300. 
 
 esteemed as a parent, by the 
 
 Persians, vol. i. 306. 
 
 Cyrus and Jraxes, (Kur and Arash) 
 Rs. anciently gained the sea, by 
 separate channels, vol. i. 364. 
 
 D. 
 
 DahcE, a Scythian tr. vol. i. 293 — 295. 
 
 Dahestan, vol. i. 294. 
 
 Dai, a Persian tr. vol. i. 379. 
 
 Dalrymple, Mr. vol. i. 474, note ; 
 vol. ii. 58, 7iote, 387, 418, note. 
 
 Daniel, tomb of, vol. i. 523, note ; 
 tower, ibid. ; mentioned, 355, 356. 
 
 Danube, R. its source amongst the 
 Celtae, vol. i. 55; runs through 
 the midst of Europe, 57 ; except- 
 ing the Nile, the largest river 
 known to Herodotus, 73. 
 
 D'Anville, M. his pre-eminence in 
 geography, vol. i. xv. xvii. ; merit 
 of his Egyptian geography, vol. ii. 
 200, 7ioie ; his ideas of the extent 
 of the voyage of Hanno, 436 ; 
 cited, vol. i. 159, 494, vol, ii. 25. 
 
 Darabgherd, vol. i. 376. 
 
 Darfoor, or Darfur, vol. ii. 42. 
 
 Daric, a gold coin, vol. i. 418. 
 
 Darius Hystaspes, his expedition to 
 Western Scythia, vol. i. 133, et 
 seq. ; leaves his floating bridge in 
 the charge of the lonians, 134 ; 
 advances through Scythia to the 
 Oarus (taken for the Wolga), and 
 erects fortifications there, 135 ; 
 the Scythians lead him through the 
 territories of their seceding neigh- 
 bours, 138; losses and distresses 
 of his army, 139; retreats to his 
 bridge on the Danube, ibid. ; his 
 expedition compared to that of 
 Cyrus against the Massagetse, 1 45 ; 
 alleged cause of his invasion of 
 Scythia, ibid. ; time consumed in 
 the expedition, 149 ; force em- 
 ployed, 1 50 ; assisted by the Greeks 
 and lonians, ibid.; his bridge over 
 the Bosphorus, ibid, et seq. ; his 
 
 20 Satrapies, 303, et seq. ; refer- 
 ence to the account of his family 
 and history, 329; styled a mer- 
 chant by his subjects, 306 ; com- 
 pletes the canal begun by Necho, 
 vol. ii. 76. 
 
 Daniecnis, vol. i. 431, vol. ii. 271. 
 
 Delisle, M., vol. i. 135, 7iote, 520, 
 vol.ii. 241. 
 
 Delia Valle, vol. i. 343, 478, 519. 
 
 Delos, the Hyperboreans send offer- 
 ings to, vol. i. 201. 
 
 Deltas of rivers, remarks on, vol. ii. 
 99 ; that of Egypt founded in the 
 sea, 103; formerly a marsh, 112; 
 Deltas are lands in an imperfect 
 state of formation, 1 14 ; their up- 
 per angles move downwards, 128 ; 
 cause of it, 132; grow narrower, 
 from the same cause, 1 35 ; half of 
 that of Egypt lost, 151 ; rise of 
 its soil, in all ages, proved, 139 ; 
 dimensions of, well known to the 
 ancients, 151 ; diiference between 
 the ancient and modern Delta 
 shewn, 153; observations on, 178 ; 
 lakes in the Delta are portions of 
 the sea not yet filled up, ibid. ; 
 progress of filling up, slowest in 
 the eastern quarter, 179. 
 
 Derbend, said to have been fortified 
 by the Macedonians, vol. i. 148, 
 7)ote. 
 
 Desert of Iditmea, between Egypt and 
 Syria, vol. i. 339. 
 
 Diala R. vol. i. 432. 
 
 Diaek, or Jaik R. (Daix) vol. i. 180, 
 note, 
 
 Diodorus Siculus, his account of the 
 Jews, vol. i. 534. 
 
 Diphterae, or skins used for writing 
 on, vol. i. 327, note. 
 
 Don, or Tanais 11. vol. i. 46. 
 
 Dufter, or Defter, vol. i. 327, note. 
 
 Dyed skins, antiquity of the manu- 
 facture, in Africa, vol. ii. 344, 
 345, 346, 
 
 E. 
 
 Earth, measure of, well known to 
 
 Dionysidorus, vol. i. 226, note. 
 Easterly wind in Europe, conjecture 
 
 about, vol. i. 233, note. 
 Ecbatana, province of, a part of the 
 
 Median Satrajjy, vol. i. 353, note, 
 
 357, 360.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 161 
 
 Ecbatana, city of, the same with Ha- 
 madan, vol. i. 300, note ; men- 
 tioned, 522, note. 
 
 Edrisi, his description of the course 
 of the Nile, vol. ii. 47 ; of the situa- 
 tion of the rampart of Gog and 
 Magog, vol. i. 201. 
 
 Egijpt, the 6th Satrapy, vol. i. 332 ; 
 furnishes its quota in ships to the 
 armament of Xerxes, 334 ; the 
 crews also fight on shore, 338 ; 
 number of inhabitants, 417, note ; 
 classed distinct from Africa, vol. ii. 
 4; Lower Egy|3t, a marsh, 112. 
 
 Egyptian temples, described by 
 Strabo, vol. ii. 248, note. 
 
 architecture, remarks on, 
 
 251. 
 
 roofs, formed of blocks of 
 
 stone, ibid. 
 
 Egj'jjtians, circumnavigate Africa, 
 vol. ii. 349, et seq. 
 
 Eluths, (Oirats, Oigurs, or Yugures) 
 a principal tr. of the Kalmucs, vol. 
 i. 187, 192. 
 
 Emodiis'Slt. vol. i. 241. 
 
 Eneti, vol. i. 57. 
 
 England, coast of, alterations in, vol. 
 ii. 320. 
 
 Eretrian captives, where placed, in 
 Persia, vol. i. 354. 
 
 Erythrean or Indian sea, vol. i. 259, 
 vol. ii. 376. 
 
 Esther, tomb of, vol. i. 523, note. 
 
 Ethiopia, its boundaries and extent 
 uncertain, vol. ii. 29. 
 
 Ethiopians present gold dust to the 
 king of Persia, vol. i. 333. 
 
 ol Asia, the 17th Satrapy, 
 
 vol. i. 400. 
 
 Eudoxus, his observatory near Heli- 
 opolis, vol. ii. 172. 
 
 Euphrates, 11. vol. i. 205; anciently 
 held a separate course to the sea, ib. 
 
 Evers, Mr. vol. i. 489. 
 
 Europe, in the system of Herodo- 
 tus, occupied a great portion of 
 Northern Asia, vol. i. 45. 
 
 Western, little known to him, 
 
 vol. i. 51, 00, 01. 
 
 no eastern limit of, assigned 
 
 by Herodotus, vol. i. 194. 
 
 with Asia, the supposed 
 
 length of, by the ancients, vol. i. 
 224, 225. 
 
 Euxiue sea, reckoned too long by 
 Herodotus, vol. i. 203. 
 
 Falastine, the name given by the 
 Arabs to Palestine (whence Philis- 
 tine), vol. i. 321, note. 
 
 Falconer, Mr. translates the Pcriplus 
 oi Ilanno, vol. ii. 410, note. 
 
 Fasa, or Pasa (Pasagarda), vol, i. 
 370. 
 
 Fczzan, or Phazania, the country of 
 the Garamantes, vol. ii. 210, 211 ; 
 character of its inhabitants, 278; 
 great traders in Africa, ibid. ; well 
 situated for commerce, ibid. ; de- 
 scription of, ibid. 
 
 Franklin, Dr. his observation on the 
 number of colonists in America, 
 vol. ii. 441, note. 
 
 Gadamis, (or Cydamus), vol. ii. 280, 
 vote ; ruins there, 285 ; its manu- 
 facture of dyed skins, ibid. 
 
 Gades, or Cadiz, vol. i. 47. 
 
 Gamphasantes. — The same as Phaza- 
 nia, and the Garamantes. 
 
 Gandarii, or Gardarii, vol. i. 390. 
 
 Ganges R. not known to Herodotus, 
 vol. i. 410. 
 
 Garania, or Germa, vol. ii. 274 ; ruins 
 at, 277. 
 
 Garamantes, the people of Phazania, 
 or Fezzan, vol. ii. 273: authorities 
 to prove it, 274, 275; named from 
 Garama, its capital, 275 ; conquer- 
 ed by Balhus, 277. 
 
 Gaur, vol. i. 293. 
 
 Gedrosia, (Kedge, or Makran) vol. i. 
 400. 
 
 Geloni, vol. i. 116, 121. 
 
 Geography, physical, its effects on 
 mankind, vol. i. 130—132. 
 
 Gerrhus 11. vol. i. 75, 80, 87, 92, 93. 
 
 Germanians, or Carmanians, vol. i. 
 251, 378. 
 
 Gelce, vol. i. 59, 110; l)elieve in the 
 immortality of the soul, CO. 
 
 Gibbon, Mr. vol. i. 128, 129, note, 
 130, note, 155, 159. 
 
 Gillies, Dr. vol. i. 330, vote. 
 
 Gilligamma', a Lil)yan tr. vol. ii. 204. 
 
 Gindanes, (taken for the peoj)le of 
 Gadamis) vol. ii. 283. 
 
 Gog and Magog of the Scriptures, 
 intended for the Scythians of the 
 Euxine, vol. i. 140,147; {•fajiigo 
 and Majiije of the Arabians).
 
 462 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Gog and Magog, country of, where 
 situated, vol. i. 201, et seq. 
 
 rampart of, vol. i. 
 
 147, 201, 203, vol. ii. 371. 
 
 Gold and silver, their proportionate 
 value, vol. i. 415 note. 
 
 Golius, vol. i. 524, note. 
 
 Goodwin Sand, remark on, vol. ii. 
 325, C. 
 
 Gorgades Islands, (the Bissagoes) 
 vol. ii. 433. 
 
 Gorgo, daughter of Cleomenes, and 
 wife of Leonidas, her wise saying, 
 and character, vol. i. 428, note. 
 
 Gorilla, a kind of ape, vol. ii. 412, 
 note. 
 
 Gosselin, M. great advantages de- 
 rived from his work, entitled 
 Geographic des Grecs analysee, vol. 
 i. 225, vol. ii. 46, note. 
 
 Gozan, R. of Scripture, (the Kizil 
 Ozan) vol. i. 519 note, 521. 
 
 Gray, Dr. vol. i. xvi. 499, 7iofe. 
 
 Greaves, Dr. vol. i. 474, note. 
 
 Greece, its general geography omitted 
 by Herodotus, as unnecessary to 
 his history, vol. i. 47, 48. 
 
 invasion of, by the Persians, 
 
 affords a lesson to all free states, 
 422, 426. 
 
 Griphins, vol. i. 172 ; gold of, referred 
 to Kolywan, near Mount Altai, 
 vol. i. 193, 194. 
 
 Gyndes R. vol. i. 266, 431 ; divided 
 "by Cyrus, 267. 
 
 H. 
 
 Hahor (Abhar taken for it) vol. i. 
 521. 
 
 Had-deffa, a remarkable mountain 
 of purple salt, vol. ii. 309, 333, 
 339. 
 
 Halah, vol. i. 521. 
 
 Halizones, vol. i. 95. 
 
 Halys, R. vol. i. 268, 269. 
 
 Hamadan, (Echatana) vol. i. 360, 
 522, note. 
 
 Hamil, or Kamil, vol. i. 190. 
 
 Hammah R. (Tritonis) vol. ii. 339. 
 
 Hanno, the Carthaginian, founds 
 cities on the western coast of 
 Africa, vol. ii. 10 ; periplus of his 
 voyage, considered, 409, et seq. 
 its brevity, 410; not inconsistent, 
 ibid. ; stories of the streams of fire, 
 and savage women, explained, 
 410 — 412; design of the expedi- 
 10 
 
 tion, to form commercial establish- 
 ments, and make discoveries, 413 ; 
 time employed on the voyage, 
 incorrectly given, 414; lands and 
 rivers recognised in the Periplus, 
 415 ; et seq. evidence in favour of 
 it, 420, 421 ; progress of the expe- 
 dition southward from the Gambia 
 R. 423; Bay of Bissago, the 
 Western Horn, A24l ; sail by a 
 country on fire, 425, 426 ; Moun- 
 tain called the Chariot of the Gods, 
 (Sagres) 427, 431 ; Bay of Sher- 
 bro', the Southern Horn, 431 ; ob- 
 servations on the geography of 
 Ptolemy and Pliny, in this quarter, 
 432 — 437; general remarks on 
 the voyage, 438 ; seasons, 439 ; 
 object of the southern expedition 
 unknown, 442, 443. 
 
 Hanway, Mr. vol. i. 519, note. 
 
 Hara, vol. i. 522. 
 
 Haraminteleh, (HeroopoUs) vol. ii. 
 64. 
 
 Harmozia, vol. i. 238. 
 
 Hecatompylos, vol. i. 389. 
 
 HeUopolis, (in Egypt) vol. ii. 116; 
 the On of the Scriptures, 175, note ; 
 celebrated as a school of science, 
 ibid. ; the school of Plato and Eu- 
 doxus, 176, note. 
 
 Hellespont, description of its nar- 
 rowest part, vol. i. 154, et seq. ; 
 strong current through it, from 
 the Euxine, 162, note. 
 
 Hellespontians, vol. i. 317- 
 
 Henry, Prince of Portugal, encou- 
 rages the discovery of Africa, vol. 
 ii. 365, 429. 
 
 Heracleum, vol. ii. 154. 
 
 Herbelot, M. vol. i. 97, 510, note, 
 521, 525, note. 
 
 HerculesY>romontory, (Cape de Geer), 
 vol. ii. 19. 
 
 Hermonthis, description of the sanc- 
 tuary of a temple there, vol. ii. 
 248 ; compared with the remains 
 at Seewa, 250. 
 
 HermopoUs, the Less, (Rahmany) vol. 
 ii. 159, 162. 
 
 Herodotus, his geographical sys- 
 tem, (which I'elates more to Asia 
 and Africa, than Europe) the ear- 
 liest known, vol. i. 1, 2 ; regarded 
 the whole earth as one continent, 
 3 ; his veracity on the increase, 6, 
 7; a writer of veracity in what 
 he saw, ibid. ; did not believe that
 
 INDEX. 
 
 4G3 
 
 the earth was globular, 8 ; an advo- 
 cate for rational liberty, and an 
 enemy to civil and religions inno- 
 vation, 9 ; a great traveller, 1 1 ; 
 believed that the ocean surrounded 
 the eartli on three sides, ibid. ; his 
 geography consists more in relative 
 positions, than in actual distances, 
 and dimensions, 12; scope of his 
 geographical knowledge, 15, and 
 vol. ii. 2 ; his description of Thes- 
 saly, vol. i. 48, note ; Western Eu- 
 rope little known to him, 51, CO; 
 derived his knowledge of Scythia, 
 chiefly from the expedition of Da- 
 rius Hystaspes, 171 ; an error of 
 his copyists, 208 ; extent of his 
 knowledge in Asia, 227; divides 
 Asia into four regions, 244, et seq. ; 
 mistaken in the relative positions 
 of the Euxine, IMediterranean, 
 Caspian, and Persian seas, 24G ; 
 reckoned the Isthmus of Natolia 
 too narrow, by near half, 249 ; 
 knew little concerning the geogra- 
 phy of Eastern Scythia, 277 I at- 
 tributes the invention of letters to 
 the Phoenicians, 32(J ; extent of 
 his geographical knowledge in de- 
 tail, vol. ii. 2 ; knew that Africa 
 was surrounded by the sea, and 
 had been sailed round, 5 ; not 
 clear in his description of the 
 heads of the Nile, '■^^ ; a believer 
 in divination, 245, note ; silent re- 
 specting the wonderful remains at 
 Tliebes, 247, iiolc ; his knowledge 
 of Libya extensive, but not criti- 
 cal, 201, 2; silent respecting the 
 Carthaginian empire, 305 ; his 
 brief description of the circumna- 
 vigation of Africa, by the Egyp • 
 tians, 301. 
 
 Ileronpolis, vol. ii. 59, 60, 85. 
 
 Hesperides, gardens of, vol. ii. 200. 
 
 Hillah, on a part of the site of Baby- 
 lon, vol. i. 490, 507. 
 
 Hills of salt in Africa, vol. ii. 308, 
 315. 
 
 Hit, or Is, vol. i. 238, 443, 401 . 
 
 Honey of tlie palm tree, vol. ii. 304. 
 
 Hornemann, ^I. visits the remains 
 of the temple of Amnion, vol. ii. 449. 
 
 Houses of rock salt, in Africa, vol. 
 ii. 309. 
 
 Hylaa, a province of Scythia, vol. i. 
 83. 
 
 Hypank II. (tl>c Bog) vol. i. 73, 7^. 
 
 Hypanis (the Kuban R.) vol. i. 73, 
 nole. 
 
 Hyperboreans of Herodotus, the peo- 
 ple of Russia and part of Siberia, 
 vol. i. 195, 19(), 207; send offer- 
 ings to Delos, 209. 
 
 of the Romans, the 
 
 same with the Gog and Magog 
 (Jajuje and Majuje) of the Ara- 
 bians, vol. i. 200. 
 
 Ilyrcanians, vol. i. 363. 
 
 I. 
 
 Jahudiah, a Jewish foundation at 
 Ispahan, vol. i. 525. 
 
 Jaik, or Diaek R. (Dcdx) vol. i. 180, 
 note. 
 
 Jajuje and Majuje, (Gog and Magog) 
 vol. i. 147. 
 
 Jason, driven amongst the shallows 
 of the lake Tritonis, vol. ii. 330. 
 
 Jassi, vol. i. 07, note. 
 
 Jaxartes, called Araxes by Herodotus, 
 and confounded with the Oxus, vol. 
 i. 209, 270 ; the boundary of the 
 Persian empire, under Cyrus, 270, 
 271 ; denominated from the tribe 
 of Sarti, 290, 7. 
 
 Jaxarfa, a tr. at the Jaxartes, vol. i. 
 290. 
 
 Iberia, or Spain, vol. i. 56. 
 
 Idumean Desert, vol. i. 339 ; Cam- 
 byscs passes it, by the aid of the 
 Arabs, ibid. 
 
 Jenysus, vol. i. 342. 
 
 Jeri)a I. (Meninx) vol. ii. 287. 
 
 Jerusalem Itinerary, vol. i. 28, 29. 
 
 Jews, captives in Susiana, vol. i. 355. 
 
 ten tribes of, concerning their 
 
 disposal, vol. i. 512; the Afghans 
 taken for them, 513; fill jjlaces of 
 trust and confidence, during their 
 captivity in Nineveh, 529 ; only 
 certain classes of them carried 
 away, 520, 533. 
 
 Jewish history, not known to Hero- 
 dotus, vol. i. 325 ; part of it from 
 Diodorus, 534. 
 
 Imaiis, the western declivity of tlic 
 higli level of Asia, vol. i. 239 ; 
 mentioned, 01. 
 
 Immortals, a body of Persian in- 
 fantry, vol. i. 3«7- 
 
 India, supposed to have been the 
 last inhabited country towards tiie
 
 464 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 east, vol. i. 220; recently ex- 
 plored by the Persians, in the 
 time of Darius Hystaspes, ibid. ; 
 its rivers afford gold, 403 ; the 
 Persians only possessed the coun- 
 try west of the Ganges, 410 ; the 
 Padai, a nation near the banks of 
 the Padda, or Ganges, ibid. 
 Indians, the 20th Satrapy of Darius 
 Hystaspes, vol. i. 402. Descrip- 
 tion of their weapons, 404 j a peo- 
 ple highly civilized, ibid. ; scvei-al 
 nations comprised in this descrip- 
 tion, 405 ; Herodotus had but an 
 imperfect knowledge of them, 
 406 ; the Indians, by him, un- 
 justly accused of barbarism, 412. 
 Indus R. vol. i. 265. 
 Inland navigations of Russia and 
 
 China, vast, vol. i. 77- 
 Insular situation, advantages of, vol. 
 
 i. 385, note. 
 Inundations of the Nile, vol. ii. 143. 
 Invasion of Greece by the Persians. 
 
 — See Greece. 
 Jones, Sir William, vol. i. xv. 
 Josephus, vol. i. 514, note, 517, 523, 
 
 note, vol. ii. 176. 
 Ireland, Strabo ignorant of its posi- 
 tion, vol. i. 52, 3. 
 Irwin, Mr. vol. i. 509, note. 
 Is, or Hit, bitumen fountains at, vol. 
 
 i. 443, note, 461. 
 Isis, temple of, near Busiris, vol. ii. 
 
 141. 
 Islands joined to the main land by 
 
 alluvions, vol. i. 89, note. 
 Islands of the Erythraan sea, (mean- 
 ing the Persian gulf) vol. i. 261, 
 384, 5. 
 Isj)ahan, a Jewish foundation at. vol. 
 
 i. 525. 
 Issedones, vol. i. 172 ; the people who 
 inhabited the seat of the present 
 Oigurs, or Eluths, a Kalmuc tr. 
 173; a polished nation, 187; 
 oddly described by Herodotus, 
 188; placed by Ptolemy in Se- 
 rica, or Western Tartary, 279. 
 Isthmus of Suez. — See Suez. 
 Jupiter Amnion, temple of, placed in 
 the most retired of the Oases, vol. 
 ii. 1 86 ; its supposed remains, de- 
 scribed by Mr. Browne, in the 
 Oasis of Seewa, or Siwa, 260; by 
 M. Hornemann, 449. 
 Ives, Mr. vol. i. 433, note, 509, note. 
 lyrccE, supposed to be meant for 
 Turcce, vol. i. 171- 
 
 K. 
 
 Kabes, or Gabbs, (Tacape) vol. ii. 
 338, and note. 
 
 Kairun lake, (Moeris) vol. ii. 127. 
 
 Kairoan. — See Kurin. 
 
 Kandahar, vol. i. 393. 
 
 Karmanians. — See Carmanians. 
 
 Kebban mine, vol. i. 370. 
 
 Kedge, or Makran. — See Gcdrosia. 
 
 Khowarezm, vol. i. 299. 
 
 Khuzistan, vol. i. 353. 
 
 Kilan, or Kil, vol. i. 394. 
 
 Kir, or Keer, a name of Assyria, in 
 the Scriptures, vol. i. 515. 
 
 Kirgees (or Kirakis) tribes, occupy 
 the former seats of the Massa- 
 ge tee, vol. i. 174 ; divided into three 
 hordes ; see map, p. 303. 
 
 Kirkpatrick, Colonel, vol. i. xvi. 293, 
 note. 
 
 Kizil-Ozan, the river Croxa?* of Scrip- 
 ture, vol. i. 519, 7iote. 
 
 Kordofan, a province of Darfoor, 
 vol. ii. 43. 
 
 Kossacki, or Cossacks, vol. i. 293, 
 and note. 
 
 Krimea, some idea of its geography, 
 vol. i. 88 ; formerly an island, 89 ; 
 see also Taurica. 
 
 Kurin, the same as Gyrene, vol. ii. 
 267. 
 
 Lakes filled up by depositions, vol. 
 ii. 180. 
 
 Larcher, M. vol. i. 46 note, 311, vol. 
 ii. 407. 
 
 Latitudes and longitudes in the map 
 of Libya, vol. ii. 209. 
 
 Latapolis or LitopoUs, vol. ii. 131, 
 7iote, 159, 170, note. 
 
 Lebanon, Mts. vol. i. 237. 
 
 Lebetse, a modern tr. in Libya, vol. 
 ii. 4, note. 
 
 Ledyard, Mr. his information re- 
 specting the head of the Nile, vol. 
 ii. 42. 
 
 Length of Europe and Asia, collec- 
 tively, according to the ancients, 
 vol. i. 224. 
 
 Letters, invention of, attributed by 
 Herodotus to the Phoenicians, vol. 
 i. 326. 
 
 Leucoethiopes, (Foulahs) vol. ii. 440. 
 
 Leiico-syri, people of Cappadocia and 
 Paphlagonia, vol. i. 315.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 465 
 
 Levels of Asia, considered geuerally, 
 
 vol. i. 299, et seq. 
 Lixus, two rivers of the name, vol. ii. 
 
 11; the Lesser, 12, 14; Greater, 
 
 23. 
 LLiitee, a tr. on the banks of the 
 
 Greater Lixus, vol. ii. 11, 424. 
 Lotophagi, seats of, assigned by the 
 
 ancients, vol. ii. 283 ; much more 
 
 extended, 284 ; poetical allusions 
 
 to them, 288. 
 Lotus, two distinct species of, vol. ii. 
 
 288 ; description of tlie fruit so 
 
 named, 289, 290 ; spread over the 
 
 whole border of the great African 
 
 Desert, 292 ; aquatic lotus, de- 
 
 cription of, with remarks, 293, 294 ; 
 
 the Colocassia, 297. — See also j4d- 
 
 denila, 450. 
 Lucan, geographical errors of, vol. 
 
 ii. 324, 325. 
 Lucas, Mr. vol. ii. 283. 
 Lucas, Paul, vol. ii. 194. 
 Libya, investigation of the principal 
 
 points in its geography, between 
 
 Egypt and Fezzan, vol. ii. 208 — 
 
 221. 
 coast and country of, vol. ii. 
 
 261, et seq.— See also Africa. 
 
 M. 
 
 Mac(B, or MascB, a Libyan tr. vol. ii. 
 
 282. 
 Macedonia, vol. i. 58. 
 Machli/es, an African tr. at the lake 
 
 Tritoms, vol. ii. 283, 300. 
 Macrobian Etiiiopians, (Abyssinians) 
 
 vol. ii. 29. 
 Meeotis Palus, thought by Herodotus 
 
 to be nearly as large as the Euxine, 
 
 vol. i. C8; by Polybius, that it 
 
 would be filled up by the Tanais, 
 
 91, note. 
 Magi, interpreters of dreams, vol. 1. 
 
 3o«. 
 Magog. — See Gog and Magog. 
 Maillet, M. his report concerning 
 
 the head of the Nile, vol. ii. 39; 
 
 concerning the Great Oasis, 193, 
 
 190. 
 Majuje. — See Jajuje, &c. 
 Makloube, modern name of the ruins 
 
 of Babylon, vol. i. 484, vol. ii. 447, 
 Makran, vol. i. 400. 
 Map of the world, drawn on a plate 
 
 of brass, described by Herodotus, 
 
 vol. i. 430. 
 vol.. II. 
 
 Marches of armies, mean length of, 
 vol. i. 27, 28, 430. 
 
 Mardi-coura, or men-eaters, vol. i. 
 374, note. 
 
 Marcotis, lake, error concerning, vol. 
 ii. 100, 161. 
 
 Margiana, &c. the 7th Satrapy, vol. 
 i. 390, 393. 
 
 Margus R. or ]\Iarg-ab, vol. i. 390. 
 
 Marines, Sacae, Medes, and Persians, 
 employed as such, in the fleet of 
 Xerxes, vol. i. 335. 
 
 Marsden, Mr. vol. i. xvi. ; vol. ii. 308, 
 note. 
 
 Massagetce, or Eastern Scythians, 
 vol. i. 62, 174 ; customs common 
 to them, and the Western Scy- 
 thians, 102 ; their seats occupied 
 by the Kirgees tribes, 174. 
 
 a general term amongst 
 
 the Greeks, to denote the Eastern 
 Scythians, vol. i. 286. 
 
 Matarea, (site of Heliopolis) vol. ii. 
 116. 
 
 Matlene, vol. i. 365 ; error concern- 
 ing it, 433. 
 
 Maxyes, an African tr. vol. ii. 303. 
 
 Media, the 10th Satrapy, vol. i, 
 357 ; two countries of the name, 
 Media Magna, and Media Atro- 
 patia, ibid. ; Media Magna, a beau- 
 tiful tract, 358 ; the cradle of the 
 Persian power, ibid. 
 
 applied by the Greeks to the 
 
 united empire of Medes and Per- 
 sians, vol. i. 360. 
 
 wall of, built across tlie 
 
 narrow part of Mesopotamia, vol. 
 i. 501, 7iote. 
 
 Medes, cities of, the Jews sent thi- 
 ther, vol. i. 517—519, 525. 
 
 Megiddo, Josiah defeated there, vol. 
 ii. .362. 
 
 Melanchlceni, vol. i. 109, 110, 113. 
 
 Alemnon, city of, (Susa) vol. i. 353. 
 
 Memphis, position of, examined and 
 placed, vol. ii. 115, 121 ; descrip- 
 tion of its site, by Pococke, Bruce, 
 Maillet, and Browne, 119—122. 
 
 Mendeli 11. (the Gipides) vol. i. 431, 
 432. 
 
 Mendesian mouth of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 170. 
 
 Menelaus, pilot of, l)uried in ilie 
 island of Canopus, vol. ii. 156. 
 
 jiort of, vol. ii. 265. 
 
 Menf, or Memf, modern name of the 
 site o^ Memphis, vol. ii. 119. 
 iih
 
 4G6 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Meninx, I. (Jcrba) vol. ii. 28G. 
 Menouf, canal of, vol. ii. 13G ; in- 
 creases in bulk, 137. 
 Menzala, lake of, (Tanitic) vol. ii. 
 
 171. 
 
 Meroe, vol. ii. 31, 35, note ; temple of 
 
 Jupiter at, 25?. 
 Meridian, a portion of, estimated by 
 
 Eratosthenes, vol. i. 31. 
 Meru, vol. i. 390, 391. 
 Mesjid Ali, vol. i. 496. 
 Mesopotamia, a name posterior to the 
 
 time of Herodotus, vol. i. 432. 
 Mesurata, (amongst the Macce, or 
 
 Masa) vol. ii. 282, note. 
 Metelh, vol. ii. 158. 
 St. Michael's Mount, vol. ii. 357,wo<e. 
 Milesian, wall, vol. ii. 158, note. 
 Minerva, temple of, at the lake Tri- 
 
 tonis, vol. ii. 341. 
 Mines of copper, &c. in Armenia, 
 
 and Cappadocia, vol. i. 369. 
 Modain, modern name of Ctesiphon, 
 
 vol. i. 462. 
 Moeris, lake, (Kairun) vol. ii. 127, 
 
 128. 
 Moses, perhaps educated at Helio- 
 
 polis, vol. ii. 175. 
 Moschi, vol. i. 372. 
 Mourzouk, capital of Fezzan, vol. ii. 
 
 280. 
 Myriandrus, a Phoenician city, vol. i. 
 
 322. 
 
 N. 
 
 Nadir Shah, his arrangement for 
 
 supplying his army with water, in 
 
 the Desert of Korasan, vol. i. 340, 
 
 341, note. 
 Nasamones, a Libyan tr. at the Syrtis, 
 
 plunderers of wrecks, vol. i. 131 ; 
 
 explore Africa to the Niger, vol. ii. 
 
 32, 33, 281 ; gather the dates of 
 
 Augela, 270. 
 Naval review of Xerxes's fleet, at 
 
 Doriscus, vol. i. 334. 
 Navigations, ancient, remarks on, 
 
 vol. ii. 354—359. 
 Naucratis, the emporium of Egypt, 
 
 vol. ii. 163; indications of its site, 
 
 at Salhajar, ibid. ; Greeks allowed 
 
 acommercial settlement there, 164. 
 Nebuchadnezzar, carries the Jews 
 
 into captivity to Babylon, vol. i. 
 
 528. 
 Necho, or Necos, begins a canal from 
 
 the Nile to the Red sea, vol. ii. 
 
 72 ; employs a fleet in the circum- 
 navigation of Africa, 362. 
 
 Neuri, vol. i. 109, 112, 122. 
 
 Nicol, Mr. vol. i. xvii. 
 
 Niebuhi", M. supplies materials for 
 the correction of the geography of 
 Lower Egypt, Sections XVI 11. 
 and XIX. See also, vol. i. 29, 
 262,266, 351, 454, 462, 480,481 ; 
 vol. ii. 63, 88, 137, note. 
 
 Nile, its sources unknown to the 
 Greeks, vol. ii. 31 ; the Niger 
 taken for its western branch, 33 ; 
 its distant source from the west of 
 Abyssinia, 38 ; the Bahr Abiad, 
 or White River, taken for it, 40 ; 
 the Nile formed of two distinct 
 branches, 45 ; place of its remote 
 source, described by Ptolemy, 45, 
 46; by Edrisi, 47; and by Abul- 
 feda, 48 ; observations on these 
 reports, 50 ; further ideas given 
 by Mr. Browne, proving that the 
 Niger does not join the Nile, 96; 
 delta of the Nile, remarks on, 
 99 ; change of its course at Mem- 
 phis, 122 ; its branches, ancient 
 and modern, description of, 148, 
 et seqq. ; seven, allowed generally, 
 by the ancients, now reduced to 
 two, 149 ; main body of the Nile 
 gone more to the west, I7I ; ob- 
 servations on its floods and allu- 
 vions, 99, et seq. 
 
 Nineveh, vol. i. 351, note; said to be 
 larger than Babylon, ibid. 
 
 , the ten tribes carried to, 
 
 vol. i. 527. 
 
 Nisaan horses and pastures, vol. i. 
 359. 
 
 Nitocris, queen of Babylon, her acts, 
 vol. i. 442. 
 
 Nomadic tribes, remarks on, vol. i. 
 528. 
 
 Norden, Mr. vol. i. 26, vol. ii. 118, 
 125, note, 145, 173. 
 
 O. 
 
 Oants R. (the Wolga) vol. i. 117, 
 118. 
 
 Oases of Egypt and JAhya, descrip- 
 tion of, vol. ii. 1 83, et seq. ; fer- 
 tile islands in the Desert, ibid. : 
 owe their origin to fountains of 
 water, with which they are abun- 
 dantly supplied, 184 ; their great
 
 INDEX. 
 
 467 
 
 celebrity owing to contrast, 
 185; description of the Oases by 
 Mr. Browne, 18G ; by Mr. Poncet, 
 ] 87 ; used as places of refresh- 
 ment for the caravans of Fezzan, 
 Sennar, and Darfoor, ibid. ; Oasis 
 of Seevva, the most fertile, 188 ; 
 places of banishment, 189; two 
 Oases belonging to Egypt, (the 
 greater and lesser) one to Libya, 
 (Amnion) 192; authorities for 
 their positions, 193, et seq. ; Greater 
 Oasis, 196; Lesser, 200, (the 
 Bahnasa of the Desert) ; parti- 
 cidars respecting the Lesser Oasis, 
 by Mr. Browne, 200. 
 
 Oasis of Jupiter Amnion, authorities 
 for the position of, from the 
 ancients, vol. ii. 222 — 226 ; agrees 
 in position to Seewa, 228, 229 ; 
 no other Oasis in all that quarter, 
 230 ; further elucidations from 
 Ptolemy, 237 ; remarks on the 
 data, 232 ; comparison of the an- 
 cient descriptions of Amnion with 
 that of Seewa, 235—239; the 
 Santariah of the Arabian geo- 
 graphers agrees with Seewa, and 
 both, with the descriptions of 
 Amnion, 239, 240. 
 
 Ocean, northern, Herodotus's idea 
 of, vol. i. 196. 
 
 CEcharda;, (the Oigurs) vol. i. 173, 
 276. 
 
 Oigurs, or Yugures, ( Issedones ) vol. i. 
 190. 
 
 Olearius, vol. i. 519 — 522, notes. 
 
 Omar, canal of, vol. ii. 92. 
 
 Onias, temple of, in Egypt, vol. ii. 
 173; position of, 175, 110. 
 
 Op/iir, (probably Sofala) vol. ii. 354, 
 355. 
 
 Opis, vol. i. 267. 
 
 Otter, M. vol. i. 266, .353, 355, 371, 
 460, 461,522,523. 
 
 Oxiis, or Jihon 11. the boundary of 
 modern Persia, or Iran, vol. i. 
 270,271. 
 
 l)robably named from the tr. 
 
 of Outzi, or Ovi/draca, vol. i. 297. 
 
 Ozan R. vol. i. 519, and 7wle. 
 
 Padai, (a peo))le near the Padda, or 
 
 Ganges) vol. i. 407, note. 
 Paonia, vol. i. 58. 
 
 12 
 
 Palkati Nor, or lake of the Kalmucs, 
 
 vol. i. 275. 
 Pallas, M. vol. i. 68, note, 90, 91. 
 Palmyra, journies to it from Aleppo, 
 
 by English gentlemen, in the last 
 
 century, vol. i. 342, note. 
 Parasanga, Persian, vol. i. 434 — 440. 
 Paricanii, vol. i. 400. 
 Park, Mr. discovers the river Niger, 
 
 vol. ii. 51 ; describes the lotus, 
 
 290, 291, 7iote ; and the burning 
 
 of the dry herbage in Manding, 
 
 411 ; cited, 4, 36, note, 313. 
 Parthians, included in the 16th 
 
 Satrapy, vol. i. 387. 
 Parthia, proper, its geography, not 
 
 clear, vol. i. 388. 
 Pasa, or Fasa, (Pasagarda) vol. i. 
 
 376. 
 Pasasarda, founded by Cyrus, vol. i. 
 
 376, 377. 
 
 Pasiani, a Scythian tr. who had a 
 share in conquering Bacfria, from 
 the Macedonians, vol. i. 299. 
 
 Pasica, or Pausica, a Scythian tr. 
 vol. i. 299, 363. 
 
 Pattimos, vol. ii. 61. 
 
 Pelasgi, their simplicity in matters 
 of religion, vol. ii. 243. 
 
 Pelusiiim, vol. i. 343, note, 344 ; po- 
 sition of, vol. ii. 60. 
 
 Pelitsiac branch of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 171 ; its course changed, and be- 
 come a periodical stream only, 
 172 ; originally very large, vol. ii. 
 
 177. 
 
 Perekop, fortress and lines of, vol. 
 
 i. 92, 126. 
 Persepolis, (or Chelminar) vol. i. 
 
 377, 378. 
 
 Perseus, watch tower of, vol. ii. 152. 
 Persian empire of Darius Hystaspes, 
 
 contained nearly that portion of 
 
 Asia known to the Greeks, vol. i. 
 
 304. 
 cavalry, remark of Xeno- 
 
 phon rcsj)ccting them, vol. i. 139. 
 gulf known to Herodotus, 
 
 only a portion of tlie Erythra-aii 
 sea, vol. i. 216, 217, 260. 
 invasion of Greece. — See 
 
 Greece. 
 Persians, not classed in any Satrapy, 
 
 nor i)aid tril)ute, but presented a 
 
 gift, vol. i. 375, 37(;. 
 Peter the Great of Russia, builds 
 
 Heets in the Tanais, &c. vol. i. 
 
 122; eulogium on, 123, 124;
 
 468 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 places the Swedish captives in 
 Siberia, 533. 
 
 Phaccusa, position of, vol. ii. 67, 70. 
 
 Pharos I. vol. ii. 155; tradition re- 
 specting its former distance from 
 the mouth of the Nile, considered, 
 181. 
 
 Pliasis R. of Colchis, the boundary 
 of Europe and Asia, vol. i. 195. 
 
 Phatmetic mouth of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 169. 
 
 Phazania. — See Fezzan and Gara- 
 mantes. 
 
 Philesnian altars, vol. ii. 307- 
 
 Phocoeans of Ionia, their places of 
 settlement, vol. i. 55. 
 
 Phcenicia, included in the 5th Sa- 
 trapy, vol. i. 320. 
 
 Phoenician letters, vol. i. 326, 327. 
 
 commerce, extended scale 
 
 of, vol. i. 327, 328. 
 
 Phrygia, the great body of Asia 
 Minor, vol. i. 314. 
 
 Pinkerton, Mr. vol. i. 277- 
 
 Pitt,W. Morton, Esq. vol. i. 527, note. 
 
 Platcea, decisive battle of, vol. i. 422. 
 
 Platea, I. of, on the Libyan coast, 
 vol. ii. 265. 
 
 Pliny, his account of the tides in the 
 Mediterranean, vol. ii. 330. 
 
 Pococke, Dr. vol. ii. 64, 88, 142— 
 144,250—255. 
 
 Polybius, vol. ii. 318, 329 ; his de- 
 scription of the lotus, 290 ; em- 
 ployed by Scipio Emilianus, to 
 explore the coasts of Africa, 351, 
 352. 
 
 Posideium, vol. i. 320. 
 
 Psylli, charmers of serpents, vol. ii. 
 270 ; accompany the army of Cato 
 round the Syrtes, 324. 
 
 Ptolemy Philadelphus, completes a 
 canal to the Red sea, vol. ii. 114. 
 
 Ptolemy the geographer, remarks on 
 his description of the coast of 
 Africa, vol. ii. 15, et seq. 
 
 his latitudes on that coast, 
 
 compared with modern observa- 
 tions, vol. ii. 16. 
 
 Pyramids of Giza, (or Memphis) 
 their position, vol. ii. 118. 
 
 Pythagoras, vol. i. 212 ; vol. ii. 296. 
 
 Q. 
 
 Querkyness (the islands of Cyranis, 
 
 or Ccrcina) vol. ii. 304, 305. 
 Quintus Curtius, 236, et seq. 
 
 R. 
 
 Rages, or Rey, vol. i. 361, 522. 
 Rahmany ( HermopoUs parva) vol. ii. 
 
 159. 
 Rain, little or none falls in Libya, 
 
 vol. ii. 310; quantity that fell at 
 
 Algiers, ibid. 
 Ram skins, dyed red, the covering 
 
 of the tabernacle, vol. ii. 344. 
 Rey. — See Rages. 
 Rha, or WolgaR. vol. i. 118. 
 Rhodopis, her beauty, and singular 
 
 offering to the temple at Delphi, 
 
 vol. ii. 166. 
 Rieske, translates most of the geo- 
 graphy of Abulfeda, vol. i. 521, 
 
 524, vol. ii. 48, et seq. 370. 
 RipluBan Mts. (Ural) vol. i. 182, 183. 
 Rivers of Western Asia, vol. i. 265. 
 remarks on their floods and 
 
 alluvions, vol. ii. 99. 
 Robertson, Dr. vol. i. 1. 
 Roman roads in Egypt, vol. ii. 159. 
 Rosetta branch of the Nile, (ancient 
 
 Bolbltme) grows shallower, vol. ii. 
 
 136; account of, 167. 
 Royal Road from Sardis to Susa, vol. 
 
 i. 428, et seq. 
 Russia, importance of its possessions 
 
 on the Euxine and Moeotis, vol. i. 
 
 129, 130. 
 Rustum, vol. i. 382. 
 
 S. 
 
 Sacee, a general term amongst the 
 Persians, for the Eastern Scy- 
 thians, vol. i. 284—286. 
 
 authorities for the position of 
 
 their country, vol. i. 290, 291 ; 
 tracts denominated from them, 
 292 and note ; had a share in over- 
 throwing the Macedonian empire 
 in Bactria, ibid. ; included in the 
 15th Satrapy, 394 ; distinguished 
 warriors, by sea and land, in the 
 armament of Xerxes, 397- 
 
 Sagaris, a weapon so named, vol. i. 
 399, 
 
 Sagartians, a tr. of Persia, vol. i. 379. 
 
 Sahara, or great African Desert, vol. 
 ii. 9, 24. 
 
 Sah, the modern name of Sais, vol. 
 ii. 162. 
 
 Sailing of ancient ships, rate of, vol. 
 ii. 354.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 169 
 
 Saitic branch of the Nile, vol. ii. I70. 
 
 Sakita, vol. i. 283, note. 
 
 Salhia, or Salahiah, the modern pass 
 into Egypt, vol. i. 343 ; vol. ii. 62, 
 65. 
 
 Salt, abounds in North Africa, vol. ii. 
 308 ; hills and beds of it described 
 by Herodotus, and by Dr. Shaw, 
 ibid. ; houses of rocksalt, in Libya, 
 310, 311. 
 
 Samaria, vol. i. 526. 
 
 Santariah, position of, vol. ii. 215 ; 
 description of, 239, 240 ; the same 
 with Seewa and Ammon, 216, 241. 
 
 Sanuto, vol. ii. 69, 70. 
 
 Saraiigaans, (people of Sigistan, 
 whose capital is Zarang) part of 
 the 14th Satrapy, vol. i. 375 ; re- 
 lieve Cyrus, and thence named 
 Euerget(B, .S81 ; position, 382, 383. 
 
 Saranga, a rich alluvial tract, in the 
 heart of Persia, vol. i. 380, 381. 
 
 Sarmat'ite — See Sauromatae. 
 
 Sarti, or Sartes, a tr. taken for the 
 remains of the Jaxartce, vol. i, 296, 
 297. 
 
 Suspires, &c. the 18th Satrapy, vol. i. 
 365 ; answer to the people of 
 Eastern Armenia ; called also Sas- 
 pines, Saspirians, and Sapinians, 
 366. 
 
 Sataspes, his attempt to circumnavi- 
 gate Africa by the east, fails, vol. 
 ii. 403—406. 
 
 Satrapies, the twenty of Darius Hys- 
 taspes, vol. i. 304, et seq. ; those in 
 Asia Minor, arranged with a view 
 to concentrate its naval force, 309 ; 
 observations on, 415 ; sum of their 
 tritule, 415,416; mode of depo- 
 siting the treasure, 418; Indian 
 tribute paid in gold, ibid. 
 
 Sauroinatee, the Sarmata of the Ro- 
 mans, a tr. beyond the Tunais, 
 vol. i. 115, 119. 
 
 Savary, M. vol. ii. 119, 194. 
 
 Schoene, what, vol. i. 24, 25. 
 
 Scylax, his Periplus quoted, vol. ii. 
 155, 264. 
 
 Scythia, two countries of the name ; 
 Western, or Euxine and Eastern, 
 or the country of the Massagetae, 
 vol. i. 61 ; Western Scythia, a 
 member of Europe, the Eastern, 
 of Asia, 04, 65. 
 Scythia, Western, or Euxine, posi-. 
 tion and face of, vol. i. 66, el seq. ; 
 true form and extent of, 70, el 
 13 
 
 seq. ; its fine rivers, and pastures, 
 67, 73—76, 106 ; subdivision of, 82 ; 
 suited to a pastoral life, 106 ; coun- 
 tries bordering on it, 109, et seq. 
 
 Scythians, Western, the Sarmatians 
 of the Romans, vol. i. 61 ; hus- 
 bandmen, or ploughing Scythians, 
 85 ; Nomades, 86 ; Royal Scy- 
 thians, 94 ; their customs similar 
 to those of the Massagetae, 102; 
 their character, from Herodotus, 
 107; barbarous funerals of their 
 kings, 141 ; gold buried with the 
 bodies, ibid ; seceding royal Scy- 
 thians, 171 ; Scythians make 
 drinking cups of human skulls, 188. 
 
 Scythians, Eastern or M.vssahet^, 
 vol. i. 273, et seq. ; Herodotus in 
 doubt whether to class them as 
 Scythians, ibid.; later Greek writers 
 universally reckoned them such, 
 274; divided by mount Imaus, 
 into two regions, ibid. ; three prin- 
 cipal tribes reckoned, Massagetae, 
 Dahse, and Saca", 285. 
 
 Scythian nations, reported origin of, 
 vol. i. 96, et seq. ; excel in archery, 
 397. 
 
 Seamen, a very small proportion in 
 ancient ships, vol. i. 338. 
 
 Sebrnnitic mouth of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 168. 
 
 Second captivity of the Jews, the 
 history of it elucidates that of the 
 first, vol. i. 519. 
 
 Seewa, or Siwa, authorities for, vol. 
 ii. 216, et. seq. ; Mr. Browne's 
 route to it, and observations, 217) 
 219; results of the geographical 
 data,combined, 220, 221 ; the same 
 with the Santariah of the Arabs, 
 221 ; and the Oasis of Jninion, 255. 
 
 Seewa, remains of the edifice at, re- 
 semble certain of those at Thebes 
 and Hermonthis, vol. ii. 248, 249 ; 
 described by Mr. Browne, 249, 
 note ; comparison between this 
 edifice, and those at 'I'lieljes and 
 Hermonthis, 250,255 ; of Egyptian 
 origin, and belonging to the wor- 
 ship of Ammon, 256. 
 
 Semiramis, queen of Bahylon, vol. i. 
 
 442. 
 Sepulchres of the king of Scythia, 
 
 wliere placed, vol. i. 141. 
 Serhnnic lake, a sort of inland SjTtis, 
 
 vol. ii. 316, no/e. 
 Sesostris, monuments of his con-
 
 470 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 quests, vol. i. 324 ; drains Lower 
 Egypt, and divides the lands, vol. 
 ii. 113. 
 
 Sestini, M. vol. i. 371- 
 
 Sestos, vol. i. 157. 
 
 Shaw, Dr. vol. ii. 65,303, 308—310, 
 327, 332. 
 
 Shalmaneser carries Israel into cap- 
 tivity, vol. i. 517, 525; employs 
 Tobit in a situation of trust and 
 confidence, 530. 
 
 Ships, ancient, slow progress of, 
 vol. ii. 354 ; examples of, 356, 
 note ; of two kinds, long and round, 
 vol. i. 163 ; some ideas respecting 
 them, ibid, et seq. ; crews of, 165, 
 vol. ii. 400. 
 
 SigyncB, vol. i. 58. 
 
 Sittacene, vol. i. 433. 
 
 Sittacus, R. vol. ii. 396. 
 
 Siupli, (present Sauafe), vol. ii. 164. 
 
 Slope, two different kinds, in the 
 beds of rivers, 102, 103. 
 
 Sogdians, included in the 16th Sa- 
 trapy, vol. i. 387. 
 
 Solis Mons, vol. ii. 15. 
 
 Soloeis, promontory of, for Syloes) 
 vol. ii. 6; supposed to mean C. 
 Cantin, vol. ii. 19, 405. 
 
 Solomon and Hiram, voyages of their 
 fleets, vol. ii. 353. 
 
 Soudan, the same as Nigritia, vol. ii. 
 44, note. 
 
 Stade, itinerary, of the Greeks, vol. i. 
 17 ; Roman stade differed from it, 
 ibid. ; Olympic, 20, 32 ; stade of 
 Herodotus, 19, 42; of Xenophon, 
 28, 42 ; of Aristotle, 30 ; of Era- 
 tosthenes, 31, 42; of Strabo, 31, 
 32, 42 ; of Polybius, 34, 35, 42 ; 
 of Pliny, 37, 42 ; of Arrian ; 39, 
 42. 
 
 Stade, Grecian, length of, in English 
 feet, vol. i. 42 ; probably, composed 
 of 100 paces, 44. 
 
 Stathmus, Persian, agrees to a day's 
 march of an army, vol. i. 434, 440. 
 
 Staunton, Sir George, vol. ii. 297, 
 note. 
 
 Strabo, ignorant of the position of 
 Ireland, vol. i. 53; his idea of the 
 length of Europe and Asia, be- 
 tween C. St. Vincent and the 
 mouth of the Ganges, 225. 
 
 Suez, position of, determined by ce- 
 lestial observations, vol. ii. 59, 
 note. 
 
 isthmus of, reckoned too wide, 
 
 by the ancients ; and also by M. 
 D'Anville, vol. ii. 56, 58; autho- 
 rities for its breadth, 58, et seq. 
 
 Suez, canals of. — See Canals. 
 
 Sullivan, Mr. vol. i. 350, note, 371. 
 
 Superstition, harmless, apology for, 
 vol. i. 211. 
 
 Sus, modern name of Susa, vol. i. 
 440. 
 
 Susa, or Susiana, the 8th Satrapy, 
 vol. i. 353, 
 
 Susa, city of, the capital of Persia, in 
 the time of Darius Hystaspes and 
 Xerxes, vol. i. 353; new ideas re- 
 specting its position, vol. i. 268, 
 438, 440. 
 
 Syria, a part of Assyria, vol. i. 254, 
 347. 
 
 Syrians oi Palestine, (the Jews) vol. i. 
 254. 
 
 included in the 5th Satrapy, 
 
 vol. i. 320. 
 
 Syrians of Cappadocia, (Leuco-syri, 
 or White Syrians), vol. i. 254. 
 
 of Damascus, captivity of, 
 
 vol. i. 518. 
 
 Syrt.es, two gulfs, so named by the 
 ancients, vol. ii. 314, et seq.; the 
 terror of ancient mariners, ibid. ; 
 position and extent of, 315— 
 317 ; general description of, from 
 the ancients, 318; their dangers 
 occasioned, in part, by the imper- 
 fect state of ancient navigation, 
 319 ; greater Syrtis, the gulf of 
 Sidra, 320 ; Cato leads a Roman 
 army round it, 323 ; poetical de- 
 scription of the Greater Syrtis, by 
 Lucan, 324; Lesser Syrtis, the 
 gulf of Kabes, 327 ; tides in it, 
 328 ; answers to the lake Tritonis 
 of Herodotus, 331 ; now in part 
 filled up, 331, 333. 
 
 Tacape, or Kabes, vol. ii. 333 ; its 
 
 fine river, ibid. 
 Taiba, vol. i. 238. 
 Tanais, or Don, vol. i. 76 ; the Czar 
 
 Peter builds a fleet there, and at 
 
 Woronez, 123. 
 Tanitic mouth of the Nile, vol. ii. 
 
 170. 
 Targltaus, of Herodotus, the Turk of 
 
 the Orientals, vol. i. 96. 
 Tartessus, vol. i. 49, 56.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 171 
 
 Taverniere, vol. i. 521, 7wte. 
 
 Tauk Kesra, or Palace of Chosroes, 
 some description of, vol. i. 509 ; 
 built of Babylonish bricks, ibid. 
 
 Taurica, or Krimea, vol. i. 125 ; a 
 remarkable peninsula, ibid. ; its 
 isthmus fortified from early times, 
 12() ; possessed by the Genoese, 
 127, 128; present state of the for- 
 tifications, 129. 
 
 Taxii, higlily barbarous, vol. i. 130; 
 civilized by a communication with 
 the Greek colonists, ibid., 7iote. 
 
 Tdiinis, the chain of mountains so 
 called, ancient idea of, vol. i. 228, 
 229 ; various names given to it, in 
 its course through Asia, ibid. ; de- 
 scription of its course, ibid, et seq. 
 
 Temj)le of Jupiter Amnion, in Libya, 
 placed in the remotest of the 
 Oases, vol. ii. 1 86 ; other temples 
 of this worship, 244, et seq. ; four, 
 in and about Thebes, 24G ; in 
 Ethiopia, 257 ; the remains of the 
 Libyan temple discovered, by Mr. 
 Browne, 258. 
 
 Ten tribes of the Jews. — See Jews. 
 
 Terfan, vol. ii. 190. 
 
 Terraet Mues, the modern Pelusiac 
 branch of the Nile, vol. ii. 09. 
 
 Thamaneans, vol. i. 375, 383. 
 
 Thebes, called Diospolis, vol. ii. 247; 
 observations on the sanctuary, or 
 granite room, of the great temple, 
 there, 254, 255. 
 
 Themiscyra, vol. i. 121. 
 
 Thendosian Tables, vol. i. 21, 223, 
 401, vol. ii. 100. 
 
 Therea, I. of, vol. ii. 205. 
 
 Thermodon R. vol. i. 120, 121, 209. 
 
 Thessaly, description of, by Hero- 
 dotus, vol. i. 48. 
 
 Thevenot, M. vol. i. 343, 344, 355, 
 374, vol. ii. 07, note. 
 
 Thibet, vol. i. 399. 
 
 Thrace, an extensive region in Eu- 
 rope, in ancient times, vol.i. 57, 58. 
 
 Thracian widows sacrifice themselves 
 at their husbands' funerals, vol. i. 
 GO. 
 
 Thrucians of Asia, (Uythinians) vol. 
 i. 315, 310. 
 
 7';((/n»'a<er/«»/,(Thamusida),vol. ii. 10. 
 
 Thyssageta, vol. i. 110, 124. 
 
 Tibarent, &c. the 19th Satrapy, (along 
 tlie Euxine) vol. i. 372, 374. 
 
 Tides in the Mediterranean sea, vol. 
 ii. 315, note. 
 
 Tides in the Lesser Syrtis, 329 ; at 
 Venice, 331 ; at Naples, ibid. ; at 
 the Eiiripiis, ibid. 
 
 Tigris R. vol. i. 261, 265; anciently 
 held a separate course to the sea, 
 205. 
 
 Tigris, three Rs. of the name, ac- 
 cording to Herodotus, vol. i. 431. 
 
 Tin, drawn from Britain, by the 
 Phoenicians, vol. i. 40. 
 
 Tina, or Tineh, (Pelusium) vol. ii. 
 69, jiote. 
 
 Tobit, abstract of his history, which 
 throws much light on the condition 
 of the Jewish captives in Nineveh, 
 vol. i. 529, et seq. ; employed by 
 Shalmaneser, 530 ; sends for his 
 money to Rages, ibid. ; perma- 
 nency of oriental customs, 531. 
 
 Tochari, tr. of Scythians, help to con- 
 quer Bactria from the Macedo- 
 nians, vol. i. 300. 
 
 Tocharestan, modern name of a 
 country in Persia, inhabited by 
 the Tocliari, ibid. 
 
 Tooke, Mr. vol. i. xvii. 82, 143, 184. 
 
 Torgauti, or Torgots, vol. i. 183, 184. 
 
 Tott, Baron, his description of the 
 maritime part of Scytiiia, &-c. vol. 
 i. 07, note, 83, 84, 90, 92, 90, note, 
 129, 160. 
 
 Tournefort, M. vol. i. 157, 158, 162, 
 373. 
 
 Trajan, canal of, vol. ii. 86. 
 
 Travelling, advantageous to society, 
 in all ages, vol. i. 212. 
 
 Trebizonde, vol. i. 374. 
 
 Tritonis, lake of, the boundary be- 
 tween the Nomadic tribes of Africa, 
 and the husbandmen, vol. ii. 302 ; 
 the lesser Syrtis intended by it, 
 331, 339, 340 ; the lake of Low- 
 deah, the remains of it, 330. 
 
 R. vol. ii. 338 ; supposed to 
 
 be that of El Hannnah, 339. 
 
 Troy, and the Trojan war, remarks 
 on, vol. i. 317, and note. 
 
 Tujiia, melancholy fate of, vol. i. 210. 
 
 Tnrca', (meant by the lyrca-) vol. i. 
 182. 
 
 Turk of the Orientals, the Targitaus 
 of Herodotus, vol. i. 97. 
 
 Tifre, extended connnerce of, vol. i. 
 ■327, 328. 
 
 Ti/rrs, or Ti/ras, R. (Dneister) vol. i. 
 '73,79. 
 
 Tyrrhenians, who, vol. i. 55, note. 
 
 Tyritie, Tyri-geteP, a Scythian tr. at
 
 472 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 the mouth of the Tyres R. vol. i. 
 73, 95. 
 
 V. 
 
 Variation of the compass, at Dar- 
 foor, vol. ii. 218, note. 
 
 at Alexandria, 1798, vol. 
 
 ii. 450. 
 
 Vegetable productions, great advan- 
 tages of the interchange of, be- 
 tween different nations, vol. i. 212. 
 
 Verde, C. vol. ii. 27, 28 ; singular form 
 of, 391 ; description of, 416. 
 
 Volney, M. vol. ii. 89. 
 
 W. 
 
 Wahat, or Al Wahat, the tract which 
 
 contains the Egyptian Oases, vol. 
 
 ii. 190. 
 Water, how procured for Xerxes, in 
 
 the Idii mean desert, vol. i. 343, 345 ; 
 
 by Nadir Shah, in the desert of 
 
 Margiana, 341, 7wte. 
 Wall oi Media, vol. i. 501, iwte. 
 Weapons, variety of, in the army of 
 
 Xerxes, vol. i. 336, 337. 
 Wiebeking, M. his fine maps of the 
 
 course of the Rhine, vol. i. 89, note. 
 Wilkins, Mr. vol. i. xvi. 41 1, note, 429, 
 
 note, vol. ii. 208, 240. 
 Wolga R. the Oarus of Herodotus, 
 
 vol. i. 118. 
 Women, privileges of, in Issedonia, 
 
 vol. i. 187. 
 Wooden walls of Greece and Bri- 
 tain, vol. ii. 157, note. 
 Woronez, the Czar Peter builds a 
 
 fleet there, and in the Tanais, vol. 
 
 i. 122, 123. 
 
 X. 
 
 Xenophon, supposed cause of his 
 error, in the estimation of the 
 bearing of Trehizonde, from Baby- 
 lon, vol. i. 249 ; mentioned, 29, 
 371, 373. 
 
 Xerxes, the catalogue of his army 
 furnishes important notices re- 
 specting the twenty Satrapies of 
 Darius Hystaspes, vol. i. 304. 
 
 his expedition against Greece, 
 
 remarks on, vol. i. 419, et seq. ; in- 
 tended finally against Europe at 
 large, ibid. ; numbers of his troops, 
 incredible, 420 ; cause of the as- 
 semblage of so vast a force, ibid. ; 
 rendezvous of the fleet and army, 
 421. 
 
 Y. 
 
 Yedessan, vol. i. 67, note. 
 Yugures, or Oigurs, the ( Issedones ) 
 vol. i. 173, 176. 
 
 Zab Rs. Greater and Lesser, named 
 
 Tigris by Herodotus, vol. i. 431. 
 Zach, M. his Geographical Ephe- 
 
 meris, vol. i. 263, note. 
 Zagros Mts. vol. i. 237, 355. 
 Zaueces, an African tr. vol. ii. 303. 
 Zawila, or Zuela, vol. ii. 281 ; ruins 
 
 at, ibid. 
 Zurrah lake, (Aria Palus) vol. i. 235. 
 Zuyder Zee, increased from a lake, 
 
 vol. ii. 143, note. 
 Zygantes, an African ti-. vol. ii. 
 
 303, 4. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 GILBERT & RIVINGTON, PRINTERS. 
 ST. John's square, London. 
 
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