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1
THE
GBOGRAPHICAL SYSTEM
OF
HERODOTUS
EXAMINED AND EXPLAINED,
BT A
COMPARISON WITH THOSE OF OTHEfL ANCIENT AUTHORS,
AND
WITH MODERN GEOGRAPHY.
■» nu ooVMB vw nm wobs abm nmtosneu DISSERTATIONS
ON TRB ITIKBEAKT tTADB OF THE ORBBUb TBB BXrBDITION OV BABIOB ■YtTASFBS TO SCTTMIA, TBB FOUTIOII AMD RBKAIiri OF AVCIBMT
BABYLON, TUB ALLUVIONS OP THE NILE, AND CANALS OF tOBB{
THE OASIS AM) TEMPLE OF JVrn Ell AMMON, THE ANCIENT CIKCWMNAVIOATION OP AFKICA, AND UTIIEH SUBJECTS OF HISTORY AND OEOGRAPHY.
rtt£ waoCB MXrtAtHMD Mr MLMVU/ MAPa AOAfTSJf TO TBB OirrBKlST SVUSCTS i ANO
By JAMES RENNELL, Esq.
X^TI MAJOR Of EyOIKEr.HR. AVD SmVETOB OEXm A L IN HKVCA?.; FrLI.OWOPTHE muVAL ftOCtCTIII or UJKOON AKO KDIXBUKOU ; MSMBEB Of TUK ROYAL IMiTITUTIC OF PABIlt ABB OF TBB I1IPBBSA& ACABBKT OF ST. FBTBBIBVBOB; ▲BB FS&MW OF TBB BOTAb lOCtBTr OF OOTTIBBBB.
SECOND EDITION, REVISED.
VOLUME I.
LONDON: PRINTED FOR C. J. G. & F. RIVINGTON,
BT. FAOL'b CHORCn^YARD, AND WATBRLOO-PLACB, FALL-MAtL.
MDCCCXXX.
'1 C-,
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Th§ PMraU 4gf the AtOkor is ghen m ike preeent Editwut bjf pemieMum of the Coumteu Spencer.
BIBLIOTHEG
I BECrlA
WoNACEiNSTSj
OlLBgftV AND RmHOTOir» FBIirTBBS, •T. JOBM 'S SqUTABB, LONDOK.
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TO
THE READER.
Amongst the melancholy duties which have
devolved upon me, in consequence of the lamented death of my leyered Father, that of doing honor to his memory, by pubhshing a Second Edition of his Geography of Hero- dot us, I consider one of the most impera- tive; and in ^ving up this work, I think it proper to state, that I am fully aware much important information has been obtained since it was first published ; and had my Fath^'s health permitted him to superintend a Second Edition, he would have availed himself of it, as no one was more candid in acknowledging errors, or more ready to offer his tribute of gratitude to those who enabled him to correct tliein : but as I consider his works a sacred deposit committed to my
A 2
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iv
charge, I do not feel myself at liberty to allow of any alterations in the text, excepting those which have been found iu the Author's revised copy. I trust the above frank con- fession will disarm criticism ; and though the distinguished Author is beyond its influence, I hope it will still be remembered — he must evar live in the memory of his daughter,
JANE RODD.
WimpoU Street, jiugUMt Mtk, 1630.
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ADVERTISEMENT.
Among the papers of the late Major Ren- N£LL have been found a Memoir on the General Currents in the Atlantic Ocean, accompanied by a series of Charts, shewing their force and direction ; and also a work on the Ancient and Modem Geography of cer- tain parts of Asia, with twelve Maps engraved, and nearly completed.
The fruits of so much enlightened industry,
and the occupation of so many years of his life, cannot &il of being interesting to the public ; and as both these works appear to be ready for the press, as soon as arrange- ments can be made for this purpose they will be published ; the former under the im- mediate and gracious Patronage of His Majesty.
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TO
GEORGE-JOHN EARL SPENCER,
VISCOUNT SPENCER, VISCOUNT ALTHOBP, BAROH SPENCER, OF ALTHOBP,
Ul TSB COniTT or KOATlUKnOV ;
MMlOm OF THE MOST NOBLE ORDER OF THE GARTER, ONE OF HIS MAiBSTY'S MOST HONOURABLE PRIVY COUNCIL, FIRST LORD AMD COMMISSIONER of the ADMIRALTY, ONE OF THE BLDU B&KTUREN OF THE TRINITY ttOUSB,
ftc. 6te, &c
Mr LOBD,
In soliciting the honour of inscribing this book with your Lordship's name, the Author has no wbh to intrude on the mtervals of Idbure, which the un- portant duties of your high office occasionally admit ; although he flatters himself that some parts of the work may alR>rd occasional recreation^ when your mind, oppressed by political labour, is compelled to seek relief in employment^ of a less &tiguing nature. Perhaps they may recal to your Lordship's mind, ideas respecting the history and policy of those na- tions of antiquity, whose learning and arts we are
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DEDICATION.
ambitious of imitating ; and whose liberty is a per- petual theme of praise, even amongst us, who have employed ages in perfecting a practical system of cor own ; which, although subject to decay, like all other human institutions, promises to be of much longer duration than any other ou record.
To preserve this wonderful fabric entire, in all its parts, your Lordship joined your counsels and ex- ertions at a MOMBNTous CRISIS. History will relate the acts of your department — That from the Ganges to the Nile, and from the Nils to the shores of the Sister Island, the desperate projects of the inveterate enemy of mankind, against the safety and the interests of this Empire, were totally frustrated. Such is the sentiment of a great, an INDEPENDENT, and a GRATEFUL Pcople '. and a con- viction of its truth, constitutes, in a mind like yours, the proper and envied reward of great national ser- vices.
May your Lordship's exertions be still crowned with success ; and the period speedily arrive, when those unprincipled men who have shaken the moral and social world to its centre ; who keep their own country in chains, and the rest of Europe in alarm, in order to perpetuate their own atrocious system of arbitrary power, shall be dispersed and destroyed.
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DEDICATION.
ix
Happily, the effects of the intozicatiiig draught, ad- ministered to a credulous world, by this enemy to social order, have abated ; the treachery concealed in the cup. Is become manifest; and manldnd are fast recovering that temper of mind, which is suited to their state of being, and to the unalterable laws of nature.
I am, with the greatest respect.
My Lord, Your Lordship's obliged.
And faithful humble servant,
J. RENNELL.
London, Jamuury 1800.
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PREFACE
(TO TUB FIOST £DiT10N.)
It is posnble that the act of piesenting a bulky
volume as a part only of a larger work (although this part be complete in itself, in respect of its proper subject), may startle the Public, to whom it is ofibred. This, however, is the fact. The Author, several yean since, undertook the task of correcting the geography, ancient and modern, throughout that part of Asia situated between India and Europe; In dSbct the great theatre of ancient hbtory in Asia, as well as of European commerce and communication in modem times. His first object was to adapt the system so formed to the use of statesmen and tra- vellers ; the next, to apply it to the illustration of such parts of ancient military history as were, in his idea, deficient, from a want of the necessary aids of geography, and which have been, in a degree, sup- pHed in ktter times.
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xu
PREFACE.
This task he has some time since perfonned, to the best of his ability, and as &r as his stock of mate- rials admitted ; but the work had grown to such a me, that it would have been an act of imprudence in an individual to venture on so great an expence as the execution of the work^ in all its parts« required. In the mean time> however, he has ventured so far as to prepare the first division of it, consisting of the Geography of Herodotus, and which, as pre- paring the ground for the remainder of the ancient geography, he now, with great deference, offers to the Public, accompanied with maps necessary to its explanation.
The remaining parts will consist of the andent
geography, as it was improved by the Grecian con- quests and establishments, together with such por* tions of military history as appear to want explana- tion. Maps of ancient geography, on scales adapted to the purpose, will accompany it; whilst the modern geography (in which the most prominent features of the ancient will also appear), will be contained in a large map, similar in size and scale to the four-sheet map of India, already in the hands of the Public. It may be proper to remark, that as the present Volume forms a complete Work of itself, so will each of the succeeding ones, they being no
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PREFACE.
XIU
Otherwise connected with each other than as being in the same series. The same u to be understood of some large maps that are to accompany the Tolmnes, but will be too large to be folded into them.
A Mf^ of Positions, intended to explain and to preseryc the ground-work of the whole geographical construction, will be added. One principal use of dus is to preserve, in tlieir original and unmixed state, the authorities collected from a great variety of sources, and which may aid the construction of future systems of geography^ although a part of the materials may be superseded by those of a better kind ; in which case the geographer, discarding su6h portions as he finds necessary, may be enabled to make his own use of the rest in their original state. Were they to be found only in a mixed state, as in the geographical maps, without discrimination of quality, and most probably divested of their origin nality, by having been formed into a general mass with others, they must either be employed in future to a disadvantage, or again sought out; and if fmmd at all, with great and unnecessary loss of time to the community of science. Thb portion of Ihe work, then, will form, in the least possible room, and at the least expence, a great depot of the mate- rials of geography for future times.
xiv
PK£FAC£.
After the above explanation, it will of course be understood that the progress of the work at large must necessarily depend on the reception given to the present part ; and the Author flatters himself that, in forming the dedsion, which is finally to determine the fate of the succeeding parts, a clue regard will be had as well to the extent and labour of the search after, as of the campilaHon of the materials, that compose this portion of the work (thus offered as a specunen of the work at large) ; as amongst such a mass of matter, error, no doubt, must sometimes have lurked unnoticed, or even have assumed the garb of truth, to deceiye.
' It is proper that the reader should know that the Author, being ignorant of the Greek language, could only obtain the knowledge of tlie text of Herodotus through the medium of translations. The magni- tude of this defect will perhaps be differently esti- mated by diflerent persons. It may doubtless be said, with truth, that no ordinary reader of Greek is likely to be so perfect a master of the subject of Herodotus, by a perusal of the original work, as by translations made by professed scholars ^ who have devoted a great portion of their time to the study of it ; although it must at the same time be allowed, that such scholars, if also skilled in the science of geography, would be by far the fittest persons to
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PREFACE
XV
undertake a task of this kind. Such an one, how- ever, has not yet undertaken it, and therefore the Author flatters himself that, ui the existing state of things, his work may be allowed to pass until the desired coincidence may take place. M. D'Anville was, perhaps, the Attest person to have executed it ; hut it may possibly be said, that he was better em- ployed.
On this occasion the Author has followed, almost
nnlversally, the English translation by Mr. Beloe,
to whom he acknowledges his obligations, and who
is consequently entitled to a share of whatsoever
credit the Public may allow to the present work.
to
Sir William Jones, in speaking of the imperfect state of the Geography of Asia, has a remark to the foUowing effect: that ''until some geographer, equally skilled in the eastern languages, and in the sdence which he professes," will correct the geo- graphy of Asia, the reader of its history must be content with the present imperfect system. It appears (in the same place*) that Sir William himself meditated this task, but wanted leisure. This is much to be regretted ; as well as that the maieriab which he had collected for that purpose,
* PreiiMe to the HUtory of Nadir Shah.
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xvi
niEI AC E.
should have been lost or destroyed. However, it appears that he did not recollect that verj much might be done^ by fidthful tranalatioiiB of the works of the Oriental geographers^ for the use of Euro- pean ones. It may also be said, that we must be content to receive things in such a way as they may be conveniently, or indeed, at all, executed : and finally, that the most perfect work is nothing more than the neaiest approximation to the truth.
The aids that have been furnished to the Author,
in various ways, have been, as on other occasions of this kind, very extensive. Generally speaking, where this could be done, these favours have been acknowledged in the course of the work ; but the Author has a pleasure in repeating the names of his friends in this more conspicuous place, although he may hazard the imputation of vanity, ui so osten- tatiously displaying his resources. He acknow- ledges his obligations to Sir Joseph Banks, and Sur Charles Blagden ; to Mr. Dalrymple, Mr. Mars- den, Mr. Wilkins, M. Correa de Serra, and the Doctors Gillies, Gray, and Dryander; to Mr. Browne and Mr. Park, (the Afidcan travellers) and to Mr. John Sullivan ; to Colonel Kirkpatrick, of the Bengal Establishment, and Captam Cuning- hame, of that of Madras, (now Brigade Major to the three regiments of Royal East India Volunteers),
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PBBFACE.
the Rev. Mr. Tooke, and Mr. George NicoL Aad as an act of justice shoald not be ferbome, through fear of imputed vanity^ or presumption^ he ventures to add to thb list, his two sons, the one of Trinity
College, Cambridge^ the other of the Bengal Civil Establishment
It remains that something should be said respect- ing the Maps that are meant to eacplain and to illus- trate the different subjects of the book. Some of the general maps, may possibly be complained of, for the mnallness of their scales; but as they must of necessity be folded into the book, they could not GODTeniently be made larger. Besides, it was deemed sufficient to give correct outlines alone, of a system of geography, the particulars of which might be found, generally, in the exbting systems ; although framed for an age posterior to that of Hero- dotus. The general maps relating to Western Scythia, to the Satrapies, and to Libya, are given here, with more detail than the others, because they will be found less perfect, in the existing systems: and it b hoped, that, on the whole, the reader will not often find himself at a loss, in the explanation of the geography. Whensoever it may happen, great aid will be derived from the ancient geogra- phy of M. lyAnville (the <mly system of the kind, that can be deemed at all perfect ; and unquestion-
VOL. I. b
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PRBFACB.
ably, as far as he was in any degree master of the actual geography, a work incomparable in its kind). His maps of the ancient World, of the Homan Empire, Asia Minor, and ancient Egypt, will pro- bably satisfy the reader in every case where he is at a loss, in respect of particular situations, in the maps contained in ibis work.
To prevent misconceptions, regarding the ancient
Map of Egypt, (No. VII.) the reader is informed, that as no copy is known to exist from whence the form of the ancient coast of the Delta could be delineated, the Author could do no other thau describe it under its present form* It is almost cer- tain that no considerable change can have taken place either at Cauopus or Pelusium : nor can it be supposed that the additions to the intermediate part can have been such, as to occasion any sensible diflference, in a general map : since Herodotus has remarked, that Busiris stood in the middle of the Delta, in which position its supposed remains are now found. It is remarked, in the course of the work, that, as the coast of the Delta advances into deeper water, its progress, in point of extent, must necessarily be slower.
In some of the general maps, a great propbrtion
of modern geography will be found ^ which it was
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PREFACE.
impossible to separate from the ancient, without
much injury to the main subject ; as by a compa- rison of the two, on the spot, the mutual relation to each other will be best understood. The ancient names have a dash under them ; if not otherwise distinguished on the spot.
The bulk of the Volume is unquestionably a £ftult : and is owing to the Author's having made a wrong calculation of the quantity of matter at the outset. Had a correct estimate been made, as much of the matter would have been withheld, as to reduce the book to a more moderate size and price. Such, however, as it is, the Author ventures to offer it to an IMPARTIAL PuBUC ; conscious, indeed, of its defects ; but conscious also, that they do not arise from a remission of labour or attention.
London, Jan, UU 1800.
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CONTENTS
TO
VOL. I.
SECTION T.
Preliminary Observations ^ 1
SRCTTON TT.
ConccrninfT the Itinerary Stade of the Greeks . . . . 17
SECTION TII.
Of Europe, according to Herodotus 45
SECTION IV.
Of the Western, or Euxine Scytbia 66
SECTION V.
Of the Countries bordering on Western Scythia . . . .109
SECTION VI.
Expedition of Darius Hystaspes to Western Scythia . .153
SECTION VII.
The Countries situated beyond Western Scythia, to the East and North-east 1 70
SECTION VIII. Of Asia, according to Herodotus ^16
Xxii CONTENTS.
PAGE
SECTION IX.
The Subject contiuued 243
SECTION X.
Of Eastern Scythia* or the Country of the Massagetae . . 273
SKCTTOM XI.
Of the Twenty Satrapies of Darius Hystaspes .... 303
SECTION XII.
The subject continued 362
SECTION XIII.
An Examination of the Txrport of Aristagoras, concerning the Royal Road from Ionia to Susa 427
SECTION XIV.
Concerning the Site and Remains of the ancient City of Babylon 441
SECTION XV.
On the Captivity and Di8^x)sal of tlie Ten Tribes of the
512
LIST OF MAPS
TO
VOL. I.
PAOK
No. I. Tbm World, aceording to the ideas of Herodotus, who supposed its sur&oe to be Jlat. This map explains his ideas of the relative positions of the countries and seas known to him ; to face * . 1
II. The same on a similar scale, but on a spherical pro-
jection ; and with the countries in their just rela- tive positions and proportions 1
III. EuxiNE or Western Scythia ; with the tribes or
nations bordering on it : including the whole space between the rivers Tcisse and Wolga ; and between the Euxine sea and Moscow. This map is explanatory of the IV, V, and Vlth Sections . 45
IV. Maps of the HEi.LEsroNT and Bosi-iiorus ; shew-
ing the positions of the Bridges of Darius luul Xerxks : exphmatory of the latter part of Sec- lion VI. Also, Edrisi's idea of the situation of tlie rampart and country of Goo and Magog, referred to from Section Vll 152
V. The Twenty Satrapies of Darius Hystaspes, in Asia and Africa : including also Greece, Thrace, the two Scy thias, and the coimtry of the fsscdoncs, to tlie borders of Herica. This map describes not
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XXiv LIST OF MAPS.
rAOB
only the twenty Satrapies, but the extent of the knowledge of Herodotus, eastward ; and nearly the whole tract known to him in Asia* It also shews the relative positions, and the extent, of the Ifvo ScyUiias ; and in tlie description of the latter, combines the ideas of the Russian and Chinese geograpbers, with those of Slieroft^ddin and Strahlcnberg. It explains the whole of the VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, and Xllth Sections, re- specting Asia, the Eastern Scythians, and the Satrapies; as also what relates to the tracts iween the two Scythias SOS
VI« The position of ancient Babylon, in respect of Se- leucia, Ctesiphon, Bagdad, and other places in Babylonia and Mesopotamia: with the canals drawn from the Eu})]irates to the Tigris, in the narrow part of Babylonia. Also tlie elevation of the Tower of Bel us, and the disposition of the public structures in Babylon ....... 441
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TU£
GEOGRAPHY OF HERODOTUS EXAMINED, &c.
SECTION I.
Preliminary Observations — The Geography of Herodotus not itUended for a System, but to explain a History — he regarded the whole habitable Earthy a$ one Continent — his Character for Veracity^ on the Increase — has suffered most, through his Headers' Neglect of distinguishing n hat the Author WKffrom what he only heard — rras ignorant of abstract Science f and did not believe that the Earth was globular : — but is respect' able as a Historian, Geographett and Moralist — a great Tru" velUr — his Geography consists more m relative Positions, than aetntU Distsmces, and Dimensions^ Scope of his geograplncal Knomledge*
Ab the writings of Herodotus furnish the earliest record of hbtory» among the heathen authors whose works hare reached us, so they also fiimish the
earliest known system of geography, as far as it goes ^ It may therefore be worth while to examine
' The late PniN< ir vi, Robertson, whose memory the Author venerates, as he esteemed him hving, has the following remark, at the opening of his last work, the Disquisition concerninf^ an- cient India. Wli it he there Mys respecting historyi is equally applicahle to tfcon;raphy.
" \Vhoevec attempts to trace the operationa of inen in remote VOL. I* B
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£ PRBLIMINARY 0B8BRVATI0N&
this system, in order to compare it with the actual geography ; as well as in certain cases, with the systems of Eratosthenes, Strabo, Ptolemy, and Pliny*. We have said, as far as it goes, because the geography of Herodotus is confined more to Asia and Africa, than to Europe : and is by no means intended to form an abstract system, but to explain with more effect, the transactions recorded in a history, the theatre of which includes little more in Europe, than the provinces bordering on the JEgean sea, the ProponiU, Euxine, and Ptdus M€eotis ; and in Africa, the kingdom of E<i:ypt and its dependencies ; but almost the whole of the
times, and to mark the various sU j)> of thoir proijross iti any line of exertion, will soon liavo the mortification to find, tliat the pe- riod of avitliuntic liistory is extremely liinittd. It is little more than :iO0O years since the hooks of Moses, the most aneient and only genuine record of wliat passed in the early a<ies of the world, were coniposed. Herodotus, the most aiu ient heathen historian whose works have reached us, flourished 1000 years later. If we push our inquiriis concerning any point beyond the a?ra where written history commences, we enter upon the region of conjecture, of fable, and of uncertainty. Upon that ground, I will neither venture m^r^it-lf, nor endeavour to conduct my readers."
The materials of our author's geography may be reckoned of a date of 4.30 to 500 years before our a»ra. Dr. Usher fixes his birth at 484 before Christ. He also says that he read his books before the council at Athens, in 145 ; of course, when he was about 39 years of age. This was about 44 years before the ex- pedition of Cyrus, and the retreat of the ten thousand; 111 before Alexander crossed the Hellespont.
* In order to form an idea in detail of the systems of the three first of these great geographers, the reader is referred to the work of M. GossELiN, entitled (Jeogra^hie des Greet atMlys6<, 1730.
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PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS. $
known parte of Asia. Limited, however, as the theatre of war in Europe might be, the brilliancy of the transactions on it, surpassed those throughout all the rest of the space.
If it be supposed (as in reason it may) that our Author was master of all the geographical, as well as historical knowledge, of his own times, it may be inferred that the Greeks knew but little concerning die western part of Europe^ besides the mere sea eoast; and although our Author seems to entertain no doubt of the existence of a Northern ocean, he confesses his ignorance, whether, or not, Europe was bounded on the north and east by the ocean.
it is proper to remark, that Herodotus considered^ \ and perhaps rightly, the whole of the earth then known, as one singm: continent : regarding lOurope, Asia, and Africa, as nothing more than divisions of that continent. In effect, he does not attach any degree of importance to the question concerning the boundaries of these divisions ; and therefore speaks of the line of separation between Europe and Asia, Asia and Africa, in a vague way. " I am far/' says \ he, MelpoDL 45, from satisfied why to one eomti- neni, three diflfisrent names, taken from women, have been assigpied. To one of these divisions (meaning Asia) some have given as a boundary the Egyptian Nile and the Colchian Phasis ; others, the TmtaU, the Cimmerian Botphorua, and the Pabu MaoiUr
It appears that he adopted for the boundary of Asia, the river Phasis, and not the Tanais : and for that of Africa, the Isthmus of Suez, in preferencse to
b2
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4 PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS.
the Nile ; for, speaking of Africa, he says, that it is
" bounded by the sea, except in that particular part, which is contiguous to Asia." Something, however, like contradiction appears in respect of this subject : for it will be seen hereafter, that he excludes Egypt from Africa, as well as from Asia ; which appears very extraordinary, and can only be accounted for, on the ground that he does uot, like others, distri- bute the habitable world into continents, but into regions : and that Egypt might be considered as a region of itself.
The shore of the Baltic sea, from whence amber was brought (Prussia), seems to have been the ex- tent of his knowledge, that way. The Britbh Islands he knew in part, as being the place from whence the Phoenicians, and from them the Greeks, had their tin ; an indispensable article, it would appear, as without it they could not harden their copper, so as to make it answer the purposes of iron, in weapons, or in armour. He accordingly speaks of the Cemt- terides, as the inlands from whence the tin was said to be brought. It has been very much the custom to refer the Cassiterides to the Scilly Islands alone ; but the idea ought to be extended to Cornwall at least : and, it b possible that very great changes have taken place in the state of Scilly and Cornwall since the date of that trafiic
' There are some curious particulars in Diodorus Siculus respecting an island near the British coast, to which carriages laden with tin came at low water, in order to its being cmbnrked on vessels for the oontineiit. See the oourse of thi« merchandise in hb. V. c.
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PRELIMINARY OB8BRVATION8.
5
The fact of the insular nature of Britain must of
course have been ascertained by the Phoenicians, who sailed between it and the continent, in their way to the amber country : but whether they knew much concerning the extent of Britain northward, or of the existence of Ireland, is a fact that appears not to have reached us. It is, however, very probable, that in the idea of Herodotus, the Cassiterides were a cluster of small islands, insignificant in any other point of view, than as containing tin mines.
Of Asia, by much the greater part was un- known ; and yet, notwithstanding this deficiency, the proportion of space on the globe, known to Ptolemy, about 600 years after Herodotus, did not greatly eiceed that, which was known, in a general way, to Herodotus himself; although during that interval all the knowledge acquired by the Macedonian and Koman expeditions, had been brought forward to public view* Thb is easily explained. The track of Alexander was confined generally within the limits already known to our Author ; so that it brought no accession of space. And although the discoveries and inquiries made by the Romans, had added to the space known to Herodotus, the north and north- eastern parts of Europe, together with the British blands at large ; as well as Scrica, the borders of China, the Peninsula beyond the Ganges, the eastertt part of India, and Taprobana ; yet the ground lost by geographers in AMca, nearly, if not entwely, overbalanced all the latter acquisitions. So that in Africa, Herodotus knew more than PtoIcniVf vastly more than Strabo, For, it is certain, that
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6 PRELIMINARY OBSBRVATION8.
Herodotiw had a very positive, and in some degree^
drcumstantial^ knowledge, of the course of the riw Niger ; now, by the discoveries recently made by Mr. Park, shewn to be the same witli the JoUba,ot great inlaDd river of Africa: so tiiat we must ex- tend his knowledge of the inland part of Africa to the same point, known to Ptolemy, and to the Ro- mans. Again, Ef/iiopia, and the genera/ course of the Nile, to a certain point, were alike known to Herodotus and to Ptolemy, by report ; although the place of the distant fountains of the Nile was in- volved in obscurity. But the striking difference in the quantity of space known, in Africa, to these au- thors, respectively, arose from Herodotus's knowing that Africa extended a vast way to the south of the Nile, and Niger, and that it had been sailed round ; whilst Ptolemy was either ignorant of the circum- stance, or disbelieved it.
la p<Hnt of discrimination also, as well as of ex- tent, geography, in some particulars, lost ground between the times of Herodotus and Strabo: for Herodotus knew that the Caspian sea was a lake, and describes it as such ; but this was afterwards either forgotten, or the opinion was overruled : and from the date of Alexander's expedition, to Ptolemy, the Caspian passed for a gulf of the Northern ocean ; to which it was supposed to be joined, by an exceeding lo/ig and 7iarrow strait. So that an ac- tual visit to the spot, by Alexander and his followers, had the singular eflfect of falsifying, instead of tm- prcvitig, the systems of geography.
It is a couimou oiid just remark, that the authonty
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of CMir Author*s work has been risbg in the opinion of the world, m latter timeB ; which may be referred to the number of discoveries that haye been lately
made, and whicli are continually making, in the countries which he describes. It was ignorance and inattention therefore, that detennined the <^iniona of his judges; a diarge in which several of the an- cients are implicated as well as the modems. The same want of attention has confounded together the descriptions of what he saw, with what he had only heard; and which he might think himself bound to idate. Mr. Wood speaks much to the purpose re* specting this matter. He says, " were I to give my opinion of him, having followed him through most of the countries which he visited, I would say, that he is a writer of VBBAcmr in his description of what he SAW, but of ausDULmr in his relations of what he had HEARD." We may add, that superstition made him credulous in heUcvtng many iin{)robable stories; but love of truth prevented him from asserting fidsehoods. The instances of gross superstition ma- nifested by him are too numerous to be recounted ; but superstition was also common to many other great characters.
But hb ignorance in certain points is infinitely more unpleaaing than his superstition : for it may be observed, that however distinguished our author may have been as an historian, geogkaphkr, and mo- lAUST, yet that as a man of science, and a natural philosc^her* he ranks very low indeed ; as is too oon^cuous in several pmrts of his work. Such is his ignoraace of the existence of mow in elevated
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situations in warm climates ; Euterpe, 22 ; his belief tbat the sun was vertical in India^ before mid-day ; Thalia, 104; and his very unphilosophical way of
accounting for the swelling of the Nile ; in which he talks of the sun 6 being driven out of his course, &c. Euterpe, 24.
It appears also, that he did not believe that the earth was of a globular form ; which alone was soffi* cient to lead him into great errors. Says he, Melpom. 36. " I cannot but think it exceedingly ridiculous to hear some men talk of the circumference of the earth, pretending, without the smallest reason or probability, that the ocean encompasses the earth ; that the earth is round, as if mechanically formed so ; and that Asia is equal to Europe." Again, Melpom. 42, although he believed that the ships of Neehao had circumnavigated Africa, yet it appeared incredible to him, that during the voyage they should have had the sun on their rltj^Iit hand. All which arose from his ignorance in matters of science. But wheresoever he speaks of history, or of morals, he fails not to give information and satisfiEU^tion : these being his proper walks.
We could with pleasure dwell on this subject, if the scope of our work permitted it; for the justice and propriety of his remarks on matters of common life, prove his observation to be very acute, and his judgment no less clear. But we cannot resist the temptation of inserting the following remarks, at this time, as they shew the strong contrast between a virtuous republican of Greece, and a modem re- publican, formed on a Gallic model. And yet no
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one can doubt tliat the permanent comfort and hap- piness of the human species, were to the full, as much the object of the former, as of the latter.
Speaking of the atrocious conduct of Cambyses in Egypt, he says, For my own part, I am satisfied that Cambyses was deprived of his reason ; he would not otherwise have disturbed the sanctity of temples, or of established customs. Whoever had the op- portunity of choosing for their observance, from all the nations of the world, such laws and costoms as to them seemed best, would, I am of opinion, after the most careful examination, adhere to their own. Each nation believes that their own laws are by far the most excellent ; no one therefore, but a madman, would treat such prejudices with contempt." Thalia, 38.
These are the sentiments of a republican, who, in order to enjoy a greater degree of civil liberty, quitted his native city Halicamassus, when its sys- tem of laws was violated by the tyrant Lygdamis *.
The most extraordinary of his errors, as being so directly contrary to what appears to the most com- mon observer, is the story of the vertical sun in the
* He has alto the feDowi^g remark, in hia deacriptioa of Egypt.
** It aeems to 1)e an established prejudice, even amongst nations ike teatt re/med, to consider mechanics and their de- aeendants in the lowest rank of dtisens ; and to esteem those as the most noble, who were of no profession ; annexing the b%hest degrees of honour to the exercise of arms. This idea prevails throughout Oreeee, but more particularly at Lacedae- mon ; the Corinthians, however, do not hold mechanics in dis- cslccro.** Buterpe, 167.
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martUng : Imt it is poiriUe that the story may be
accounted for, satisfactorily ; though not altogether to the credit of our Author's knowledge. He says, ** In distinction from all other nations^ the heat with these people (the Indians) is greatest, not at mid'daf^, h^ in the wtoming. They have a twr- tical sun, when with us, people withdrmc from the Forum ; during which period tlic warmth is more excessive than tlie mid-day sun in Greece." Tbalia» 104.
The time when the Fmm was fM^ is fixed by
the best authorities, at nine in the morning ; and although we have no idea of the hour when the people retired from it, yet, the context considered, it must be supposed to be at a considerable distance short of noon ; it being in some degree contrasted with it, by our Author.
Is not this very extraordinary misapprehension occasioned by the neglect of reducing the time to the mendkm oi the place ? For, by the difference of longitude between Greece (or perhaps Ionia might be meant) and liither India, it would cer- tainly happen, that when it was nine o'clock in Greece, it would be about noon on the banks of the Indus.
If Herodotus could haye been made to bdieve
that the earth was round, it is probable that he would not have fallen into this error, occasioned perhaps, by a story, literally true, but malicious^ told him by one who believed that the earth was globular, but could not persuade Herodotus that it was so. And we have already remarked that he
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says, " I esniiot bat think H ezeeedSngly ridieuloiif
to hear some men talk," &c.
His geographical notices are scattered through- out hit work ; and would, aooordlng to Mr. Beloe'a observation, fill a Tolome. They are ever j^aeed where they nay best serve to elucidate the parts of the history to which tliey respectively belong ; and not with a view to an abstract system of geography. It is not therefore to be inferred, that he was igno- rant of any particnhur sulject of geography, beesnse he omits to descant on it ; history , atid not geogra- phy, being his principal object. We have endea- voured to collect all the scattered notices into one point of view, in order to make them bear on, and iUustrate each other, in a kind of system ; it being only by a reference to these notices collectively, that any kind of system can be made out. As a geogra- pher, he had an advantage over the generality of his brethren, in that he had seen the eountiies which heaios^ particularly describes ; that is, Egypt, Scy* thidy Thrace, Persia, Assyria, Lydia, Palestine, Syria, &c. That he visited these, we learn from his own authority, in different parts of his work ; aa in Eoterpe thraughoui, but particuhirly in chapters 9, 29, 44, 104, 106, and 167; Clio, 194; and Mel pom. 86.
It has appeared^ that Herodotus doubts whether the ocean completely enoonpasset tiie earth ; but he admita that it surrounds it on ikree sides. For, speaking of the Caspian sea, as being unconnected with all others, (iu effect a lake) he says, that the ErtfikreuH aea^ and the one Jreque$Ued by the
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Greeks, as well as the Atlantic, are parts of the
same ocean ; Clio, 203 : and as he also says, Mcl- pom. 13, 36, that the Hyperboreans, whom he places to the northward of the Scythians and Isse- dones, extended to the sea ; this is saying, in other words, that the sea bordered on, and confined Europe and Asia on tlic north. We liave here then, in express terms, a uortli, a soiUh, and a ivest sea ; but no eastern sea ; so that he considered the eastern part of the world, as composed of land only : for he says, that ** the Indians are the laet nation towards the east ; and that beyond them is a vast (lesert, unknown and unexplored." Mclpom. 40. Again he says, Melpom. S, " They affirm, without proving it, that the ocean, commencing at the east, flows round the earth,'*
The geography of Herodotus consists ahnost en- tirely of a series of relative positions of countries, to each other ; but without (Ustances or dimensions, . except in certain instances. Hence, we can only refer to those ideas of juxtaposition, the measures given by succeeding geographers ; particularly Era- tosthenes and Strabo, whose ideas of relative position seem to have differed but little from those of our Author : for we clearly discover his principal errors perpetuated in the systems of those geographers. Wherefore, reasoning from analogy, it may be in- ferred, that the dimensions of countries, aud regions, given generally by them, were those extant in the days of Herodotus; save only such as were cor- rected by the materials furnished by the expedition of Alexander ; which expedition, bebides the eclat
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of the military history belonging to it, furnished in Greece and Egypt, an epoch of geographical im- provement and correction, which may not nnapdy be compared with that of the discoveries of the Portuguese, along the coasts of Africa and India ; or of that of the present time, in which geography has been improved in every quarter of the globe.
But, in «fi^t, the expeditions of Alexander and of Xenophon, how fruitful soever in geographical notices, in detail, did not afford materials for cor- recting the former errors of the Greeks, respecting some of the most important relative positions, in the gross: as for instance, the Caspian sea was sup- posed by Herodotus to be opposite to the coast of the Persian Icthyophagi ; and the sea of Colchis to that of Persia : and these errors existed not only in the days of Herodotus, but continued to those of Eratosthenes and Strabo also. The cause of their perpetuation will be shewn in the sequel.
His ideas of the proportional extent of the known parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, were very de- fective : for he reckoned the two latter much too small, in respect of Europe. But it is again to be remarked, that succeeding geographers, down to Pliny inclusive, ran into the same kind of error, and even to a greater degree : for instance, the Europe of Eratosthenes and Strabo, exceeded in their ideas, the parts of Asia known to Herodotus : and those of Africa, in a yet gpreater degree. Pliny erred yet more in his proportions. Ptolemy was the first who approached the truth, in giving the relative pro- portions of the known regions of the globe, al-.
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ihoQgli tiie obMolmie measures in longitude given by him, were in excess to a degree perfectly unaccount- able : wbilst the errors of his predecessors, although m excess likewise, appear to be so, only in the pro- portion whidi tiie distance by the road, or by the eoaadng voyage of a ship, exceeds that by the direct line. And this seems, indeed, to point out the source of many of their errors.
Another error of Herodotus was, his taking the iHknms of Asia Minor, much too narrow. A like error, but in a greater degree, appears to have arisen in his estimation of the breadth of Arabia; which is inferable from his statements of the respective posi- tbns of Egypt and Cilicia; Colchis, and the Pernan gulf ; an error also perpetuated by succeeding geo- graphers : for Pliny, lib. vi. c. 28, compares the Pen- insula of Arabia, to that of Italy, not only inybm and position, but in point of state also 1 Thus the most pramineui Jeaiures of this geography, as hx aa we can collect from the records of the times, did not greatly y&ry, from the days of Herodotus, to those of Pliny.
In so ancient a book, one must not be surprised at finding corruptions in the numerals, or even in the proper names. With respect to the first, we sometimes find them false, in places where a know- ledge of the ground affords the means of detecting them : and hence, the same may be inferred in other places, where, through want of the requisite informa- tion, they escape detection. As to names, it appears that they are more correct, than one had a right to expect. It is, however, certain, that in the account
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of the Persian Satrapies, certain names ooemr, that
cannot be referred to any particular position. Some of these may have been lost« altogether, in subse- quent ttmes ; as there Is an instance in that of the CSflupMM> country, whose name was grown obsdete before the time of Straho. Others may have been corrupted ; and others again were probably no more than names of the principal cities of the several countries, applied to the countries themselves; a custom very prevalent in the East, to the great eon- fusion of history, and of geography. But, on the whole, during the interval of five or six centuries, between Herodotus and Ptolemy, the names do not appear to have undergone much change.
The scope of the geographical knowledge of our Author may be briefly comprised in the following description :
Of EuROPB and Asia, collectively, the northern boundary was the ocean, whose shore was supposed to continue from the soutii of the Baltic, eastward ;
and perhaps touching the parallel of 60 . On the north-east, the mountains of Altai, at the head of the Irtbh river, and the country of the Oigurs or Yugures, which is far advanced within Great Tar- tary, seem to have terminated his knowledge ; and on the east, the great sandy deserts of Tartary, and the country of India; but of this last, his ideas ap- pear to have been the most indistinct possible, both in respect of its extent, and of its history. The Pen- insula of India is darkly pointed out by the tract which extends very far to the south of Persia, and whose inhabitants are black ; but it is given under too confined limits.
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The eastern extremity of Herodotus's world, was a vast Desert, unknown and unexpiored, and con*
sequently in extent, indefinite. The remainder he knew to be surrounded by the ocean ; including Africa, which he confined within limits which were very much narrower than the truth, hoth in respect of its length and breadth; although much wider than appears in the systems of other geographers.
In the discussion of this subject, we shall treat the three divisions of Europe, Asia, and Africa, accord- ing to our author's distribution of their space, in the order here mentioned : adding thereto a particular description of the 20 Satrapies of Persia, according to the arrangement of Darius Hystaspes. These last comprised a great proportion of the known part of the world, at that day. But before we enter finally on the discussion of the geography, it may be proper to ascertain what portion of distance was in- tended by the itinerary stade of the Greeks, since their geography appears to have been regulated by this scale.
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lif/t/ \\ f//t /A f/u 7r///s/ / ; /f///\ '( I'o n t i Ulis. i/fJ Propoilions.
I
byte
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SECTION 11.
CONCERNING THE ITINERARY STADE OF THE GREEKS^ FROM THB DATE OF HERODOTUS.
The Grecian Stade often confounded n-ilh the Roman — appears to have varied, only with the judgment of the individuals who com- puted the distances — Examples cited from Herodotus, Pau^ sanias, Xcnophun, Eratosthenes, Slraho, Polybius, Pliny, and Arr'tan — receives confrmation from a comparison with the vu an marches of armies — Paccs^ the elementary part of iti- nerary measures ; and the Stade probably formed originally, of a hundred of these.
Those who have entered into the question concern- ing the length of the Grecian Stade, have expressed
the difficulties they have experienced in attempting to reconcile the different standards that present them- selves, under one and the same denomination of STADE. In common acceptation we find a stade com- mensurate to a furlong ; which idea is applied to all the stades of antiquity, whether Grecian or Roman, without considering whether the same standard, as well as denomination, was indifferently used by both natbns.
This error may probably be traced to the Roman
authors, who, in all cases where they have made use of Grecian materials in geography, have reckoned
VOL. I. C
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18 ON THE ITINERARY 8TADE OF THE GREEKS.
8 stades to a Roman mile ; an error, however, natural enough, as it appears that they had a stade of their
own, of that standard, and might suppose that the Grecian itinerary stade was of the same kind : for it has not heen found an easy task to appreciate the ' standards of foreign itinerary measures at any rate ; and the authors in question, who wrote from books, and not from actual observation of the standards themselves, were the least likely of any to appreciate them rightly.
It is foreign to our purpose to enter into an in« quiry concerning any other stade, than the one ap- plied to itinerary purposes by the Greeks : and we conceive that this measure did not, in effect, vary in its Mtandardf but that the different results arising from the comparison of the numbers of stades, with the ground on which they were computed, arc to be ascribed to the ditibrence of judgment amongst the individuals who made the computations ; (we say eomputaiians, because it may be supposed that the distances were, in very few instances, measured :) for the greatest ditFercnce that arises amongst tlie several authors, taking the mean of the examples fumished.by each respectively, is about ajburteenth part, and that in one instance alone ; but the more common difference is only a t ice nty -fourth part.
Some have endeavoured to account for tliese dif- ferences, from the different ages in which the mea- sures were employed : but this does not hold, for some of the measures reported by Herodotus, agree with those reported by Strabo several centuries af- terwards ; whilst those of the same age frequently
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differ'. Many of the numbers are, indeed^ out of
reason ; and others absurd : but, in such cases, one ought rather to suppose a corruption of the text, than look for a diversity of standards, in the same denonnnation of itinerary measure ; and in so small
a state as Greece.
It is certain that Herodotus describes the stade as a measure of 600 Grecian feet % which require about
* It must however be admitted, tliat in the Periplus of Scylax, which was written before the time of our author, the numbers appear f^reater, than in later authors ; but whether this arose from ijrnorance of t)ie true distances, or from an alteration of standard, may perhaps be disputed. We should rather believe the former cause, otherwise an alteration of \; must have taken place, between the time of Scylax, and that of Strabo. For in- stance, the Island of Crete, is said by J>cylax *, to be 2,500 stades in length; but by Sosicrates, 2,300 1; and by Strabo, 2,000 t. It is somewhat less than 150 geojrraphical miles, (or those of 60 lo a degree) or about 1,800 of Strnbo's scale, (700 to a dci^ree.) Possibly the indentations of the coast, may make up the 2,000. Sicily is also said by Scylax to be 2,500 stadia on each side§. Its length is indeed only about ten miles greater than Crete, which appears at first sight to countenance the idea of a shorter stade ; but when it is recollected that the east side of Sicily is ^ shorter than the other two, although the three sides are said by Scylax to be equal, it must be allowed that no dependance can be placed on the statement of numbers. At all events, it is to be recollected that our Inquiiy bts no reference to any date anterior to Herodotus.
' Dr. Arbuthnot reekoos the Grecian foot at 12,0875 of oui; incbei.
* Scykz, in Hndioi/a fiiin. Oeog. Vol. i. pages 18 and ^6. t Strabo, p. 474. $ lb. p. 106. S Scylax, p. 4.
C 2
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600 to make a degree; but this appears to be the
Olympic stade, which is valued by M. D'Anville at 94:h toises'. There is, however, no testimony con- cerning the application of this stade to itinerary pur- poses : on the coutrary^ every portion of distance, as well througliout Herodotus's history, as of the writ- ings of other Greeks, appears, on a reference to the ground itself, to be measured by a stade of a much shorter standard ; most of them rising above that of XenophoUj which is of 750 to a degree, but falling hehw that of Strabo, which is of 700. But although the Olympic stade was not used by Herodotus, it ap- pears very clearly that he made use of more than one Standard of itinerary stade; for the result of his numbers gives a much longer standard in Greece, Asia Minor, and Persia^ than in Egypt and the Euxine sen. Whether this difference was the effect of design, or of misconception, cannot with certainty be known ; but it was probably from the latter ; as his silence might lead us to suppose that he had no more than one kind of stade in contemplation. It is important to observe, that the former agrees nearest with those of Xenophon, Eratosthenes, and Strabo, and in particular with that resulting firom the calcu- lation on the mean marches of armies ; than which, perhaps, nothing can be more to the purpose, in the matter of approximation ; since the mean motion of armies forms a kind of natural and universal
' Mes* Itin. page 70. In Euterpe, c. 149, Herodotus says that a stade is composed of 100 crgyiOf each of sax feet. Again, in Melpomene, c. 41, 100,000 orgyia are said to be equal to 1,000 stades.
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ON THE ITINERARY STADE OF TU£ GREEKS. 21
scale, ia all places, and at all times ; of which more in the sequel.
One must surely conclude that Herodotus was
well informed respecting the itinerary measures of his country ; and therefore an example of it, given on one of the most celebrated communications in Greece, namely, that between Athens and Pisa (Olympia) ought, if the numbers are not corrupted, to be taken as decisive. This gives a ratio of 755 stades to a degree \ But, on the other hand, Pau- sanias\ gives the measure of the road between Sparta and Pisa, on which there arises a ratio of 707. It will be found in the sequel, that the former result agrees very nearly with the stade of Xenophon, the latter with that of Strabo.
* Herodotus aays, Euteipe, c. 7, " The distance betvnzt UopoUt (in Egypt) and the sea, is nearly the same, as from the altar of the twelve Deities, at Athens, to the shrine of Jupiter Olympus at Pisa. The distance from Pisa to Athens wants pre- cisely fifteen stadia of 1,500, which is the exact number of stadia between Heliopolis and the sea."
The direct distance on* D'Anville's Map of Greece is 105 G. miles. If -I be added for winding, the road distance will be IIS, which gives 755 to a degree.
N.B. It is worthy of remark, that notwithstanding this po« sitire statement, and comparison, the distance betwisLt Heliopolis and the sea is no more than 96 G. mfles direct; as will appear in the sequel.
* lyAnfiOe, Mes. Itin. p. 76, quotes Pausanias, EUae, IL who says, that the distance betwixt a certain column in Olympia, and another in Sparta, is 660 stades. On the map, this distance Is 50 G. miles, or 56 by the road, giving a rate of 707 to a degree. The Theodosian table has 61 MP. only ; equal to about 49 G, nules by the road.
22 ON THE ITINERARY 8TADE OF THE GREEKS.
In 8 second example furnished by Herodotus, and that on an exceeding long line of distance, being the whole extent between SardU and 8ma, 13>500 stadia^ the result, when due allowances are made for the uiflections of the road (as in other cases^) is 6M and a fraction But this may be liable to excep- tion, as it appears to be founded on the relative proportions of the Persian parasanga and the Grecian- stade; the former which is valued hj Herodotus, Erato, c. 42, as well as hy Xenophon, Anabasis, lib. 2, at 30 stades. It may justly be doubted whether any parasanga was of so short a standard as the one reported by Xenophon ; and it is certain that the modimfarsangf wliidi represents it, is muYersally of a longer standard, and hears a
* This occurs in Terpsichore, c. 52. It is said 'that the road between Sardis and Susa is of the extent of 450 parasangas, each of SO stades : that is, an aggregate of 13,500 stades* T}>e dis- tance on the map, taken through the points of Issus and Mosul, to 4$tWy (supposed to be Susa,) is 1,120 G. miles, from which results a proportion of 7233- to a degree. But as this is calcu* ated on exceeding long lines of distance, it requires that some addition should yet be made to the 1,120 miles, in order to arrive at the measure of the road distance ; although that road may be supposed to have been made straighter than tlie oidimury ones in that country ; since it not only formed the grand oommunica- tion between Asia Minor ^ Ciliciat and Persia, but was styled the Royal Roadf and was divided into tUUkm of about the length of the ordinary maroh of an army, terminated by inns or caravan- serais of great magnificence, for the use of the king. Probably ^ may be required, in addition to the inflections already al- lowed, on occasion of its passing through Issus and Mosul ; and then the pn^rtion will be 694 or 695 to a degree; fidling short of that between Athens and Pisa, by about part. '
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the true measure of the schoene, to that calculated on by Herodotus, it is very probable that the schoene fiumished the groimd of caleiilation here, as well as in Egypt. Certain it that the measure of the stade^ in Egypt and the Euxine, differs from his statement of it elsewhere ; as well as from the state- ments of others ; and that in so great a degree^ that if the stade is leally meant in all places, we shall be obfiged to diarge Herodotus with inconsiBtency ; a charge that can by no means be ordinarily imputed to him.
In our estimation of the stade of Herodotus, we shall theiefore lay out of the question what regards
Egypt and the Eujone, as being apparently involved in error, and confine the question to the examples given in every other part ; that is, in Greece ; on the road from Sardis to Susa; on the interval be- tween the mouth of the Danube and that of ih6 Borysthenes ; and finally to the number of stades said to compose an ordinary march of an army. These, then, give a ratio of 732, to a degree of a gnat ciiole
* Summary of the examples given by HerodotuSi in GreecCi
Asia, Sec.
1. Between Alliens and Pisa 755
2. — — — — Sardis and Susa 695
S. Danube and Borystlicnes 727
4. The scale of the ordinary iiiarcij, which is about 14
B. miles, or 15 MP. whilst 150 stadia are stated to he an ordinary march, by Herodotus, Terpsicliore, ch. 53 and 54. (Xcnophon han tlie same) 750
Mean . * 732
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The stade resulting from the marches of Xeno- phoDy furnishes much satisfaction in respect of itself, as it may be checked, not only by the scale of the mean march, but also by the Jerusalem Itinerary, over part of the ground ; and no less by the compu- tations of the same distance by modern travellers. The ordinary march of Xenophon^ was 150 stades, (the same length as is allowed by Herodotus,) and which, according to the practice of the Greeks, (whe- ther right or wrong,) they both supposed to be equal to five Persian parasangas.
The Jerusalem Itinerary has 45 MP. between Tartui and MansUia, on the rirer Pyramm ' (the Mopsvestia of more ancient times, and the Messis of our own.) Within this space, Xenophon, with the younger Cyrus, made 3 marches, which he reckons equal to 15 parasangas, and these equal to 450 stades \ So that here are just 160 stades in each march, and these equal to 15 Roman miles; consequently there are 10 stades to each mile, or 750 to a degree ; since M. D'Anville has shewn that 75 such miles are equivalent to that portion of the meridian
Again, between Dana (which is no doubt the
Tijana of the Itinerary) and Tarsus y Xenophon reckons 25 parasangas % and the Itinerary 75 MP, * ; consequently, 750 stades to a degree.
The result of our inquiries into the length of the mean marches of amues, gives rather above 14 B.
* Itinerary, page 5S0. * Anabasii, lib. 1.
* Met. Itin. p. 44, et teq, * Anab. lib. 1.
* Itinerary, p. 577, et seq.
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miles which may he reckoned 15 Roman miles. So
that the ordinary march of Xenophon, agrees with the calculation of the ordinary march, at large. And having thus ascertained the distance marched through in a day, by Xenophon, we of course ascer- tain the length of his stade, which was the 150th part of 15 MP. or the 7oOth part of a degree. It has appeared that the result of the calculation, on the road from A them to Pisa, comes very near to the present one ; being 755.
It is proper to add, that modem travellers calcu- late at a medium the distance between Tarsus and the river Pyramus, at 43 .\ B. miles ; whilst about 41| are equivalent to the 45 MP* of the Itmerary* And also that, by the assumption of one point for the Syrian gates, and another for Issus, which is
doubtless the Oseler (to be pronounced Usseler) of Niebuhr, the comparison of Xenophon's route with the Itineraries % and with the computations of the
• This march, reduced to horizontal, or direct, distance, for geographical purposes, is about 10,6 G. miles. The statiinius mentioned by Herodotus (see above, p. 22, note) between Sardia and Sota, oomea out 10,5 : no doubt intended for an ordinary march.
The mean march of Xenophon from Natolia to Trebizonde ia about 15 B. miles, but then the inarches during hia retreat were often much lon<L;er than on occasiona of ordinary warfare. Five parasangas, or 15 MP. is his ordinary march ; and wlilch occurs in ahnoet every page. The mean of 95 metuured marches of Indian armiea (no Europeana with them) was 14,6 : or say 14^ B. roOea.
• Meaning both the Antonine and Jerusalem Itineraries. See in the firat, pag» 145, tt teq. ; the latter, p. 580, 581.
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difttanee^ may be extended in the' gross, 20 paw sangas beyond tbe Pyramus ; making in all, 105
MP. ; with the same success as in the former in- terval. And we may add^ tliat in every part of Asia, where we can trace the footsteps of this im» MORTAL General* we find the same proportional scale of 750 to a degree.
The stade of Aristotle, valued at 1111 to a degree, we regard purely as an imaginary measure^ and con« oeive that it was founded on certain supposed dimen- sions of the globe ; which dimensions, having been found erroneoas, in excess, the moderns have dimi- nished the standard of the stade, instead of lessen- ing the number of stades in a degree. We are ther^ore surprised to find it employed, in the appli- cation to actual geography, in very late times.
Eratosthenes and Strabo allow 700 stades to a degree, in their calculations of distance ; but it ap- pears that, (in Asia particularly) they often substi- tuted the road distance, perhaps the marches of Alexander, for direct distance. This appears clearly by comparing the actual distances, as they appear in modern geography, with the numbers of stades given ; for, in most cases, across the conti- nent of Ama, the deficiency of distance amounts to tbe difference between the measure of the direct line, between any two places, and that of the road distance, between them. Nothing can speak more strongly to this point, than the circumstance of Strabo's giving the number of stades in Nearchus*s coasting navigation, for the length of the coasts of Persia and Caramania.
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Eratosthenes, as a Gredan, should have known
the true value of a stade ; a Grecian Itinerary mea- sure : and, as a geographer, he ought to have known that it was necessary to make a distinction between road distance and horizanial distance. The same may be said of Strabo ; bat as we find no indication of any such distinction having been made ; but, on the contrary, that the road distance agrees nearest to the number of stades (of the scale of 700 to a de- gree) used to express the extent of the countries, tiirougb which the roads lead, we may suspect that neither of them had ever been in the habit of con- struetiDg tabular geography ; without which, no ac- curate ides of extent and juxtaposition can well be concei?ed, or expressed.
One might conclude, that, as 700 was the number fixed on, originally, by Eratostlienes, as the measure of a degree of a great circle, that this was the estaF> blished standard at that day, in Greece, or Macedonia: for diis principle was actually adopted, in the deter- mination of that portion of" the meridian, between the parallels of Stjene and Rhodes, about 12^ de- grees ; in which the 8750 stades of Eratosthenes, and the 8600. of Strabo, afford a mean ratio of 708| to a degree of the meridian ^ But nothing is more
Eratosthenes and Strabo allow 5,000 stades between the parallels of Syene and Alexandria: and between those of Alex- andria and Rhodes, Eratosthenes has d,750, Strabo, d,GOO ; Strabo, p. 11 1, 1 15, 1 1 G. Syene appears to be in about 24" lat. Alexandria in U', Rhodes in 36" 20'. If the two intervals are taken separatelyi the first of 5,000 stades, on die ratio is 696 : and the second of 3,750, and 3,600, on d'j^, the ratios
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certain than that Strabo, if his text be not corrupted in this place^ supposed that a Roman mile contained no more than 8, or at the utmost 8 J stadia ; for in
page 322, he reduces a large number of MP. into stades ; first at the rate of 8^ seemingly on his own judgment ; and afterwards says, that if the opinion of Polybius is to be followed, i of a stade must be added, as he has allowed 8} to a MP. It is certain that 8.^ of the Olympic stades of 600 feet are equal to 5000 feet, or 1000 paces, the Roman mile : but it is as certain, that the standard of Strabo, which, as we hare seen, is invariably of 700 to a degree, required 9^ to make a Roman mile. How then can we reconcile such a difference, in a matter so plain and simple ? Is it not more probable that in the co- pies of Strabo, 8 has been substituted for 9, than that he should himself have been guilty of so palpa- ble an error ? But it will even appear, that what- soever the opinion of Polybius may have been (and, by the bye, the passage referred to, by Strabo, must have occurred in a part of the works of Polybius which is now lost) his own examples of distance wiU be found to give about 91 stades to a iioman mile, agreeing witli the standard of Strabo ^ On a review of the lines of distance which form
are respectively 728^, and 699. Thus the intervals are not ill proportioned ; especially, if Strabo be iblJowed throughout. Strabo's mean is 6971, Eratosthenes, 7091 ; mean of both 703|.
• May it not have been, that the prevalent idea of the pro- portion of 8 stades to a MP. induced the schoolmen to supply a deiiciency in the text ; and to place an 8 where a 9 had ori- ginally stood?
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the basis of the geography of Eratosthenes and Strabo, along the Mediterranean, it appears that a greater number than 700, perhaps 710, or even more, are required to make a degree. This seems to shew, that the Greeks had originaUy fixed on a ' lower standard than 700 ; for these lines could only be made up from computations which had existed long before the times of those geographers; and which may be found in part, in the Periplus of Scy lax. But it clearly appears, from the residt of the lines across Asia, and which were obtained from notices collected by Alexander's officers, at a later period, that the stade of 700 was in use with them. And, in efiecty the examples adduced from Eratosthenes and Strabo may be said to agree to their established canon of 700 ; taken at a mean of the whole.
M. D'Anville, in his Traite des Mesures Itine- ra$re9, p. 71, and 74, cites two examples in Gaul and Italy, in which the stade of Strabo produces 750 ; the first on a line of 160, the other of 2,800. How- ever, it appears pretty certain, from the great extent of the distances above given, as well as from the stated number set forth by Eratosthenes and Strabo, that not only the standard intended by them, was of 700 to a degree of the meridian, but that the exam- ples collected from them agree to it ^
* Examples from Eeatmtbbiibs and Steabo.
I. Diatanoet in the Mediterranean reckoned chiefly along the
coasts.
1. Between the Promontory of Saenm (Cape St. Vincent) and Cmepiu (Abukeir,) through die Strait of Gibraltar, Car- VOL. I. D
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34 ON THE ITINERARY 8TADS OF THE GREEKS.
It has been said that Strabo has quoted a lasi
passage in Polybius^ to shew that according to his
thagc, &'C. Eratostiifnes reckons 24,500 stadia; see Strabo, lib. i. p. <ii. Tiie ilistance is about 2008 G. miles. Hence arises a ratio of 732
2. Hctwi'cn the Sacrum Promontory and Issus, through Caipe, Sicily, Crete, and Hliodes, Strabo rickons 27,500 stadia. (See Gosselin, who has collected the particulars, p. 63). The dis- tance is about 2267 G. miles, and gives a ratio of . . . 728
3. Between Rhodes and Issus, being a portion of the last line, Strabo allows 5000 stadia : p. lOG, 125. The distance is 407 G. miles direct. Hences arises a ratio of 737
As these very long lines of distance must necessarily be made up of several shorter ones, each of which may have some degree of inflection from the other, it must happen (as in the case of Herodotus's road to Susa) that the nuMd)er of stades represent much longer lines of distance ; in other words, that the ratio must be made up of a smaller ninuber of stades, to any given distance. Perhaps 710 may be lully equal to the proportion; as the 4 next lines drawn across the open sea give 706i • 710
II. Distances across open seas.
4. Between Pliycus Promontory in Cyrcnaica, and that of Tenarus in Greece, 2800 stadia. Strabo, p. 837. (Pliny, lib. V. c. 5, has 350 MP. = 2800 stadia also.) The distance is 224 G. miles across ; whence a ratio of 750
5. Between the port of Cyrcnc and Criu Mctojwn in Crete, 2000 stadia; Strabo, p. 838; distance 175 G. miles direct; ratio 686
6. Between the Promontory Pachynum in Sicily, and Criu Mctopon in Crete, 4500, to 4(500 stades, Strabo, p. 106 and 363. The distance 400 G. miles: whence 675 to 690: mean 682^
7. Between the Promontory of Smnonium in Crete, and Rhodes^ 1000 stadia; Strabo, p. 106. The distance is 80 G. miles, whence 750
The mean of the four last, taken collectiTely at 10,350 stades, to879G.maes»is 706i
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idea, 8^ stades formed a Roman mile ; but that 9i is the result of the examples of distance. He says.
III. (Land Routes.)
8. Between Inus and the Caspian Strait, see Gosselin, p. 64, is 10,000 stadia. We measure on the map, 760 O. miles direct, wMeb at 700 to a degree, produce only 8860 stades. Hence there is a deficiency of 1140 : and it appears that the road dis- tance must have been intended, as ^ part added, comes within Se stades, or about 8 miles. If we add to 760, one-eighth, or 95, the snm is 855 G. miles; whence the result wiQ be to a* degree 70ft
0. Between the Pass of Mount Zagnu, and the CMpkm Strait, Strabot p. Sft5, allows 4100 stades. The direct distance is 808 G. milea, equal to 8598 stades of 700 to 1*. If we add to 808, one-eighth, or 88i G. miles, the sum is 846 G. miles ; and the deficiency will be 58 stades, or about 5 miles. The result 710
10. Between the Ctupum Strait and Aria (Herat), Strabot p. 518, allows 6400 stadia. It appears, however, that there ia an error, and that the sum should be 5594 : for Strabo» p. 514, aDows only 4580 between Aria and Hecakmpylo*, through which latter the road lay, from the Strait; and although he allows 1960, p. 514, between the Strait and Hecatompylos, yet Pliny, lib. vi. c 15, shortens it to 1064, which indeed agrees to thedbtanoe, taking Dtttnigan fi>r HeeaUmpylot,' The distance is 448 G. mfles, to whichadd f or 55, the sum is 498 G. miles; and the rssult • 675
11. HeeaUmpyloM to Aria : (Damgan to Herat) a portion of the fimner route. Given at 4580 stadia: distance direct, 865 G. ndes. Add |, or 45 ; totsl 410. Result .... 668
IS. Between Ba^toa and the Sea, Strabo, p. 80, aflows 8000 stadia; hot both Pliny and Arrian make it 8800. The diraet distance is £591 ; add^orSSl; totalS9£; result 678
The mean of these five last, collectively, S7,5£4 stades^ to
S401 G. miles, is 688
D 2
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36 ON THE ITINERARY STADE OF THE GREEKS.
however, lib. iii. c. 4, that the Romans, having measured certain roads in Spain, set up marks at the distance of every eight stadia. No one can well doubt, that these intervals were Roman miles : but this is quite contrary to the quotation of Strabo ; and one is puzzled what to think of the matter. It would seem, however, that if Polybius is right (and in thb Pliny will be found to agree,) the Romans had a stadium of their own, equal to the eighth part of their mile, or 625 Roman feet.
But by a coniparison of the numbers of stades in Polybius, with the ground, a result of 696 appears : by which we can only conclude, that although he describes a stade as the 8th part of a mile, yet that he uses a different standard in giving the extent of countries and roads ; and that, apparently, of the ancient Greek Itinerary stade ; since it approaches so near it : for about 600 of the Roman stades aro equal to a degree ; whilst his result is 696^ or nearly
Sea routeB generally 710
aero— seas 706^
Land routes 6S8
Mean of aU . . 701^
It may be added, that a line ftom the Troade to Chaleedtmf and thence coasting the Eoxine, through Heraelea, Caramiw, Sinope, Anusus, Trapestut, and the mouth of the Phoiit, to Di- otcuriat, producing 864 O* miles, is given by Strabo (collected by Gosselin, in pages 86 and 98) at 10,100 stadia; confM* quently the rate .... 701^
The distances are taken on D* Anville's maps
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ON THE ITINERARY 8TADB OP THE GREEKS. 37
that of Strabo and Eratosthenes. Here follows the detail :
1. Between the Strait of Gibraltar and the Philenian Altars near Cyrene, on more than 16,000 stades; the distance through Car- Ihage and the Island of the Lotophagi being 1,407 G. miles, the result will be ... . 682 stades to a degree.
2. Between the aforesaid Strait and the ex- tremity of the Pyrenees, 8000 stadia ; the dis- tance^ allowing inflections of the road ^ part, G30 G. miles 7g2
3. Between the Strait and Carthagena, 3^000 stades, 259 G. miles 095
4. Between Carthagena and the river Ehro, 2,600 stades, 219 G. miles 712
6. Between the Ehro and Emporium 1,600 stades, 152 G. miles . • • 632
Mean of all, on 24,000 stadia . . 696
Pliny, as appears by a comparison of his statements with thosp of the Greeks, invariably reduces their stades to Roman nules, at the rate of 8 to a mile.
The instances are very many, in which he recounts the measures of roads and countries that occur in the Greek authors. He says, lib. ii. c. 23, that a stade conrists of 125 paces, equal to 625 Roman feet. Now as the Grecian stade mentioned by Herodotus (and often called the Olympic by succeeding au- thors) consisted not of 625, but of GOO feet, one must naturally suppose that Pliny meant a Roman
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38 ON THE ITIMEIUEY 8TADE OP THE 0BEEK8.
•tade, admitting that such a measure actually ex- isted ; (and Dr. Arbuthnot inserts it in his Tables
of Roman measures ' ;) since it differs so consider- ably, both from the aforesaid stade described by He- rodotus, and from the itinerary stade.
This supposition will at least give some degree of consistency to Pliny*s calculations; since he ifiay have known of no other stack tlian that of 625 feet ; 8 of which were really equal to a Roman mile, as he has calculated. And if he had no other knowledge of the Greek stadium (whether Olympic or //l- nerartj) than from books, the mistake might easily enough be made.
The examples that occur iu Pliny's statement of distances, §^ve the same results with those of Eratos- thenes and Nearchus respectively, which must of course happen, as he copies their numbers. But following his own standard of 8 to a mile, he made too great a number of miles, out of these stades. However, furnished with the above uiformation, we are enabled to turn them back again into stades, by multiplying by eight.
There is one line of distance in Pliny, which oc- curs no where else, and which is well worth remark- ing. In lib. vi. c. 24, he says, that the distance sailed by Nearchus, between the mouth of the Indus and Babylon, was 2500 Roman miles," and these we must suppose, were calculated as usual^^ at the rate of 8 stades to a mile ; so that the origmal num-
' It has also appeared in a foregoing pagCi that Polybius actiudly deicribed such a stade on tlie Homaa roada.
*
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ber of stades would have been; of course, 20,000.
Now as he also says, that the distance between Ba- bylon and the sea (at the mouth of the Euphrates) was 412 MP. equal to 3296 stades, there remain of course^ 16^704 for the distance between the mouths of the two rivers, Indus and Euphrates.
We measure, on the charts of Captains M'Cluer, and Robinson, 1330 G. miles, on the line that Near« dius may have been supposed to trace, in his naviga^ tion along the coasts of India, Karmania, and Persia, fre. from the mouth of the Indus to that of the Eu- phratesand as the number of stades was about 16,700, the number to a degree will be 753 i. But as the numbers of stades copied from Eratosthenes^ were at the rate of 700 to a degree, Pliny's result should be a mean, between that and 753^ ; and of course, 726i ; say 727.
The stade of Nearchus, collected from the abstract of his journal in Arrian (that is, in the partt where we have been able to follow him) is of a standard somewhat longer than that arising from Pliny's report of the whole distance : for it is at the rate of 729 to a degree. It is certain that a great part of the numbers are corrupted, but there occur, never- theless, certain portions of distance, amounting in the aggregate to about 7000 stades (or 1 of the whole distance sailed), in which the report of Arrian coincides with that of Strabo, and no less with the actual geography. Witlun these spaces, then, the
' That is, the ancient mouthi now named Clwr Abdilla,
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40 ON THE ITINB&ARY STADE OF THE ORSSKB.
mean result is 729), although different portions of
it vary from 722, to 778 \ In tficct then, the dif- ference between Arrian and Pliny, is far from consi- derable ; and it is rather wonderful, that a ship's reckoning should agree so nearly with the mean ratio of the land routes ^
It appears unnecessary to bring together any more examples^ to prove what was the generally received opmion amongst the Greeks, concerning the length of the stade in use, as an Itinerary measure : it evi- dently came between the 700th and 750th part of a degree of a great circle.
If Herodotus is founded, in respect of the number of stades, on the road to Susa, it appears, when the distances collected from Strabo and Eratosthenes are added, that the distance across Asia, from Ephesus to Aria, more than 20,000 stades, was taken at the scale of 700 to a degree, nearly. At the same time^ the whole length of the Mediterranean, more than
|
• |
0,M. |
BmuM; |
|
|
' 1. Between the jvren Indus and |
|||
|
m |
8S0 |
778 |
|
|
S. From NE point of KkmUk I. to |
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6141 |
6200 |
7£Si |
|
|
Mean of the aggregate auma • . |
6S0 |
7050 |
729k |
* The reader will perceive also the near proportions between this stade of Nearchus, and that arising on tlie routes through the Mediterranean, taken at large: Nearcbus'a being 7 id, the others from 7ii8 to 737.
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ON THE ITINERARY STADE Of THE GREEKS. 41
27,000 stadia, as well as the track of Nearchus, 17,000, together with the march of Xenophon, and clivers portions of roads, in Greece, Spain, Italy, and Gaul, were calculated on a scale .between 710 and 750. It is true, that the length and breadth of the Mediterranean, and the trace of Nearchus's voyage, may be regarded as founded on the calculations of seamen; but those seamen must haye referred to some particular standard, and commonly sailed too near the land, to be much deceived in their distance. They even knew how to calculate distances in the open sea ; for the mean of 4 lines of distance, col- lectively amounting to 10,350 stades, comes very near to the other proportion.
As the distances along the Mediterranean must, in the nature of things, have been determined long before those on the continent of Asia, the inference naturally is, that a stade of a shorter standard than that of 700 ensted in very early times : and that, by the recurrence of it so often, it was deeply im- printed on the minds of the people, although philo- sophers or princes may have sought to adopt a standard somewhat different
We shall now recapitulate the different results, on examples from the date of Herodotus, inclusive.
* Such cbanges have often been attempted, and sometimes eflfected, by sorereigns. In India, both Acbar, and Shah Jehan, dianged the standard of the cots, in their regulations, but could never alter the papular opinion respecting it. The old coss had been too long estaUiahed, to allow of a change. See Memoir of Map of Hindoottan.
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4^ ON THE ITINERARY STADE OF TUB UHEEKS.
Herodotus ,
Pausanias Xenophon . Eratosthenes Strabo . .
Polybius Pliny
. 782 ^
. 707
. 750
. 700
. 700
. G9(i
. 727
Arrian (from Nearchus) 729 /
Greatest differ- > ence 54, or a- bout -nth part.
Mean of all . 717t, or 718
This mean stade, in English feet, would be equal to 505 4. The proportion on the stade of Strabo, of 700 to a degree, would be 524 feet ; and on that of Xenophon, of 750, 489 feet ; whilst that calculated on the 150th part of a mean march of our scale, would be 493. Thus our mean march agrees to Xenophon*s, as 493 to 489 : and our mean stade of 718 to that of Xenophon, as 505} to 480. The difierences are certainly very small ^.
The above examples prove at least, that the stade of 600 Grecian feet, spoken of by Herodotus, and that of 625 Roman feet, by Pliny, i . e. of about 600 to a degree, could never have been applied by the Greeks to the measurement of roads. For the lojtfrest of the Itinerary stades is t shorter than that of 600 feet : the shortest of those measures ; less ; and the mean of all, i less. Had a stade of
• Had the proportion been 720, there would have been IS •tades to a geoj^raphic mile, 10,36 to a British mile.
' 150 stades (the number assigned by Xenophon and Hero- dotus to a march) of d05i feet each, are equal to 14,S6 B. miles.
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600 feet been the standard, the examples would not,
surely, have uniformly fallen short of it, as we find they do. Nor, on the other hand, would it have risen so hx above the stade, applied by M. D'Anville and others to the track of Nearchns, and to the mea- sure of ancient Babylon; that is, of 1100 to a de- gree, had there been any foundation for such a standard ^.
With respect to the different lengths of the Itine- rary stade fomished by these examples, all difficulty
concerning their appearance vanishes, when one re- flects that the distances in general must have been computed by land as well as by sea. The greatest difference, as we have seen, is about part: and generally speaking, no more than -gVth. Such varia- tions ever did, and ever will arise, on computed dis- tances ; instances of which existed on our own pub- lic roads, previous to their improvement ; and which do yet exist on many of the cross roads. It is pro* bable that Herodotus, Xenophon, Nearchus, Strabo, &c. all intended the same stade, but may have given occasion to different results, by reporting the num« bers on the judgment of different persons.
We should lay more stress on that result, which arises from the ordinary march of the Greeks, as re- ported by Herodotus, and proved by the journal of Xenophon, to be 150 stades, than on any other single authority: more particularly as the scale of that march coincides so nearly with the result of our in-
' Sec Mem. Acad. loflc. Vol* xxx. and bis Memoir on Ba* bylonia, in Vol. xxvt.
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44 ON THE ITINBRARY 8TADB OP THE 011BEK&
quiries into the length of the mean march, which
has been shewn to be rather above 14 road miles of British measure ; the 150th part of which, 493, is no more than 4 feet longer than the stade of Xeno- phon; 12i short of that arising on the general mean of all the authorities. At the same time, the stade of 600 Grecian feet would give the length of a march at no less than 17 miles, which is out of all proportion
It has been observed, that the mean stade of 718 to a degree, is somewhat above 500 English feet
(that is 505^); and .300 Grecian feet are equal to about 5031 English ^ A pace was no doubt the ele- mentary part of itinerary measures amongst the Greeks, as well as other nations ; and the natural pace ' is nearly about 5 feet. Is it not probable that the integral measure, the stade, was made up of 100 of these ? and that hence arose the stade of about 600 feet, in ordinary use ? Some, we know not on what authority, have fixed the Grrecian pace at more than 6 of our feet. But it would appear that they took the orgyia for a pace, although it seems to have been a fathom. D'Anville's Mes. Itin. p. 43. It is not probable that any natural pace ever ex- tended to the length of 6 feet, or perhaps to more than 5. The Roman pace was 5 of their feet, an- swering to 4 feet 10 inches of our measure.
* See notes to page 29.
' A Grecian foot being equal to 12,0875 English incbes. (Ar- buthnot.)
' Meaning the dioMe $iep, or return of the mm foot.
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WESTERN,^'/
S C Y T
fl7l/i
St( rroii/i<{ut(j (oiiN '
SECTION III.
OP EVROPB, ACCORDING TO HBILODOT08.
The Europe of Herodotus extended far into North Asia — the southern and eastern parts best known to him — proof that he knew much more than he describes — pointed description of Thes&altj — kne^v more than Polyhius, respecting the nurth-cast part of J'Jurojje; hut n as ignurant of (he ?ior(h-n est part^ Cassitcrides, meant for Britain — Ccltnp, and Cyn.Tta — Itahjy under the name of CFjimtria — Rome, (f no importance in the polities of (irccce, at that day — llu ria — Course of the Danube — Great extent of Thrace — Getw, one of its tribes belierc them- selves imuwrtai — Thractan n'idon'S, like those of Jndia, sa- crifice themselves — Distinction o/'Eastera and Western Scylhia,
It was the idea of Herodotus, that Eu&ope very much exceeded in length the other divisions of Asia and Africa ; but that it was far inferior in breadth to either; and^ on the whole, that Europe was larger than Asia ; Melpom. 3G, 42, and 46. But he also observes, that the boundaries of Europe had not> to that time, been carefully ezanuned ; and that it was by no means certain, whether on the east and norths it was limited, or surrounded, by the ocean ; Melp. 45. It follows, of course, that whatsoever tracts are described by him to extend towards those quarters, from the great body of Europe, taken ac- cording to ihe. common acoq[^tation, and which are
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46
EUROPB.
not classed as belonging to Asia, must necessarily have been reckoned by him a part of Europe.
He adds, that he had endeavoured, but without success, to meet with some one, who, from ocular observation, might describe to him the sea which washes the western part of Europe ; concerning which part, any more than the inlands called Cassite- rides, from whence they were said to have their tin, he was unable to speak with decision * : but that it was nevertheless certfun, that both their tin and amber were brought from those extreme regions ; and the amber in particular, from the river Eridanus^ which discharged itself into the North Sea. On this name Eridanus, our Author observes, Thalia, 115, that it is certainly of Greek derivation, and not bar^ barous ; and was, as he conceives, introduced by one of their poets
Our Author differs from all others, Procopius ex- cepted, respecting the eastern boundary of Europe. Others have assigned the Tanais, (or Don ' :) but Herodotus extends Europe eastward to the utmost bounds of his knowledge ; placing Asia rather to the
* Thalui lis. Hit want of mfemiatuHi, in Chii matter, can only be referred to the jealousy of the Phoenicians.
' Larcher, quoted by Mr. Beloe, obserrea, that ** the Eri- iamu here alluded to, could not possibly be any other than the JtAa-dSoiNitf, which empties itself into the yuHtla, near DantMie; and on the banks of which, amber is now found in large quan- tities." Such a modification of the name^peazs very probable.
* The Tanait divides Asia from Europe, says Strabo, p. 310 ; Pliny, lib. iy, c. 18. ; and Diodorus, lib* i. c. 4. Africa is con- tained between the Nile and the Pillars of Hercules'; Ana be- tween the Nile and TVnmw, aaya Polybius, lib. lii. c. 4.
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MNf/A» than to the east, of Europe. Accordingly,
the Colchian Phasis is reckoned by him the common boundary of Europe and Asia from the point at which the Euxine ceases to form it. Beyond this, the boundary remains indefinite ; but may be con- ceived to pass by the north of the Caspian sea^ to- wards the mountains that give rise to the river Irtish ; of which more in the sequel^ when we enter into the detail of the regions properly belonging to Affla, but which he asogns to Europe.
Of this diTision of the earthy the parts most fami- liarly known to him, and to the Greeks of his time, were those situated along tlic Mediterranean and Euxine seas ; for the extent of the former^ and that of Europe along its borders, were very well known, by the frequent voyages made by the Greeks ; and from the notices collected from the Phoenicians, Car- thaginians, and Egyptians. Herodotus calls it the sea/requenied by the GreeksJ* The extent of the western coasts of Europe, must have been known in hke manner, by the voyages to and from Tartessus, Gades, the Cassiterides, and the Baltic. Such par- ticulars could hardly have been concealed ; nor would a general idea of distance Bjod juxt^^^aeitiam have enabled a rival to derive much advantage. But there are, however, no notices concerning either the extent of the Mediterranean sea, or of the western coasts of Europe, to be found in our Author: nor indeed, could they be looked for, since such were fordgn to
* In hk specification of the rtgwiu of jfmm, Melp. 37, et geq, the PfaMis ie eridendy taken finr the bonndaiy of i#«M. Pro* copios tpeaki poiitively ; Belt Goth.lih. iv.
18
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the scope of his history. Much less could it be ex- pected that he should enter into a description of the
geography of Greece, and the surrounding coun- tries; although the sce7ie of the glorious events which it is the ultimate purpose of his book to re- cord. The reason clearly is, that he considered himp self as speaking to men who were perfectly well in- formed on the subject : so that, instead of describing the geography of Greece, he even alludes to certaia parts of it, as well as of Italy> in order to explain his descriptions of other countries. For instance, in the description of the Taurian Chersoneie, in Melpom. 99, he refers to certain parts of the coasts of Attica and Magna Grctcia, His descriptions of the country of Thessaly, the Strait of Thermopylae, and ether places, prove how well he had considered the scenes of particular actions : and we shall select, in a note, that of Thessahjy as one of the most pointed, clear, and concise imaginable ^.
' Polymnia, 12D. " Thessaly is said to have been formerly a mar ah, on all sides surrounded by lofty mountains ; to the east by Pdnm and 0«ia, whose bases meet each other ; to the north by Olffmpust to the west by Pindut; to the south by Othryt, The space betwixt, these is Thbssalt, into which depressed re* gion many rivers pour their waters, but more particularly these five, the PeneuSy the Ajndanust the Onochonoui, the EnipeuSf and the Pamisus : all t]iese, flowing firom the mountains which sur* round Thessaly, into the plain, arc till then distinguished by spe- cific names. They afterwards unite in one narrow channel, and are poured into the sea. Ailer their union, they take the name of Peneus only. It is said, that formerly, before this aperture to the sea existed, all these rivers, and also the lake Bcebeb, had not, as now, any specific name, but that their body of water was as large as at present, and the whole of Thessaly a sea." The
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Had be written a system of geography^ it would have been unquestionably his province to describe Greece, &c. : but as a historian, be refers to the knaum parts of geography, to illustrate his history ; and when the geography was supposed to be un- known to his readers, or not sufRciently generalized, he very properly enters into a description of it.
Since our Author has given no idea of the extent of Europe, westward, it b not possible to know what bis opinions were, on that subject ; that is, aeeu" rately ; for it will appear hereafter, in discussing the subject of Aiiica, that he seems to allow an ex- tent of space between Egypt and Mount Atlae that agrees generally with the actual geograpliy : but the notices are very far from being positive, and the chain of distance is so often interrupted, that, al- though much internal evidence arises out of the whole data, yet the question by no means admits of direct proof.
There can, however, be no doubt that Herodotus knew, and that critically, the extent of the Mediter- ranean, and of Europe along its coasts ; once it is known from the Periplus of Scylax, written as it may be concluded, long before the days of our Au- thor, that the distances had been estimated gene- rally, throughout the Mediterranean ; and along the western coast of Africa, as fiir as Arguin at least \
remarks of Xerxes on Tbessaly m llie suooeeding chapter, are worth attention ; as is the description of rAtftmo/iy<<» >n chiller 176.
* The Periplus of Scylax is supposed to have been written sob* sequent to the expedition of Hanno, and before the time of Xerxes, ▼OL. I* B
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From this work then, or from such kind of notices, existing among the maritime powers, on the borders of that sea, it may be conceived tliat Herodotus formed his ideas of the extent of the Mediterranean; of Europe ; and of Africa. It may reasonably be con- cluded that succeeding geographers adopted the same system ; gradually correcting it in particular parts, as discovery or improvement furnished new lights to- wards it This may be traced in the different state- ments of the length ' of the Island of Crete ; which, from 2,500 stadia in the time of Scylax, was reduced first to 2,300, by Sosicrates, and then to 2,000, by Straba And this latter computation, as may be seen in page 19, comes very near the truth ; allow- ing somewhat for the indentmgs of the coast. But errors with respect to some grand points of relative position, having remained on the continent of Asia, in the system of Eratosthenes, notwithstanding the notices furnished by the expedition of Alexander, it may be supposed that errors also continued to exist in the Mediterranean. The great source of these errors seems to have been, the difficulty of adjusting any two positions, in respect of a particular meri- dian, when widely removed in point of parallel ; with- out the aid of celestial observations, or oi the mag- netic needle.
If Eratosthenes appreciated the extent of the Me- diterranean, by the computations which existed in the time of Herodotus, this latter must have reck- oned it too long by about a 15th part ; for such it appears to be, on a comparison of the number of stades given by Eratosthenes (30,000,) between Cape
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St. Vincent and Issus; allowing a reasonable degree of inflectioii to the line of distance on which he reckoned.
But Strabo, who allowed no more than 27,500, fell short by a small proportion, {. e. only. We hare here calculated on the mean stade, arbing on the examples before cited ; that is^ 718 to a degree. It 18 obvious, that if 700, the proportion assumed by Eratosthenes and Strabo, had been adopted, the error in excess would have been very great indeed : but* it is probable that this standard was assumed, long after the calculations adopted by them had been formed on a shorter standard. And on the whole, it appears to us, that Strabo approached nearer to the just measure of the length of the Mediterranean, than any other of the ancient geographers. Ptolemy, strange to tell, was nearly i in excess !
It has been suggested that it was foreign to the plan of our Author's history, to say much concerning the geography of Western Europe, had he been well informed concerning it : but, we conceive that he had a yery limited knowledge even of its coasts ; for Po- lybius, at a much later period, observes, lib. iii. c. 4, that the part of Europe beyond Spain, bordered by the exterior sea (or AUantic), " had been but lately discovered,,and was possessed by a race of barbarous people. That those parts of Europe lying between Narhonne and the Tanais, are also unknown ; and that the reports concerning them ought to pass for &ble or invention." Now, taking Narbonne for that part of France which borders on the Mediterranean, it appears that Polybius, who wrote at about three
e2
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centuries after Herodotus, was ignorant of all the northern and eastern part of Europe : and probably of some parts of it that were known to Herodotus ; for instance, Scythia and Sarmatia : but it may be infer red tluit the knowledge of the latter, with re- spect to the western parts, was not more extensive than that of Polybius. Even to the time of Strabo (admitting that he possessed all the geographical knowledge of his time), the form of the coasts of rrancc and Spain was So little known, that he had no suspicion of the existence of that wide and deep gulf called the Bay of Biscay, and Gulf of Gascony. The ancients appear to have had no name for this singular bay, although every division and almost every corner of the Metliterranean had appropriate names, and in some instances more than one. And so vague were the ideas entertained by Diodorus re- specting positions in the Atlantic, that he says, lib. v. c. 2, that the Cassiterides, or the Tin Islands, are situated opposite to IherUi, or Spain.
After our Author s frank confession of his igno- rance respecting the detail of the western coasts of Europe, and of the Cassiterides, it will not be ex- pected that he should have had any idea commen- surate to the extent and importance of the British islands: or that they contained an area equal to Greece and Italy collectively.
It is curious to trace the progress of knowledge respecting this matter, as fiir as it can be collected from books. Eratosthenes £urst gave a rude idea of the form of Britain ; but was ignorant of the ex- istence of Ireland* It may indeed be suspected, that
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Ireland was never known to the Greeks during the period of their independency ; for no notices con- cerning it appear, even in Polybius. Strabo knew of the ezUteDce of both, but the true fonn of neither : and in the position of Ireland, he erred so much, as to place it on the north of Britain, and at such a dis- tance from it« as to occupy the situation of the Islands of Faro, nearly; pages 72^ 115. He supposed it to he very large : but by placing it so wide of its true position, it may justly be doubted whether the Ro- mans had ever visited it, to that time ^
' Strabo describes its inhabitants to be completely barbarous; pages 115 and 201 ; and its climate to be such, as to be almost uninhabitable, through extremity of cold. This fact, perhaps, was assumed by those who assigned it so northerly a position ; since Ireland is known to have a more temperate atmosphere than Germany.
It is to be observed, tliat the inhabitants of our island are also sj)okcn of by some of the Roman writers, as being not a little barbarous; Ca-sar, in particular, mentions certain customs, \vhici» are almost too indelicate for belief. In the following passai^e in ])io<loruN, 111). \ . c. '2, it is not altogether certain, though highly probable, that tUacountri/ intended is Ireland. 'Vhc people, how- ever, are unquestionably Untlsh ; and therefore a liritisli colony settled in Ireland shoidd be meant : and indeed, Ptoleir.y places Brigante.f in Ireland, as well as in England. Dioilorus then, 8j)eaking of the Celta\ or Gauls, and their northern neighl)oiirs, says, that they are so fierce and cruel, that it h reported tluit they eat men, like the Britons of I ins, (or Ikin.)
But the same autlior, and in the same chapter, gives a very handsome character of the British ; such indeed, as we ouyht to be proud of, and what we are accustomeil to value ourselves on : tliat of being i fkigiit and sincere. And since he applies this character so pointedly to the people of tliis islantl, it njay with more probability be supposed, that m the former case, he spoke of some other country.
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Pliny was better informed respecting its situation,
for he places it at no greater distance than 30 MP. from tlie Silures ; (South Wales ;) that is 24 G. miles : and although it may be about 16 or 17 more, yet this must be reckoned a near approximation for those times. In the same place^ however, lib. iv. c. IG, he allows 50 MP. or 40 G. miles, between Bou- logne and the nearest part of the opposite coast, which space ought to have been better known
Ptolemy's delineation comes the nearest of any to the shape of South Britain and Ireland ; and, of the two, much the nearest to Ireland, whose dimensions are also very near the truth, whilst those of England are very faulty, it bemg represented too long and too narrow ; which latter is an error of a contrary nature from what commonly happens. Scotland is unaccountably made to lie east and west, instead of north and south ; but Scotland was much less known than England. Ireland, in respect of position, is placed too far to the north; for although Pliny knew that its south-east angle lay opposite to South Wales, yet Ptolemy places it opposite to North Wales, and twice as far oflP as it ought to be. We solicit the indulgence of the reader for this digres- sion, on an occasion wliere our Author is silent, and where we feel ourselves so deeply interested. To a philosopher, the changes in the comparative state of
* Pliny allows the dimenaioot of Ireland, (foUmritig Agrippa,) to be 6C0 MP. by 300 ; whidi breadth, and no more, he allows also to Britain ; whose length was supposed to be 800. Both were, of course, over-rated ; and particularly Ireland, whose length liardly exceeds the given breadth*
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nations in different ages of the world, are very strik- ing, and lead one to reflect what may be the future state of some now obscure corner of New Holland, or of North America ; smce oar own Uand was known only for its tin mines, by the most celebrated of an* cient nations, whose descendants, in turn, rank no higher with us, than as dealers in figs and currants.
Our Author had heard of the Celtjb, who lived beyond the columns of Hercules, and bordered on the Cynesi^, or Cynet^, the most remote of all the nations, who inhabited the western part of Europe ; £uterpe, 33, and Melpom. 49. Who the latter were intended for, we know not The Danube is said to spring from amongst the Celts so that, if he knew the true position of its source, he must have meant to include the inhabitants of Western Europe, generally, under one denomination of Celtje ; and which might probably have been correct, at that day *.
Italy, or part of it, he designs under the name of (Enotria, on occasion of the retreat, and settlement of the Phocasans of Ionia there ^ Umhria^ and
* The place of its eouroe ii sad to be nnned Pfrme ; Eu« terpe, 95. •
' It seems as if Oiodorus regarded as SeytkUm all those situ- ated to the eastward of the CelU ; lib. v. c. %• We shall have to remark the same of Pliny.
* Clio^ 167. They first settledmlhe (Entisf ami Islands ad- jacent to CiUof ; thence they proceeded to Cymui (CorsieaX where they had previously founded a city named JlaUa; and finally to (Entttria, where they built the dty ofHfela, in the tract between PaUm and Cape Palimtrut.
* UmkriawmiktaetA of the TffrrhtMmt, firom whence the
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Ligufia, in the north of Italy, as well as Tarentum,
Crofoiia, Sijharis, &c. in the south, (or Magna Grcccia,) are mentioned by him. He moreover resided a considerable time at Thurium, a Grecian colony, situated near to, or on the site of, SyharU.
He mentions occasionally most of the larger islands of the Mediterranean, as Sicily, Crete, Sardinia, Cyprus, Corsica S but is silent concerning Rome : and considering that at the probable date of his his- tory the Romans were confined to the centre of Italy ; had hardly taken Veii ; and had not ap- peared in fleets on the Mediterranean ; what was there for a Grecian to remark concerning them ^ ? Spain, under the name of Iberia, is mentioned, as well as Tartessus, near Cadiz : but his acknowledg- ing that he had not been able to meet with people who could give him any description of the Euro- adjacent flea was sometimes denominated. The Tyrrbenians were a colony from Lydia, who migrated on occasion of a famine* Thoy scttUd in Umbria^ called also Etruria, (now Tuscany,) and changed their ancient appellation oi Lydiant iot that of Tyrrhenians^ afler Tyrrhenus, the son of their former sovereign, who conducted them ; Clio, 94. . In c. 166, the Tyr- rhenian fleet, in conjunction with that of Carthage, attack the Phocaean fleet of Cymus.
* That is, Sicily under die name of Steama; Polym. 170: Corsica under diat of Cymus ; Clio, 165.
* Arrian, in his History of the Expedition of Alexander, lib* vii. c 1, speaking of the future plans of that conqueror, after his return from India, says, that a report prevailed, amongst others, that be intended *' to sail round Sicily, by the Promontory of Japyghm : for then it was that the Roman name began to spread far and wide, and gave him much umbrage." This was much more than a century after die date of our Author's history*
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pean seas, appears decisive of his want of knowledge of the western side of Europe.
He remarks that the Danube passes through the centre of Europe, and afterwards by an oblique course enters Scythia ; Melpom. 49. This descrip- tion is just, for its general course does really divide the central parts of Europe in the inidst ; and hav- ing arrived in the neighbourhood of the Euxine, it takes 8 sudden turn to the north«east, towards Scythia.
lie appears to have had a very indistinct idea of the tract between the Adriatic sea and the Danube. The Eneti, ( Heneii or Veneti,) Terp. 9, are said to border on the Adriatic, and the Sigyme to have ex- tended to their neighbourhood \ But the context, as it stands, appears contradictory ; for the Sigyuse are said to lie beyond the Danube, and yet to ex- tend almost to the Eneti on the Adriatic. The passage alluded to is as follows :
*' With respect to the more northern parts of this region (Thrace) and its inhabitants, nothing has been yet decisively ascertained. WhiU lies beyond the leter, it a wtst and almost endless space. The whole of this, as far as I am able to learn, is inhabited by the Sigynce, a people who in dress re- semble the Medes ; their horses are low in stature* and of a feeble make* but their hair grows to the length of 5 dfgits : they are not able to carry a man» but, yoked to a carriage, are remarkable' lor their swiftness ; for which reason carriages are here very
* The Efieth in Clio, 196, ue said to be of lUyrian origin.
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common. The confines of this people extend almost to the Emti on the Adriatic, They call them- adves a colony of Medes." — Terp. 9. Now he had been speaking of Thrace, and of its northern part, concerning which nothing decisive had been ascer- tained ; and after this he introduces the country Morih of the Danube, as a vast and almost endless space ; and says that it is inhabited by the Sigynm, who extend almost to the Adriatie, May it not be suspected, that the sentence respecting the country beyond the Danube is misplaced altojifcther ; and that the Author intended to say that *' tlie Si^yme inhabited the northern part of Thrace," which lay, however, on the south or Grecian side of the Da- nube ?
Thrace included a considerable tract of Europe in early times, but not to the extent that the expression of Herodotus would lead us to expect. Thracb," says he, *' next to India, is the most considerable ;" Terp. 3. But as this country is confined on the east and south by the sea, and on the north by the Danube ; and as Macedonia and PsBonia are men- tinned by our Author as distinct countries, tiie extent of Thrace, even allowing it to extend into Dardania and Mcesia, must be much more circumscribed than the idea of our Author allows. It has, however, more extended limits in his geography than in that of succeeding authors ; and perhaps might have in- cluded most of the space along the south of the Danube, between the Euxine and Istria; meeting the borders of Macedonia, Pseonia, &c. on the south: and the Sigynm above mentioned might have occu-
13
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pied the N.W. quarter ; the modern Servia, Bosnia, and Croatia ^
The inhabitants of the N.£. angle of Thrace fonned by the Euiine and the oUiqoe course of the Danube, are the Gette of our Author. They were reduced by Darius Hystaspes in his way to Scythia, and are classed as Thracians ; Melpom. 93 ^ He- rodotus obseiYes generally of the Thracums, that
if they were either under the government of an individual, or united amongst themselves, their strength would render them invincible : but this is a thing impossiUe, and they are of course but feeble. Each diflbvent district has a difierent appellation ; but except the Geta, the Trausi, and those beyond Crestona they are marked by a general similitude of manners Terp. 3.
' Sigiiia is a position, in ancient geography, on tlie Adriatic towards the ancient seats of tlie I'cncti. Query, has it any con- nection vvitli tlie S'ltrijrue ofonr Author?
* Suhsecpieiit aiitliors place tlie Getce on the north of the Da- nube, and in Moldavia.
• Crcstonn, or Crcstonia, lay between Afygdonin and Sint'naf and may be rt rkoned the eastern frontier of Macedonia, towards Thraic. The river Chidorus, which dischar«^es itself into the Axius, near Pella, rises in Crestona^ and flows through Myg' donia ; Polymnia, c. 12 i, 127.
In Clio, .57, the Crestonians are said to be a remnant of /V- lusgians, situated beyond the Tyrrhenians, hut who fonm rly dwelt in the country afterwards named 2'hestaly, asui were neigh- bours to the Dorians.
It may be suspected that Tyrrhenian is a mistake, and that Thermcean should be substituted for it ; as T/icrma, afterwards Thesmlonia, agrees to the situation. Therma and its gulf are mentioned in Polym. 121, 123, 124. We have heard of no Tyrrhenians, but those of Italy.
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** The OetcPy' says Herodotus, " are a people who pretend to immortality : whenever any one dies they believe that he is removed to the presence of their god Zamalxis: they are of all the Thradana the bravest and the most upright ;** Melp. 93, M.
The Thracians beyond Crest ona are remarkable for liaving amongst them the same horrible custom which prevails in India« that of their widows sacri- ficing themselves at the funerals of theur husbands ; but the bodies are buried, and not burnt, as in In- dia It appears that Herodotus did not know that this custom prevailed in India: and indeed his knowledge of that country was very much confined.
No mention is made concerning the belief of the immortality of the soul, amongst these Thracians, as amongst the Getae ; but it surely is proved by this very circumstance : for what else could induce this voluntary sacrifice ?
It appears almost a matter of certainty that He-
^ " Each person has several wives. If the husband dies, a great contest arises amongst bis wives, in which the friends of the deceased interest themselves exceedingly, to determine which of them had been most beloved. She to whom this honour is ascribed is gaudily decked out by her firiends, and then sacri6ced by her nearest rdation, on the tomb of her husband, with whom she is afterwards buried. His other wives esteem this an afflic- tion ; and it is imputed to them as a great disgrace.'* Terpsi- chore, c. 5.
We cannot help remarking (having ourselves witnessed a la- crifice of this kind in India,) how many points of resemblance there are between what we taw, and the mode described by He- rodotus. It maybe added, that there occurs in Diodorus, a de- scription of the burning alive of an Indian widow, which agrees exactly with the present practice ; of which more in the sequeL
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rodotus knew no particulars of the geography of Western Europe, between Scjthia (on the Euxine,) and the Bay of Biscay, on the east and west ; and between the Alps and Carpathian mountains on the south, and the shores of the Baltic on tlie north. Concermog the position of this northern sea, and the countries beyond Scy thia, more will be said under the ' bead of Scyihia, and its concerns ; as, in order to explain the subject with effect, much preliminary matter must be gone into.
The country of ScYtHiA, he places next in order to Thrace, going north-eastward, along the shores of the Euxine and Mseotis. Where Thrace ends, Scythia begins," says he, Melp. 99. It will appear, however, that the Scythians of Herodotus were the SarmaUe and Getm of the Romans ; and his Mas- sageta, the Seythkma of the same people ; as well as of the Greeks in general, from the date of Alex- ander's expedition. But as the subject is intricate and extensive, and requires much discussion and elu- cidation, it may be proper at the outset to take a comprehenMTe view of it : and afterwards to arrange it under the distinct heads of Western and Eastern Scythia ; the former of which belongs to the division of Europe, the latter to that of Asia ; followuig the rule that we have prescribed to ourselves in the divi- non of the work.
The ancients distinguished two countries by the name of Scythia, the one extending along the north of the Euzine, the other beyond the Caspian and Jaxartes. The latter was again subdivided into two parts, by the chain of Imam, a branch projecting northward from the Indian Caucasus : and which
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subdivisions were, from that circumstance, distin- guished by the names of Scythia intra, et extra, Imaum.
The Western, or Eaxine Scythia, was the one
invaded by Darius l lystaspes : on which occasion, the lonians, by preserving the bridge of boats over the Danube, secured his retreat ; and the Eastern Seythia, called also the country of the Massagetss, was the one invaded by Cyrus ; in which, according to our Author, as well as Justin and Diodorus, he lost his life.
Herodotus describes the Western Scythia to ex* tend from the lower part of the Danube, and the
country now called Hungary, on the west, to the Tanais on the east ; a tract which was afterwards better known by the name of the European Bar- matia. The Asiatic Sarmatia, and other tracts, filled up the space between the Eastern and Western Scythias ; which space may be understood to extend to the river Daix, (the present Jalk, or more pro- perly Daek,) where the Eastern Scythia began, and extended eastward to the country of the Yngmres, or Oigurs,
It would appear that Herodotus was not decided in his opinion, whether or not, the Massagetse were to be regarded as a Scythian nation ; but subse- quent writers have almost universally reckoned them such. So that the proper Scythians of Herodotus, were those at the Euxine ; and those of succeeding writers, at the Caspian (or rather Aral) and Jaxartes. For our Author, who calls the Massagetse a great and powerful nation, says, they are by eome es- teemed a Scythian nation and that, " in their
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clothes and food, they resemble the Scythians implying that they were not confessedly a Scythian natbn. He says moreover, what the Greeks as- sert in f^eneral of the Scythians, is true only of the Massagetffi;" Clio, 201, 215, 216.
The Greeks appear to have first used the term ScTTHiA, in its application to their neighbours, the Scjrthians of the Euatine ; who were also called Getce and Gothi : and were those who afterwards subdued the Roman empire : and from which ori- ginal stock, the present race of people in £urope seem to be derived \ Some modem writers of great authority have supposed that the word Scythue, Skut{B, or Kutha;, was only another reading of Getce : as also that these are of the same nation with the Mas9aget€e ; which is, indeed, very proba- ble ; although there is no necessity for supposing it. Probably the early Greeks, hearing of a nation of Getae beyond the Caspian and Jaxartes (for the re- mains of the Getae existed in the same tract, and under the same name, so late as the time of Tamer- lane) gave them the name of Massa^Oet^s, to dis- tinguish them from the Get^ in the west ^ ; but might be in doubt whether to regard them abso'
' Pliny weem to conrider die Seyikiaiu and Germans, as one and the aaae people : lib. it. c. 12 : as Diodorus does the peo- ple to the emt of the CelU^, generally ; lib. v. c. 2. And Pro- copius, who wrote later than either, says, that the Oidht were ancienlly named Scythians ; Gothic War, lib.
* There seem to have been several distinct tribes of OH^t as thoae of the Danube^ the Thyssa-OeUg on the Wolga, the 7*yri- OeU9 on the Tyres ; the MassageUe on the Jaxartes, S^c.
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lutehj as Scytliians. Subsequent information, par- ticularly that derived from the expedition of Alex- ander, led the same Greeks to class them as Scy- thians : so that at last, the term Scythmn seems to have designed Nomadic tribes in general ; and ScYTHiA at large, a vast extent of country, including several distinct nations and tribes, between the Da- nube, and the extreme point of their knowledge, eastward. It was perhaps applied, much in the way, in which we apply Tartary ; that is, indefi- 7utely to a space beyond a certain known boundary. Not that it is to be understood that Tartary ex- presses the same idea, as to extent, as Sey thia did ; for Scythia contained but a small proportion of what we intend by Tartary.
In our geographical details, we shall endeavour to trace the boundaries of both the Scytuias : which, collectively, included a vast space from west to east, though apparently of no very great breadth, consi- dered proportionally.
The Western Scythia, then, is a member of Eu- rope, as well under the proper boundaries of that continent, as of those assumed by Herodotus ; for no part of his Scythia extended beyond the Tanais, although between the Jaik and the Aral, we must look for a nation of Scythians, whom he represents as having seceded from the former nation. £ut it may well be suspected that those who are marked as seeederSy approached in their geographical posi- tion so near to that of the MassagetjB, that they may have been a part of the same people ; and the mistake may have arisen from an error ui the sup-
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posed relative positions. This will be made more
apparent, in the sequel, wlien it is sliewn that our Author supposed a vast diiference in parallel, on the globe, between the Massagetae, the Scythians of Asia, and the Euxine or Western Scythians.
The Eastern Scythians, as belonging to the divi- sion of Asia, will form no part of the following dis- cussion, which is confined entirely to those of the Euxine \
* Both Anrian and Curtiiui speak of Ewopean and AnaUe Scythians, as a term of diBtinction. This leemt mudi the 'same idea, as omr Eattem and Weitem Scythians; only tt'will be shewn in the sequel, that theyt like Herodotus, extended Europe ▼ery &r to the east ; and 'seemingly to the neighbourhood of the Ga^ian sea, and the river Jaxartes ; by the error of supposing a modi less extent of space than the truth, between the Tamit and JaxairU9»
F
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SECTION IV.
OF THE WESTERN, OR EUXINE SCYTHIA ; WHICH IS TH£ PROPER SCYTHIA OF HERODOTUS, BUT THE 8ARMATIA OF LATER AUTHORS.
Pemihn and Face of Weateni Scythia mittaken Ideas of Hera* dohu, retpeetmg ite Form and Extent — Cause of hie Errors, and their Effects on the general Qeography* — Trws Form and Extent of Scythia, coneidertd generally s ^d afterwarde proved by DetUtctions from our Author's Facts and Observa^ l¥m»-—Rioer$ of Scythia, with some of their principal Adjuncts '^'WUt InkuDd Navigations — Subdivision of Scythia — Difficult Hee eoneemmg tome of the Fiver Boundaries — Idea that the BoryatheiiM formerly ran into the Palus Meotii; and that the Krimea was an Island — Royal Scythians — reported Origin of the Scythian Nation — The Targitaus of HerodotuSf appears to be the Turk of the Orientals — Cimmerians dispossessed by the Scythians — Cimmerian AntiquitieS'^The Euxine Seythiantf and those at the Jaxartes,/rom the same Stock — Customs com^ mon to both^Euxine Scythia suited to Pastoral L^e-^The Scythians fawmred by Herodoiue, in point of Character^-hu general Accuracy and Candour,
The Scythia of Herodotus answers generally to the Ukraine, the country of the Nogautn Tartars, the Don Co»9aehs, &c.; its first river on the west,
being the Danube, and its last on the east, the Ta- nais, or Don ; Melpomene, 48, et seq. ' It wears,
* The reader is requested to consult the Map of Scythia, No. III. opposite. In this, Scythia is drawn according to its just
IS
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for the most part^ the same fiioe now, as in the time of oar Author ; (who by his own account had visited
the Black sea, and we may suppose, of course, the Greek settleraents in Scythia also:) that is, it is composed of vast naked plains, and in a great part occupied by Nomades, or wandering tribes. No country whatsoever, was better watered : it having no loss than eight large rivers, which were navigable to the sea ; uk,,\ amongst these, the Danube, Tanais, and Borysthenes ; M-^ipom. 47. The pastures wa- tered by some of these rivers highly celebrated by our Author ; and gave occasion to tn«^ duplication of the name of Grass Stbppb to the tract itseir, ;n contradistinction to the comparative barrenness of the others ^
proportioiu, bat the matter is arranged Acoording to the ideas of Herodotus. His ideas of its form and caeM will be Ibund ill No.L
' Baroo Tott*s description of that part of the site of ancient Sc3rthia, which be traversed between the Dneitter and Krimea, presents a lively picture of the face of the country. We shall collect the scattered notices that occur in difeent parts of his narrative ; Part II. on the Turks and Tartars.
After crossing the Dneister (the Tyres of Herodotus) in the fine between Jatsi and OtchakoiVf he says :
" The plains which we crossed (those of Yedastan) Were so level and open, that the horizon appeared only a hundred paces from us, on every side. No rising ground, not even the smallest Arvh to make a variety in this picture ; and we perceived no- thing during the whole journey, but a few Nogai» on horseback, whose heads were discovered by the piercing eyes of my Tartars, whilst the convexity of the earth still hid the r«nainder of thehr bodies. Each of these Nogais was riding alone on horseback.— I was curious to know, what could be the object of these men,
f2
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W£8T£RN» OR EUXINE SCYTUiA.
Although the area and extent of Scythia were greatly underrated by Herodotus, yet, by a miscon* ception of the relative positions of the coasts of the
Euxine and Palus Maeotis, he has overrated the ex- tent of the coast of Scythia bordermg on those seas.
•
and was infonned that these people, (thought to be Nomades, because they live in a sort of tents,) were settled in trif^^* wMwt of 50 or 60 feet deep, which intersect P''^'" ^^""^ north to south, and are more than SO i-g«es in length, by ^ of a league, (say 600 to 700 in breadth, the middle of
which are occupied ^ muddy rivulets, which tomiinato tmvards die wuth ^ ^^^^ lakes that communicate with the Black sea* •xu^ tents of the Nogais are on the banks of th^ rivniets, as well as the hovels which shelter their numerous flocks during winter. In spring, these are driven to tlie plains, and abandoned till winter, when they are brought back again to sheher. This • was the employment of the N(^ais we had met with."
He afterwards says, that the extent of plain between the vaU lies is 10 to 12 leagues ; perhaps SO or more miles. These ▼allies must be regarded as the ancient beds of rivers ; of wliich more in the sequ^. He passed two of them between Bender and Otcbakow ; and on the way to the second, he says, " we saw the tun appear on the horiaon of these plains, as mariners do on the ocean."
In his way from Otchakow to the Krimea, he makes much the same kind of remark : " the noise of the waves (for he went near the sea coast) a£K>rded a more interesting object than the naked plains."
This may suffice for the face of the country : and we have also the testimony of M. Pallas, respecting the flatness and very low level of tlie country, between the Borysthenes and the MsBotis, in the Tableau de Physique et Topogn^^que d« la
Tauride,
It may be remarked, that Herodotus does not speak of any Nomadic tribes of Scythians on the west of the Borystbenest where tbey are now found.
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For, by the context it appears, that he supposed the coasts of the Euxine and Maeotis to form a right angle at their point of junction* at the Peninsula of Taurica (Krimea) ; presenting two sides which re- spectively ficed the SE and S W ; or perhaps more strictly the ESE and SSW. Such was the idea of its position : and of its Jbrm and extent, that it was a square of 4*000 stadia* each way. This is col- ' lected from the following notices :
" Sc3rthia (says Herodotus,) appears to be of a quadrangular form, having two of its sides termi- nated by the sea, to wliich its other two* towards the land, are perfectly equal. Ascending from the sea, inland* as far as the country of the Mekmchksni, beyond Scythia, is a journey of twenty days. A&* cording to my computation, a day's journey is equal to 200 stadia : thus the extent of Scythia* along its sides* is 4*000 stadia ; and through the midst of it* inland* is 4*000 more Melpom. 101
Its position in respect of the heavens* is collected from the following circumstances : that Darius Hy- staspes* in his memorable invasion of Scythia, ad- vanced eastward towards the Tanais,** after passing the Danube ; Melpom. 122. Again* in chapter 100* the sea (that is, the Maeotis) is described to wash the country of the Scythians, above Taiiris " on the east and again* in eh. 18 and 20* the Androp/iogi
* It may be conceived, that when our Author reckons by joomief, of a qpecifio length, be means to express the road dis- tance : so that a proper allowance is to be made for inflections, in order to reduce it to direct distance. We have adopted this idea in the oooatructioa of the Map* No. 1.
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and MeUmehkeni, two nations who bordered on Scy thia, inland, are said to lie to tlie north ; and the
Peninsula of Taurica to the south.
But, it will be found, tliat our Author erred very much in his idea of ihej'orm of Scythia; for the truth is, that the coasts of the Euxine and Mieotis do not conjointly present any such form, as he sup- poses; but, on tlie contrary, the maritime part of Scythia extends generally in an ENE direction, from the mouth of the Danube to that of the Tanais; forming, not two sides of a square, but in effect, one side only, of a parallelogram of much greater dimen- sions : although that side be very crooked and in- dented *. The length of Scythia along the coast, may be about 430 geographic miles, or 5,140 stadia of those of 718 to a degree, whilst he regarded the whole length as equal to 4,000 stadia ; say 980 6. miles. And, as Scythia extended very far beyond the mouths of the above rivers, to the east and west, its length is even much more than double the extent he supposed ; as will appear in the sequeL It is true diat Herodotus had in idea, a stade of a some* what shorter standard than 718 to a degree, but the difference is too inconsiderable to merit attention in thb place ^
^ The form and position of the Krimea, terminating in tL point to the SW, was probably the cause of the error of making two tides out of one.
' It has been remarked in page '2 7 , tfist the itade of our Au- thor is of 732 to a degree, on a mean of all the examples col- lected from his work : that the 2,000 between the Danube and Borystheiies are of 727 ; whilst those in Greece are much shorter.
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Some of the causes that led to the above errors of Herodotus^ are the following :
1. He supposed that the greatest length of the Euzine!^ 11,100 stadia, (whidi, howerer, was d,000 too much,) lay in the line ef direction between the Bosphorus and the river Phasis ;
2. That the Isthmus of NatoMa was little more than half of its actual breadth ;
8* That the mouth of the Danube was situated op- posite to Sinope ;
4. That the Palus Mseotis was nearly as large as the Euxine ; consequently, in order to get room for it, he must hare extended it a TBSt way to the narH and east, beyond the truth * :
And lastly, that it lay as much N and S, as E and W : and that the Tanais entered it with a southerly instead of a westerly course \ He calls the Maotis the MOTHBEof the Euxinb ; Melp. 86
It is certMU, however, that he says, Melp. 17, that ** the port of the Borysthenit<s, (where, as we learn
* It appean in Clio, 104, that Herodotus mpiMMed the dis- tance between the Mseotis (understood to mean, St the mouth of tbe Tanais) and the river Pbaiifl, to be tfairly joiinues of quick travelling. It may be about twenty.
' Strabo tl ouglit the same : and both he and Ptcdemy that the Ma?otis extended N and S.
* The ideaa of Polybius, hb. iv. c« S, on thii subject, are wofdiy of attention, as well from the matter of them, as that they serve to explain the ideas of Herodotus, in this place.
There is little doubt but that our Author, as well as Polybius, knew that the Palus Mseot is received more water than it evapo- ia«ed,and wkichitgafetocheEnxine; tbe Enxine to tbe Medi-
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WESTERN, OR EUXINE SCVTHIA.
in 78, stood a Grecian city of Milesians is un- questionably the centre of all the maritinw parts of Scythia.*' This seems to do away his former asser- tion concerning the two sides of 4,000 stadia each, washed by the sea ; since this port is said by him to be no more than 2,000 stadia from the Danube ; that is, ten days* journey of 200 each ; Melpom. 101. Here it seems to be the sense of the Author, that by the maritime parts of Scythia, those alone were meant, which bordered on the Euxine ; which certainly con- tradicts his former statement. Possibly he might mean» what was true in effect, that the port in ques- tion was situated nearly in the centre of the south side of Scythia, taken at large.
Be it as it will, the form of Western Scythia, will be found to be nearly a parallelogram, whose greatest length, extending along the Danube, Euxine, Mseotis, and Tanais, b at least 9,000 stadia; and its depth inland, about 4,000, as Herodotus himself allows.
One general effect of the error of our Author in thus shortening, by about one half, the length of ScyUiia, would necessarily be, to cause ail the posi- tions that were adjusted by him, on the etut of the Tanais, and Mantis, to' recede westward, more than they ought, in respect of the sea of Colchis, and the Caspian. To this erroneous calculation amongst other causes, we must therefore attribute the mistake of placing the Issedones (or Yugures,) so far to the
• There were Milesian colonies also, at the month of the Damibe, (called Istriant,) and at the entrance of the Ewtine.
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west, as to bring tliem opposite to, or in the same meridian with, the Massageta?, on the river Jaxartes.
We sliall now j)roceed to the detail of the datag on which the extent and arrangement of the Scythian provinces rest.
Herodotus enumerates eight rivers of (Western) Scythia, of wliich the Danube is the most western^ and the Tanais the most eastern.
The Danube was, excepting the Nile^ the largest stream known to Herodotus ^ being formed of a great number of others ; and he conceived that it underwent no variation in bulk, in summer or in wmter * ; Melp. 48, 50.
Next to this was the Tyres, or Tyrtu, which rising in the north, from an immense nuurMh^ divided Scythia from Neurh, The Tyrttte, or Tyrigetae, Greek colonists, were seated near the lower parts of it; Melp. 51.
The third river was the Hypanis % springing from an immense lake in Scythia; 52. In the district of the AlazoneSy the streams of the Tyres and Ilypanis have an inclination towards each other, hut soon se- parate again to a considerable distance ; (ibid.)
As the Hjpanis is the third in order, of those rivers, and placed next to the Borysthenes^ both here,
' He Ijad never heard of die Ganges^ or other great rivers of India, and China, the Indus excepted.
' The description of the Danube and its aliuvionSi in PolybiiUt lib. iv. c. 5, is worth attention.
* There were other rivers of the name of Ilypanis. The river of Kuban bore that name, which is scarcely altered iu its present sound.
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74 WBSTBRN, OR BUZINB SCYTHIA.
and in Melp, 17, (where it is said to lie to the wesi of the Borysthenes ; and to form a junction with it
near the sea,) it can answer to no other river than the Bog ; as the Tyres, which immediately preceded it, can be no other than the Dneister *, The dream- stance of the near approach of the two, shews how well our Author was informed : for thoee rrveni do really approach very near to each other at Braclaw and MohiloWy in the early part of their courses ; and afterwards diverge very oonsiderably, in their way to the Euzine.
The fourth river, and the largest next the Danube,
is the Borysthenes ; Melp. 53. Herodotus was of opinion that this river " was more productive, not only than all the rivers of Scythia, but than every other in the world, the Egyptian Nile excepted. It contained great abundance of the more delicate kinds of fish, and afforded the most agreeable and excellent pastures. Its course may be traced as far as the country of Gerrhus % through a voyage of forty day^ and flows from the ncMrth * : but its sources, like those of the Nile, are unknown to fMtf , as I believe they are to every other Greek ;" Melp. 53.
There is some reason to suspect, tiiat our Author was not apprised of the famous cataracts of this river, which occur at about the height of 200 miles above
* The Dneister is also called Turh, in D' AnviUe : perhaps the siiiie root with the Greek Mine Tyree, or Turet,
* Said in Melp. 71, to be ifae remole part of Scffthia.
* Its general course, tkramghoutf is nearly south : but iu de*
viations from that line nre very great, for it forms a prodigious bend to the eaat in the Ukraine.
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its €mbomc1mr€y and are said to be thirteen in num- ber : for he seems to consider the navigation as being uninterrupted^ during forty days upward from the sea.
Tlie port of Cherson^ (near the embottchure of tins grand river,) rendered famous by the marine
arsenals, and docks, established by the immortal Catharine of Russia, must be nearly in the same situation with th^ port of the BorystheniUey men- tioned by Herodotus. These are also named OUno' poliia ^ See Melpom. 17, 18, and 78,
The descriptions of the courses and confluences of the 5tb, 6th, and 7th rivers, namely, the Panticapes, Hypdeyris, and GerrhutiyieX^. 54, 55^ 56^ cannot be reconciled to modem geography ; and, as far as we can understand, cannot have been of any great bulk. The Gerrhus is expressly said to be a branch of the Borysthenes, 56 ; and it is obvious, that, as the other two are described to be situated between the Borysthenes and the Gerrhus, they must either hare been very unimportant in point of bulk, or branches of the Borysthenes, or the Gerrhus. As they are said to be " navigable to the sea^ and ** amongst the most celebrated of the Scythian ri- rmr Melpom. 47, it is the most probaUe that they were branches of the greater river Borysthenes, which, like many others, discharged itself by several mouths. Some little light will be thrown on these par- ticulars, when we speak of the subdivision of Scythia.
* Pliny says that the Hifpcum joina the Bortfsihenes at Olbia ; lib. iv. c. 1;^.
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76 WESTERN, <m EUXINE SCTTHIA.
The 8th river is the Tanm* ; in modern Euro- pean geography, the Don ; and cannot be misunder- stood '* Rising (says our Author) from one im- iDense lake, it empties itself into another still greater^ named the Mseotis ; and is increased by the waters of another river, called the Hirgis f* Melpom. 58. It may however admit of doubt, whether the lower part of the river DotietXy which joins the Don, may not have been confounded by the early geographers with the Don itself ; since this latter takes so re- markable a turn to the east : and as the former is a very large stream, and also occurs in a position, where the Don itself, considering its general course, would be looked for, by those who came from the west
The Tanais does indeed spring from a lake, but it
appears to be a very small one ; and is not even marked in the Russian maps. Le Hrun, w ho visited it, says, " the small lake Ivan is not far distant from the village of Ivanosra. The river Doh, or TanaU, has its source in this lake, and from thence flows in a long canal, the water whereof is exceedingly clear.** — He afterwards says, that it is more properly a pool than a lal-e ; Vol. i. ch. 12.
Le Brun also says, that an inland narigation from the Mseotis and Euxine, to the Baltic sea, by the medium of the rivers Don, Wolga, Twersa, &c.
• The modern name Don, seems to be a corruption ot Tandy the proper name of the river, as well as of a city, which stood on, or near, the site of Azoph; and not far from its embouchure in the Palus Maeotis. Tana is obviously the same name with TanaU,
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was not only projected, but begun, by the Czar Peter the great, in 1702 ; and which, had it been finbhed, would also have joined the Euxine to the Caspian ; since the Caspian and Baltic are known to be so completely united, that boats proceed uninter* ruptedly from Petersburgh to Astrakan ; said to be a voyage of nearly 2,300 British miles.
The Don and Wolga were to have been joined by means of a canal through the lake Ivan ; the waters of which were made to flow into the little river Sohata, which flows into the U})a ; this latter into the Okka ; and the Okka into the Wolga, So that the waters of the lake I?an^ ran two different ways ; and in this state of progress, it appears, Le Brun saw the work in 1702 : but it does not seem ever to have been completed.
The inland navigations of Russia, as well as of China, are on a scale that is commensurate to the extent of those vast empires. Not that they are so much the efiect of political geography, which has subjected to one dominion, the courses of so many large and nearly contiguous streams, and thereby removed the obstacles which commonly arise^ from the contending interests of adjoining states ; great as these advantages are ; as of the physical geo- graphy, which has thrown the fewest obstacles pos- sible in the way. But it may well be^ that the ab* sence of such obstacles, may have gone towards forming the present system of political geography.
To return to the geography. — The eight streams above mentioned are declaredly exclusive of the branches of the Danube and Tanais : for Uerodo-
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WESTERN, OR EUXINE SCYTHIA.
tus enumerates several of the former, which have their sources in the western quarter of Scythia ; as well as of the latter amongst the ThyBsagetae, on the north-east These notices nSotd so much as- sistance towards fixing the western limits of Scythia^ and of the position of the Thyssagetai on the east^ that it will be proper to examine them in detail.
'* The Porata, (so called by the Scythians, by the Greeks PyreUm) the Tiarmit^u, Aramu, NaparUg and the 0rde$9u$, are fiye streams which particu- larly contribute to increase the size of the Danube ; and all have their rise in Scythia Melp. 48, M. D*Anville recognizes the Porata in the Pruth ; the Arams in the Sirei: the Naparu in the Proaca and the Ordessus in the ArgU : bnt the Tiarantus he has not made out \ However, as our Author says, Melpom. 48, that it has an inclination to the west, and is smaller than the Porata ; as also that the three others take their courses between these two, it appears that the OU or AhU should be meant for the Tiarantius\ The Olt, however, has its source in Transylvania, which the context eTidently allots to the Agathyrei ; but it is certain, notwithstanding^ that its source u on the borders of Scythia : and, as it is probable that our Author had not a critical knowledge of the geography, the ex-
* Called also JaUmnitxa.
* It cannot be meant for tlie Tibiscusy or Teisse^ for in the ■UCcecdinjT chapter (49,) it is enumerated amongst other ad- juncts of the Danube, under the name of Tibisit, although by mistake it is made to deioeiidfroiii Mount Hemms, instead of the BasUuiutm Alps, in the opponCe quarter.
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pression ought not to be taken too literally, when he says that all these rivers have their rise in Scythia.
From hence then may he eollected^ that Seythia extended we^iward to the upper part of the course of the river Argis, in Walakia ; and also along the course of the Danube upwards, to the great bend near Drisira (DwosUrtu); for the commence* ment of its oblique coarse, by which it entm Sey- thia, (according to our Author, Melp. 49,) is about that place ; and the embouchure of the Ordessus but a little higher up. Consequently, Seythia must have included the eastern part 6i the province of Walakia : and aa it extended 20 joumies (of 200 stadia each) inland, the entire province of Moldavia also, to the sources of the Porata or Pruth.
The Tyres, which, from more than one circum- stance, has been proved to answer to the Dneister, is said to have divided Seytkia from Neuris, Melp. 61. And it vrill he found that, allowing to Seythia a breadth of 20 joumies, or 4,000 stadia (according to the text) inland from the coast of the £uxine, this particular respecting the Tyres agrees very well : and hence the Neuri, who are also said, Melp. 17, to dwell near the Hypanis (Bog), must have possessed that part of Poland heretofore called the PakUinate of Russia ; and part of that of Lusuc ; now composing the eastern part of Galucia. Of this, more in the sequel, when we speak of the nations or tribes that are situated along the herders of Seythia.
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By this arrangement it will appear also, that Po^ dolia, or the principal part of it» must also have constituted a part of Scythia.
Proceedinj^ farther to the cast, it will be found, that the distance of twenty of the like journies, inland from the Euidnej at the part near the mouth of the Borysthenes, will extend the limits of Scythia up* wards, beyond the forks of that river. By the forks are meant the places of confluence of the eastern and western branches, the Dnesna and PrypeUf (and more particularly the latter) with the northern, or proper Barysihenes; which collective waters form the main trunk of that magnificent stream, which divided Scythia in the midst. For the above distance of twenty journies, or 4,000 stadia, is given, in Melp. 101, between the sea and the borders of the MdanchlsBni, a tribe which adjoined on the norih, to those Royal Scythians, who touched on Taurica, the Maeotis, and Tanais ; Melp. 20, and 57. Con- sequently, Scythia may be supposed to have extended northward to the river Dn^Ma and its eastern branch, the Sem, on the east of the Borysthenes ; and to Polish Russia, on the west of that river : wherefore WoLYNiA ; the proper Ukrayne ; the country of Bi£LGOROD, &c. must havc formed the northern fron- tier of Scythia; on which side it was bounded by the tribe of Androphaoi, on the side of Poland, and by the Melanchl^ni on that of Russia : as on the NW by the Neuri, and on the west by the Aoa-
THVUSI.
On the north-east, the Tanais separated the Scy-
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thians from the Budini^ and Geloni. The Sauro- MATJE, or Sarmatians, lay to the east ; but whether they occupied both banks of the Tanais, above the
conflux of the Donetz, or whetlier the Scythians pos- sessed that peninsula formed by the Don and Donetz^ is a matter of doubt, and must be left for the reader to determine for himself. We, however, regard the former as the most probable.
Thus the Scythia of Herodotus appears to have extended in length from Hungary, Transylvania, and Walakia, on the west, to the river Don on the bast; a space of full 750 G. miles, or more than 860 B. miles : but if the Donetz is to be taken for the eastern boundary, then 612 G. miles, or 710 B. miles only. Its breadth is taken on the statement of He- rodotus, at 4,000 stadia, equal to 300 or 330 G. miles, which extends it, as we have seen, to the heads of the rivers Pruth and Dneister, to the forks of the Borysthenes, and the course of the Dnesna, at large. But the length allowed to Scythia by him, is little more than | of the space between the mouths of the Danube and Tanais, alone ; beyond which Scythia extended very far, because those rivers formed its boundaries, and their courses were very oblique. And, on the whole, he appears to have allowed to Scythia considerably less than half the true quantity of the area, taking his own statement of the boun- daries. For the 750 G. miles produce about 9,000 stadia of our mean scale ; whilst our Autlior allowed the length and breadth of Scythia to be 4,000 stadia only ; and as we have already admitted the breadth to be as he describes, the form and dimensions of
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that country will be a parallelogram of 9,000 stadia by 4y000j instead of a square of 4^000 ^
SuMUvisUm qf Scythia.
It is by no means an easy task to place tbe dif- ferent tribes of Scythians, described by our Author :
* Baron Tott allows the followinn^ extent to the tract, which lie names Little Taktarv ; and which may be regarded as the an- cient MARITIME SCYTIIIA *.
It includes the Peninsula of the Krhnea, the Kuban, a part of Circassia, and all that territory wliich sc])arates the Kussian em- pire from the Black Sea. (This was written previous to the cession of the Kriniea, &'c. to Russia.) This zone, extendin*; from Moldavia to the neighhourhood of Tagiinrok, is 30 or 40 leagues hroad, by 200 in length, or about 5,'30 G. miles. It contains from E to W, the Yctilc hc-Kuulc, the Javihoijlouk, the YtdtssaHy and Bessarabia. The latter ]>ro\iiice, called also Bondziak, or Boudjack, is inhabited by Tartars settled in villages, as well as those in the Peninsula ; but the inhabitants of the three otlfer provinces have only tents made of fult, wliich they re- move at pleasure, l ie afterwards excepts those wlio are settled in the longvallies of the Ycdessan^ between the Dneister and Borysthenes, before-mentioned, in page 67.
Mr. Tooke (Russia, Vol. ii. p. 71,) allots to the Nogaijan Tartars, the tract between tlie Danube on tlie west, nnd the lower part of the Wolga on the cast ; and bordering southward on the Euxine, Maeotis, Mount Caucasus, and the Caspian. This, of course, allows them a much wider range than the limits as- signed them by the Baron, who perhaps took only a partial view of the subject.
* It may be proper to mention, that as all the references made to Baron Tott's book, are contained in his second Part, on the subject of the Turks and Tartars, it will be wmeoessary to refer to it in the sequeL
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but we shall endeavour to place the principal ones. It may be proper, first of all, to observe, that the Tawri, who kdMbited the OmMerian Ciersanesus, or Krimea, one of the most prominent features of the geography of this tract, were not reckoned to be- long to Scjthia. See Melpom. 102.
I. Htlaa was the name of the Peninsula adjacent to Tamriea, on the NW ; formed hy the lower part of the Borysthenes, the Euxine, the gulf of Careinitis, and the river Hypacyris, which flowed into it. It is now named Jamboylouk.
This tract, unlike the rest of nuwitime Scy this, had treSes in H; Melpom.- 19. This cireumstance b not only confirmed by Pliny, lib. iv. c. 12, who calls it a woody country, but by the testimony of Baron Tott in modern tim^, which is very satisfactory.
The Baron, having crossed the mouth of the Bo- rysthenes, from Oichakaw to the point of KUbum, traversed the great plain of Jamhoylouk (inhabited also by the Nogais,) to Orkapi or Perekop, the fortress which shuts up the Isthmus of the Krimea; whieh plain is precisely the-HTLJSA of Herodotus ; and is nearly 100 English miles long, in this direc- tion. The Baron thus describes it :
" The road which we took brought us near the Black Sea ; and in following the beach firon time to time, the yery noise of the waves afforded us a more interesting object than we could find in the naked plains over wliich we had been passing. Those we Still had to pass, were likewise entirely- bare, a/- thaugh I have been assured tluU they were far" merfy covered wiik/iMresis* &c«
0 2
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The province of Thjlfpa was also remarkable for its containing a fiat tract of a very singular form^ which projected into the sea, called the Course of Achilles ; and moreover, for being the scene of the story of Hercules and the monster Queen of Seythia, when he had driven away the oxen of Geryon. The river Panticapes passed through Uylasa, in its way to the Borysthenes ; and the Hypacyris bounded both this territory, and the just-mentioned tract, called 'the Course of Achilles. This is the substance of our Author's descriptions, in Melpom. chapters 8, 9, 10, 18, 19, 54, and 56. And hence the Hypacyris ap- pears clearly to be the river Kalauczac, which passes by the modem town of Kammenoimost, whidi is, perhaps, nearly in the position of Carcinus, We shall £nd the same river recognized by Pliny and Ptolemy, in the sequel.
The geography of thb whole tract is very strongly marked, as will appear by a reference to the Map No. III. and more particularly to Dczauchc's Map of the Krimea. In this, the Course of Achilles is also recognized, in two long and exceeding narrow dips of land, named Teuira, which extend in op- posite directions into the sea, forming together the shape of a sword, or scymetar, agreeing to the de- scription of Pliny, lib. iv. c. 12, who says that the Dromas Achilleos was a peninsula extending into the sea, in the form of a sword, and was 80 MP. in length. It is 62 G. miles, equal to 77 MP. on the map. Ptolemy describes it much the same, Europee, Tab, VIII.
Strabo is very pointed and particular in his de-
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scription of it, pages 307, 308. He reckons it 1,000 stadia in IcDgth, which is much too long : but he seems very exact in representing it to be only two stadia in breadth, at the widest part ; and to extend from east to west. How this remarkable tract came to be named from Achilles^ is not told
Baron Tott passed near, if not through, a part of it» in his way from Otchakow to Perekop, at the time when he describes the naked plains, little ele- vated above the margin of the sea. By appearances, it has been iu part formed of alluvions of the Bory- sthenes and its branches ; of which the Hypaicyris» which bounded it on the east, was probably one.
II. The Scythian Husbandmen, or ploughing Scythians ; (called also Borysthcnitce, and Olbiopo^ Ittas ;) were situated adjacent to the Borysthenes; Melpom. 18, 68, 54. They extended from eleven to twelve journeys up the river, from Hylsea; particu- larly on the east side : and to the distance of three journies eastward from the river ; where they were bounded by the Panticapes. This last river, how- ever, cannot be recogoiaed in modem geography, since no river is known to pass through the site of Hylaea, in its way to the Borysthenes, as described in Melpom. 54* We have already hazarded a con-
^ From these descriptions one may collect, that tlicy had seen a delineation of the ffround : and indeed many ancient notices j)l;iiiily shew thai tlie ancients were in tlie habit of making maps and plans; althou^li iljcsc have not, like their books, generally reached us ; which may be owing in part, to there having been fewer copies made, and tliat they were, perhaps, more subject to accident, than books.
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jecture, that tliis, as well as the other rivers of this quarter, were branches of the Borysthenes : some of which^ probably, have been since filled up by the de- positions of its waters.
It would appear from Mdpom. 5S, that the Bo* rysthenitae dwelt also on the ?/t.v/ side of the Bory- sthenes^ near its mouth, as iar as the influx of the Hypams (Bog).
III. The ScTTHiAN NoMADBS ; Molp. 19y 55, 56. These lived to the eastward of the Husbandmen, and beyond the river Panticapes, said above to pass at the .distance of three journies to the eastward of the Borysthenea *. .These Nomades are said to inhabit a district of 14 journies towards the east, and as far as the river Gerrhus ; but the number 14 is an error, at all events : first, because the Royal Scy- thians, who are divided from the former by the river Gerrhus, join southward to the district of Taurica (Krimea) ; Melpom. 20 ; which begins at the Gulf of Carcinitis, Pliny, lib. iv. c. 12 ; and therefore can- not be many journies removed from the Bory- sthenes. Secondly, because . the Hypacyris, which bounds Hylsea on the east, passed through the midst of the Nomades, in its way to Carcinitis ; Melpom. 55. Neither of these circumstances could have taken
* Pliny» Ub. c. It, agrees with Herodotue, that the Panft- cofief divides the Nomades, ftm the Husbandmen, Seythianai Ptolemy's Hypams, Bun^, ▼iii. on the eoH of the Bory- sthenes, appears to occupy the place of this Panticapes.
It is difficult to judge what the course of the Panticapes was, and where it joined the Borysthenes, hut there can be little doubt, as has been said, that it was one of its branches.
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place^ had the Nomades extended 14 journies to the eastward of the Hushandmen ; that is, 17 to the
east of the Borysthenes. Moreover, it would not have left room tor the Royal Scythians, who are said to be the moMt numerous trUie of Scythians ; Melp. 20*.
Whether it be that Herodotus was not correctly informed, or that the rivers have undergone a change in their courses, during the long interval of near 23 centuries, it is certain that the modern geo- graphy of the country, set forth by its present pos- sessors, the Russians, does not present any such series of rivers as the Panticapes, the Hypacyris, and the Gerrhus, in the like positions, and under the like eireumsianees. But it is very true, that the maps which enter most into the detail of this coun- try, represent the tract in which we should look for
' Pliny has a river Pacyris, which must be taken for the Hy- facyris, as he conducts it into the Gulf of Carcmitis ; lib. iv. c. 12. Ptolemy, Europ. vlii, names the river, as well as the gulf which receives it, Carcinitit : but j^aces the town Pasiris on its banks.
Pliny, moreover, speaks in the same place of a river Hypanis, which passes between Hyl<Ea and the Nomadic Scythians, and afterwards discharges itself into Coretus, a gulf of the Palus Maeotis: probably intended for the NW bay of it, as the lake fdBuget is said to join it : for this lake appears in Ptolemy to answer to the Muddy Lake, or Siwasdi, which shuts up the Krimea towards the north. We amoeive tfiere is an error in Plmy respecting lAw Hypomt^ and its connection with the Coretus : and that, as it passes between the Hylaeans and Nomades, that the Hypacyris is really intended. So that he had probably con- founded Hypanis, Hypacyris, and Pacyris together, as well as Carcnuiu and Caretui,
1
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these rivers to be full of stagnant lakes and pools,
in which the courses of creeks terminate from the north ; so that it may be suspected that the Bory- sthenes, and its branches, have wandered through this space in different ages of the world ; and, in consequence, may have at times gained the sea by different mouths, and occasionally by more than one at the same period of time. There is a very strong circumstance mentioned by Pliny, lib. iv. c. 12, where, afiter saying that the Tauriem Chersanesus begins at Carcinus, he proceeds to say, that ^ it was anciently environed by the sea, in the part where the ground is flat/ which flat country seems evidently to be the tract above mentioned, on the north of, and adjacent to, the Krimea. And indeed, reasoning from analogy, nothing is more likely than that a great change should have taken place in the course of so vast and so rapid a river as the Bory- sthenes, and which also flows through a deep alluvial country. It may be observed on the Map, what a vast elbow it makes to the east, in the lower part of its course. Hence, considering other circum- stances, it is probable that at some former period it ran straight from the Cataracts into the western part of the MsBotis ; and that, having in a course of ages raised the ground too high to make its way through, it sought a lower bed in the west, but left a branch in the former one (which it might do, although its bed would not contain the whole river); and ih%» briEinch may have been the Gerrhus, which, Herodotus says, was really an emanation of the Bo- ry sthenes. Melpom. 56. Instances of such changes
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are by no means unfrequent in other places ; and it is pretty certain that the Deltas of all rivers are formed in this way ^
It may be added, that the reports of those who have vinted that country in latter times, confirm in the strongest manner, the idea, not only of a change of course of the Borysthenes and Dneister, but of a still greater change in the face of the country be- tween the Borysthenes and the sea ; in eflfect, giving strength to an opinion that the Peninsula of the Krimca from the original state of an island, has been joined to the main land, either by a general subsidence of the level of the Euxine, or by the de- positions of the Borysthenes ; or possibly, by both these causes combined
• Much light is thrown on these subjects in a series of Maps of the Rhine, by M. Wiebeking of Darmstadt ; a part of wliich were puljlished in 179C, atul seem to be the most useful of the kind that have aj)peared. In these, tlie changes in the course of the river are traced witli precision, and the dates marked : and the works erected in certain parts, to prevent the destructive effects of the stream, are described. They cannot but be hi<j;hly useful to those whose l)usiness requires that they should be well versed in the nature of river currents and alluvions.
In tlie Appendix to the Memoir of the Map of Hindoostan, 1793, there will also be found, under article Gano^es, numy re- marks of the above kind, all tendinuj to prove the vast and rapid changes that take ])lace in the beds of rivers, as well as the rapid increase of alluvions.
' It has so often happened that islands have been joined to the sea by alluvions, as well of the sea, as of riven, that tlie former cause alone is sufficient to produce the effect. Herodotus himself gives one instance in the junction of one half of the Echi^
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The reports alluded to, are particularly those of M. Pallas and of the Baron Tott. The former says, in the work above quoted, page 1, " That the Pen- insula of Taurieaf which vises with an abrupt as- cent to the height' of 1>900 feet, on the south side towards the Euxine, sinks by degrees towards the continent, and at last with so easy a slope, as to lose itself insensibly in the great plain, of which the ad- jacent country on the north is chiefly formed ; and which plam is but little elcTated above the level of the sea." In page 19, he says, that the same plain seems as if it had once been covered by the sea ; as well as the desert between the Borysthenes and the Berda, wfaidi last is a river that flows into the Masotis about midway between the Krimea and Azoph. He also supposes that the salt lakes, with which the plain is strewed, were once bays of the sea, whose mouths b^ng first shut up by bars of sand, thrown across them by the surge of the sea, were finally separated by the subsidence of its level, when, by the rupture of the ground at the Bosphorus and Hellespont, the Euxine discharged its upper level of water into the u^gean sea.
He accounts (p. 20) for the formation of the lake of Siwus'ch (or the muddy lake,) much in the same manner, by the matter thrown up by the waves of
nades with the continent, by tlie alluvions fonned by the river Achclous in Acamama. Euterpe, 10. Others, near Ephesus, have been joined by the Cayster; the island of Pharos also with the main land of Egypt ; so that the modem Alexandria stands cm the alluTion itself. The instancet are very numeroiu.
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the Maeotis, occasioned by the prevalent strong winds at east and north-east ^.
Thus the opinion of M. Pallas i^, at least. In faTonr of a great change hai^ng taken place in the tract between the Borysthenes and Krimea : which opinion, as we have seen, agrees exactly with the re- port of Pliny, more than seventeen centuries ago. But we are of opinion, that more appearances are yet to be accounted for ; and that the courses of the creeks from N to S, across the same plain, and which ter- minate in lakes ; together with the vast surface of mud, and muddy lakes, spread over the eastern part of the Isthmus, can only be accounted for by the presence of a large fresh-water river : and that river can hardly be supposed to be any other than the Borysthenes, which, in our idea, formerly gained the sea at the western part of the Mseotis ; and having graduaiDy raised die level too high for it to run on,
* Appeamioes Mem to prove, diat the Ihnita of the Mseotis have been much eircumscribed ; and its bed, of ooune, in part filled op, by the depositions of die Tanais, Borysdienes, and other rivers. The kurge chart of Aat sea (diawn since 177S») points out many banks and tongues of land, that bave evidently been fimned, as well fiora the currents generated in the sea, by the discharge of the Tanais, (and which run along the north coast, and thence to the S and SE to the Strait of Jemcaki) as by the river currents Aemkehres. It nas the idea of Polybius (Ub. c S,) diat the filling up of the Mcods was no very remote event, in his time. The operation, however, is so slow, that it may reasonably be deemed a very remote event, at pro- sent, although nearly 1S,000 years bave dapsed, since the date of his prediction. He had an idea that it was not much more than 15 to 20 feet deep^ generally : but it is at present more than 30; and in the deepest parts 40 to 4S.
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retired westward in search of a lower level. This progress of things must of course have been poste- rior to the subsidence of the Euxine.
The notices furnished by Baron Tott are by no means unworthy of attention, although arising from a more confined view of things. He mentions the remarkable lowness and flatness of the ground, in front of the Isthmus of the Krimea, and indeed all the way from the Borysthenes; though without hinting any idea of any change baring taken place. He says, tliat the Isthmus itself, across which the lines of Perekop are drawn, (and which extend about -I- of a league^) is a plain ; but overtops the plain without f by about 40 feet ; however, that it joins with 80 gentle a slope, as if formed artificially. Hence the alluvion must be supposed to terminate with the lower plain.
It has been before remarked, that he describes the Plain of Yedessan, between the Dneister and Bo- rysthenes, as a perfect level, save only the ravines or vallies which contain the muddy rivulets, terminating in lakes ; and which may probably be the ancient channels of rivers ; perhaps of the Dneister, or the Bog. And as he describes such a country likewise, between the Borysthenes and the Tanais, in which the detailed maps describe the same kind of creeks and lakes, it is very possible, not to say probable, that other rivers have wandered there also.
After this very long dissertation, we return again to the subject that gave rise to it, the course of the Gerrhm, and the other rivers of this part of Scythia.
It is proper to note a circumstance in which our
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Author differs from all others ; and in which, the reason of the thing seems to shew that he was wrong. He says, Melpom. 56, that the Qerrhm ^xaXLy joins with the Hypacyris. Now, this latter is allowed on all hands to pass through the country of tlie No- mades, and to discharge itself into the Carcine gulf, which washes the west side of Taurica ; whilst the Gerrhus separates the Nomades from the Royal Scythians, and is described by Pliny and Ptolemy * to enter the Palus Majotis, which shuts up Taurica on the east. It is diiiicult to comprehend^ how the Gerrhus, which forms the boundary between the Nomades and Royal Scythians, which Nomades also lay to the east of Hylaea and the Husbandmen, could fall into the gulf of Carcinitis, with tiie Hypa- cyris!
A rirer, or rather several beds of rivers, whose courses fall in nearly together, are found in the posi- tion, where the Gerrhus may be looked for, but they have, at present, no communication \vith the Hory- sthenes, and only one of their branches, with the MsBotis : for they terminate in a long and narrow lake, named Mdoexnoe, very near the western part of the Mfcotis, and opposite to a wide gulf, which enters deeply into the land, and appears in ancient times to have joined to the lake ; when both toge- ther may have formed an estuarium, pointing to the north. Either of the above-mentioned branches may have been the Gerrhus: but the one th.it may, from its direction, be more particularly taken for it, is named Tasasenae.
* Lib. IT. c. 12 : and Eanipe, Tab. vui.
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The termination of these branches, at the Mseotis,
is at 150 G. miles to the east of the mouth of the Borysthenes, though less than 80 from the nearest part of its course. Perhaps, then, four joumies should be read, instead otfawrteen, for the extent of the Nomades, eastward from the Husbandmen (see page 86) ; which will allow seven joumies, at a medium, for the breadth of the tracts occupied by the two collectively ^
IV. The RoTAL ScTTHiAMS ; Nomades ofao, but of a higher order.
These, as we have seen, bordered on the Noma- des, properly so called, westward ; and on the Tauri southwud : and they are said, Melp. 20, to have spread eastward as fiir as the Tanais, northward to the Melanchlaeni, 20 days* joumies, inland. These were the most numerous, as well as the most noble, of the Scythian nation ; and they regarded all the rest of their countrymen as their slaves ; Melp. 20. According to these . notices, the Royal Scythians, who may be considered as the great body of freemen of the nation, occupied the tract generally, between
* The comve of the Gecrhus appears dear enough in Pliny and Ptdemy. Pliny agrees with Herodotus, in nuJdng it the boundaiy between the Nomades and Royal Scythians ; and with Ptolemy in conductii^ it finally into the Mscotis ; the difiVrence only is, that Pliny leads it into the lake Buge9t which communi- cates with the gulf Coretm and the Mseotis ; whilst Ptolemy leads it wide to the east of the lake Buges, or Byces* Both of them have also a river of Buges, but they diflfer in the place of its embouckwe^ exactly as they do concerning that of the Gerrhns.
They have also a third river, which is named i/c««iiiif( by Pliny, AmaetUt by Ptolemy ; but whidi is not found in our Author.
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the Maeotis on the south ; the Tanais on the east ; the river Gerrhus, and the Nomades, on the west ; and the river Desna, and its eastern branch, on the north. They had the Melanchlsni for their northern neighbours ; the Budini and Geloni on the NE ; and the Sauromatte on the east. We shall now turn to Ae west of the Borysthenes.
V. The CAUJSfDM, Melp. 17, Callipodes of So- Unns, appear to have occupied the lower course of the Hypanis, and are called Greek Scythiaris, Beyond these, between the Hypanis and Tyres, were,
•VI. The HALIao]lB8^ Both of them were agri- cnltnral people. In Melp. 52, it is said that in the district of the latter, the courses of the Tyres and Hypanis incline towards each other, but soon separate Zf^jBm to a considerable distance. From this circum- stance, the Haliaones must be placed in part of Po> dolia and Bradaw. - See above^ page 79.
VII. Beyond the Halizones was another agricul- tural tribe, not named, Melp. 17 ; and who must have inhabited the frontier of Scythia, to the NW; as the Neuri aire said to lie next beyond them, to- wards the north.
VIII. The Tyrit/E (perhaps Tyrigetce ^) were reckoned a Greek colony, and inhabited the tract at the lower part of the river Tyres; (Dneiper*) Melp. 51.
The inhabitants of the countries on the west of this river, although classed in a general way, as Scy-
* jiku(me$9 in 5£.
* See Pliny, Ub. iv. c. U.
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thians, are not particularized by Herodotus *. Some
authors reckon these to be Gettc ; but Herodotus appears to couiiQe the Gcta: to the south of the Danube. However^ as the term GetSB may perhaps, with propriety, be applied to Sc3rthians in general, there might be no great error in the applicaliou of it.
On the reported Origin of tlie Scythian Nation.
Thus, having enumerated the different tribes of Scythians, we shall next give a few particulars re- specting these remarkable people from our Author, and others;
As to the fabulous accounts of the origin of the Scythians, they merit little attention as matters of history; but there are certain accordances, in re- spect of names, with the modern traditions amongst the inhabitants of Western Tartary, that appear remarkable.
The Scythians, accordinc: to Herodotus, Melp. 5, 6, 7, say that the first patriarch and king of their country was Targitaus, 1,000 years before the in- vasion of Darius Hystaspes ; (or .about 1,500 before
* Baron Tott, aa we have shewn, ibunci the country on the west of the Borysthenes poBseased by a pastoral people ; and it is highly probable, from the nature of the country, that the same habita prevailed there anciently. Nor is this any impeachment of our Author's accuracy ; iar the agricultural tribes above re- coidedf were situated very high up the country. The Yedestan tribe (of Tott) appear Co occupy die place of the CaUipida and TyriUe of Herodotus.
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Christ). That he had three sons, from whom the four tribes of AuchatcL, Catiwri, Traspies, and ParalatiB are descended* The Paralatw were the descendants of the youugeH son who became king of Scythia ; but these people were named more com- monly Scolotiy from a surname of the king. The Greeks called them ScYTHiAMS ; Melp* 6.
Now, it is well known, that amongst the Orien- tals, Turk, the reputed son of Japhet, is reckoned the patriarch of the tribes of Turkestan and Tartary ; as also that his original settlement was in Turkes- tan, that is, the country situated along, wkdi beyond, the river Jaxartes.
The Targitaus of Herodotus has, in its root, some affinity to tlie name Turk ; as that of the Paralatae, the tribe descended from the youngest son of Targi- taus, has to Perlas or Berlas, which designed the tribe last in rank, of those descended from Turk. Targitaus was said to be the son of Jupiter ; Turk of Japhet. See D'Herbelot, article Turk.
Herodotus gives two different accounts of the ori- ginal settlement of the Scythians at the Euxine; and which, whether in their circumstances true or otherwise, serves to shew that the Greeks regarded them as new settlers in that tract.
The first story is, that " the Scythian Nomades of Asia, haring been harassed by the Ma99agetag in war, passed t\ie Araxes, and settled in Clmmeria;
' Diodorus, lib. ii. c. S, calls the ancestor of the Palians, who seem to answer to the Paralat^Xt Paliu ; and reckons him the •on of Jupiter. With Herodotus he is the grandson.
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for it is to be observed, that the country now pos- sessed by the Scythians, belonged tbrnierly to the Cimmerians. — There are still to be found ia Scy- thia, walls, &c. which are termed Cimmerian; the same name is also given to a whole dutricty as well as to a mirroir seaV* Melpom. 11 and 12.
The second story is from Aristeas, the poet, a native of ProcooDesus^ who relates^ that " under the
• The district in question may be supposed to ha^e been tlie Chersonesus of Taurica ( Krimea J ; and the narrnw seai the Bosphorus of the Cmrnenantf which is mentioned by nvae» in Melpom. 100.
How much of Western Scythia the Cimmerians might have occupied, is unknown ; but it may be inferred from a circum- stance mentioned in Melpom. 11, that their possessions extended westward, at least to the river Tf/rcs or DneUter.
Kespecting the walUy &c still found in the time of Herodotus, under the name of Cimimriam, he does not say that they were in the Peninsulay but the context implies it : and it is not im* probable that he had seen tliem. Baron Tott saw in the mountainous part of the Krimea, ancient castles, and other buildings, a part of which were excaoated from the Iwe rock ; together with subterraneous passages from one to the otlien These were, he sa3rs, always on mountains difficult of access. He refers tliem to the Genoese, with what justice we know not; it is j^Ossible they might have made use of them : but it is more than probable that these are the works alluded to by our author; for, it Huqr be remarked, that works of this kind are commonly of ▼eiy-aadent date.
It sfvpears that the nature of pari of the remains, mentionfid by Herodotus, cannot, from a corruption of the text, be under- stood. Some have supposed that 6H^ges were intended; others, gatet : nay they have been the stibterrtmecut postages above nentioiied? or can it aUndo to a fiwtified line and bridge across the Isthmus, as the fimner of these existed in very early timca?
19
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influence of Apollo, he came to the Issedones ; that beyond this people he found the Arimaspi, a nation who have but one eye ; farther on^ the Gryphins^ the gafurdians of the gold ; and beyond these the Hyperboreans, who possess the whole country quite to the sea : and that all these nations, except the Hyperboreans^ are continually engaged in war with their neighbours. Of these hostilities, the ArinuuM pians were the first authors, for that they drove oat the Issedones, the Issedones the Scythians : and the Scythians compelled the Cimmerians, who possessed the country towards the south, to abandon their native land." Melp, 13.
Of these accounts, Herodotus says, that he is more inclined to believe the first, than the story of Her- cules and the monster queen of Scythia, above alluded to ; and of the seeondj that " it had ohkUned credit both with the Greeks and Barbarians." He then proceeds to give a short history of Aristeas, and his Arimaspian verses, in which it appears, he confessed that " he had not penetrated beyond the Issedones ; and that what he related of the countries more re- mote, he learnt of the Isdedones themsehres." Melp.
14, 16.
It may be observed, that the first account makes the Massaget® to be the people who drove out the Scythian Nomades of Asia, to seek a new country in the ¥>est : by the other, the Arimaspians drove out the Issedones, who were situated next to them ; and who, in turn, impelled the Scythians westward to the Euadne, where they dispossessed the Cimme- rians.
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too WESTERN. OR EUXINE 8CYTHIA.
In either case, the question is, who were the
Scythians thus dispossessed, and in what country was tlicir original settlement ?
Whether the cause of migration might have been dread of conquest, want of room, or of pasturage, or any other matter, the events of more recent times may convince us, that such migrations have fre- quently happened : and we may quote, in particular, die famous migration of the Kalmuesin 1770, 17 7 1, when they removed, (or rather took flight) from the west of the river Wolga to the Balchatz lake ; (called also Palkaii Nor \ and lake of the Kal- mucs,) a march of even greater length than from the Jaxartes to the MwotU K
But besides this instance of migration at large, there is every reasonable testimony of the migrations of the Turks and Tartars westward, in all ages; so as even to change the population of the southern countries of Europe and Asia. Indeed, in the present instance, as well as in some few others, in recent times, the western countries appear to be too fully stocked, for the pur- poses of Nomadic life ; so that the tribes of this description begin to recoil eastward again.
To return to the Scythians of Herodotus. — It will appear, when the countries on the east of the Maeotis and Tanais are described, that he speaks of a nation of Scythians, who, according to the circumstances of the description, should have occupied the Deaht
' Nor signifies lake or sea*
* The numbers were said to be 55,000 to 60*000 families ; perhaps S50,000 persons. (Mr. Tooke.)
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KipKok, ftt the head of the Caspian sea, together
with a large proportion of the Steppe, now in the possession of tlie Kirgees tribes ; and these he styles the Scythians who had seceded from the Royal Scythians, at the Maeotis ; Melp. 22.
It is ohvious, however, that if this statement was true, the country assigned by our Author to the Massagetae, on the borders of tlie Jaxartes, (and Aral, taken by him and others for part of the Cas- pian,) would be confounded with the space assigned by him to the seceding Royal Scythians ; and which error, from his incorrect ideas of relative position, he might not be able to detect. Either, then, he erred in extending the lands of these Royal Scythians too far to the east, or he has confoundoi them with the Massagetse. And as he wrote from the information of others ; and perhaps also, from very vague notices ; it is not altogether improbable that the Royal Scy- thians might be a tribe of the same nation with the Massagetae at the Jazartes : in which case the story of Aristeas, whicli makes the Issedones to drive the Scythians westward, would be more probable than the other story, of the Massagetse driving out the Scythians ; since the Massagetse and Scythians would be tribes of the same nation.
At all events, the Royal Scythians at the Euxine, and those, who from the description of Herodotus, are placed in the Desht Kipzak and Steppe, are con- fessedly of the same nation ; the doubt remaining is, whether they occupied likewise the seats of the ISIas- sagetas? The Desht Kipzak indeed may have been their original seat, in which either a part of the
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100 WBSTBRN, OR BUXINE SCYTHIA.
natioQ remained at the first migratioa ; or to which a colony might return, afler the nation was settled at the MiBOtis. The Kalmucs in their late migra*
tion, did no more than return to their former seats, near the Palkati Nor.
It is a question, which perhaps can never be de- termined, whether the Massagetsd, or Scythians of the Jaxartes, and those of the Euxine, were of the same stock ; but it appears highly probable that they were : and the seeming doubt of our Author, whether he should class the Massagetae with the Scythians, Clio, 901, 215, 216, furnishes, in our idea, some proof of it. The similitude in point of manners and customs between them, gave occasion to the ancients (though at a somewhat later date than the time of Herodotus,) to apply the name of Scythians to the Massagetse, with whom they became later acquainted. VVe confess, that we cannot help regarding these notices on the whole, as tending to a proof that the Massagetan Scythians were ihe most ancient of the two, and probably the ancestors of those at the Euxine. The story of Targitaus seems to respect Turkestan, rather than Euxine ScytJiia ; . and Targitaus, if meant for Turk, should have been the common ancestor of all the Scythians
It is unquestionable that there is a great similarity
• Diodorus, lib. ii. c. 3, derives the MassagcUc, Sacce, and Arimasjti, from the same Scythian stock ; which Scythians were fir.^t settled at the Araxcs (no doubt Jaxartcs is meant, as well as by Herodotus), from whence they extended themselves wcsl- ward, to the Euxine and Majotis, and finally beyond tlie Tanais : and eastward to ihe ocean. This account appears probable.
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103
in many of their customs ; and which can only be re- ferred to imitation. We shall enumerate a few of them.
Not to mention the Nomadic life common to both, smce it might aUo have been followed by others in
North Asia, we shall only observe,
1. That the clothes and Jbod of the MassagetiB resemble those of the Seythiana ; Clio« 215*
2. That both nations lived in waggons, or car* riages; Clio, 216 ; Melp. 46, 121 K
3. That they fought chiefly on horseback ; Clio, 215 ; Melp. 46, 136 ; and,
4. That they sacrificed horses to their deities; the Massageta in particular, to the sun. " They sacrifice horses to the sun, their only deity, thinking it right to offer the swiftest of mortal animals, to the swiftest of immortal beings." CUo, at the end. See also Melp. 61.
It however happens, unfortunately, that Hero- dotus is much too brief in his account of the customs of the MassagetcBi to allow any great scope of com- parison ; otherwise it is probable that more points of resemblance would have been found*.
' /uitiii raiittrks it alio. He defcribet the Soytluaiis gene** raUy, as a pastoral people, living in waggom covered with skinSf lib. iL c. S. He adds, that " the ignorance of vice baa been of note advantage to them, than the knowledge of virtue has to
The drcnmalanoe of their living in waggons was so fiimiliarly known, that Lncian speaks of it in his ToxarU,
' Herodotus relates of the MauageUe, who had their wivea in cemmtm, that the signal of retirement and privacy was the hangiog up of the qmoer of the individual before his waggon ;
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104; WESTERN, OR EUXINE 8CYTHIA.
The Persians of the time of Xenophon, and the
Parthians of later times, both of whom, but particu- larly the latter, being to be regarded as descendants of Massagetse ; whatsoever particulars we discover in the Persians and Parthians that are akin to Scy- thians, serves to shew a common origin between Massagetae and Scythians.
Herodotus says, Melp. 70, " whenever the Scy» ikians (of the Euzine) form alliances, they observe these ceremonies : a large earthen vessel is filled with wine, into this is poured some of the blood of the contracting parties, obtained by a slight inci- sion of a knife or sword : in this vessel they dip a scifmeiar, 9ame arrows, a hatehei, and a spear. After this, they perform solemn prayers," &c.
Xenophon, Anab. lib. ii. says, that the com- manders of the Greeks, and Aria:us (the Persian), took an oath not to betray one another, and to be^ come atties, Src. ; which oath " was preceded by the sacrifice of a boar, a hull, a wolf, and a ram, whose blood being all mixed together in the hollow of a shield, the Greeks dipped a eword into it, and
Clio, 216. Amongfft the Nasantanes, in Africa, whose habits were nearly the same, a staff was fixed m Ae gfound before the teiU; Mdpom. 172. Dowe says, in his dissertation prefixed to his Indian History, p. xxxvii. that the Facqmra of some part of India, leaire one of their tUppert at the door, when engaged in certain Tisits, in which they are supposed to be privileged, by the taneHty of their order. Some of our ancestors are accused of the same want of delicacy as the MasiageUe and the Nam* nurnet; but we have no particular record of their domestic customs. Herodotus acquits the Western Scythians of this practice, so contrary to decency and sentiment.
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the Barbarians a tpearr As the Scythians refined, by becoming stationary in Persia, one may suppose that the blood of brute animals was substituted for human blood \
Strabo absdutely calls the Parthians, Scythians, in his account of the origin of the city of Ctesiphon, page 743 ; and, in fact, most of the ancient historians regard the Parthians as descendants of Scythians ; that is, of Ma8saget€B, And there is no doubt but that the resemblance of character between the Mas- sagetan race, and the Scythians of the Euxine, led them to regard both as being of the same stock ^
Justiu, who seems to have known no other Scy- thians than those of the Euxine, to whom he refers whatsoever regards the Scythians at large, asngns to them a high degree of antiquity : for he makes them more ancient than even the Egyptians. His argu- ment to prove it, is very curious. He says, that the Scythians inhabited an elevated tract, which was therefore fit for the reception of men, at an earlier period than Egypt, which had been covered with water; lib. i. c. 1. But although much the same idea of the early state of Egypt was entertained by
' The above diodes are tepresented as permanent customs in the above oountries* But vrn find it practised occasionally, and in a more horrible manneri in Egypt, Thalia, 11 : and by Cati" line, as is told by Sallust.
* In Melpom. 65, it appears that the Western Scythiana (our ancestofa probably,) decided certain of their differences by com- bat, in preaence the king. This agrees exactly witli one of our ancient customs : but we are daily getting rid of our jSIcy- UiianhMU.
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106 WESTERN, OR EUXINB 8CTTHIA.
Herodotus % yet he supposes, with much reason,
Euterpe, 15, that this circumstance does not make any alteration in the case, as tlie Egyptians would have migrated lower and lower down, as the newly formed land became habitable ; wherefore the inha- Intants of Lower Egypt would have been drawn from Upper Egypt, (or Thebes,) and Ethiopia. And according to him, the Scythians themselves did not pretend to antiquity ; since they affirmed that their country was, of all others, the last peopled. Mel- pom* 5«
Few tracts could be better suited to a pastoral life than the seats of the Euxhie Scythians, (the Ukraine and its neighbourhood ;) in which particular they had greatly the advantage of the Eastern Scy- thians. The soil was rich, and abundantly watered ; and the grass, as Herodotus observes, Melp. 58, is, of all that we know, the fullest of moisture, which evidently appears from the dissection of their cattle V
»
' His idea, Euterpe, 4, et. scq. being, that all the tract below the lake of itfoprif, which is at the distance of seven days' jnur- ney from the sea, had been fonncd by the mud of the Nile ; and was no better than a marsh in the leign of Menes. See also his reasoning, in cliapters 10 to 13.
' Bell speaks of the fertility of the soil, and rich pasturage of the Ukraine. He also says that there are good horses; and large black cattle, whidi aSord as good beef as any in the world. (Journey from Moscow to Constantinople.)
Mr. Bell has (in the same journey,) a curious remark re- specting the nature of the river banks, in the line between Moscow, and Ismael, on the Danube. " By what I could ob- serve, (says he) all the great rivers, ftom the Wolga to this place, have for the most part high hndt for their western
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WE8TB&N, OR BUXINE fiCYTUIA. 107
They pofisessed the greatest abimdance of provisions* 89* and were of course very populous* 81 ; but were generally destitute of wood, 61. They held m ab- horrence foreign customs, 76 ; and like most of the eastern nations* kept no swine ; 63. Like othe^ Nomadic nations* they were impatient of depend- anee* and possessed a great share of courage. Having no towns, and few cultivated fields, they could never be conquered. Our Author regarded Scythia, as a country exempt from the character of ahsolute barbarism, although surrounded by nations the most barbarous ; and sa3rs, Even of the Scy- thians I cannot in general speak with extraordinary commendation." Melpom. 46. He has recorded theur barbarous sacrifices to their deities* and at their funerals; their practice of scalping* (which more than any other circumstance, has fixed the character of barbarism on the American Indians ;) their horrid custom of drinking the blood of enemies, and making drinking vessels of their skulls ^ If these are not the acts of Barbarians* what are to be deemed such ' ?
Notwithstanding some ambiguities, and apparent contradictious, in the geography of Scythia, Hero- dotus had certainly paid uncommon attention to the
banks, and low Jlat ones to the eastward." It should be re- marked that his track lay very far inland, and comequentiy Tcry wide of Baron Tott's.
' See Melpomene, 60, C4, G5, and 72.
• Our Author says, Melp. 46, that amongst the Scythians and the bordering nations, there has been found no individual of suj)crior K arning and accomplishments, save AnacharsU tlie Scytiiiao. Sec more of him in Mdpom. 76 and 77.
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108 WESTERN, OR EUXINE SCYTHIA.
subject ; and by the solemnity of his declaration, at setting out, we may suppose that he meant to be very impressiye : for after sayings Melp. 16, that Aristeas had gone no &rther than to the country of
the Issedones, he adds, " For my own part, all the intelligence which the most assiduous researches, and the greatest attention to authenticity, have been able to procure, shall be faithfully related.". And perhaps it has seldom happened, that a traveller who col- lected his information concerning tlie geography of SO extensive a tract, in so casual a way, has produced a description in which so many circumstances have been found to agree
* SeytMa, together with the nations bordering on it, and which are included in our Author's description, comprised about half of the length of Europe, in the line between tlie Tanai* and the Bay of Biscay.
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OF THE COUNTRIES BORDERING ON WESTERN SCYTtilA.
Relative positions of the nations bordering on the wett and north oj Scythia — The Melanchlani, Androphagiy Neuri, andAga- tkyrn — their general character — Positions of the tribes on the ttortk-east and east of Scythia — SauromiUeB, or Sarmalians^ Amazons — Budini, Geloni, and Thyssaget<e — The river Oanis taken for the Rha, or Wolga — Particulars relating to the Eastern tribes — Forests of the Budini, answer to those of Woronez — the Czar Peter builds fleets there, and in the Tanais — Taurica, or Krimea — its Isthmus shvt up, from the earliest times — The ancient Tauri highly barbarmu ; and sub* tisied ehi^ an the plunder of meckt,
HavimOj by the above statement^ shewn the general form, position, and extent of Wbstbrn Sctthu, both as it was in reality^ and as our Author supposed it
to be, we shall next proceed to state, from his de- scriptions, the positions of the countries said to border on it; which process, by determining the limits of Scythia itself, will also prove our former statement of them.
" As you advance from the Danube, inland," says Herodotus, Melp. 100, " Scythia is terminated first by the Agathyrsi, then by the Nbori, thirdly by the ^^ROPHAGi, and last of all, by the Mblanchlani:** none of which, as he observes in other places, are
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110 COUNTRIES BORDBRINO ON WESTERN SCTTHIA.
Scythians K These nations shut up Scythia, on the west and north ; the Melanchlaeni closing the boun- dary to the Tanais. The Sauiiomat/E, Budini, and Geloni, m like manner shut it up on the east; Melpom. 21, 22, 6S, 108. On the south, it was chiefly bordered by the sea ; so that the Scythians had only for neighbours, on that side, the Tauri, in- habitants of the Peninsula of Krimea ; and the Gets in the remote corner of Thrace
The position of the country of the Melanchlaeni, which forms a leading point in the determination of the adjoining country of the Androphagi, on the west ; as well as in some measure, of the whole line of the northern frontier, has been already fixed, by the act of determining the limits of Scythia, in pages 79, 80. For the Melanchlajni were situated at twenty journies of 200 stadia each, to the northward of the Palus Masotis, Melp. 20, and 101 : and it having appeared, that in Coming from the wesi, the Me- lanchbeni were the kui people who bordered on the Scythians, inland ; consequently, as the Tanais formed the eastern boundary of Scythia, the Me- lanchlaeni must have closed up the space to the west bank of that river.
Here it may be proper to mention, that the Me*
* It would appear Uiat tome at least of theie nanaes were purely Grecian f and are dierefore the iiieib-fUNiiet ghfen by that people, rather thain the proptr namei of the natuma. Or, the Grecians may have given $igntficaiU Greek names, which in tumd resembled the inoper ones.
* The reader is requested to refer to the Map of Scythia, No. IIL at jiage OS.
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C0UNTB1£S BORDERING ON WESTERN SCYTHIA. HI
lanchlaeni are spoken of by Procopius % as the same with the SarmatiaDS, who are known to have been seated at, and beyond, the Tanab. Bat M. D*An- ▼Ule was of opinion^ that the tribes in general, that bordered on Scythia, occupied a more westerly po- sition than we have assigned them : for instance, he places the Budini, who lay to the east of the Melanch- heni, on both sides of the Borysthenes, where we place the Melanchlseni and Androphagi.
The Androphagi bordered on the west of this tribe : because, first, they lay beyond, or to the 7iorth of the Borystheoits, who occupied the banks of the rrrer from whence they were denominated, to the extent of eleven days' voyage above Ilyla^a ; beyond which, a vast desert commenced, which extended to the Androphagi ; Melpom. 18. And secondly, be- cause Darius Hystaspes, on his return westward, passed out of the territory of the MelanchlsBni into that of the Andropluigi ; Melp. 125. It is probable, then, that the Borysthenes might form the common boundary of these nations; and according to the given breadth of Scythia, 4,000 stadia, the general course of the river Desna and Sem may be taken for the line of separation between the Scythians and the Melanchlssni, at the height of the parallel oi bV^,
The sontfaem border of the Androphagi, according to the givea distance of the frontier of Sqrthia from
* Vandal War, lib. i.
* Herodotos supposed that the tracts to the north of the ilfe- ImdUra and Androphagi, that Is, Qrwud Xuuia and LtlAn- «iii0i wete uninhabited.
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112 COUNTRIES BORDERING ON WESTERN SCYTHIA.
the Euxine, must have advanced to the conflux of the rivers Borystlicnes and Prypetz ; and their ex- tent westward, or rather south-westward, may be gathered from the position of their adjoining neigh- bours on that side, the Neuri. These, then, dwdt near tlie river Hypanis (or Bog,) Melp. 17; and, in 51, they are said to be separated from Scythia, by the river Tyres, (or Dneister.) Now, although we cannot exactly understand in what particular part of its course the Tyres formed the common boundary of the two countries, yet we have at least a proof that the Neuri bordered on the Tyres, and that they were not/or from the Hypanis : for, as in order to preserve the given dimensions of Scythia, inland, we must extend it to the forks of the Bory- sthenes, on the one hand; and to the borders of Poland, and to the source of the river Pruth, on the other ; the Neuri must of course have been si- tuated towards the heads of the Tyres and Hypanis (Dneister and Bog Again, as the Neuri joined on the south-west to the Agathyrsi, who appear to have occupied Transylvania and the north-east part of Hungary, they must have touched on the Bos* iamian Alps, which would separate them from the Agathyrsi. For this tribe, as we have seen, is the Jirst that borders on Scythia, in advancing from the Danube, eastward, Melp. 100 ; and Scythia, as we have also seen, contained a part of Walachia, (see page 79.) It is abo said, Melp. 49, that the river
* Yet Pliny says, lib. nr. c. It, that the itfairg were situated at the aouice of the Boryitkenes,
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COUNTRIES BORDERING ON WESTERN SCYTHIA. 113
Maris, which joins the Danube, rises amongst the Agatbyrsi ; and as this answers clearly to the Maras of modem geography, this tribe should hare occu- pied the proyince of Transylvania generally; toge- ther with the NE part of Hungary, which bordered on the Neuri.
It is said, Melpom* 104, that " the Agathyrsi, in most respectSy resembled the Thracians." This adds to the probability of their having possessed Transyl- vania, which is in the neighbourhood of Thrace, taken at large, according to the ideas of Herodotus ; and therefore the account agrees in the principal points*.
Since, then, the Agath3rr8i possessed the NE part
of Hungary (in addition to Transylvania,) and had the Neuri adjacent to them on the.NE, beyond the beads of the Pruth (which rises within Scytbia;) and that the same Neuri were also in the neighbour- hood of the rivers Hypanis and Tyres we must, of course, place the Neuri in the eastern part of the pro- vince of Galliciay and in part of the adjoining country of Lutzk, or Lusuc ; whilst the Androphagi, who lay between the Neuri and the Melanchlflnii, must have occupied Polish Russia, and both banks of the river Prypetz, the western head of the Borysthenes. And finally, the Melancblaeni themselves should have pos-
• In M. D'Anville's ancient geography, the Agaihyrsi are found on the Rubo^ or river of Riga. To us this does not ap- pear to agree, either with the arrangeinent of Herodotutf or with the circumstances of the march of Darius. In like manner the Budini are placed by huu ai the forks of the Borysthenes f
^ Mclpom. 48. • Melpom. 17 and 51.
VOL. I. I
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114 COUMTRIBS BORDBllINO ON WB8TBRN 8CYTHIA.
aessed the present Russian goTemments, (either en- tirely, or in part,) of Nougorud, Orel, Mohilew, and Kursk ; together with some lesser tracts, towards the Tanaby and the city of Moscow. Thus we ar- range the nations bordering on the west and north
of SCTTHIA.
Our Author appears to have known no particulars concerning the countries situated beyond the Andro- phagi and Melanehianu, northward. In Melp. 18, 90, and 125, he supposes the whole tract to be desert, or marshy ; and entirely uninhabited.
He characterizes these difi'erent nations in the fol- lowing manner :
The Agathtrsi are represented to be a people of efibminate manners, and abounding in gold ; and ex- cepting the strange custom of having their women in common, resemble the Thracians. The character of effeminacy did not, however, apply to them, on oo- easion of the invasion of the Persians ; as will be seen in its place, and in Melp. 104, 125.
The Neuri observe Scythian customs, Melp. 105. There was a ridiculous idea amongst the Scythians, and the Greeks living in Scythia, that once a year the Near! were changed into wohee ; and in the space of a few days returned to their former shapes. " But this," says our Author, " I do not believe, although they swear that it is true.'' This is also reported in Pomponius Mela, lib. ii. c. 1* As they are said to have once taken refuge amongst the Bu- dini, (beyond the Tanais,) they ought to have been but a small nation, Melp. 105.
The Androphagi, or men-eaters, are a separate
13
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COUNTRIES BORDERING ON WESTERN SCYTUIA. 115
nation, and by no means Scythian ; Melpom. 18. Again, they are perhaps of all mankind, the rudest : they have no fojrms of law or justice, their employ- ment \i feeding of cattle : and though thor dress is Scythian, they have a dialect appropriate to them- selves. Melp. 106.
The Melanchueni are not Scythians, 20; hut their manners are Scythian, 107. They aredothed in black, from whence they derire their name He adds, that ** they are the only people known to feed on human flesh but there can hardly be a doubt that this should be applied to the Androphagi m the preceding sentence ; as the occupation of the An- drophagi should probably be applied to the Melanch" Usni, All is then consistent.
We shall next inquire into the positions and cir- cumstances of the nations bordering on the east and north-east of Scythia.
The Tanus is said to separate the Royal Scythians from the SAUROMATiE \ on the east ; Melp. 20, and 67. These commenced at the remote parts of the Palus Mseotis, (speaking in respect of the Danube and Scythia;) and inhabited a space extending northward^ equal to fifteen days' journey ; Melp. 21.
• Tamerlane found in the mountains of Kan uck (a part of the Indian Caucasus,) a tribe who are named by his historian Shere- feddin. Sia-jmshians, or black-clothed. The Uctcs beyond the Jaxartcs, had black ensi^rns. Sherefeddin's Tiniur, book iii. c. 6.
* They were named Sauromatup by the Greeks ; SarnuUa by the Romans : Piioy, lib. iv. c. 1^.
1 2
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Beyond the Sauromatse, (implied of course to be to the noi tli, or north-east,) were the Budim, or Hu- DIANS, who inhabited a country abounding with wood: whereas, that of the Saurpmatse was quite destitute of trees, aiid may therefore be taken for part of the Desert of Astrakan, and of the country of the Don Cossacks : as that of the Budini, said to be exceedingly woody, Melpom. 21, for the country of Woronez ; which is not only woody, but abounds with forests of fine ship timber ; of which more in the sequel*.
Amongst the Budini was a Grecian colony named Geloni ; who possessed a large city, built of wood, apparently the only city in all that quarter. It was named Gelonus, Melp. 108.
Beyond the Budini, lay a desert of seven or eight days' journey in extent; to the east of which were the TuTSSAOETiE, ** a singular but populous nation, who supported themselves by hunting ;" Melp. 22, 123. We sliall say nothing at present concerning the nations situated further to the east, and extend- ing towards the Issedones and Massageta ; because they have no immediate reference to, and would only serve to embarrass^ the present subject ; which is exclusively Western Scythia, and the nations immediately bordering on it.
' Rubruquis, in A.D. 1255, croned the countries between the Krimea and Saratow, on the Wolga. He reporti that the country between the Tanaii and the Wolga, (at a point very high up, as he was about fifteen days in travelling across firoin it to the Wolga,) was very fine, fnll of rivers, and interspersed with vast forests.
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The Sauromatae intended by Herodotus, (for his Scythia is the Sauroroatia, or Sarmatia of later authors,) may be supposed to have extended along the eastern side of the Maiotis, and thence up the Tanais, to about the part where that river and the Wolga approach each other, to form the Isthmus at Zaritzyn ; and on the probable supposition that the lower part of the Donetz was taken for the Don, they must have occupied hof/i banks of that river to the same extent; that is, 15 journies, or 3,000 stadia.
This being admitted, the Budini must necessarily
be placed above that Isthmus. To what extent, we are not told ; but as they were a great and numerous people/' Melp. 108, a great space is re- quired for them ; and they may, with probability, be
extended up the Tanais, beyond Woronez.
The position of the Geloni docs not appear ; other- wise than that they were included in the country of the BudinL
The ThyssagetsK, as has been said, lay to the east
of the Budini, separated by a desert of seven or ei^^bt journies. They also \vere a populous nation ; and, moreoyer, subsisted by hunting : consequently, they required a great extent of country also. It is said, in Melp. 123, that from the country of the Thyssa- getae, ** four great rivers, after watering the inter- mediate plains, empty themselves into the Maeotis and that their names are ''the Lycus, Oarus, Temah, and the St/rghJ* (This last seems to be the same that is intended by the name Hyrgi^, in
«
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Mel p. 57, where it is said to be an adjunct of the Tanais.)
Since the Budint are placed to the east of the
Tanais, and the Thyssagetae, or at least a part of their country, to the east of that of the Budini ; and that the country of the Thyssagetae itself is very extensiye; it may readily be conceived to extend along the north and north^easi of the Budini, be- tween the upper part of the Tanais, and the Wolga about baratow. Nor is that extent of space greater than is allowed by our Author to the Sauromats.
It is unlikely that the geographers of those days were critically informed concerning the positions and courses of these rivers ; especially as the Tanais is composed of many branches, and one of those (the Medwediisut) springing from the very neighbour- hood of the Wolga : so that it may well he, that although the Thyssagetae had amongst them certain fountains of the Tanais, yet that the ^^'olga itself might have been one of the rivers intended ; as by its course above Zaritzyn, it must have appeared, to a casual observer, to run towards the Maeotis : more especially, when the two great errors respecting the Maeotb and Caspian are considered: the Masotis being supposed to extend a vast way to the east of its actual position, and the Caspian to be much more remote than it really is. Accordingly, the Wolga may well be taken for the Oarus ^ ; and perhaps the
• The Roman name of the Wolga was Rha.
If the river of fVormtez be taken for the Oarus, this difficulty
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Medweditza and Choker , for the Lycus and SyrgiM, or HyrgU
We are told that Darius returned from the banki of the Oarus directly into Scythia ; re-crossing, as
it appears, the country of the Budini, and without entering into that of the Thyssagetae ; Melp* 124 : and that from thence he followed the Scythians into the country of theMelanchlaeni, situated, as we have seen, between the Upper Borysthenes and Tanais, This movement accords with the opinion just de- livered* concerning the respective positions of the several nations adjoining to Scythia ; and hence it will appear^ that the Scythians, together with the bordering nations above described, must have occu- pied the whole of that vast tract, situated between the heads of the river Teisse (Tibiscus) on the west, and the Wolga on the east; northwards to the borders of Kazan and Moscow ; NW to the heads of the Vistula ; and southwards to the Danube, Euxine, Tanais, and the Desert of Astrakan.
It may be proper in this place to speak a word cmiceming the just-mentioned tribes bordering on the east of Scythia.
The SAUROMATiE, according to our Author, were a
arises, that the Thyssagctce could not then take tlie relative po- sition assigned them by our Author, to the east of the Budini; which latter, as well from the position, as the description of their country, should have occupied the moodjf tract about fVoronta, &c.
* There are two or more rivers of the name of Irgis, in mo- dem geography, but they are to the east of the Wolga, and in the Sleppe*
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mixed breed of Scythians, and of Amazons, from the banks of the river Thermodon, in Asia Minor ; Melp, 110. The story throughout has, doubtless, too much the lur of fable. It appears that the language of the Sauromatffi was a dialect of the Scythian ; 117; and that, on occasion of the Persian invasion, they considered the cause as common to both na- tions, and joined theur arms to those of the Scythians accordingly; 119. And as they afterwards formed a separate body, whose department was to watch the Persian army at the Tanais, and to pursue and harass them, on occasion of their retreat, they ought to have been a numerous people ; 120.
The Sauromatse were then, in effect, Scythians ; who had their language and customs somewhat changed, by intermarrying with women of another nation.
Since the story of the Amazons, in the way it is
commonly told, is so exploded in these times, one is surprised how it came to be so universally believed, as that most of the writers of antiquity should speak of it as a fact. Nay, even our author has gone so far, in Calliope 27, as to make the Athenians say, that the Amazons had advanced from the river Ther- modon to attack Attica! That a community of women existed for a short time, b not improbable, since accidents may have deprived them of their husbands ; but were there not in that, as in every community, males growing up towards maturity ?
Justin, lib. ii. c. 4, describes the origin of the Amazons to be this : a colony of exiled Scythians established themselves on tlic coast of the Euxine
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Sea^ in Cappadocia^ near the river Thermodon; and being exceedingly tronblesome to theur neigh- bours, the men were all massacred. This accounts
very rationally for the existence of a community of women ; but who can believe that it continued ? Human nature was, no doubt, the same on the banks of the Thermodon, as elsewhere; and a difiercnt state of things could only exist in the descriptioni of poets, or of those who followed their authority.
It may be remarked, that every authority places the Amazons at the river ThemMdon, and in the plains of Themiscyra, which it waters. And from hence Herodotus transports a part of them by sea, to the opposite shore, near Cremnis, a port in the Msotis, amongst the Royal Scythians ; from whe^nce thdr new husbands carry them beyond the Tanais, into Sauromatcc.
The BuDiNi were a great and numerous people : they painted their bodies bkte and red ; Melp. 108 ; and had the diaracter of being magicians; 105. They are said in one place, 21, to be husbandmen, but in another, 109, to be feeders of cattle ; in con- tradistinction to the Geloni, who were an agricul- tural people.
Their country abounds with timber ; which gave occasion to the building of a large city with that material by the Geloni, who were Greeks, expelled from their commercial towns, (we must suppose on the coast of the Euxine,) and took refuge amongst the Bndini. They had temples built in the Grecian manner, to Grecian deities ; with the statues, altars.
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and shrines^ all of wood ; 108* The Greeks were apt to confound both nations under the name of CSeloni, although they differed widely in appearance,
complexion, and habits. Within their country, amidst the thickest woods, there is a large lake, in which (says our Author) are found otters, beavers, and other wiU animals, who have square snouts ; and
whose skins were used to border garments ; and their testicles were esteemed useful in hysteric diseases ; 109.
It is said, 105, that the Neuri, on a particular oc- casion, took refuge with the Budini : so that there
are two instances, in which they afforded an asylum to distressed strangers. This is a most favourable iraii of their character. They had the reputation of being magieiam : they were probably an inge- nious people, and excelled their neighbours in arts, as well as in hospitaUty. To add to their character, they^ together with the Geloni, generously joined thenr arms with the Scythians and SauromatSB, in re- pelling the Persian intader ; 1 19.
The country of the Budini has been taken for that of Woronez and its neighbourhood (page 117); as well from description as position ; it being, like the other, full of forests. These, in modem times, have been converted to purposes very different from those to which the Geloni applied them : for, in 1703, the CzAK Peter built a large fleet of ships, almost a navy, at Woronez, and in its neighbourhood ; and which were floated down by the river Don to Azoph, and the Euxiue. The account of it may be
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seen in' Le Brun» who visited Woronez in the train of the Czar He relates, that he saw at Stepena^
10 ships; 47 others at Woronez; and 11 others in the river Don, not far below Woronez; which is itself situated on a river of the same name, near its conflux with the Don, in about the parallel of 52^ It is understood that almost all the above 68 ships were ships of war of different rates ; and of which 16 are specified to be from 86 to 54 guns ; and many others are implied to be of considerable force. There were besides, 200 brigantines, mostly built at Woronez. And he adds, that there were, at the same time, 400 very substantial ones on the Bory- sthenes, in the neighbourhood of Krim Tartary ; 300 flat boats in the Wolga ; and at Azoph 18 men of war, and some smaller vessels. Some of these were built af ter the Enghsh mode ; others, after the Dutch, Venetian, and Italian ; but whether this variety was a necessary consequence of employhig shipwrights of different nations, or was meant for the purpose of experiment, we are not told. Le Brun, however, who had probably no partiality for the English, says that the ship of 86 guns, built at Woronez under the direction of the 'Czar himself, and named after him, was built in the English style. Another, under the same inspection, was built in the Don ; but neither the rate, nor the fashion of it, are men- tioned. It has been understood that the Czar thought the English the best shipwrights.
When we reflect on the various personal labours
* See Le Brim » Travels, vol. i.
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•
of this TRULY GREAT Prince, all tending to produce dther an immediate, or a remote advantage to his country; now efifordng duty by example^ now
operating^ the direct means of national strength or improvement; considering also the unusual means pursued by him, to obtain the requisite degree of knowledge; we are struck with admiration; and cannot help exclaiming with Addison, who before HIM, evi:r left a throne, to learn to sit in IT WITH A BETTER GRACE?" The effect has been, not only to humanize^ to protect, to enrich, his country, but to raise it to that summit of power, as to flatter the friends of order, (and of virtue, of which it is the PARENT,) that its interference in the present AWEFUL contest, may produce the happy consequences of restoring the lost balance of power in Europe ; by humbling that government, whose views, like those of Lucifer, seem to be no other than to render mankind wicked, in order to increase the number of its subjects.
Concerning the Thtssaget^, neighbours to the
Biulini and Gcloni, our Author a})pears to liavc known but little. This was probably owing to the circumstance of Darius Hystaspes having stopt short on the borders of their country ; a presumptive proof that the information concerning these countries was derived from tlic Persian expedition. Herodotus says nothing more concerning the Thyssagetse than that they were a singular but populous nation, who support themselves by hunting
* Pliny mentions the Thyssagetatt as well as most of tlie other nations spoken of in this chapter ; as the Agaihjfrsi, BwUni,
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We shall close this section with some few observa- tions on the Tal Ri, or inliabitants of the Krimea ; and on the antiquity of the practice of shutting up this remarkable Peninsula with a wall, or fortified line, or ditch, across the narrow Isthmus that joins it to the Continent.
Herodotus speaks of a trench, which the slaves of the Scythians, who usurped the places of their • masters, during their absence in the Median war, had dug, with a view to fortify themselves against those masters, on their return. It is said, in Mel- pom. 3, that they " intersected the country, by a large and deep trench, which extended from the motmtains of Tauris to the Palus Mieotis, and en- cam })ed on the opposite side to dispute the passage." He speaks again of the same trench, in Melpora. 20, as the eastern boundary of the Royal Scythians. No mountains, however, are marked in any portion, corresponding to the above idea ; and we have never heard of any mountains of Tauris, save those tvithin the Krimea itself, and which, by their position, seem to be out of the question here^ Nor does our
OeUmit Neurit StuiramaUe, &c. but without any discriminatkm as to positioii ; see lib. iv. c. 112. He says, that the Tbyssagetee have blue hair : this may have been amongst the singularities alluded to by Herodotus.
' Rubruquis, who travelled from the Krimea to the Wolga, in the line towards SartUm, describes a vast plam, £0 joumies in extent, without mountain, tree, or stone, and with exoeUent pasturage* He went the first ten days without seeing an inha- bitant. The tract in question was that inhabited by the Rotfoi Seytkums of our Author.
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Author speak of any other TaurU, or Taurica,
than what is unequivocally intended for the Krimea. It is probable, therefore, that the trench intended was that which shut up the just-mentioned Penin- sula: and mofe espedallj, as such trenches or walls, or hoth, are clearly pointed out by other historians. In this case, therefore, some other word tlian mouri' tains should be read : and the trench (which, in for- tification, always implies a rampart also,) would have been drawn from the Palus Maeotis to the oppo- site shore of Tauris. Nothing appears more pro- bable, than that the slaves should have availed them- selves of the natural advantages of the situation to improve their plan of defence.
Strabo describes a fortified Mne, p. 31 1, 312 ; and Pliny, although he does not mention any work of this kind, says, lib. iv. c. 12, that Taphra, a town, stands on the neck of land, which joins the peninsula to the continent ; which name so strongly implies a trenchy and this last, a rampart also, that it cannot be doubted that the town was named from the forti- fication; as Or-kapi, or Ferekap, is at present Pomponios Mela says the same. Ptolemy places Taphros in the same situation : and it is probable that the same is alluded to in the Toxaris of Lucian, where the Bosphoritce are enjoined by the Scythians to keep within the Traehm; perhaps corrupted from Taphros. The Krimea was denominated by the Romans, the kingdom of Bosphoru9,
Thus, it may be conceived, that the Krimea has ever been shut up, since it was first firmly united to the continent, by the alluvions, either ^ji the sea, or
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of the Borysthenes, or both. The nature of the defences have no doubt varied with the ability of the possessor ; and the works now existing, appear to be as much beyond the ability of a community^ whose possessions were limited to that peninsula alone, as tiie pyramids of Egypt were beyond a mere sove- reign of that kingdom. The inference, it is con* ceived, should be, that they were constructed by the Genoese, whilst they continued masters of the Krimea, and of the vast commerce that centered in it, as an emporium ; the profits of which were fully adequate to such an expencc. Masters of the shores of the Euxine, and of both the Botpkori, the Krimea, thus shut up with a rampart, was invulner- able. That the Genoese, then, were the autliors of that famous rampart now in existence, we think highly probable; and the following circumstances vppeai to be in proof of it.
Rubruquis, who visited the Krimea in his way to the court of Mangoukan, in 1253, mentions the nar- row Isthmus, but says nothing concerning any for- tification on it. He compares the isthmus to a greai dUck, or hollow, between the two seas. This might be meant either to express the remains of a former ditch, or of a hollow occasioned by the meeting of the slope, described by Baron Tott, with a plain below. See page 92.
This visit of Rubruquis was made during the reign of Batou Kan, grandson of Jinohis % and king of
• It is believed tl)at the descendants of Jinghis Kan liave con- tinued to be sovereitrns, either real or nominal, of the Krimea, down to tiie present age.
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Kipzak, &c ; whose resicleiice was at Serai on the
Wolga, and whose empire included the Krimea, as well as the adjoining country. Had there been a wall originally, it is probable that it would have gone to decay, when the country on both sides belonged to the same sovereign ; as the Picts* wall in our island, on the change of circumstances that has taken place.
It must surely be inferred from the words of Ru- bruquis, that no rampart existed there in 1253 ; and the emperors of Constantinople do not appear to hare
been in a state to execute such a work, posterior to the middle of the 13th century. But it is well known that the Genoese possessed the Krimea, in full power, during the succeeding century, and even to a later period. The passages selected in the note %
• ** The Genoese, who, after the reeovery of C<MlBtantinopIe, were seated in the suburb of l^era or Galata, leoeived that honourable fief from the bounty of the emperor.
From this colony they engaged with superior advantage in the lucrative trade of the Black Sea ; and their industry sup- plied the Greeks with fish and com; two artidea of fixnl almost equally important to a superstitious people. The spontaneous bounty of nature appears to have bestowed the harvests of the Ukraine, the produce of a rude and savage husbandry ; and the endless exportation of salt fish and caviare, is annuaUy renewed by the enormous sturgeons that are caught at die mouth of the Don or Tanais, in their last station of die rich mud and shallow water of the Mseotis. The waters of the Oxus, the Caspian, die Wolga, and the ]>on, opened a rare and laborious passage Ibr the gems and spices of India ; and after three months' march, the caravans of Cariiroe met the Italian vessels in the harbours of Krimea. These various branches of trade were monopolised by the dih'goioe and power of the Genoese. Their rivals of Venice
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from the elegant historian of declining Rome, will clearly shew the ahility of the Genoese to perform, not only the work in question, hut even greater ones.
Baron Tott speaks as follows concerning these fiimous lines. He had previously said that they ex- tended three quarters of a French league, or ahout two British miles.
" No picture of this kind can be more respectable. Excepting that the works are rather gigantic, I know of none where nature is better seconded by art. The solidity of the intrenchment is likewise to be depended on : and will long continue to resist that ignorance which neglects every thing. Nothing points out the €Bra of its construction, but CTery thing conspires to prove it of a date anterior to the Tartars ; or if not, that these people were at least better informed in ancient times than at present."
The Baron adds, that these works, were they pro- perly palisadoed and armed, would protect the Krimea agmnst an army of 100,000 men ; but that
and Pisa were forcibly expelled : tlie natives were awed by the castles and cities, which arose on the foundations ot" their humble factories ; and their principal establishment of Caffa was be- Rieired without efll'ect by the Tartar powers. Destitute of a navy, the Greeks were oppressed by these haughty mercliants, who fed or famished Constantinople according to their interest. They proceeded to usurp the customs, the fishery, and even the toll, of the Bosphorus ; and while they derived from these ob- jects a revenue of 200,000 pieces of gold, a remnant of 30,000 was reluctantly allow ed to the emperor. " — ( Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Koman Empire, vol. xi. pp. 300. (ji>~, el seq. 8vo. edition.)
VOL. 1. K
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the tongue of land between the lake Siwa.sc/i and the Maeotis having been neglected^ the Russians had twice entered it that way \
The Tauri, or inhabitants of the Krimea, one would naturally have expected to have found ranked amongst the Scythians ; but the matter was other- wise ; for in the coDSultation held by the Scythians with their neighbours, on occasion of the Persian inrasion, the Tauri are classed amongst the latter, and are distinguished by some very peculiar, as well as abominable, customs.
" All strangers shipwrecked on their coasts, and particularly every Greek who falls into their hands, they sacrifice to a virgin. The sacred personage to whom this sacrifice is offered, the Taurians them- selves assert to be Ifuigenia, the daughter of Aga- memnon;" Melpom. 103. Here it appears, that Iphigenia is put in the place of Diana ; to whom she is, by others, represented as the priestess Our
^ It may not perhaps be going too &r, if we were to ad- vance an opinion, that, to Russia, the future value of the Krimea^ and province of Tawrida (including the embouchure of the Borysthenee), will exceed that of her Asiatic posaeaitons collectively.
* <• On that inhospitable shore, Eueipidbs, embellishing with exquisite art the tales of antiquity, has placed the scene of one of his mosi affecting tragedies. The bloody sacrifices of Diana, the arrival of Orestes and Pylades, and the triumph of virtue and religion over savage fierceness, serve to represent an historical truth, that the Tauri, the originsl inhabitants of the Peninsula, were, in some degree, reclaimed firom their brutal manners, by a gradual intercourse with the Grecian colonies, which settled along the maritime coast.** (Gibbon, Vol. i, p. 421.)
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Author allows that Diana was worshipped by the
Thracians ; Terpsichore, c. 7.
Tiie whole subsistence of the Tauri, according to our Author, was procured by acts of plunder and hostility. One custom alone» marks their savage character : they placed the head of a prisoner on a stake at the top of their chimnies, to operate as a charm for the protection of their £&tmilies : as the superstitious amongst us nail a horse*shoe on the threshold^ or against the roast of a ship. Our prac- tice, though equally absurd, is at least harmless in itself ; and does not blunt tlie feelings of the rising generation. From this, and other barbarous tribes along its coasts, we may suppose the Black sea ac- quired amongst the ancients, the title of inhos- pi i able *,
It has pretty generally happened, that the inha- bitants of coasts, particularly dangerous to naviga^ tion, are exceedingly unfeeling and ferocious ; a
habit doubtless acquired by pluiulciing wrecks ; which includes also, occasionally, the stripping and maltreating of those who cannot escape from them ; and, by an easy transition^ to murder. We shall say nothing concerning certain of our own countrymen, in this respect, as they are growing better : but it is worth remarking, that as the Nasaniones at the Chreater Syrtis were infamous in ancient times for these practices, so, according to Mr. Bruce, who was shipwrecked there, they are not mended in the pre-
* Its ancient name was Axitiut } afterwards changed to Efunmu: Pliny, iv. c. 1^; and c. 1.
K 2
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sent times. (See hb Introduction, Vol. i.) Many other instances could be adduced ; and they abso- lutely appear to be an efiect of geographical situa- tion, combined with adventitious circumstances, oa the human mind.
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8CTTHIA.
The mareh cf Dabiui hUo Scffthia may he iraeed m a general watf—pasaee tke Danube, and leavee the Jloating bridge m charge of the lomane—Marehee eaeUeard to the Tafuitt, wMeh he eroteee, tnlo SairmalM ; the Seythiant retreating before him — oAwMCtft to the Oinis, where he ereete a eham qffortreetet^ the Oarus, (taken for the Wolga,) the term hit expeditioOt eaetward-^Seffthiam lead him to the northward and weetward, into the territories of the Seeedert, the MdancMsni, Andro- phagi, ancf Neuri, tM order to eave their own landt — The Aga- thyrsi, on whom the tame it attempted^ retitt both Seifthiant and Pertiant^Lotiet and dittrettes of the Pernan armf~^e* cover their bridge on lA« Danube ; which the Seytl^nt eoM not prevail on the lomant to dettrojf — Sepulchres iff the hinge of Scytlda — Barbaroutfuneralt — Gold buried with the bo£e$^ Expedition of Darius, compared with that of CyruSf against the eattem Scythiant the former invation of Media, by file Sey- thians, gave rise to the expedition of Darius — the Sc^rthians, the Gog and Magog of the Scriptures — Idea of the time con- sumed in the expedition — /onton and jEolian fleet attend Darius •^Conjecture about the supply of provisions for the Persian army — Bridges of Darius and Xerxes, over the Bosphorus and Hellespont — more of vain-glory than use, in these works — Idea of the breadth of the two Straits — Difficulties in the description of Xerxes Bridge, attempted to be solved.
The march of Darius Hystaspes through Scythia, cannot^ for want of circumstantial detail, be accu^
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134 EXPEDITION OF DARIUS HYSTASPES
ratehj followed on tlie map. But it may, however, be done in a general way ; and we shall endeavour to trace it by the aid of those circumstances which present themselves. The trace itself will be found on the Map, No. III. at page 66.
He crossed the Danube over a bridge of boats, at the place wlicrc it first begins to branch oif, to form the several channels through which it enters the Euxine ' ; Melp. 89. The place, therefore, may be supposed to liavc been not fiir above tlie site of /.v- mttUy and between tliat and the conflux of the Prath with the Datinhe, The Ionian fleet, which was dis- patched from the Bosphorus to perform the service of laying the bridge, sailed two days up from the sea, in order to arrive at the place; Melj). 89.
Having kit the lonians.in charge of the bridge, he marched through Scythia, eastward to the Tanais ; the Scythian army, which was divided into two bodies, retiring regularly before him, at the distance of a day's march ; filling up the wells, and destroy- ing the produce of the fields ; 120,121,122. Their families, together with such of their cattle as were not necessary to their immediate subsistence, were pre- viously sent olF to the northern frontier ; 121.
Darius, crossing the Tanais, came into the terri- tories of the Sauromatae ; and from thence into those of the Budini, 122 ; which having also crossed, he finally came to the desert of seven or eight journies
' Mr. Bell says tliat it enters the Euxine, by a single channel only : but this is contrary to every other report, ancient and modem.
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In breadth, wbich, as we have seen, page 116, sepa- rated the country of the Budini from that of the Thyssagetae; Melp. 22, 123: and here he halted CD the banks of the river Oarus, where he constructed eight fortresses or redoubts , at the distance of about six miles from each other ; the ruins of which, says our Author, " have been visible to my time;" 124. And this was the most dbtant point of the expedition of Darius^ eastward.
It has been shewn, that the Thyssagete lived be- yond this desert ; and that the river Tanais, as well as the OaruSy and two others, passed through, or by, their country ; which, by circumstances, must have been very extensive. And on this ground we have supposed it to lie between the Tanais and the Wolga, concluding also this latter to be intended, by the Oarus ; as by its course above Zaritzyn, it might be supposed, by an ordinary observer, to run towards the Mfleotis, rather than towards the Caspian.
The Oarus then, was the utmost term of the march of Darius ; and that Oarus we have taken for the Wolga. The desert, on the border of which he halted, we have supposed to begin below Sara* tow ; as the territories of the Thyssagetae were sup- posed to commence near that place ; page 117 ; and hence we fix the term of Darius*s expedition, about the great bend of the Wolga, near Saratow
A more than ordinary cause must have deter-
* There actnallj^ appears m Delisle's Map of Russia (see his Adas, Sd sheet Russia,) a desert, said to be of 10 days' extent, near that part of the Wolga just mentioned*
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mined the measure of erecting the chmn of fort- resses, extending a length of 420 stadia ; that is, 40 or more En^^lish miles : but that object, wliatsocver it was, cannot now be ascertained. Could one sup- pose that Herodotus was inaccurate, in his state- ment of the particulars of the march, or of the rela^ tive positions of the couii tries hereabouts, one might suspect that the chain of redoubts extended between the Wolga and Don, at the Isthmus of Zwcitzyn ; but by the text, we must look towards Saratow. It is probable, that at whatsoever point it was, the deptli and rapidity of the Wolga oj)posed the far- ther progress both of the Persians and Scythians: and the retrograde movement of the Scythians, cir* cuitously, by the higher parts of the country, info Scijthia (we must suppose, by traversing tlie north- ern part of the Budians' territory,) seems to have de- termined the future line of march of the Persians ; which was now towards the wesi, pursuing another division of the Scythians, who regulated their posi- tion, at the distance of one day's marcli heforc the Persians; Melponi. 124. It appears that they were enabled to do this, because their army consisted chiefly of horse ; the Persian army, chiefly of in- fantry; i:3G.
In our discussion of the positions of the nations bordering on Scythia, it appeared, pages 1 15 and 117, that the Sauromatse extended fifteen joumies to the north, up the course of the Tanais. That the country of the Budini and Geloni began at that point ; and these being each of them a great and numerous people, must have extended a great way
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to the north, as well as to the east ; and moreover, living in a country full of vast forests, must probably have extended far within the country of Woronez : and finally, that the Thyssagets lay beyond them, to the east, and also to the north ; as having within their territory fountains of the Tanais.
From all this it is clear, that the Persians were led very far to the north : and that it had been the intent of the Scythians to entangle them In the de- sert lying between the Budini and Thyssagetae ; from whence they might not have been able easily to escape. But finding this scheme impracticable, ihey made the circuit before described, to the north and westy leaving the Persians at fault : in conse- quence of which, the latter turned ivestivard, on a supposition that the detachment which they had pursued, had retired that way : but arriving in Scy* thia, they found, instead of that detachment, two other bodies of Scythians, which retreated before them, in the manner before described ; and soon after led them amongst the Melanchlaeni, who have been described to lie on ihe northern frontier of the Royal Scythians. See pages 80,- 110.
Considering the intricate course of the Tanais, and the circumstance of its having many large ad- juncts, it is probable that the Persians might not be correct in their report of its course ; and therefore it would be vain to attempt to follow them, in detail. It appears probable, however, that they crossed it at a point, much above its embouchure in the Palus Mfleotis; as the Scythians evidentiy led them up to
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the northward, in order to draw them with more ease into the territories of the bordering nations, who had refused to co-operate with them, in the oommoa defence of the country ; a system formed from the beginning, Melp. 120. For, on occasion of the con- sultation between tlie Scythians and their nciglibours, the Sauromatce^ Budini, Geloni, MelancJU^eni, An' drophagi, Neuri, Agathyrsi, and Tauri; the three former alone, engaged to join in the general defence, Melpom. 1 19, 120. Darius then, having been drawn up to tlie northy nearly to the height of the Thyssa- gette, and from whence he must have returned tvest- ward, through the Budians' country, would iQuaally have but a comer of Scythia to cross, before he was led by the Scythians, amongst the MelanchLTiii ; and from thence, successively, amongst the Androphagi and Neuri, Melpom. 124, 125 ; all of whom were harassed by both parties, and fled in alarm to the deserts of the north," Melp. 125 ; by which means, the Scythians saved their own lands, and effectually punished their inactive or treacherous neighbours.
The same conduct was also intended towards the Agathyrsi, had they not possessed too much wisdom and courage to allow it 12.5 : ])erhaps also a strong country, which enabled them to use those advantages, and which the others might not possess ; for the Agathyrsi appear to hare held the country of Tran- sylvania, and the NE part of Hungary ; and conse-
* Herodotus styles them efleminate, in Melpom. 104; but this does not accord with their conduct in this case.
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quently had a strong frontier towards the east, in the vast ridges, named by the ancients, the Bastamian Alps, and Carpathian Mountains.
The Scythians, turning aside from the Agathyrsi, retreated once more into their own country, still followed by the Persians ; who now finding that the nature of the country and war&re of the Scythians was such, as that no impression could be made on them ; and being themselves reduced to distress for provisions, directed their march towards their bridge on the Danube, being now returned to that neigh- bourhood, Mel p. 125, et seq.
Meanwhile the Scythians, having accomplished their principal purpose of creating delay, by com- pelling the enemy to take so wide a circuit, tried their last project of inducing the lonians to break the bridge, whilst their armies watched opportunities of attacking the Persians with advantage. The time chosen, was during the Persian meals, and at night ; and the Scythians, who were chiefly cavalry, and superior to those of the Persians, were generally successful in the outset, but were always beaten back, when the infantry came to act, Melp. 128. All which appears probable; for the infantry of civilized nations is ever superior to that of barba- rians, whatsoever the comparative state of their cavalry may be. But the Persian as well as the Indian camps are very liable to surprise, through the remissness and indolence of their guards and sentinels. It is related by Xenophon, that the Per- sian army which followed the Greeks, during their memorable retreat, notwithstanding their vast su-
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periority in cavalry, always retired at the close of the day, to the distance of about 60 stadia, for fear of a surprise from the Greeks during the night \
It was not without great loss and disgrace that the Persians recovered their bridge, which the lonians had preserved for them, in despite of the remonstrances and entreaties of the Scythians; but the motives which induced this conduct, were neither generosity, nor pity towards men in distress ; they were nothing else than the unwarrantable plans of ambition, of some of the petty princes of Ionia, Melp. 137, 138,
The above march and retreat of Darius Hystaspes, agrees so well with our Author's geography of Scy- thia, and the bordering nations, making some allow- ances for his misconceptions, that it may be sus- pected that he drew his materials for the inland part of the geography, scanty as they may be, from the history of this expedition. He might have col- lected them immediately from the Greeks, wlio were settled on the coast of the Euxine, and even of Scythia, when he visited it : which might have been within a century after the events happened.
It was during the return of the Persians, but not, according to the order of the events, till they were
* ** They (the Peniana) never encamped at a less distance from the Greeks than 60 stadia, for fear these ahould ftU upon them in the night. A Persian army being then subject to great inconveniences : for their horses are tied, and generally shackled, to prevent them from rmming away," &c. 8cc. He has besides to equip himself, and his horse ; A nab. lib. iii. Exactly the same state of things exists in the Eu^t at present.
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arrived at the borders of the Agathyrriy that the kiiig of Scythia bid ihem beware of doing any injury to the sepulchres of his ancestors, Melpom. 127. But as these sepulchres are described, in 71, to be situated in the extreme northern quarter of Scythia, and at the side of the Borysthenes, there should have in- tervened between the Persian army and the sepul- chres, at the time of this threat, a space nearly c(|ual to the length of the territories of the Androphagi and Neuri collectively.
** The sepulchres of the Idngs of Scythia (says our Author, Melpom. 71.) are in the district of the Gerrhi — near the place where the Borysthenes be- gins to be navigable — ^and in the remotest part of Scytlua.** Agam, in 53^ " The course of this river may be pursued as far as the country called Ger-' rhus, through a voyage of 40 days : and is known to flow from the north.**
The barbarous customs of Scythia, condemned to the same grave with their deceased prince, one of his favourite women, and several of his domestics ; all of whom were previously strangled. They like- wise buried with him, his horses, the choicest of his eflfects, and finally some golden goblets: for* says the Historian, they possess neither silver nor brass," The common grave of these, was " a large quadrangular excavation, which they filled up with earth, and seemed to be emulous in theur endeavours to raise as high a mound as possible." Melp. 71.
Modern discoveries abundantly prove the general truth of our Author's report, concerning the sepul-
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chres of the ancient Scythians ; if it be allowed that a part of the tumuli, found in the plains towards the upper branches of the Irtish, Ohy,kc. are of so an- cient a date : or, on the other hand, if the sepulchres in question are not so ancient, it at least proves, that the same custom prevailed amongst their descend- ants. It appears^ that tumuli are scattered over the whole tract, from the borders of the Wolga and its western branches, to the lake Baikal \ Those amongst them, which have attracted the greatest notice^ on the score of the gold and silver (but prin- cipally the former) contained in them, lie between the Wolga and the Ohy : for those which are far- ther to the east, and more particularly at the upper part of the Jenisei, have the utensils contained in them, of copper \
It has not come to our knowledge, that any of these monuments Iiave been found in the Ukraine ; where the sepulchres described by Herodotus should have been : however* it may be conceived, that it is a sufficient testimony of the general truth of his de- scription, that they are found so far to the west, as
* These sepulchres are discovered only in plain and extensive deserts, formerlv the abode of a nation which seems to have sub- sistcd by pastura<4e ami the produce of the chase. (Mr. Tooke ; Archapologia, Vol. vii. p. 22"^.)
* The ixuld, and copper, found in the different sepulchres, gave occasion to a conjecture, that mines of those metals existed in their respective neiglibonrhoods ; which conjecture was verified by the discovery of the copper mines of Satjanc ; and of tlie gold mines of Kolyvaiit in tlie tract adjoining to liie Allamn mountains.
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the southern parts of Russia, and on the banks of the Okka^ Wolga, and Tanais: since much the same sort of customs may have been supposed to exist amongst the Scythians and Sarmatians gene- rally : and it is certain that the Sarmatians and seceding Scythians occupied the tracts just men- tioued.
It is true that Mr. Tooke (firom whose writings
our knowledge in this matter, as well as other more important ones, is more particularly derived ^, and who b therefore entitled to our sincerest thanks,) supposes these monuments to be of a much more modern date : for he refers them to the Tartars of Jinghis Kan and their first successors : and thus much appears certain, that the Kalmucs are still in the habit of burying horses, arms, &c. with theur chiefs. But as the Russians and Tartars themselves, appear to regard the articles found in some of the tombs, as heing very ancient, and unlike what are now found amongst them, we should at least be led to conclude, that the monuments are of very di£ferent ages; and that, of course, there may be amongst them, those of the ancient Scythians, as well as of tlic modern Tartars, who succeeded them. The bodies wrapt in, or placed between, thin sheets of gold, may perhaps be referred to the latter class : but Mr. Tooke speaks also of ^ohl and silver utemils, of skeletons of horses, as well as the bones of men; of many bodies deposited in the same
' The Okka is the south-west branch of tlie Wolga, and had its source amongst the Melanchlfeni. * Arcli8M>logia, VoL vii. ; and Russia.
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144 EXPEDITION OF DAAIUS UVSTASPES
grave; together with weapons and implements of war^ and domestic utensils : so that, of whatsoever age these may have been, they prove the general statement of Herodotus, as to the custom of the people of that country. In some of the tumuli were found images and idols ®.
Many tumuli are found in and about the banks of the Tanais, in the quarter towards the Maeotis. One of these, of considerable magnitude, and said to be the sepulchre of Gulbedin, is described in the voyage to Tana, by Barbaro, in the 15th century. It stood about 60 miles above Tana, (which stood at or near Azoph,) at the side of the Tanais, and con- sequently on tlie border of the Sarmatian territory ; according to the distribution of the space, by Hero- . dotus. It was 80 paces in diameter, by 50 in height. This was dug into/ in the expectation of finding a treasure ; for it is related that one of the tumuli towards the Altaian mountains afforded no less than forty pounds weight of gold ^ : but although much cost and labour were bestowed on the work, Bar- baio says, that they only went to the depth of 10 paces ; having intersected the tumulus by a trench of 8 paces in breadth, to that depth. Of course it could not be expected that they should have reached the tomb itself.
The substances found were nothing more than the burnt bones of fishes, the remains of burnt wood, and eanes ; and of grain, of the millet kind ; save only, half the handle of a smaU silver vessel, wrought
' Archffiol. Vol. vii. * Ibid. Vol. ii.
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into the form of the head of a snake. There were no bones of men, or of quadrupcdes, found,
Mr. Tooke says generally, that some of the Rus- sian and Siberian sepulchres, are perfect himuU, • rinsed to an enormous height ; whilst others are al- most level with the ground. Some are encompassed with a square wall of large quarry stones, &c. In some, the earth is excavated several fathoms deep, whilst others are only dug to a sufficient depth for covering the body. After this long digression, we return once more to tlie narrative.
It appears, that on the invasion of the Persians, the Scythians sent away their families, in the car- riages in which tkei/ usually dwelt, together with such a portion of their cattle, as was not necessary to their immediate subsistence, or conveniency, to the northward, Melp. 121. Perhaps they were sent into the neighbourhood of the sepulchres, as a place that was meant to be defended to the last.
The expedition of Darius Hystaspes, although it terminated more fortunately for himself (personally,) than that of his predecessor Cyrus, against the East- em Scythians (Massagetae), yet, in respect of the wisdom that dictated the two expeditions, as well as in respect of their ultimate success, they seem to be nearly on a par. The Persians had nothing to boast of, in either case ; any more than in their attack on the Carduckiane, as related by Xenophon in the Anabasis, lib. iii. at the end.
Our Author assigns as the cause of the invasion of Scythiay by Darius Hystaspes, that " he was desi- rous of avenging on the Scythians, the injuries they
VOL, I. L
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had fonnerly committed^ by entering Media, and defeating those who opposed them. For during a
period of 28 years they retained the sovereignty of Upper Asia, by expelling the Medes, its ancietU paaaeMorsI* Melpomene, c. 1. A reason is never wanting for doing that, which our inclinations prompt us to.
The unsuccessful expedition of Darius only pro- voked other attacks and menaces from the Scythians ; such as the attack of the Chersonesus of Thrace, and their alliance with the Spartans^ by which it was agreed that the Scythians should invade Media (that is, the empire of Persia) by the way of the Phasis of Colchis, and the Spartans by way of £phe^ sus, until the two armies should form a junction ; Erato, 40 and 84. This negotiation happened 'during the reign of Cleomeocs.
The GoG and M agog of Ezekiel must be under- stood to be meant for the Scythians, who made the above irruption into Media ; and even carried their devastations into Palestine, and to the borders of Egypt. (See H^ociotus, Mel p. c. 1 ; and Clio, 103, ei seq.J We ap40 ijiWare that the chronology, as it stands, does not exactly bear us out; but as the prophecies of Ezekiel are allowed to have begun at about 595 years before Christ, and the Scythians to have continued in Western Asia till about 605, it may be conceived that a small error in chronology, (and let it be remembered, that Sir Isaac Newton has made it appear probable, that an error of about 120 years, existed in the date of the foundation of Rome), may change the order of the two events.
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The description of the host of Gog, designed also under the name of Togarmah of the North, is pre- cisely Scythian, or Tartarian: Coming like a storm, and covering the land^ like a eloud Esekiel, ch. xxxviii. verses 9 and 16. " Coming out of the north; all of them riding on horses;" ver. 15.
Bows and arrows/' a part of their weapons, chap. Z3UDX. yer. 3. I will smite thy how out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand/*
In Genesis x. 2, Magog is the son of Japhet: as is GoMER % who is mentioned by Ezekiel ; " Gomer and all his bands." With the Tartars likewise, Gomari is reckoned one of the sons of Japhet, and is also called Kaimak, and held to be the ancestor of the Kaimakians ; that is, the Kalmucs K
The Orientals have Jajujb and Majujb, for our Gog and Magog : and there can be no doubt but that the g's should be sounded soft in those words. The Arabian geographers place these descendants of Jafhbt m the remotest known parts of Asia, norths ward : and beyond the Turks and Kalmucs ^ There existed, in the north-west part of Asia, and no doubt still exists, a rampart or mound, with gates and towers, named by the eastern writers, from Jajuje and Majuje ; and referred, though erroneously, to
' Some derive the Chmerum^ or radier Ji^imiimafif, firom
GOMBB.
' So eaQed by lb Al Wardi, and Edrisi, and explained by DUerbelot. * lb Al Wardi; Edriai, I>*Herbe1ot.
l2
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Alexander ^. Some may perhaps conclude, that the famous wall of China is intended^ but this idea is completely done away by the authorities for its position, as will be made appear, during the inquiry concerning the nations, situated to the east of Scy- thia, in the next Section. It will only he necessary to state, in this place, that the country denominated from Jajuje and Majuje, by the Arabians, lay to the north, beyond those of the Turks and Kalmucs ; and tliat it appears to have been bounded on the SW, by the great ridge of mountains, the continuation of Altai, which runs to the and north, through the Great Steppe; separating the northern and southern waters of Asia; and of which ridge, the mountains of Ural are a branch, projecting to tlie west. So that the country of Jajuje and Majuje, contained, in the ideas of the people of Arabia and Persia, in the early times of Mahomedanism, the northern part of the Great Steppe, and the course of the river Irtish, There are also notices (collected from the person sent by the Caliph \\ athek iu the ninth century, to view the rampart which serve to
* This error may have arisen from the report of Alexander's having fortified the pass of Derbead, at the Caspian ; and which> perhaps, was done by his lieutenants in Media, who might find such a barrier necessary to keep out the northern hordes. Not that we suppose the Macedonians were the first who fortified it: they probably did no more than render complete, by a well constructed line, what others before them had done iroperiectly. All the works of Alexander bore the stamp of grandmw, oom- bined with utility.
* £drisi» ClimateVI. Part 9th : and DUerbelot, article Jagiouge*
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shew that the people in question, possessed at an earlier period that part of the Steppe also, towards
the Caspian and Aral : and it may thence be inferred that, in more early times, they were extended over other parts of the Steppe ; that the Arabs applied to the Nomades, generally, the name of Jajuje and Majuje (or Gog and Magog) ; and that Ezekiel was adapting his language to those ideas.
The rampart above-mentioned seems to have been about midway between Samarkand and Tobolsk; and may have been either the indosure of a deserted city, for it had gates ; or was made for the purpose of defending the passes of the mountains
Herodotus informs us, Melpom. 98, that Darius expected to return to the bridge on the Danube in 60 days ' : and it is possible-he might have supposed that the Scythians would have been brought to terms, and the expedition completed within that time : but taking Scythia under Uie limits assigned by Herodotus himself ; that is, between the Danube and Tanais ; the extent is such as to require 60 days even for an army to march through it : and reckon- ing to the embouchure of the Tanais only, no less than 50. Indeed, had Scythia been confined within the supposed dimensions, that is, 4000 stadia ; 53 days of constant marching would have sufficed, both
* M. D'Anville in the Mem. Acad. Inscrip. Vol. xxxi. places it much more to the east, and near the lake of the Kalmucks. But his general idea agrees with ours.
' Darius delivered to the lonians a cord with sixty knots on it, one of which they were to untie every day, and had liberty to depart when the knots were aU loosened. Melp. i^S, dO,
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for tlie way out and home. But our author does not say that it was the intention of the Persian to traverse the whole country of Scy thia ; and it might have been a fact current amongst the lonians, that a cord with 60 knots on it had been delivered to them by Darius : and equally a fact, that he expected to return within that time.
The circuit taken by Darius cannot well be esti- mated at less than a march of 150 days, or five montlis : and had he barely gone to the mouth of the Tanais, and back again, we have seen that 100 days were required, although no halte are allowed for; and which could not be dispoised with. There- fore, when it is stated that the 60 days were not ea:- jpired, alter tlie Persians had passed the borders of the Agathyrsi, on their return; Melp^ 132; and had not long esqdred when Darius came to the bridge, 136 ; this must surely be an error, although he might have expected to return about that time.
It is said, Melp. 87, that in this expedition he was accompanied by all the nations which acknow- ledged his authority, amounting, cavalry included, to 70,000 men ^, independent of his fleet, which con- sisted of 600 ships. The lonians and yEolians, as a part of his new subjects, together with the inhabitants of the Hellespont, had assembled a fleet to assist in this expedition; 89; and a bridge had previously
• We are aware that some copies have 700,000; and Justin says the same, lib. ii. c. 5. The first number is certainly mo- derate for a regal Persian army, but the nature of tlie country ID which the war was made must be considered.
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been ordered to be thrown across the Thracian Bosphorus ; 83
The difficulty of supplying such an army with provisions in an enemy's country, and that country
not generally an agricultural one, is but too obvious to practical people ; although the numbers were so small, in comparison with those with which Xerxes mvaded Greece. We must therefore conceive, that the principal intention of collecting so large a fleet, was to secure a supply of provisions, whilst the army might remain in the neighbourhood of the Euxine and MflBotis ; and which, no doubt, might have been accomplished, so long as the army could preserve a communication with the coast. The Greek colonists along the Euxine were probably compelled to assist in this department ; to which it may be supposed their habits of life rendered them more competent than the Persians themselves.
Another use of the fleet, was obviously to waft the . army and its equipage across the wide rivers of Thrace and Scy thia ; which may even be collected from the history of the bridge over the Danube. And although this latter was left standing, as has been before re- lated, by which the Persians must, of course, have lost the immediate use of the vessels that composed it, yet these unquestionably were of the smaller kind, as may be inferred from the number used on a sub- sequent occasion by Xerxes. Nor could they have been very numerous either. Perhaps of the whole number might have sufficed.
* The fleet of Xerxes, employed in die invasion of Greece, con- sisted of dOOO sliips.
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152 EXPEDITION OF DARIUS HYSTASPS8
It seems to be clear, by Melpom. 89, tbat only a
detnchment of the fleet was sent to the Danube : and that it was sent whilst the bridge over the Bos- pbonis yet remained. In effect, no other intention can well be supposed, in assembling «o targe a fleet, but the supply of the army in the enemy's country ; nor would the purpose have been defeated, by the proportion of vessels left in the Danube.
As the bridges thrown across the Botphorus and Hellespont, by Darius Htstaspbs and his son and successor Xerxes, have been very much the subject of history and conversation, we shall mention some cir- cumstances relating to them in this place. ^
Caneeming the Bridges thrown across the Bos* phorus and Hellespont, by Darius Hystaspes^ and Xerxes.
These bridges, as being intended to serve the pur- poses of different expeditious, were placed in situa- tions widely distant from each other : that of Darius^ which was for the purpose of transporting his army into Scythia, through Thrace, by the right, was laid across the Bosphoms, now called the Canal of Coti- stantinople ; whilst that of Xerxes, which was to pass his army into Greece, through the same country of Thrace, by the left, was thrown across the HeUes- pont, now the passage of llie Dardanelles*. The
' This name was derived fiom the neighbouring city of Dor- danut, which Herodotus says was very near to Abydos. Polym. 43.
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bridges therefore were about 150 miles asunder, and the sea of Marmora (or the Propontis) lay between them: but notwithstanding the positions of the bridges, the roads taken by these di£ferent princes through Thrace must have approached within about half that distance of each other : and had it been a matter of indifference to Xerxes, whether he took the right or the left hand road^ through Asia Minor, it would have been a measure of greater security^ as well as of facility, to have laid his bridge over the Bosphorus, the narrowest and least exposed of the two straits, than over the Hellespont ; since he was determined, at all events, to pass into Europe oyer a bridge. See the Map, No. IV. opposite.
But these works appear to partake infinitely more of vain-glory than of use : like that of cutting through the Isthmus of Mount Athos, instead of drawing the vessels across (if they were dubious of being able to sail round it) ; which is remarked by our author, in Polym. 24.
Alexander was by no means emulous of the fame of Darius, or of Xerxes, in this point : being content with transporting his army across the Hellespont, in
vessels navigated in the usual way. And it must appear to every person, that in a strait, narrow enough to admit of a bridge, vessels might be drawn across with ropes, so as to land an army in a mode almost equally effectual, with that afforded by a bridge : and, considered in respect of delay and ex- pence, on much easier terms, than would be required to place the vessels in a permanent form* If there could be found a reason to justify the pro-
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ject of a bridge, it would have been that of expected resistance ; which might make it necessary to pour great numbers at once on the opposite shore : but circmnstanoes were 00 totally different, that, whilst Xerxes transported, over a bridge, an army, whose numbers are reported too great to admit of behef, into a country where there were none on the spot to oppose it; Alexander, on the contrary, trans- ported a oomparatiyely small army, in vessels, into a hostile country, where incredible numbers were pre- pared to oppose him. In every point of view, then, these magnificent plans occasioned a waste of labour ; and of wealth, the means of war ; only to accomplish an ordinary purpose, in such a way as to strike the vulgar in all ages with astonishment. For Alex- ander, and after him the Ottomans, crossed these straits with less parade, but with infinitely more effect, than the Persiaiis.
Herodotus, after descrihmg the Bosphorus of Thrace, (as well as the Propontis, Hellespont, and Euxine ; Melpom. 85, et seq,) says, that it is about lao stadia in length, and four wide at the entrance (into the Euxine He also says, 87, I conjecture that the bridge was placed nearly midway between Byzantium and the temple, at the entrance of the Euxine." And although he seems to speak, in 85, as if the bridge had been at Chalcedon, yet it must only be taken for a loose and general way of speak- ing ; Chalcedon being the nearest town of note to
* Polybius, lib. it. c. 5, says that the narrow part is five itadis in breadth: PUny, iv. c. 12, says fimr stadia.
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the bridge. " Darius (says he) marched from Susa to where the bridge had been thrown over the Bos- phonu at Chakedon." Here he spoke generaUy; in the other case, critically. Besides, Chalcedon is situated hetjond the opening of the Bosphorus into the Propontis ; and has an expanse of water of more than double the breadth of the Bosphoru8» between it and Constantinople ^
M. Tournefort thought the narrowest part of the canal was at the old castles ; which appear to be about i of the way from Constantinople towards the Eiudne : bat« he adds^ that the canal is very nearbf as narrow at a place within a mile and a half of tlM seraglio. Now, he guessed the narrowest part to be 800 paces in breadth : but whether he means double steps, that Is, the return of the same foot, or single steps, is not told : it is certain that the latter alone can be inferred, from the circumstances of tlie case
Mr. Gibbon, who may be supposed to have con- sulted many modern authorities, says 500 paces ; which, being probably meant for tiiose of five feet, according to his usual mode of reckoning, give 2,500 feet And as we take the four stades of He- rodotus at about 500 feet each^ giving an aggregate of about 2,000, the difference between these two ae* counts is not very great Many persons may be sur-
• For the particular geography of the two straits, and the po- sitions of tlie bridges, the reader is referred to the opposite Map.
• Vol. ii. Letter 8. It is obvious that 800 paces of 2| feet will agree generally with the reports of Pliny and Herodotus,
• Vol. iii. p. 6,
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prised at finding such differences amongst well in- formed men ; but the trutli is, tliat guesses concern- iog the breadth of rivers and straits are so exceedingly yagae, that it is difficult to determine what authority to adopt. In the present case, it seems that we may adopt tlie four stades of oar author, and fix the place of the bridge at the old castles.
By the descriptions of the Bosphanu, it would appear^ on the whole, laying out of the question the magnificent scenery on the side towards Constanti- nople, that it is not ill represented by our Menai, the beautiful arm of the sea that separates Anglesea from the main island
Concerning the mode of constructing the bridge over this canal, there are no particulars : hut as our historian has given a very particular account of that thrown over the Hellespont, not many years after- wards, the reader may easily form an idea, how the other was made ; having regard only to this circum- stance, that the Hellespont was so much wider and more exposed, particularly to the wind termed liel- lespontian % than the other, that greater precautions were necessary to its preservation: and it may be, that the vessels were placed much nearer to each other.
There seems to be no question, that the bridge of Xerxes, or rather bribes, (for there were two,)
' This- strait appeared to the Author's judgment, from cross- ing it, as weU as firom viewing it from both sides, to be about \ of a mile broad at Bangor ferry, the narrowest part that he saw.
* That is, a strong eotterly wind, (Polym. 188,) or what the seamen call in modem times, a Levanitr,
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over the Hellespont, were placed at the narrowest part of the strait, fourteen or fifteen miles above the entrance, from the Egean sea; and at no great dis- tance to the northward of the old castles of the Dar-
(lanelles; (as they are called, in contradistinction to the new castles, at the entrance ^) At this part of the strait stood the city of Sestos, on the European side ; Abydo9 on that of Asia : but not oi)posite to each other, because the distance between them was thirty stadia, Strabo, p. 591 ; and the strait itself not above a mile wide, at the utmost.
It seems to be allowed, that the site of Sestos is marked by the ruins of Zemenie, the first town taken by the Turks when they passed over into Europe, under Orkhan, about 1356. (D'Anville Geog. An^ cienne. Vol. i. 289 ; and Tournefort, Vol. ii. letter 4i\) Abydos is also marked by other ruins, not far from the point of Nagara ; Geog. Anc. ii. 13. Again, Maita, situated on the European side, at a few miles from Zemenie, towards the entrance of the Darda- nelles, and beyond Abydos, appears to be the Ma^ dytis of Herodotus ; Polym. 33 ; where he says that the coast of the Thraclan Chersonesus is rough and woody in that part.
The narrowest part of the passage appearii to be nearest to, though by no means ai, the ruins taken
• The new castles, at the entrance from the Archipelago, are more than four mfles asunder. Toumefort.
' Zememe, in a very useful Map of the Propontis, and the two Straits, published by Mr. Faden, in 1786, is placed about fire miles above Sestos, and at the wide part of the Hellespont. We know not the authority for ito position.
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for those of Abydos : but our author speaks as if one end of the bridge or bridges, had actually been placed there ; for he says, Polym. 34, that the strait u seven stadia in breadth, at Abydos ; and in Melpom. 85, he assigns this breadth to the narrowest part of the strait. Strabo places the bridges where they no doubt stood, between the two cities of Sestos and Abjdos; but not adjoining to either; page 591. And we conclude, that they extended from different parts of the point, or rather promontory, of Nagara, to the nearest part of the opposite shore. This part is spoken of^ by the ancient authors, (Polybius in par- ticular,) as the ordinary pass over the Hellespont : and it seems to have been equally in use in modem times, by what is said above, concerning the invasion of Europe by the Ottomans.
The ancients agree, almost universally, in repre- senting the breadth of this strait to be seven stadui, at the narrowest part. Herodotus says so, in Melp. 85, and repeats it, Polym. 34. Strabo also, in p. 591 : Pliny, in lib. iv. c. 12 ; and in vi. 1, he gives 875 paces, which are eqnal to seven Roman stades, or { of a mile. Polybius, lib. zvi. c. 7, allows only two stadia ; but it may be suspected that the text is corrupted. Procopius, who had a good opportunity of viewing it, is silent.
Of the modem authorities, M. Touraefort, Vol. iL letter 4, without giving any positive notices, appears to allow it the breadth of a mile. Dr. Pococke only gives it, on the autliority of the ancients, at seven stadia; which, however, implies that he admitted it : and as he seems to conrider a stade, at all times,
IS
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as the eighth part of a mile, tins differs but little firom the other authorities. (He reckons the Hel- lespont twenty-six miles in length.)
But Mr, Gibbon allows no more than 500 paces; that is, the same as he allows to the Bosphoras. The ancients evidently meant to describe a broader strait here than at the Bosphorus of Thrace ^
It is remarkable that the above celebrated author should have adopted this idea of the breadth of the strmtf against the statements of the most celebrated of the ancient geograpliers, and which are not con- tradicted by the moderns in general; and it is also remarkable^ that he should censure M, D'Anville (perhaps in'some instances justly,) for being too fond of imaginary measures, for the purpose of ren- dering ancient writers as accurate as /liinself,** (Vol. iii. page 9,) whilst, at the same time, he has in fact adopted the scale of M. D'Anville's stade, on tins very occasion. This great geographer had an idea that the ancients had a stade of 51 toises, or about 330 English feet, (Mes. Itin. p. 69, et seq,) and which he has applied to the dimensions of Bar bylon, &c. It is obvious that seven such stadia are equal to about 500 paces, or half a Roman mile, which is the breadth allowed by Mr. Gibbon.
' If the term BotjpikofUi has been properly applied to the canal of Constantinople, as the measure of dutanoe which an ok may widi fiwility swim, it cannot have been well iqpplicd to the Cimmerum strait, which is not only wider than the Dardanelles, hut is even three English miles bioad, at the place where the lands approach nearest to each other, at Jemkak; and about one and ahalf where straitened by the chain of idands, opposite to the battery near KtrUcK
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If the number of veaaeh used in the constraction
of the bridges could be depended on, one must sup- pose the narrow part of the strait to be about an Enghsh mile in breadth, which goes but little beyond Pococke*8 idea, and agrees with that of Toumefort : but goes beyond that of Herodotus, even if he in- tended a stade of 600 Grecian feet, by more than 1,000 feet.
It is not likely tliat ever we shall have a true state- ment of the breadth of this strait, since any attempt to ascertain it by measurement, would subject the
operator (who must necessarily be an European) to great hazard : and the guesses of people, as we have said before, are too vague to be depended on ; espe- cially as no opportunity offers, (that we know of,) of traversing it from side to side
The description of the famous bridge of Xerxes is given in a note from our Author ; but how circum- stantially soever given, it is by no means dear \ Two
' One of the best opportunities that has ever occurred leems to have been neglected. Baron Tott, himself an engineer, and entrusted by the Turks w ith the examination of the defences of the DardaneUest by which he ought to have been possessed of the certain means of determining the question, says, that the narrow part of the strait is 300 or l-OO toises hroad. How in- accurate for an engineer! The highest evaluation of this distance is less than half a mile.
Since the above was written a Rossxak squadron has passed the Dardanelles!
* ** They connected together ships of different kinds, some kng vesseb of fifty oars, others three-banked gallies, to the number of S60 on Uie side towards the Euxine sea, and SIS on that of the Hellespont. The former of these were placed trans-
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distiJict brifff^es, each consisting of a line of ships, are intended by the description : for one is said to be towards the Euxiney the other towards the Uel- lespont^ or iBgean sea. They were, moreoTer, ap- plied to different uses ; the first being for the army in general, the other for the followers, and beasts of burthen ; Polym. 55. Thus far is clear ; as well as the mode of completing the ways over the vessels on which they rested ; but the deposition of the. vessels in one of the lines is ambiguous, because an idea is given that the vessels in it were placed length- wise across the strait ; whilst those in the otJier line
▼endy» bat the latter, to diminuh (he straui ttpon the CBbleB, in the direedon of the current*'— When these Teneh were firmly connected to each other, they were secured on each side by an« chors of great length ; on the upper side, because of the winds which set in from the Euzine ; on die lower, towards the JEgean sea, on account of the south and soudi-east winds. They left, however, openings in three places, sufficient to affinrd a passage for light vessels, which might have occasion to sail into the Euxine, or from it : having perfbrmed this, they extended cablet ftom the shore, stretching them upon huge capstans of wood ; for this purpose they did not employ a number of separate cables, but united two of white flax with four of biblos. These were alike in thickness, and apparendy so in goodness, but those of flax were in propordon much the more solid, weighing not less dnn a talent to every cubit When the pass was thus secured, diey sawed out rafters of wood, making dieir length equal to the space required for the bridge ; these they laid in order across upon the extended cables, and then bound them ftist togedier. They next brought unwrought wood, which they placed very re- gularly upon the rafters; over aU they threw earth, which they raised to a proper height, and finished aU by a fence on each side, that the horses and other beasts of burthen might not be terrified by looking down on the sea." Folym. 36. TOL. I. M
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were placed side by side^ or with their length pa-- rallel to the strait. The latter appears perfectly rational ; the other highly improbable ; becaiue a strong current preroils for the most part, the water flowing out of the Euxine into the PropontU and Mediterranean ; and more particularly when north- erly winds prevail ; so that it would be difficult to keep ships in their stations when presenting their broadddct to the wind and current*. Besides, it requires littie argument to prove that this arrange- ment would have been the most inconvenient possible for a bridge, could it have been rendered permanent.
Some other meaning, therefore, must be sought for, not only from the improbability of so flagrant a de- parture from the dictates of common sense and ex- perience, but because that the numbers in the two Unes differ no more than a 7th or 8th part. Now, it is well known, that even the c^ips of this time are aboutybflcr times as long as they are broad in their upper works : and there is reason to believe, from
' Tbii current, as wchavc seen, Polymnia, c. 36, is spoken of 'in very general terms by Herodotus. It is also mentionetl by travellers ; and its effect, in preventing ships from entering tbe Dardanelles fircMU tbe south, when a contrary wind prevails, is iluniliarly known to seamen. M. Tournefort thus speaks of it :
** The waters that pass through this canal, from out of the Propontis, are as n^idas if they flowed beneath a bridge : when the north wind blows, no ship can enter ; but when it is from the south, you hardly perceive any current." Vol. ii. lett. 4.
The current in the canal of Constantinople ( Boapkorus) is still stronger, as the stream formed of tbe surplus waters of the Euxine is more confined there than in the Uellespoiit. Ibid, letter S.
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the dimensions of some ancient ships, left on record, that these were at least^i?^, if not Jive and a half, times as long as they were broad. We shall here detain the reader a moment, in order to explain our ideas respecting certain properties of the ancient ships^ which apply more particularly to the present argument.
It has been said that the ancient ships (of the Greeks, &c.) were very mneh longer in proportion
to their breadth, than the modern ones. We would here be understood to mean the ships of war, which from their proportions were styled long ships, in contradistinction to the merdiant ships, whose swell* mg forms, which were better adapted to stowage, gave occasion to their being called round ships. It may be conceived that these were of much the same proportional dimennons with onrs, in respect of length and breadth, but had bottoms neariy flat
But the fighting ships required a degree of velo- city at the moment of attack : and, as the mode of warfare might require it to be exerted in any line of duection^ perhaps opposite to that of the wind, no- thing could accomplish this velocity but the applica- tion of oars. It therefore became necessary to in- crease the length of the ship, to the utmost bounds of safety, in order to gain room for such a number of oars, as were reqmred to put so great a body in mo- tion. And hence, doubtless, the origin of the long ship, whose dimensions appeared so singular as to call for the term, which was with so much propriety applied to it The proportional dimensions would idso have the e£kct of enabling them to divide the
m2
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fluid, with greater ease, in proportion to the impulse
of the oars ; or of the sails, w hen sailing" before the wind : but it may be observed, by the representations of ancient ships, (and which appear to be generally ships of war,) that they spread an exceeding small proportion of sail, which was doubtless owing to their want of breadtli. Tliis defect, togctlicr with the flatness of the bottom, rendered them unfit to ply to windward ; so that when they wanted to pro- ceed in that line of direction, the oars were the only means of accomplishing it. When sailing before the wind the flatness had its advantages.
It may be conceived that no ships, at any period of the world s age, were able to spread so much canvas * in proportion to their length, as at present : a proof that the ancients were very far behind in naval science. The invention of artillery has certainly in- creased the dimensions of ships of war ; but the pro-
* It may justly be suspected that our ships are very much over-masted : as a proof of it, ships with jury masts sail as weU under ordinary circumstances as with what are termed proper masts. In light winds, it is certain that too much canvas cannot be spread : but, in this stage of improvement, cannot temporary sails be invented, so as, in some measure, to compensate the de- fect ? The savings, in ])oint of stores, would be immense ; in the wear of si lips, incalculable!
It is well known, (hat on emergeitete*, when the wind is light, boats may be used for towing : and the velocity communicated by the oars of the boats of a ship of war, will far overbalance the loss occasioned by sails of reduced dimensions.
Vitruvius has said, that it is better to have a house too maU for a day than too big for a year : is not this saying in some measure applicable to the present subject ?
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gress of improvement has even far outstripped the increase of bulk.
It would be unnecessary to insist any farther on the flatness of those vessels. But it maybe re- mafkedy that the hmg ships of Nearchus, built by Alexander in the Panjab, descended the Indus, and its adjacent rivers, in which tliere must have been a great many shallow places. They also entered tide harbours on the coast of Persia, in which there is no great depth of water. And moreover, both these, and the ships of Xerxes, were frequently drawn ashore; which circumstance proves at once the flatness of their bottoms, and their confined dimen* rions.
There is a passage in Polybius (lib. iv. c. 5.) which implies, that the large ships of his time (some of which carried 420 men), drew about 15 feet of water only. We now return to our proper subject
Since the Hellespont, in the neighbourhood of Abydos, lias a very considerable bend in its course, first running northward from Abydos towards Sestos, and then taking a pretty sharp turn to the east- ward ; may it not have been, that the two lines of ships were disposed on different sides of the an<j!;le just mentioned, by which it might truly be said, that the ships in one line presented their heads to the Ettxine, the other their sides, although the heads of both were presented to the current ? The different numbers in the two lines certainly indicate different breadths of the strait, and which can only be ac- counted for, by their being at some distance from
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each other : for it cannot be supposed that the Hne
was placed obliquely across the strait.
The cables extended from each shore, appear to have been for , the sole purpose of supporting the bridge^aifs. The ships were kept in their places by anchors ahead and astern ; by the lateral pres- sure of each other, and by side fastenings.
It remains that something should be said concern- ing the space occupied by the ships, according to the numbers given in the text ; and its supposed pro* portion to the breadth of the strait.
The numbers given are 360 in one line, 313, or 314, in the other. Let it be admitted that the dif- ference arises ehi^y from the different breadths of the strait, which might be many hundred feet wider at one bridge than at the other. But if it was no wider at the narrowest part than 7 stadia, say 3,500 feet, the vessels ought not to have been broader than II feet; in other words, the dimensions of a harge : and it appears that the bridge was eyidently com- posed of vessels of a larger class than that, although it may be difEcuit to fix the determinate size of them.
In Polym. 21, it is said that long ships were prepared to serve as bridges which implies that
they were of a different kind from tlie ot/icr ships, mentioned in the sama article ; wliich were ships of war, (implied to be veri/ large, and of which there were a great number in the fleet) ; tramsporie for cavalry and troops, and proviaion vessels. Now, in Polym. 184, there is a class of vessels of 50 ours.
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manned with SO men only, and which were the smallest class ci fighting ships ; the largest having
crews of 230 These then, we must suppose to have been chiefly used in the construction of the bridges: for it is expressly said, Polym. 36, that those of 50 oars were made use of : and it is eyident, that li the mws consisted of no more than 80, the cars in general must have been managed single- handed. And it may be inferred, tliat a vessel moved by this power, could not have been of very great dimensions. Moreover, the ancients crowded their crews into a very small space ; as is shewn by the small depth of water required to float the ships of Nearchus; so that, taking all circumstances into eonrideration, it may be concluded, that these ves- sds wece 4>f no greater dimensions than 80 to 100 tons : that they were very narrow, in proportion to their length ; and might not be more than 15 to 16 feet broad.
We are aware that three'baiiked gallics were also used in the bridge : but as the others are expressly
said to be intended for the purpose of bridges, it may be supposed that only a few large ships were used ;
' Perhaps, to bring the matter nearer to our own ideas, the ships, with crews of may be regarded as line of battle ; those of 80, as frigates and sloops of Tvar. But the Romans and Carthaginians, in the great contest for naval dominiont had crews of 4 .'0, of which 120 were soldiers, or marines.
It appears from Polym. 97, that a great j)r()portion of the fleet of Xerxes, wliich consisted altogether of 3,000 vessels, were of 30 and 50 oars : and that the fighting ships of this fleet were in number about 1200. Polym. 184.
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and that, to aooomplbh a purpose, which cannot, at this distance of time, he understood : for it appears evident, that the former size of vessels was fully equal to the superincumbent weight of the bridge- ways, and as many men, horses, or carriages, as could stand on them at a time ; exclusive of the ne- cessary quantity of ballast to keep them steady : and therefore a larger kind was not required The Hellespont has not an expanse of water sufficient to admit of any very great agitation from the winds, and in particular from the southern quarter, where alone, from its blowing in opposition to the current, a dangerous wave might have been raised, had the conformation of the strait been different". «
It is certain that 313 vessels of 15 to 16 feet in breadth would occupy a space equal to about 4,850 feet, or about 400 feet short of an English mile. And if there was any proportion of large vessels
' When boats or pontoons are placed close together, at happened hertt those of a very moderate size will sufHcc, in re« spect of any weight that could be required to be laid on them. Witness the ordinary jinntoomt used in war, and in bridges of communication. Coal barges are equal to any purpose of this kind, where there is no great agitation of the water, although placed at some distance apart. It may be urged that, in the pre- sent case, the situation required close, or decked vessels ; and it is certain that something must be allowed on this score, where the breadth was a mile, or thereabouts, and at times a current ; but we are of opinion, notwithstanding, that Yeasels of the siae of the smallest coasting crqfiy were adequate to such a purpose.
• If the direction of the wind had been mentioned, one might have guessed the position of Xerxes's first bridge, which was de- stroyed by a tempest.
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amongst them, the required space wonid probably be increased to a full mile. Therefore, at all events, it must be allowed, that there is no great difierence between the ealeulatian of the space occupied by the vessels^ taken on a reasonable footing, and the allowed breadth of the strait, by those who have seen it ; which appears to be from I of a mile, to a mile : for whatsoever the length of the stadium of Herodotus may have been. Dr. Pococke certainly meant by his stade, the eighth of a mile. And thus we close our speculations on this project, which may be classed with many other of the follies, wrought by those, who having at their disposal the labour of •myriads, employed it to a useless purpose.
It may well be supposed that the success of Darius Hystaspes, in making his bridge over the Bosphorus, encouraged his son Xerxes to try a like experiment on the Hellespont ; where the greater breadth of the sea, and the exposure of the situation, rendered it a more difficult task.
Of the bridge of Darius across the Danube no description is given. It is probable that it could not have been of less extent than that at the Bosphorus ; but from the regular and constant stream of the river, the vessels could with more ease be kept in their stations, than in a place where the current would ofiten be so slack, as to allow the force of the wind to preponderate.
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SECTION VII.
OF THE COUNTRIES SITUATED BEYOND THE EUXINB SCYTHIA> TO TUB EASTWARD AMD NORTH-EASTWARD.
Natiofis, or Tribes, situated beyond Scythia — lyrca? or rurcae — Seceding Royal Scythians — Argippcci — Issecloncs, Arimas- pians, and Gryphins — The Issedoiies nnsiver to the Olgurs, Yugurcs, or Eluths — Error of Herodotus in piacinir the Issc- dones opposite to the Massngeta- — Arn\ Lake mistaken for a part of the Caspian Sea — Arnippcci and Arimaspi placed: the former at the tnounlains of the Great Steppe ; the latter at the Altaian, or Golden Mountains — The Gold of the Arimaspi derived from the province of Kolyvan, bordering on Altai — Seceding Scythians supjwsed to have inhabited the Desht Kipzak, and part of the Great Steppe — Turcic, or lyrca;, taken for the Torgauti — Ripha;an Mountains — Altaian Moun- tainSj the extreme boundary of tJic knowledge of Herodotus, eastward. — Particulars respecting the Argippatji and Isse- dones : the former celebrated for their probity ; the latter a poUshed people — Arimaspian Verses — Herodotui in doubt concerning the Northern and Eastern Boundary of Europe ; and silent ctmeermng the Southern Boundary — Northern Ocean — Hyperboreans— -Cotiit^r^ and Rampart <jf Gog and Magog —An imjnUed error of Herodotus done away — Hyperboreans tend offerings to Delos. — Melancholy fate of Travellers, who perish in a foreign land, whilst in pursuit of knowledge — Com^ nnmication between individuals of distant naltOfM» to be encou- raged.— Apology for harmlets Superttilum m wu^formed nundt — General Obtervatioiu.
We shall next endeavour to collect the ideas of Hero- dotus respecting the countries situated beyond the
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Western^ or Euzme Sqrtlua ; as also conooming tbe
north part of Europe generally ; and the tract which^ from its relative situation, was named the country of the Hyperboreans. It must he recollected ibaty aeoording to his system^ aU of the above tracts were Incloded in Eorofb ; since tbe Colcbian Pbasis, and tbe country of the ^lassagetac, were by him re- garded as the northern frontiers of Asia.
It has been suggested, that Herodotus derived bis knowledge of Scytbia, in a great measure^ from the history of tbe Expedition of Darius, which must then have been fresh in the memories of the Greeks settled on tbe borders of the Euxine. And when it is far- ther remarked, that the TkyuageUe are the last people, whose country is particularly described, and placed ; that opinion receives additional strength : for the Thyssagetae were situated at the extreme boundary of his expedition, eastward.
Beyond the Thyasagetss (eastward; for so it must be understood by the context : for immediately afterwards our Author, speaking of the Royal Scy- thians who had seceded from the others, says, ad- vancing from this people still nearer to the east/') were the Iyrgb, who, like the Thyssagetae, lived by the chase. Melpom.22'.
The lloyal Scythians, who had seceded from those at the Euxine, established themselves, as we have just seen, on tbe ewt of the Jyrem ; but no parti- culars conoemmg them are given.
' The reader is referred to the Blaps Nos. II. and V. for an explaoatioii of the actual geogn^y of this quarter : and to No. I. Ibr our Audior*8 ideas of the relative positions.
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172 COUNTRIES BEYOND EUXINE 8CYTH1A.
Thus fiir," coutinues our Author, Melp. 28, the whole country is flat, and the soil excellent ; hut
beyond these Scythians, it becomes barren and stony. After travelling over a considerable space, a people are found living at the foot of some lofty maimtains — ^these are called AMBrnMu" He far- ther observes, Melp. 24, that, as as the Argip- pcei, the knowledge of the country is clear and satis- factory, and may be obtained from the Scythians, who have frequent communication with them : from the Greeks of the port on the Borysthenes, and from many other places of trade on the Euxine. As these nations have seven different languages, the Scythians, who communicate with them, have occasion for as many mterpreters."
Beyond the Argippaei, no certain intelligence is to be had ; a chain of lofty and inaccessible moun- tains precluding all discovery. — To the east of the Argippaei, it is beyond all doubt that the country is possessed by the Issedonbb ; but beyond them, to the north, neither the Issedones nor the Argippaei know any thing more than I have already related ;** Melpom. 25. " The Issedones themselves aiHrm, that the country beyond them, (we conclude that to the eastward \& meant) b inhabited by a race of men who have but one eye ; and by Gryphins, who are guardians of the gold. — Such is the information which the Scythians have from the Issedones, and we from the Scythians : in the Scythian tongue they are called Arimaspians, from Arima, the Scythian word for one ; and spUy an eye!' Melpom. 27.
Thus we collect the extent of the knowledge of
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Herodotus, eastward, in the parallel of Western Scythia; but as we have no scale of distance by which to regulate either the positions of the several intennediate nations, or of the most remote one, all is left to conjecture, in our Author. Others, how- ever, throw some light on the position of the country of the Issedones ; and Ptolemy, in particular. His knowledge of the detail of the eastern geography was extensive in this quarter. . By him the Issedones are so placed as to answer to the Oici its, or Yugures, who inhabit the proper seat of the Kalmucs ; border- ing immediately on the north-east of Casta, which latter is easily recognized in the country of Kiuhgur. (See Memoir of the Map of Hindoostan, section III.) The G'jchardfe of this author, which name designs a nation or people in the region of S erica S and be- tween the Issedones of Scythia and those of Serica, has a near affinity in sound to Oigur, and strengthens the supposition.
It is certain that the space between the seats of the Thyssagetae, and of the Issedones^ appears on the map to be much too large to have been occupied by the three nations alone, described by Herodotus ; it being about 1200 G. miles. But accuracy is not to be expected in this case ; and it may be that some tribes are omitted. It must not, however, be for- gotten, that they were pastoral tribes, and required a great deal of room.
Herodotus himself supposed, that the Issedones
' The country from whence the Romans had their silk ; and the silk its mme. See Ptolemy's Asia, Tab. vii. and ▼iii.
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were situated opposite to the Massagetcc, who were at the east of the Caspian Sea, or rather Aral ^ ; but the Issedones were, as will appear, very mueh farther to the east Again, Pliny supposed hoth them and the Arimaspiana to be at no great distance from the Maeotis and Tanais, lib. iv. c. 12 : but probably neitlier of these authors had any rule for placing them : and it is to be remarked of Pliny, that his geography carries erery thing too fiur to the west in this quarter ^
Herodotus thus expresses himself respecting the Isscdones and Massagetae ; Clio, 201.
" The Massagete, a great and powerful nation, whose territories extend beyond the river Araxes (meaning the Jaxartes ), to the extreme parts of the east, — are opposite to the Isscdones ; and are by some esteemed a Scythian nation." And, in 204, he says, that the Massagetie inhabit a considerable part of a vast plain, which bounds the Caspian (or rather Aral), on the east." So that we fix the Mas- sagetie in the great plain occupied by the Middle Horde of the Kirgees, adjacent to the river Sirr, or rather Sirt, which is the Jaxartes. Our Author, as has been said, supposed the Issedones to be situated OPPOSITE to the Masbugctaj, which, by the context,
* In all the works of the European geographers, as well an- cient as modern, to the present century, the Aral sea must be understood to be included in the Caspian : since they knew but of one expanse of water, in that qiiarter ; for the Cyrus and Araxes, the Oxus and Jaxarfcs, were all supposed to fall into the sanje sea. The Arahian and Persian geographers, on the contrary, tliscriminated them from the earliest times.
* More will be said on this subject in the sequel.
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can only be understood to the north, or under the same meridian : for, in tracing the chain of tribes, or nations, from the Tanais to the Isaedones, he evi- dently proceeds easiward, and speaks of the plain of the Massageta?, as a position, opposite to some point in that chain. Moreover, in tracing this chain, he keeps wide to the north of tlie Caspian, and con* eludes with saying, that nothing is eeriandf Umwm beyond the Issedones. Now, having said that the Massagetae extended eastward, indefinitely, from the borders of the Caspian, and the banks of the Jaxartes, they could not be situated to the eoii of the Issedones, beyond whom, he had just said, nothmg certain was known. The inference clearly is, that, by opposite^ was meant in the same meri- dian : and that, in his idea, the Massagetas lay to the SOUTH, abng the Aral and Jazartes ; the Issedones to the NOSTH, and about the parallel of the Thyssa* get« : and by the obvious result of the statement of his geography of Scythia (page 66, et seq,) the mouth of the Tanais must, in the idea of Herodotus, have been as hig^ as the parallel of 50^, and the ThyssagetaB in 53' at least.
His chain of positions, therefore, may be regarded as extending in an east direction, from the Thyssa- get» to the Issedones ; so that these latter could not (in his idea) be lower than 53^ But the Massa- getfc, who are said to occupy the same parallel with tlie Caspian, must have been several degrees to the south of the Issedones. For the Caspian is described in Clio, 203, to have Mount Qaueasus on the west : and therefiore the parallel passing through the centre
13
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of that sea, may be taken for the same as that of
Colchis : that is, 42 to 43°. Again, according to the dimensions of the same sea^ in 203, it ought not to extend northward, beyond 47^ : and the Mas8aget»» who are stated to be on the easi side, must conse- quently have been hehw 47^ Such was the idea of our Author ; to explain which, is the object in view : but the truth is, that the Issedones lay almost di* rectly east firom the Massagetas; and, at a still greater distance from them, than was supposed to intervene.
Thus we ascertain a geographical position in the supposed extension of Europe eastwards, by Hero- dotus, in that of the Issedones ; who may be re- garded as the ancestors of the people now denomi- nated OiGURs or YuGUREs, by the Tartars ; Eluts, or Eluths, by the Chiihese, (They have also a va- riety of other names ; see Mr. Tooke s Russia, Vol. iv.) Much more will be said of them in the sequeL They are a tribe of Kalmucs ; we believe the princi- pal one amongst them : and possess the original and proper seat of the Kalmucs ; subject however to the Emperor of China. And thus the error in distance made by Herodotus, may be appreciated ; and may be reckoned at about 500 G. miles : the Issedones being so much farther to the east, than he supposed.
According to this arrangement, the Ariinaspians, the most remote nation, eastward, known to Hero- dotus, may be supposed to be situated in the same meridian with the source of the Indus. We shall now inquire, how far any of the nations above re- cited, besides the Issedones, are known in history ;
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and also how far they can be placed in a geogra- phical arrangement.
The Argipp^i of our Author, whose position is short of the Issedones ; and tha Arinuupi, who are rituated neict heyond them, shall first he considered.
The Argippaei, then, are said, Melpom. 23 and 25, to be situated at the foot of certain Iqfty moun- tainsy which preclude all discovery ; ( northward : for the Issedones are known to lie beyond them/ to the east ;) and the country is said to he flat, and the soil goody to this poirit, in coming from the west- ward; but now becomes barren and stony: more- over, as we have seen, the Issedones begin on the east of the Argippaei.
We regard the Argippaei, then, as the people who inhabited the eastern part of the Great Steppe; bordering northward on the great chain of moun-^ tuns, that divides the Steppe from SE to NW, and which separates the northern from the southern wa- ters, in that quarter. It is a marked feature in the geography ; and is described by the Arabian geo- graphers to be remarkably lofty, steep, and difficult of access ; agreeing to the description in our Author*.
The Argippaji would also border, eastward, on the mountains that separate the Oigur country from the Steppe : or which perhaps, with more propriety, may be regarded as tiie western declivity of the ele-
* These motmtaintwIU be bereafter spoken as the touthem (or SW) boundary of the country of Jajuje and Majujc ( Gog and Magog ), according to the Arabian geographers. They ap- pear to be also the continuation, eastward, of the Rtpk^ean mountaina of Ptolemy.
VOL. I. N
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▼ated region inhabited by tbe Kalmuc Elutbs. A
part of these mountains are named Arga, and Argia, in Strahlenberg, and the Map of Russia*
According to these suppositions, the Argippaei must have occupied the northern part of the tract, now in the possession of the Greater or Eastern Horde of the Kirgees ; who are dependant on China, as the Middle and Western Hordes are on Russia.
It is certain that in the above adjustment of the situation of the Argippa^i, one striking circumstance in the description of our Author, is wanting ; namely, the continuation of Jlat country, from the Thyssa- getae, to the situation in question. But, it should be recollected, that no particular accuracy can, in this case, be expected : and that the very great ex- tent of the level Steppe, may be allowed to justify him in the supposition, that the face of the country was the same throughout.
The Arimaspians, who are fabled to have bad but one eye (Mel})oin. 13 and 27, and Thalia, 116), are said to take the gold violently from the Geyfuins, who guarded it ; and with which the country was said to abound. These Arimaspians, who are placed by our Author beyond, that is, to the eastward of, the Issedones, seem to have inhabited Mount Altai (which is to be regarded rather as a region^ than a mere ri^e of mountains), from whence the rivers of Irtish and Oby flow ; and which mountains are at no great distance beyond the Oigurs, whom we have just taken for the Issedones, It is possible, that the names of the tribes, in and about Mount Altai, may
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have been such, as to approach nearly to Arinuupia
and Gri/phifi ; and the Greeks or Scythians may have given them the sigoidcations above related. Herodotus has given reason to supposot Melp. 26, that the Issedones, as well as the Arimaspians, had plenty of gold amongst them : and the modem dis- coveries of the Russians prove, that the ancient people of this part of l?artary possessed much gold.
It has been shewn, page 142, that the ancient sepulchres towards the head of the Irtish contained much gold ; as also that the gold mines of Kolyvan, and the Altaian mountains, are situated in that • quarter. The latter are so named from Alta, a word which signifies gold in the Mongul and Kalmuc languages * : and there can be no doubt, but that the name has been given, from the quantity of gold found in the neighbourhood. The mountains of Altai appear both in the Map of Strahlenberg, and in the modem Map of Russia* In the former they are named Altai ; in the latter, CJialtaiy as well as Altai: and they either occupy a great extent of space, or different ranges of mountains are so named ; a seeming proof, that the precious metal is diffused over a considerable extent of country, in this quarter : and from the courses of the waters around it, the region of Altai seems to contain some of the highest ground in the centre of Asia. Now, firom all these curcumstances, it appears probable, that the country of the Grypliins or Gryphons, which abounded with gold, was that of Kolyvan :
* Mr. Tooke in the Archaeologia, toI. vii. p. ft%7*
n2
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COUNTRIES BEYOND EUXINB BCYTHIA.
and that the ArimaspianB were the people of the re- gion of Altai ; and who had the Oig^rs or Issedones
for neighbours, on the south. And thus we have endeavoured to reconcile this part of our Author s dudn of poeitionsy eastward.
There remain, then, to he considered, in the space between the Thyssagetae, who are supposed by us to have been seated on the west side of the Wolga ; and the Argippasi, who are supposed to have occu- pied the eastern part of the Great Steppe, or seat of the Eastern Kir gees ; the tribes of Iyrc€e, and the Seceding Rorjal Scythians. The space in reahty, seems too vast for two tribes only : and the circum- stance of there being only two tribes to be placed in his geography, may have led Herodotus, and after him Pliny, to place the Issedones as they have done, much too far to the west. But we cannot well doubt the position of the Thyssageta;, any more than that of the Issedones; and therefore may suspect,, that the information of Herodotus was imperfect; and that other tribes, not enumerated, were there, also. Certain it is, however, that the Kirgees tribes, do possess at present, the whole space between the Jaik \ and the former seats of the Issedones ; that
* The pro])er name of tin's river is Diaek^ although it l)e more commonly called Jaik, or Jack. In the geograpliy of Ptolemy, the Daix is the second river from the Rha (the Wolrra) towards tlie Jaxartes ; (Sirr or Sirt) the Rhymnicus beinu; next to the Wolga. But doubtless the Daix and Rhymnicus should change places ; for it cannot be supposed otherwise than that the Daix is intended for the Diaek. The Rhymnicus will then answer to the Yemba : and the mountains of that name to those of Ural.
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two parts in three> of the space between the Thyssagetse and the Issedones. But whether mat- ters were^ in this respect, the same then as now, we
know not.
If the Seceding Royal Scythians, who lay to the east of the Jyrea, and between them and the Arglppari, can be supposed (as Herodotus says), to possess the whole extent of the plain country, east- ward, their possessions would answer as nearly as possible to those of the middle, and lesser or (^west" em) horde of Kirgees; that u to say, the Desht Kipzak, and the western and greater part of the Steppe ; but as no idea of the space, any more than of the power, possessed by these Scythians, is given, it would be useless to reason on the subject ; espe- dally as we have already spoken fully on the sup- posed connection between these and the Scythians of the Mceotis, in page 100, et seq.
It is probable that our Author might liave had no idea of the extent of space that he had left, in the actual geography, to the three tribes of Tyrae, the Seceding Scythians^ and Argippa^i : and hence, doubtless, arose his error in supposing the Issedones to lie opposite to the Massagetae ; for he might per- haps have allowed to those three tribes, much the same space as to the three tribes on the west of them, between the Oarus (taken for the Wolga) and the Danube; and might have calculated that the space would reach as far eastward as the meridian of the Jaxartes .* and on this ground, declare that the Issedones were opposite to, or in the same meri- dian with, the Massagetas. If we are right, the
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cause of bis error seems to be satisfactorily ex- plained.
Since Pliny diflfers so widely from our Author, in his statement of certain of these positions, whilst he agrees so well in others, we shall ofier a word on this part of the subject.
After speaking of ft number of tribes, who inha- bited the tract beyond the MsBotis and Tanais, lib. vi. c. 7, he comes to the ThyssagctcB and Turccc ^ ; apparently the Tlujssageta; and Iijrcce of our Au- thor ; which tribes he places next to the deserts and hunting places : and beyond them all, the Arimplun, said to border on the Riphaan mountains. Now, the ancients appear to have applied the name Riphccau to different mountains, and perhaps to forests also. Ptolemy, Plinyt and Mela, placed a part of them at the head of the Tanais, where there seem to be no mountains, but vast forests only. The two latter place another part of the same chain at the head of the Jaik, admitting the Arimphcei to be there. But in fact, they do not seem to have had any dear ideas concerning theuL The Hyperborean mountains of Ptolemy, beyond the Wolga, agree better to our idea of the Riplusan : for as the Arimphssi of Pliny and of Mela are said to border on these mountains, east' ward; and on the Turcde westward: and tkese again, westward on the Thyssagetm ; it should be, that the mountains at the head of the Jaik (now named Ural J, are the liip/ueau; since Orenburgh
' Poinponius Mela also, has die Turc<e near the I'hyssagelne, lib. i. c.
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answers to the country of the Arimphaii. And this part of tlie chain must necessarily be very much ele- yated and conspicuotis ; since, from its neighbour- hood, the Tabol flows into the North sea, the Jaik and Yemha into the Caspian. We conceive that, from this point, tlie mountains intended by Riplia?an, passed to the north, between the waters of the Oby, Kama, Dwina, and Pecxora: and to the ESE, through the Steppe, to a junction with the moun- tains of Arga on the one hand, and tliose of A/tai on the other. Uow much of their course the an- cients might know, or to what ramifications of them the name RipJuean might he applied, is a doubt. It may however be suspected, that the three different names RipJuean, Arimphccany and Rhymnican, ap- plied to mountains in this quarter, were all intended, either in whole, or in part, for the same, or branches of the same mountains *.
Taking, therefore, the Riphaian mountains (as far as they were known) for those which, in the first in- stance, separate on the north-east the waters of Aria from those of Europe; and afterwards, the northern from the southern waters of Asia ; and which extend through the Great Steppe to Oigur ; in elFect, the mountains of the Argippaji, before mentioned : we shall find the Turca, in the Tor- GAun, or ToROOTS, a Kalmuc tribe situated between the Wolga and Jaik, in the government of Saratow : and the ARiMFHjEi, adjoining to, and beyond them,
• Can Riplucan liavu any relation to Rijihathf or Riphah, who is the bon ol' Gomcr, and brother of Toij;rtrmah " of the north (in Genesis, x. ver 3.) since we find Magog in the sanie quarter ?
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in the province of Orenburgh^ and government of
Ufa.
Pliny is right in saying that the Turcae bordered on the Desert (Steppe). Herodotus says that the country of the lyrcm is woody ; Melpom. 22 : and Mela says the same of that of the Turcee. The knowledge of Pliny, as to detail^ appears to end at the Riphaean mountains.
The Torgots are spoken of, largely, by Mr. Tooke, Vol. i. ; as a tribe of Kalmucs, seated between the above-mentioned rivers : and there, Strahlenberg also places the Torgauti.
We are aware that exceptions may be taken to this supposition ; as the Kalmucs are said to have migrated westward in modem times : so that it may be reckoned idle to place the Torgot tribe of Kal- mucs, at the Wolga, in the time of Herodotus. But it is possible that the tract itseff may have given name to the tribes that have successively occupied it : and the reader may perhaps regard it as an example in point, that the Begdelly tribe actually inhabit that part of Mesopotamia which is called the Plain of Bectileth, in the book of Judith ; ch. ii. ver. 21. The natural inference to be drawn is, that in both cases the tribes have taken their names from the tracts themselves. And may not Targot itself be one reading of Turk, or Tourk 9
In support of the above opinion we may also quote Mr. Tooke,(Vol. ii. p. 72,) who says of the tribes of the Nogayan Tartars, that " several of them have frequently changed their station in the vast deserts they inhabit, and as often changed their name ; one
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while taking that of the river of the place they stop at, at another that of the leader who heads them, and again at other times, according to other circumstances."
With respect to the positions occupied by the Is- sedones, Arimaspians^ &c. no opinions can be more at variance than those of Herodotus and Pliny* It has been abeady remarked, that the latter confines his geography of this quarter within very narrow limits: for that he supposed even the Issedones and Arimaspians, the most remote of tiie nations spoken of by Herodotus, to be situated near the Mmotis and TomAs ; lib. vr. c. 12 : in which Mela, lib. ii. e. 1, agrees. But if Herodotus is to be regarded as faulty in excess, an error, however, that we do not admit, these authors have surely gone into the op- posite extreme ; and we cannot help suspecting that Mela, in particular, was led into this error by his ignorance of the distinction that ought to have been made between the Scythians of the Euxine and those of the Caspian ; referring what concerned the neigh- bourhood of the latter to that of the former: and it is probable that PHny may have made some mis- takes of the same kind. If this opinion be founded, it will account for their ideas respecting the Isse- dones, &C.
Herodotus, as we have seen, extended them to the
meridian of the Jaxartes, 25 degrees to the east of the Maeotis ; and was still very far short of the truth : for their relative position is very clearly pointed out by Ptolemy, and is easily referred to modem geo- graphy. And hence, whatsoever errors there may
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be in the intermediate positions, given by our Au- thor, (if such there are) we ought to receive that of the Issedones as just ; and to lay out of the question the systems of Ptiny and Mela.
One particular is, however, very remarkable. The Argijjpcri of Herodotus, situated next the Issedones, answer in point of description to the Arimphmi of Pliny and of Mela, situated at Mount RipAofUi, near the head of the Jaik. The description is remarkably pointed, and cannot be mistaken, as will appear pre- sently.
Having shewn (as we trust) that the extreme boundary of the knowledge of our Author, eastward* was the mountainons region of Altai, at the head of
the river Irtish, we shall conclude this head of in- quiry, and proceed to select some particulars re- specting certain of the principal nations above men- tioned ; sach as the Argippai, Issedones, and Ari* maspians.
I. The Argipp/EI, whom we have supposed to be the people near Mount Arga, and the mountains of the Steppe, are oddly spoken of by Herodotus, Melp. 23. They are (says he) hold from their birth, having large chins and nostrils like the ape sj^ecies. They have a language of their own, but their dress is Scythian ; they live chiefly on the produce of a tree which is called Paniicus ; it is as large as a fig, and has a kernel not unlike a bean : when it is ripe they pass it through a cloth ; it produces a thick black liquor which they call aschy ; this they drink, mixing it with milk ; the grosser parts which remain, they form into balls, and eat. — ^They live unmolested,
13
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being considered as sacred^ and having amongst them
no offensive weapon. Their neighbours apply to
them in matters of priyate controversy, and whoever
seeks an asylum amongst them is secure from in- »>
jury.
The Argippaei agree in description to the Arim^ pluei of Pliny, and of Mela, just spoken of.
" They are (says Plin) ) not much imlike the Hy^ perhoreans in their manner of life, (these are said to have lived immediately beyond them.) They live in forests, and feed on berries. Neither men nor wo- men leave any hair on their heads. They are courte- ous in their behaviour, and are held inviolable by their neighbours, who leave them undisturbed ; and moreover, do the same by those who take refuge amongst them f lib. vL c. 13. They are described to live at the foot of the RipJuBon mountains ; as the Argippfei at others, wliich are not named. Mela speaks much the same of the Arimpha^i, lib. i. c. 21.
2. Concemmg the Issbdonbs, the Greeks seem to have known but few particulars. These we have already spoken of, as the Otgurs or EUtths of the present times, and the (Echardcc of the Romans. Some of their customs are represented as the most abominable, whilst others shew them to be a refined people.
*' They venerate (says our Author) the principles of justice, and allow their females to enjoy equal au- thority with the men Melp. 26. By this we should naturally understand that the women were m pos- session of those privileges which nature seems to have intended ; and wliich they so deservedly hold iu ci-
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vilized societies ; namely, those of superintending the domestic departments, and of participating the comforts of society, without restraint. This marked a degree of refinement so much above the standard of Scythian nations, that it was given to Herodotus as a characteristic feature of their national manners. But as we learn that the Oigurs were a lettered na- tion, and that they alone furnished the conqueror J1NOHI8 Kan with secretaries, we are the less sur« prised at the refinements of their ancestors ; as the physical geography of their country is sucli (being one of the most elevated tracts in the centre of Asia) as is likely to preserve national manners through a long course of ages.
After this, how can we give credit to the following description, which belongs to the Issedoncs ?
" As often as any one loses his father, his rela- tions severally provide some cattle ; these they kill, and having cut them in pieces, they dismember also the body of the deceased, and, mixing the whole to- gether, least upon it. The head alone is preserved; from this they carefully remove the hair, and cleans- ing it thoroughly, set it in gold: it is afterwards esteemed sacred, and produced in their solemn annual sacrifices." Melp. 26.
As to the feast, we apprehend there is some mis- take : but it is certain that Herodotus relates much the same of their neighbours the Massageia, in Clio, 216 ; but with the addition of parricide ; for they are said to eat those only whom they kill ^
* Strabo relates nueh the same of the ilfaf«af«l«e, in ptge 515.
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** As soon as any one becomes infirm through age, hU assembled relations put him to death, boiling along with the hody the flesh of sheep and other animals, upon which they feast ; esteeming uniyer- sally this mode of death the happiest. Of those who die from any disease they never eat ; they bury them in the earth, and esteem their fate a matter to be lamented, because they have not Uved to be sacri- ficed. They sow no grain," &c.
We feel the same difficulty in believing this story of the Massageto' ; or indeed of any other people. But that people have killed^ or at least accelerated the death of their aged and infirm parents, or friends, we believe, because we have seen something very much like it in Bengal : but eating them is a quite difibrent matter ' !
It appears that the Issedones do the same by the skulls of their yW^fiiif, as the Scythians and oUiers, with those of their inveterate enemies. The Author has seen, brought from Bootan, nearly in the same region with Oigur, (or the country of the hsC' dones,) skulls that were taken out of the temples or places of worship ; but it is not known, whether the motive to their preservation was friendship or enmity. It might, very probably, be the former. They were formed into drinking bowls, in the manner described by our Author, Melp. 65, by ''cutting them off be- low the eyebrows f and they were neatly varnished
' Our Aatbor sayv, that one tribe of the EaH htd&ant also kflled and eat their parents. ThaUa, 99. Of this, more under tbe head of Asia.
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all over. Herodotus says, the Scythians, if poor, covered them with leather ; if rich, in addition to that, they decorated them with gold.
It would be satisfactory to kaow some more par- ticulars respecting the Issedonbs. Concerning their supposed descendants, the Oigurs, or Eluths, niucli more is known : and the subject cannot but be in- teresting to the reader.
The conquest of the Eluths, as they are called by the Chinese, forms a prominent feature in the military liistory of the Chinese, during the late emperor's reign ; when they subjugated the whole tract, west- ward, to the ridge of Jmaus, which separated the two eastern Scythias
The Elaths, previous to this conquest, possessed a kingdom of considerable extent, formed of the two great provinces of T erf an and Hami, (or Kamil,) which are situated in the very centre of Asia. They are said to have been masters of the country as far northward as the springs of the Irtish, and the moun- tains of Altai, before mentioned : and on the south- west they bordered on Kashgur \
* The narrative of tlie conciuests of tlie Eluths occurs in Vol. i. of the Memoircs sur Ics C hi noises : and is said to be translated from an inscription, in Chinese vrrsr, written by the emperor Kilk-lono, and cnLiraven on an obelisk, or momuuent, in one of the publie places in Pekin. The conquest was made about the year 1757 ; and the monumeat erected four years af- terwards.
* See the siboxe Mcmoires. According to the taldcs of latitude and longitude of the places in the kiii<idoin of the Eluths, «rivcn in the same MSmoires, the kingdom should be about 6^ degrees
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At the commencement of the power of Jinghis, early in the 13th century, the prince of this country was tributary to the king of Turkestan, who resided at Kashgur ; and being of^ressed^ solicited the pro- tection of Jinghis ; which led to the conquest of Turkestan, by the latter ^
It seems to be understood in Asia, that the Oigurs furnished the Mogub^ not only with their learning and science^ but even with their alphabet ; although some difference of opinion has arisen, whether the ISIorruls might not have had one of their own, and might only adopt that of the Oigurs^ as being the more useful.
It is the remark of M, Saueiei \ that no Tartar
nation besides the Oigurs had the use of letters, in the time of Jinghis Kan : and he also says, that the characters used by the Eluths were the same with those in use in Thibet ; where they are denominated Tangusian. Jinghis is said to have been the first of the Moguls who made use of the Oigiirs, as se- cretaries ; a custom wlxich was followed by many of hb successors.
Abulgazi Kan, in his History of the Turks and Tartars, bears testimony to the fact of Jinghis and his descendants having employed the Eluths as se-
of latitude in breadth, and 16 of longitude in length, in the pa- - rallel of 40*. The Ehoh of the Chinese is pronounced (Hrat by the western people.
* History of Jinghis Kan, by M. Petis de la Croix, lib. ii. c. 7.
' In his Observations Mathematical, Astronomical, &c. p. 146, quoted in Astley's Cott. iv. p. 416. The work itself we have not been able to meet with.
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cretaries. So does M. Petis de la Croix who says, ** the Moguls were indebted to the Yugures for the art of writing they now use, which was wanting, be- fore their union with this people. Whether they found the manner of the Yugures' writing more con- venient than their own, we know not ; but they adopted it, and liave used it ever since."
A note in the same book from Rubruquis, says, that the letter written by Mangou Kan, son of Jin- ghis, to St. Louis of France (A.D. 1254), was in the Mogul language, but in the Yugurian character : and that the lines were written from top to bottom^ like the Chinese. This, we apprehend, contradicts the former statement of the Thibetian characters being in use amongst these people. Rubruquis, who visited the court of Mangou Kan, in 1251', ought to have known what the Yugure character and manner of writing was. He says that they write from top to bottom, and he also describes alphabetical characters.
Thus the fact of the Yugures being the only peo- ple in Tartary, who had written characters, does not appear to be clearly made out ; and M. Petis de la Croix, who knew enough of Tartarian hutory, to be enabled to compile a history of Jinghis Kan, did not believe it.
3. The Arimaspians should have been a consider- able people, since they are represented as the ag- gressors in the war, by which the Isaedones were
driven westward on the Scythians; and if they were, as has been conjectured above, the inhabitauts
' Hist. Jinghis Kan, lib. ii. cap. 7.
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of the elevated region of Mount Altaic they would probably have been a very hardy people. But so much of &ble enters into the very description of their persons, that little truth could be expected, had more particulars been given, Melp. 13. Aristeas had only heard of them, 17. We must suppose that the poem written by him> and called by the Greeks the Arimaspian Verses, related not only to this people, but to his travels generally \ (14, 16.)
We shall now return again to the geography, and conclude our inquiry concerning the general ideas of Herodotus respecting the extent and boundaries of Europe, by a recapitulation of the principal points that have been determined ; and by adding a few remarks on their bearing on each other.
It has been shewn, that Herodotus does not as- sign an eastern, any more than a northern boundary, to Europe ; although, in the opinion of the succeed- ing Greek geographers, such an eastern boundary is implied, in that of Scythia ; namely, the course of the river Tanais, But, it is dear, tiiat he not only overleaps this boundary, but extends Europe to the utmost verge of his geographical knowledge, nortli- eastward, and still says, tliat it is uncertain whe^
' Mr. Bcloe has the following note on ^rw/ca^. Mclpom. 13.
" Tliis person is mentioned also by Pliny and Aulus Gellius : it is ])robablc that he lived in the time of Cyrus and Croesus. LonL'inus has preserved six of liis verses ; see chap. x. ; of which he ren)arks, that they are rather florid, than sublime. Tzetzes has preserved six more. The account given of him by Herodotus is far from satisfactory." We may add, that Hero- dotus attributes the veraes to Aristea», io Melpom. 14.
VOL. I. O
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ther it be bounded on the north and east by the ocean." The Arimtupi, the roost remote nation known to him (for it is a doubt whether the Gry^ pkins lay to the north or east of them), are certainly
meant to be includecl in Europe ; because he says, Thalia, 116* " It is certain, that in the north of Europe there is a prodigious quantity of gold — and it is affirmed that the Arimaspi take this gold away by violence from the Gri/phinA, Cer- tainly then, as the place in which the gold was found, and which was contiguous to, or beyond the ^rt- maspi, was situated in Europe, these people also must be situated, either in Europe, or on the imme- diate borders of it : and, at all ev^ents, the h.sedones are here classed as belonging to Europe ; and of eourse, all the nations between them and the Tanais. No other interpretation can well be given to the passages above quoted, than that Europe extended eastward, beyond the limits of our Author's know- ledge ; that its limits were, in effect, indefinite ; and that it remained to be determuied, whether it was bounded by the sea, on the north, and east That he believed this to be the case, to the northward, appears certain; because he says^ in Melpom. 13,
• Our Autlior, although he retails the improbable stories told him, often takes care to shew that he disbelieves tbein ; ns on the presoiit occasion. Says he, " I can never persuade myself, tl)at there are any men, who, having but one eye, enjoy in all other respects, the nature and qualities of other human beings. Thus uHich seems unquestionable, that these extreme parts of the world contain withiti themselves things the lUORt beautiful, OS well us rare." Thalia, c.
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that the Hyperboreans lie beyond the Issedoues, &c. and possess the whole country, quite to the eea." Tins is given on the report of Aristeas^ who is said
to have penetrated as far as to the Issedones \ Mel- pom. 16. In 32, the Hyperboreans are represented to be neigkbours to the Issedones und Arimaspians. But Herodotus seems to have believed that there was no sea, on the east, either of Europe, or of the earth at large. For he scouts such opinions altoge- ther, in Melp. 8, where he says, " the ocean, they say, commencing at the east, flows all round the earth : ibis, however, they affirm, without proving it." And again, (36.) " they pretend, without the smallest reason, or probability, that the ocean en- compasses the earth.** Now, as he has admitted that ibe ocean does really bound the habitable earth on the west, the south, and the north, it is clear that it could be only on the east, that he disputed its existence.
It has appeared (page 185) that our Author placed the Issedones and Arimaspians very for to the
north, perhaps in 53^, whilst the Massagetas, and other nations at the Caspian sea, were many degrees &rther to the south. These latter also were assigned to the division of Asia, whilst the former were in that of Europe.
But he nevertheless omits to say, where the south- ern boundary of Europe, or the opposite one of Asia, passes, in the quarter beyond the Euxine and Maeotis. Now, as the river Phasis is by him reckoned the
* See above, pages 99 and 193.
o 2
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common boundary of the two divisions, one must conceive that^ in bis idea, it passed thence to the eastward, by Caucasus, and ^e north of the Cas- pian: and that afterwards it remained indefinite;
for although lie places the Isscdoncs and Massagetaj OPPOSITE to each other, he does not appear to have estimated the distance between them. It is proba- ble, however, that he thought it to be very great.
The idea of a northern ocean occupied the minds of all the ancient geographers, but none of them seem to have had any just ideas concerning its position. Since it appears, that our Author must have sup- posed, that the northern tribes described by him, such as the Thyssagetae, Issedones, Arimaspi, &c. ex- tended as far north as 53** at least, and the Hyper- boreans far beyond these, one cannot imagine his northern ocean to be lower than 60^ : that is, several degrees above the country of Amber, on the Baltic. It is probable, by his saying that the Danube ran through the centre of Europe, that he had estimated the parallel of the Amber country (Prussia)^ by sup- posing it to be situated as &r to the north of the Danube, as this last was A*om the southern shores of Europe, that lay opposite to Prussia : and then, rea- soning from analogy, he might suppose the shore of the northern ocean to continue eastward, much in the same line of bearing, as it does on the whole, from the north coast of Gaul, to Prussia ; that is, a few points to the northward of east. For, it must be recollected, that all the tract to the north-west of the Baltic sea, is not supposed to have exbted, in his imagination, otherwise than as Islands : perhaps like
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the CassiterideSy or Britain ^ We need only to look back, to our own ideas of the northern ocean, beyond America, when only certain points in the line of its coast were marked, by the early disco- verers. Sucli kind of analogies the mind ever has recourse to, when necessitated to create a sensible object to reason on. It appears, then, that Hero* dotus placed the shore of the northern ocean much the same as Eratosthenes; but more distant than Strabo (see Gosselin) ; only, that being free from one capital error of theirs, that of supposing the Caspian sea to be a gulf of the ocean in questiouj he felt no necessity for bringing the ocean nearer to it| in order to shorten the supposed strait, so as to bring it within the bounds of probability. Pliny seems to have thought it more to the south, than any one of his predecessors ; and Ptolemy, by omit- tmg to place it at all, has left the matter at large.
' Eratostlicnes and Ptc^k'niy believed tiiat the countries be- yond tlie Baltic sea (Sweden, Norway, c\e. ), were insulated from the main land of I'.urope : and that the Baltic was a strait. This Island is named lUiUia hy the Ibrnier, SiaiuUa hy the latter. ►Some moderns have indeed believed, that such a state of things existed, in early times: and that the lakes LadoL^tt and Onega were a continuation of the strait, bi twccn the Ljulf of Finland and the White sea. We have no douljt hut it mij^ht have been so, but doubtless it was long befor*' the time of Eratosthenes ; and the idea of the Baltic beinjr a strait, is more likely to have arisen from appearances, and from their ii^norancc of the geo- graphy of the northern })art of it. Ptolemy's knowledge ap- pears not to have extended to the gulf of Finland. Strabo's ended at the mouth of the Elbe : and he disbelieved the fact of the existence of Baltia altogether ; as well as of J'fnilc. Thus, geography lost ground in this quarter also, between the times of Eratosthenes and Strabo.
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The Hyperboreans may be regarded as the In- cofrfilto' of Herodotus ; for he says, IVlelp. 32, that " of the Hyperboreans, neither the Seythians, nor any of the neighbouring people, the Isiedones akme excepted, have any knowledge; and indeed wkai they say merits hut little attention." But he ob- serves that the DeUam knew more of the subject. Iti^pears that the Hyperboreans had transmitted Moered qfferingM to DeloM, progiessively througli the hands of the Scythians, and other intermediate nations, Melponi. 33 ; and the route of these offer- ings is traced to the borders of the Adriatic, and thence to Delos, in the following order :
First through Scythia, and thence regularly through every contiguous nation, till they arrived at the Adriatic. From thence, transported towards tlie south, they were first of all received by the Dodoneana of Greece** — thence to the gulf of MeUs, through Euhcea to Tenos (passing Andras), and finally to Delos. From the context, it may be sup- posed, that, as no part of Scythia lay to the west of Transylvania, and the route from Scythia to Do* dona lay considerably to the west of south, that the country of the Hyperboreans must at least be situated to the north-eastward of the Borysthenes : and to speak more critically, it is probable that no part of it extended, in the idea of Herodotus, fur- ther to the west than the source of the Tanais ; since he says, Melp. 18 and 20, that beyond the Androj)hagi and the ]\Ielanchla?ni, the country was uninhabited; and the latter of these people ad- joined, as we have seen, to the west of the Tanais.
It may be concluded then, that, in the idea of
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HerodotiUt the country of the Hyperboreans began
about the meridian of the Tanais, and extended in- definitely eastward. In Melp. 32, the Ibscdones, as well as the Scythians^ are said to be neighbours to the Hyperboreans : and as, in 13, these last are said to lie beyond (i . e. to the north, we conclude, of) the Issedoncs, it is clear that they extended eastward as iax as the Issedones at least. Whence it should fol- low, of course, that the Russians and SiBfiaiANS, and particularly such of the letter as are situated on the upper parts of the rivers Ohy and Irtish, represent the Hyperboreans of Herodotus, They occupied the country, quite to the sea, in the extreme part of the north : Melp. 13 and 36 ; and, if we may credit Herodotus, were the only nation who were not con* tinually engaged in war with their neighbours. This might possibly be, from their having no nation be- yond them ; and their own country might be too cold to tempt the people of the south to invade them, in an age of the world, when there was not so much want of room. We may add, that accord- ing to our Author s extended dimensions of Europe, he certainly meant to include the Hyperboreans in it
lliere is reason to conclude, that the term Hyper-
borean, amongst the Greeks, had different applica- tions, in different ages, according to the progress of geographical knowledge; as Thde had at a later time. Both meant the remotest tracts that they had
any knowledge of ; and of which the knowledge was too limited to admit of any clear or determinate ap- plication. Britain, according to Diodorus, was the
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Hyperborean country of more ancient times : and after that the remote parts of Europe and Asia, which the Greeks knew only by report.
Pliny, lib. iv. c. 12, is more particular in his de- scription of the Hyperboreans than any other author. He places them beyond the Riphaean mountains; and these, accordmg to hb descriptions, are to be looked for at the heads of the Tatuth and Jaik. (See above, p. 182). But, he remarks that some have placed them in Asia, at the shore of the ocean ; whilst he includes them in Europe* Here it is pro- per to observe, that although the western part of the country in question was in Europe, yet it extended very far into Asia also. Pliny was probably ignorant of the true course of the Tanais, and believed it to come from the N, or NE, instead of the NW, as it really does. And this belief would have occasioned him to misplace both the Ripha^an mountains, and the country in question.
He speaks of the country as being woody ; and of the climate as very severe ; in fact, much in the sume terms with Herodotus. The people he de- scribes to be ])caceful, pious, happy, and long-lived.
Ptolemy places tlie Hyperboreans beyond the bor- ders of Europe. Diodorus (lib. ii. c. 3.) speaks of them from some ancient traditions, but which he regarded as fabulous. Some circumstances of this report point evidently to our island ; others to the country described by Herodotus beyond Scythia. In the fint place, an island is described to lie opposite to Gaul, and to be of equal extent to Sicily, (They might only have known a part of it.) In this island
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stood a famous temple^ of a circular form, with a
stately grove belonging to it ; and there were priests who played on harps. But it is also said that the Hyperboreans and Grecians communicated with each other, and that the former had a particular kindness for the Delians. Thus far Diodonis.
Strabo, p. 62, and in other places, appears to con- sider the term Hyperborean, as merely relative.
The Gog and Magogs or rather Jajvje and Majuje, of the Orientals, seem to occupy nearly the place of the Hyperboreans of Ptolemy and the Romans, Of the eastern geographers, Edi isi is the most particular in the description of this tract. Ibn Al Wardi is more general ; and Abalfeda much too general, to be clearly understood. -
Edrisi places the country of Jagog and Magog (as his Marouite translator writes it), beyond those of the Turks and Kalmues; and extends it to the northern ocean ; which, it appears, he supposed to be situated at no great distance, northward, be- yond the bounds of his Vllth climate. This climate included Great Britain, Sweden, the northern parts of Russia, and the corresponding parts of the country of Jagog and Magog ; which last was supposed to be bounded on the eaat by the continuation of the same ocean. This climate, moreover, like the rest, is divided into ten parts, of which the ninth, reckon- ing progressively from the west, is occupied by the country in question ; and the tenth is supposed to be a i)art of the ocean itself. From this position of the northern ocean, given by Edrisi, it must of course be inferred, that he supposed its nearest shore
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to lie iu the same parallel wHh Sweden and the northern part of Russia ; so that he was under a
very great error as to the position of those countries on the globe ; which may be re^ifardcd as being in ' the parallel of 60% whilst the Vllth climate of Al- FRAGANtus reaches no farther to the north than 60^^. (See his Elements of Astronomy, chap. viii. p. 84.)
It is certain that Kdrisi, in common with the ancient, as well as the Arabian, geographers, sup- posed the continent of Asia to terminate on the north-east, at a line drawn from the northern part of the Yellow sea, to the mouth of the Ohy, whose principal branch, the Irtish, seems to be designed by the river Almashar, said to pass part of the^ tract assigned by £drisi to Jagog and Magog. Whence it appears, that the great body of Siberia and Eastern Tartary were unknown to Edrisi and Abulfeda, as well as to the Greek geo- graphers : for the ideas of Eratosthenes and Strabo are, in effect, the same with theirs.
Thus, the northern extremity of the country of Jagog and Magog, which Edrisi places in the Vllth climate, or below 50i\ should, by his own arrangement of the other regions, placed in the same climate, be in about 60^ Much the same kind of error, though less in quantity, aj^pears in the arrangement of the countries, in the IN'th and Vth climates; the Kalmucs (Kaimakiens) being placed between the paraUels of d3f' and 43^% although they are really between W and 47* ; (see again Alfraganius.) Again, the country of Samar- kand, with part of Kowarezm, and the course of the
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river Sirr ( Jaxartes J, are placed in the IVth, although they occupy rather the parallels assigned to the Vth climate.
We therefore place the country in question^ in re- ference to the abtolute geography, and not to the climates assigned, since they prove to be so errone- ously conceived. A reference to the sketch in No. IV. page 153, will save much discuanon : for, the reader will there perceive^ the relative positions of the several divisions of the climates that contain the country of Jagog and Magog, together with those bordering on it, collected from Edrisi. There it will be seen, that it borders souikward, and south- westward, on the Ebtth Kahmtes, on Turhestim, the Desht Kipxaky and the country of the Bnski^ rians : and, consequently, that it contained the tract situated to the north of the mountains so often men* tinned, which divide the Great Steppe now possessed by the Kirgees tribes : so that the Steppe of Issim, and the course of the Irtish in particular, belonged to the people of Gog and Magog ; but what other tracts beyond these are not particularized. Thus, as has been said before, it may be regarded as the Hyperborean country of Ptolemy.
Ihn Al Wardi (as well as Edrisi) says, that the people of Jagog and Magog occupied the remote part <^ Asia, beyond the Kalmucs, &c. (Herbelot)
Abulfeda mentions the rampart only, and that without any discrimination of position, otlierwise than that it lies to the noj th, and also to the ivest, of China. His words are these : The ocean bends mrthward, and in its progress shuts up the eastern
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quarter of China, till it/aees the mound or rampart of Jajuje and Majuje. Thence it bends westward^*
&c. (Prolegomena). It is obvious that this may re- late to the wall of China, as much as to the other ; and it is possible that Abulfeda may have confounded both together.
The Caliph Wathek, about A.D. 842, sent a per- son from Sermenrai, on the Tigris, to examine the ram- part, and report on it. He travelled by way of Der- bend, and thence northward (perhaps nartk-easi" ward also, alter he passed the Wolga) ; and having travelled 36 days, came to some ruined towns in the Steppe ; and at the end of about two months' journey came to the rampart itself. It is said that he was also two months in going from the rampart to Samar- kand, by which route he returned to Sermenrai, after being absent 28 months.
It is certain, that if any reliance can be placed on the number of joumies given, thu rampart ought to be at the north part of the Steppe, near the fortified line drawn by the Russians from the Tebol to the Irtish, to keep out the Kirgees from the lands of Tobolsk. But we do not expect any accuracy in the report of the numbers ; especially as Edrisi himself places the rampart in the 9th division of the Vlth climate, and on the borders of Turkestan ; so that it should rather be about 40 joumies to the north, somewhat east of Samarkand, in the parallel of 50% and nearly south from Tobolsk. The great chain passes the Steppe there : and as the travellers are said to have passed a great extent of desert in the way to it ; in which were the ruins of towns formerly
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occupied by Jajuje^ &c. ; and thb being actually the state of the desert now occupied by the Kirgees, in the quarter between the Aral and the mountains just mentioned ; it must be allowed to corroborate the
above statement
Some have supposed the rampart in question to mean a wall between the Euxine and Caspian ; but if the statements of the Arabian authors are not to be regarded as mere fables, it must be looked for vert/ Jar to the north, and even to tlie east also, of the Caspian sea : since the person sent by the caliph set ofiP from Derhend in quest of it^ and travelled northward 26 or 27 days; a part of which journey lay through the country of the Baskiria)i,s ( Bcsc- gert of Edrisi), which, by the position assigned, should be to the somewhat east, of tlie Caspian * ; and, by every modem account, the Baskirians are seated to the east of the Wolga. Moreover, he was at tliis time advanced but half way to the rampart. Again, he returned by way oiLokman, a city pointed out by Edrisi, whose position appears to be in the Great Steppe, on the banks of a river that falls into the lake of Turgai, or Aksokal; and may be sup- posed to be situated 8 or 10 degrees to the north- ward of Samarkand \
From the description of the rampart and its gates, one is led to suppose that they either belonged to
' Mr.Todce saye, Russia, vol. ii. p. 14, tbat "the desert of KirgmM abounds in the relies of opulent cities."
* Edrisi, climate VI. part 9.
* lb. dim. VI. part 8,
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some ancient city, or were part of the fortifications of the passes of the mountains before spoken of. It is related that the whole Steppe, although now de- ' yoid of habitations^ and peopled only with ihe No- madic tribes of the Kirgees, was, even during the Tartar government, in certain parts, tliickly sown with towns and cities ; of which the remains^ now Yisibletp furnish the most ample proofs
It may be remarked, that remains composed of large masses, such as the gates of the above rampart, continue longer in their collective state in the east, than in Europe ; because the materials are not con* Tertible to ordinary purposes, as with us. The vast palace of Chosroes remains on the banks of the Tigris, because a great collective strength is re- quired to demolish it : and also the stately gates of tiie citadel of Gour ; both for this reason, and be- cause they are in part formed of large component parts. In Europe, means would readily be found to reduce them to smaller parts, if there was no de- mand for them, in their original state. The whole east abounds with ruins of ancient structures, which are so much unHke any in use at the present day, that the vulgar often refer their origin, as well as
* Mr.Tooke, vol. ii. p. U,et seq. says, diat *' the ootmtries which formed the Tartakian empibb abound in moniiments of fomer power. The remains of ditches and ramparts are fte- quendy met with,— The ramparts of Sibift the ancient capital of Tartary, are stOl seen about Toboldt on the IrtiA. The loffy walls of Tmtmira appear yet in the Baraha — ^not to mention die sepulchres and ruins in the deserts of the Kirguis, whidi abounds in the relics of opulent cides."
13
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their uses, to superior beings. The miserable clay huts attached to the walls of the temples and palaces at Athens, Pahnyra, or Thebes, do certainly exhibit the strongest contrast between the wants and dispo- sitions of men in different ages in the same spot : but as we regard public monuments as faithful indexes of the state of industry and taste> as well as of the ease and plenty that must necessarily have reigned previous to their execution, we do not, with M. Vol- ney*s philosopher', feel a secret pleasure in con- templating MAN in that state of debasement which leads him to destroy^ rather than to admire, an ex- quisite work of art After this long digression, we return to the geography of our Author ' Much is said concerning the severity of the win- ters, not only amongst the Hyperboreans (where it might naturally be looked for,) but eren amongst the Cimmerians on the Euxine, situated in the 45th de- gree only. The winters, our Author says, con- tinue eight months, and are intolerably severe and eold, and the remaining four st^fficientfy cokL The
' Volney's Travels, voL u chap. 19.
* The reader will find in the M4ni. Acad. Inscrip. vol. nxi. a memoir on die poiition of the rampart of Gog and Magog. The resuk of M. D* Anville's investigation is, in a general view, mudi the same with ours, imcelti^acesdie rampart near the BMNutaina of the Stqppe : but, critically speaking, we have assumed a poei- tioii 8 or 9 degrees of longitude more to the west, 2| of ktitude more to the north, having obtained from the new Russian charts, some notices that were unknown to M. D'Anville. Moreover, we regard some of the positions given by Edrisi in a somewhat different view from M. D'Anville.
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sea itself (meaning, it may be supposed, the Afceotis ), and the Cimmerian Bosphoru^f are congealed ; and the Scythians make hostile incursions on the ice, and penetrate with their waggons as far as India." Melpom. 28.
Here, by an error, no doubt of the copyists, our Author is made to advance a very extraordinary fact, if not an absurdity ; since India is not only removed to a Tast distance from the Msotis, but the greatest part of the intervening space is land. In effect, he meant Sindica ; which is, by his own statement, somewhere near the Ma^otis ; for in Melpom. 86, he says, that the broadest part of the Euxine is between the river Thermodan and Sindica: which latter must therefore, of course, be looked for opposite to the river Thermodon.
Pliny says, lib. iv. c. 12, that in winter the Cim- merian Bosphorus is frozen, and may be crossed by foot passengers. But he is vague in his application of Sindica. Strabo and Ptolemy are very pohited. The former, p. 492, 495, places Sindica beyond the river Hypanis ( Kuban ), in respect of Taurica : and Ptolemy has Sinda in that position, together with the port of Sindica, answering precisely to the pre- sent S/ndJik, in the Russian and other maps ; at no great distance to the eastward of the mouth of the river Kuban*
Our Author moreover says, Melpom. 7, and 31, speaking of Scythia, that the snow falls so thick as to obstruct the view ; and it was also his opinion that the regions remotely situated to the north were uu-
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inhabitable from tlic unremitting severity of the climate ; 31 °. Concerning the people of whom he iajB, in 25, that they sleep away six months of the year, it may mean, that by the severity of the cli- mate they are compelled to stay mostly within doors during that period ; which actually happens to those who winter in very remote northern latitudes. Or, had he heard of the long absence of the sun, in win- ter, within the polar circle ?
It appears that the Hyperboreans above spoken of had been in the habit of sending their offerings to Delos, by the hands of two virgins. On one occa- sion of this kind these died at Delos ; and the men who accompanied them as a guard never returned. The Hyperboreans, to prevent a repetition of this evil, adopted the method of sending their offering in the manner above related, through the hands of the intermediate nations^; Melpom. 33. In ho- nour of these virgins, the Delian youth of both sexes celebrated certain rites ; particularly cutting o£f their hair, and oifering it on the tomb ^ ; (34.)
There is something more than ordinarily melan-
* Can the phrase Cimmerian darknettt arise firom the darkness of the air ctccasioned by the thick and frequent falls of snow, and by the general state of the atmosphere in winter, in the region beyond the Enxine ; as Scythia itself was originally Cimmerian t
^ Fliny also mentions this circumstance, lib. iv. c. 12 ; and speaks as if the Hyperboreans suspected some unfair proceed- ings. He says that the offerings were of the first fruits of their grain : and Herodotus, that they were carefiilly Iblded in etram. Melp. SS.
* Lucianremarks that the same kind of offerings were made at the temple of the Syrian goddess, at Hierapolis.
VOL. I. P
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cboly in the fete of those, who, visiting a distant country on some specific errand, and with a view to an immediate return, perish untimely in a strange land. How often has this happened in cor own times! in particukir, the fete of Tupia, and Lbb Boo, interests us, from their amiable dispositions, and the grief of their friends who awaited tlieir return. How adventurous soever the sj^rit that leads men to brave dangers on distant shores maj be, yet, during intervals of leisure, the mind is strongly called back to the place it left ; and for which, a passion is im- planted by nature in every mind that is rightly formed.
Whatsoever has a tendency to link mankind toge- ther, in peaceful society, is pleasing to liberal minds ; and therefore we feel a degree of sorrow for such accidents. For, whether the object of tlie visit be ra- tional curiosity, or harmless superstition, or both, the effect produced on the mind may be good ; and the benefits that ivhole commuuitics mav derive from the inquiries of such travellers are, in some cases, incal- culable. However trifling, therefore, such matters may appear to some minds, we are by no means in- clined to blame, much less to ridicule, the opinions of those, at whose instance the above offerings were sent. The human mind, softened by present distress, or terrified at dangers, which it feels that it cannot avert, becomes conscious of its own imbecility, and looks for support to a Sl i'j:riuii Power, a belief of whose existence is strongly impressed on every mind (which is either not sottish, or not conceited), by sedng around it an order of thmgs which appears to
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be upheld by superior wisdom and power. Homage and supplication are accordingly o£fered^ but the ig- norance or weakness of human nature, often refers them to mistaken ohjects. But if it happens that certain communities in the world are blessed with more enlarged and rational ideas of the Deity, they ought to pity, but not to deride, the conduct of those who do no more than act naturally, according to the state of their knowledge.
If, in minds prepared for it, superstition can give composure, when nothing else could effect it, it must he allowed to he a real good. And to take this away, without making an adequate return for it, would he like endeayouring to persuade a person that he was unhappy, when he felt himself otherwise. The physician, either of the mind or body, who can cheat us into ease, has rendered us a certain good. Whilst fears and douhts mvade the nunds of the ig- norant, they will ever have recourse to the operations of superstition ; and people of education have no right to blame them, until they have prepared a re- medy for such douhts and fears. But the truth is, that the labouring part of the community, (that is, the bulk of it,) could not, if they wished it, get rid of their prejudices and superstitions, for want of lei- sure to reason on them ; nor might they be happier by the change. We appeal to the histoiy of man- kind.
With regard to travelling, on the score of rational curiosity and improvement, it ought at least to com- mand the respect and approbation of mankind. To what is the rapid advancement in those arts which
p 2
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administer to the comforts of common life, in Eu- rope, under an increased and increasing population, to be ascribed, but to the importation of useful inventions and products from other countries ; adopting from amongst them that which is useful and applicable, either as a new discovery, or as a modiiication of a former practice ? Thus the com- munities of the earth have insensibly improved, even from a period so remote, that the names of their early benefactors have been lost ; or perhaps, in sonic in- stances, they have only lost their mortal distinctions, to become gods, or demi-gods. The world has seen a PiTTHAGORAS, au Anacharsis, an Herodotus, a . Peter Alexiowitz, a Banks, forego, either the ex- ercise of unlinvited power, the blandishments of ele- gant society, or at least, the comforts of ease and security, to brave the dangers of the deep, or those greater dangers, which often arise from an intercourse with man, in his savage state; inquest of knowledge, or of useful productions. Nor that kind of know- ledge alone, which merely administers to the plea- sure of the traveller ; but that which is derived from inquiries, concerning what useful customs or institu- tions amongst men^ and what products of the earth, or sea, might be imported into their own countries, or their colonies.
The interchange of useful vegetable productions between Ihc different countries of the earth, with a view to cultivation, is alone an object which com- mands the gratitude of the world ; and happy the man whose iame rests on this solid foundation : a foundation that opinion cannot shake, since all feel
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and participate in the benefits ; whilst systems of po- liticsj and the fame of their authors, vanish ; and are, in comparison with the other, like unsubstantial clouds, that vary their form and colour with every change of position or circumstance ^
To return to the proper subject of the work. — ^In the above geographical discussion, we have attempted to give a sketch of the extent of Europe, and the distribution of its parts, according to the ideas of Herodotus. The Greek writers of succeeding times limited it generally to the Tanius and Mfeotis^ and thereby reduced its length to about J of that allowed by our Author. But whatsoever he might add to it in length, was more than overbalanced by the quan- tity of actual space unknown to him, and conse- quently omitted, in Scandinavia, the northern part of Russia, and the British islands.
It is certain that the ideas, either of Arrian, or of the journalists of Alexander's expedition, from whom he collected his information, were not perfectly clear concerning the extent of Europe eastward. For Arrian says, (lib. iv. c. 1,) that very soon after the arrival of Alexander at the Jaxartes, he received am- bassadors from the European Scythians. Now, when it is considered that it is twomonths' journey from the Tanais to Alexander's post on the Jaxartes, the sud-
* '* And he gave it for his opmion, that whoever would make TWO ean of com, or two blades of grass, to grow upon a spot of ground whereooly ohb grew before, would deserve better of manlclnd, and do more essentia] service to his country, than the whole race of politicians put together." (Swift's Gulliver's Travels.)
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den appearance of the ambassadors there proves, either that they could not have come from so distant a quarter, or that they were already in the neigh- bourhood on some other errand. It is therefore pro- bable that Alexander, following the ideas of Hero- dotus, and other Greeks, extended Europe very far to the east of the Mssods, and to the supposed strati that led from the northern ocean to the Caspian ; which latter, it appears, he believed to be a gulf of that ocean ; as Eratosthenes, Strabo, and others did, after him. And thus he might class some of the Asiatic Scythians, as belonging to Europe. We are told that Alexander sent back some confidential per- sons with these Scythians (denominated European : and Arrian himself allows that there was Agreat na- tion of Scythians in Europe,) who returned again to him aflfcerwards, whilst in his winter quarters in Bactria, and previous to his second visit to Sogdia. Arrian, Ub. iv. c. 15.
if we are to credit the report of Arrian respectuag the opinion of Alexander on this matter, he was in doubt whether the Euxine and Caspian seas did not communicate with each other ; for, he is said to have projected the equipment of a fleet, for the purpose of deciding the question; lib. viLc. 1 and 16. He remarks also, that at this lime the limits of the Cas- pian sea were unknown. Be it as it will, Alexander told the king of Chorasmia, who affirmed that his territories bordered on the Euxine, that, after he had made himself master of Asia, and was returned to Greece, he would pass through the Hellespont and Propontis, into the Euxine sea. Lib. iv. c. 15. And
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in lib. vii. c. 1, it is said that this expedition was in- tended against the Scythians of the Maeotis*
Should the reader be inclined to censure either our decisions or our prolixity, it may be stated in apology, that it is a very difficult task to follow the geography of persons who describe the relative po- rtion of countries, without putting the description to the test, by redudng it to geometrical construction. The same may be said equally of Strabo and Era- tosthenes, as of Herodotus.
END OF THE GEOGKAPiiy Ol EVliOl'L.
SECTION VIII.
OF ASIA, AGOOKDINO TO HERODOTUS.
Extent and boundaries of Asia, according to Herodotus — Arabia the last \n\vd\nii:({ country towards the south, India to the oast — The space hey and India supposed to he a desert — Asia (>f less extent than Europe, in our Author s idea — China 7<o/ known to the ancient Persians ; and India a recent discovery — The visit of Alexander to India had the effect of contracfin<r the limits of the Earth in the ancient systems (f geography ; as well as of falsifying certain particuhtrs (f it — India supposed by him to be shut up by the Eastern Oeean — Lon'Siitudinal ex- tent of Asia, and ef the Earth, according to the ideas of Era- tosthenes^ Strabo, and Pliny — Scope of the geographical hnmc- ledge of IlcrodotuSy in Asia — deficient in respect of his descrip- tion of the pliysical geography — Idea of the Chain of Taurus, amongst the Greeks — their system failed to express the levels of the different regions — Caspian Strait and Mount Argaeus — the Mediterranean andEuxine seas both seen from the swnnut of the latter — General idea of the levels and of the courses of the waters, through Western Asia — Hollow tract which con- tains Assyria, Babylonia, Arabia, 4'<' — C>/*[maus,inul£modu9, the elevated region of Eaatem Asiot and the courses of its ivatert^The whole of Eastern Ana on a higher level than the Western.
On the subject of Asia, Herodotus has said a great
deal ; for this division of the globe, next to Greece
and Egypt, formed the chief theatre of his history. His knowledge of Asia extended from the shores of
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the Arabian gulf, and of the Mediterranean and Eiudne seas^ its acknowledged boundaries on the west and souib-west^ to the country of the Oigun (or Eluths), the sandy desert of Kobi and India, in- clusive, on the east. Southward, it extended to the Erythraean sea, the proper boundary of Asia on the side of Arabia and Persia : but there is reason to believe that he, in idea, allowed to the Peninsula of India hr less extent than the truth. Northwards, he seems to have known (as has already been proved) the whole extent of the Great Steppe, or territory of the Kirgees, the Desht Kipzak, and other tracts, as fitr as the mountains of Altai and the heads of the Irtish.
Tliis space, however, is hardly equal to one third of Asia ; but it is all that is described by him. He had heard of the Hyperboreans, as well as of the vftst deserts thnt extended to the east, beyond India; and also of the Issedones ; however, we cannot fix any limits to his ideas of the extent of space in these two directions, although we may pretty confidently believe that they went but little beyond India, on the one hand, or beyond the tribes specified in his de- scription of Europe, on the other. Here it is neces- sary to remind the reader, that in order to adjust the extent of Asia to the ideas of Herodotus, one must deduct, as belonging to Europe, all the tract lying to the north of Caucasus, the Caspian sea, and the Mas- sagetae. And, in effect, Ms Asia, with tlic exception of Arabia, the MassagetSB, and a part of India» was | litde more than that part of it which was subject to |
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Darius Hystaspes. The Asia of Herodotus was, in his own idea, even less than Europe ; Melpomene, 36.
The Hellespont, Propontis, aad Bosphorus of Thrace!» aie particularised as portions of its western boundary ; Melpom. S5, 86, 87. That the isthmus of Suez, or border of Egypt, was intended for a part of the boundary, likewise is certain ; but it is not so dear whether, in his idea, ^g7P^ redkoned a pari of Africa; and consequently whether AHa joined to Africa, When he says, Melpom. 42, that ''Africa is surrounded by the sea, except in that particular part which is contiguous to Asia," we ought to understand that they certainly Joined, Nor is this opinion weakened by what he previously says, in 41, after speaking of the breadth of the Isthmus of Suez: Here the country expands , and takes the name oilAhya*' But it iq^pears from Euterpe, 16, 17, that an opinion prevmled in Greece and Ionia, that Egypt was distinct from the two con- tinents : and our Author himself says, " I myself am of opinion that the Umd oi Egypt alone con- stitutes the natural and proper limits of Aria and Africa,'^ This will bo farther considered under the head of Africa : but, at all events, there is no question that either the Isthmus of Sues itself, or the eastern boundary of Egypt* constituted the western boundary of Asia ; and not the course of the Nile.
Arabia is said to be " the last inhabited country towaids the south Thalia» 107 : but this is ex- plained in 115, where it is said that Arabia and
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Ethiopia " are the two extremes of Asia and Africa and in 114, where " Ethiopia, which is the cxtre- mitj of the habitable world, is cootigaons to Arabia, OQ the south-west :** thus marking his idea of the relative positions of the two countries to each other, and to the earth in general. The extent of Arabia aonthwaid k marked by the length of the Bed sea, wbidi 18 said to be 40 days of navigation; Euterpe, 11 : and it being about 1,230 G. miles in direct distance, this is no mean approximation to the truth ; respect being had to the rate of sailing of ancient ships; of whidi, more in its place. Bat it will be found, that he makes it too narrow, and its line of direction, according to the result from the general data, too near the meridian.
Concerning the Erythrsean sea.,* the southern boundary of Asia, he seems to have known &w par- ticulars : for he evidently did not know that the sea which bordered on Persia Proper was a gulf, like that which separates Arabia fiom Egypi and Ethiopia. All appears to be described as one con- tinuous open sea, from the Indus to the Euphrates.
Towards the north, no idea of any positive boun- dary of Asia is given, beyond the Coiekian Phasis * «- but the boundary is implied to pass between the ter« ritones of the Massagetse and the Issedones ; the latter of which people were, erroneously, supposed to lie to the north of the former. This has been afaready exploded in the dissertation on the bouiH
' Herodotus and Procopius are the only persons who assign this boundary to Asia. See page 47.
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daries of Europe ; (page 176). This part of Hero- dotus's geography is therefore remarkably deficient ; perhaps from the difficulty which he found in arrang- ing the relative positions, after having assumed ' such false principles.
India was reckoned " the lust inhabited country towards the east Thalia, 107. And, in 98, ** the Indians are the people of Asia who are nearest the eaeif and the place of the rUing smnJ" But his ideas of India, whether respecting its geography, or the state of society, were very limited iodecd, and no less erroneous. Nor is it extraordinary that it should be so ; rince he informs us that, as to particulars, India was a recent discovery, even to the Persians, in the time of Darius Ilystaspes, who caused the Indus to be navigated throughout, and the coasts of the ocean, and of the Arabian gulf, to be explored ; after which he subdued the Indians, and made him- self master of the sea that borders on their coast. Melpom. 44.
Beyond India^ Herodotus confesses that he knew nothing. As far as India (says he, Melp. 40), Asia is well inhabited ; but from India, eastward, the whole country is o?ie vast desert, unknown, and unexplored" That the tract was unknown, and unexplored, by those who held converse with the Persians and Greeks, appears likely: but that it was one vast desert, is now known to be an error ; since the vast empire of China, and its dependencies, together with the Peninsula beyond the Ganges, &c &c. lie to the east of India. It is certain, however, that a vabt barrier of mountainous country shuts up.
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on the East, the quarter of India^ possessed by Da- rius (his 20th Satrapy) ; the part to which the Per- sians may be supposed to have pointed their inqui* ries; and which appears to be the part here i&* tended. And moreover, that to this mountainous tract, there succeeds the extensive sandy desert of Kobi (or Skamo), and other Tartarian deserts, of almost immeasurable extent.
It may therefore, perhaps, be inferred, that the desert of Kobi, was the remotest part of the East that Herodotus had heard of; and that when he qpoke of the deserts beyond India, it was of this de^ sert : and although to us, to whom the form, the quality, and relative positions of the different tracts are known, it may appear a great error, to place a desert adjoining to India eastward; yet we must regard Herodotus, as a person who was ignorant of the true state of the matter, as to particulars ; and that, hearing of a desert, beyond India, he thought lumself justified in shutting up that country entirely, on that side, with a desert.
Those to whom the geography of North America, and New Holland, has been gradually unfolded, during the latter half of the present century, may re- collect how crude their ideas were, respecting the form and extent of the unexplored parts of those continents, and that every discovery was a refutation of some former error. With our minds thus pre- pared, we ought to follow Herodotus, in his descrip- tions of the remote parts of the earth.
According to the above ideas, therefore, Asia, as known to Herodotus, was more contracted in point
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of length than Europe ; or rather what is designed by him under that name ; for from Cape SL Fin" cent to the supposed seat of the lasedomes (that is, opp&aite to the Massagette), is much more than equal to the length of Asia, from the jEgean sea to the Tartarian deserts.
And hence it must also be inferred, that the Per* sians of those days, had no commercial intercourse either with China or Caikai, as in latter times ; otherwise, either Herodotus, Alexander, or the SeleuciddB, would at least have heard of China, and Eratosthenes would have noticed it. But it has aij^ peared that India itself was new gratrnd to the Per- sians (we mean those, who formed the original em- pire of Cyrus), and much more the countries beyond it: and indeed, judging by later events, it must have been the particular policy of the Indians to keep their people at hoTue ; which has at least some effect towards shutting out strangers : and what- soever applies in this way to India, applies perhaps in a yet greater degree to China.
It may appear very extraordinary, but was ne- vertheless true, that the visit of Alexander to India, was the means of contracting, in some degree, the limits that had been assigned by the geographers of preceding times to Asia ; and, of course, to die earth itself : for the system of Alexander admitted of no tract of land whatsoever, beyond India ; making India the most eastern country of Asia, although Herodotus had extended a vast desert beyond it How is this change to be accounted for ? It could not well be, that the Indians had not Jieard of any
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country beyond themy and that they believed theirs to be shut up by the sea, on the cast ; or that Alexander should hare negleeted to make the proper inqoiries ; but it might have been owing to bad in* terpreters ; or Alexander may have misconceived the scope of their information. It is possible^ toOj that vanity may have had some share in it^ by its causing a wish that there should be no other country beyond the one he had explored ; in other words^ that he had gone to the end of the earth. It is certain that something of this kind appears » also^ in the conduct of Polybius, wi& respect to Africa, as will appear in its place ; and we suspect that this conduct is on the whole natural ^
There is, however, a very striking fact that we shall mention, and which might have had a considerable share in determining the opinion of Alexander ; and who but is ready to believe the thing he wishes? He would have learnt from the Indians, of course, that the Ganges had an easterly course towards the sea ; and this, doubtless, fixed in his mind the idea of an EASTERN OCEAN, which in its nature, mu9t have shut up the Continent on that side ; and also joined
• Strabo, wlio wrote in tlie 5th century after 'Herodotus, believed that tliere was no country beyond India : so that China, altiiough at tliat time, perliaps, one of the most pojjulous and interestinj^ countries in the world, had escaped the know- iedj^'e both of the Greeks and Homans to that time. It is un- certain when the tables called Tlieodosian were formed, but it is generally supjwsed about the second century, 'J'he state of knowledge appears to have been nuich the same, at that time. Nor was Chmsidutinctly known in Europe, till the Idth century*
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to theNORTHERN ocean, which Eratoetlienes and others
believed to terminate the habitable earth, at the em- bouchure of the Ganges. This deduction was cer- tainly yery plausible ; and might well have deceived those, who were unable, from want of language, either to make themselves understood, or to under- stand others critically ; for few would have conceived that the mouth of the Ganges, which river itself had a general easierfy course, was situated in a gulf of the southern ocean. The opinions of Eratosthenes, Strabo, Pliny, and Arrian, were all to the former effect ; so that, no doubt, it was the commonly re- ceived opinion, from the date of Alexander s expedi- tion
Herodotus gives no intimation concerning the measure of the extent of Asia, beyond Susa east- ward ; nor was it probably known to him. Erato- sthenes, Strabo, and Pliny, each have given it ; nor are their reports so far different from the truth as might have been expected, all circumstances taken into the account. For, in the first place, the distance must be supposed to be calculated on the measure of the road : the mode by which it was, in all probabi- lity, obtained. It must also have been reckoned on many different lines of bearing, the inflexions of which could not well be ascertained : and lastly, the
* Pliny, lib. ii. c. 108» after getting forth that the Ganges dii- charged itself into the Eastern ocean^ marks this position as the eastern extremity of the world, by opposing it to the gulf of Issusy and the Promontory of Sacrum (C'a}>e St. Vincent,) on the west ; and then gucs into a curious calculation of the measure of tlie habitable earth.
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distance between the Indus and the mouth of the. Ganges, was in a great measure taken on report.
As then the actual distance, in a direct line from Cape St. Vincent to Issus, and thence to the mouth of the Ganges^ is about 4970 G. miles *, we shall, by adding ^ for inflexions (621 miles), be enabled to assume 5591 for the road distance. Now Eratos- thenes allows 70,000 stades ; Strabo, 67,500 ; and Pliny, about 70,100 ; and as Pliny, no doubt, copied the Greek numbers, the ratio may be taken at 700 to a degree throughout Hence tlie distances will be sererally 6,000, 5,786, and 6,008 G. miles ; and the greatest difierence between the calculations and the actual distance, 417 miles ; the least, that is, the calculation of Strabo, 195 only. And it is probable, that a greater proportion of inflexion ought to be allowed, which nught bring the two accounts very near together
• That is, 2, 150 between the Promontory of Sacrum {Cape St. Vincent) and Issus ; 2,8S0 between Issus and the mouth of the
Ganges, or supposed eastern extremity of Asia.
• The reports of the distances by Eratosthenes and Strabo, lib. i. and ii. are collected by M. Gosselin, pajjes 12 and 13.
The numbers in Pliny (lib. ii. c. 108.) are from A rtt in 'idoru.s, who calculates tJie distance from Cadiz througli Cyprus^ HItodeSy Sicily, and Sardinia, to Issus, and thence to the mouth of the Ganges, at 8,578 MP. ; and on a second line, through Cappa-^ docia, Ejihesus, Rome, and Spain, &c. at 8,G85.
The 8,o7S multiplied by 8, give 68,624 stades; and adding 1,4.33 for the distance between Cadiz and Cape St. Vincent, the total is 70,082.
• The 67,500 stades of Strabo, ajirce to the ratio of 724^ to a d^ree, reckoned on the road distance of 5,591 G. miles.
This furnishes another example of the fact advanced in page VOL. I. Q
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To return to Alexander — ^it appears that his expe- dition had the effect of falsifying the geography of Asia, in more than otte capital pointy although it added so much to it in others. It would have afiR>rded some triumph to Herodotus, could he bate known, that persons of so much acutrness, and wliose errand was almost as much discovery, as conquest, should, after visiting India, have left the geography of the East, as to outline, nearly as they found it ; and should besides, have falsified it in point of de^ tail : that is in respect of the Caspian sea, which Herodotus rightly described as a lake ; but the fol*
SI, el Mf. that the andents gave the dietencee serosa Aaia, in road iiieasttre> and not in direct distance.
The record of distance in Pliny (lib. ii. lOS.), between the supposed extremities of the earth. Cape St. Vincent, and the point at the month of the Ganges, is weU worth remarking, even from the accordance of the two interrak of space, between Cadiz and Issu8» Issus and the Ganges, in the calculation ; with those on the actual geography. He reckons 5215 MP. between Myriandrus, at the gulf of Issus and the Ganges ; and the whole distance from the Ganges to Cadiz, being 8,578, leaves 3,i5G3 between Issus and Cadiz. Hence the proportions will be as follows : the distaiu i' l)et\vcfn Cadiz and Issus, will he to that between the latti r, and the mouth of the (ianges, as 27 to 42, and on the actual geography it is as 27 to 38, a near approxi- mation for tlu)se tinu'S. It must he recollected that the Pro- montory of Cape St. Vincent is about 1^5 G. miles to the west- ward of Cadiz.
Pliny, in the same hook, c. 109, gives, although in a whimsical wav, the idea of J)i(un/.s/(loriis, a mathematician of Aldis, on the scmidianK'tcr of the earth. IK- supposed it to he 42,000 stadia, giving a circumfert nee of 263,8^1; consequently, a degree should have consisted of 7:3.3 stades, whilst our mean result is 718 \ that of Strabo, given above, TiL^,
X
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lowers of Alexander^ as a gulf of the Northern ocean !
In assigning the limits ci the knowledge of Hero- dotus in Asia, we must therefore leave out on the
chart of modern geography, all China, the Chinese and Western Tartary, Thibet, and the Peuimula heyond the Gafiges; together with the greater part of Siberia, and its appendages ; that is to say, by far the largest part of that vast continent. Such are the outlines of the Asia of our Author, as de- scribed in his work, as it now stands : and before we proceed to quote his brief description of the several regions of it (known to him), it will be proper to give a sketch of the natural division of the country, as to its levels, and the courses of its principal waters, between the Hellespont and Indii^ the extreme limit of our Author's knowledge ; for, it may be remarked, that (through vvhatsoever cause it may have been), he is singularly deficient, in respect of his description of the physical geography of Western Asia ; in that he has totally omitted the chains of mountains from which it derives its chief character.
It may have been that too little was known of the physical geography, to enable lierodotus to furnish out a description of it ; and it must be acknow- ledged, that if a judgment may be formed from what passed between Aristagoras and the King of Sparta, respecting the countries between Sardis and Susa, there is much ground for the above supposi- tion; but then, Herodotus himself had travelled across a considerable part of Western Asia, and
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therefore the surface of it ought in some degree to have been known fo him.
It is pretty generally known, that the Greeks, after lihat the -escpeditions of Alexander and Xenophon had furnished so great a number of routes across Asia ; conceived an idea that the cliain of Taurus, which originated at the shore of the iEgean sea, in Asia Minor, extended in a narrow* straight belt, keeping nearly in the same parallel, throughout the whole continent of Asia ; and that it terminated on the shore of a supposed Eastern ocean, which washed the extreme border of India \
Taurus, amongst the latter Greeks, and the Ro- mans, was famous both as a natural, and as a polu ficnl boundary. It was a line of separation, as it were, between two worlds ; and was to the Komaa empire, in latter times, what the Alps were at an earlier period. Properly speaking, it was the col- lective term for that great ridge, which was sup- posed to divide Asia into two climates; and which, although broken at times into two or more distinct chains, and occanonally varying in its general direc- tion, yet, cither through the want of a clear know- ledge of particulars, or for the sake of expressing a collective idea, the whole was called Taurus ; at the same time that dififerent portions of it had distinct names. Its separation and divergence, however, often rendered the application of these names difii-
' See Strabo, lib. xi. xii. and xvi., but more particidarly the latter end of the xith and beginning of the xiith.
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cult ; and, upon the whole, it can only be supposed that the ancients originally formed their ideas of the nature and direction of Taurus at large, from that part of it which lies within Asia Minor ; where it indeed preserves a greater degree of unity than elsewhere. This was the part most familiarly known to them ; and they might (as is not unusual) extend the idea to the parts which they had not seen.
The Taurus of the ancients, then, under the par- ticular names of Taurus, NiphateSy Caspius, Paro- pamisus, CaueasHS, Emodus, 8ic originated in the SW extremity of Asia Minor, through which tract it passed at no great distance from the shores of the Levant ; and thence, in its course eastward, sepa- rated Armenia from Mesopotamia ; the two Medias from each other ; and the Greater Media from the narrow tract, along the southern border of the Cas- pian sea.
Opposite to the south end of the Caspian, it was partly divided by a vast chasm, denominated the Caspiam Strait, through which lay the best passage from Media, Mesopotamia, and the western king- doms in genera], to Parthia, Hyrcania, Aria, and the remainder of those in the East ' ; as by it, the great deserts to the south were avoided*
' The Caspian strait was with the ancients a geographical point of importance, and was supposed to be in the same parallel with Issus and Rhodes.
This remarkable chasm It now called the Strait or Passage of Khomar {Choara of the ancients), from a town or district in the neighbourhood. It is situated at the termination of the great Salt Desert, almost doe north from Ispahan, and about 50 miles
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Passing tlie soiitli-east corner of the Caspian sett, Taurus was understood to separate in its eastern course, the countries of Parthia, Margiana, and Bactria, from those df Aria% Dratiglana, and the western provinces of India, watered by the heads of the Indus. Here their knowledge of the detail ended ; and beyond this point, it was supposed to divide Seythia from India ; taking both these coun* tries at large, and as occupying the remainder of the space in the habitable world eastward.
We have here endeavoured to express the general ideas of Eratosthenes, Strabo^ and Ptolemy ; and they were so far right, as that certain high ridges of mountains (though differing exceedingly in the scale
to the eastward of the nuns of Rey (or Rages,) Alexander passed through it in his way from Rages towards Aria and Bactria.
Delia Vaflie and Herhert amongst the modems, Pliny amongst the ancients, have described it particularly* It is e^t miles through, and generally forty yards in hreaddi. Pliny says, lib. vi. c* 1 4, that it is only wide enough for a carriage ; and Delia Valle, Vol. iii. that in places where it is narrowest, and winds withal, a litter can scarce pass. The mountains are very high on each side. The l)ottoni is generally flat, and at certain seasons, a considcrahlc stream of salt water flows towards the desert on the south. It must be remarked, that the chasm dot s not inter- sect the great body of the Caspian mountains, but only the iufe- rior ridges.
' Eratosthenes and Strabo supposed that Aria lay to tlie .suiilh of the continuation of Taurus. This appears to he a mis- take, as far as our information goes. Ptolemy had the same idea ; hut tlicn lie includes in //riV/, the lake of Znrrah, which is really in hrangiana, a country separated from Aria^ by the mountains in question.
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of height), are found in these positions ; but neither
do the highest chains of summits follow the direction supposed^ nor is the termination of the high region in the same parallel with its commencmnent, but much more to the north. As a proof of the first assertion, the Euphrates (the principal drain of Armenia), springs from the neighbourhood of the Euxine sea, and after a considerable length of course southward, penetrates Taurus which must there- fore, of course, be lower than the region towards the Euxine. And, in fact, it seems to be proved, by the course of the river Melas, that the superiority of level at the source of the Euphrates, near Trebiasonde, u continued obliquely across the Isthmus of Natolia from Caucasus to Taurus, passing above the heads of the Phasis, Cyrus, Araxes, Euphrates, ike. by Cmaria (Maznca ) ; and of which mount Argeeue was a part*. And hence it may be concluded, that in the application of the name, to the continuation of Taurus, the ancients were influenced more by tlie apparent, than the actual^ elevation : for there is no question that the highest level lies to the north, yet Taurus rises from the plmns of Mesopotamia with more apparent altitude than the mountains of Armenia, from the plain of Erzeroum.
Such was the system of the ancients respecting Taurus : but it conyeys no idea of the general
* This is {Nurtieularly described by PUny ; Ub. c S4. He says that the base of Taurus is 12 miles in breadth.
' The ancients had an idea that firom the summit of mount Argaut both of the seas could be seen. Strabo, page 538.
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leveU of the countries, since the ridges alone, had
tliey been ever so correctly described, are no more than the higher parts of elevated regions ; which regions themselves, and not merely thm summiis, are the marked features of the continent.
To begin with the Peninsula of Asia, or Asia Minor, inclosed between the Mediterranean, .^gean, and Euxine seas, on three sides, and on the fourth by an imaginary line, drawn across the Isthmus from Amisus to Issus^i^ b an elevated tract, of which the southern part, towards the Mediterranean, is by far the highest, being the proper Taurus itself, which rises abruptly from the neighbourhood of the sea coast, turning the courses of the principal waters towards the Euxine and ^gean seas, and leaving a succession of narrow tracts between it and the sea: that is, Cilicia, Pamphylia, &c.
The next portion of space is yet more elevated ; and is properly an extension of the former to the Caspian sea, and to the space between it and tlie Euxine, generally ; it being bounded on the south by an imaginary line, drawn from the north-east comer of the Mediterranean, to the south part of the Caspian.
On the north, it terminates in the region of Cau- casus, which overlooks the Sarmatian plains; in other words, the desert of Astrakan, and the country
of the Don Cossacks. And hence it happens, that the northern parts, both of the Euxine and Caspian, are situated in a low tract of country ^. Southward,
* It may be remarked, that this low tract is, in ef!ect, a part of a MOM of low land, that extends generally through £iirope and
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the region in question overlooks the vast hollow space, in which are contained the countries of Syria, Mesapoiamia, Assyria, and Babifhnia (in efiect the Assyria of our Author and of Strabo) ; and, finally, the Great Arabian Desert.
The political divisions of this region are, the eastern part of Cappadocia, Armenia^ Pontus, Colchis, Iberia, Albania, the country of the Carduchians, and Media Atropatia *. It appears to be the highest level of Western Asia ; giving rise to the Euphrates, Tigris, Cyrus, Araxes, Hypanis (or Kuban), Phasis, &c. which flow in di£ferent directions, and discharge themselves into the Enxine, Palus Mteotis, Caspian, and Persian gulf ; and the Euphrates itself flows to- wards the Mediterranean till it is turned aside by Amanus, within 100 miles of the gulf of Issus On
Western Asia. Tliat, in like manner, a zone of elevated ground, * corres|)onding with that now under discussion, runs parallel to the above ; and that, moreover, it is bordered on the south by another zone of a lower level, if we admit the Mediterranean and Persian seas to form a i)art of it.
These different levels must necessarily have a considerable effect on the winds and weather. Can it be supposed that the hollow zone, to the north of Caucasus^ the Bastarnian Alps, the Carpathian, and Hercynian mountains, has any share in con- ducting the east wind of the Steppe to the west of Europe 1
* Now Aderhigian. It ia probable that the name Atropatia^ which Strabo (page 522) aayi, was derived from Atropatusy a Macedonian general, was rather a corruption, or an imitation, of the other : which is said to be derived from the waxdjare; there having been a celebrated temple of the followers of ZonNMfer, or the worshippers of fire, in the province.
* Ammianus Marcellinus, lib. iii. c. 9» says, that if Tannis (Awumuif it should be), did not prevent it, the Euphrates would
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the higlier parts of this region are the two great salt lakes of Arsissa and Spauia (Van and Maraga.)
Pursuing the course of the high level, from the quarter in whicli we left it, that is, .}fe(lia Atropatia, it is found to extend eastward, till it joins with mount Imam, which is situated beyond the fountains of the Oxus and Jaxartes ; and which forms the western border of a yet higher and more extensive region, than either of the former.
This THIRP portion of the elevated region of Asia, is very unequal in point of breadth* In the western quarter it is necessarily limited by the approach of the Caspian and Persian seas towards each other, but expands to a much greater breadth beyond the Caspian, till again narrowed into a kind of Isthmus, by the vallies through which the Oxus and Indus flow ; and whose fountains are separated only by the high ridge of Caucasus, or Hindoo-Kho,
Media (the present 4^ Jehal or Irak Ajami) u contuned withui that part situated between the Cas- pian sea and the Persian gulf ; and is bordered on each side, towards the sea coasts, and towards Ass^ia (taken at large, according to our Author) by lower tracts of land ; those towards the west and south-west, comprising Babylonia and Susiana ; and
have run into the Mediterranean. But, as it afterwards runs nhout 800 miles hefore it reaches the Persian gulf, and in its way descends a vast number of rapids, which prevent the navigation upwards, it nuist needs be on an exceeding liigh level al>ove tlie Mediterranean, ai the place where it approaches nearest to that sea.
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on the north the provinces of the Cadusi^ Tapuri, and Hyreani, along the winding shores of theCaspian. But, of the part between the two seas, the low coun- try forms only an inconsiderable proportion.
The highest ground in this tract lies towards the Caspian sea, as is shewn by the course of the waters of Media, which generally flow Bonthward, into the Persian gulf, through Susiana ^
From Media, and the Caspian and Persian seas, eastward, the high level, as we have said, expands, with the country in general ; but we are not in pos- session of the knowledge requisite to mark its borders with the same precision as on the west. It appears, however, to be very irregular in its form, and has many deep cavities in it: in particular, that which contains the course of the Heermund river, and the lake of Zurrah, in which it terminates ; the beauti- ful valley of Soghd (the Sogdiana of the ancients, and one of the earthly paradises of the Orientals ;) and the plain of Key ( Rages ) which terminates east- ward in the great salt desert situated between Media and Aria,
The particulars known for certain respecting the • extent and boundaries of this portion of the high levd, are the following :
That the northern part, between the Caspian sea and mount Imaus, contains the ancient Parthia, Margmna, and Sogdiana: whidi, collectively,
* It must necessarily be much elevated, for Delia Valle says, tliat at Hamadan, the ancieiit Eebatana, the ink Jrote in the room in which he was sitting.
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overlook towards the north, the low countries of Chorasmia, and the seats of the Massageia, at the Jazartes.
That the middle part contains Aria and Baetri'
ana : the latter of which has within it the heads of the river Oxus ; and adjoins on the ea^t to Imam* And lastly, that the southern part contains Persia proper, Camumia, Araehoeia, &c.; which are bordered towards the Persian gulf, and the Enj- thriBan sea, by the low tract of Maritime Persia (now Gurrumseer), and by that of Gedratia, or Ma- kran.
The highest eaniinuaue ridge of this part appears
to be that wliich passes by the south-east of the Caspian sea, and Hyrcania, between Aria on the north, and Drangiana on the south ' : and from thenoe between Baeiriana and the Indian pro- vinces ; where, as it approaches towards Imam, which (as has been said) forms a part of a yet more elevated region, it swells to a great bulk and height, and is covered with snow till the month of August This is properly the Indian Caucasus of the Greeks : in modern language Hindoo-Kho,
Thus we have extended our view of the levels eastward, to the extent of the space within the know- ledge of Herodotus: and before we complete our view of the subject, by extending it to the shores of the eastern ocean, we shall say a word concerning the lateral ridges, which project southward from the great Eastern chain, so as to form a kind of vast
' See the note in page ^30.
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hasan or hollmff, inclosing Assyria • and Arabia, the Persian gulf, and the rivers Euplirates and Ti- griSf which it receives : for the inequalities within this space are trifling in height, in respect of the monntains that snrroond it: particukurly on the north.
From the body of Taurus, near the place where the Euphrates forces itself thrimgh it, at the northern extremity of Syria, a great ridge strikes to
the south, iiiclinhig to the west, and first falHng in with the Mediterranean at the gulf of Issus, it con- tinues to skirt the eastern shore of that sea (like a mound or dam), under the names of Amanus, Le- banon, &c. to the southern border of Palestine. There, quitting the Mediterranean, it strikes towards the eastern coast of the Red sea, which it also shuts np, though at a greater distance than that at which it skirted the former, and with a less elevation : and finally terminates in Arabia Felix.
Again, from another part of Taurus, in the north- east quarter of Assyria, a second ridge projects to the south, forming the eastern side of the great hofon (as Amanus and Lebanon the western, and Taurus itself, the northern^. This was named by the Greeks Zagros : it has been before described (in page 235) as the western descent of the elevated region of Media ; and as shutting up Assyria, Baby- lonia, and Susiana, on the east and north-east. At the eastern border of Susiana, it approaches near the
' That is, according to the ideas of Herodotus and Strabo, above quoted.
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Persian gulf, which it shuts up on the side towards Persia ; leaving only a narrow tract of lower land between ; (that is, Gurrumseer : see page 236) ; and also occasionally detaching lateral branches to the sea coast
It finally terminates at the neck, or entrance of the Persian gulf : which entrance, between the an- cient Uarmoua (Ormus) and the promontory of Maeeta (Mussendoni)^ seems to be nothing more than a 1) reach in this wall of mountains ; which is known to continue its course southward, through Omman, to a considerable distance, but which we have no anthority for describing. It may possibly join to the mountains of Arabia Felix.
Thus the Persian gulf, and the courses of the Mesopotamian rivers, occupy the NE part of this bason : and independently of the irrefragable prooft of llie declining of the level eastward, firom the Me- diterranean to the Persian gulf, in the position of the latter sea, and in the courses of the waters ; the travellers across the desert from Aleppo to Bussorah, remark the sinking of the levels eastward ; and that, not hy a gradual slope (which might escape their observation), but by distinct steps or degrees; of which one remarkaUe one is at Taiba, and another opposite to Hit. They remark also, a tract of deep sand, in the quarter towards Bussorah; together with what appears to be the ancient line of the sea coast, at the termination of this sandy tract, in the Chaldean desert It is not improbable that the same kind of slope extends all the way across the Arabian desert, between the upper part of the Red
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sea and the Persian gulf. We shall now pursue, in a general way> the trace of the high level, from the place where we lefib it, to the Eastern ocean, in order that the subject may not be concluded too abruptly.
The ridge of Imaus above mentioned (page 234) is properly the western declivity of a prodigious high level, which may be regarded as the firm -body of Eastern Asia. It occupies a vast space in the cen- tral part of Asia^ between Persia, India, China, and Tartanj ; and from the borders of w hich the great rivers of that continent descend in every direc- tion ; from the Oxua and Jaxartee on the west, to the Amur on the east ; and from the Ganges and Burrampooter on the south, to the Obij and Jeni- sea on the north. This vast upland tract (the highest region, perhaps, of the old hemisphere), con- tains generally, the country of the Kalmues, of the Monguhy Thibet, and Eastern Turkestan, The countries that surround this tract, taken in a very general view, may be regarded as placed on a kind of kangit^ levels, or descents, along the skirts of it ; since the waters flow so uninterruptedly from every side, to the surrounding seas or lakes. Those amongst them, which How through the parallels sub- ject to the periodical rainy season, have, by their alimtions, added vast plains, equal themselves to kingdoms, near the sea coasts ; but the operation of alluvion proceeds but slowly, by such rivers as do not undergo very great alterations in their bulk at di£ferent seasons ; and such are those to the north. The greatest alluvions in Asia, therefore, are formed by those streams which descend from the southern
13
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part of the elevated region in question ; that is, be- tween Persia and Cliina, which are so situated as to receive the supplies of rain brought by the southerly monsoons ^
To conclude the subject of the high leyel — ^there are several ramifications of it that extend eastward and north-eastward, to the Eastern ocean ; in parti- cular, one at tha gulf of Korea, above Pekin : and another at the gulf, or sea, of Ochots, opposite Kam- schatka : one of those may be taken for the final termination of Taurus, eastward. That point, how- ever, in the idea of the ancients, occupied the same parallel with Rhodes and the Caspian strait; and nearly the same meridian with the mouth of the Ganges ; the continent of Asia being supposed to terminate there.
The reader will naturally conclade, that, in the above description, a very general idea only is in- tended ; and that many tracts of high land, as well aa plains, are purposely omitted, as being of little importance to the general result, whilst they might render it less intelligible. Such b the tract of high land in the south of India, separated from the high region, by the great valley of the Ganges ; that also which divides India from China; and others iu China and Siberia* Our aim was chiefly to explain the drcumstances of Western Asia, and particularly that part which was the most relevant to the subject
• This ought not to excite surprise, when it is known that the quantity of rain which falls within the tract of the monsoons, is, in most instances, double, and in some triple, the quantity tliat fidb in England.
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of our Aotlior* It may not, however, be useless to account for the opposite courses of the great waters of Siberia, and those of Russia, between the parallels of 45*" and 60' : that '\b, the Siberian waters run to the north, the Russian to the south. In effect, the Siberian waters not only originate from a higher level than the others, but continue their courses along a descent^ which is in eveiy part higher, until it approaches the firoasen sea. So that the whole of Siberia occupies a higher level than Russia, and the Southeni Steppe ; whilst the declivities of the two levels are in opposite directions, and would, if pro* dueed, intersect each other^s plane: the Siberian level declining to the north, the Russian to the south (from the parallel of 60^) ; so that the former is ex- posed, throughout its whole extent, to the northern blasts ; the latter is in part sheltered.
Another circumstance respecting this lerel, ap- pears worthy of consideration. It has already ap- peared in this and other parts of the work, that the whole body of Eastern Asia, from the southern front of mount Emodue, which overlooks India, to the neighbourhood of the frozen sea, stands on a higher level than the western part ; and that the western border of this high level is mount Ifnaus, which is continued under various names, through the Great Steppe ' ; and thence northward to the coast opposite Nova-Zemhla (which may itself, be re- garded as a continuation of the chain So that the
' The rampart of Gog and Magog was near the foot of these muuntains.
VOL. L a
I
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border of this level lies in a direction not very far from the meridian, for the space of 40 degrees at leasts from the heads of the Ganges, to Waygat's Straits.
There is also reason to suspect that China is on a higher level than the lands on the west. It is well known, from the improvements in modern geography, that the high region of Thibet, &c* adjoins to China on the west ; and that from it a mountainous ridge, or region, extends south or south-eastwards, separat- ing the Peninsula of India beyond the Ganges, from China. The great waters of China all run to the east ; those of the Peninsula to the south ; a strong indication of different levels, and it cannot well be supposed that China is the lowest of the two, when the astonishing length of course of the Kian Keu is considered ; and moreover that China is a colder re- gion than India, in corresponding parallels.
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SECTION IX.
THE SUBJECT OF ASIA, CONTINUED.
Brief Description of the four Regions of Asia, by Herodotus — Observations on his /I rransement — His error in the relative Positions of the four Seas, the Mediterranean, Eiixine, Cas- pian, and Persian, to each other — continued to the time of Struho — Source of it — This error, one principal cause of the Ji andcr- ings of the Ten Thousand — Error of Herodotus in appreciat- ing the Breadth of the Istlinius o/Natolia — His ideas respect^ ing the Positions o/' Persia, Media, Assyria, <7//</ Arabia — The latter given under too confined Limits, by most of the Ancimts — Aria, Bactriana, Partliia — Caspian Sea, jnopcrly described as a Lake — its Hydrography corrected — Great Plain in Asia described — Aria Pains, the Lake of Zurrah — Sarangjcans, or Peojile of Sigistan — Erytliraean, or Indian Sea — Arabian and Persian Gulfs, Members of it — Arabian Gulf first took the name of Erythraean, or Red ; and the last that has preserved it — Erythrsana, the same as Tyriani — Euxme Sea — Errors Herodotus respecting its Dimetmom^-eompared m Form to a Scythian Bow — ^7/* Hydrography corrected — Principal RwerM in IVestem Asia — Gyndes dsmded Cyrus — The Araxes ^ herodotutmeasU/artheJasiMniea.
Aftsr the long digrestton from the immediate matter of our Authors work, at the conclusion of the last
section, we proceed to give his short description of the several regions of Asia, known to him : reserving, however, the detail of the twenty Satrapies of Dabius Hystaspss, for a separate investigation.
B 2
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Herodotus sets out with describing four beotons
in Asia ; Melpom. 37, et seq.
I. The FIRST region included the space between the two seas, the gulf of Persia and the eastern part of the Euxine ; and contained " the region occupied by the Persians, which extends southward to the Red sea : (/. e. the Erythraean or Indian sea.) I5e- yond these, to the north, are the Medes : and next to them the Sapirians. Contiguous to the latter, and where the Phasis empties itself into the northern sea (Euxine), are the Colehians. These four na- tions occupy the space between the two seas
II. From hence to the west, two tracts of land stretch themselves towards the sea : the one on the north side commences at the Phasis ^, and extends to the sea, along the Euxhw and the Hellespont, as far as the Sigeum of Trot/. On the south side, it begins at the Marandynian bay', contiguous to Phognieia ; and is continued to the sea, as far as the Triopian Promontory ^ This space of country is inhabited by 30 different nations." Melpom. 38.
' It may be proper to advertise the reader, in this place, that Herodotus supposes the Phasis to be nearly under the same meridian as the head of the gulf of Persia.
' Here we have a proof that the Asia of Herodotus did not exLtend to the northward of tlic river Phasis, The proof is rendered more strong by the whole context of the chapters S7t 38, 39.
* This ought to be the Myriandrian bay, or bay oiMfftum* dnu : in other words, the gulf of Issus. Manmdipua was a part o{ B'Uhynxa^ and extended along the Euxine.
* This was the Promontory of Asia Minor, opposite to the island of Coos. The territory of Cmdus was named Triopmm : Clio, 174. There was a temple consecrated to Apollo, on the promontory of Triope, where games were celebrated ; Clio, 144.
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III. " The other district (of the two above men- tioned) commences in Persia, and is continued to the Red sea ^ Besides Persia, it contains Assyria and Arabia, naturally terminating in the Arabian gulf, into which Darius introduced a channel of the Nile. The interval from Persia to P/tcenicia is very extensive. From Phcenicia it again continues beyond Syria of Palestine, as far as Egypt, where it terminates. The whole of this region is occupied by three nations only. Such is the division of Asia from Persia, westward.** Melpom. 39.
IV. ** To the east, beyond Persia, Media, the Sapimans^, and Colchians, the country is bounded by the Red sea ' ; to the 7iort/i by the Caspian and the river Araxes, which directs its course towards the east \ As for as India, Asia is well inhabited : but from India, eastward, the whole country is one vast desert, unknown and unexplored." Melp. 40.
Thus we have the subdivisions of Asia» as known
' That is, the Erythraean sea at large, or the sea between India and Arabia : not the Arabian gulf.
" These are called Sapinians, Sajnrians, and Saspires (or Saspirians), in difierent places ; but all have a reference to the lame people, who were lituated between Media and Colchh.
' He can hardly mtan^ that the sea in question bounded this tiact on the east, becanse it contradicts the rest of the statement J which implies, that India lies to the east of this tract. He most have meant ** the country on the east of Persia," &c.
* We must read rvest ; because, by implication, in Clio, ZQ%, 204, the Araxes, on which the Massagetse are situatedy runs into the eoH side of the Caijmffi. It will appear, in the sequel, that be oonfiiunds the Eastern Araxee (meaning the JaxartesJ with the Araxee of Armenia.
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to Herodotus. The first remark that arises, on a view of this statement, is, that the Author had not a just idea of the relative positions of the Buxine and Caspian sea, to the Mediterranean sea, and Per- sian gii(f (or rather sea, as he did not know that it formed a gu^ there). For he supposes the Caspian sea to be situated to the east of the meridian of Persia; in Melpom. 40; whence the position of ColvhiSy in respect of Persia and Media , is inferred to be opposite to, or in the same meridian with them : for such a position, the description evidently intends. (The reader is requested to turn to the Maps No. I. and II.) Not that the space between Ionia and tiusa (a route well known to our Author, as will appear in a future discussion) was eaniracted by this arrangement; for the prolongation of the Euxinc, westward, beyond the truth, made up in space for the false adjustment of the east end of that sea. But, on the other hand, the breadth of Arabia and Assyria were contracted very far within their proper bounds, by the error of supposing the mouth of the Nile and Cilicia to stand opposite to each other; Euterpe, 34; but more particularly by the deficiency of distance between Egypt and Babylon, as will appear presently. The consequences of these errors were, that a more northerly direction was given, both to the Arabian gulf, and the eastern side of the Mediterranean.
Several of these errors remained to the days of Strabo; for even the materials collected during Alexander's expedition, did not enable geographers to correct the whole error in the relative positions
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of tlie Caspian^ Euxine, and Persian seas, to each other, and to the Mediterranean. The true cause appean to have been, that no direct line of distance from Canoipw to Babylon could be obtained, be- cause the nature of the intervening ground (tlie Arabian desert) prevented it ; and although the me- ridians of Canopm and the Sacrum Promontory (of Lyeia) were pretty well adjusted in respect of each other ^, yet, as the line to Babylon, from the former, passed circuitously through Thapsacus and Arbela, a vast error in the direct distance (almost unavoid- ably) arose, through the default of means, to ascer- tain the various inflexions of the Hne of distance. Hence Eratosthenes allowed no more than 5,600 stadia, of 700 to a degree, between HeroopoUs and Babylon, which is short of the truth by about one fourth. So that although Babylon was really more than 3" of longitude to the eastward of the mouth of the Phasis, in Colchis, yet the just-mentioned error, which amounted to 3*^ 3' (it being 156 G. miles), threw it somewhat to the west of the Phasis, on the Map
An error of the like kind, or perhaps a continua-
* It was understood that these places were situated under the
sanic meridian.
' But it is, perhaps, yet more remarkable tliat an error in the relative positions of the Caspian and Persian seas, sliould liave existed to tlie present times. M. D'Anville placed the NW part of the Caspian ino degrees of longitude too far to the east, in respect of the Persian gulf, by means of an error in the rejiorted longitude of Astrakan. And yet the Arabian and Persian Tables have it right. The above error had the ettect of di.storting the ipace, generally, between tbe Caspian sea and Constantinople.
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tion or extension of the former one, by Eratosthenes and Strabo, was tbe act of placing the Caspian strait (the pass through the continuatian of mount Taurus, see abore, page 229,) in about the same meridian with the entnmee of the Persian gulf, although it is really 4 or 5 degrees to the west of it. We have no doubt that the 8,000 stadia allowed by Strabo, page 727, between that strait and the southern ex- tremity of Persia, was meant for d^erence of kUi^ tude, in like manner as those lines between Canopus and the Sacrum Promontory (of Lycia), Issus and
An additional proof of the supposed easterly posi- tion of the Caspian sea, even to the time of Strabo, is the distance given by him, between Seleucia (at the Tigris) and Hyrcania, through Artemita (in Babylonia), which is 8,500 stadia (compare Strabo, page 529 and 744), although 6,000 appear more than sufficient.
We have given these instances of the errors of the Greeks, which were continued to the period of the writings of Eratosthenes and Strabo ; and although they do not absolutely j)^ove that Herodotus lay under the same error, yet the context of his geo- graphy has the same kind of derangement, and ap- parently to an equal extent ; but as he gives no mea- sures in this place, the quantity of his error cannot be ascertained, although it may be inferred.
The source of these errors was the difficulty of adjusting the meridians of different places, previous to the discovery of the polarity of the magnet, and of the improved and facile mode of taking observa-
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tions of longitude. To these causes the rapid im- provements in modern geography have been owing ; and to the absence of them, that ancient geography has at all times been more deficient in the adjust- ment of the meridtOM than of the parallels.
It is not at all improbable that the error in the meridional distance^ between the Persian gulf and the Eoxine^ was the cause of Xenophon's keeping too far to the east, in his way through Armenia, to- wards Trehixonde, He, no doubt, adhered to the geographical system then in vogue in Greece (such as is given by Herodotus) ; and expected to find Trebisonde nearly in the same meridian with Baby- lon and Nineveh, although it bore about N 30° W from the latter. Alexander, by the same rule, must have supposed himself nearer to the Euxine, than he really was, when at the Jaxartes, which some of the Greeks actually took for the Tanais
The next error of magnitude in Herodotus, but which^ however, had no material effect on the ge- neral system, was his supposing the Isthmus of Natolia (between the gulfs of Issus and Amisus) to be narrower than it really is, by near one half. He says, Clio 72, that " an active man could not travel in less than five days over this space f and in Eu-
■ Besides the mistake of 5* of longitude, in the first instancCi it raay be conceived that the geo'jraphy of Alexander's land march, which had so many intloxion.s in it, might be very erro- neous, when they had no guide lor the line of direction, save the sun and stars. It is therefore possible, that tliey might suppose themselves to be no farther distant from the MieotiHf than the space occupied by the course of tlie Tanait.
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terpe, Si, tbat a good traveller may pass from the
mountains of Cilicia (Taurus) to Sinope, in five days." Now it appears from the late observations of M, Beauchamp, who found the latitude of Sinope to be 42<> 2', instead of 41* 4', as M. lyAnville places it \ that the Isthmus is not less than 4 ' of latitude across, or 240 G. miles. This would require a rate of 66i British miles in direct distance, and certainly more than 60 by the road, for each day ; a rate of travelling on foot which our Author certainly had not in contemplation. And it may be conceived, that little more than half of this rate, that is, 33 miles by the road, is an ample allowance for a cou- rier on foot, when the journey is continued five days ; and this is the rate at which the Indian cou- riers do actually travel \ In consequence, Hero- dotus could not suppose the Isthmus to be more than 125 6. miles in breadth ; that is, 115 less than the truth.
Eratosthenes allows 3,000 stadia \ or 257 G. miles, which is not greatly beyond the truth, if taken as direct dbtance, and at tiie standard of 700
to a degree ; and if as road distance, somewhat less
* It is in justice due to Mr. Arrowsmith, jTeojrrapher, to mention, that in his Map of Europe hitely pubhslied, and drawn before tlie observation of M. Beauchamp at S'lnopc was known, he ha<l actually placed Sinope within 3 or \ minutes of the observation in cpiestion. We understand that he was led to this dcternnnation, by some surveys taken by Mr. Eaton (aullior of the View of the Turkish Empire), between Constaatiuople aod Karetnpi Boroun, or the Promontory oi' Carambis.
* See the Memoir of the Map of Hindoostan, section vii.
* Strabo, page 68.
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than the truth, as 228 would be the result, allowing
for inflexions. So that Eratosthenes^ at any rate^ was not far from the truth.
Ptolemy^ at a later date than Eratosthenes, gives a breadth of 6^^ to the Isthmus, in the line be- tween the gulfs of Tarsus and Amisus. Pliny has 200 MP. only, vi. c 2 ; which falls below Hero* dotus. ConGeming a part so well known, one is surprised to find such a Tariety of statements ; for it seems, that the breadth was well known from the marches of Alexander, as the statement of Erato- sthenes may be supposed to be founded on it
Of the length of Asia Minor, and, generally speak- ing, of the proportions of its parts, bating the above . error, Herodotus was probably well informed. He was at home in Ionia (as well as on the opposite side of the jEgean sea) ; for his account of the Satrapies of Darius shews that he knew Asia Minor in detail, although he might never have crossed the Isthmus. He, as well as some others, called it the Asiatic Chereaneeus, or Peninsula, which name the eupposed form warranted. In Melpom. 12, he places Sinojje in this Chersonesus,
With respect to his fouk grand divisions of Asia % we shall o£fer the following general remarks and cor- rections ; meaning, however, to be more particular in the account of the Satrapies.
In the FIRST division or region, the Author obvi- ously meant to include in Persia the fertile part of Carmania, under the name of Germama, and appa-
• See above, page 2 ii.
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rently Snaiama also, under the name of Cisria, or Kissia. Media includes both the countries of that
name ( Major and Atropatia ), together with Ely- mab, Matiene, the Saspires, or eastern part of Armenia, and part of Iberia. Also Colchis, and with it, many of the Caucoiian nations. It would liave been more correct to have called this the tract between the three seas, Euxine, Erythraean, and Caspian, instead of the two seas, by which the two former are intended.
The second region comprised the Western Ar- menia and Asia Minor, as is evident from the con- text. The Easterti Armenia we have seen included in the Suspires, In Terpsichore, 52, the Euphrates diyides Armenia from Cilieia, in the road from Sar- dis to Susa \ Consequently Upper Mesopotamia is reckoned here, as in some other places, to Armenia ; for instance, in Clio, IM, where the boats are said to " descend from Armenia to the province of Baby- lonia," by the Tigris. We must regard mount Tau- rus as the southern boundary of this region, although not expressed as such ^ It has already been said, that our Author is deficient in his attention to this principal feature in the geography of Asia, as he only mentions it incidentally ; that is, he calls Taurus the mountains of Cilieia, in Euterpe, 34 ; the moun- tains above Ecbatana, in Media, in another place ;
' It wHl be explained hereafter, that \U CUkia incliided the northern proTinoea of Syria, that is, Cyrhctika, KUUs, &c. as weU as Cilieia within Amanus*
* Or, more eritieally, motmt Masius, the southernmost braacii of T«atnu,
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and those above the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris, in a third.
The THIRD region contained the southwest part of Asia» included between the different seas^ on all quarters except the north, where it was shut up by mount Taurus ; and on the north-east by IVIedia and Susiana. The Isthmus of Suez forms a trifling exception on the west also.
Within this division, under the name of Asstma, are comprised not only Assyria proper, situated be- yond the Tigris ; but Babylonia, tlie tract between the Euphrates and Tigris ( qfterwards called Meso-' poia$maJ, and Syria. There was also included in it, Arabia, more extensive in itself than all the rest collectively ; and moreover, the small, but interest- ing and important states of Phoenicia, and Syria of Palestine. And yet this vast extent of space was said to comprehend three nations only.
There is no question but that our Author sup- posed Arabia to be much less than the truth; in the first place, because he believed that the Persian gulf did not exist, and consequently might suppose that the sea-coast ran in a direct line from the mouth of the Euphrates, to the entrance of the Red sea ; and secondly, because he supposed the head of the Red sea to be nearer to the Persian sea. But of the length of Arabia he was apprized, because he knew the extent of the Arabian gulf, and that Arabia bor- dered on it throughout.
The ancients in general thought Arabia of much less extent than it is. Pliny, vi. c. 28, compares the Peninsula of iVrabia with that of Italy, in point of
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finrm and tine ; and of pontiamf in vespeei of tlie
heavens. He was right only in the last particular. The Arabian gulf is about twice the length of Italy ; and one if snrpiised that Pliny should have been under so great a mistake. Bui the context serves to shew that it was the common opinion that Arabia was less than it really is.
Assyria is the same with Babylonia^ in Clio, 106, 178 ; Thalia, 155 ; and in other places. Both Babffbm and Nineveh were reckoned Assyrian dties.
Syria, in the contemplation of Herodotus, was only a portion of Assyria. He distinguished the Syrians of Palestine from the Syrians of Cappa^ doeia, but we do not find that he any where dis- tinguishes Syria proper as a separate country from Assyria, Strabo reckons it a part of Assyria.
The remarkable fact of there bdng but three nations within this space, which indudes Assyria, Persia, and Phoenicia, as well as Arabia, shews that the Arabians must have extended over the greater part of Assyria and Babylonia. Part of Mesopo- tamia was called Arabia by Xenophon and Pliny. Perhaps we may regard the whole of this region, except what lies to the east of the Tigris, as Arabia^ on an extended scale.
The FOUKTH, and last region of Asia, lay to the east of Persia and Media, and was bounded on the north by the Caspian sea and river A raxes, (raean- .ing the Jaxartes; or possibly there may be some confusion between it and the lower part of the Oaius :) on the south, by the Erythraean sea; and on the east, by the utmost known part of India.
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The countries situated within these limits our Author does not specif ij : but it is obvious, by his account of the Satrapies, that most of the principal subdivisions were familiar to hun : these were H yr* cania, Parthia, Aria, Bactria, Sogdia, Chorasmia, Saca, Zaranga, the countries of the Parycanians, and Etliiopians of Asia (under which are designed the Gedrosians) ; and other sonthem tribes : and finally^ the Indians on both sides of the river Indus.
The Caspian sea is a principal feature in this re- gion. This he rightly describes as a sea, distinct from all others; that is, a lake; Clio, 203. The dnnensions given are not very difibrent from the truth, only that the width is made too great, if meant of tlie Caspian alone : but as Alexander, and all the geographers from his time, to that of Delisle, in- cluded the Arid as a part of the Caspian, it is pro- bable that Herodotus did the same, since he con- ducts tlie Jaxartes into the Caspian, and not into a separate lake. The length assigned to the Caspian, by our Author, b fifteen days' navigation for a w^i^ oared vessel ; and the breadth eight. The former, according to the idea that may be formed of the rate of sailing of ancient vessels, appears consistent ; but the breadth is too irregular to be reduced to rule.
The real length of this sea, which may now be re- garded as pretty well known, is about 640 G. miles in a N by W, and S by E direction ; and it contracts no less than 130 miles at the northern neck, and to about 100 at the southern neck The fifteen days'
* In the Map No. V. the form and dimensions of the Caspian
13
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voyage of oar Author may perhaps approach towards
600. Eratosthenes and Strabo supposed it to be 6,000 stadia, equal to 515 miles. Like the Euxine, and other narrow seas^ it has always heen represented too wide.
By the description, we must understand that the position of its length was supposed to be nearly north and south ; which, generally speaking, is pretty much the. case : he says, " Caucasus hounds it on the west, the largest, and perhaps highest, mountain in the Avorld, and inhabited by various nations Clio, 203. And, " it is bounded on the east by a plain of prodigious extent, a considerable part of which forms the country of the Massagetm^ (204.) — a great and powerful nation, whose territories ex- tend beyond the river A raxes (Jaxartes) to the extreme parts of the East." (201.)
This knowledge concerning the unconnected state of the Caspian, in respect of other seas, was lost in the time of Eratosthenes, Strabo, and Pliny ; but re- gained in that of Ptolemy, who restored its form of a lake, but under such dimensions and proportions as shew that the Aral was mistaken for a part of it
As the subject of the A/assagefce and Sae^^ is intended to be spoken of fully in a separate chapter, under the head of Eastern Scythians, of which they are members, we shall speak very generally of them
sea (as well as of the Euxine) are given according to the latest observations, and most improved construction.
' One is siir])rised to find in M. Gosselin, \)Hge 103, an idea that the Caspian was once joined to the North sea by a strait, according to the opinions of tlie Greek geographers I
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in this place. To the Massagetae are assigned the vast plains to the N and NE of the Sirr or Sirt river (the Jaxartes)^ the Caspian, aud Aral ; and to the west of the mountains of Imaus, or Kashgur : in other words, the principal seats of the Kirgees tribes in the present times.
The Sacs were situated towards the upper parts of the rivers Oxus and Jaxartes, by the testimony of authors who wrote posterior to Herodotus; but he places them in and about Bactriana. Sacae was a term applied to Scythians in general, although it be- longed in strictness to a tribe, subject, as it would appear, to the Persians ; since they filled a conspi- cuous place amongst the crews in the naval armament of Xerxes.
Thus the Massagets and Sacie occupied the north- eastern extreme of the habitable part of Asia, ac- cording to the system of our Autlior ; but the former of the two were entirely independent of the Persian empire.
Herodotus gives rather a confused account of a
large plain in this part of Asia. It was surrounded on every side by a ridge qf hills, through which there were five different apertures: Thalia, 117. This plain, he says, belonged formerly to the Choras- mians, who inhabited those hills, in common witli the Uyrcauians, Parthians, Sarangseans, and Thopia- neans : but that after the subjection of these na- tions to Persia, it became the property of the great KING. A great river, named Aces, flows from these hills, and was formerly conducted through the open- ings of the mountains, to water the above-mentioned VOL. I. s
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countries. That, on the Persians taking possession, they stopped up the passages, and thus formed the plain into a sea, or great lake, depriving the nations around of their accustomed share of water; who were tlicrcfore reduced to the most extreme distress; but were afterwards^ on application to the king, sup- plied with the necessary quantity of water for their cultivaUon; after which the passages were again shut And thus he compelled the payment of an additional tribute.
This story, so improbably told, seems to relate either to the river Owns, or to the Oekus, both of
which have undergone considerable changes in their courses ; partly by the management of dams, partly by their own depositions. For they certainly flow near the countries of the Chorasmians, the Hyrca- nians, and Parthians ; but the Sarangasans, if taken for the people of Zarang ^ that is, Sigijftan, (as, no doubt, they ought to be,) are out of the question, as to any connection with these riyers.
But die country of Sigistan, (which is of a singular nature, as being a hollow tract surrounded by moun- tains, and having a river of considerable bulk (the Hmdmend) flowing through it, and terminating in a lake, after forming vast alluyions,) may have been confounded with tliose through which the Oxus and Ochm flow. It seems, however, to be clearly un- derstood that there is no outlet for the waters of the Hmdmend ; since the level of Sigistan u lower than
* Zarang appears in the Tables o£Nasereddin and Ulugbeig; and no doubt represents the ancient capital ot the Zarmig€eu It is reckoned a very ancient city.
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that of Korasaa and Aria, through which the Oxus and Ochns flow.
The lake of Zurrah, into which the Hindmend
discharges itself, is about 100 miles in length, and 20 broad at the widest part ; and is said to be fresh \ The country through which the Hindmend flows has all the characteristics of the alluvial tracts, at the mouths of great rivers ; as Egypt, Bengal, &c. This was the celebrated tract which is said to have formed the appanage of Rustuh * ; and whose inhabitants, from the relief which they afibrded to Cyrus, after his Eastern expedition, were named Euergetfc, or benefactors ; and had considerable privileges and im- munities granted them, which Alexander had the generosity to confirm. Much more will be said on this subject, under the heads of Sarangaans and Sacce, in the detail of the Satrapies.
Of the general form and extent of the Erythr<Ban sea, (which, according to our Author, is that which washes the coasts of Arabia, Persia, and Western India, and terminates southward, at the extremities of Arabia and India,) he seems to have had some idea, by assigning a due length to the Arabian gulf, which opened into it ; and by describing the land of India to extend a great way to the southward of the Indus; Thalia, 101. But as, on the other hand, he supposed Arabia to be the most southerly land of AMa, Thalia, 107, 1 15, he, of course, had no idea that
* The Jria PaUu of Ptdemy.
* D*Herbelot, article Segeitan. Rytstum resided there; as it ii said the kings of Persia did previoas to their establishment at Etiakar, meant for Persepolis.
s2
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India projected so far to the south, as it really does. The boundary of the Erythraean sea would therefore
be a line drawn from the outlet of the Red sea, or Arabian gulf, to the south extremity of India. All beyond thb line^ southward, was by him called the Southern ocean ; and that with strict propriety ; for he must have supposed it to embrace South Africa, and afterwards to join tlic Atlantic, according to his own words, in Clio, 203; " the sea frequented by the Greeks, (i. e. the Mediterranean,) the Erythraean, and that beyond the Pillars, called the Atlantic, are all one ocean." The Southern ocean is pointedly marked, in Melpom. 42, where " the ships of Nechao (destined to surround Africa) took their course from the Red sea, and entered the Southern ocean." An- other indication of this ocean is in Thalia, 17, where " the Macrobian /TUhioj)ians inhahit that part of Libya which lies towards the Southern ocean."
Herodotus, as we have seen, denominates Ery' thnean, or Red, the whole of that sea which lies be- tween India, Persia, and Arabia (our sea of Omman together with its gulfs or bays. But he, notwith- standing, distinguishes the Arabian gulf very point- edly ; as in Euterpe, 159, that part of the Arabian gulf which is ?iear the Reef sea." In the preceding chapter the Arabian guJf 'is said to be 1,000 stadia from the North sea, at Mount Casius. It is also called Red sea in the same place. Again, in Mdp. 39 and 42, the Arabian gfff is discriminated.
But the Persian giiJf he nowhere discriminates in this manner ; and there is every reason to believe that the same man, who knew better than Strabo and
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Others what were the circumstances of the Caspian sea, did not believe that the Euphrates emptied itself into a gulf, closely shut up by a* narrow strait, like ihe Arabian gulf, but into a corner, or bay, of the greater ocean. For he makes no distinction, as Strabo and others did (who derived their information from the expedition of Alexander, or the voyage of Nearchus), between a Persian gulf and an Eiy- thrcean sea ; although he makes so clear a distinction between the Erythraean sea and the Arabian gulf. For he says, in Clio, 180, the Euphrates pours itself into the Red sea the same u said of the Tigris, in Erato, 20. In Melpom. 37, " the region occupied by the Persians extends southward to the Red sea**
When he speaks of the islands of the Red sea (to
which exiles were sent, and whose inhabitants ac- companied Xerxes in his expedition to Greece), he could only, from circumstances, mean the islands of the Persian gulf. See Thalia, 93, and Polym. 80. In Melp. 40, the Red sea bounds the country on the east of Media and Persia. Nothing but an opeti sea is here expressed ; and it is probable that Hero- dotus knew of no distinction of the above kind. At the same time, the Persian gulf ought to have been known to those who knew the detail of the voyage of Scylax of Caryandra, isom the Indus to the head of the Arabian gulf, as mentioned in Mel- pomene, 44.
As the Arabian gulf is the only part of this ocean that has retained, in modern times, the name of Red 8EA, SO we conceive it to have been the first that re*
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ceived it. The country of Edom, or Idnmea, bor-. dered on the upper part of the Arabian gulf^ and pro- bably gaye name to it» amongst the neighbouring people of PalesHne and Phcenieia: and the Greeks, no doubt, obtained from the latter both the know- ledge of this sea and its name Edojti, or Red; which they translated into Erythraan Pliny says that the Tf^rian0 were called Erythraans from ^eur former place of abode, near the Red sea : that is, the Arabian gulf ; lib. iv. c. 22. This, then, may readily be conceived to have been the origin of the name, as well amongst the Greeks as the Phoenicians and people of Palestine. Amongst the Jews we find *' the Red sea in the land of Edam," (I Kings ix. 26.) and of " the sea shore in the land oiEdom," (2 Chron. viii. 17.)
The Greeks would naturally extend the name to
as much of the adjoining seas as they became ac- quainted with : as, for instance^ to the sea of Omtnau, and the gu^ qf Persia, as parts of it. The story of King Erythras and his tomb» in one of the islands of that gulf, may have been invetited afterwards.
Arrian, whose ideas of the geography of this quar- ter of Asia seem to have been collected from the voyage of Nearchus, calls the Persian gulf the Ery- thriean sea : and if the story told by Nearchus could be credited, the name was first of all applied to this gulf ; for he says, that the tomb of King Erythras^ which was situated in one of its islands^ gave occar
' We have here the support of the venerable Nisbubr. Arabia, p. 360, French edition.
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sion to the gulf being named from that king. Tliis, however, we regard as a tale. But Arrian, in other places* seems to regard the sea of Omman^ at large, as the proper Erythrnan sea : and speaks of the Perrian and Arabian gulfs, merely as such ; and as being distinct from the Erytliraean sea itself.
Concerning the Euxinc^ or Block sea, it has already be^ stated (page 7 1), that our Author gives it much too extended dimennons ; and that it was occasioned by his following an erroneous calculation of the Egyptian schcene (page 26). For he reckons it 11,100 stades in length, between the Bosphorus and the river Phasis; 8,200 or 8,300 in breadth, between Theniiscyra and Sindica: Melp. 85, 86. But according to the map of M. Zacu, founded on the latest observations, thb sea cannot be more than 000 G. miles in length, or about 7,200 stades, of our mean scale^ 718 ^ Its greatest breadth is about half as much, in the line between Amastris and Odessus, near the mouth of the Borysthenes ; and not in the place Herodotus mentions. However, he is not much out in the breadth itself, which mav be taken at 3,G00 stades. But he was wrong in his ideas of the relative positions of its coasts to each other, for he thought that the mouth of the Danube was oppo-
* In M. Zaoh*8 Geographical fiphemeris (for Jiily» 1798), there is a new map of the Euxine, constructed on the authority of the observations of M. Beauchamp, and those in the Mem. of the Academy of Petersburgfa, &c
Tbis publication, by M. Zagh, commenced with the present year ; and promises to be of the greatest advantage to geography, as well physical as political, by its sending forth to the world, Ibr the use of the present age, or preserving for that of a future one, a great oollectiott of valuable materials.
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site to Sinope; Sindica to the Thertnodon river;
and the Bospliorus of Thrace to the river Phasis.
Notwithstanding the opportunities that have oc- curred to Europeans, in latter times, the form and dimensions of thb sea have been left, to the present time, more incorrect even than those of the Caspian. To give a few instances — the town of Sinope, and Promontory of Carambis, have been placed one de» gree of Uititude too far to the sauih. The eastern bason of the Euzine has been represented 100 6. miles too wide, between the mouth of the Halys river, and the nearest opposite coast. And lastly, the narrowest part, between Carambis and the Krimea, is 30 too wide, where the whole width is no more than 113. The high land of the Krimea is visible from Carambis \
Some of the ancients had an idea that the form of the Euzine was that of a Seytkkm bow, when bent The idea was not a bad one, if the Scythian bows were like those of the modern Turks : but then, it is to be considered, that the ancients supposed the south
' The error of Straho was mucli greater, p. 125. He reckons the distance across 2,500 stadia, or 214 G. miles. It is wonder- ful how such a niist:ike could have happened, when one of the lands can he seen Irom the other.
• Straho, p. 125. lie .supposed tltc ciri lunierence of tliis sea to be 25,000 stadia; which was too high a calculation, by one- fourth.
In No. V. its form and dimensions may he seen, a'jjroi ahly to M. Zach's idea. Its area cannot ditfi r nuicii from tliat of the Caspian sea ; with which the reader may have an opportunity of comparing it in the same map.
It has since been found necessary to su])stitute (he observa- tions of Mr. Eaton, between Constantinople and Sinope*
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coast to form nearly a right line; in which they were
mistaken.
The principal rivers of Western Asia have been already spoken of, as known to Herodotns, in the
course of our remarks. The Indus is said to be the second river that produces crocodiles (the Nile the firsts we may suppose) ; but as he also mentions the great African river (our Niger), as producing abun- dance of these animals, this is, of course, the third river of the same kind. The Ganges he knew not.
The source of the Euphrates he places in Arme- nia ; but that of the Tigris he does not point out» although he speaks of the sources of two of its ad- juncts (the greater and lesser Zabf under the same name of Tigris J, which flow from Armenia and Matiene. The Euphrates and Tigris are both said to fall into the Red sea ; Clio, 180 and 189 : and from the mode of expression, it may be understood, that they kept distinct courses to the sea, as they are known to have done in the time of Alexander ; al- though, at no great distance of time afterwards, they became united, and joined the sea in a collec- tive stream ®.
The Euphrates and Tigris spring from opposite sides of mount Taurus, in Armenia: the former from the upper level, before described ; the latter from the southern declivity ; and certain of the sources of the two rivers are only separated by the summits of Taurus. And yet, notwithstanding this
' These fiuta are my detrly collected tnm the hiitory of Neardiiis's voyage, and from Uie teatimoiiies of the andent geographers. The Cyras and Arazes, likewise, kept distinct cotmes m andent tones.
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vicinity, the imiToes of the Tigris, by being in a
southern exposure, (wliere the snow melts much earlier than at the hack of the mountains, and in a more elevated aituatkm,) occasion the periodical swellings of thb river to happen many weeks earlier than those of the Euphrates. Of the two, the Tigris seems to be the largest body of water.
The river CryndeSf by the description given by Aristagoras (Terpsichore, 52), answers to the Diaia, which joins the Tigris, just above Modain (the an- cient Ctesiphon and Seleucia, collectively) ; but this will not agree with the circumstance of Cyrus cross* ing it, in hb way from Susa to Babylon ; Clio, 189 : for the Diala does not lie in the way. The Gyndes, which was divided by Cyrus, should rather be the river of Mendeli, which descends from the quarter of mount Zagrot, and passes by the country of Deme, or Dema \ probably the Damea of Herodotus, for he says, Clio, 189, that the Gyndes rises in the mountains of Matieue, and runs through the country of the Dameans, in its way to join the Tigris* (M. D'Anville supposed Dainawar to be meant, but in our idea the waters of Dainawar descend to Susiana.)
Considering the imperfect state of the Grecian geography in this quarter, it is not at all improbable that some error or confusion may have arisen con- cerning this river. To shew that our Author was not clear in his ideas of the relative positions, here,
' The country of Derna, according to Niebuhr, adjoins to Persia, but belongs to the Turks, and forms a part of Kurdi- stan. Otter, i. 155, s{)eaks of the river Dernc, which falls into the river Diala ; and in p. 17^, of the fart of the same mm.
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we need only mention that the city of Opts is by him implied to stand in a situation below the con- fluenoe of the Tigris aod Gyndes. Now, according to the history of the retreat of the Ten Thousand, Opis cannot stand so low even as the mouth of the Diala^ for it was no less than 20 parasangas alnwe Sitaee ' ; which city appears pretty clearly to have stood above the mouth of the Diala, since the Greeks did not cross it in their way. The reader is here referred to the Map of Babylon and its environs. No. VI.
As to the story of Cyrus dividing the Chfndes
into 360 channels, it is a very childish one, in the manner in which it is told : as, that Cyrus was dis- pleased with the rirer for being the occasion of drowning one of the sacred horses ; and therefore destroyed its character, as a river, by dispersing it into 360 artificial canals.
The motive, however, might possibly be this : Cyrus unexpectedly found the river swoln, and too deep to be forded, and might be unprovided with embarkations, by which his army might cross it. The remedy was the most natural imaginable, when so vast a multitude was assembled, by drawing cff a large proportion of the water from its channel, in order to render it fordable. It was equally natural to employ at once as many people as possible on the work, which would give occasion to marking out a vast number of channels, on which they might all be employed at the same instant. The absurdity, then,
* Anabasis, lib. ii.
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will only lie in the manner of accounting for the action itself. But if the reason of the thing will not account for it, we may quote an example in point, from our Author hinuelf ; in that of CrcesuB dividing the stream of the Halys, during his expedition to Cap- padocia, and previous to that of Cyrus against Babylon
The Chaoipes, which passes hy the city of Subu % has a deep channel. It is the only river of SusioM,
spoken of by our Author ; and this being a country of rivers, in effect, the drain of Media, Elymais, Cos- sea, &c. and formed chiefly from alluvions, it may be collected from hu silence, that the Greeks of his time knew little concerning it. The waters of the Choaspes are particularly celebrated, on the score of their heing the particular beverage of the Persian kings ' ; Clio, 188. Here it may be remarked, that
' C&sh 75. " Whilst Crcesus was hesitating over what part of the riv«r he should attempt a passage, as there was no bridge constructed, Thalbs (the Milesian) divided it iato two hranches,"
* It is proper to remark, that the position of this andent and
cclebrattd city has been hitherto fixed at the present TVwtor, or SusU r ; hui, ditferiiig from our brethren, we have placed it at Sus, 44 (J. miles more to the NW, or nearer to Babylon. The reason for this alteration cannot, with propriety, be detailed in this work, but belongs to another, on the subject of Persia, &c. The supposed Choaspes will then be the river that descends from the countries of Dainawar and Kirmanshah in Al Jebalj or Media.
* Our Milton, who seldom falls into errors in matters of history, has confined the use of the waters of the Choaspes, as a be\era£Tc, to kings alone f instead of confining the liings to the iise of those waters.
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the Asiatics are more particular in their choice of water than Europeans : perhaps it may be^ because they drink more of the pure element.
Several rivers of Asia Minor are mentioned, but without any particulars relating to them. It may be supposed^ that all the principal streams of this re- gion were known to our Author, although there was no necessity for introducing them. The Thermodon is mentioned as being the seat of the Amazons; Calliope, 27 ; Melp. 1 10 ; and the ParihetUtts, in Euterpe/ 104, together with the former, as border- ing on the Syrians of Cappadocia ; the Hahjs, in Clio, 7, and 72, as the line of separation between the empire of Lydia, subject to Croesus, and that of the Modes. It is described in Clio, 72, to flow from the mountams of Armenia, passing through Cilicia, and dividing the Matienians " on the right (east) from Fhrygia on the left ; and then stretching to- wards the north, it is described to separate the Syrians of Cappadocia from Papfdagonia ; which latter is situated to the left of the stream. Arrian seems to dispute this account of its course ; saying, that it flows from the east, not from the tauth : however, the report of Herodotus is certainly just.
Herodotus falls into a great mistake respecting the source of tlie river Jaxartes, which he calls Araxes. Strabo, in one place, calls it by the same name, as will be seen in the sequel, but he was too
• Tlie reader must not confound this Matiene with that of Media* See the xviiith Satr^ of Dariut Hystaipef, and alto section xiii.
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well informed to fall into the error respecting its source.
Our Author speaks of the Araxes as the only con- siderable one known to him on the east of the Cas- pian sea. The following are the passages relating
to it, collected from his history of the expedition of Cyrus the Great, against the Massagete ; Clio, 201, et seg.
** The nation of the Massngetae lay beyond the Araxes — some reckoned this river less, others greater, than the Danube. There are many islands scattered up and down in it, some of which are nearly equal to Lesbos in extent-^like the Gyndes, it rises amongst the Matieninn hills. It separates itself into 40 mouths, all of which, except one, lose them- selves in the fens and marshes — ^the larger stream of the Araxes continues its even course to the Gas* pian."
*' The Caspian is bounded on the east by a plain of prodigious extent, a considerable part of whidi formed the country of the Massagetm, agunst whom Cyrus meditated an attack — he advanced to the
Araxes, threw a bridge of boats over it — passed it with his army from his own territories into those of the enemy, and advanced beyond it," &c. Clio, 204,205,206, 208, 211.
In this description, the JcLvarfrs and Oxtis (Sirr and J ikon y) appear to be confounded together, (he had perhaps heard certain particulars of both rivers, but might refer them to one only,) for there are cb- cumstances that may be applied to each respectively, although most of them are applicable only to the
IS
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former. It may be observed that our Author men- tions only one large river in thb part of the empire of Cyrus ; that is, the rirer which separates it from
the Massagetae, and which was unquestionably the Sirr or Jaxartes ; for there is no question that Sogdia was induded in the empire of Cyrus \ and it lay between the Ozus and Jaxartes. The Oxus, therefore, has no distinct place in the geography of our Author, although a river of much greater bulk and importance than the Jaxartes. But that the Oxus was intended, when he says that the larger stream continued its even course to the Caspian, appears probable ; although the numerous branches that formed the large islands, and were afterwards lost in bogs and marshes, agrees rather to the de- scription of the Aral lake, and lower part of the Sirr. It is indeed possible that the Jaxartes may at some period have sent a branch into the Oxus ; or, 9iee versa, the Oxus into the Jaxartee ; but no such idea is warranted by the ancient descrip- tions.
Strabo, as we have said, describes it under the name of Araxes, p. 512, and seems in this place^to f<^ow Herodotus both ui the name and description
of it ; as, that it borders on the country of the Mas- sagetae and affords a retreat to them in the islands • formed by the divbion of its streams, and in its marshes ; as also that one branch of it alone ran into
' Alexander saw a dty, or citiei, that had heen founded by Cyrvf, m Sogdia, near the Jaxartes, and one of them bore his name. But the modern empire of Piersia, or Iran, b properly bounded by the Jihon, or Oxus.
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the Hyrcanian sea ( Caspian ), As Strabo describes this river in another place, under the name of Ja,V' artes, p. 510» 514, 518, and the Oxim also in place, it appears that he must have taken the Araxes for a distinet river ; and it is not improbable that he copied the passa^^e from Herodotus, without rightly understanding the subject of it.
The remarkable mistake of our Author deriving thu Araxe9 from the mountdns of Matiene, and giving it an easterly course (Melp. 40), must have arisen from his having heard of the Armenian Araxes, and confounded it with the other. There is no possibility of getting rid of his error in this matter, for he refers the source of the Massagetan Araxes to the same quarter with that of the Gyndes, It can only be said that it is a prodigious mistake *•
Such was the Asia of HBRonbrus, in respect of its general extent and subdivision. We shall next pro- ceed to illustrate such of the subdivisions as the au- thorities afford the means of describing.
* It it proper to observe, that there is uracil confusion in some of the ancient authors, between the proper Tanais at the Mseotis, and the Jaxartes, which was improperly called Tanais by the followers of Alexander ; from a .su{)position, probably, that it was the head of the other river ; and there is little doubt but that they supposed their station on the Jaxartes to be much nearer the Maeotis than it really was. Tt has appeared that the Arazes was also confounded with the Tanais and Jaxartes ; par- ticularly in Diodorus, lib. ii. c. S.
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OF EASTERN SCYTHU^ OR THE COUNTRY OF THE
MASSAQETiB.
Herodoiui m dcubi whether the Massaobtje were to be clotted at 8enmATi9-^egarded at tueh hy sueeeedmg Oreek Writere — iHflmefMMi of Seyihiat within, and beyond, Imaus — Lmiu of both Comlriee retpeethefy — The Imaiit if Ptolemy recog- mMed m modem Qeografhy — Vatt Error of Ptolemy, and Ae modem Geographert, m the Extent of hither Scyihta — The aneknt Oeographert had a very limited Knowledge q/* Eastern Scythia ; and of thete, HerodatuSf perhapt, the mott ^mUed — extended by the Expedition of Alexander; atid eUU \nore by the Commerce with Series, for Silk — Issedonisns, the fhtt Nation beyond Scythia — By the Massagetae, Herodotu* in» tended the Eastern Scythians, eoUeetieely^Opimont q/* dif- fereni Authors, respecting the Trilbee if Saetem Seyiuant ; Arrian, Diodorue, Strabo, PUny, Ptolemy, Jntiin^It may be collected^ that they reckoned three great Tribet; the Massa- getae, Sacae, and Dahse, besides many letter onet — Sacm, although the name of a particular Tribe, was extended by the Persians to all the Scythians — Geographers overcome by the Number and Names of Scythian Tribes. — Authorities for the geographical Positioyis of the several Tribes of Massagcta*, Saca?, Daha?, Jaxarta^, Abii, Pasiani, and Tochari — Conjec- tures respecting the Name of the Kossacks, and of the Names of the rivers Jaxartes and Oxus — Remarks on the Expedition of Cyrus against the MassagetCB — Justin nutre circumstantial than Herodotus.
It has been stated in page 62, et seq. that Hero- dotus was in doubt whether to regard the Mas8A«
VOL. I. T
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EAbiERN SCYTHIANS,
OETJE as Scythians, but that the subsequent Greek writers universally reckoned them such. It may be added^ that the people thus o(dlectively denominated Massagets, by Herodotus, who had himself only heard of them in the gross, were in later times found to consist of many tribes, or nations, which had each of them a distinct appellation.
We propose to treat the subject, not merely ac- cording to the ideas of our Author, but rather ac- cording to those of the ancients at large ; in which disquisition, however, the ideas of Herodotus will be made fuUy to appear.
Eastbrn Sctthia, which is the country of the Massagetaj, according to Herodotus, was formed into TWO natural divisions by the chain of mount InutU9.
Scythia intra Imaum commenced on the west,
either at the river Daix ( Jaik, or Daeh), or at the mountains of Rhymnicus (Ural), and extended east- ward to the great chain that divides in the first in- stance the TWO BucHARiAS ; and in its course fitfther northward, the countries of Ferganah and Western Turkestan, from Kashgur ; it being, in effect, the Imaus in question ; concerning which, as well as the adjacent countries and levels, we have fully spoken in page 239, ei seq. Accordingly, Scythia wiikm Imaus, contained the countries since known by the names of Desht Kipzak, Western Turkestan, and the northern part of Ferganah. The Caspian and Aral seas, and the river Sirr (Sirt, or Jaxartes) formed its general boundary on the south. Northwards its boundary is not clearly ascertained ; but Scythia pro-
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bably extended very far into the Sleppe ; and may be conceived to have been bounded by the continua* ticm of the Imaus of Ptolemy^ on the north-west Hence it wOl appear, on a reference to Mr. Tooke's Russia^ V ol. ii. that Scythia within Imaus is at pre- sent in the possession of tlie tribes of the Kiegees, the KiPZAKs^ and the Karakai.pak8>
The Inutus of Ptolemy just mentioned is extended northward beyond the parallel of 60'*, and from it two diflferent branches, namely, Ascatancas and Anarei, are described to strike off to the NW, tho one from about the parallel of 43^ the other from that of 50^. There appear also in the Map of the Russian empire, two chains of mountains, the most extensive of which runs through the Steppe to the NW, and seems to represent the Imaus in question. These moantuns^ moreover, inclose the great lake of the Kalmncs (or Palkati Nor), and adjoin on the east to mount Altai. (See above^ pages 233, and 239.)
The description of Ptolemy is less exact ; and^ indeed^ it is unlikely that he should haye known its
line of direction critically, since the information communicated to him, may be supposed to relate rather to the line of progress of the caravans ; that is, of the course of trade between Sogdia and Se^ rica than to the bearing of the mountains. The hither Scythia of Ptolemy then extended eastward to the ndghbourhood of the Palkati Nor, and the
* That is, the country between Kathgur and China; aa Oigur, Tangutf &c.
T 2
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EASTERN SCYTHIANS,
mountains of Kashgur, in our geography ; and northwj^rd, to the great chain of mountains, in the •Steppe. But the space allowed by him between the head of the Jaxartes and mouDt Imaus (independent of his faulty scale of longitude), is prodigiously ex- aggerated ; and this error has hcon copied into the modern maps, even those of M. D*Aiiville, as we have shewn in the Memoir of the Map of Hin- doostan
Scythia heyoud Imaus, extended eastward, ac- cording to Ptolemy, to the neighbourhood of the (Echardis, which we have recognized in the Oigurs or Yugures of the present times'; southward to mount Emodus, the ^eat ridge of Thibet ; and northward to the parallel of 55". These limits, however, must needs have been very vague; but taken as they are, they include generally the country usually called Eastern Turkestan, comprehending Kashgur, Koten, Acsou, &c. And herein Ptolemy agrees generally with Herodotus ; who says, that the MassagetcB (who are our Eastern Scythians) ex- tended to the neighbourhood of the Issedanes, since these may unquestionably be taken for the Oigiirs or QHcharda', It is proper to remind the reader, that the further Scythia must of course be situated on the high level mentioned in page -239, et seq. ; so that the two Scythias occupied very difibrent de- grees of level ; and, of course, were widely different, in respect of temperature and productions.
* See that Memoir, j)ages 91, and 191, et seq, ' See above, page 173.
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Towards the north, Ptolemy places the Hippo* phagi, who seem to have been a nation of Tartars,
situated near the Palkati Nor. The name, doubt- less, will suit the Tartar nations in general. Be- yond these again, northward, were the Abii Scyth€B (of the same name with those so much celebrated by Homer, and other writers), and who may possibly have been the same with the Ahlai ; a tribe of such note, as to give name to that part of the Steppe, which borders on the SW of the river Irtish, though not altogether in the relative position that Ptolemy places them. But it may be conceived, that he knew little in detail concerning this quarter, beyond the regions of Kashgur and Acsou ; that is. Casta and Auxada. See his Asia, Tab. vii. and viii«
It appears pretty clearly, that neither the Greeks, nor the Romans, knew many particulars respecting the geography, or division, of the tribes belonging to the Scythians ; at least, such discriminations are not expressed in their writings. This being the case, we can only treat the subject in a general way ; or, according to Mr. Pinker ton, " estimate ancient geography, by ancient opinions
In the time of Herodotus, the knowledge of the Greeks respecting Eastern Scythia, even as a gene- ral subject, was exceedingly limited ; being derived either from the report of the Persians, or from Greeks who had visited Perda. Their sphere of knowledge was enlarged by the expedition of Alex-
* See his exceUent dissertation on the Scythians, or Goths, p.
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ander« and by the communication which was opened with Eastern Asia, in consequence; but still there was no great stock of materials collected for the im- provement either of the history, or of the geography of Scythia; which, therefore, continued in a very imperfect state, down to the times of Strabo and Pliny*. This is very forcibly expressed by the latter ; who says, lib. vi. c. 71, '* there is no region in which geographers vary more, tlian in this (Scy- thia); which, as I conceive, is occasioned by the infinite number of those nations that wander to and fro a remark that will apply no less to the geogra- phers of the present day. In effect, the inhabitants of this tract were so often changed by migrations, southward, and westward, into Persia, &c. that it is no wonder that authors who wrote in different periods, should describe different tribes in the same place. It would therefore require a history, instead of a geogra- phical dissertation, to note the different tribes that occupied the southern frontier of Scythia, between the times of Herodotus and Ptolemy.
Herodotus, from whom we have our first ideas of the Massagetae, or Eastern Scythians, places them along the northern bank of the Jaxartes (he calls it Araxes*,) and also extends them eastward, far into the country, since denominated from the Kalmucs. For he places them " beyond the Araxes and ex- tends their territories to the extreme parU of the East," and opposite the leeedomane f Clio, 20l.
* During thii interval, a oommerce appears to have been opened between the Roman empire and Striea*
* See above, p. ^^69, tt $eq*
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In effect, he knew the subject but imperfectly : for it has been shewn (page 174, 175,) that he supposed the Issedones and MaasagetsB to occupy very different parallels on the globe: and that the former were very much to the northward of the latter.
The Issedonians, as we learn from Ptolemy, were divided between the bordering countries of Scythia and Seriea : that ia, there were Issedonians of Scy- thia, and Issedonians of Seriea : and as the latter are placed in, or about, the country of the QLchardrCy or Oigurs, (as we have said before,) we must regard the tract between Turkestan and China as ihe Serica of Ptolemy ; and of course place the eastern boun* dary of Scythia extra Imattniy at the western border of the Oigur country. This also agrees with a strik- ing circumstance above related, in the history of the Oigurs ; namely, their being a lettered nation, whilst all, or most of their neighbours, were illiterate bar- barians : and where should the termination of Scythia be so properly placed as at the commetwement of ci- vilization and letters ' 2
' It is impossible to ascertain the extent of Ptolemy's know- ledge of the Tartarian nations, and of the course of trade be- tween the Roman empire and those of China and Tartary, (that ii» of the Smw and Stres ), However, as there may be traced, in his geography, a general idea of the countries in the line be- tween Sogdiana and the western frontier of China ; it may be supposed diat this information was collected from the travellers in the caravans, wliich brou^t siUl and other articles from China, or Seriea, or both. This commerce is spoken of by Pliny, hb. vi. c. 17, about half a century before the time of Ptolemy : but Pliny knew so little concerning the nature of silk, that he supposed it to be the produce of a tree ; nor does it appear
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The Massagetae then, in the opinion of Herodotus, and of the early Greeks, must have constituted the .bulk of the Eastern Scythians: but be also says, P0I7111. 64, that Sacjb was a name ghren by the Per- sians indiscriminately to all Scythians ; in which he is supported by Pliny, at least : of which, more in the sequeL
Arrian, who appears to have written solely from materials furnished by the followers of Alexander,
(and more particularly by Ptolemy and Aristobulus,) who describe the state of things about a century after the time of Herodotus, places the Massageta along the north of Sogdia : agreeing, so far as he goes, with Herodotus. But he also speaks of the Ddlue as a very considerable tribe, seated on or near the Jaxartes : and, by circumstances, near the lower part of its course. But he omits the Sacm altogether ;
that the silk- worm was accurately known till the time of Jus- tinian.
The same degree of ignorance seems to have prevailed re- specting the extent of China and Serica. According to Mr. Gibbon, " the Romans did not entertain a suspicion tliat the Seres or Sin.f, possessed an empire not inferior to their own." The reader will fnid in the seventh vol. of his great work, p. 90, ct scq. a curious history of the introduction of silk into Europe, by Justinian; prefaced with much information respecting that curious and vahiable production. In the course of this disser- tation he remarks, that *' in the vain capital of China, the Sog- dian caravans were entertained as the suppliant cnihassics of tributary kingdoms;" wliich shews that the customs of China have undergone little change down to the present moment. The reader may receive full conviction on this head (if he doubted it before,) by a pcru!«al of M. Van Braam's account of the late Dutch embasay to China.
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which is worthy of remark. They are, however, spoken of by Curtius, who might have had recourse to materials that had not been examined by Arrian. Curtius also mentions the Daka: but seems to in- tend those only who were seated on the Caspian sea, adjoining to Hyrcania ; lib. iii. and iv.
Diodorus speaks of the MassagetiS, Sacte, and Arimaspii, as the principal tribes or nations of Scy- thians, beyond the TanaU (meaning the Jaxartes;) lib. ii. c. 3.
Strabo and Pliny appear to have examined a greater number of authorities than either Arrian or Curtius.
Strabo thus speaks of the positions of tlie Scythian nations generally : Certain of the ancient Greek writers called all those nations which lay towards the north Sctthiams and Celto-Sctthians^ without distinction : but at a still earlier period they were divided into classes, or tribes ; those who dwelt above the Euxine, the Danube, and the Adriatic were named Hypekborbans, SAUROMATiB^ and Arimaspi ; but of those beyond the Caspian sea, some were called Sac -i:, others Massaget^e, not being able to speak accurately of them, although they had written a history of the war of Cyrus with the MASsAGEiiE." Page 507.
After this he gives, in the succeeding pages, a detail of the positions of several of the principal tribes of Eastern Scythians.
In page 511 he speaks of the Massageta, Daha, and Saca, as the principal Scythian tribes : but says, that there are other tribes also who have iudi-
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BASTBBN SCrrHUMS,
vidval names^ but pass under the genml denomina- tion of Scythians : all of which (says he) are true Nomades. The Daha, he says, begin at the Cas- pian sea®; the MassageUe and Saae lie more to the east. Here we find an agreement between Strabo and Curtius respecting the Dah€B : and as the Mm* sffa:rfte and Saccv lie more to the east, we are to look for them at or near the Jaxartcs, of coarse. Strabo moreover tells us, p. 614, that the Jaxartes separated the Sogdii and Saem in like rnann^ as the Oxus did the Sogdii and Bactriani.
Again, p. 512, he describes the seats of the Mas^ sageta to be towards the lower part of the coarse of the Jaxartes y and its lakes, (admitting, as we can hardly do less, that the river which he as well as He- rodotus, Diodorus, and Justin, calls Araxes, is meant for the former.) In page 513 he also says, that the Ckoraami are MassageUe and Sac^e. Whether these tribes possessed Chorasmia at the date of Alex- ander's expedition, we have no means of knowing ; but as Strabo says, page 511, that the Pasiani, To- ehari, and Saea, dispossessed the Macedonians of the empire of Baetria, it is not improbable that the progress of the Massagetae in Chorasmia was also subsequent to the time of Alexander. Not but that such migrations from Scythia must have happened in earlier times ; only that the Scythians might have been so long established as to pass with the Greeks for aborigines.
* He explains m the tame pages, and also in 508, that these Dakut were of a particnhr tribe named Pami, or Apami,
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Justin informs us, lib. ii. c. 1 and 3, that the king- doms of Bactria and Parthia were founded by the Scythians; which^ as he makes no dtstinetion of tribes, agrees with Strabo*. And, in fact, there is little doubt that the Scythians have, in the course of ages, overrun all the southern and western countries of Asia* We may trace the Turks from their ori- ginal country, TurkeHan, (a part of Scythia inha- bited by the Massagetae,) to the shores of the Hel- lespont, in an age subsequent to Strabo. The incur- sions of Monguls under Jinghis Khan and Tamerlane^ into Persia and Lower Asia, are to be considered as Scythian inrasions : and Persia is at the present mo« ment overrun with modern Scythians, ^vho are ac* tually in a Nomadic state in that country.
Pliny, Yi. 17, says, Beyond Sogduma are the Scythian naium9. The Persians were accustomed to call these in general Sac.*:, from a /ribe which bordered on them \ And, on the other hand, the Scythians called the Persians Chorsari ^" He speaks moreover of the Massagetse, Dahas, and various other Scythian tribes.
PHny had a comprehensive knowledge of geo- graphy ; and therefore we may place some depend- ance on his statements : and these express generally
• We learn from Strabo, 51.5, that Arsacrs, who conquered Parthia, was a Scythian, and of the tribe oi' Pami-Dnfuc.
* Doubtless the Sak'ila (or Stu-qltdy in the Maronite edition) of Edrisi, in page 141 ; said to be situated in Turkestan, adjoin- ing to K'llan, Fachan, ^c. provinces of Balk, or Bactriana ; and in the quarter of Saganian.
' Probably the same word with the modera Kozar or Khajar,
0
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that the subject was little understood, by reason of the frequent migrations of the tribes in the quarter towards the Jaxartes and Imaus ; as also, that Saca* was a general term in Persia for all Scythians^ al- though there were various tribes of them : in which, as has been already shewn, he agrees with Hero- dotus.
Ptolemy places a great number of tribes along the Jaxartes and Mount Imaus : amongst whom are
found the Massagetae, near the fountains of the Jaxartes : and the Sacas, a great nation beyond the fountains both of Jaxartes and Oxua ; but on this side of Imaus and Casta (Kashgur). A third tribe occupies generally the whole northern bank of the Jaxartes, opposite to Sogdiana ; and this tribe is named Jaxartw, of which wc suppose the Sartes^ to be the remains. The De^m of Ptolemy are placed in the country to the NE of Hyrcania, and adjacent to the Caspian sea ; in effect, Dahestan ; agreeing with Strabo : and are out of all question with respect to Scythia; although they, no doubt, drew their origin from thence.
It api)C'ars that Justin understood so imperfectly the geography of Scythia at large, that he supposed it to be wholly comprised in the country adjacent to the Euxme and Palus Maeotis : thb, at least, his de- scriptions (lib. ii. c. 1 and 2.) shew : he says, that the Scythians dwelt along the rivers that fall into the Msotis — ^and tliat Scythia extended in length to- wards the east ; and had Pontus on one side; on the
' This will be further explained in the 6e(£uel.
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others, iheRipheean mountains and the river Phasis. Of course he knew Western Scytbia alone (the Scy- thia of our Author) ; and referred all the Scythian history to that quarter. He supposed the warfare of Alexander's army with the Scythians * to have been in the quarter of the Euxine (lib. xii. c. 2.) ; he also describes the passing of the Araxes (Jaxartes) by Cyrus^ to attack Tomyris (lib. iL c. 8.) but it is un- certain what hb idea of its position was ; it is not impossible that he took it for the Araxes of Armenia.
From the above authorities, taken generally, it appears that the ancients reckoned Mre^ great tribes of Scythians towards the Jaxartes; namely, the Massagette, Sacee, and Dah€B ; besides a great many lesser tribes ; (or possibly, only of lesser note, from their being farther removed from the seat of warfare with the Greeks.) They might, indeed, have been subdivirions of the greater tribes ; a state of things existing at the present day. In the early times of Herodotus, it appears that only the Soob and Mfusagetm were known to the Greeks ; and that by report only : and Herodotus, who is sup- ported in the assertion by Pliny, says, that Sacce, although it was the name of a particular tribe, bor- dering on the Persians, yet that it was by them extended to all the. Scythians. Strabo, in eflfect, says the same, page 514, by giving the Jaxartes as the general boundary between the Sogdiatis and
* He calls them Scifthiam simply : not MoiMOgeta, like He- rodotus.
2Se EASTERN SCYTHIANS,
ihe Saere ; for, aa in the other descriptions^ the
Massagetcc were said to be the people who bordered on the north of Sogdiana, and consequently on the Jaxartesy the Saag of Strabo must stand in the place of the MoMOgeia of others. To this most be added, that Arrian, who made use of the materials furnished by Ptolemy and Aristobulus, never men- tions the Sac€B at all ; a plain proof that these jour- nalists had not made use of the term ; althou^ they fought with those rery Scythians who are called Saea by Strabo and PUny ; but M(usi^et€B by Arrian and Herodotus.
This, therefore, can no othenrise he accounted for than bj suppoeing (as we have said before) that Massagetce was a term invented and applied by the Greeks to the Eastern GETiE, or Scythians, beyond the Caspian and Jaxartes ; in contradistinction to the GetsB or Scythians of the Enxine; who were the first and most familiarly known to the Greeks ^ We must then regard the term Sac^e, as that in use, amongst the Persians, to denote the Ecuteru tkiaiM: and Massaobta, as of the same impcMrt amongst the Greeks. And indeed, in perusing Ar^
* The like has happened in a variety of instances : the country bcffumd India was named the further India, because a collective name was wanted for it ; and it was accordingly denominated from ita relatiTe position to tlic other; although it might as well have been named the hither China. The cmtinenU of Asia and Africa were also denominated from provinces of those continents; t}]at is, Asia at Large, from jieia Mmor : Africa, from the Car- thaginian province to named.
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rian's history of Alexander's campaigns in Sogdia, we can understand no other than that Massagetae was a general term for all the ScythiaiiSy with whom Alex* ander fought. And it b not iii^>rolmMey that the name Massagetae, heing famiUarized to the Greeks by their historians at homey was applied by them, on their arrival in Sogdia, without any farther inquiry conceraiDg the justness of the application. This may also account for the seeming contradictions in the ancient geographers, respecting the seats of the dif- ferent tribes, when their names came to be unfolded^ as the progress of geographical knowledge incnased, under the Macedonian empire in Asia : for instance, Straho places the Massagetae very low down the Jaxartes ; Ptolemy very lugli up the same river ; whilst Herodotus and Arrian extend them, along it, generally^ throughout its whole course. Again, Straho and Pliny place the Sae€B in the room of these Massagetce of Herodotus and Arrian. To what is this owing, but that, in the first instance, MASSAGEm was regarded by some as a general name ; and by others, as a particular one ; and in the second place, that the names SACiC and Massaget^ were used by two different nations^ respectively, to denote one and the same people ?
It may be owing to the same cause that the Cho- rasmians were reckoned both Saem and MBMag$tmt as we learn from Strabo.
Geographers seem to have been overcome by the number of names of Scythian tribes ; but many, or perhaps most of these, were no more than the names of chiefs ; of which we have many examples in Western
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Asia We shall thereforo only attempt to fix the
local positions of the principal tribes amongst those known to the Greeks; that is, the MasmgetcB, Sacis, Doha, Jaxartm^ Abii, Pasiani, and Toekari. And this we hope to accomplish^ by drawing into one point of \iew the different authorities found in ancient his- tory : in the course of which, some repetitions will occur, that were in the nature of things unaYoidable*
I. MASSAOETiE.
Herodotus. A great and powerful nation, whose territories extend beyond the river Araxes (Jaxartes) to the extreme parts of the East. They are opposite to the Issedonians ; Clio, 201. The Caspian, (or rather, Aral,) sea is bounded on the east by a plain of prodigious extent, a considerable part of which forms the country of iheMassaget^ ; ib. 204. Cyrus advanced beyond the Araxes (Jaxartes) into the land o( the Ma^sagefee ; 209. They subsist upon cattle, and upon fish, which the Araxes abundantly sup- plies; 216.
Siraho» The M€usagetm border on the Araxes
(Jaxartes,) p. 512 and 513. The Massagefce and iSoc^ are situated to the eastward of the Z)a/k7,who border on the Caspian sea ; 51 1* The Massftgetm were adjacent to the Baetriatts, towards the Oxus: and the inhabitants of Charasmia were partly Mas- sageto! ; 513.
* The reader will find in page 184, a quotation from Mr. Tooke, iUuitrative of this matter.
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Diodorus. The Massagetm are beyond the ToMM (Jazartes) ; lib. iL c. 3. Arrian, The Massageim are situated to the
north of Sogdia ; lib. iv. c. 17.
Ptolemy, MassagetcB, a tribe towards the head of the Jeusartes ; Asia, vii.
Justin makes no distinction between the different tribes of Scythians ; in lib. i. and ii.
Thus, the Massagetae^ if taken according to the idea of Herodotus, as the whole nation of Eastern Scythians, must have inhabited the tract between the east side of the Caspian sea, and the territories of the Oigurs (since these can only be taken for the Issedonians) ; that is, they inhabited Scythia, both on this side, and beyond, Imaus. But this appears too great a range for them, according to the ideas of subsequent geographers, who were better informed : and it appears more probable, that \he proper country of the Massagetae was confined between the Caspian sea, and Imaus, on the east and west, and the Jaxar* tes on the soutli ^ So that it may be taken generally for Scythia within Imaus; and may have compre- hended the vast plains situated beyond the Caspian and Jazartes ; that is, the Desht Kipzak, the Western Turkestan, and the proper country of Gete ; which latter, from Sherefeddin's history of Timur, we should conclude to be situated wholly within
' At the date of Alexander's expedition, tliere were some tracts on the sonth of the Jaxartes, in possession of the Scy-* thians.
VOL. I. U
•
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Imam Thus they must have occupied the seats of the Kirgees tribes in the present times.
Herodotus spoke of tliem as one nation, but Alex- ander, about a century and half after the invasion of the Massagete, by Cyrus, fojund the Scythians at the Jaxartes, divided into several tribes. Doubtless, the fact was, that the former had only heard of thera collectively ; but Alexander, having an intercourse with them, discovered that they were divided into diflbrent nations.' All whidi was perfectly natural.
II. SACiE.
Herodotus. " A Scythian nation — and though really the Amyrgii of Scythia, were called SaetB,
the name given by tlie Persians, indiscriminately to all Scythians." Polym. 64.
Pliny. A tribe which bordered on the Persian empire, and from whence the whole nation of the (Eastern) Scythians was denominated ; lib. vi. c. 17. This seems to have been the Sakita of Edrisi.
Straho. The Jaxartes separates the Sac4B from the SogdU ; page 514 ; in like manner as the Oxus separates the Sogdii from the Bactriani ; and again, p. 517.
Diodorus, One of the principal tribes of Scy- thians, beyond the Tanais — (Jaxartes) ; lib. iL c. 3; Curtius. The Sacse sent ambassadors to Alex-
' One eumot reaionably doubt, that this naine OeUf bti re- named in that country from very early times. See Shentfed" din'a Timur, lib. i. and ii.
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ander, on occasion of his defeating the Scythians at the Jaxartes ; lib. vii. c. 9. Alexander afterwards mvaded the country of the Sooe ; lib. viii. c. 4. Curtius gives no intimation concerning its position, but it is inferred from other notices.
Ptolemy. A great people, situated between CkuUt, ByUa, and the head of the Jaxartes. ByUa is the modem BaliisUm; or Little Thibet; Asia, Tab. vii.
It has been said (in page 283), that there is a tract named SackUa in Edrisi. This must be looked for, between the upper parts of the courses of the Jfihon, and Sirr (Oxus and Jaxartes), and the Indus ; and adjoining to tlie mountains of Kashgur : agreeing perfecUy with the ideas derived from the ancients, and also with the expedition of Alexander, amongst the Sacce ; who seem therefore to have possessed the countries of Kotlan and Saganian, 8rc. The tract assigned them by Ptolemy, answers to this ; it being situated between Baetria, Sogdia, and the* hither Scythia, Ammianus Marcellinus speaks of a dty of Saga, in this quarter, which name has pro- bably a reference to the Sacce, and may be that of Saganian itself ; which is situated between the Oxus and Jaxartes ^
* Ammianus describes the seats of the Sacce to be under the mountains Ascanimia nnrl Comedus; and joining to Drep»a, whidi may be taken for Anderahf a province of Balk, or fiactria ; lib. xxiii. The mouitains AscatancM and Comedi, appear also in Pfiofemy, in the same situation. (Asia, vii.)
Tbe nmd of the caravana led by, or i^ugh, the Saea; there was a iawm ealled the Stmt Tmer (perhaps a mtlifary
u2
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EASTERN SCYTHIANS,
As the Sacte are said to have extended their Jiat?ie to the Scythians in general, it must naturally be sup- posed that they were a formidable and populous tribe, or rather nation ; and that a part of them only had established themselves within the dominions of Persia. That they were good warriors, is proved by the history of the expedition of Xerxes. Cyrus is even said, Clio, 153, to have prepared for se- rious resistance from them :** and the frequent recur- rence of the root Saca, in so many countries, shews that their conquests and establishments have been extensive. Sueh is Saeaatana by Sigistan ; Saga- nian ; Sacacetw, and Sacapene, in the quarter of Armenia. But it may be supposed, that these settle- ments were made posterior to the Macedonian cou- quest, as the Sacse had a share in the overthrow of their empire in Baeiria, as we have shewn from Strabo, in page 282
post on a scarped rock), by which the caravans passed ; noted both by Anniiinniis and Ptolemy. Tliere was also near it a station or i Dipor'tam iVeijuented by the merchants wlio tralHeked to Serica, and wliich seems to have been at the passage of the nionntains, IVoni Balk into Kashgur. This appears to have been the route followed by Marco Polo, in 1272; for he went from Badakshan, by Belur, to Kashgur; crossing a vast elevated plain, named Pamer^ which answers to the Camedit and Saca of Ptolemy ; and the Sakita of Edrisi.
* Strabo, p. 511, traces the Sacae into Bactria^ Cmmena^ Eastern Armenia y and even Cappadocia ; where they were de- stroyed by the Persians. But they gave their name to the tract* through which the Cyrus and Araxes How, between Georgia and the Caspian sea ; that is, the beautiful vailies of Karabaug and Oanja. The name Kosain still remains in a part of the traet.
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It is possible^ that the general denominatioii of Sac€B, was of the same import, perhaps even a part of, the very same name, with the Kassaki of mo- dern times : that is, wanderers, freebooters, or banditti *.
Other particulars relating to the SacsB, and espe- cially those which were suhjected to Persia, and who
served in the army of Xerxes, will be given in the account of the Satrapies.
III. Djlblm, or DAiE.
The Dah^ are mentioned by Strabo, Pliny, Cur- tius, Justin, Arrian, and Ptolemy. Their name occurs very often in the history of Alexander's expe- ditions to Sogdia, &c. : and they appear to have been a numerous tribe. They were leagued with the Massagetev ; and, from circumstances, they appear to have been seated chiefly at the lower part
It is not nnprobable, that the Aasacteni of Alexander had their name from the same origin : and it is certain that their country, Sowhadt borders on the Sacae of Ptolemy.
* Colonel Kirkpatrick says, ** I Uiink I recognize the Cossacks in the oriental term or appeUation of Cozdck, or CuzMdek, which b applied generally to any banditti or freebooters : but which I have also met with, in a restrained sense, and applied to a parti- cular tribe or nation; though I cannot at present recollect die passage." (Kirk. MSS. voL p. 44,) Mr. Tooke also remarks, Russia, vol. ii. p. 242, that the term Kataek is generally taken in a bad sense.
Colonel Kirkpatrick mentions a tribe of the name of Alu- MANS, with whom some of the Mogul princes of India warred, beyond the Oxut, We mention this as an additional proof of the pn^gresa of the Scythian names westward, wbibt they also luep their ground in the East.
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^4 EASTERN SCYTHIANS,
of the Jaxartcs ; perhaps on both sides of it. Cur- tius says, that the Chorasmians lay betweea the Dahte and the Matsagetw : so that he must mean, in this place, the DakiB of the present Dttkesiam ; who agree to the Aparni or Parni of Strabo, a tribe of DaJue, situated at the Caspian ' : but the Dolus amongst whom Spitamenes took refuge seem evidently to have been ritnated in the neighbourhood of Sogdia, and of the Massaget^,
In order, therefore, to allow any degree of con- sistency to the ancient accounts, there must have been two countries in which the Dahte were settled, at the date of Alexander's expeditioli : one, at the Jaxartes, and at the east of the Aral (taken for a part of the Caspian) ; the other, iarther down the Caspian, and adjoining to Htfreania* In proof of the for- mer, we have, Ist, the circumstances of the war of Alexander with the Scythians, in Arrian, and in Cur- tius. 2d« Arrian mentions the Dahw at, and beyond, the Tanais ; lib. iii. 2S. Strabo mentions the Dnhm beyond the Tanais, as well as at the Caspian, p. 511 : and according to him (same page), it would appear that the original seat of the Dahte, was at, or be- yond, the Tanais (meaning the Jaxartes ),
That the DcUue were settled at the Caspian, to the north of Hyreania, we have abundant proof : and the present name of that very tract, D ah est an (or country of the Dahco), adjoining . on the north, to Korkan, or Hyreama, is no contemptible one.
* The Dahie of Justin, lib. xii. c. 1, were also near Ufrcnua and Aria,
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Strabo says, that the Dahce lay on the left of the Caspian sea, in coming from the north ; p. 608. He alfo^ pp. 508, and 511, speaks of a tribe of Dahm named Parm, or Apami, who lired in the tract adjoining to Hyrcaniay and had a desert to the northward of them ; clearly referring to Dahes^ tan. Again, 611, he speaks of the DahsB as the most western tribe of Scythians, and bordering on the Caspian sea: and in 515, of the Parni by the river Ochus, It is certain, that he supposed the Parni Dahe, in this pUce, to hare come ftom the Palus MsBotb; bat it is more likely that Strabo should have been guilty of an error, in the supposed geography of the Maeotis, than that the Dahae should have made the tour of the Caspian sea, from their seat at the Jaxartes. His ignorance of the parti- culars of the Caspian sea, led him also into the error of placing the Dahae so high up, on the coast of that sea.
Ptolemy has both Dahie and Farm, on the NE of
Hyreama, agreeing with Strabo. (Asia, vii.) He also places Massagetce and Derhicfe, nearly in the same situation : that is, along the river, which in &ct repieients the Oekus, but is there named Mar* gus : and vice versa, the Margus is named -Oekue : (there being in his geography, a complete transposi- tion of these two rivers, as well as of some places on tiieir banks.) The Maseageta just mentioned, may be meant for those spoken of by Strabo, in Ckoras' mia.
It may be remarked, that Arrian never once men- tions the Doha, during the wa^'are of Alexander,
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amongst the Eastern Scythians : but constantly calls these Scythians, Massagette, as a general term; although he had previously mentioned the tribe of Dafue at, or beyond, the Jaxartes. But Curtius, in describing the same events, speaks both of Dahte and MassageUs; as in the affair of Marticanda, and in the last expedition of Spitamenes ; so that^ in the idea of Arrian, the tribe of DafuB should be included in the greater tribe, or nation of the Massagetxe : which, we shall once more repeat, seems to have in- cluded (amongst the early Greeks,) the whole body of Eastern Scythians collectively ^
It is probable that the Daritte of Herodotus, in Thalia, 92, are the Daha3, at the Caspian sea. In Clio, 125, the Dai, a pastoral tribe of Persia jjroper^ is mentioned. Can these be the Doha P More will be said of these, in the account of the Satrapies.
IV. JAXARTiE.
Ptolemy mentions the Jaxarta: placing them along the northern bank of the Jaxartes, through- out the lower half of its course. These, conse- quently, occupy the place of the MassagetcB of Herodotus and Arrian ; and of the Sacoe of Strabo. Ptolemy may, possibly, have named them arbitrarily: but as there is a remnant of a tribe named Sartes, now existing between the Oxus and Jaxartes, and which are reported to be the remains of the andent
* It has been remarked on a former occasion, p. 281, that Ctirtius appears to have made use of certain materials that Arrian had not seen. Here seems to be another insttmce of iL
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inhabitants of the country, it is possible that this was one of the tribes of the MagMogette or SaetB ; which, as we have seen, were no more than general names bestowed by the Greeks and Persians ; whilst Jax- artce may have been the true name» in the country itseff: wad, very probably, gave name to the river Jaxartes, at that period ; of which Sirr, and Sirt, which are in use at present, may be the remains. Ammianus speaks of the Jaxarta as a tribe \ and of good account, in Ub.xxiii.
The Sartes are mentioned by Abulgazi Kan : and also by Mr. Tooke, (Russia, vol. ii. p. 128, 150, 152,) under the name of Sarti.
As we have supposed the name of JaxarteB to be derived from this tribe, so we suspect that the river Oxus had its name from the ancient tribe of Outzi. Mr. Tooke says, (same volume, p. 130,) ** The Boh" harians (these inhabit the banks of the Oxus, now called Jihan,) assert that they are the unmixed de- scendants of the Ouixians ; and the real Turko- mans," Now, there is a town and district at the side of the Indus (where the waters of the Panjab join it,) named Outch, or Utcu ; and which is evi- dently the tract whose inhabitants were by the Greeks named OxYDiiACyE. See Arrian, lib. vi. and Ay in Acbaree, vol. ii. p. 136.
Ptolemy not only places the city, and lake of the Oxians, in Sogdiana, the latter of which answers to the lake near Bokhara, but the Oxydrac^e also, (Asia, Tab. vii.) It may be supposed that both of these tribes had anciently the same name of Ouizi, or
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OiUcJii : and which ihe one has preserved, but the other lost, as it respects common use.
V. Abu.
This appears to have been a respectable tribe, both in point of national character and of numbers. Ptolemy places them &t to the N£ of the Jamartet; and, as we have said m p. 977, in the position that
we should assign to the Steppe, or desert of Ablai, on the SW bank of the upper part of the river Irtish.
Some of the historians of Alexander mention the
Abii, as having sent ambassadors to him during his stay at the Jaxartes \ The people of Ablai appear to have been too far distant from the Jaxartes (that is, five weeks' journey, or more), to be the people in- tended ; but then the European Scythians, by which those of Kipxak appear to be meant, also came. The Abii are celebrated for their justice and forbearance, never entering into wars but when compelled. This is a trait of the Hyperborean character also ; (see page 199 ;) and the Ablai dwelt beyond the chain of mountains which seems intended for the boundary of the Hyperboreans.
It is a curious circumstance, and wdl worth notice, that the Ahian Scythians were known, and cele- brated by Uomer, as the best and justest people on earth : and could it be supposed that he intended die same Abians with those seen by Alexander, it
' Armn, lib. iv. — Curtius, vu* e. 6.
OB MAS8AO£T^
899
would prove that the Greeks had a very early know- ledge of the Eastern Scythians ^ But the Greeks carried with them into Asia, and sometimes applied, the names of nations and tribes found in their his- torians^ or poets, without much regard to accuracy ; and we rather conceive that Homer meant some trihe of the Western Scythians ; as also, that the Greeks applied to a tribe of Eastern Scythians this name^ which might have had some affinity in sound with the other.
VL PaSIANI, AspA8IAG£, or PASICiE.
Ptolemy places the Pasicce on the north of the Oxns, helow Sogdiana, but akonoe the mountains of the Oxii : or in a position answering to ihaJtj in modern geography, between Bokhara and Khowa- rezm. This tribe answers, in point of position, to the Aspasians of Polybius, who are placed between the Oxus and Jaxartes ; and who occasionally crossed the former in order to invade Hyrcania, &c. ; of which passage a curious description is given by Po- lybius, in lib. x. Exc. 8. These may also be taken for the Pasiam of Strabo, 511 ; who, with the Sacm and Tochari, conquered Bactria from the Greeks ; as well as for the Aspaciaces of the same author, in p. 513. We can find no traces of this name in mo- dem geography, except in that quarter of Armenia towards the river Aras, or Araxes.
* niad, 3UU.V. 6. See also Strabo, lib. vu. p.£96,tff leg. and all ; and Anunian* Marc. lib. xxiiL
300
£AST£&N $CYTUiAN8,
VII. TocHARi, or Tachori.
The place of this tribe is given in Ptolemy, Asia, vii. at die south of the Jaxartes, (perhaps in or near
Fergana) ; and the Thocariy perhaps meant for a part of the same tribe, on the south of the Oxus, below Bactria. We have just seen that the Tochari was one of the tribes who conquered Bactria ; and at the present clay the country on the east of Balk is called Tocharestan^ Ptolemy should therefore have placed his Thocari higher up the Oxus. The Jaxartes may have been the original seat of this tribe.
It is worthy of remark, that two tribes of the names of Taochari and Pasiani are now seated near the Araxes, in Armenia ; the first answering to the Tiwehi of Xenophon, the other probably giving its name to the Araxes, as Xenophon calls it Phasis : so that they seem to have penetrated southward on both sides of the Caspian.
We shall dose the observations on the Eastern Scythians with a few remarks on the expedition of
Cyrus against them, under the name of Massaget.e.
The history of this transaction is very briefly re- lated, both in Herodotus and Justin : so that little can be collected concerning his military progress. The former barely states, that he threw a bridge over the river, and advanced about a day s march beyond it, into Scythia ; Clio, 206, 211 ; when the stratagem of alluring the Scythians to feasting and drunkenness
OR MASSAGETiG.
301
was practised, by which about one-third of the Scy- thian army was destroyed. See also Justin, lib. 1. c. 8'.
After this, Herodotus says, Tomyris collected all
her remaining forces, and gave battle to Cyrus : a battle the most obstinately fought of any on record ; and which terminated in the destruction of Cyrus himself, and the greater part of his army. Clio, 214.
Justin is somewhat more circumstantial. He says that Tomyris artfully drew Cyrus into the straits of the mountains, where, ambuscades being laid, the Idng and his whole army were sliun. Lib. i. c. 8.
If it be supposed that Cyrus advanced by the usual road from Sogdiana into Sct/thia, that is, from Mawuralnahr ^ into Turkestan, he would naturally have crossed the Jaxartes (Sirr) at Kqfend, the great pass into Turkestan ; where, it appears clearly, Alex- ander crossed it to attack the Scythians ; and in which neighbourhood he found the city or cities that had been built by Cyrus ; one of which bears the name of Cyresehata, or CyropoUs, in Ptolemy.
The narrative of Justin is rendered j)robable by the circumstances of the geography : for there are mountainous chains, which approach very close to - the farther bank of the Sirr ; although, according to Herodotus, we should expect one continuous plain throughout the country of the Massagetse. One of
' Strabo, who likewise mentions the warfare of Cynu with the Massagetce, refers this story to his war with the Sacce; pajro 612,
' Literally, the country beyond the river; that is, the JikoH,€it Oxut* Thus the Persians and Arabians are accustomed Co ez- pfen the country of Samarkand, or Sogdiana,
uiyiu«iuu Ly Google
SKH EASTERN SCYTHIANS. OR MASSAOETiE.
these chains commences directly opposite to the pass of Kojeod^ and extends far to the north, into Tur- kestan ; (Kirk. MSS.) another commences opposite to Otrar (a famous pass over the same river towards Kipzak, and much nearer to the lake Aral), and con- tains some strong posts, as we learn from Sherefed- din's History of Thnnr. But ihe/ormer is the most likely to have been the scene of the defeat and death of Cyrus.
SECTION XI.
OF THE TWENTY SATRAPIES OF DARIUS HYSTASPES, GON- SIDEEED GEOG&APHiCALLY, AMD ALSO WITH A RB- FB&SNCB TO THE GATALOOUB OF THE ASMT OW XBSXES* U
The Persian empire contained most of the known part of Asia — Much geographical hnowlcd^e maij be derived from the account of the Salrapies—A rrangcmcnt of f/iis- Dissertation — Asia Minor divided into four Satrapies ; and ar ranged by the Per" sian.s, n-ith a view to a concentration nf its naval force — Lydia, and empire of Croesus — Gold of the Pactolus — Phrygia, an- ciently the great body of Asia Minor — Syrians of Cajypadocia, or Leuco-syii — ^Troy and the Troade — Strength and import^ mute of Cilicia, in a miUtarff mem — Phoenicia and Palestine— JxKrs ALEM, under the name of Cadytis — Monuments of the con- quests of Sesostria — Jews intended^ by the Syrians o/* Palestine. Uerodotui ignorant ^ their history — Phoenician Letters and Commerce — Egypt, the conquest of Cambyses — Greatness of its tribute — ^Ethiopians jtresent gold dust, ivory, and ehemf — Eglfptian forces sent to Xerxes consisted of ships ; hiA the erems fomght alto on shore — AraJbian asaaUairies — ^Desert hetween Egypt amd Syria — Arrangement ^Cambyses to procure waier m hie passage through it, to Egypt — SimUar arrangement of Nadir Shah, t» Persia, — Assyria tnelnded the countries in ge^ neralf below Taums — ^Babylonia— ^ |>ro^ if the veracity of oar Authcr-^Sennkie custom respecting diseased persons — Nineveh — Cissia, or Susiana — Susa<— Dupoiaf of the ctipltM Eretrians and Boeotians, by the Persians—A greemeni of sa« cted and profime history, in seoenU jattenofff-— Media,a ieoit-
304
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
iyvl and extenntfe tract — NuMean karsest and pastures — The term Median employed to express AofA Medians amd Peniafit,
collectively — Cities of Ecbatana antd Rages.
Of that portion of Asia known in detail to Hero- dotus^ and, as may be supposed, to the Greeks in general of his day, the Persian empire under Darius Hystaspbs formed by far the greatest part. Accord- ingly, our Author's account of the distribution of the Persian empire into twenty Satrapies is particularly curious, and no less useful, as it points out the par- ticulars, as well as the extent, of the geographical knowledge of the times. And although there are some errors in the description, as there must neces- sarily be, where the subject is so very extensive, yet it b, on the whole, so remarkably consistent, that one is surprised how the Greeks found means to acquire so much knowledge, respecting so distant a part. It is possible that we have been in the habit of doing them injustice, by allowing them a less degree of knowledge of the geography of Asia, down to the expedition of Alexander, tlian they really possessed : that is, we have, in some instances, ascribed to Alex- ander certain geographical discoveries, which per- haps were made long anterior to his expedition.
This arrangement of the Satrapies is not to be regarded as a mere list of names of countries ; for, aided by the catalogue, and the description of the army of Xerxes, and some other notices, it furnishes us with much information relative to the manners and customs of their inliabitants. The date of Da- rius's arrangement differs so little from that of the expedition of Xerxes, which succeeded it, that mat*
OF DARIUS HVSTASPE8. gQQ
ters may be considered as continuing much in the same state.
Of the whole nmnher of Satrapies, one only was situated beyond the boundary of Asia ; and that one
in Africa : and so extensive was this empire of Persia, that Alexander, from the time he first crossed over into Asia, scarcely ever overstept the boundary of it» constituted as it then was. * We are even told by Herodotus, Clio 4, that the Persians esteemed Asia their own peculiar possession But Asia, however, is to be understood in a limited sense ; for the parts beyond India and Turkestan were, as we ha?e seen, unknown.
The conquests made on tlic continent of Europe, and in its islands, although subjected to regular tri- bute, were not erected into Satrapies. Indeed, the measure of dividing the empire was anterior to the European conquests.
Our Author info;'ms us, Thalia 89, that one of the first acts of authority of Darius Hystaspes, was to divide Persia into 20 provinces, which they called Satrapies ; to each of which, a governor, under the title of Sat rap J was appointed ^ That he then ascertained the tribute they were severally to pay, connecting sometimes many nations together, which were near each other, under one district ; and that
' And io Calliope, 116: " the Persians considered aU Asia as their ewn, and the property of the reigning monarcli."
* In Daniel, ch. vi. ver. 1. Darius the Mede (taken for Cy- axares II.) divides liis empire, which consisted of the territories of Babylon and Media united, into 120 provinces, subject to three presidents, of whom Daniel was one.
VOL. I. X
30G '^^^^ TWENTY SATRAPIES
sometimes he passed over many which were adja- cent ; forming one government of various remote and scattered nations. He adds> that duriDg the reign of Cyrus, and indeed of Cambtsbs, there were no specific tributes, but presents were made to the sovereign. That, in tliese innovations, Darius seemed to have no object iu view but the acquisition of gaiu ; Cambyses was negligent and severe, whilst Cyrus was of a mild and gentle temper, ever studious of the good of his subjects : and from this difference of dis- position, the Persians called Darius a merchant ; Cambyses, a despot ; but Cyrus (that which should be the ambition of all princes to gain), a parent.
The Persians (inhabitants of Persia proper), and the ColchianSj together with their Caucasiafi neigh- bours, were the only provinces, situated within the boundary of the empire, that were not classed in Satrapies, and subjected to tribute. They possessed the singular privilege of taxing themselves, and pre- senting the produce in the form of a gratuity. The origin of this privilege, in Persia, may obviously be referred to its superiority in rank and command. How the Colchians and Caucasians obtained it, we know not. The Ethiopians who bordered on Egypt, and were subdued by Cambyses, were similarly dr- cumstanced ; and the Arabians adjacent to Egypt, ever independent of a foreign yoke, presented a gift of frankincense.
Although Herodotus has said, that one part of the arrangement was to join together in one govern- ment^ provinces that lay remote from each other ; yet it is certain, that on a review of the geographical
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES. ^7
positions, as far as we are able to determine tliem, there scarcely appears any thing of this kind ; for though, in some instances, the component districts may form "ft Satri^ of an inoonyenient form, and not at all concentrated, yet they are almost invariably found to lie contiguous to each other.
In the enumeration of them, our Author does not observe in general any kind of geographical connec- tion. For instance, although he begins in Ana Minor, and proceeds pretty regularly to Egypt, yet he then goes off at once beyond the Caspian; and, moreover, in the course of his description, wanders from one side of the etnpire to the other ; so that he steps at onee from Baetria to Armenia, and from the Eiixine to the Lulus. As it will be a saving of ^Eitigue to the reader to preserve a geographical con- nection, we shall adopt such an arrangement of our own, as may eflfect that purpose ; in which, however, we shall add the original number likewise, for the sake of reference to the original statement.
Following the example of our Author, we begin in Asia Minor, which was divided into four Satra* pies ; and proceed thence into the two succeeding ones of Phoenicia and Egypt. By this mode of arrangement, the whole tract of sea coast, which fur- nished that important aid towards the invasion of Greece, a maritime force, will be given in a con- nected form. Even in another point of view, it forms a distinct species of territory, as it comprises generally the Greek colonies, and the establishments raised by their industry, arts, and courage, in Asia ;
X 2
308
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
a wonderful instance of exertion, in states so cir*
cumscribed in point of physical extent and means, compared with the rest of the world. To tliese must be added, Egypt^ the venerable parent of Gre* cian arts and superstition ; but whose geographical situation having denied her the protection afforded to Greece, occasioned her early fall, to the increased power of Persia.
Proceeding thence firoin the Syrian and Phoenician shores of the Mediterranean, we trace the countries between it and the head of the Persian gulf ; and which have Arabia on the south, the Euxine, Cas- pian, and mount Caucasus, on the north. Within this space are seven other Satrapies ; so that 13 of tlie 20 hiy to the west of Persia proper, the original kingdom of Cyrus. Of course seven others must lie to the east of the same country.
Some of the names of the countries were probably such as the Greeks alone applied to them, and which might not be those used in the countries themselves. Others, such as Aria^ Chorasmia, Zarang, Sog' dkma, &c. are known to have been used in the countries themselves, and are in use there at pre- sent. It is therefore probable, that Media, Colchis, Bactria, &c. might be names in use there also, though now lost. Bactria, indeed, is likely to have been the same with the Balk of the present time. We now proceed to the discussion of the geogra- phical positions of the Satrapies.
The first Jhur, as we have said, are contained within the limits usually assigned to Asia Minor,
OF DARIUS IIYSTASPES.
and little difficulty occurs in arran^^ing their limits ; but they are disproportioued in point of extent, and the two first, very irregular in point of form.
THE SATRAPIES K
•
1. The lonians ^ and Magnesians of Asia, the ^olians, Carians, Lycians, Milyeans, and Pamphy- lians, were comprised under one district, and jointly paid a tribute of 400 tolents of silver." Thalia, 90.
These subdivbions are all well known, and include the sea coast of Asia Minor, from the gulf of Adra- myttiuni, and the Troade, on the north, rouncl by Cnidus, and the Triopian Promontory \ to Cilicla, on the east ; an extent of coast equal to about 4d0 G. miles. The province of Doris, as well as those islands of the Archipelago which shelter this deeply indented coast, are, of course, included. : No doubt the long extended, and inconvenient form of this Satrapy, as far as respected the pur- poses of internal regulation, was calculated to obtain some advantages in the disposition and distribution of the naval armaments intended against Greece ; for the whole of the fleet of Asia Minor (save that of the Hellespont and Cilicia) was furnished by the first Satrapy ; and consisted of 357 ships, out of 1207, which formed the strength of the whole naval
' The reader is rctl rrcd to the Map, No V. at page 303, for the geography of the Satrapies.
' * Ionia began at the gulf of /oitiM ; Pliiiyi lib. v. c. 29, ' See above, page 244, note.
310
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
armament of Xerxes ; and which included also the fleets of Phoenicia and Kgypt.
In the catalogue of the nations who composed the annament of Xerxes^ all of the ahove, save the inland province of Melias or Myllas served in the fleet, and formed no part of the land force.
The Milya, in the army of Xerxes, (Polym. 77,) carried short spears, and some of them bad Lycian bows.
The whole country of the Lijcians (says our Author) was formerly called Mihjas. The Ly cians were of Cretan origin, but derived their present name from Lycm, son of Pandion; Clio, 173. MUyas was afterwards applied to the inland part of Lycia, from whence springs the Lycus river, the southern branch of the Meander.
Our Author frequently derives the names of coun- tries in Asia from those individuals who either colo- nized or reduced it. ^^ e find the like in modern times ; as Feuusylvania, Maryland, Carolina, Georgia, &c.
II. The second Satrapy, which paid 500 talents, was composed of the Mysians, Lydians, Alysonians, Cabalians, and Hygennians." Thalia, 90.
This division, which is by far the smallest of ail the 20, does not appear to have touched on the sea in any part ; for although Mysia in later times included the coast of the Troade, and the south coast of the Propontis and Hellespont ; yet we find in the ar- rangement of our Author, that the right side of the Hellespont forms a part of the third Satrapy, toge- ther with Bithynia or Asiatic Thrace.
OF DARIUS UYSTASPES.
^11
The greatness of the tribute paid by this Satrapy, in proportion to its very confined limits, calls for an explanation; and none appears more satisfactory than that the sources from whence the vast riches of Crcesus, king of Lydia, were derived^ were contained in it. These were said to consist of mines of gold and silver ; and of gold sand, brought down by the small river Pactolus, which flowed from mount TmoltuK It appears the more prohable, as the arrangement of the Satrapies was made at no great distance of time from the period in which the riches of Croesus were proverbial \
It is^ however, remarkable, that although the bulk of these treasures is understood to have consisted of
* Terpsichore, 101. This flource of wealth is said to have been exhausted before the time of Augustus. Lareher.
' The history of Crcesus, and of his fidi, by disputing the em- pire of Western Asia, with the Medes and Persians, is well known. His empire consisted of the greatest part of Asia Minor ; for it was bounded on the cast by the river Halys, on the soutli by Taurus (generally), and extended to the sea, on every other side. There seldom iias been a more compact em- pire ; and had he made a right use of the friendship of the Greeks, he might probably have possessed all Asia Minor, and held it in despite of the Persians. The fable of the dog and the shadow, apy)lies with all its force to this monarch.
" After Croesus had extended the power of the Lydians, Sardis (his capital) became the resort of the great and the aiHuent ; as well as of such as were celebrated in Greece, for their talents and their wisdom. Among these was Solon," &c. Clio, 28. The anecdotes of this great legislator, at the court of Croesus, which follow, arc well worth the attention of the n ider. Much amsolation may be drawn from tliem ; and, as a matter of curiosity, we find wisdom and true philosophy contrasted with folly and weakness, in a very suiking tuanncr.
THE TWENTY 8ATRAPIB8
gold, yet tbat, in the calculation of the whole sum
of the tribute of the empire (Thalia, 95) ; India alone is said to have paid its quota in gold
In the list of the army, Polym. 74, are found the Lydians^ anciently called MeanioM ; and the iVy- sians, no doubt intended for Mysians, who are said to be a colon]! Lydians. The latter were also called Olympians, from mount Olympus, which was situated within their country; and which was a marked feature of it, to those who sailed along the Propontis. The Lydians and Mysiuns had the same commander ; and, it would appear, are to be re- garded as the same people .
In Polym. 11, the CahaUan Meomans are said to be the same with the Lysonians, and these must also be taken for the Alysonians, just mentioned ; which, in Ptolemy, are found under the name of Lycaones \ between Carta and Pisidia. The Ca- baliansy therefore, should be regarded as Meonians or Lydians, like the Mysiaus, They lurnied u part of
* Aristagoras (in his report of the countries between Ionia and Siisa), speaking of the Lydians, says, that " they possess a fertile territory, and u jjrojunion of silver Terp. 49. Nothing is said concerning gold.
* Amongst a number of other modem discoveries, which serve to prove the truth of our Author^s descriptions, is the sepulchre of Alyattet, king of Lydia, (the fiither of Croesus,) described in Clio, 95. Herodotus says, that it is second to no monument of art, save those of the £gy]>tians and Babylonians. Dr. Chandler saw it, and has described the remains ot it, m ius Travels in Asia Minor, p. ^63.
* This country Is j)i rlVctly distinct from Lycuunia, which Ibrim the cabtern extremity ol Phrygia.
uiyu.-n-u Dy GoOgle
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES.
SIS
the same command with the Milyans, their neigh- bours; who, notwithstanduig, belonged to a dif- ferent Satrapy, as we have shewn above ; for the
arrangement of the Satrapies of Darius, and the military commanderies of his son Xerxes, are to be considered as perfectly distinct.
Of ihe Hygenians we know nothing. On the whole, the second Satrapy appears to be an inland tract, extending from north to south, between Mount Olympus and Mount Taurus, bordered by the ma^ ritime provinces (which compose the first Satrapy) on the west and south, and by Phrygia on the east.
III. "A tribute of 360 talents was ])ai(l by those who inhabit the right side of the Hellespont ; by the Phrygians and Thracians of Asia ; by the Pa- phlagonians, Mariandynians, and Syrians : and these nations constituted the third Satrapy." Thalia, 90.
This, compared with tlie two former, is a very ex- tensive province : although the whole three, coUec- tively, fall short of some of the largest divisions, or Satrapies. It includes the great body of Asia Minor, situated to the north of Taurus, and east of Lydia ; as well as the whole northern coast, from the Troade to the river Thermodon, in Pontus. It is, however, to be remarked, that in all this extent of coast, the Hellespontians and those of Pontus, were the only people who furnished sibips ; and the Hellespontians appear to have sent four-fifths of these. This serves to shew that the Euxine, then, as well as in latter times, possessed but little commerce of its own. So that it either had no materials which were in request in the commerce of that day, or no consumption of
314 THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
foreign productions. The southern shores of the Euxioe are said to "abound with naval stores ; as tim- ber, iron^ and hemp, in the present times ; and, as it would appear from ancient nottees, timber and iron were then in great plenty, since two of the nations mentioned by Xenophon, the Chalybes and Mosy^ TKecians, were evidently denominated, the one from their being workers in iron and steel, the other from the materials of their habitations.
However, these naval stores might not have been in request amongst the commercial nations in the west, because they might have iiad enough of their own to serve thw purposes. For we are not to judge of the consumption of naval stores, at that day, by that of the present ; when the coasts of the wliole world are ransacked for timber, cither for the pur- poses of war or commerce ; and when the foraste of Asia, as well as of Europe and America, float on the bosom of the Atlantic.
The country oiPhrygia occupied the central parts of Asia Minor ; and was a country of very great ex- tent It included, amongst others, the tract after- wards named Galatia, from the conquests and settle- ments made in it by the Gauls. Armenia is said to have been colonixed by the Phrygians : the Armenians were armed like the Phrygians, and both nations were commanded by one general, in Polym. 73. And hence it may be inferred, that the intermediate coun- try of Cappadocia also was filled with the same race. Our Audior says, in the same place, that, according to the Maeedonians, the Phrygians, as long as they were their neighbours, and Jived in Europe, were
uiyui-n-u Ly GoOgle
OF DARIUS UYSTA3PES.
315
called Bryges ; but that, in passing over into Asia, tbey took the name of Phrygians ^ So that thmr progress was eashDard, and from Europe into Asia, like the Thracians of Asia (or Bithi/n 'ians ), who are said, in Polym. 75, to have come from the bmiks of the Strymon^ So that the course of migration and conquest, on the tauth of the Euxine, seems to have been opposite to that on the north.
By the Syrians are meant the Cappadocians : for it appears from several passages in our Author, (as Clio, 6, 76 ; Euterpe, 104 ; Terpsich. 49 ; and Polym. 72,) that the people of Cappadoeia, and at the Euxine sea, at Sinope, and along its coasts, from the river Parthenitis on the west, to the Thermodou on the east, were called Syrians. Strabo confirms it generally, calling them Leueo^rip or white Sy- rians, in contradistinction to the Syrians on the south of Mount Taurus'. But although the Syrians are placed at the river Parthenius, in Euterpe, 104, yet Paphlagonia, which therefore ought also to bare been inhabited by Syrians, is arranged under its proper name in this Satrapy ; and the Paphlagonians are classed as a distinct people in the list of the army, in Polym. 72. But Sinope is in Paphlagonia, and its inhabitants Syrians, in Clio, 72. Hence we must allot, not only Cappadocia, hut all the tract between it and the Euxine, to the Leuco-syri ^
' In Erato, 46, the Brygi of Thrace attack Mardonius* in Ma^
cedonia.
' Page 736. Pliny also, lib. vi. c. S. * It ia to be remarked, that Strabo, p. 584, divides Cappa- docia into two Satrapies.
316
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
The Mart and i/nians, the only remaining people to be spoken of in this Satrapy \ occupied a part of the coast of the Euxine between BHhyma and Pa- phlagonia. In the army of Xerxes the Paphlagonians are joined in one command with the Matieni, whilst the Mariandyni are joined with the Syrians and others. One might have suspected that^o^teiie was an error^ especially as there is another country of Matiene in Media, But Herodotus says, in Clio, 72, that the river Halys divides Matiene on the right, from Phrygia on the left ; thus pointing out the western part of Cappadocia for the Matiene in question. No traces of such a name can, however, be found there, but the description is certainly con- sistent ^
- It appears then, that the third Satrapy extended eastward along the Eunne to the river Thermodon,
in Ponttis, wlicre it met with the district of the 7i- hareni, belonging to the nineteenth Satrapy. Also, that it extended to the course of the Euphrates, in* land; or it may be only to the Anti-Taurus, which
might divide it from Armenia ; and southwards to Mount Taurus.
• If we except the Thracians of Asia, there is scarcely any diversity of dress or weapons through-
' We cannot find the lA'jijcs. Could they he meant for tlie j)eoi)lc of Lijcaonia ? Neitlier tlicsv nor the Pisidions are classed either in the Satrapies, or in the army, under those names.
° It is po^siljle tliat tht province of Ti/ana may he xhc Matiene here spoken o\] ii> the situation a<^recs. Or J'tjanay as a part, may have gi\en nami- to the whole. It is, in etlect, a part of Ci- licia ; but has sometimes been reckoned to Cappadocia.
OP DARIUS HYSTASPES.
317
out this extensive Satrapy, mentioned in the history of Xerxes' expedition. The dress of these Tliracians (Bithynians) consisted chiefly of skins of deer and foxes ; (Polym. 75.) The Paphlagonians^ with their neighhours, the Mariandynians, the Phrygians^ and Syrians (by which are meant Cappadocians), wore helmets of network^ with buskins which reached to the middle of the leg; and had for weapons small spears and hucklersj besides javelins and daggers. The Thracians had a general of their own ; the Ma- riandynians and Ligyes had a commander in com- mon ; and the Phrygians, as has been said, were joined with the Armenians, their eohnUis.
The Hellespontians, in conjunction with the ])eople of Pontus, sent 100 sliips (triremes); Polym. 95 ; and tlie people of Ahijdos had the charge of defend- ing the bridge at the Hellespont. The proportion of ships sent by the Pontics should be 20 of the 100, as Diodorus states that the others sent 80.
The Troade, although not specified here, is in- cluded in this di^rion* The siege of Troy, and the circumstances that led to it, are, however, spoken of in other parts of our Author's work ^
' Doubts have been recently started, not only whether die Trojan war ever happened, but even whether such a city as Troy
ever exi>tcil.
It may, liovvcvcr, he said, that most of tlic ancients believed botli : and Tliueid) <U's, who is no mean aiitlioi ity, marks it as one of the liisiurieal facts tliat is wortliy of credit ; doubtless from having considered all the diflcrent authorities, many of which may now have ceased to exist.
Frequent allusions to the Trojan war occur in Herodotus ; and the original cause of tlie enmity of the Persians to the Greeks is
318
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
IV. " The Cilicians were obliged to produce every day a whiie horse ; that is to say^ 360 annually ;
said to have been the destruction of Troy : Clio, 5. See also Polym. IGl ; and Calliope, 27. Xerxes is said to have ascended the citadel of Priam : that he eacrificed to the Trojan Minem* and offered libations to the manes of the heroes ; Polym. 43. He» then, believed the above facts : and the same may be said of Alexander; judging by his conduct. We must consider bow much nearer to the date of the event these personages lived : for in respect of the times of Xerxes and Alexander, the event of tbe taking of Troy would be much the same as the conquests of Tamerlane or the Norman conquest to us.
Alexander believed that be saw tbe tombs of Achilles and Patrodus at Troy ; and die consecrated armour in the temple of Minerva; Arriani lib. i.; and Curtlus, lib. ii.
Herodotus was informed by the Egyptian priests, that die Greeks had certainly taken and destroyed the city of Troy ; but that, instead of finduig Helen there, as they expected, she was at the same moment in Egypt, being detained by King Piotbds, who afterwards restored her to her husband, Menelaus* ; Bu« terpe, 116, ei seq., and particularly 120.
This event is supposed by Sir Isaac Newton to have happened about 900 years before oar era, and consequently about 450 years, or more, before the visit of our Author to Egypt. It may perhaps be allowed, that the tradition preserved by the priests was of equal authority to the Iliad, in point of hittory: and, at all events, the prominent facts of the rape of Helen, and the siege and destruction of Troy, remain exactly as they were.
The matter, then, may perhaps be reduced simply to this: that the above facts maybe received, but that the poem of Homer has been ornamented witli fictions in order to render it more iu-
• It is proper to remark, that in Clio, 3, the aggressor is named Alexander ; but in Euterpe, 113, et seq. Paris, the name by which he is more commonly known, although both may equally belong to him.
13
OF DARIUS UYSTASPES.
319
w ith 500^ talents of silver. Of these, 140 were ap- pointed for the payment of the cavalry stationed for the guard of the country; the remainkig 360 were received by Darius: these formed the fourth Sbt trapy." Thalia, 90.
In this statement we have notices of an arrange- ment different from that throughout the rest of the mpire; and which might have grown out of the importance of Ciltcia, considered in a military point of view, as being a post that, according to the hands into which it fell, cither connected or separated the two countries of Asia Minor and Persia on the one hand ; Aria Minor, Syria, and Egypt, on the other. Of this much more will be said in a future work, which is to treat, amongst other subjects, of the Ci- lician passes. Be it as it will, the force sent to Xerxes consisted entirely of ships, 100 in number ; as probably they were in greater request at that time than cavalry. Polym. 91.
The boundaries of Cilicia, being of the natural kind, and very strongly marked, it may be supposed that they have not greatly varied at any time. The
teresting ! Wlio ever thought it necessary to receive as facts all the matter of an epic poem i
It appears also, that too much accuracy is looked for in Ho- mer's description of the ground of the 'IVoade ; for why should he be expected to be more accurate in that than Virgil in his de- scription of the strait of Messina, with its Scylla and CharybdUf And yet the latter is known to be merely a poetical fiction.
Herodotus had an idea, Euterpe, 53, that Homee lived 400 years, and no more, before him.
* The same number is given by Aristagoras, in Terpsi- chore, 49.
320
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
fertile and capacious vaDey of Caiaania, formed bj
the separation of the ridges of Taurus, may, at times, have been included, and at others excluded. But it is certain that Herodotus extends Cilicia to the Eu- phrates, (in Terpsich. 52,) where he makes that river the boundary between Cilicia and Armenia, in the line of the great road leading from Sardis to Susa. If this was really so, the Northern Syria (or perhaps Comagena only) must have been reckoned to Cilicia, as the northern part of Mesopotamia, between Mount Masins and Taunts, really was to Armenia ; of which several proofs appear, but more particularly in Clio, 194, where boats are said to descend from Armenia^ above Assyria, to Babylon.
By a passage in the book of Judith, (ch. ii. ver. 21,) it also appears as if Cilicia extended to the east of Amanus.
V. The tribute levied from the fifth Satrapy was 350 talents. Under this district was compre-
hended the tract of country which extended from the city of Posideiinti (built on the frontiers of Cilicia and Syria, by Amphilochus, son of Amphiaraus ), as far as Egypt ; part of Arabia alone excluded, which paid no tribute ^. The same Satrapy, more- over, included all Phoenicia, the Syrian Palestine, and the Island of Cyprus." Thalia, 91.
TYim Phcenicia and Palestine formed the body of this Satrapy, and both were included in Syria ; (regarded as synonymous with Assyria, for this is to be collected from various places in our Author :) and
* More will be said oonceming this tract in the sequel.
OP DARIUS HYSTASPES. ggj
it appears, that in order to complete the boundaries of this division, we have only to find those of Pto- nicia and Palestine.
In Thalia, 91, - Pondeiun^ is said to lie on *' ^Jf-onHers of Cilieia and St/ria,'*
Palestine and Phoenicia are parts of Syria, in" Euterpe, 116 and 158: " Sf^a borders upon Egfjpt ; and the Phoenicians, to whom Sidon be- longs, inhabit part of /^yrta"— and Syria is divided from Egypt by mount Camis.*'
Again, Polym. 89 : " The Phceoicians, by their own account, once inhabited the coasts of the Bed sea; but emigrated from thence to the maritime parts of Syria : all which district, as far as Egypt, is denominated Palestine ^**
Thus, it appears, that our Author clearly discri- minated PAcenieia and Palestine, from Syria at large : and that the name by which he denominates Palestine, is usually Syria of Palkstine.
The boundaries of this Satrapy are by no means difBcult to be ascertained : Posideium occasions the only difficulty. This city, which is said to have stood on the common frontier of Cilieia and Syria ; and consequently on the northern frontier of the latter, and of the Sairajji/, in course ; was situated on the sea coast of Syria, nearly opposite to mount Caeius {pi Antiach). Now, thb appears contrary
* The reader may perhaps be apprized that ilie country named Palestine by the Greeks^ is called Falastin by the Arabs ; and that this last is the Philistine of the Scriptures. The land of the Philistines was that quarter of Palestine towards the coa^it, left in possession of tlie original inhabitants.
VOL. I. Y
THE TWENTY SATRAPIBB
to all the geographical arrangements of the Greeks and Romans ; because CiUcia terminated^ and Syria began, at the pass, situated at the shore of the gulf of Issus : and Posideium stood about 50 miles to the southward of that pass ; and could have no rela- tion to the Cilicia of the Greek and Roman systems.
It is certain, however, that the reported situation of Posidmum, on the northern froniier of the Satrap i/y may possibly be true, since Herodotus, who had himself hcen in Palestine, might, perhaps, have travelled by laud to it, from Natolia, in his way to Egypt ; and thus might have ascertained the fiict himself : in which case, however, Cilicia must then have included a great part of what was afterwards reckoned to Syria. And it is certain, that Cilicia is extended to the 'Euphrates, in Terpsichore, 52, where it meets Armenia ; as has been shewn in pages 253 and 320. This, therefore, agrees with what is said concerning Posideium ; although it does not agree with the geography of the times of Xenophon and of Alexander.
As to the real boundary of Phcenicia, it is difficult to fix it, although it would seem that Posideium was intended for it, by Herodotus. Xenophon calls Myrtandrtts in the gulf of Issus, (which is the Marandyman bay, or more properly MyriandmUm bay of our Author, in Melpom. 38,) a Phcenician city: and as Herodotus also says, that this bay is contiguous to Pluvnicia, this should be decisive of its boundary, if Posideium did not stand a good way to the south of the gulf in question ; and was, not- withstanding^ the northern extremity of the Satrapy
OF DARIUS HY8TA8PES.
323
that was said to include all Phcgnicia, Perhaps, as Herodotus and Xenophon appear to concur in the report of the northern boundary of Phoenicia, placed at the soathern part of the gulf of Issus ; whilst - Poodeium was the northern point of the Satrapy, and was also reckoned contiguous to Cilicia ; it may be, that the Phoenicians possessed certain in- sulated tracts, or townships, along the coast, beyond the extent of their continuous territory : and Myri- andrus might be one of these
Phoenicia extended along the coast of the Medi- terranean, southward, to the termination of the ridges of Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, near Tyre ; where it met the border of Palestine. In breadth, it comprehended only the narrow tract between the continuation of mount Lebanon and the sea ; with the deep valley between the two ridges, named Cmle^Sifria ; now the vaUey of Bekaa. This latter was the Phoenicia Libani.
Palestine, Syria of Palestine, or Syrian Palestine, has its boundaries too familiarly known to need de- scription hare. It extended from PhwfUcia and Cmh-Syria to the borders of Egypt, fixed by our Author at mount Casius (of Arabia), in Euterpe, 158 ; but in Thalia, 5, at the Sirhonic lake, a little to the eastward of that mount The Arabian terri- tory lying between it and Egypt, and which, in com- mon witli Arabia in general, was exempted isooL tri-
* Thb hiB happened contmuaDy in modern timet* as weD aa in aneient. The Buropean fiMtoriea on the coaat of At bica and Imdu an in point.
Y 2
3^ THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
bute, comprized Idutnea, (or Edom,) the original seat of the Ishmaelitc/i,
Herodotus, as we have said, had visited Palestine, if not Phoemeia also. The city of Jbrusalbm he names Cadytis, doubtless meant for the Arabian name Al Kach, the holy : in effect, a translation of the other. He says, Thalia, 5, " that it is a city belonging to the Syrians oi Palestine; and, in his opinion, equal to Sardisn^ It is mentioned a second time in Euterpe, 159, on occasion of its being taken possession of by Necos, king of Egypt, after his victory over the Syrians at Magdolum ( Megiddo),
He had seen in Palestine some of the pillars, or monuments, erected by Sesostris, in token of con- quest ; and wliich had disappeared, for tlie most part, in the countries that had been conquered by him. See Euterpe, 102 and 106. . Perhaps these monuments remained longer in the parts adjoining to Egypt, which might be, in some degree, subject to its influence or domination, thau in distant parts. Our Author believes that Sesostris overran Asia, and passing into Europe, conquered Scythia and Tkraee: and that thus far, the monuments of his victories are discovered. Also that he left a detachment in Colchis I the relation of which circumstance has given occasion to suppose that the Egyptians were black, and had crisped and curling hair, like the negroes. The context, surely, leads to a belief of the fact ; although we may not be prepared to re- ceive it. But at the same time, it is to be remarked, that he classes Egypt, geographically, as a country quite distinct from Libya (or Ajrica) : that is, he
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES. Q^Q
does not allow the Egyptians to be Africans. See
Euterpe, 16 and 17.
To return to the Syrians of Palestine.— He re- marks that iAese, as well as the Phwmcians, acknow- ledged that they borrowed the custom of circum- cision from Egypt : and says, that it can be traced, both in Egypt and ^Ethiopia, to the remotest anti- quity; so that it is not possible to say which of the two first introduced it ; but that the Egyptians un- questionably communicated it to other nations, by means of their commercial intercourse ; Euterpe, 104. Without entering into the question concern- ing the origin of this custom, one may be allowed to remark, that, if our Author had made the inquiry amongst the Jews themselves (who should be meant by the Syrians of Palestine), they would surely have told him otherwise : and it is prohable, there- fore, that he took his information from the Egyptians.
He seems to have known but little concerning the history of the Jews. The date of his visit to Pales- tine and Jerusalem (which latter, one must conclude by his expression above quoted, in page 324, he had certainly seen,) was short of a century after the re- establishment of the temple and worship, after the Babylonish captivity. But he is, notwithstanding, quite silent respecting the Jewish customs and wor- ship, although he says so much concerning those of the Egyptians. He is equally silent concerning the revolutions in this celebrated and highly interesting spot. This appears very remarkable: for though the captivity must have greatly changed the face of
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
tilings iD Palestine ^ yet the singular institutions and modes of life of tlie Jews, not only drew forth the most pointed remarks from the Roman writers, at a much latter period, but are acknowledged at the
present day, to constitute a kind of standing miracle *.
No man whatsoever was a truer friend to the interests of the human race than Herodotus : had
he, therefore, been endowed with a prophetic spirit, to have foreseen that from Palestine there was to arise a Light to guide the footsteps of men to the highest state of happiness that this worU affords, by humanizing them, and making them fitter for the purposes of society ; and, moreover, by giving them hopes of a better state hereafter; he would have thought it a spot of much more importance than he attaches to it.
He refers to this quarter of the world the im- portant invention of letters : and there seems to be no doubt, that the alphabets of the Western world were derived from this source alone. He ob-
' Palestine had, aiiice the flouriahuig tunea of David and SoLOM OM, 8u£fered firom the mvasiooa of the Aasyriana and Baby- k>niana, ibe Egjrptlana and Scythians : and those claaaea of people which detennine the national character, and weight, in the eyes of foreigners, had either been removed or annihilated.
^ See in particidar Diodorus, lib. i c 8 ; and the remains of thexxxivth and xlth. These passages will also be considered in a future section, in which we shall touch slightly on the subject of the FiBST OARivfTT of the Israelites, by the king of Knieveh.
OF DAEIUS HY8TA8PB8.
327
terveB, Terpsichore^ 58, that the Phcenidaiis who
came with Cadmus (into Boeotia) introduced, during their residence in Greece, various articles of science ; and amongst other things, letters; with which, as I conceive, the Greeks were before unacquainted. These were, at first, such as the Phoenicians them- selves indiscriminately use ; in process of time, how- ever, they were changed both in sound and form. At that time, the Greeks most contiguous to this people were the Idnians, who learnt these letters of the Phoenicians, and, with some trifling variations, received them into common use. As the Phoenicians first made them known in Greece, they called them, as justice required, Phcemician letters
The extended scale of the Phoenician commerce, is a theme of ancient history, as well sacred as pro- fane. The amber of Prussia, and the tin of Britain ; the linen of Egypt, and the spices of Arabia ; the slaves of Caucasus; and the horses of Scythia; appear to have centered in their emporium ^. There
* Herodotiu adds, Terps. 58, that, " by a very ancient cus- tom, the Pamant call their hookt osvbtsbA, or SKWs ; because, at a time when the plant of the fiiNor was scarce, they used instead of it, the skins of goats and sheep. Many of the Babp BARiAKs have used these skins, for this purpose, within my re- collection."
The Persians name a record^ or writrngt DUVTia. Is it lM>t
probable, that the loniaiis borrowed the term from the Persians, together with the use of the skin itself, the name of which may perhaps be rendered parchment ?
• These last, we should understand, by the merchsnts of /van, Tubaly and Mcshcck, *' who tradetl in the persons of men, and vessels of brass, in the markeu :" and the house of Togarmah^
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
is, however, no intimation of Indian productions, in the catalogue of merchandizes just mentioned, al- though they appear to have possessed two islands ia the Persian gulf, whose names, Tyrus and Aradats, mark them for Phoenician possessions. These seem to have been two of the smaller islands, near the entrance of the gulf, and not those of Bahrein, as M. D'Anville has supposed ; for they are placed by Strabo, p. 766, at ten days' voyage from the mootfa of the Euphrates ; one only from the Promontory of Mace t a (Massendon). Ptolemy, Tab. vi. Asia, places them exactly in the same position, and marks the Bahrein Islands (or those which represent them), also.
Accordinpf to our Author, India had been recently explored, by the orders of Darius Hystaspes, and seems to have been little known to the Pernans before his time. Ezekiel prophesied concerning the de- struction of Tyre, only 60 or 70 years before Darius : and, as we have said, no traces of Indian products or manufactures appear in his catalogue. The two accounts, therefore, Agree : and impress an idea, that the Phoenicians did not trade to India at that period* Had they known, and traded to, India t/irough the Persian empire, the Persians, doubtless, would not have been ignorant of India : which, if we are to credit our Author, they were, previous to the expe- dition set on foot by Darius, and conducted by Scylax, who first explored the Indus, and the coasts between it and Persia, &c.
«* who traded in the lairs with /torset," &c, Ezekiel, ch. xxvii. ver. 13 and 14.
OP DARIUS HYSTASPES.
S29
It may therefore have been, that these discoveries, and the consequent union of Western India, with the empire of Persia, laid the foundation of a com- merce between those countries, although the commu- nication between Egypt and India might have existed much earlier. And, it is not impossible, that the visit of Darius to Egypt, which was in the train of Cambyses and little more than a century after the date of the splendid discoveries of the Egyptians in the Southern ocean, might have given him the idea of prosecuting discoveries in the East, from the gulf of Persia. He might also have learnt at the same time, that the Egyptians had a commerce with India, by sea.
The Phoenicians, however, are said to have traded in the produce of Assyria (meaning the empire of that name, Clio, c, and which, probably, included not only that of Assyria Proper, but of Persia and Arabia also, transmitted through Assyria. The inland car- rijing trade was no doubt effected by the camels of Palmyra ; which place therefore formed an important Knk in the chain of communication It might not have suited the convenience, perhaps not the dig- nity, of the Phoenician merchants, to become the camel-keepers of the desert.
' He was one of die guards of Cambyses, and, althoii|^ of voyal desoent, being of the fiuooily of the Achaemenides, was at that time of no particular consideration. See a very curious anecdote of Darius Hystaspes, in Egypt, in Thalia, 139 ; and an account of his parentage and descent, in Clio, 209.
f Mora will be said concerning this subject, in a futuie work.
S30
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
The Phoenicians, who, although at one period denominated Erythraeans, either from their real, or supposed origin^ from the shores of the Red sea, were, no doubts an assembli^ of indostrioiu and enterprising adrentiiTers, from all the neigkkemring countries at least ; and perhaps from very distant ones also. Great wages of labour, and great profits of trade, would invite the di£Perent classes of man- kind ; and with such a people, gain must have been the prime object. Our Author gives, at the very opening of his history, a curious anecdote of Phoe- nician eanmerce, and Phcsnidan peffidy. They traded, amongst odier places, to ArgoM^ which was, at the period spoken of, the most famous of all those states, which were afterwards comprehended under the general appellation of Greece, A Phoenician ship lying at the shore, so that people could walk to and fro, exposes her merchandizes to sale, on the shore, close to the ship. The king's daughter, 16, comes, with many other females, either as a visitor, or a purchaser. Whilst (says the historian), these females, standing near the stem of the vessel, amused themselves with bargaining for such things as at- tracted their curiosity, the Phoenicians, in conjunc- tion, made an attempt to seize their persons. The greater part of them escaped, but 16 remained a cap- tive with many others. They carried them on board, and directed their course for Egypt," Clio, c. 1. It is to be remarked, that these Plioeuicians, like true traders, did not venture to commit this act of vio- lence, until they had nearly disposed of their cargo.
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES.
and were paid for it. A commander of a slave ship, on the coast of Africa, could not have acted with more worldly prudence !
The aid fumbhed by this Satn^y to the arma- ment of Xerxes, was composed entirely of ships ; and consisted of the amazing force of 450 triremes ; 300 of which were from the continent, 1^0 from the Uand of Cyprus. This was more ihan -J- of the whole fleet of triremes ; and more than double the quota furnished by Egypt. But then it was the combined force of Phoenicia, Palestine, and Cy- prus; the boasted fleets of Tyre, Sidon, Aradus, and the numerous ports of Syria, from Egypt to Cilicia.
It has been said, in the geographical description of this Satrapy, page 320, that a portion of Arabia interrened between Palestine and Egypt ; and that, in common with the rest of Arabia, it remained inde- pendent of Persia. The tract in question consists of Idumea (or Edom), and the desert which bordered on the sea coast between Oaxa and Pelmium ; and which affects, in a material degree, the act of commu- nication between the two countries. But, as it ap- pears to belong as much to the subject of Egyjit, as of Syria, we shall postpone the consideration of it, till that of Egypt has been discussed, since that will contribute in a considerable degree to its elucidation.
VI. " Seven hundred talents were exacted from Egypt, from the Africans which border upon Egypt, and from Cyrene and Barce, which are compre- hended in the Egyptian district. The produce of the fishery of the lake Mceris was not included in
13
S32
THE TWENTY 8ATEAPIB8
this, iieiUier was the corn, to the amount of 700
talents more ; 120,000 measures of which were ap- plied to the maintenance of the Persians and their auxiliary troops, garrisoned within the white castle of Memphis ; this was the sixth Satrapy." Thalia^ 91
This Satrapy, then, consisted of the entire country of Kgypt, together with certain tracts of Libya ad- jacent to it on the west ; and which extended along the sea coast of the Mediterranean, to the utmost limit of Cyrenaica : for Herodotus says, Melpom. 204, that " the farthest progress of the Persian army, was to the country of the EuesperidtB by which is intended the western limit of Cjrrenaica, near the garden of the Hesperides ; of which more in the sequel, under the head of Africa. Cijrene^ Barce, and other Libyan provinces, had been nomi- nally surrendered to Cambyses (Thalia, 13) ; but were not, we believe, taken possession of : it was during the reign of Darius Hystaspes, that the Persians above-mentioned made the expedition to the west- ward ^
• Egypt and Gyrene, although p«rti of Allrica, and therefore belonging to a different division from that now under eonsider- adon; yet, as forming a part of the twenty Satrapies, they could not, in point of regularity, be omitted in this phu». However, they are here considered merely as political divisions; and will be spoken of more at large in their proper places, under the head of Ayuca.
' The conquest of Egypt had been left to Cambyses hy Cyrus. It is said m Clio, 15S, that Cyrus was prepared for serious resistance, from the Sacee and Egyptians, The first he reduced; the latter it is said, in another phcc, was left lo his successor.
OF DARIUS HYSTASPEa
333
As to the Africans, who are said to border on Egypt, and were subject to Persia, they were proba- bly the people of the Oases in that neighbourhood ; and perhaps also, those bordering immediately on Upper Egypt, between Syene and the great cataract (of Jan Add) ; although these, in effect, constituted a part of Egypt at large. They could not be meant for the people of Amman, smce the army of Cam* byses perished in the attempt to reach their country, so that both Ammon and Angela must be regarded as independent. Much less could the Ethiopians be intended, Idr they are expressly said to be mde- pendent* It is said, in Thalia, 97, that even the Ethiopians, who were subdued by Cambyscs, in his expedition against the Macrobian Ethiopians, were not included in the tribute levied on the Egyptian Satrapy; but presetted, like the Persians, and some few others, a regular gratuity. As the pro- gress of Cambyscs towards the Macrohians (whom we regard as the Abyssiuiatis), was said to be less than one-fifth of the whole way (Thalia, 25), it must be supposed that he never got through the desert of Selivia : that is, on a supposition that Tiiebes was the place of outset, and Sennar the entrance into the country of the Macrobians* Of course, the conquests made in this quarter could have been but trifling, and the sum of the present seems to shew it. In consisted of two cJianiijces of gold, unrejined ; 200 blocks of ebony wood; 20 large elephants' teeth, and five Ethiopian youths. It was repeated once in three years ; and the custom was continued to the time of Herodotus. Thalia, 97.
384
THE TWBNTY 8ATRAPIS8
The ehwnix of Attica is reokotoed by Arboihiiot
the 48th part of a medimnuSf which being about 70 English pints, of 34 cubic inches, a chcenix may be taken at somewhat less than a piiU .and kaif. Hence, the value of the gold dmtt presented once in three years, might be abont 80 guineas.
It may clearly be collected, that the gold, which constituted a part of this present, was sent in the form of dmit (as it is commonly called) ; because the quantity was ascertained by the chamis, which was a measure for dry goods amongst the Greeks ; and not by weight, as in other cases. Moreover, it was said to be unrefined : which, no doubt, meant exactly in the state in which it wa8» and b still, collected, in the African rivers.
The Egyptian force origuial/i/ ^ sent to Xerxes, consisted, like that of Cilicia, entirely of ships, and of which they sent no less than 200 triremes ' ; but the other districts of this Satrapy sent land forces ; having, it may be concluded, no ships to send.
It appears that Xerxes, collecting the naval force of the Mediterranean, from the Hellespont inclusive, to Libya, had a fleet of somewhat more than 1200 triremes; for he wisely fixed the contingencies of the maritime provinces in ships, in order to collect the greatest possible force by sea ; having his choice of land troops from every other quarter of his vast empire
' This wUl preiently be explained.
* The nuurittme force of Egypt was equal to |> of that of aU Phoenicia at this time.
* Besides the Imfmef , there were dOOO vesseb of SO and BO
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES.
It is said, Polym. 96, that amongst the mariners, the Phcenicians (as might have been expected) were the best ; and of the Phoeniciaos, the Sido^ mans were the most seleei K The crews of the ships, c. 184, are said to have consisted generally of 200 (these were triremes); to which were added 30 others, either Persians, Medes, or Sacts (i. e. tScyikians, subject to Persia) \ Thb last descrip- tion of men, may perhaps be considered in the nature of marines ; and it is worthy of remark, that the proportion of them to the rest of the crew, does not differ much from the proportion of marines to our crews in these times. As the Medes and Persians were esteemed the best troops of the empire ; and
wn ; of long transports for cavalry, and of a particular kind of ▼essel, invented by the Cyprians, Polym. 97. Thus the whole fleet consisted of about 4200 vessels. (The reader is requested to correct accordingly, the note m page 167, where 3000 is stated to be the number of the wMe fleet.)
' In Polym. 1 28, it is said, that Xerxes preferred the Sidor nian ships, when he had occasion to make an excursion by sea. This fully proves his opinion of them. The like occurs inc. 100, on occasic^n of the naval and military review at Doriscus. See also, c. 59. The naval review is described in c. 100; the 1200 triremes were moored in one uniform line, at 400 feet from the shore, with their sterns towards the sea, and their crews under arms, as if prepared for battle. Xerxes, sittinn; on the deck of a Sidonian vessel, beneath a golden canopy, passed slowly, the heads of the ships. The crews of the ships of war, alone, amounted to nearly 280,000 men ; and of the whole fleet collectively (4200 ships) near 520,000.
• The ships of Chios, in number 100, had each a crew of 100, in the preceding reign, Erato, 15. Tliis agrees very nearly with the numbers in the contending fleets of the Koinans and Cartha- ginians, in their most improved times of naval warfare.
336
THS TWBNTY 8ATBAPIB8
the Saca, as Scytbians, some of the best archers ; it may be concluded, that some services of a different kind, and requiring more skill in certain modes of combat, were expected from them, than from the crews in general ; and it is not improbable, that this skill might be exerted in the management of missile weapons in distant fight. More of this, when we speak of the Sac€e themselves
The Egyptians wore helmets made of network (like the nations of Asia Minor). Thm shidds were of a convex form, having large bosses ; their spears were calculated for sea service ^ and they had huge battle«axes, besides large swords For defen- sive armour, they had breast-plates. Polym. 89.
The Libyans were Jicssed in skins, and had the points of their wooden speai's hardened in the fire, Polym. 81. These were, in point of weapons, the most contemptibly furnished of any throughout the whole army ; in which were every kind of offensive weapon, from polished steel, to wood hardened in the fire ; with all the intermediate varieties oiji^h
' The whoU crew of the ship was 230, of which SO were Sac€B, &c. Such of our shipt as have crews of S40 men, have 37 marines ; and, according to the same proportion, the Persian ships should have had 35 to 230.
The Author feels a particular cle«^ee of satisfaction in finding the same term, marines, employed by his friend Dr. Gillies, in his excellent History of Greeee. The idea had been recorded by both, without the previous knowledge of the other.
• Spears have been universally used at all times, in sea ser- vice ; to prevent boarding, no doubt. Souie of these mariners had two spears.
* Litdebury tramiutes this, bUlt or biil-hook.
OP DARIUS UYSTASP£S.
337
bone, horn, and stoties ; and of defensive armour^ from coats of mail of burnished steel, formed in scales, like those of fishes (which the Persiaiis wore^ Polym. 61.), to the raw hides of animals.
The Ethiopians (of Africa) were clad in skins of panthers and lions, and had bows of palm wood, four cubits in length. Their arrows were short, and made of reeds, and were pointed with stone * ; (69.) They had also spears, pointed with goats' horn, and knotty clubs. They painted their bodies half red, half white ; and had hair more eritp and curling ihan any other men ; 70. They are said to come from above Egypt ; (69.) and are to be regarded, not as subjects, but as aUies, of Persia ; in common with the Arabians and some few others.
The Arabians were joined in the same command with these Ethiopians; and abrother of Xerxes com- manded them ; Polym. 69. The Arabians were pro- bably Idumeans and Nabatheans ; and not of Arabia Felix. There were of these, cavalry, as well as infantry : the former, who had many camels be- longing to them, were said to place these animals in the rear, that the horses might not be frightened at them*; 87. The dresses of the Arabians were long flowing vests, called zira : their bows were long, flexible, and crooked ; 69.
The Africans are said to have fouc^ht in chariots ; Polym. 86. These were probably from the quarter of Cyrene ; for our Author observes of the Ashysia,
* Said to be stones of the kind used for engraving seals. ' This was an error of long standing, but is now quite ex- ploded.
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338
THE TWENTY^ATRAPIES
(Melpom. 170.) that they are beyond all the Africans remarkable for their use of chariots, drawn by four hones : and in 189, he says, that the Greeks them- selyes borrowed from the Africans the custom of harnessing four horses to a carriage.
It is proper to explain the cause of the appearance of Egyptian land forces at the battle of Flatiea,a£tAt it has been stated, that they sent a nayal force only; and that their spear» were calcuhted for sea ser- vice. It appears, then, CaUiope, 32, that Mardonius had landed at Phalerum (one of the ports of Attica), that part of the Egyptian force^ which had been originally disciplined for land service; and which was drawn from the tribes or classes of Hermoty- hians and Calasirians ; who alone of that country, followed the profession of arms. (See an account of the districts of these tribes, &c. in Euterpe, 164, 165, and 168.) The pilots, or seamen, constituted a distinct class.
It may be inferred from the above, that the pro- portion of seamen was very small indeed, in the ancient ships ; as also that the manceuores, and general duty of the ships of war, were so far from being complicated, that landmen who had got rid of their sea-sickness were very soon, and easily, trained to it The saOs were probably furled on the deck.
We shall now perform our promise respecting the tract lying between Palestine and the borders of Egypt; which is become more particularly interest- ing at this time, when Egypt, and its communica- tions with Syria, occupy so much of the public at- tention.
OP- DARIUS UYSTASFBS.
389
Herodotus observes, Thalia, ^, et seq. that the only aveDue by which Egypt can be entered, from the side of Palestine, is by a dfy and parched de- sert, where very little water can be procured ^ That Cambyses, who meditated the conquest of Egypt, was deterred by this difficuKy, until he obtained per- mission of the king of Arabia to pass through his territories (that is, Idumea, and the desert of Pelu- sium ) ; which seems to have implied also the service of suppljring water for the army, by his means ^. A treaty was accordingly made, and the ceremonies of its ratifications are given ' ; (Thalia, 8.) after which, water was provided in the desert for the Persian army, in its march from Palestine to Pelusium, the frontier garrison of Egypty situated at the emhouehwre of the then eastern branch of the Nile: but this celebrated river has so far deviated from its former course, that Damietta, situated at the branch which
' The aoutheni part of Palbstivb bordering on the desert, is also very sandy; so that water can only be procured from deep wells. See the contests between the Patriarchs and the PhilU- tmes, about the wells, in Genesis, ch« xxi. aodxxTU Bwr SktbOf or the well of Sheba, aod Geiar, were situated on the edge of the desert in question.
* The Arabians were never reduced to the subjection of Persia (or indeed, to any Cox&ga power)^ but were in its alliance ; they aflbrded Cambysee the means of penetrating into Egypt, wi^kout wkkh he could never have acemfUeked Me purpote" Thilaa, 8S.
* It is there said, that Bacchus and Ueania were the only deitieB whom they ▼enerated ; and that they called Baodius, Vratalts Uratmh jililat. The latter must be taken for Allah; die name of God» amongst the Arabs.
z2
340
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
forms the present eastern limit of the Delta , is be- tween 60 and 70 British miles to the westward of Pelusium : and much of the intennediate space is returned to its ancient condition of a desert
Our Author observes, that there were two stones in circulation, respecting the mode of conveying the water ; the one, and which he thought the most pro- bable, was by transporting it on camels, in skins (of camels) ; which is the mode used at the present day, in the caravans. The other, that it was con- ducted in pipes, made of the skins of animab, into reservoirs, at three distinct places. It was added, that the water was brought from a river ( Corys ), which emptied itself into the Red sea, and was 12 journies distant. This was, however, the marvellous part of the story : but perhaps the truth might have been, that water was conducted through pipes into reservoirs, either from small running springs, whose waters were ordinarily absorbed by the sands of the desert (which is the case m many places) ; or from drauhweUa. It appears morally impossible to have supplied a Persian army, and its followers, and beasts of burthen, with water, by means of skins, during the whole march. Arabia could scarcely have supplied skins enough \
• Datnhtta, was the Tawia/A/i of ancient geography; and the Inranchof the Nile that runs hy it, was the Phatmetic ; the fourth in order of the seven hranchcs, in going westward from Pelusiirm, It appears to be the deepest of the modem branches ; and ought to have been deep anciently ; since the fleet of Antigonus was ordered to shelter itself there. Diodorus, lib. xx. c. 4.
' An arrangement, somewhat similar to the former, made by
OF DARIUS UYSTASPES.
^1
If we may judge of the nature of the Idumean and Pelusiac deserte, by those of Syria, Arabia, &c.
Nadir Sliah (Kouli Kan), is related by Abdul Kuereem, trans- lated by Mr. Gladwin ; p. 51, e< scq.
Whilst employed in tlie conquest of Khowarezm, (1740) he informed the governor of Meru-Shahjehan, that, on his return, he should march from Charjoo on the .lihon, by way of Mem and Kelat, to Meshed, his capital ; and gave liini the following in- formation and instructions : " That from the river Jilum (Oxus J to the borders of Meru, being a sandy desert, the army could not march above 1 1 farsangs a day (cosses of two British milea are proba])ly meant ; a farsang is nearer four), so that it would take them up four days * to go from Charjoo to Meni. That, for the first day s march, they would carry sufficient water from the Jihon. That although, at the second stage, there is a large lake called Ab Issar, yet for fear it should not be sufficient for so large an army, the governor should order about 30 Baghleyeh wells to be sunk there. (The well so called, and w hich is used in all sandy aoils, is made by sinking a frame of wood, stuflfed with straw, or grass, to line the inside of the well, and prevent the sand from falling into it.) At the third stage, 18 sudi weQs were to be made. For the fourth day, he was ordered to dig a large reservoir, and to supply it with water, by making a canal three fimiangs in length from the river of Mem. This last stage was 15 farsangs f . Finally, he directed him to make a great number ot water bagt for camels and mules, and to borrom as many more as he could find; which were to be filled at the nm reservoir, and sent onwards five &r8ang9, that the men might be able to allay their thirst on the mardi. The governor of Meru punctuaUy executed these several commands." Not- wifhstanding these precautions, we learn (p. 69.) that many died on the march.
Thus the tyrants of the earth command the labour of man, in order to rivet, more firmly, the chams of his feUows.
* It should be five, by the sequel. Such inaccuracies per* petually occur in the writings of the Orientalists, f More probably COMM.
THE TWENTY 8ATBAPIEB
there should be in tlie inland tract, (althmigh not in the Hue followed by the caravans, which passes very near the sea») both wells and springs ; and it was easy for the army to make a detour for that purpose. From the journals of passengers across the AraUam desert, it appears that the Arabs well know where to obtain water ; and that they have, in many places* stopt np the wells* in order the more easily to ar- range thrir schemes of depredation* But* as it happens, that camels will go several days irithout water, the caravans are content with a very few watering places; and disregard personal inconve- niences. It is a strong presumptive proof of there being water to be had, generally^ in the Arabian desert, that the caravans, if they please, make a direct line of course across it
Herodotus says* Thalia* 5* that the Syrian dty of Jcnyaus is three joumies from mount Casius (of Egypt) ; or rather, perhaps, the distance should be understood to be meant from the lake Serbonis ; to a part of which it is nearly adjacent. Thus, the text allows us to place Jeftysus at no great distance to the SW of Oaxa (and between it and Raphia) ; and to this circumstance of geographical position, others will be found to agree* so as to leave very little doubt that Jenyras was situated <m the Syrian
' The reader is referred to the very curicms oarratiTes of the joumies of EngUah tn^nSkn frm Aleppo to Palmyra, in the years 1678 and 1691, in the FhOosophical Tranaactioiis, toL six. Their guides found both springs and wells. See also the journal of Mr. Eyies Irwin across the Syrian and Arabian deserts : of Mr. Canmchael, in Grose's Voyages, &c.
OF DARIUS HYSTASPES.
d43
edge of the desert ; and that it may be identified with the Kan, or caravanserai, of lones (Kan lanes) y situated at five or six hours' travelling to the SW of Gaza*.
Themodem traveller^ across the desert in question, represent it in the line of the caravan route, from Egypt to Syria, to be formed of loose sand, and destitute of good water ; correspondbg with the
dry and parched desert," of our Author The route leads from Cairo, which is situated near the banks of the Nile, to Salahiah, or Salhia, the eastern frontier of the habitable part of Egypt (anciently Sile) ; and thence^ leaving the dte of Pelusium about three miles to the north, it soon after approaches the sea coast, which it afterwards skirts, the whole way to Gasa, at the distance of a few miles. At, or near, Kan loHes, the country begins again to have ver- dure, trees, and good wster, being the first of those productions that are to be seen after leaving /So-
• With respect to the position of Jenysus, Mr. Beloe is un- questionably right, in his note to Thalia, 5. M. D'Anville was of the same opinion.
» See M. Tlievenot, Delia Valle, &c.
* Salahiah may be regarded the pass, on the side of Egypt towards Syria, as Gaza is on the Syrian side. Therefore, in respect to its use, it stands in the place of the ancient Pelusium, which was reckoned the key of Egypt ; possessing, like Sala- hiah, the first drinkable water, in cominn; from the side of the desert. By the retreat of tlie Nile, westward, Salahiah, although moie to the west than Pelusium, becomes the most advanced watering place towards Syria. The use of establishing a post beie, by the French, lately, is therefore manifest. Geogra-
Digitized by^oogle
THB TWENTY SATRAPIES
The distance appears to be 107 G. miles direct,
from Salahiah to Kan lanes; and this is the extent of the desert : that is, a space equal to 10 ordinary marches of an army, and not, at any rate, to be per- formed in less than seven days, if water could be procnred. This was the interval of time that the caravan, in which M. Thevenot travelled, was in
motion, although they halted two or three days by the way.
The space between mount Casius and Kan Idnes, is about 60 G. miles direct ; but the lake of Sirboriis approaches many miles nearer to Kan Jones, and therefore the three joumies allowed by Herodotus, between Jenyeus and the lake, may be allowed to accord with that, between the lake and lanes; taking a day's journey at 17 G. miles in direct distance. Hence, Kan lonee may well be taken for Jenifsus.
But from Jenysus to Pelmtum, the distance was about 90 sucli miles ; or, Pelusium was 30 miles farther than mount Casius from Jenysus* Herodo- tus b silent concerning this part of the road, as if ihe desert had been confined to the first three days. This must remain unexplained ; but, in the present day, it appears to be one continued desert, from Kan lones to the borders of Egypt ; and the history of the march of Antigonus seems to prove the same state of things then.
phically, it lies about IS G. mfles to the SW of the rite of Pelu- •him : and about the same distance inland from tlie Mediter- ranean.
OF DARIUS UYSTASPB8.
345
Thus, it appears, that in order to pass an army from Syria into Egypt, or vice versa, either the friendship and assistance of the Arabs must be se- cured, or a supply of water must be carried by the army itself; or in ships or boats, to the coast of the desert. Since the time of Cyrus, at least, Egypt and Syria have generally been subject to one master, which has served to ftdlitate the communication be- tween them.
The expedition of Antigonus against Ptolemy, king of Egypt, (B.C. 304), although pretty much de- tailed in Diodorus, (lib. xx. c. 4), ^affords no ex- planations relative to the mode of procuring water.
It appears that he sent his fleet, which consisted of 150 ships of war, and 100 transports, or store ships, from Gaza, under the command of his son De- metrius ; and marched himself at the head of the army, from the same place, for Pelttsium, with a view to surprise Ptolemy. The fleet was directed to ar- range its motions so as to communicate with the army; and the army kept very close to the sea shore, or to that of the lake Sirhonis. It was said to consist of 80,000 foot, 8000 horse, and above eighty elephants.
Antigonus had collected an incredible number of camels from Arabia ; and making use of these, and other beasts of burthen, and a great number of car- riages, he took with him, tlirough tlie desert, provi- sions and forage. The soldiers also carried with them ten days* provisions : but nothmg is said respecting the provision of water ; whether it made a part of the lading of the camels, whether the soldiers took it
346
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
with them, or wheliher tlim was any arrangement
for a supply from the Arabs of the desert, according^ to the method employed by Cambyses. Tlie fleet, either through bad weather or calms, was often se- parated from the army, so that no r^^ar supply could be derived from the ships, although, by the nature of the original disposition, one might conclude that it had been intended.
Nothing, therefore, can he gathered respecting the mode by which Antigonus supplied his vast army with water. Tt is certain that the historian does not record any complaint of the want of it : and it might be, that he was not aware of the difficulty of procur- ing it.
It appears that Ptolemy was well provided for the
reception of Antigonus. He had lined the banks of the river of Pelusium, which was at that season very deep, with fortifications; and had also provided a flotilla in each of the mouths of the Nile, so that the enemy was foiled in every attempt to land from his fieet : and he was finally compelled to retreat with disgrace to Syria
* Herodotus lelates (in Thalia, 6, 7,) a eurious particular oon- oerniug the ditpoaal of ihejan in which wine waa sent to Egypt from Greece and Phoenicia. These jars were collected by the Persians (after the conquest of Egypt by Cambyses) at Men- pliis, and sent, ftdl of Nile water, to the desert, to aid the com- munication across it, when Egypt and Syria were both in dieir hands. This was certainly a very useful arrangement. Diodorus, lib. xix. c. 6, reports, that the Nabatheans of the adjoining de- sert, kept stores of ram water in earthen vessels, concealed m the ground, from whence, as from a grand magazine, they drew fortli sufficient quantities for their ordinary expenditure.
OF DARIUS HYSTA8PES.
IX. We are now compelled to depart from the numerical arrangement of Herodotus for the reasons Stated at the outset, (pAg® 307), and to enter next on his ninth Satrapy, Assyria, 6tc although no more than the seventh in our <^eof^rap/{ teal arrange- ment, his seventh Satrapy heing situated heyond the Caspian sea.
Babtlon, and the other parts of Assthia, con- stituted the ninth Satrapy, and paid 1000 talents of silver, with 500 young eunuchs." Thalia, 92.
This Satrapy is one of the most extensive and rich of any. Assyria, in the idea of Herodotus (and wfaidi is further explained hy Strabo), comprehended not only Assyria proper, by %vhich is to be under- stood the country beyond the Tigris, and of which Nineveh was the capital, but Syria Bxid Mesopo- tamia * likewise, as well as Bahyhma : for our Au- thor says, " Babylon and the rest of the Assyrians and Assyrians and Babylonians are synonymous terms in Clio, 106, 178 ; and Thalia, 155
In efifect, Syru, in the contemplation of our A«* thor, as well as of Strabo, was AmevAer of Assyria, and appears to be only the same name a little abridged, perhaps without the article. In the enu- meration of the army of Xerxes, Polym. 63, speaking of ihe Assyrians, These people the Greeks call Syrians J the Barbarians Assyrians ; mixt with these were the C/uUdeans" And in his description of the
* The term Mesopotamia seems to be of a lat^r date than the time of Herodotus.
* Strabo, as well as others, extend Assyria in like manner. See the xvith book of Strabo, ^ticularly.
346
THB TWENTY 8ATIIAFIE8
regions of Asia, Melpom. 89, no coimtiy is mentioned
between Persia and Phoenicia^ save Assyria and Arabia ; and he adds, that " the whole of this re- gion is occupied by three nations only these, there- fore, we must suppose to be the Aseyriane, Aror hians, and Phoenicians.
However, it is certain that he also uses the term Syria to express, collectively, Syria properly so called^ together with Stria of Palestine, and Phgb- NiciA, as we have already shewn in page 321 ; al- though the two latter are not classed as belonging to the Satrapy of Assi/ria,hui to thaXoi Plujemcia. The Syrians, north of Taurus, or the Leueosyri, have been already spoken of, and are totally dbtinct from these.
This Satrapy, then, extended iu length from the Mediterranean sea, opposite Cyprus to the head of the Persian gulf; and in breadth from Mount Taurus to the Arabian desert, having Cissia (Susiana), Me- dia, and Matiene, on the east; Armenia and Cap- padocia on the north (the former of which seems to have commenced at Mount Masiwt) : Arabia on the south ; and on the west Cilieia, the Meditef" ranean sea, Phoenicia, and Palestine \
According to our Author, Clio, 192, Babylonia was reckoned equal to-^ of Asia, in point of revenue, previous (as we understand it) to the time of Cyrus ;
* Potidehm, which stood on the borders of Cilieia and Syria (Thalia, 91), was nearly opposite to Cypnu. See above, pages 321 and
' The physical geography of this tract has been spoken of in SecUon VIII.
OF DARIUS HYSTA8PSS. 349
and its government was deemed by much the noblest in the empire. It must be conoeiyed that by Baby- Ionia, Assyria in general was meant. Herodotus speaks of its fertility and produce in terms of ad- miration : the Euphrates was the principal agent of this fertility, but he remarks that it does not, like the Egyptian Nile, enrich the country by overflowing its banks, but by the dispersion of its waters by manual labour, or by hydraulic engines ; the country, like £gypt> being intersected by a number of canals; Clio, 193. Itappears evidently, that he had himself visited Babylonia: he speaks of the palm as abound- ing there (as Xenophon after him) ; and was no stranger to the distinction of sexes in these trees; but seems to be mbtaken in certain parts of the (eco- nomy of nature in this matter
He has collected a number of curious particulars respecting Babylon and its province, which would occupy too much room in thb place ; and therefore we refer the reader to the book itself: but as the reader will no doubt be gratified at finding that any custom described by Herodotus exists in the present times, either wholly or in part, we shall not pass over in silence his description of a particular kind of boat seen by him on the rivers of Babylon. These were of a circular form, and composed oi ivillows, covered with skins. They were constructed in Armenia (Upper Mesopotamia), in the parts above Assyria,
• See Clio, 194. He saya that the palm produces bread, n ine, and honey. Xenophon also speaks of the palms of Babylonia much in the same manner.
THE TWENTY SATaAPIBS
and cm their arrival at Babylon, the o^^llcrs having duposed of thdr cargoes, diey also sold all the ma- terials of the boats, save the skins, which they carried
again into Armenia, in order to use them in the con- struction of other boats. But the rapidity of the stream being too great to render their return water practicable, they loaded the skins on the backs
of asses, which were brought in the boats for that purpose. Some of these boats carried 5000 talents. CUo, 194.
The same kind of embarkation is now in use in
the lower parts of the same river, under the name of kufah (that is a round vessel) : but they are most conmionly daubed over with bitumen, skins being very seldom used, being perhaps much scarcer than formerly*. These hifaha are exactly in the form of a sieve^ and require only a few inches depth of * water to float in. The reader will immediately re- coUect the Welch earrieles, and the boats of reeds and willows made in other parts of the world. The ark, that is, the cradle or boat, or both, of Moses, was formed of the bulrush, or reed of the Nile, and daubed over with pitch : that is, we may suppose, hiiumen. Exodus ii. ver. 3.
* My friend, Mr. John Sullivan, in his prc^eu to India by land (tlirough Natolia and Mesopotamia), saw some of the kuiahs covered with skins, in the manner which Herodotus relates.
Although Babylon was situated at the Euphrafex, yet the ca- nals of eommiinication between that river and tlu Tigris, ren- dered matters much the same as if the boats had come all the way with the stream. They could not have descended from Armenia by the Et^kraietf because of the intermptioo of the navigation at the passage of mount Tounu.
13
CF DARIUS HY8TASPB8.
We have reserved our remarks on the descripticMi of the city of Babylon for a separate section, as they are too long for this place \
^ Herodotus intended to give the particulars of the capture of Nineveh by the Medee ; perhqpe a description and history of it likewise ; but it no where appears. See Clio» 106.
He mentions Nineveh, howcvert in several places, particularly in Clio, 102, loa, 178 ; and Euterpe, 150: but without any de- scriptk>n. He s})eaks of its Jirst siege by Cyeucaret; and of the railing of that siege by the Scythians of die Maeods on tiietr irmpdon into Asia, as before related, page 146. Maroover» he caDs it anAtsffrim city, die royal residence of Sardanapalus; and speaks of its capture and destruction by die Medes, after die retreat of tlie Scythians.
Both Diodorus and Strabo attribute its fi>undadon to Nurus, long of Assyria. The former, lib. ii. c 1, describes its form and dimensions to be an oUong figure, 150 stadia by 90, the longest side being parallel to and at die bank of the Euphraiet (Tigris is meant). He also speaks of its destruction by the Medes.
Slrabo (p. 737) says, that it was larger than Babylon, wbkA die above dimensions shew : and that it was totally in ruins.
From these nodces, die first city of Nineveh should have been destroyed in die seventh century before Christ*. Its situation Is weU known to be at the eastern side of the Tigris, opposite the city of Month Strabo places it in the country of Atwria; and Dion Cassius says, lib. Ixviil, diat Attyria is the same with AiSffrh, die Barbarians having changed the s into U Certain it is that both of the names A*tur and Nineveh are now found in that country ; and the latter is pointedly applied to the site op- posite Mosul ; where, according to travellers of the highest au- thority (Niebuhr amongst the rest), traces of the remains of a
* This was previous to the capdvity of the tribe of Judah. Tobias lived to hear of ito destruction : (Tobit, at the end.)
SSSi THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
One institution at Babylon we cannot forbear men- tioning, for the good sense of it. Such as are dis- eased they carry into some public square : they have no professors of medicine, but the passengers in ge- neral interrogate the sick person concerning his ma- lady; that if any person has either been afflicted with a sinular disease himself, or seen its operation on another, he may communicate the process, &c. No one may pass by the afflicted person in silence, or without inquiry into the nature of his complaint.'* Clio, 197.
In the army of Xerxes (Pol3rm. 63) the Assyrian
forces had brazen hehnets of a strange form, and difficult to describe. Tlieir shields, spears, and dag- gen, were like those of the Egyptians : they had also large clubs pointed with iron, and linen cuirasses *,
With these, whom the Greeks call Syrians, the Bar- barians Assyrians, were mixed the Clwldeam : all
city are lound ; such as mounds of rartli, and heaps which in- dicate the rubbish of buihliniis, as at Babylon.
It appears remarkable that Xenophon, whose fifth encamp- ment from the Zabatus, must have been near to or on its site ; and Alexander, who passed so near it in his way to the field of Gaugamela( Arbela ) ; should neither of them have taken any notice of its ruins: the former especially, who notes the remains of two cities ('^arma and MespylaJ in his way towards the site of Nineveh from the Zabatus.
According to Tacitus, there was a city named Nineveh in this quarter, perhaps on the same site, in the reign of the Emperor Claudius.
* Perhaps vetti quilted with cotton, or some such subetanoe, to resist the ordinary cut of a sabre — ^war jackets.— These are worn at present by the soldiery in the service of the petty princes of India.
uiyui-n-u Ly GoOgle
OF DARIUS UYSTASPES. 353
were commanded by one general. It may be re- marked^ that the Assyrians were far behind the Per- rians and Susians both in dress and weapons.
VIII. " The eighth Satrapy (here we return again to our Author's progressive number,) fur- nished 300 talents, and consisted of Stua, and the rest of the CissioM/' Thalia, 91. -
This division answers to the modern Kkuzistan; and was situated between Babylonia, Media, Persia^ and the gulf of that name. Next to the Lydian Satrapy it is the smallest of the whole ; but as it contained the then capital of the empire, Susa and possessed a rich alluvial soil, and valuable products, (and perhaps, as at the present day, rich manufac- tures also*) it was enabled to pay so considerable a proportion of tribute ^ Aristagoras makes use of this remarkable saying, when lie spoke to Cleomenes, king of Sparta, concerning Susa, called also the royal city and residence of Memnon % " Sma, where the Persian monarch occasionally resides, and where his treasures are deposited — make yourselves masters
* It is well known that the Persian monarchs had more tli.m one capital. Ecbatana, from the coolness of its situation, (see the note, page £35.) was the sumioer capital ; Susa and Babylon ■eem to have been their winter residences. Peraepolis was also a distinguished place of residence. In the time of Herodotus, Susa was the capital.
^ See the description of this country, and of its cities, in Otter, VoL ii. p. 49, ti teq.
* The foundation of Susa is by some referred to Memnon, by others to Ttihoms. Herodotus always calls it the city of Memnon*
YOL. I. A a
354.
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
of this city, and you may vie in affluence with Jupiter himself." Terp. 49.
There were of the CUgians, or Sugiam, both cavalry and in&ntry, in the army of Xerxes ; Polym. 62 and 86. Their armour, arms, and aocontre^ ments^ appear to have been like those of the Per- sians, only that they wore mitres instead of tiane ; and from circumstances in general, they appear to have been a rich, and a civilised people.
It was in this country of Cissia, or Susiana, that the Eretrians of the Island of Euhcea, (who were taken during the first invasion of Greece, by the Persians, during the reign of Darius Hystaspes,) were placed, after having been first passed into the small Island of jEgilea, Erato, 101, 107. After the memorable battle of Marathon, such of the £re< trians as had not contrived to escape, about 400 in number, including 10 women, were carried to Snsa, by Datis and Artaphernes, as (it would appear) the principal trophy obtained in the expedition. Darius, much to his honour (as Herodotus admits that the Eretrians were the first aggressors), took compas- sion on them, and appointed them a residence at Ardericca, in the district of Cissia ; one of the royal stations, situated at the dbtance of 210 stadia from Susa. It cannot be recognized in the geography ; but if, by the circumstance of its being a royal sta- tion, is meant that it was one of those between Sardis and Susa % it should lie to the westward of the latter.
* See an account of these stations in Teq>. 52, and also in section Xlli.
OF DAHIUS HYSTASPE8. 355
Herodotus says that they remained there to his time, and preserved their ancient language. Erato, 119.
These Eretrians are agaio heard of, in the life of Apollonhis of Tyaaa, by PhtloBtratus. On a ^sit to the king of Parthia, Arsaccs Bardanus, at Ctesiphon, he is said to have petitioned the king in favour of the Eretrians carried away by Darius Hystaspes, and that the king promised redress. This visit bemg made 50 years after our era, would necessarily have been 540 after their captivity.
The Bceotiam ( Thebans ) carried away by Xeixes, Polym. 2dd« were pkoed in the country of Assyria, at Celona (now Ohilanee), near the ascent of the pass of mount Zagros, This is collected from Diodorus, lib. xrii. c. 11. Alexander saw them at Celonse in his way from Susa and Sittaoene» to Ecbatana, after his return from India. Diodorus says, that they had not altogether forgot their lan- guage, laws, or customs, although they had learnt the language of the natives ; doubtless, by inter- marrying with them. This was no more than 150 years, or thereabouts, after their removal from Greece. Polybius speaks of the district of Chalo- nitis at the ascent of Zagros, in lib. v. c 5 ; and both the pass and Ghilanee are well known, from the travels of Thevenot, Otter, and Abdulkurreem. The pass in question leads from the country of Irak into Al Jebal, or Kurdistan.
Certain persons amongst the Jews, who were car- ried into captivity by the Babylonians, were after- wards removed from Babylon to the province of Susiana. Daniel was one of them. One of his
A a 2
d56
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
visions was in the [>alace of SusJiant or SusOf ch. viii. It is worthy of remark, that the practice of the Per- nan> Median, and Babylonian kings, of referring their dreams to the soothsayers, as we find it repeat- edly ill the book of Daniel, is also spoken of by Hero- dotus as a system \ In Polym. 19, the Magi (who appear to be the magicians of Daniel, ch. iv. ver. 7.)* deliver their opinions concerning the meaning of Xerxes' dream, respecting the invasion of Greece ; and the interpretation was made known to the na* tional assembly of the Pernans* In like manner, the extraordinary dream of Mundane, the mother of Cyrus, and her father's dream respecting her, were referred to the Magi, who are said to be " the usual interpreters,'*^ Clio, 107, 108. Agam in c. 110, their opinions are resorted to, on occasion of the disposal of Cyrus. And in a variety of other cases.
The practice of removing tribes of people from one country to another, to accomplish pohtical pur- poses, has prevailed in all ages. Perhaps there can hardly be devised a more cruel act of tyranny, when attended with compulsion ; since every human crea- ture has an attachment to its native soil and atmo-
' We have a pleasure in rcniarkin<T, tliat there are a number of coincidences, between the liistorical facts in the Old Testa- ment, and in our Author ; if we make such allowances, as, firom the experience of our own times, are requisite, on the score of misapprehension, and misinformation. Such, amongst other fiicts, are the story of Sexachxrib king of Assyria, and the mice (Euterpe, 141.), which is a different reading of that in 2 Kings xix. and 2 Chron. xxxiii. ; the battle of Magdolum (£ut. 159.), instead of Megiddo, 2 Chron. xxv. in which the king of Jttdah wai oooquered by Ihe king of £gypt.
OF DARIUS HYSTASPB8.
357
sphere ; however bad they may be, in the estimation of those^ who, from observation, are enabled to judge of their qualities. In modern times, Tamerlane and Nadir Shah practised it with great rigour; and, considering how numerous the instances are, in all ages, one ought not to be surprised at finding dia- lects of languages in situations very remote from their original seats.
X. *' The 10th Satrapy furnished 450 talents; and consisted of Echatana, the rest of Media, tiie Parycmii, and the OrthocarybatOeB.'* Thalia, 92,
It is well known that there were two countries of the name of IMkdia, at the time of the Macedonian conquest, and that they were called the greater and leaser. The greater answers to the modem division of Al Jebal, or Irak Ajanii ,* the lesser to AderU* gian, which was called by tlic Greeks Atro2)atia, perhaps meaning to imitate the former ^. We con- clude that Herodotus intended by Media, the greater Media only ; because he classes Matiene, which lay between the two, as distinct from Media ; and because also, that Aderbigian appears to form a part of the Suspires and Caspians, which are also classed distinct from Media.
Ecbatana, which will naturally be understood to mean the country that lay around that capital, will then form the northern part of the Satrapy in ques- tion. The Orthacorybantet may be taken for the people of Carbiana, now Currimabad, the southern
* The ninth only, in this series.
* See above, page StSS, note.
ggg THK TWENTY 8ATRAPIES
part of Media, towards Suriana ; and by the Pary- eanii, we conclude are meant the Pareiacani, the people of the eastern province of Media, which ex*
tended from Per sis to the Caspian straits
Media magna, or Media proper, occupies the midland and elevated tract, between the approzimat- ing parts of the Caspian sea, and the Persian g^lf ; having the low lands of Snsiana on the south, and the hollow semicircular tract, which embraces the south part of the Caspian sea, (and which contains the provinces that maj with propriety be termed Caspian,) on the opponte side- It formed also the central part of the great Persian emphie, of that day ; and was, from climate, verdure, and richness of soil, the most beautiful of its provinces. In the descriptions of modem travellers and geographers. Media is more commonly reckoned the icestern part of Persia ; it being in reality its most western province; mount Zagro* forming the common boundary between Persia and Turkey. Ispahan, the present capital, is situated in the south-^ast corner of the division of ancient Media.
Thus, occupying the space between the two seas, on the north and south, and forming a kind of pass between the cultivated parts of Eastern and Western Asia, Media, no less from its geographical position, than from its fertiUty and temperature, was one of the most important and interesting tracts in Asia. Media may be deemed i^. cradle of what was
* The Paretaenem were one of Uie tribes of Media ; in C]i<s 101. Pliny says, that the Prat'Uce^ or AimM, kept posMSSuni of the Caspian atrait. Lib. vi. c. 15.
OF DARIU8 H78TA8PBS.
359
afterwards denominated the Persiam power; for it
produced not only a hardy race of men, but also a numerous breed of the finest horses, from whence was formed the best cavalry of Asia ; which were in fact. Median, although the superior fortune of Persia communicated its name to those, in common with the empire at large. It is also well known » that the Medes held the soyereignty of Asia, previous to the Persians. The horses in question were those bred in the Niscean pastures ; and which were so much famed for size, and for beauty and swiftness, in almost every ancient historian and geographer. These pastures are recognized in the beautiful country above mount Zagros, between Ghilanee and Kermanshah
The Medes had both cavalry and infantry in the army of Xerxes ; and they were armed and clothed like the Persians. Herodotus indeed says, that the military dress of the Persians was, properly speak-
■ See the Travels of M. Otter, Vol. L p. 178, 9t jcg. ; Vd. il. p. 11. el teq.
Niueut was a district ia Media, remarkable fi>r producing horses of an extraordinary siae. JLenatM* ehariot was drawn by
tiiem — and the sacred horses in the procesoon were NiMBon; Polyin. 40. Alexander gave a Nisaean faoTie tO Caioflttf, tO carry hiui to the funeral pile. The king of Parthta aacrifioed one to the snn^ when ApoUonius of Tyana visited his court,
Manist'iHs rode ;i Nis;can horse at the decisive battle of Pl-AMA. The Nisc-can pastures are si>oken of in Diodorus, lib. C* 11. ; and in Arrian, lih. vii.
Ghilanee has been already mentioned, as the Celona of Dio- dorus, where the Boeotians were placed by Xerxes. See above, page 355.
THB TWENTY 8ATRAPIE8
ing. Median, and not Persian; Polym. 61, 62*. With the Greeks of his time, Median was applied generally to the united empire of Medes and Per- sianSj as having from habit been applied to the power which held the sovereignty of Asia. This appears throughout his work. He says moreover, that in ancient times the Medes were universally named Arii (Polym. 62.); which agrees with Strabo; for by him, it appears, as if the whole tract between Assyria and India, had originally been called Abma, by the Greeks.
Media boasted of the splendid city of Ecbatana, the summer capital of the Persian monarchs, now Hamadan Also that of Rages, perhaps of equal antiquity ; afterwards revived under the modern
* This ascendancy of the Median fittbions, in so important an article as tihe military habit, serves to shew, that, although the fortune of Persia, under Cyrus, had risen superior to that of the Medes, yet that the latter were for more advanced in the arts.
* The city of Eehutana was unquestionably on or near the site of Hamaian, in Al Jehal, A great number of authorities concur in proving this, althougli many refer it to Taunt, of Tebriz, in Aderbigian ; Mr. Gibbon, and Sir W. Jones, amongst the rest. The authorities are too numerous to be adduced liere ; we shall only mention that Isidore of Charax places it on the road from Seleuda to Parthia ; that Pliny says, that Susa is equidistant firom Seleucia and Ecbatana ; and that the capital of Atropatia ( Jderbigian J is midway between Artaxata and Ecbo' iana. And finally, that it lay in the road from Nineveh to Rages, or jRey. (Tobit, ch. v. aiul vi.)
For the account of the foundation, as well as the description, of Ecbatana, the reader is referred to Herodotus, Clio, 98; Polybius, lib. x. Ex. k; Diodorus, lib. ii. c. 1.; and to the book of Judith, ch. i. ver. 2,
uiyui-n-u Ly GoOgle
OF DARIUS UYSTASPES.
361
name of Rey, by the Mahomedans ; and wWcli was one of the largest and finest cities of the £ast» but b now a mass of ruins ^ This province is more- over famous for being the place of captivity of the
ten tribes, or rather that part of them which was carried away by the Assyrians of Nineveh ^.
* The nuDi of Iho cities of the name of Rey are notioed hy tn^ellen, in the plain, at about 50 miles to the west of the Cas- pian strait ; which was the position of Eaget. For Rages, see Tobit, tbroQghout; Strabo, BM, 5^5; and Polybius, lib. x. Ex. 4.
* See section XV.
SECTION XIL
THB 8ATRAPIS8 OONTINOED.
Caspian and Hyrcanian proomcet! and Dahestan — Bern made ^ Bamboo— Eaatern Jrmema and Maiiene — Colduans mf iubjected to irtbuU, bnt present gratuUiee — attend Xerxee a» auxiiiariee — CaucaaiUy the Umit of the Pertian power eoniaine
an 'infinite mmber of lahguagee-^yfeatem Armenia peopled by Phrygians — Mines of gold, silver, lead, copper, and iron, m Mount Taurus — FaUies of Sophene and Diarbekir — Tribee along the nmtk-^oit eoa^ of the Enxtne^^htlybeB and Mo- syncecians Mardi, or Anthropophagi— Persia Proper; He Me§ emane^ted from tr^ute by CTEUS—Pasagardse and Persepolis — Artsci, a name of the Persians — Oermanians, or Carmanians — Sagartii taken for a tribe from Zagatai — Saran- gaeans the Euergetac of Cyrus and the Greeks — Utians^ or Uxians — The Persians — the flower of the army q/" Xerxes — Islands of the Persian i^nlf; their various ttses — Parthians, Cliorasniiaiis, Sofjjdians, and Arians — Bactrians — Saca?, distin- guishcd warriors ; conquered by Cyrus — Ethiopians o/'Asia — Indians — vast tribute levied on them ; and in gold — Herodotus knew few particulars of India, and misrejyrescnted the natives of it — I'indieation of their characters ; as well from ancient ^U' thors as from the conduct of Alexander — The Ganges not knojvn to Herodotus — his Padaei, the same with the Gan<iarida! of others — Calanus, the friend and companion o/ Alexander — Death of Calanus, on a funeral pile — Indian widow burns hcr» self with the body of her husband, in the camp of Eunwnes — Aggregate sum of the tribute — Proportions of gold to silver — Tiie southern nations recruited from Caucasus, /rom remote
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES OF DARIUS UYSTASPES. S6S
times — Population of Egypt'-' General ohserrations — Cause of the assemblage of so many nations by Xerxes —entire conquest of Europe intended — Rendezvous of the fa ( and army qf Xerxes — Our Autltor's history favourable to liberty.
XI. " The Caspians, the Pausica, the PantinuUhi, and the Darit^e, contribnted amongst tfaem 200 ta- , lents, and formed the 11th Satrapy.'' Thalia, 92 ^
Of these, we find only the Caspians in tlie army of Xerxes; in which they formed one entire and dis- tinct command : and there were of them both ca- falry and mfimtry ; Polym. 67 and 36. The mfentry wore vests of skins, had bows made of reeds (ham- boos it may be conceived), and scymetars. In effect, they resembled the Bactrians and Arians, their neighbours ; 86 : and there was a general resemblance in the armour of the Baetrians, Caspians, Par' thians, Char asm ians, Sogc/ians, Gardarians, and Dadic€B : see Polym. 64, 65, 66, 86 ; so that all the nations situated to the east and north of Media had so many points of resemblance to each other, as to shew that they had a common origin ; that is, doubt- less from ScYTHiA : and this is shewn also from many passages in Strabo and Pliny.
It may be observed, that dthough the Hyrcanians appear in the list of the army with dresses like the Persians, Polym. 62 ; they are not classed in any Satrapy ; and on the contrary, the Daritie,&ud other nations that are classed in the same Satrapy with the Caspians, do not appear in the army. It is poa-
* The tenth only in tlm arrangemeou
364
THE TWEimr SATRAPIBS
sible, however, that the Darit^ may be meant for
the DahcCy of whom we have spoken so fully under the head of Scythia, and who effected a settlement in Dahestm at the south-east part of the Caspian Bea> between Hyrcania.and the ancient course of the river Oxus. See p. 293, et seq.
There are found in Strabo and Ptolemy some no- tices respecting the Pasicte and Asjxisiacce, who ap- pear to be the Pauticm of our Author. (See Strabo, p. 513 ; Ptolemy, Asia, Tab. vii.) They are placed near to, or bordering on the Chorasmians ; whence, of course, the Caspian Satrapy should border north- eastward on Chorasmia. On the other hand, the na- tion of the Caspians inhabited the shore of the sea of that name, (and which they appear to luu e com- municated to it, in that quarter at least), from the mouth of the riyer Cyrus, southward ; Pliny, yi. 13. Strabo, p. 514, places them nearly in the same ntua* tion ; and Ptolemy between the mouths of the Cyrus and Araxes ; which rivers, in ancient times, gained the sea by separate channels. We may therefore conceive the Caspians to have possessed the eastern part of Aderbigian, with the province of Ghilan, &c. The name, however, was obsolete before the time of Strabo.
Thus, then, the 11th Satrapy seems to have ex- tended at least from the mouth of the Cyrus to that
of the Od't/Sy occupying the semicircular tract, which embraces the south part of the Caspian sea, and which is shut up on the inland side by a great ridge of mountains, forming a most romantic and beautiful
OF DARIUS HYSTAS?£S.
365
amphitheatre, described by modern travellers, and also slightly mentioDed by Quintus Curtius ^ So that this Satrapy constitutes one vast natural division of country, and that of the most fertile and pro- ductive kind, being the modern provinces of Ghilan, Mazanderan (or Taheristan ), Korkan, Dahestan, &c. known in ancient geography by the names of Gela, Maxere, Tapuri, Hyreama, and the country of the Dah^e.
In effect, then, Ilyrcan'ta should have been in- cluded in this division, althougli omitted in the state- ment of Herodotus, since it falls geographically be- tween the Caspians and the Pausicae ; which latter bordered, as we have seen, on Chorasmia, and marked the north-eastern extremity of the Satrapy. The Pantimathi may likewise be included, and may re- present one or more of the provinces above enu- merated.
XVlil. " The 18th Satrapy was taxed at 200 ta- lents, and was composed of the Maiieni, the Sas- pires, and Alarodians," Thalia, 94
The position of Mafiene is well known. It was, properly speaking, tlie north-west part of Media major, lying above the ascent of Mount Zagros, and between Ecbatanaand the lake of Maraga, In Terpsichore, 49; Aristagoras describes it as lying be- tween Armenia and Cissia : and in 52, the G yndes is described to flow from it, in its course to the Ti- gris. According to our idea, although it borders on
' See Delia Valle, Vol. iii. ; Olearius's Travels, lib. vii. ; Hanway*t, vol. i. ; and Quintut Curtius, lib* vi. e. 4. * Tbe elerentfa only in this arrangement.
366
7HB TWBMTT 8ATRAP1B8
the SE of Armenia, yet it does not extend near so
far to tbe south as the province of Cissia, or Sth nana ^
For the Satpires, or StupkioHS, we htm the fol- lowing authorities : bnt it is proper to obsenre^ that
although this nation has different names in different places, as Saspires, Saspines, Sapimans, and Sa^ pirian$, yet they are all doubtless meant for the same people, as they are every one of them connected geographically with the Alarodians,
" Beyond tlie Persians, to the north, are the Medes; and next to them are the Saspiriams, Contiguous to these, and where the PhoM empties itself into the northern sea, are the Cakkiaw" &c. Mel- pom. 37.
Again, " the Saspirians separate Media from Coiekie;" CUo, 104: and in 110, speaUng of the mountains that lay to the north of Ecbatana, (near the Euxine, it is said, but this must be a mistake),
this part of Media towards the Saspikes, is high and mountainous, and abounds with forests ; the rest of the country is a spacious plain* And again, Melp. 40, ** To the east, beyond Persia, Media, the Sapimans, and Colchians," &c.
As the mountainous tract just alluded to is clearly the province of MaHene, so the Saepiree (or what- soever may be their proper name) must occupy the space iu tlie line between Matiene and Colchis ; and
* More will be said resjjecting Matiene in the remarks on the road from Sardis to Susa, in Section XIII. ; which see. The Matiene of Cappadocia has already been discriminated in tbe acooimt of the third Satrapy, pages 269 and S16.
13
OF DAaiUS UYSTASP£S.
regard being had to the position of the Caspians' country, to that of the Caucasian provinces, of the Moschi, and of Armemat all of which lay beyond it, the Saspira must hare extended through the space between the western bank of the river CyrM« and the mountains of Armenia; the Araxes and its branches passing through it to the point, where it deaoends into the plain of Mcgam, a part of the country of the Caspians,
The Saspires then, should have occupied in mo- dern geography, the eastern part of Armenia,
The Aiarodims, or third division of this Satrapy, we cannot find any authority for placing ; but may suppose their country to be parts of Iberia and At' hania, bordering on the Colchians and Saspires: for the Alarodes and Saspires were joined in one command, and both were dressed like the Colehians; implying neighbourhood and connection. Polym. 79.
The Colchians themselves, as well as their neigh- bours, the Caucasian nations, were not classed as belonging to any Satnq^y, but imposed a tribute on themselves, in like manner as the Arabians and some other nations ; Thalia, 97 : and to this moun- tain of Caucasus only, according to our Author, " the Persian authority extends* Northward of it, their name inspires no regard." The Colchians, howerer, attended the army of Xerxes as auxiliaries, together with the Mares. These we can only take for one of the tribes of Caucasus ; auxiliaries also : iat of these tribes there were, as in the present times, a great number'.
* The incredible number of tiibet and hmgnages in sad about
SiSS THE TWExNTV SATRAPIES
Concerning the J/r/Z/^wmw troops we have already spoken^ as well as of the confusion arising between the different countries of that name. The troops spoken of in Polym* 72, evidently belonged to the Matiene of Cappadocia.
XIII. " From the 1 3th Satrapy ^ 400 talents were levied. This comprehended Pactyica, the Armc' mam, with the emUigwma nations, as far as the Euxher Thalia, 93.
In the description of Xerxes' army, the Arme* niam are said to be a colony of Phrygians ; they vrere armed like them, and were subject to the same commander; Polym. 73. We hear of Paetyans also, Polym. 67 ; but they were armed like the Utii, Myci, and Paricanii, who were situated towards the southern sea, and were quite unlike the people of the quarter towards the Euxine and Caucasus. More- over, the Sagartii, who were said to be of Persian descent, and appear to have been seated on the borders of Persia proper, were habited somewhat between the Persians and Paetyans ; Polym. 85* We should therefore take these Paetyans to be the Bactearis, seated in the mountains on the west of
Mount Caucasus is spoken of as well by the ancients as the mo- derns. See Mr. Tooke's Russia, vol. ii. ; and the Memoir of the Map of the Countries between the Buxine and the Caspian, pub- lished in 1788. This remarkable tract, which forms an istimuu between the nations of the north and of the touihf seems to have retained a specimen of each pasting tribe« from the date of the earliest migration.
The MareSf or Mariamf might be intended for the Mavdi of the 19th Satrapy, adjoining to the one in question,
* The ISth only in this arrangement.
OF DARIUS UYSTASP£S.
369
Ispahan ; and the Pactyans of Armenia must be a different people ; and are quite unknown to us. When our Author extends this Satrapy to the
Euxine, he appears to contradict himself. For the nations along the Euxine, from the Syrians of Cap" padocia to the Colckians, and which are shut up on the land aide by the Armenian mountains, are all allotted to the XlXth Satrapy ; as will presently appear. And the Colchians themselves, who are not included in any Satrapy, occupy the remainder of the coast bordering on Armenia ; so that no part of this Satrapy can possibly touch on the Euxine.
The Armenia of Herodotus (in Terpsichore, 52,) extended westward to the Euphrates in the quarter towards Cilicia, and southward to Mount Maaius in Mesopotamia; as may be inferred firom the same chapter. Northwards it included the sources of the Euphrates ; Clio, 180 ; and from the position given to the Saspires, it should be confined on the east by the mountains which separate the course of the Araxes from the eastern sources of the Euphrates ; amongst which is Mount Ararat. Thus the Armenia of our Author has very circumscribed limits com- pared with the geography of more modem times ; which adds to it the valley traversed by the Araxes, which Herodotus assigns to the Saspires.
From the moderate amount of the sum collected in thb Satrapy, there is little reason to suppose that any considerable proportion of it arose from the pro- duce of tlie mines, that are wrought with so much profit at the present day. The mines alluded to are those situated in the two branches of Mount Taurus,
YOh» I. B b
370
THE iVVLNTV SATRAPIES
that inclose the valley of Sophene, through which the Euphrates passes in its way from Armenia to Syria'. These are two in number, Kebban and Argana ; and a third, Arablnr, is ntuated on the western, or Cappadocian, side of the Euphrates.
Kebban, or Alaxlen Kebban (MAden signifies mine), is situated in the very heart of the northern ridge of Taurus (apparently that intended by ^ii/i- Taurus), and impends over the Euphrates, which has here forced itself a passage tlirough the ridge, leaving a vast chasm". The bed of the river is here about 200 yards in breadth, and very deep. The Aroana mine is at the front of the southern branch of the same mountains, overlooking the great valley of Diarbekir, through which runs the Tigris ^ These
' Now called the valley oC Kdrpoot, from a fortress and town within it. It lies opposite to the valley of Malatia (anciently Jiftlitcna J, of which it is, in fact, a continuation; the Euphrates alone separating the two vallics.
' The two great branches of the Euphrates from Erzcroum and Bayaz 'id form a junction at no great distance above Kebban. It is below this place» and in its passage through Tomtus^ that the Euphrates forms the rapids which interrupt the navigation to and from Syria.
• This is a more extensive valley than that of Sophene, from whence it is divided by the principal ridge of Taurus. North- wards it is bounded by Mount Niphates, the continuation of the last ridge ; southwards by Manutf its southern branch. These unite, and shut up the valley on the east. Within it the numerous heads of the Tigris are collected into one stream, which, forcing its way through Mount Manu8> forms the steep cliffs^ which compelled the ten thousand to quit the bank of tlie river in their ascent from the plains of Babylon.
The valley of Diarbekir is about 1 40 British miles in length, and very wide, fonning a great oval, and may not improperly be
OF DAKIUS HY8TA6PB8.
871
two mines are about 70 road miles asunder ; and are rapectively 50 and 120 from the city of Diarbekir, to theNW. AiUBKiRis about 20 to the N of Keb- ban, or 140 from Diarbekir.
The two former of these were visited by Mr. J. Sullivan in his way through Lower Asia^ in 1781 ; and by M. Otter, in 1789. Mr. SulUvan reports, that ihey were rich in gold and siher, and also produced lead and iron. M. Sestini, who accompanied him, says, that the mine of Argana yielded copper also ; and by the different accounts, taken together, Ar- gana seems to have been the most productive. Mr. Sullivan was told that the mine of Arabkir had a richer vein of gold than the others.
M. Otter, although he stopt at Arabkir, does not mention the mine ; which seems to shew that it was little regarded at that time. He says that the works at Argana had very much declined ; and those at Kebban, still more. Gold and silver are the only metals spoken of by him.
Dr. Howel was at Argana and Kebban in 1788. He says of the former, that the only metals found there are silver and iron \ He is silent respecting Kebban.
It may be observed, that Sestini mentions copper
named die koXUm Metopotaiiimiu It is to be niMedl, diat aldioii^ aonie of the ancients reckoned it to Armenia, it is in reality in- closed between the Euphrates and Tigris.
* Chalyheit or mcftkien in iron, are spoken of amongst the people conquered by Croesus in Cappadocia. Xenophoo, Anab. lib. V. found them at the shore of the Euxine, in Pontus : and here they are found midway between the two seas.
Bb2
672
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
at Argana ; and no copper is spoken of elsewhere. Since that time, however, the Armenian mines have produced vast abundance of excellent copper, which has been dispersed in all directions, and threatens a revolution in the trade of this valuable article. From Diarbckir the water carriage is continuous to the gulf of Persia, either by means of boats or rafts : but there is no water carriage in any other direction. The Mediterranean is about ten journies distant, by caravans ; the Euxine rather less.
XIX. " The Moschi, Tibareni, Maertmes, Mo- 9ynaeif and Mardians, provided 300 talents, and were the 19th Satrapy." Thalia, 94
Xenophon, in his way westward, passed succes- sively through the territories of the Macrones % the Mosynoedans, Chalybians, and Tibarenians, between the rivers Phasis and Thermodon : and the Moschi were said to be situated between the heads of the Phasis and the river Cyrus. Hence, t)ie I9th Sa- trapy of our Author must have extended along the SE coast of the Euxine sea, and was confined on the inland, or southern side, by the lofty chain of Arme- nian mountains. On the cast it was bounded by the heads, of the Phasis and Cyrus, and on the west by the Thermodon. The Tibareni appear to have bor- dered on the east of the Thermodon, and the Mosy- noeci, Macrones, and Mosclii, to follow in succession, eastward^. Hence, it may clearly be perceived,
* The 13 til in the order here pkMed.
* The Macrones were afterwards caUed ^SSmun. Strabo^ p. 548.
* Herodotus, Euterpe, 34, says that the Maertmes are neigh"
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OF DARIUS UVSTASPES.
m
that no part of the Armenian Satrapy could extend to the Euxine. (See above, p. 369.)
This Satrapy b one of the smallest ; for the Ar- menian mountains, which rise very suddenly from the nortli, and form the elevated level from whence the Euphrates, the Araxes, and the Cyrus spring, are at no great distance from the sea ; as may be seen more particularly by the instructive and entertaining Tra* vels of M. Tournefort. The Satrapy is therefore a narrow stripe, or border of land, forming an inter- mediate level, between the high country of Armenia and the Euxine 8ea> but containing some very hardy and warlike tribes ; as the Ten Thousand experienced in their troublesome land march from the borders of Colchis to Cotyara, It is every where intersected by small rivers, the neighbourhood of the mountains to the sea preventing the waters from collecting into . larger streams.
The Mardi, of this Satrapy cannot be recognized unless they may be the Mares, or Marians, who were joined in the same command with the Col» chians ; in Polym. 79. It may be remarked that there are several tribes of this name : one in parti- cular in the country adjacent to the SW of the Cas- pian sea; another in the south of Media; and a third near Bactria, (Pliny, vi. 16.) apparently in Gaur, They were all mountaineers, hardy and war- like : and those at the Caspian occasioned much trouble to Alexander. Perhaps Mardi might de-
hours to the Syrians of Cappadocia. But this sliould rather be said of the Tibarcm, whom Xenophou found near the river Ther- inodon«
uiyii.^ocUDy Google
874
THE TWENTY SATRAPIES
sign such kind of mountaineers in general ; and the Mardi who are joined with the Colchians might have been the mountaineen adjacent to them *•
The Moscki and Tibarem (in Polym. 78.) fonned one command, the Alacrones and Mosynwci an- other : however, it may be seen, that the two former were situated at the opposite extremes of the pro- vince ; and it b therefore more probable that the Mosynceci and Moschi should change places in the text. iVll these tribes, save the Mardi (if the Mares may be taken for them), were equipped alike : that is, they had helmets of vrood, small bucklers, and short spears with long iron points. They lived in a country abounding with iron ; for Xenophon found amongst the Mos3aioeciaDs, and subject to them, a tribe named Cludybians, " These (he says) are few in number, and the greatest part of them subsist by tlie manufacture of iron Anab. lib. v. Iron ore seems to be spread throughout the whole tract along the Euphrates, in Cappadocia, Pontus, and Western Armenia.
The city and colony of Trebizonde was situated within this Satrapy : and hence the geography of it was well known to the Greeks. So that when Xeno- phon gives the names of Maspncfcimt, Macrtmes,
* The reader is referred to M. D'AnviUe's^ji<ijPiM<^ Giogrof phique de Vlnde^ pngo 9G, el m^. for some cunoiu observadom respecting tJie term Mardi-coura, taken to be equivalent to can* nibalf or man-^ter; in India. M. D'AnviUe quotes Photius, who aaya as much : and also M. Thevenot, who says that certain people near Baroacb, in Guzerat, were formerly named Mardi' coura, or man-eaten. See his Indian Travels, chapter iv.
OP DARIUS HY8TA8PB8. ZTTJ 375
ChahjheSy &c. in his retreat, it appears that their names, at least, were not new to him on his arrival amongst them ; although such au idea might arise, unless regard is had to these passages in Herodotus.
XIV. The 14th Satrapy ' consisted of the Sm- gatians \ the SarangfeanSy the Thamanccamy Vtians, and Mencians % with those who inhabit the islands of iki^ Red sea, where the king sends those whom he banishes : these jointly contributed 600 ta- lents." Thalia, 93.
Although the Saranga;ajis, by which must be un- derstood the people of Zarang, or Sigistan, and the people of the blands of the Red sea (that is, of the Persian gulf^), were included in this Satrapy, yet it is not to be supposed that the whole intermediate country, or even any great proportion of it, was in- cluded. For the country of Persia proper u out of the question, since it enjoyed the privilege of exempt tion from the arrangement, which is the subject of this inquiry. ** They were not compelled to pay any
* Hero we return again to the progreerive nmneratioa of our Author ; and also oonmienoe the examination of Ae eatUm di- vision of the empbe ; supposing it to be divided by a line drawn from the Caspian sea to the head of the Persian gulf ; when ilfetfia would form the central province. This division, although mnch the largest, contains seven Satrapies only.
' Litdebury translates SagartUau; i. S07. If he is right, these should be the Sagartii, hereafter mentioned.
' Littlebury has this variation : Jfeei fiir Mend: and which seem to be the Myci hereafter mentioned with the Vtu,
' No otlier islands could be meant ; because none but ikeae could contain a population sufficient to form a body of troops equal to a cominandery.
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specific taxes, but presented a regular gratuity;*
Thalia, 97. It may be conceived that this privilege was extended to all the tribes of Persia proper, which are enumerated by the historian^ on occasion of their emancipation by Ctrus, Clio, 125; namely, the ArtenttVy Persre, Pasargad^B, Marapkit, and Mas- ptans, who are the principal ones ; and the Pan- thiala Deruaus, and Germanians, w ho follow la- borious employments; tbe Dai, Mardi^ Dropid, and Sagartians, wbo were feeders of cattle. Of all these, the Panarf^adre were the most considerable.
Here the name of Pasaboad^ is represented to exist before the time of Cyrus, and also to belong to a populous tribe. History, moreover, represents that Cyrus founded a city of the name of Pasar- gada, or Pasagarda (for it is written both ways), on occasion of a great victory which he obtained on that spot; and which appears to hare established him in his new empire. It must of course be in- ferred, that this city was founded in the province of Pasargada ; and as the Persian term gherd signi- fies a district or province (as Daralhgkerdt which signifies the king's province), it may be supposed tlmt the gar da or gada is the same with gherd ; and then Pasa, or Pasar, will represent the name itself ; and Pasa, or Fasa, is actually the name of a town and district of some consideration, in Persia proper, at this day \
' Littlcbury has these variations, Meraphii, Masians, and
J'anthclians.
' Strabo says (p. 730, 731), that " Cyrus respected Pasat' gacUe, because this was the place where he gained his decisive
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The Per9€B appear also, as one of the principal tribes ; and the city of Persepolis, although omitted by Herodotus, is spoken of by most of the succeeding writers ; but not we believe till after the Macedonian conquest This we should regard as the capital of the Perste, Some have supposed, that PersepoUs amd Pasagarda were names for the same place ; but we are strongly of opinion, from the authorities, that they were distinct places (although the discussion would be too long for this place) ; and conclude that Chelminar was the an- .dent PersepolU ; and that Pasagarda was situated more to the south-east ; perhaps at Pasa, or Fasa. At the same time, it is but fair to acknowledge, that we do not know of there being any remains of anti- quity, cither at Fasa, or any other place, save those of Eftakar, which is known to have been a Maho- medan foundation, not far from Chelminar; and those of Nakshi Rustum (in the same neighbour- hood) ; which, however, are regarded as sepulchres only, ezcaTated from the front of a perpendicular rock, or cliff. But it may possibly be, that the re- mains of Pasagarda3 are not known to Europeans ; for we should bear in mind, that the ruins of Gour, in Bengal, were unknown to the English and other Europeans, until they had been settled ihere a very long time ; and until the year 1764 ^
victory over Astyages the Median, and wliicli gave him the empire of Asia ; and that lie built a city^ and a palace for him- self, in corameiTiorationof the victory \ but removed ail the trea- sure in Persia to Susa.** ' In a future work on the geography of Persia, it is intended
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Herodotus observes tbat the Persians originally called themselves, and were called by their neigh- bours^ Artcei ; Polym. 61. These might be the same with the ArteaUe just mentioned ; and their country may be expressed by the Artaeene of Pto- lemy, and the Ardistan of modern geography ; a province situated to the N£ of Ispahan. The Maraphi may be the same with the Marrasium of Ptolemy, situated to the N£ of Persepolis ^. The Maspians (or Masiani), the remaining principal tribe, we cannot place.
Of the inferior tribes, we agree with others in believing, that the Gemtaniang are intended for the people of that part of Carmania, bordering on Persia, and which was by the ancients sometimes confounded
to give the authorities at large, for the positions of these places* PertepoUs was, no doubt, a name given by the Greeks, to denote the capital of the Persian empire ; and, according to the ex- pression of Justin, lib. i. c. 6, it should have existed before the revolt of the Persians from the Modes, in the time of Cyrus. What Strabo says resjiectinjr Persepolis and Pasagardic, in pages 729, 730, proves most clearly that he believed them to he dis- tinct places ; and. it is equally certain, that the description of the sepulchre of Cyrus, both in Strabo and Arrian, does not suit either those of Chelminar, or Nakshi Ruslum. For it was in a garden, in the midst of a thick grov e of trees, and rose like a tower from the ground. It was also of small dimensions ; for its l)asis was composed of a sinirle stune. (Sec Strabo, p. 7^0 ; and Arrian, lib. vii. at the end.) Now the sepulchres at Nakshi Rustum are (as we have said) excavated from the // on/ of a steep high rock, or cliff, and could not be surromuled by a grove ; and those at Chelminar have a very broad base, more like a pyramid than a tower. So that there is no one point of resem- blance.
' Asia, Tab. v.
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with it. The Dai, a pastoral people, of Persia, were very probably a tribe of Dahce, as these were much scattered about ; and even appear to have served in the army of £umene8^ as soldiers of fortune. The Mardi were a trihe of monntaineers, lying between Media and Persia, on whom Alexander warred, at hb first coming into Persia % and before his expedi- tion to the Caspian provinces, where he met with another trib6 of the same name \ The Sagartians, a pastoral people, are also mentioned in the army of Xerxes ; Polym. 85 ; and formed a body of 8000 cavalry. Herodotus says, that originally they were of Persian descent, and used the Perlrian language ; and that their dress was between Persian and Pac" tyan. They are marked by a very singular mode of attack ; that is, by throwing out a noose of leather, or hide, by which they endeavoured to entangle the enemy, or their horses. Their weapons were dag^ gets only ; with which, having entangled their enemy, they easily put him to death. Could we trace out such a modern custom in Asia, it might lead to a discovery of the descendants of the Sa^ gartii. The same mode prevails amongst the native tribes in some parts of South America. It savours very much of undviliased life ; and as the Sagartii are said to have been a pastoral people, they were probably much on a par with the Tartar tribes, dispersed at present over Persia, at large. If the term Zagatai was so ancient, and one could sup* pose a mistake in the report of the origin of the
* Strabo, p. 5^4
* See abovci page 373.
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Sagariii, one might suspect that Zagati were
meant. This tribe is at present dispersed over the north-eastern quarter of Persia ; they are of Scy- thian, or Tartar, origb, and were long settled in Sogdia, which at one time took the name of Za^ gatai \ As to the other tribes of Panthialie, De- rusice, and Dropici, we can find no traces of them.
If it be admitted that all tlie tribes of proper Persia, mentioned on occasion of the revolt of Craus, were exempted firom tribute ; which means also, that they were not classed in any Satrapy : it will be re- quired that we should include, in the same exemp- tion with Persia, a part of Carmania, and the pro- vinces of Lar and Siijan ; in which case, the 14th Satrapy, a tract that supplied 600 talents annually, must be looked for elsewhere.
From the extent, fertility, and general riches of the province of the Sarangteam, (the people of Zarang, or Sigistan %) it might be expected that
' Some have supposed that Zagatai, the lecond son of JiNOBis Kan gave hit name to the country of Mamwr'-cl-Nakr i but it appears more probable that he reeHved his name Jfum it
His portion of the empire of Jioghis extended from Baik to Oigur.
• The present name, Sigistan^ ?eems to be derived from Sacastana, as it is found in Isidore of Charax; and which last is doubtless derived Irom the Saccc ; \\ lio, according to tlic same authority, possessed the province in question. This, of course, was subsequent to the Macedonian conquest. It should be re- membered, that ISacce was, amongst the Persians, a genera] term for Scythians.
Isidore places Sacastana to the south of Bactria and Paropa- misus. (See Hudson's Min. Geog. vol. ii.)
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this alone furnished a considerable proportion of the 600 talents, since so confined a country as Susiana paid 300 For Sigistan^ as we have said before, page 258, is a rich aUuvial tracts situated inland; it being a vast hollow, surrounded by hills and mountains ; so that its rivers have, from time imme- morial, deposited in it the earth brought from the surrounding country, and formed a rich soil like that of Egypt and Bengal. And although the rivers ter- minate finally in a lake, yet much more of their de- positions must remain on the land, than if, like the Nile and Ganges, they disembogued their waters into the sea.
The Sarangceans in Xerxes* army, Polym. 67, " had beautiful habits of different and splendid colours ; buskins reaching to their knees, bows and javelines, like the Modes." Some of these particulars characterize a civilized, rich, and industrious people. In effect, they were the Euergetce of the Greeks, whose bounty to Cyrus, proved the fertility and wealth of the country, as well as the generous dis- positions of the natives of it.
Diodorus thus relates the transaction ; lib. xvii. c. 8. " Cyrus, during a certain expedition which he had undertaken, was brought into great extre- mity, in a barren country, through the want of pro- visions. The Energctcc (before named Arimaspi ') brought to his army 30,000 carriages laden with provisions. Cyrus being thus unexpectedly relieved,
* Sigistan is much more than douhle the area of Suaiana. ' Arrian and Curtius call them Agriaspa; VUny, ArgeUB; Ptolemy has Ariatpae,
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not only declared them free of tribute fbr tbe fiitnre, but bestowed on them other privileges, and changed their former name into Euergeta'
It is not known on what particular occasion this cflieomstanoe happened ; but it appears, from the Persian histories, that during the time of Rusti m, who is supposed to be the general of Cyrus, the Empire of Persia was attacked by the king of Tur- kestan (that is, by the Scythians on the NE fron- tier). This seems to have given occasion to the establishment of the capital of Persia, at Balk ( Bactria ) ; and of Rustum^ in the fief of Sigistan^ or Zarang \ It also appears, from Herodotus, that Cyrus undertook in person, an expedition against the Scythians and other nations in tlie east ; and more particularly the Sacts and Bactrians *, in which he was completdy successful; at least, in respect of its final termination. But nevertheless he might have encountered many difhcuities in the execution of the enterprize.
Zarang lies midway between Persia and the Sacse ; and is separated from the former by a very eitensive desert, which is noted in the journals of our early travellers, between Kandahar and Ispahan. It might possibly have been in crossing thb desert, that Cyrus'
• Or ratlior, \vc may presnme, sorae name which had die same meaning in l\\v Persian lan^naije.
' Memorials of Kustum still existed in Sirristan, at the end of tlie 1 4tli ct iitury. In partienlar, a remarkable Dam or Dtjkc, denominated from him ; and which, the historian of Tamerlane relates, was destroyed by his army. (Shercfeddin, lib. ii. c. 15.)
* More of this subject will be found under the head of iHaca*
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army was distressed for provisions, and where the supply from the Zarangseans so opportunely came. There are, indeed, extensive deserts also beyond Zarang, in the way to Sogdia, and the Jaxartes ; but they are too fiur removed from Zarang, to render it probable that the relief was sent thither.
The Thamameatu we cannot place. In Thalia, 117, they are mentioned with the Saramgmana, CkoTiumians, Parthians, and Hyrcaniana, as inhabiting the hills around the great plain, through which the river Aces flows ; and concerning which - we have given our opuaion in page 257. There is, probably, some confusion between the Hindmend, the river of Sigistan, and that of Ochus, in Aria ; since the above nations are not so situated, as to encircle any plain of the kind there mentioned. But, it 18 probable, that the Thamanflsans may nevertheless have joined to the Sarangseans, although we cannot assign them their place.
If the Saiigatians be not the Sagartii\ we labour under the same difficulty respecting them ; and no less with regard to the Utians and Men^ ciansy (or Afecianfi).
The Utiiy ^ff/cf, and Paricanii, were armed like the Pactyes ; Polym. 68 ; and were commanded by a son of Darius. It has appeared that the dress of the Sagartii partook of the Pactyan also ; whence the latter should have been a people of some note ; and doubtless neighbours to those who imitated
* The Sangatiant^ as we have seen, are called Sagartiam by Liulebury.
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them. In page 368, we have taken them for the Bactearis, a people inhabiting the mountains, op- posite to, and on the SW of Ispahan : and we there- finre are led to consider the UHi as the Uxians, which adjoined to the BaeiearU on the SW, and are famous in the march of Alexander, from Babylon towards Susa ^. The Paricanii (of Media) taken, in page 358, to be the Faredom of Pliny, who held the Caspian Struts, are situated in the eastern quarter of Media ; and were so far connected with the Utii and Myci, as to use similar weapons, and to be joined in the same command with them. These, then, were of course neighbours to the Uxians, as well as to the Sagariti, who, as we have just seen, imitated tlie dress of the Pact yes ; whom the Uxians copied, in point of weapons. Thus it appears not improbable, that the Utii, or Uiians, may be the Uxians : and the Mffei may be, from the above connection, neighbours to them \
In effect, then, the 14th Satrapy must be regarded as comprising Sigistan, together with such parts of the country between it and the Persian Gulf, as were not exempted from tribute by Darius. We conceive Carma7iia, in general, to belong to this Satrapy, as well as the country of Lar, bordering on the Gulf of Persia; with several lesser tracts towards Media and Susiana. The islands of the gulf also, which are many in number, although none of them are of
* The Bactearis are no less distinguished in the warfare of Nadir Shah, in Persia.
' Phny places the Maci near mount Caucasus of Uactriana ; lib. vi. c.
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great extent, save Kishmah, were specifically in- cluded : and as they sent a body • of troops equal to a whole oommand, Polym. 80; no other than the Persian Gulf could be intended by the Red sea, in this place ; for the islands of the ocean are too few, too inconsiderable^ and too remote, to answer to the de- scription. Butour Author appears not to have known that the sea formed a gulf in that part, as we have shewn in page 260. On the whole, it must be ad- mitted that the 14th Satrapy is very ill defined ; Si- gistan^ and these islands, being almost the only parts that can he depended on. But we cannot help re* garding the circumstance of the islands, as affording a kind of proof, that a considerable part of the oppo- site continent belonged to the same division : since the islands and Sigistan mark the two extremities on the NE and SW; as Ujcia and Cannania on theNW and SE».
' There is much curious history belonging to these islands, which are scattered throughout the whole length of the Persian Gulf ; and are, in general, nearest to the Persian shore. In ef- fect they have, at times, contained the ooromercial establishments of the Fheemdans, and also of the European nations. But what' it more gratifying to the mind is, that they have, in modern times, afibided aaylmns to the inhabitants of tlie maritime towns on the continent, when invaded or oppressed ; and so regular has this system of taking refuge been, Uiat some of the islands have their names from the opposite towns on the continent. In par- ticnlar, the inhabitants of the continental Orwm (or HmmnuJ, passed over into the island of that name (the Organa of Near- dras), on the irmption of the Tartars, in the IStfa century. None can feel the hnportanoe of mtular situations, to the cause of liberty, more than Ekolishxbn, especially at this time. The
▼OL. I. c c
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Herodotus places the Persians at the head of the list, in Xerxes' army : (Polym. 61.) and says that they surpassed all the rest, not only in magnificence but in valour; 83. They appear to have enjoyed indulgences beyond the rest of the army; and may, perhaps^ not inaptly, be compared, in respect of the rest* with the Europeans in a Bntish army in India, composed chiefiy of Sepoys, or native troops. Thejr had with them carriages for the women, and a vast number of attendants : as also camels and beasts of burthen to carry their provisions ; besides those for the common occasions of the army With respect to their dress, this was also in a superior style : they wore small helmets which they called tiarce ; their bodies were covered with tunics of different colours^; having sleeves ; and adorned with plates of steel in imitation of the scales of fishes : their thighs wei^ defended, and they carried a kind of shield called Gerra, beneath which was a quiver. They had short spears, large bows and arrows, made of reeds ; and on their right side a dagger, suspended from a belt Polym. 61. And, in 83, he says, that their armour was remarkable for the quantity of gold which adorned it. They were commanded by Otaaes, the father-in-law of Xerxes.
Tartars had no fleets to pursue the fugitives to the islands ; hut the king of Persia, who possessed shipsi made use of the islands as places of banishment.
* The Greek auxiliaries, in the army of the jmmgBst Cyrus, appear to have had much the same privileges ; and approadi still nearer, in this respect, to the European troops, that form a part of the armies employed by the European states in India.
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That body of Persian infantry^ called the ImmoT" Ms, consisted of 10,000 ; dotiied and armed like the rest \
XVI. " Three hundred talents were levied from the Partkian8,Ckoras7ttians, Sogdians, mdArians; who constituted the 16th Satrapy V Thalia, 93.
All these nations, (as well as the Oandarii op Gardarii^, who formed a part of the 7th Satrapy) appeared generally in the same arms and clothings as the BaetrioHS *, Polym. 04, 05, 66 : that is, they had bows made of reeds (Baimbaos), and short spears. Their head-dress was the same with that of the Persians and Medes^ that is, small helmets, which they call Tiarm 61. So that, as has- been remarked in page 363, all the nations situated to the east and north of Media, and of which tract, the continuation of Taurus and Caucasus seems to form the southern boundary, have so many pomts of vesemblanoe to each other, as to shew that they had a common origin ; that is, doubtless, from Scythia.
The provinces above enumerated in this Satrapy, are all contiguous, and form one of the largest of those divisions^ Little explanation is necessary to Ae geography of it : and the* principal difficulty
* ScePolynu SS. for the reaaon of their bemg to named. ' The ISth in the order here given.
' CaDcd Qandttni in the Satrapy, bat Gar^iatu hi the list of the army.
* The Aru^ altfaoogfa mduded m the aame Satrapy, or govern- nent, with the other prorinoea beyond the continuation of Com* ciam, had hem like the Medea ; that is, large and long ; hat wereodietwtae like the Baetriam, to iHioee eovntry they joined.
CO 2
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arises from the defect of information^ respecting the extent of the 7th Satrapy, which was surrounded on three sides, by the one under discussion, as if ex-
tr acted from it. There can be no doubt, that by Sogdia, is meant the country of JSoghd, or Samar- cand, situated between the Oxus and Jaxartes ; ex- cluding Kotlan, Sagamian, and Kilan, as parts of the Sacan, or Badrian, Satrapies. Ckorasmia must be taken for Kliowarezm, at large : and Aria for Herat; which is sometimes written without the aspirate, at this time.
As to Partkia, the subject is not so clear, because its limits were perpetually vurying, from the date of the dynasty of the Arsacidce, who first extinguished the power of the Seleucida in the East ; and then gradually erected the celebrated and powerful em- pire, tliat bore the name of Parthian.
By the Parthia of Herodotus must undoubtedly be meant their original country, previous to its ex- tension by conquest. Many of the latter geo- graphers and historians formed their ideas of it, after its extension ; and therefore do not agree amongst themselves.
We have extracted, in a note', the prmcipal
* Justin says, that the Parthians were Scythian exiles, who possessed themselves of places between Hiircania^ the Dahttf jirii, Spartans, (read Aparytts from Herodotus, Thalia, 91.) and Margianians i lib. xli. c. 1. Strabo (511) places Parthia between MargiaiM and Atm : and, in 514, says, that being ori- ginally of no gfeat extent, it was increased, in after times, by the addition of Comtfene, CAor«fie, and other districts (formerly bekmging to Media), as fiur as the Caspian gttes. In 509, he
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autliorities for the position of the original seats of the Parthians, after they settled in Iran, or Persia; and these appear to have been placed between Cho- rasmia, Margiana, Aria, and the Caspian provinces : that is, they possessed the hilly tract on the north of Nahabour. To this they must afterwards have added Kumis (the Camisene of Ptolemy, CamUene of Strabo), as it was called Parthia in the time of Alexander, who crossed it in the line between Ma* umdercm and Bactria : and Hecatompfflos, sup- posed to be near the site of Damgan, was the capital ^ Parthia, visited by Alexander. So that Parthia may be supposed to have included the province of Naisabour likewise, as it lay between their first possessions and Kumis : and Parthia at large ex* tended from the Caspian strait to Ckarasmia ; and from the mountains that conlliic tlic Caspian pro- vinces to Aria and Margiana. But the present question is, what were the possessions of the Par« thians, of the days of Herodotus ? We conceive the answer is to be collected from the words of Strabb and J ustin : and that the original Parthia of Hero- dotus was nothing more than the mountainous tract between Hyreania, Margiana, Aria, and the desert otChorasmia.
says that the river Ochut flows near Parthia : this it the river that passes by Nesa and Bamerd, Pliny, vi. 25, places Parthia between Media and Aria ; Carmemm and Hyrcama : and as he extends Hyrcama eastward to Margianot it is certain that Atf Parthia agrees with that of Ptolemy. See his Asia, Tab. Moreover, he says, that Hecatompylos^ the capital of Parthia, lies in the middle part of it, and is only 133 MP. beyond the Caspian gates : lib. vi. c. 25 and 1^.
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The Parthians and Chorasmians were joined in pne command^ a presumptive proof of coDtiguity, or at least of vicinity : the Arii and Sogdu formed separate commands. Polym. 65, 66.
VII. " The seventh Satrapy was coinposed of the SatgagydiB ^ , the Gandarii, the Dadic€B, and Apofyia, who together paid 170 talents ^"
Tt has been ssid above, that this Satrapy was surrounded on three sides by the 16th; for it ap- pears to liave been composed of Margiana and some adjacent districts : and that it was bounded on the south by Afia ; west, by Partiim ; north, by Cko^ rasmia and Sogdia ; and on the east by Bactriana, which formed tlie 12th Satrapy. The name of Margiana was not known to Herodotus ; and was probably bestowed by the Ghreeks, from die river Margus (or rather Mairg^ ), which flowed through it. However, the particulars of this division are by jao means clearly made out ; and we shall assign our reasons for the above arrangement.
In Isidore of Charax, there are found Oadar and Apahartica, between Nisee, taken for Naisahour ; and Antiochia of Margiana, taken for Meru : and these we regard as the seats of the Oandarii and AparyttB of our Author ; more especially as the for- mer are called Gardarii in another place ; that is, in Polym. 66.
Again, Isidore mentions Siroc and Sqfri, as places between Gadar and Apahartica: and these are
• SatlagydianSf in Littlebury, vol. L SOS.
' This is the 16th divisioiit according to our amngement.
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recognised in the well known city of Seraks, and in the village of /tf/eri/ places about midway between Naitabomr and Meru: wlulst Qattdmr, or Qadar, appears yet more Mtisfactorily in Caemdar^ a place of importance in the same quarter ; as we learn from the history of Jinghis Kan. To these notices may be added, that in Pliny, vi. c. 16, the Gamdarii m mentioned with the Choratmii, Atituim, and SarangfB, Now, Caendar lies on the frontiers of Khowarezm, and has a place of some note near it, named Te^en, or Tedzen, which may perhaps be intended by Attasm
The Dadiem being joined in one command with the Gaiidarii or Gardarii (for they seem to mean the same people), in i^olym* 66, were probably their naghbours^ although we eannot find out their ntnap tion. They wore, moreover, the same armour with the BactrianSy Chorastnians, and Sogdiatis ; by whom we may conceive they were surrounded.
No name like the Saigag^dm (or SaUagyda, as Litilebnry calls them, voL L 306), can be found : and the Isatichte, or people of Yezd, the only one in which any resemblance can be traced, were in the province of Persia proper, or on its borders : too fer removed to answer the description.
From these scanty notices, it can only be supposed that the seventh Satrapy of Herodotus was made up of the provmce of Margiana, and some tracts ad- joining to it on the west : and that it had for its boundaries on the souths tiie ridge of mountains
* Kondor in Abulteda's Chorasan,
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that separates it from Aria : on the west, the coun- tries of Baverd, TooJt, &c. the original seats of the Parihians ; on the north, the desert towards the Oxus ; and on the east, Btteiria. In efSect, that it was surrounded on three sides by the 16th Satrapy, and on the fourth by the 12th Satrapy.
XII. " The 12th Satrapy ' produced a60 talents, and was composed of the whole country, from the Bactrians to Mglos Thaha, 92.
The Bactrians are said, Polym. 64, to have most resembled the Medes, in the covering of their heads ; and to have used bows made of reeda (ham* boos ), and short spears. There were Bactrian ca- valry, as well as iujantnj ; Thalia, 86.
No -rule is given by which we can form an idea of the extent of thb Satrapy ; unless the modem pro- vince of Balk and its dependencies, are taken for the country of the Bactrians at large. There is indeed, Httle question but that the present city of Balk, is the Baetra or Bactria of the ancients ; but whether the modem province- may answer to the ancient one, cannot be known. It seems proba- ble, however, that as Bactiar * signified the east, Bactriana might contain all the tract, classed by the Oriental geographers, as belonging to the pro- vince of Balk ; which literally comprises the eastern extremity of the modern empire of Persia
• The 17th, in our arrangement.
^ JEglans ; Littlebiiry, Vol. i. p. 306.
' D'Herbelot, article Bakhler,
' liactra or Bactria, was a place of banishment, in tlie time of Darius Hystaspes ; perhaps as being the most rcmoU province
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But ^glos is an unknown position, and may lie either towards India, or Aria ; or towards the Sa^ rangtBy or the Sacce. It is unlikely that Bactria included any of the Indian provinces, on the west of the Indus ; since India was a verf extensive Sa« trapy, and yet did not extend very far into India proper ; bo that nothing can be spared on the Per- sian side. Kandahar, therefore, as well as Kabul, was no doubt a part of the Indian Satrapy ; whose revenue so much surpassed any of the others. Again, JSaranga (Sigistan), Aria, Margiana, Sogdia, are appropriated : and there is reason to conclude that Koilan, Saganian, Vaehgherd, &c. situated on the north of the Oxus, were in the hands of the Sacae, whose country, together with that of the Caepii (or rather Casii), formed a separate Sa- trapy; for Alexander's expedition amongst the Sac€e seems to have been into Koihm and Saga-' nian.
The mountainous and extensive province of Gaur, which lies on the SW of Balk ; and between ii, the Indian provinces, Saranga, and Aria; was most probably classed with Bactria ; but however strong the probabUityj there is no kind of certainty re- specting it. (But whether or not, we do not con- sider Ms as the Mglos intended by our Author.)
from Susa. The lonians were threatened witli captivity in Bactra ; Erato, 9: and Ilorodotus says, *' The Barccan cap- tives were carried to Darius, who assigned them for their resi- dence, a p()rti(Jii of land in the Bactrian district, to which they gave tlie name of Barce . this has within my time contained a great number of inhabitanto." Melpomene, 204.
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Whether Herodotus had this country in contempla- tioQ at all, is a great doubt, as his descriptions are more and mate defiaeot, and dark, as he admces eastward ftom ike centre of Per»iu. Pliny, how- ever, seems evidently to have intended Qaur by the country of the Mardi, (vi. 16.) which, he says, ex- tended to Mactria. It has already been observed, that the term Mardi was always applied to savage mountaineers; and no country is better suited to this description than Gaur ; which is environed by craggy and lofty mountains ; and is, in a degree, sequestered from the surrounding countries by tfab barrier \
According to our Author's context, one might conclude that the countries of Bactriana, and ^glas, formed the opposite extremes of this Sar trapy. Bactriana, then, taken as above, for the Balk province, may be conceived to form the western quarter of this Satrapy ; and by the same rule, we ought to look for udbglos in the eastern quarter. Now the most remote eastern province of Balk is Kit, OH, or Kilan ; may not this be the Kilos, Ek 'Uos, or JEglos of our Author ?
XV, " The 8ac(E and Caspii formed the 15th Satrapy ; and provided 250 talents." Thalia, 98 ^
As the subject of the Saca has been already dis- cussed, at large, in the account of Eastern Scythia ; and that tribe of them subject to Persia, placed in the eastern quarter of Sogdiana, between the upper
• See above, page 373.
' Tlie 18th, in this arrangement.
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parts of the rivers Oxiis and Jaxartes ; it nill be iinnecessary to say more in this place, . concermng th«r ge^grapM^ ptmtian, than that they po8- aesoed the countries of Kailan and Saganiem, which
were adjacent to Bactriana, Sogdia, and mount Imaus.
The Sac€P, Polym. 64, were joined in Ae same eoinniand with ^e Bactriana^ their neig^hboufi;
Bactria amongst the SaoB,** says our Author, in Calliope, 113. They were not only a very warlike tribe, but must have been very powerful also ; since it ia aaid of Cjtvm, after the reduction of Ljfdia, that he held the Iomians in trifling estimation, compared with what he expected in his views upon Babt/lon, and the Bactriam ; and was prepared also for mare terumareMtanee from the Sahans and Egyptians; wherefore he resolved to take the command in these expeditions, himself, and to entrust one of his officers with the conduct of the Ionian war Clio, 153. It is probable, theiefcNre, that the SaosB were at this time making inroads on the eastern frontier of Persia, and had established themselves in the coun- tries just mentioned ; and probably in Bactriana also^
It appears also, Clio, 177, that Cyrus pursued his conquests in the east, previous to the reduction of
Babylon ; it being no doubt of more importance to check theapirit, and the progress of the Scythians,
* In after times, as we have seen, tliey had a principal share in overthrowing the Macedonian empire in Bactriana (Strabo, 511) ; and made extensive oonquesU in ^f-menia aUo.
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than' to undertake new conquests in Baliylonia ;
from whence his kingdom might receive no annoy- ance in the mean time. It is said then, that whilst Harpagos was engaged in the conquest of Lower Asia, (that is. Ana Minor, &c.) Cyrus himself conchicted an army against the upper regions ; of every part of vvliich he became master The par- ticulars of his victories I shall omit (says the histo* rian) ; expatiating only upon those which are more memorahle in themselves ; and which Cyrus found the most dilficult to accomplish. When he had re- duced the whole of the continent, he commenced his march against the Assyrians Clio, 177.
It may he supposed then, that the Sac^e^ as well as the Bactrians and other adjoining nations, were conquered in the course of this expedition ; and that, from the expression of the historian, with less diffi- culty than Cyrus had expected. By the arrangement of the Satrapies, the Saca? must have been in the condition of subjects, at the accession of Darius Hystaspes ; (see also, Polymnia, 9). So that, from circumstances, they could only have been reduced by Cyrus ; and Sogdia must have been in the posses- sion of Cyrus, at the date of liis expedition against the Mcutsageta, which cost him his life ; as well from the history of the expedition itself, as from the arrangement of the Satrapies ; and also from the strong circumstance of his having founded a city at
' By die upper regiont may be understood the eastenif or
towards the sun-rising.
* The conquest of Egypt was left to Cambyses.
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the passage of the Jaxartes ; which city, (CyropoUs or Cffresckata,) was particularly regarded by Alex- ander
It was also during his Sacan expedition, either outward or homeward, that the people of Sigistan, or SiOrang, gaye such material aid to the army o£ Cyrus, as to obtiun the title of Euergeta, See above, page 381.
It may be remarked, that Justin either was not informed of, or thought unworthy of notice, this conquest of the Sacss ; unless he includes them in the Scythians generally. He says, lib. i. c. 8, that " Cyrus having reduced Asia, and the East in ge- neral, carried war into Hcythia meaning, cer- tainly, the country assigned by Herodotus to the Ma98aget€B.
The Sacae were a very distinguished nation in the army of Xerxes, both by sea and laiuV. It has been remarked, that there were detachments of them, together with Persians and Medes (who were reckoned the best troops) on board the ships of war, apparently in the nature of marines ; Polym. 96. The preference given to the Saca, was probably for their superior skill in archery; the Scythians in
* According to Justin, lib. xii. c. 4-, Cyrus built three cidea near the Tanais (JaxnrtetJ, Arrian also speaks of the city of CyropoUs, founded by Cyrus, and which Alexander took pos- session of; Hb. iv.
* Mardonius chose the Saca, Mede$t Bactrums, and Indians, amongst the troops that were to form his army in Thessaly. Urania, 113.
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general being celebrated on the score of archery The use of such a missile weapon as an arrow id » 8efr-6ght» in skilful hands, must have been of great advantage ; especially as the Greeks neglected the use of it ; for it is remarked that, at the battle of MartUhon the Athenians were destitute both of archers and eavabry; £rato« 112. Xenophonr found a vast difficulty, early in the retreat, through the want of cavalry and of people who threw missile weapons ; and which being easily removed, by embo- dying the Rhodian slingen, the army was saved. Anab. lib. iiL
The Sac€B rendered the greatest services to the Persians in the battle of Marathon, Erato, 113 ; and at the battle of Plataea, as cavalry, Calliope, 71. They had helmets terminating in a poitU, and wore breeches ; which article of dress seems to have been peculiar to them amongst all this army, and may have been an additional reason for employing them on ship-board ; where such a dress would have ita conveniencD They were armed with ftofor, gers, and a hatchet called sagaris.
* We are told tliat the Medes learnt from Scythian ma-sters to improve in their management of tlie bow ; Clio, 73. Her- cules also is fabled to have loanit that art from the Scythians, who were great hunters. The Saca^ were distinguished (no doubt from their superior dexterity as archers) at Maraikom, and Plataa, See Calliope, 61 and 72.
The Athenians are said to have had at one period Scythians amongst their troops. Beliiariiis had Massagetse in the African anny. (^roooptus.)
' Aristagoras remarks, Terp. 49, in order to sink the military
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Concerning this last weapon, authors are not agreed. It appears that it was in use, not only with tiie Saem, hat with the Persians also ; and yet it seems to have been regarded as a singnlar kind of weapon. In the Anabasis, lib. iv. a Persian prisoner, belonging to the army of Teribazos, in Armenia, had a Persian bow and quiver, together with a mgarU ; whieh Spdman translates an Amamonkm haUle'axe. Suidas doubts whether it was of the sword, or of the hatchet kind ; but Montfaucon calls it a battle-axe with two edges. littlebury translates it, hM: and it is eertain, that in Thibet and Bootan, there is a large sword of the hill-Jiooh form, which the Author has himself seen ; and Thibet is a part of the same region with SakUa, the proper country of the Saea in question
The Caspii or Caspians, joined with the Sactp, may with more probability be the Casiam, or people of Casta, in Ptolemy; that is, Kashgur ; which country borders on ^at of the SaoB, or Sakita. The Caspian sea is quite out of the question ; for the Massagetaj lay between the Saca? and the {Aral, regarded as a part of the) Caspian ; and moreover
diaracter of the Persians, in comparison with the Greeksy thaty they go to battle " aimed only with a bow and short spear ; that their robes were long ; that they auflfered their hair to grow ; and would afford an easy oonqvest.*'
* Weapons of the kind here spoken of, appear to have been in use in several countries ; perhsps, beeause they answer the purpose of a hatchet to cut wood, as well as a weapon of war : and it might have been contrived to answer bodi purposes, without any great sacrifice of the qualities proper to either. In the Toxaris of Luoiaa, a wound is inflicted with a hooked sword.
13
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the Caspians have been already placed, in the 11th Satrapy, at tlic coast of that sea.
XVII. The Parieanu and EtkiopUms of Asia paid 400 talents, and formed the 17th Satrapy."
Thalia, 94
The Paricanii of Media have been supposed, page 358, to be intended for those whom otiber andent authors call Paratae€Bm. The people of that name under consideration, we refer to the country of Oc" drosia ; t. <?. Kedge or Makran in the inodero geography : considering the town of Fahraj or Paraj^ as the Poorah of the historians of Alexander ; to which that conqueror came, after surmounting the dangers and hardships of the Gedrosian desert : and this Poorah we regard as the seat or capital of the Paricanii, who are classed in the same Satrapy with the Ethiopians cf Asia.
Herodotus takes some pains to discriminate l/tese Ethiopians from those of Africa, or from abate Egypt; Polym. 69 ; for he says, (70), " Those Etl^opians who came from the nu^re eastern parts of their country (for there were two distinct bodies in this expedition) served with the hidians. These di£fered from the former, in nothing but their lan- guage, and their haur. The Oriental Ethiopians have their hair straight ; those of Africa have their hair more crisp and curling than any other men. The armour of the Asiatic Ethiopians resembled that of the Indians, but on their heads they wore the skms of horses* heads, on which the manes and
' The 19th in this arrangement.
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ears were left. The manes served as plumes, and the ears remained stiff and erect."
In these Ethiopians, we are of course to look for a race of men blacker than the rest of western Asia» and yet situated within Persia; for India formed a distinct Satrapy. And how well soever the descrij> tion of black complexion, and straight hair, may agree with the people of the peninsula of India, these are out of the question ; because it is expressly said, that the southern black people were independent of Persia. Of course they can only be looked for in the south-east angle •of Persia towards India. Being formed in one joint command with the Indians, this circumstance strengthens the idea of their being neighbours; and we must therefore regard the Ethiopians of Asia as the people of Makran, Hour % and other provinces in that quarter ; for these were bordered by Indian provinces, on the north, as well as on the east.
The ParycaniaiM, or people of Poarak, as we have supposed them, appear to he the body of cavalry mentioned in Polym. 86, but without any particular description, that might lead to identify them with the Barcami of Curtius, (lib. iii. c 2.) These last formed a part of the army of Darius ag«nst Alexander; and cfonsisted of 2,000 horse and 10,000 foot. They, however, might have been the Parycanii of Media (or Paratacteni),
M. D'Anville (Geog. Ancien. VoL IL page 295.) places the Bareami at Balkan, at the east side cf
* The Or 'tks of Alexander and Nearchus. VOL. I. D d
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the Caspian sea, and near the ancient mouth of the Oxus, This he may have done on the authority of Stephanos, who (as CeUarius quotes him. Vol* iL 504), says, that ibe Barcanii were situated at the extremity of Ilijrcania wliich is indeed the situa- tion of Balkan : hut then this place forms a part of Choramiia, which is itself indoded in the 16th Sa* trapy. And moreoTer, the strength of the hody of troops, 12,000 in number, appears too great for the district of Balkan alone ; and, it must be recollected, that in the arrangement of the Satrapies, the Pari- eanii are classed with the Ethiopians of Asia; which latter, in the list of the army, were joined in the same command with the Indians,
We are, however, very far from being tenacious of the above opinion, respecting the geographical situa- tion of these Parycanii : being by no means satisfied with the notices, on which the boundaries of the Satrapy, under discussion, are founded. It has been remarked before, that our Author's ideas were more and more circumscribed, as he extended his views and descriptions eastward : and on the whole, it can only be concluded generally, that the Satrapy in question, extended from the entrance of the Persian Gulf, on the west, to the borders of India, on the east ; and from the Erythraian sea on the south, to Snranga and Aruchosia on the north.
XX. and last Satrapy. " The Indians, the most numerous nation of whom we have any knowledge, were proportionally taxed; they formed the 20th Satrapy, and furnished 600 talents in golden in- gots.'' Thalia, 94.
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How much of India Darius possessed, is not known ; but the tribute of it, if rightly stated, was immense. By Herodotus^s deseription^ it might be
concluded, that the king possessed little beyond the Indus> save the Fanjab, Siudi, and the country along the Indus, generally; in addition to all the Indian prorinces situated on the Persian side, and which were indeed very extensive : that is to say, Kabul, Kandahar, and that wide stripe of country along the Indus, to the sea. But all these, col- lectively, could never produce so vast a sum as 600 talents in gold, each of which were reckoned equal to 13 of silver. Thalia, 95.
It appears, in fact, from our Author's own state- ment, that the number 600 b a mistake. For, as he gives in Thalia 95, the number of talents of silver that were equivalent to that portion of the tribute that was paid in gold, at 4680 (that is, at tlie rate of 13 to one), no more than 360, instead of 600, should be reckoned ; since this last number, multi- plied by 13, produces, of course, 7,800. So that we must lessen the Indian tribute, in the proportion of ^ of the whole ; but it is yet too large, out of all proportion ; it being 4|- times as much as Bahy^ Ionia and Assyria, which formed one of the richest of the Satrapies.
That the tribute was paid in gold, appears very probable ; for we learn from the Ayin Acharee^ that the rivers which descend from the northern moun- tains, in the west of India, yielded much gold. Herodotus knew this also : Thalia, 106 : and so did Curtlus. It was the cmly instance in which gold
Dd2
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was paid: and this is one, out of a great many instances, in which our Author is right ; when, to a common observer, he might appear the least so.
It is said, Polym. 65, that the dress of the Indians was cotton ' : " that their bows were made of reeds^ by which, as in several other instances bamboos are unquestionably to be understood ; as they are at this day in common use. Their arrows were also *' of reeds, (of a small size, we may suppose, as at pre- sent) and pointed with iron." And in Polym. 86, " the Indian cavalry were armed like their infantry; but besides led horses, they had chariots of war, drawn by horses and wild asses." Here, no men- tion of elephants is made, although they were so much used in war, when Alexander visited India, at too short an interval after the time to which the descriptions of our Author refer, to have allowed of any considerable change. He does not appear to have known that there were any elephants in India; another proof of the slight degree of knowledge of India, possessed by the Greeks, in those times.
Herodotus's very confined knowledge of India, is also proved by the extraordinary reports which he has detailed concerning its inhabitants; some of which are highly injurious to the character of that industrious, inoffensive, and highly civilized people. For, with many particulars that are true, respecting
V The cotton shrub is afterwards described. The dresses here intended may perhaps have been ^piiUed^ like those of the Phoenicians and the Asttfriaru ; who are said to have had dnen cfdrasMS, See above, page S5S ; and Polym. c 89.
' As amongst the Baetrians, Catpkmtt &c.
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their customs, and maDners, he has mized a greater number that are false ; and of such a nature as to brand their characters with a charge of odiuus and obscene practices; from which they are perfectly free, at this time; and were so, no doubt, then. Thalia, 98, et seq. The expedition of Alexander was within 150 years of the time referred to, by our Author ; and the Grecians, who then visited India^ speak of a very different state of things, even amongst the people of the Panjab % who appear to have been polished and well informed. How otherwise can it be reconciled, that a prince of Alex- ander's character, should have selected one of these Indians for a companion ^ ? What say Ptolemy and Aristobulus, from whom Arrian collected his ideas ? ** That the country (adjacent to the branches of the Indus) was rich, the inhabitants thereof good hus- bandmen, and excellent soldiers: that they were governed by the nobility, and lived peaceably: their rulers imposing nothing harsh, or unjust upon them." Arrian, lib. v. ch. 25.
It is true that Herodotus says, Thalia, 98, Un- der the name of Indiana, many nations are compre- hended, using different languages and, as he had heard more of the western Indians, or those towards the Indus, than the others, (tliat being the part more particularly known to the Persians, by their recent expedition), it is posnble that the tribes
• The country watered by the Jive eastern branches of tlie
Indus.
' We allude to Calanus, of whom more will be i>aid in tlie sequel.
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spoken of, might have been the savages of some of the wild tracts adjacent to the Indus, below the Pan- jab country.
He indeed excepts one tribe of Indians, from the generality of the practices imputed to the others, and whose character and description, in a general point of view, accord with those of the Hindoos. ** These," says he, " difibring in manners firom the above, put no animal to death, sow no grain, have no fixed habitations, and live solely upon vegetables. They have a particular grain, nearly of the size of millet, which the soil spontaneously produces, which is protected by a calyx ; the whole of this they bake and eat. If any of these are taken sick, they retire to some solitude and there remain; no one ex- pressing the least concern about them, during their illness, or after their death." Thalia, 100.
Hero we may observe, that truth and misrepre- sentation are blended together. It is true, that they abstain from animal food ; that they live on rice and vegetables ; and that they expose their sick to, often- times, untimely death : but it is not true, that they have no fixed habitations, for no people in the world live so much in one place; nor that they live on gram produced spontaneously, for none are greater culti- vators. All that Herodotus lias said, therefore, proves in the strongest manner, the very imperfect kind of information concerning India, that had reached Greece ; or that had been collected in Per- sia. For if he could say, and say truly, of Egypt, Euterpe, 35, that it claimed our admiration, be- yond all other countries ; and the wonderful things
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which it exhibited, demanded a very copious descrip- tioD : that the Eotptianb, bom under a climate to which no other can be compared, possessing a river, different in its tiature and projjerties, from all the rivers in the world; and were themselves dis- tinguished from the rest of mankind, by the singu- larity of their institutions, and their manners would he not also have distinguished the Hindoos, toge- ther with t/ieir country and river, had he been suf- ficiently informed concerning them? Egypt was indeed the admiration of Herodotus: this he had seen ; but Hindoostan^ and China, were placed, not only beyond the reach of his observation, but, in a great measure, beyond his knowledge.
Some of the particulars respecting India, which occur in our Author, and which, from the odd mix- ture of truth and falsehood, are worthy of being pointed out to present notice, are added in the notes. It does not by any means appear, that he considered an// of the Indians as being polished, or well-informed
• Thalia, 98. Under the name of Indians, many nations am comprehended, using different languages; of these some attend principally to the care of cattle, others not ; some inliabit marshes, and live on raw fish, which they catch in boats made of reeds, divided at tlie joint, and every joint makes a canoe. These yn4«»w« have a dress made of rushes, which having mowed and cut, they weave together like a mat, and wear in the nmnner of a cuirass."
99. *' To the east of these, are other Indians called Paiuu, who lead a pastoral Kfe, live on raw flesh, and are said to observe these custans : — ^if any man among them he diseased, his nearest connections put bim to death, alledging in excuse, that sickness
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He further says of the Indians, Thalia, 94, that ** they were the most populous uatioD of whom we
would waste and injure his flesh. They pay no regard to hii assertions that he is not really ill, but without the smallest eom-
punction deprive him of life. If a woman be ill, her female con- nections treat her in tlie same manner. The more aged among tliem are regularly killed and eaten ; but to old age there are very few who arrive, for in case of sickness they put every one to death *."
101. " Among all these Indians whom I liave specified, the communication between tlie sexes is like that of the beasts, open and unrestrained. They are all of the same complexion, and much resembling the Ethiopians."
102. " Tlu re are still other Indians towards the north, who dwell near the city of Caspatyrum, and the country of Pactyica. Of all the Indians, these in their manners most resemble the Bactrians : they are distinguished above the rest for their bravery, and are those who are empk>yed in searching for the gold."—
The cotton plaat is thus described, in Thaha 106. *' They (the Indians) possess a kind of plant, which, instead of fnii^ produces tvool, of a finer and better quali^ than that of iheep; of this, the natives make their clothes."
• It is remarkable, that these peoj)le, so described as canni- />r//A, are twice mentioned in other parts of our Autiior, under the name of Cdllutut' or CaUantue. Thalia 38 and 97. He says, in the former place, that they arc " a people of India, known to eat the dead bodies of their ])arents ; and that tliey were disgusted at the proposal burnt ng them, made by Caml)yses.**
The passage in lhalia 97, is not so easily understood; for there the Callantian Indians (if meant for Callatian) are said to have rites of sepulture : according to Mr. Beloe's translation. Perhaps something else is meant, as there is said to be a diffnr^ cuce of opinion respecting the meaning of the original.
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have any knowledge, and were proportionally taxed" by Darius ; which, indeed, appears from the yastness
of the sums raised, could the numbers be depended on : but as he limits the length of the known parts of Asia, to a space short of what he assigns to Europe, (under the extended dimensions above de- scribed) or even to Libya ; Melp. 44 ; he could by no means have meant to include the whole of India : nor, indeed, does his description of that country ex- press it. For he says, Europe, in length, much exceeds the other two (Libya and Asia), but is of far inferior breadth." Melp. 42. And in his description of India, he says, Melp. 98, That part of India which lies towards the eaat is very sandy." And again, the part most eastward is a perfect desert^ from the sand ;" but it is well known, that the eastern part of India, (Bengal and Oudc, generally) is by far the most fertile part ; nor will the above description apply to any other part of India than that between the lower part of the Indus, and Raj- pootana ; and to this, it does literally apply. And hence, combining ibis information, with that con- cerning the southern part, which contained the blackest people, and who were independent of Persia, Thalia 101 ; we may conclude that Darius, in fact, possessed no more of India than what lay contiguous to the Indus, and its branches ' : and also, that the limit of our Author's knowledge east- ward, was the sandy desert of Jesselmere, called RegUtm (or the Country of Sand) ; and that the
' Of conne, tbeae cannot be the EUnopiam of Amu^ who attended Xerxes, Ibr they were included in the 17di Satrapy.
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rest was described from vague report, which gene- rally supplies the want o^faets^ by monstrous fables; as if men, when constrained to Inrent, thought that probable stories were too insipid for belief.
Herodotus had certainly never heard of the Gan- ges, a river in so many respects like the Nile, and in bulk so much superior ; and this may convince us, that the Persians had not penetrated so far to the east at that period. But as he speaks of the nation of the Padai, said to be one of the most ettitem nations of India; and who killed or exposed the aged persons amongst them ; it must be supposed that he meant the people who inhabit the banks of the Ganges, the proper and Saneerit name of which is Padda ; Gadoa being the appellative only; so that the PddceimvLy answer to the Gangar 'uUs of later Greek writers. See Tbalin, 99.
It is a circumstance very well known, that whilst Alexander was at the Indus (in the Panjab country), some Bramins either came, or were brought, to him ; and that one of them, by name Calanus, at the re- quest of the king, accompanied him into Persia. In this Indian philosopher we trace, at the distance of more than 21 centuries, the same frame of mind, and the like superstitions, as in the same tribe, in our own times ; a eontempt of death, founded on an unshaken belief of the immortality of the soul, (a cordial drop which the most atrocious of the en- lightened moderns would rob us of) ; and an un- conquerable adherence to ancient customs. The friendly connection that subsisted between Alexander and this philosopher, does infinite honour to both ;
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for it provoB that both possened great mandB and
amiable dispositions; and that Alexander was, at bottom, a philosopher himself ; otherwise the inde- pendent mind of Calanus could not have taken such hdd of him. Alexander never appean to more ad- vantage, than during the last act of the life of Cala- nus. This Indian sage, finding his health decline, and believing that his end approached (he was then 73, according to Diodorus, lib. ziz. c 2,), determmed to lose his life on a funeral pile, to avoid the misery of a gradual decay ; to which Alexander reluctantly consented, ixom an idea, that some other mode of suicide, less grateful to the fieelings of Calanus, would certainly be resorted to. Alexander accordingly gave directions to Ptolemy, to comply with every re- quest of the dying man ; and to render him every honour that his situation admitted of; and even condescended to arrange the cereihonies himself. Descriptions of the awful ceremony are to be found in Arrian and in Plutarch \ Arrian appears to be much struck with the character and fortitude of Ca- lanus ; and remarks, that " this is an example of no mean import, to those who study mankind ; to shew how firm and unalterable tlie mind of" man is, when custom, or education, has taken full possession of it
* Plutarch, as well as Arrian, says, that Calanus told Alex- ander that he should soon see him again at Babylon. The death of Calanus happened at Pasagarda. A severe frost happened on the night of the funeral, and occasioned the death of many persons, who committed debauches at the funeral feast given by Alexander. (Plutarch in Alex.)
* Ajrrian, lib. vii. My friend Mr. Wilkina suppoies that hia name may have been KUlymHk, in his own country.
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It may be believed, that the moral conduct of Alexander was influenced and improved by associat- ing with this blameless man ; and we therefore must lament that his acquaintance with Calanus had not an earlier commencement. Then might the sad tragedy of Cliius have never been acted : and the inquiry into the conduct of Philotas might have been more dispassionate ! Happy the men in power, who have those of sense and moderation for their companions ! But it is too unreasonable often to expect independence of mind, in such dtuations^ Alexander, therefore, was a rare instance of a prince w ho tolerated it \
Thus, the accusation of barbarism in the manners of the Indians, brought by Herodotus, falls to the ground ; unless the same barbarism is to be attributed to Alexander,
There occurs in Diodorus (lib. xix. c 2.) an ac*
* The htstory of Cajlakjjb brings to mind tbat of another virtuous Anatic, Aliatbe Kan, a pliysician of eminence, who, at the desire of Nadir Shah, accompanied him from Delhi to Persia, after his conquest of Hindoostan, in 1740. This physi- cian was a Mahomedan of family, and of the most respectahle character; and, according to the anecdotes given of him by Abdul Kuurreem, pages 44 and 74, was worthy of being placed in the same list with Calanus. By the influence which this gentleman possessed over the mind of one of the most stubborn and bloody tyrants ilie earth ever produced ; as well as by a variety of other instances of a similar influence, operating on other men ; we are led to suppose, that of all professors, those of physic take the firmest hold of the minds of the persons, whose necessities they adnnnister to, when medical skill is combined with sagacity and address. And, to the honour of the profession, it must be acknowledged, that this iuHueocc lia& veryoAen been exert4.'d to the best of purposes.
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count of an Indian widow's burning herself on the funeral pile of her husband, who had commanded the troops brought out of India ; we must suppose, by Alexander. The name of this general was Ceteus, (or rather Keetcus ) ; and he was, no doubt, of the Katri tribe of Hindoos. The event happened in ihe camp of Eumenes, on the borders of Media» about eight years after the death of Alexander, during the struggle for empire, between Eumenes and Antigonus ^
The ceremony is described to be exceedingly alike to what the Author has himself seen in India ; in the distribution of the personal ornaments of the widow, to her servants ; in her being more parti- cularly attended by her husband's brothers ; in turn-
' " Kketels left l)ehin(l him two wives, wlio disputed the honour of burning tlieniselves with the body of their husband, who fell in battle, after fighting with great courage. It was decided in favour of the youngest, the elder being pre gnant.
** As soon as she came to the pile, she took ofl' the ornaments of her person, and distributed them amongst her servants and friends as tokens of rt niembrajice. The ornaments consisted of a number of rings on her lingers, set with all manner of precious stones of divers colours ; a great number of small golden stars, interspersed with sparkling stones of all sorts, in her head* dress ; together with abundance of jewels about her neck. At length she took leave of all her family and servants, and then her brother placed her upon the pile ; and, to the great admira* tion of the spectators, she ended her life with an heroic courage.
" The whole army solenuily in their arms, mar<^ed thrice round the pile, before it was kindled; she, in the mean tinie« turned herself towards her husband's body, and did not discover, by shrieks or otherwise, that she was at all daunted by the eradding of the flames," &c.
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ing herself on the pile, towards the dead body of her husband ; and in ending her life with the greatest heroism.
In Diodorns, it is said that the army of Eumenes,
solemnly in arms, marched round the pile thrice^ after the widow had ascended it : but in the instance seen by the Author, which was that of a rich private individual, the widow herself walked the same num- ber of times round the pile ; and the fire was applied to it by her eldest son, who was about eight years old : and instead of being placed on Uie pile, she ascended it by her own exertions.
Calanus distributed the ornaments, with which the king had caused the pile to be decorated, to certain persons present ; and the Niscean horse, provided also by the king (who supposed him to be too much weakened by sickness, to be able to walk), to Lysi* machus, afterwards king of Thrace, who was one of his disciples and admirers. It has not come to our knowledge, that any men in India have voluntarily burnt themselves, like Calanus, in modem times.
We have now completed the examination of the Twenty Satrapies ; and from the above statement, compared with the map, an idea may be collected of the extent and division of the Persian empire under Darius Hystaspes. Cyrus liad added to the central provinces of Persia, Media, Assyria, &c. those of Lydia, and Asia Minor, generally, on the west; Bactriana, and others, on the east ; to which his son and successor, Cambyses, added Egypt ; and Darius himself, Ionia, a part of Thrace, and many of the islands of the Archipelago.
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In the above division of the empire into Satra- pies, there appears that sort of congruity, which furnishes an internal evidence of the truUi of our Author^s statement ; at the same time that it proves a more extensive knowledge of the geography of Asia, than would have been imagined, without the aid of this investigation.
Herodotus remarks, (Thalia, 95.) that if the Babylonian money (in the above statement) be re- duced to the standard of the Euboic talent, the aggregate sum will be found to be 9886 talents of silver; and estuooating the gold at 13 times the value of the silver there will be found 4680 Euboic talents more. So that the whole tribute paid to Darius was 14560 talents (Euboic).
The aggregate arising, on the detail, is 7740 Babylonish talents of silver, and 600 talents of gold. But as our Author does not give the proportion between the two talents, we are unable to compare
• The proportion of j»;oltl to silver, has, of course, varied at different times, accordiiij^ to the comparative plenty, or scarce- ness, of either. At present, 1709, tliey are as 15^ to 1. Ac- cording to tlie authorities in Arhuthnot, they have been at the rate of 0 to 1. (See his hook on Ancient Weights and Mea- sures, Coins, &-C. p. 4.'j, e( xcq.)
One circnnistaiiee is worthy of notiee— tlie plunder of western Europe by tlie Komans, in the time of Julius Caesar, sunk the value of gold one-tenth ; whereas, the j)lunder of the same countries, by the French, in these times, has raised the value of gold ; so much more must it have been tlie custom to use ves- Bcls and trinketo of gold, anciently, tlian now : for the change in the pn^itions could only have been effected, by drawing into dfculation, what was before applied to other uses.
13
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the accounts. He say8> however, Thalia, 89, that
the Babylonian talent is equal to 70 Euboic miner, and Arbuthnot informs us, that the Euboic talent was equal to 60 mince only. This proportion would giye « result different from our Authors; since 7740 Babylonian talents would, at the above rate, be equal to no more than 9030 Euboic, whilst Hero- dotus has 9880 : and adding to these, the produce of the tribute in gold, according to his own calcula* tion, 4680, the aggregate is 13,710 Euhoic talents. If the tribute in gold is taken at 600 talents, as in the text, the number of silver talents resulting will be 7800 ; making an aggregate of 16,830 ; which is 2270 more, as the former b 850 less, than his calcu- lation. It is probable that the number 600, for the Indian tribute, is a mistake, and that he corrected it to 360 : so that the difference of the accounts is, in fact, 850 ; and which may only be owing to our having adopted a wrong proportion.
Takiug the value of tlie Euboic talent at <£193, 15«. according to Arbuthnot*s evaluation, the sum arising on the above number of talents b about ^£2,821,000. If to this be added, according to the above statement, 700 talents for the value of the Egyptian grain ; and 1000 more for the contribu- tion of the Arabians ; and if we are aUowed to value the gratuities from the Persians, the Ethiopians, and the Coichians at 2000 more ; that is, 3700
- * It hat been remarked, that a part of the gratuity of the Col* chianMf and people of Caucasus, was 100 youths and 100 virgins ; Thalia, 97 ; so that the southern kingdotns liave in all ages
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talents in addition, the aggregate will be about £Sfi50,000 ; or somewhat more than millions of our money. It must strike every one who is con- versant with numbers, that this sum is a small re- - venue for an empire^ little inferior in extent to Eu- rope. The provinces of Babylonia, A^tyria, and Mesopotamia, collectively, paid no more than 1000 talents, which might be equal to abont £226,000 of our money : although at an earlier period, this Satrapy is said to have been equal to one- third of the whole empire. Clio, 102. As it cannot be sup- posed that the statements are generally wrong, although particular errors may be expected, it may be collected that the value of money was incredibly greater at that time, than at present. The rich and trading kingdom of Egypt and its dependencies, which sent 200 Triremes to the fleet of Xerxes, paid only ^320,000, including the corn furnished, and which amounted to half of the sum. Thus, if we suppose a population of three millions ^ it will be
drawn supplies of men and wonu n from this quarter ; which furnished a hardier race of men, and more heautiful women. The Mamlouks (tliat is, the soldiery) of Egypt, are still drawn from the neighbourhood of Caucasus. It has appeared that slaves from the norths were sold in the markets of ancient T^e* See above, page S%7 \ andEzekiel xxvii. 13. and 14.
' Diodorus, lib. i. c. S. fixes the number of inhabitants in Egypt, in his time, at three milUons; Volney, at 2,300,000. Ancient Egypt is said, by Savary, to have supplied food for eight millions of people ; the surplus of which was exported to Italy, and other countries ; but he believes that at present the estimate of its produce is less than one half that quanti^. We should conceive that it is yet much over-rated.
VOL. I. E e
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only about two shillings per head ; and the people of Bengal, at this time> who are not heavily taxed, pay about seven shiltings per annmn K
Herodotus obBerves, Thalia* 96» that in process of
time, the islands (of the ^gean sea) also were taxed ; as was that part of Europe which extends to Thessaly.
The mode in which the king deposited these ridies in his treasury, was this ; the gold and silver were
melted and poured into earthen vessels ; the vessel was then removed, leaving the metal in a mass. When any was wanted, such a piece was cut off as the occnion required The invention of coinage was either not known, or not practised, till that time in Persia; for when the Daric, a gold coin, was struck by Darius Hystaspes, it appears, according to the words of the historian, to have been regarded as a new thing For he says, Melponi. 166, " that Darius was desirous of leaving some monument of himself, which should exceed all the eftbrts of his predecessors and this was a coin of the very purest gold K No doubt this idea was taken up, after he
* Early in the present century, the revenue of India, under Aurengzebf, was about tlurty-two millions sterling, or n»H€ times that of the empire of Persia, 2300 years ai;o.
* We have read that the sovereij^u of some Eastern kingdom, irjanajres exactly in the same way, with the bullion in his treasury.
* The novelty might have lain in the superior fineness of the gold.
' Aryandes, prefect of Egypt under Darhis, imprudently attempting to imitate his master, by issuin/? a coin of the purest nhfCTt under the name of // ryandic, forfeited his life fco mi^^iste* rial jealousy. Melpom. 166.
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had collected a great deal of gold by means of the Indian tribute; for he received only a yery small quantity from Africa (Thalia, 97), although the rivers of that continent abounded with it, and the Carthaginians trafficked for it ; Melpom. 196. We shall dose the account of the Satrapies, and • our remarks on the armament of Xerxes, with some additional ones on the general truth of the statement of the latter, and on the final object of the expedition.
Brief as the descriptions in the text are, they contain a great variety of information ; and furnish a number of proofs, of the general truth of our Author's history ; for the descriptions of the dress and weapons of several of the remote nations, en- gaged in the expedition of Xerxes, agree with what appears amongst them at this day; which is a strong confirmation of it, notwithstanding that some attempts have been made to ridicule it by different writers. Herodotus had conversed with those who had seen the dress and weapons of these tribes, du- ring the invasion ; and therefore we cannot doubt that the Indians clothed in cotton, and with bows made of reeds, (t. e* of bamboos) were amongst them. Of course, that the great king had sum- moned his vassals and allies, generally, to this Euro- pean war ; a war intended not merely against Greece, but agamst Europe in genera], as appears by the speeches of Xerxes, and other drcumstanoes. For our Author says, Polym. 8, that after the subjection of Egypt, Xerxes " prepared to lead an army against Athens ;** and, in a council assembled on the occa- sion, sMd, after the reduction of Greece, I shall
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over-run all Europe — a region not inferior to our own in extent, and far exceeding it in fertility." — In 50, he also says, " Having effectually conquered Europe, we will return, &c. ' And, in 5i, he " implored the sun to avert from the Persians^ every calamity, till they should totally have vanquished Europe ; arriving at its extremest limited*
' It is said, Polym. 20, that after the reduction of Egypt, Xerxes employed four whole years in as- sembling the army, and in collecting provisions ; and that of all the military expeditions, the fame of which had come down to them, this was iar the greatest ; mucli exceeding' that which Darius undertook against the Scythians ; that of the sous of At reus against Troy ; or that of the Myetam and Tei^ erians, before the Trojan war ; which nations, pass- ing the Bosphorus into Europe, reduced Thrace and Thessaly
The evident cause of the assemblage of so many nations was, that the Europeans (as at the present
* There is in this spt'ech of Xci xos, made at the passa-jc of the Hellespont, an ohservation wortliy of remark, as ap])lviiig to the (hen state of Europe. He says, " liaving concpjered Europe, we will return without experience of famine, or any other calamity ; we have with us abundance of provisions, and the nations amongst which wc arrive, will 8uj>ply us with com, for they against whom we advance, are not shepherds, but bus* bandroen."
' In perusing the intercepted French Correspondence from Egypt, one is struck with the justice of a remark of M. Boyer's, that, such was the magnitude of the armament of Buonaparte, against Egypt, that nothing comparable to it bad passed the MediterraneaD, sinoe the time of tlie Cnuadet,
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day) were deemed so far superior to Asiatics, as to require a tasilif greater number of the latter, to op* pose them. This is no less apparent in the history
of the wars of Alexander ; and of the wars made by Europeans, in the East, in modern times. However^ we do not by any means believe in the numbers de- scribed by the Greek historians ; because we cannot comprehend, from what is seen and known, how such a multitude could be provided with food, and their beasts with forage. But that the army of Xerxes was great, beyond idl example, may be readily believed ; because it was collected from a vastly extended* em- pire, every part of which, as well as its allies, furnished a proportion ; and if the aggregate had amounted to a moderate number only, it would have been nugar tory to levy thai number throughout the whole empire, and to collect troops from India and Ethiopia, to attack Greece, when the whole number required might have been collected in Lower Asia.
The rendezvous of the land army was said to be at CritaliSi in Cappadocidy Polym. 26 ; and that of the fleet, toXElceos, in the Thracian Chersonesus ; 21. The former is a position not known to us ; but, as it lay on the east side of the Halys, in Cappadocia, and in the road from Susa to Sardis/through Celana^ and ColosscB, which was the king's route, it may be supposed to have been near the site of the present ErekU (the ArcheUue Cohnia of the Romans ; in which position, no town is remarked by Xenophon);
What renders this supposition very probable is, that at Erekli, not only the roads through the two
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passes of Cilicia unite, but the great road from Armenia^ and from the regions situated generally between the Euxine and Caspian seas^ MU in there. There is alsib a fine riyer at this place, the principal branch of the Halys, which Avould render it yet more eligible, as a place of encampment for so vast a host.
From thence the rente lay through Asia Minor, to Sardis and Troas, to the bridge over the Hellespont. It is said by Herodotus, Polym. 115, that " the Thraciam hold the line of country, through which Xerxes led his army, in such extreme veneration, that to the present day they nerer disturb or culti* vate it.** He also remarks, that, Megara was the most western part of Europe, to which the Persian army penetrated Calliope, 14 ; but they were in Phocis, and in the neighbourhood of Delphi, (Urania, 85, et seq.) which is much more to the west. Per- haps he was only speaking of their progress from Attica,
In the history of the Persian inrasion, and its termination, so glorious to Greece, Herodotus has
given a lesson to all free States, that either do exist, or that may hereafter exist, in the world; that is, to dispute their independency, let the nun^ hers of the enemy be what they may. He has shewn that the Greeks, although a large proportion of their country was in the hands of the enemy, were still formidable ; and, in the end, prevailed over a foe, that out-numbered them more than ikree to one, in thededsive battle of P/atea; notwithstanding there were included in that vast majority, as many of their
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renegade countrymen, as amounted to nearly half their own numbers ^ It is true, that the invaders were Persians, and the defenders Greeks; but the event of the eontest depended chiefly on the obsti- nate determination of the Greeks not to submit ; a resolution which, accompanied by wisdom and dis- cipline, must ever prevail.
The Dutch acted like free men, when they de« termined to defend their Uist ditch against Louis XIV. ; and, in the last resort, to embark for their foreign settlements ; as the PiioCiCANs aforetimes did for Corsica; (see Ciio^ 165.) The Anglo- Ameri* CANS have just displayed the same noble sentiments (worthy of their ancestors) in treating with equal contempt^ the protiered, but hollow, friendship ; and the threatened enmity, of France : France, whether monarchical, or republican, the common enemy of the peace and independence of nations ' ! Let us
• Sec Calliope 20, 30, 3'2. The conft'derated Grecian force was 110,000; that of the Persians 350,000, of whom 50,000 were Greek auxiliaries.
• In the prospect of future times, there is a subject for pride, in the breasts of Eiiglislmien ; which is, that so vast a portion of the globe will be peopled by the ir ch srendants. We allude, of course, to America and New Holland; tlu- latter of which, alone, appears to have room enough for as many inhabitants as Europe at present contains. This is at least beyond the power of the French Directory to prevent ; for the progresa of popul** tion in America is too rapid to be opposed by human meaas, and will soon outgrow that of France, with all her conquests and fraternizations. America, fortunately for the world, has given the pledge of enmiqr to France ; so that the danger of contami* nation of nunrals, by too intimate a connection, is removed.
The colony of New South Wales, too, will probably be able
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persevere in determining not to be duped by France,
by supposing that any peace with her is short of submission ; for such an act, on the part of the pre- sent goyemment of that country, (wretched and sub- dued within, in the midst of victory without) could
only be done to gain time, and to lull us into secu- rity^ in order finally to crush us with the greater ease.
The present state of France cannot last, unless
the rest of Europe become accomplices with her, in their own destruction. We can only patiently wait the event ; and although poverty may come on, ere a change happens, yet when it does happen, we shall at least start on equal terms with them in point of capital (for the successes of France do not make her rich), and infinitely superior, in point of reputation ; which is not to be undervalued, in the calculation of national strength. Submission would lower our re- putation, even more than national bankruptcy.
to take care of itself, before the French have opportunity, or leisure, to moleat it. Bad as tlie habits of many of its settlers have been, we have more hopes of their amendment, as niattt rs go, than if they were contaminated by French principles ; and as to their posterity, it will make no diHerence, il' the mother country provide, as she is bound to do, for the instruction of the rising froncration. This f^encration is said to he very nume- rous ; and it is ])retty obvious, tliat, on the care of their rcliprion and morals, the character of the futi ke n ation will depend.
It ought perhaps to atford a triumph to literary men, that tlie English language had received its highest degree of improvenieiit, before the epoch of our great colonizations. lie llierefore who writes in English, and whose works doceml to posterity, will probably have the greatest niuuber of readers ; as was, perhaps tlie case heretofore! of him wlio w rote in 1* rench.
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Besides, the very means used to prevent the evil, would produce it ; for poverty will most assuredly follow submission; and that, without any hope of
improvement, by a change of circumstances : and it is surely better to be poor with hope than without it. No sensible man can build hb hopes on the moderation, or good fiEuth of the enemy ; and there- fore a cry for peace, under the present existing cir- cumstances, can only be calculated to mislead, or to divide the community.
If we fear the diminution of our property or income, when justly apportioned, we must pay the forfeit of that fear ; that is, our most excellent and consolatory religion, our liberty, our comforts ; in a word, all that we have been contending for, during so many generations, either with domestic tyrants, or foreign invaders. Hitherto, the danger from the latter has been distant ; but it is now at the very threshold. We are as able to contend as ever ; per. haps better, from the active military spirit that has kept pace with the danger, and which must gradually make us an armed nation ; that is, such a proportion of tlie people as have leisure to qualify themselves for its defence: and, can leisure be. more worthily employed f Surely, if wisdom, and an attention to uuional economy, do not forsake us (and the want of either must sink the most rich and powerful country in the world), we can oppose the enemy on our own ground, with superior numbers, and with superior effect ; since the country will be every where hostile to him. Besides, with frklmen, the MiMD goes more towards the defence of what is dear
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to tliem, tlian it possibly can, oa the other side, towards depriving them of it.
If the enemy ii bent on our deBtniction» what have we to do» but to dispute the point, even to extermination ? What worse can befal us, by con- testing it, than by submitting I Take the e&les of conquest, ot submUsion, and o£ /ratemiMoium, severally ; and then let any one, if he can, point out the distinction between the treatment that the French government has slicwn to the different peo- ple who have fallen under its power, by those dififer* ent modes I We have therefore nothing to hope, but from our own exertions, under the fiivour of Heaven : and let us trust, that the contest will termi- nate gloriously, and perpetuate the system of liberty transmitted to us by our anoestors; and thus hold out another bright example to succeeding times. The hatred of Europe is rising against France, (or rather against its government ; for we hope that this distinction may be made in fiivonr of a great pro- portion of the people, who may not be made accom- plices in its guilt) ; that hatred must increase, and become general ; and all Frenchmen who leave their own country on schemes of hostility, must, in the end, be hunted down as enenues to the peace and comfort of mankind. We will hope that the time is not far distant \
• ^ The above was written yreviova to the campaign of 1799.
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SECTION XIII
AN EXAMINATION OF THE REPORT OF THE GEOGRAPHY ; AND OF THE DISTANCES^ ON THE ROYAL ROAD^ BE- TWEEN lOKU AND susa; bt aeutaooras^ princb
OF MILBTUS*
itUngms fif Ariatagonsy Pdiic* if MOetns, lo ^m^ng/t tke Lacedcmomaiis m HottUiAeM wUk tke Kmg ^Penrii Fimf nut tkf Qeomenes ; oiuf rae Jajfui^ pf Am imigkter Gorgo ike JPrmee ^ MiUiut explmms Ait idetu iy Mran# ^ a map aigrascii on copper^Skeick of tke geography hetmeem Idnia midSmtk — ComUries ^Lydia, Pbrygia* Cappadoda, Arme- nia, Madene, Ciasia — Intervening deep rieere-^Inaeewraeies m ike report, from tke looie wumner m wkkk tke ancienU treated geograpkieal tuhjeete — Comparuon of tke Stathmns, imIA fAe ordinary Bfareh ^ an army ; and of tke ancient Parasanga ivifA tke wutdem Farsang — tke Paraeanga of fferodoius agrees mtk tke Fareang, wken referred to tke same gronnd; hat e»* eeede tke popular ettimaiion of 50 Stadee — tkat of Xenophon falls hebm it — Royal Road in Persia ; its Stathmi and Cara- ▼anaerais.
There occurs in Herodotus a narration of a very interesting and curious conversation between Aais- TAOOEAS, prince of Miletus and Clbomenes^ king
* 8ee the hiitofy of AriatagoraB, lua intrigues, and fidi, in Terpaidwre, f 8, et. aeq. Of MUetae, Herodotus says, <• It ni|^be deemed tbe pride of ISnia, and was at that tine in the height of its prosperity.'*
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of Sparta, on occasion of soliciting the assistance of the Spartans, against Darius Hystaspes. This con- versation produced a report of the distance by the Royal Road leading from Sardis to Susa, together with a short description of the countries through which it lay. The application, however, proved fruit- less ; notwithstanding that it was accompanied with an offer of a considerable sum of money, which the virtue of the Spartan prince rejected with disdain *.
We propose to examine this description, hoth with respect to the geography of the country, and the
' Thn. trantaction gave rise to one of the most mterestmg anecdotes in our Author's work* The king having, at a former interview, denied the request of the Prinee of Miletus, and warned him to depart fVom Sparta, was assailed in the manner
thus described :
Arista^ras taking a branch of olive in his hand, presented
himself before the house of Cleomenes, entering which, as a sup- pliant, he requested an audience, at the same time desiring that
- the prince's daii^^htcr niiglit retire ; for it ha])pened that Gorgo, the oidy child of Cleomenes, was present, a ^irl of about eight or nine years old : the kinrr begrcred that the presence of the child miiiht be no obstruction to what he had to say. Aristajj^oras tlien promised to give him ten talents, if he would accede to his rcfpiest. As Cleomenes refused, Arista<Toras rose in his offers to lifty talents ; upon whicli the child exclaimed, " Father,
rNLi;sS YOV WITHDRAW, THE STKANKKR WILL tOKRLTT YOU."
'J"he prince was delighted with the wise saying of his daughter, and instantly retired. Aristagoras was nt \ i r able to obtain another audience of the lung, and left Sparta in disgust. — Terp. 51.
This illustrious princess was afterwards the wife of the immor- tal LfiONiDAS, who perished in the defence of his country at Thermopylce* Slie was as remarkable for her virtue» as for the excellence of her understanding.
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distribution of the distances. The geography itself is very briefly related^ but may be taken as a £ur specimen of the geographical division of that part of Asia, amongst the Greeks, previous to the improve- ment which it received, by the expeditious of Xeno- phon and Alexander.
With respect to the distance at large, it is very perfect, but the detail is in some places incomplete ; which is much to be regretted ; for had it been otherwise, much advantage might have accrued to andeot geography, by the comparisons that might have been made, between the different intervals given, and the actual geography. Still, however, some advantage may be gained by making use of the materials, as they are, to ascertain the length of the statkwnu, or stage; or rather, as we conceive, that of the marches of the Persian armies ; for such they will unquestionably turn out to be.
The mode in which Aristagoras communicated his ideas, will strike the hbtorian, the geographer, and * the antiquarian, as being very curious. It was by means of a map engraven on a tablet of brass, or cop- per ; the first of the kind, we believe, that is men- tioned in history : but which practice may neverthe- less have been in use, amongst the statesmen^ and men of science of those days \
* Many of our readers must have beard of the copper plate, which had a copy of a grant of land engraven on it in Satuerit; and bearing date about the time of the birth of our Saviour; found at Monghir in Bengal, some yean ago. It waa translated Into English by my friend Mr. WUkins. The plate is now in England.
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Herodotus says, Terpsichore, 49, that Aiistagoras appeared before the king of Sparta, *' with a tablet of brass in his hand, upon which was inscribed every known part qf the habitable world, the seas, and the rivers * ^ and to this he pointed, as he spoke of the several countries between the Ionian sea and Susa.
Next to the Ionians, (says Ariatagoras) are the Ltdians, who possess a fertile territory, and a pro- fusion of silver. Contiguous to these, on the east, are the Phrygians, a people supposed, beyond all others, to enjoy the greatest abundance of cattle, and of the produce of the earth. The river Halys forms their boundary : beyond which are the Cap- PADociANs, whom the Greeks call Syrians. Then follow the Cilicians, who possess the scattered islands of our sea, in the Ticbiity of Ctpeus. The AbmB" NiANS border on the Ciuciams ; being separated by the Euphrates^ which is only passable in vessels. * The Armenians, who have also plenty of cattle, have for their neighbours, the Matibni, who inhabit the region contiguous to Cissia ; in which distriet, and not far from the river Choaspcs, is Susa, where the Persian Monarch occasionally resides; and where his treasures are deposited* Make yonraelfes masters of this city, and you may vie in offlaenoe with Jupiter himself."
From Ionia to Cilicia, the division of country is much the same as we find amongst the ancients in general. But Cilicia, by being extended to the
* What a feast for an antiquary, could it be produced !
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Euphrates, is made to include tlie nortliern part of Si/ria ; that is, the province of Cyr/uistica. The Cheiiians mentioned in Judith, chapter ii. ver. 21, appear to he the people of the district which includes the town of Klllis, not far from Aleppo ; whence it may be suspected that the Cilicia of Herodotus in- duded this proyince. (See above, page 320.)
AufiNiA has an nnnsual extent given it ; for it is extended not only through the northern part of Mesopotamia, but through Assyria likewise. This we collect more particularly, from the description of the courses of the /bur deep rivers, menti<med in this narrative, which are all sud to flow through Armenia, within the space of 50^y parasangm ; and to intersect the road between Cilicia and Susa. It will be necessary to speak somewhat in detail, con- eemmg these rivers, as the extent given to Armenia depends on their courses and positions.
The Jirst river is said to be the Tigbis itself, (Terp. 620 ^1 same name also, the second and third are distinguished, thoi^h they are by no means the same, nor proceeding from the same source ; the one rising in Armenia, the other amongst the Matieni. These Gireumstanoes serve to point out the two latter very clearly. The second is the greater Zah ; the Zahatus of Xenophon : and the third is the lesser Zah ; which joins the Tigris near the city of Senn ; the Cenee of Xenophon. T^^faurih is said to he the Crfndes, which was ibrmerly divided by Cyrus ; and whidi (our Author says), also rises in the mountains of Matiene, and Tuns through the country of the Darueans, in its
13
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way to join the Tigris. Clio, 189. This river is unquestionably intended for the Diala of modern geography, which has its source in the same country with the lesser Zab, (that is^ Matiene) ; but it neither flows through the country of the Dameans (Derna), nor docs it intersect the road leading from Susa to Babylon. Therefore, this part of the description be- longs to the river of Mendeli, which flows through the country of Dema, and does really intersect the road just mentioned. (See above, page 2G6.) It would appear, then, that Herodotus (or Aristagoras) had confounded these two rivers together. The Diala is doubtless the fomih river in this descrip- tion ; for it is a deep and large stream ; and also answers to the distance from the crossing place of the Tigris (probably Nineveh), which is given at 56f parasangas: but the Mendeli river should be the river divided by Cyrus ; for, according to the ideas exj)resscd in page 267, that river should have ordi- naril} been fordable, as it is probable the Mendeli is; but the Diala certainly not ; and it also lies wide of the road from Susa to Babylon. No river is noticed between the Gyndes and that of Susa : and it is to be understood that Aristagoras only meant to note the deep rivers ; or those which particularly affected military operations, in the march from Ionia to Susa* We now return to the subject of Armenia.
The term Mesopotamia, as applied to tlie tract between the Euphrates and Tigris, was not in use amongst the Greeks, till after the Macedonian con- quest (we believe) ; the northern part of it, beyond mount Masim, being reckoned a part of Arme-
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ma\ and the southern parts to Syria and Arabia. But our Author's extension of Armenia to the Diaia river, 18 quite incorrect, and even contradictory : as he knew the position of Assyria^ and reckons Baby- lonia a part of it. Such is the va^ue way in which many of the ancients expressed their geographical ideas ; although they appear, in many instances, to have known hotter. Xenophon, who traversed As- syria, calls it Media, throughout.
Matiene is reckoned to commence at the fourth river (called the Gyndes, but meant for the Diala J, and to extend to Cissia, or Susiana. Therefore, by Matiene, is intended in this place, the country be- tween Assyria and Susiann: and as that was known in the times of Xenophon and Alexander, by the name of Sittacbne, (a province of Babylonia,) this should be the true reading, and not Matiene, which Herodotus himself places between Media Major and Armenia : or, more properly speaking, it was a provmce of Media itself ^ Matiene could only lie above the mountains of Zagroa ; but the royal road to Susa lay helow them, through Assyria and Baby- lonia. Aristagoras must have had a very imperfect idea of the relative positions of the countries, between Suriana and Armenia, since he places Matiene alone between them, and omits Media altogether. But notwithstanding these inaccuracies, it is curious to
* Mr. Ives has much the same idea, wlicTe he speaks of the ^rTncnian mountains ; meaning mount Mas'ms.
* For he rightly places the sources of the lesser Zab, and the D'talay in Matiene, or on its borders. For the particular posi- tioD of this province^ «ee page 365.
VOL. I. Ff
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trace the geographical ideas of the people of that time, and even the people of rank and comtnand, who meditated expeditions into Asia, when the detail of its geography formed a subject of speculatioo, like that of Africa at present ; or of North America, early in the present century.
The next subject to be considered, is that of the distances on the royal road, between Sardis and Susa.
In the detail of these distances, the omissions amount to about one-third of the whole ; and what is worse, one cannot judge between v/hat particU" lar points the omissions occur; but they arecAt^ between Cilieiar and Susa ; and more particularly between the Euphrates and Tigris, in the line be- tween Zeugma and Niueveh. All that can be done, therefore, is to compare the aggregate sum of the distance given, with the distance on our construction, in order to obtain a general scale for the parasajiga and stathmus ; and afterwards to examine how far the several intermediate numbers of parasangas and staihmi, given in the detail, agree to those scales respectively. If they coincide, we may infer a degree of general exactness in the account ; and we shall then be enabled to determine what was meant by the stathmus; which will doubtless turn out to be the ordinary march of an army.
Herodotus, after going into the detail of the dis- tances, says, Terp. 52. " it appears that from Sar- dis to Susa there are 111 stathmi, or stations however, the detail (owing, we must suppose, to an accident having happened to the original MS.) con-
13
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tains no more than 81 : and of these^ four have no number of parasangas to them, tike the rest : so that we have no more than 77 to calcnlate on. Here is
the account :
|
In Lydia and Phrygia . |
. . 20 . |
90i |
|
. . 28 . |
104 |
|
|
. . 3 . |
15i |
|
|
56^ |
||
|
. . 4 |
||
|
. . 11 . |
||
|
81 |
309 |
He says, moreover^ (Terpsichore 53.) that if the measarement of the royal road^ by parasangas^ be
accurate, and a parasanga be equal to 30 stadia, as it really is (says he), there are 450 parasangas, equal to 13,500 stadia, between Sardis and the royal resi- dence of Memnon (SUM^,)
Now, if 450, the number of parasangas in the aggregate, be divided by 111, the number of stuthmi, we shall have- 4,054 parasangas for each statkmus. And, on the other hand, if we take the detail as far as it goes, 809 parasangas, and divide it by 77 stathmi, it gives a proportion of 4,013 for each of the stathmi in detail : a coincidence, which shews that the part of the detail, which has escaped the ravages of time, has suffered no material corruption.
' And between Sardis and EphesiOi 540 more : in all 14,040.
Terp, o4,
Ff 2
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On our constraction, there is found an aggregate
of about 1120 G. miles, between Sardis and Susa, taken through the points of Issus and Mosul; which, divided by 450, the number of parasangas, gives 2,489 G. miles for each parasanga ; or nearly two miles and a half. Hence it appears^ that the 4,054 parasangas, on the aggregate, gives 10,09 G. miles for each stathmus; and the 401;^, on the de- tail, 9,988 ; being about iV <>f & ^^'^ different from each other. Or, one may be taken at 10-^^, the other at 10. And having brought the matter to this satisfactory issue, there can hardly be a doubt, but that, by the stathmus^ an ordinary day's march of an army was meant ; since, when a due allowance is made for the exceeding great length of tlie lines of distance, on which it is calculated, it will be found to agree almost exactly with the scale of the mem march, deduced from a great variety of instances, but calculated on lines of distance of a moderate length ; that is, of about 150 G. miles : but the lines between SardU and Sma, are of 250 to 500 such miles, or thereabouts; and may require an addition of part to the proportion of road distance, calculated on the short lines. And this 25th part being equal to ,40 i, will make the stathmm 10,491, or say lO-y G. miles : whilst the mean march is 10,6 ; or in road distance somewhat more than 14 British miles; allowing tlie inflexions to be J over and above the direct distance, on lines of about 150 miles.
But although there is so remarkable a coincidence between the march and the stathmus, it will be found that there is a great disproportion between
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the parasanga of Herodotus, and that of Xenophon, who lived at no great distance of time from each
other : and it may be added, that whichsoever of the two is right, that of Herodotus agrees best with the modern Jarsaug in Persia. Both of these authors calculate the parasanga at 30 stadia, as well as the ordinary march at 150 stadia: yet the parasanga of Xenophon, checked by the Roiniui Itineraries in Cilicia, &c. (see pages 28, 29,) turns out to be three Roman nules, equal to 2,142 G. miles only, in direct dhianee, whilst that of Herodotus is no less than 2,489, and is calculated on longer lines of dis- tance. Now, as the 150 stadia, allowed by both, agree very nearly to a mean march, this part of the subject appears to be clear; and the 111 stathmi of Herodotus agreeing so nearly to marches also, render it yet more certain : so that the difficulty respecting the standard of the stade, as well as of the stathmue, seems to be done away. The difficulty that remains, is the disparity in the parasangas of the two authors : but if it be admitted tliat any probability exists of the modernyar^ang' being the representative of the ancient parasanga, the decision must be directly in fitTour of Herodotus, as may be seen by a reference to the note in i)age 23, which sliews that 593 mo- dern farsangs give a proportion of 2,03, whilst that of Herodotus b 2,489 ; or if we select the instances that apply more closely, 2,417 to 2,489.
But it is as certain that 334^ stades are required to form a parasanga of this standard, when reduced to road distance, although Herodotus himself, in com- mon with the rest of the Greeks, allowed no more
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than 30. And this heing the case, it appears almost certain that Xenophoa did not reckon 30 stades to a parasanga, on the ground of a coincidence between these portions of distance, but because it
had been the custom amongst the Greeks so to do. Parasangas, perhaps, with him, were merely nomi- nal ; the stade was the standard in his mind, as being in constant use. Etiquette might rendor it necessary to turn the stades into parasangas, in a journal kept in the camp of the Persians. Or there might be some reason that we are not acquainted with.
Again, it might be a fact known to Herodotus, and to the Greeks in general, that the distance from Surdis to Sttsa was 450 parasangas ; and these he mi^t turn into stades, in order to render it more in^ telligible to his countrymen, without knowing criti* cally, what number of stades the Persian measure plight contain ; but taking it, according to the popu- lar opinion, at 30 stades. This appears decisive of the mode followed by Herodotus. If we take his parasangas on the footing of 30 stades only, a march of 150 of these would be equal to 17 road miles nearly ; exceeding the ordinary march, by a propor- tion that goes beyond credibility ; since the standard of the mean march of an army may be appnud- niated, and is little more than 14 miles.
The Greeks, in making the comparison between the stade and the parasanga, may have reckoned vaguely ; as European travellers of difibrent nations have compared their own itinerary measures, with thoi>e of Persia, India, and Turkey ; often, indeed.
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with very little judgment^ or accuracy. It may be said, that when the component parts are small, there is less danger of error; but even then, there is a hazard of running into an even number ; as we sus- pect has been done in the application of the Gre- cian stade to the Persian parasanga.
These variations, however, have no efifect on the determination of the length of the stathml which rests on the firmer foundation of actual geography ; and may be regarded as the ordinary march of an army, attended by its equipage, &e. Still, however, there is something unexplained, respecting these stations. Herodotus says, " the king (of Persia) has various stathmi, or mansions, with excellent inns: these are all splendid and beautiful/' — he adds, the whole of the country is richly cultivated, and the roads good and secure/' Terp. 52. These inns we must consider as being much the same kind of establishment, as the caravanserais of modern Persia ; many of which, on the public roads, (as may be seen by the books of travels) are grand, commo- dious, and extensive^. But with respect to the ac- commodation of armies, they must have been out of the question ; although they might have accommo- dated detachments, or ofiBcers. Very possibly they might have been calculated to receive the monarch and his retinue, when the army was put in motion : and that they had a reference to war, as well as to civil purposes, may be collected from the space between them; which is calculated for the day's
* See Cbardin, Olearius, Le Brim, &c.
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march of an army, but is too short for the journies of travellers of any description; the slowest of wboni^ namely, those who travel in caraTans, for outstrip an army.
In the above calculation of the stathmus, we have regarded Sm as the ancient Susa ; whilst Tostar has been taken for it, by others ^ Had the distance been taken to Tostar, instead of Sua, an addition of forty-four G. miles to the 1120 must have taken place ; in which case^ the aggregate, 1 164, would give a mean rate of 10,486; approaching, in the first instance, very closely to our mean march, 10,6 ; but with the addition of part, would go beyond it; as it must have appeared, that the grounds on which we determined the length of that march, do not apply to the present case, by reason of the ex- ceeding great and unusual length of the lines of dis- tance, on which, the rate is proportioned.
' See above, page 268.
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SECTION XIV.
CONCfiaNINO THE SITE AND REMAINS OF THE ANCIENT
Cmr OP BABTLON.
The founder' of Babtlon, vmknann in history — SemiraraiB only adorned and improved it — The report of the enormous extent of f<« Walls, cxafrrrcraledy bij tin false scale of the stade : and the extent of (he City itself, bij the error of supposing the whole area to be covered with builditigs — Extent of both, checked by a reference to the true standard of the stade ; and to the notices found in ancient authors — the area jvithin the 7valls cannot be reduced loner than to seven! y-two square British miles ; of which two-thirds may have been built on, or other- wise occupied — Nineveh, according to some authors, larger than Babylon — Some of the causes, that limit the extent, and population of cities — -The geographical jxjsition of Babylon ascertained by ancient and modern authorities, to be at the city of HiU'dh, on the Euphrates — general <h\scri2)tion of the ground-jilan, and distribution of the public structures — Height and thickness of the walls — Tunnel made by Semiramis under the bed of the Euphrates — Respective positions of the temple of Belus, and the Royal Val^xQe — City gaUs—DeKriptton of the Tower of Belus, in the «att€m division — recognised by Delia Valle and Beauchamp, in a vast heap of ruins, at a few miles disiani from Uillak — Foundations of the city walls still dug up, and carried to other places — Bitumen Fountain m Babylon — Course of the Euphrates through that City^Its brMdtk conformable to the report of Slrabo^grand embankments — Palace of NabucbodoiUMor, in the weitern divisioH of Babylon
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— Ordmarf difpoftfion the maieMt of,aneieiU ctfwt— Nature amd dhnentumM i^ ike two torU of brkkt uted m Bar b^ltm^Remarki on the two kmdt of eetnent; bitumen and clay : tke latter Ulmtrated hf the ordinary mode of hvildmg m Bengal — CatchaoiMl Pncka, two modee of buUdmg, m Indiat explained^Remarks ontkenieof reeds, or otien, m tke oe* ments, m the BahyUmuk etructuree — Rnm named Aggarkuf ; vulgarly caUed the Tower of Babel — DeeUne and rmn of Bo- bylon — The palace of Chosroet ta Ctesiphon ; and the eitiee of Bagdad, HiUah, ^-c, hmlt of the hriekt of Babylon — genenU idea of the palace of ChosroeB ; or Tauk Kesra — Difficulty respecting a passage in Herodotus^ stating that the walls of Babylon had been destroyed by Darius Hystaspes — Site and Antiquities o/ Babylon, accessible: and worthy of research.
It is not intended to institute an inquiry into the antiquity of the foundation of Babylon, or the name of its founder. It b remarkable enough^ that Hero- dotus should uot have given some intimation of this kind : but he only tells us, that Semikamis and Ni- TocRis, two of its queens, strengthened its fortifica- tions, and guarded it against inundations ; as well as improved and adorned it : leaving entirely open^ the two questions above mentioned. May we not conchide from this, that its antiquity was very great ; and that it ascended so high, as that Herodotus could not satisfy himself concerning it? At the same time, the improvements that took place, in the city, in the reign of Semiramis, might occasion the original foundation to be ascribed to her; the like having happened in the history of other cities.
Herodotus informs us, that * Babylon became the capital of Assyria a/ter the destruction of Nineveh. Clio, 178. Perhaps then, we ougiit to date the
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foundations of those works, which appear so 8tu-> pendous in history, from that period only : for won- derfiil as these works appear, ewen when ascribed to
the capital of an empire, the wonder increases when ascribed to the capital of aprovince only \
* The Assyrians (says Herodotus, Clio, c. 178, et seq.) are masters of many capital towns; but their place of greatest Strength and fiime is Babylon, where, af^er the destruction of NiNBTEH, waa the royal residence. It is situated on a huge plain, and is a perfect square : each side by every approach is» in length, one hundred and twenty stadia ; the space, therefore, occupied by the whole is four hundred and eighty stadia. So extensive is the ground which Babylon occupies; its internal beauty and magnificence exceeds whatever has come within my knowledge. It is surrounded by a trench, very wide, deep, and full of water : the wall beyond this is two hundred royal cubits high* and fifty wide : the royal exceeds the oommon cubit by three digits. The earth of the trench was first of all laid in heaps, and, when a sufficient quantity wai obtained, made into square bricks, and baked in a fhmace. They used as cement, a composition of heated bitumen, which, mixed with the tops of reeds, was placed betwixt every thirtieth course of brioka. Having thus lined the sides of the trench, they proceeded to bufld the wall in the same manner; on the summit of which, and fironting eadi other, they erected small watch towers of one stoiy, leaving a space betwixt them, through which a chariot and finir hones might pass and turn. In the circumference of the wall, at dififerent distances, were a hundred massy gates o£ brass, whose hinges and firames were of the same metiL Withm an eight days' journey firom Babylon is a city called I»g near which flows a river of the same name, whieh empties itself into the Euphrates. With the current of this river, particles of bitumen descend towards Babylon, by the means of which the walls were constructed.
The great river Euphrates divides Babylon into two parts. The walls meet, and form an angle with the river at each extre- mity of the town, where a breast-work of burnt bricks begins,
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BABYLON.
If then, with the ancient Authors generally, we allow Semiramis to have been the foundress of that Babylon, described by Herodotus, we cannot fix the date of the improved foundation, beyond the eighth century before the Christian era: so that the dura- tion of this city, in its improved form, was less than 800 years, reckoning to the time of Pliny.
Public belief has been staggered by the enormous dimensions allowed to Babylon by the different authors of ancient times, Herodotus, Strabo, Dio> dorus, Pliny, and Quintus Curtius; because that, even if the most confined of those measures, reported by the followers of Alexander, (who viewed it at their fullest leisure,) be adopted, and the stade taken at the moderate standard, resulting from our in- quiries, in Section 11. they will give an area of seventy- two square miles; and those given by Strabo, at eighty : either of which are enormous : for after every ailowance is made for the different modes of building cities, in Europe and in Asia, the idea of covering seventy«*two contiguous square miles with
and is continued along each bank. The city, which abounds in houses from three to four stories in height, is regularly divided into streets. Through these, which are parallel, there are trans* verse avenues to the river, opened through the wall and breast* work, and secured hy an equal number of litde gates of brass.
The first wall is reguhirly fortified; the interior one, though less in substance, is of almost equal strength. Besides these, in the centre of each division of the city, there is a circular space surrounded by a wall. In one of these stands the royal palaGe» which fills a large and strongly defended space. The temple of Jupiter Belus occupies the other, whose huge gates of brass may still be seen.
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buildings, although interspersed with gardens and reservoirs, as in India and Persia, goes far beyond our ideas, even had Babylon been the capital of a large empire, and which had the command of a inarine, as well as a rivers navigation. But, accord- ing to history, Babylon, when founded, although posubly the capital of a large empire, yet could command no su]^ plies by sea : nor were its inland navigations conunodloiis ; since the embarkations that descended from the upper parts of the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, could not re-ascend : a disad- vantage hardly to be compensated, since the price of provisions and necessaries, must thereby have been raised to an inconvenient rate. Moreover, it must be recollected, that the country on two sides of Ba- bylon, and those the most conveniently situated for the navigation of the Euphrates and Tigris, is com- posed of the most barren deserts in the world ; namely, those of Arabia and Sinjar.
We therefore conceive that, with respect to the extent of the buildings and population of Babylon, we ought not to receive the above measure as a scale; from the great improbability of so v(ut a contiguous space having ever been built on: but that the waU might have been continued to the ex- tent given, does not appear so improbable ; for we cannot suppose that so many of the ancient writers could have been misled concerning this point. The Macedonians and others had viewed it; and both Strabo and Diodorus appear to have written from documents furnished h\ tliem ; and midit also have conversed with persons who had seen Babylon : and
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BABYLON.
they all speak of it, as of a city, whose circuit was of a wonderful extent ; therefore we ought to be prepared for something very much out of the com- mon way. But although we may extend our belief to the Tastitess of the enceinte y it does not follow that we are to believe that eighty, or even seventy-two square miles, contiguous to each other, were covered wi^ buildings. M. D'AnviUe, by reducuig the stade to fiflky-one toises, or about three hundred and thirty English feet, has indeed reduced the area of Babylon to a standard ^ which may not be deemed improbable : but notwithstanding the acknowledged superiority of his judgment, on the subject of itinerary measures, we cannot subscribe to his opi- nion^ in this matter; because it does not appear, on a reference to the ancients, that any stade of that standard was in use; or even known. It will here be necessary to refer the reader to the second Sec^ tion of this work, in which the subject of the stade is fully- considered ; and from whence it appears, on a mean of a// the di£ferait authorities, to have been regarded by the Greeks as a measure of one hundred paces, or about five hundred Englisli feet. But taken critically, and in reference to the scale of an ordinary march of an army, considered as equal to one
* M. D'Anvillc reduces tlie area of Bribylon to about tliirty- six Dritisl) miles, ». e. to a square of six miles on each side (4,000 toises). And according to this proportion, he states the area of Babylon to be to that of Paris, as five to two. (Euph. and Tig. p. 114.) This allows to Paris, an area of about twelve two-filths British miles; and \\c allow for that of Ltrndon and its enviftmSf about fifteen and a half.
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hundred and fifty stadcs, it should be four hundred and ninety-three feet; and to the march of Xeiio- phoil (of one hundred and fi% stades aUo)» com- pared with the measure of the ground in the Roman Itinerary, four hundred and eighty-nine. (See par- ticularly, pages 43 and 41 of this work.) The mean of these two results, four hundred and ninety-one^ appearing to ua to be founded on that kind of prao- tieal authority, that should be looked for ; and diffisr- ing so little from the general result of all the autho- rities, may, in our conception, be with propriety ap* {died to the measure of Babybn.
The different reports of the extent of the walls of Babylon, are given as follows :
By Herodotus, at 120 stadia, each side, or 4S0 in circumference*
By Pliny and Solinus, at 60 Roman miles ; which, at 8 stades to a mile, agrees with Herodotus.
By Strabo, at 385 stadia : and
By Diodorus, from Ctesias, 360 : but from C/i- tarelttu, who accompanied Alexander, 365. And lastly, by Curtius, at 368.
It appears highly probable that 360, or 365, was the true statement of the circumference ; since one of these numbers was reported by Ctesias, the other • (which differs so little) by Clitarchus ; both of them eye-witnesses of the fact, concerning which they wrote : and moreover, although Strabo differs from them by about 5 stadia, in the length of each side, yet it clearly appears, that in deciding on the evi- dence, he gave up the statement of Herodotus. It is, indeed, not improbable, that his original text
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gave the same as Clitarchiu ; and that it has been
corrupted from 365 to 385. No doubt he formed his opinion on the reports of the followers of Alex- ander ; Tery many of whom had written histories or jonrnals of his expedition. DiodoniSy in his state- ment of the length of the embankment of the Eu- phrates, through the city of Babylon^ says^ that it was 100 stadia in length; which, allowing 91-^ stadia for the square of the city, leaves about 2000 feet beyond it, each way ; or allowing, with Strabo, 9(H stades, leaves 800 or 900 feet. Either of these Statements^ of course, appears a more probable one, than that of Herodotus. And» it may be added, that although the reason given by Clitarchus, and others, for fixing the number at 3G5, must be re- garded as a tale ; yet the very act of conuecting the number, with that of the days contained in the year, seems to prove that it approached nearly to it \
There does not, therefore, appear to be any way of getting rid of the fact, respecting the vastness of the space, inclosed by the wall : nor can it, in our idea, be reduced to less than a square of about %\ British miles ; giving an area of 72 square miles ; which yet falls short of the calculation, on the scale . of Strabo, by 8 square miles. Nor do we adopt the lesser number, merely because the general statement appears overcharged, but because that it is conform-
• Thus tlie. common idea respecting the cathedral of Salisbury, that iIk' doors ami chapels equal the inontlis; the windows, the days of the year, &c. ; is understood to be generally true : and could hardly have arisen from any other curcumstance, than common observation of tlic fact itself.
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able to the highest standard that we have been ena- bled to verify*.
But that even 72 contigaous square miles should have been, in any degree, coYered with buildings, is* on every account, too improbable for belief. In sup- port of this opinion, we shall adduce the following &ct8y which seem to contain more argument than any reasoning ; premising that we do not by any means aim at precision, in any of the numbers set forth.
The inhabitants of London, taken at a ninth part of the whole population of South Britain (say about 7,000,000, or for London 800,000), require, ibr their supply of provisions and necessaries, a propor- tion of land, equal to about 6,600 square British miles ; on a supposition that they were confined to the consumption of its produce, alone, and that it was taken as it generally runs throughout the kingdom.
If there be allowed to Babylon an area of 72 miles, we conceiTe that it would then bear a propor- tion to the space which the buildings of London
occupy, taking in all its suburbs and members, whe- ther contiguous, or otherwise; and allowing them
* Taking the circumference of Babylon at 365 stadia, and these at 491 feet ; each side of the square (which is equal to 911 stades) will be 8,18.5 British miles ; or nearly 8§. This gives an area of 72 miles and an inconsiderable fraction. If the same number of stades be taken at 500 feet each, tlic area will be 74,8. And finally, the 385 stadia of Strabo, at 491 feet, about 80. The 480 stades of Herodotus would give about 126 square miles, or 8 times the area of London !
VOL. I. O g
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an area of l&f British miles ; as 9 is to 2, nearly.- But as most of the large Asiatic cities that we have seeUy or heard of, scarcely contain, within the same space, half the number of inhabitants that European cities do, we must reckon the proportion of popula- tion, that Bahylon would have contained, to that of London, as 9 to 4. In this case, 15,000 square miles of such land as the common run of that in England, would have been required for the support of the people of Babylon, provided it had been filled up with buildings, after the Asiatic manner, and that the state of society had been like that amongst us.^ But as the simple manner of living amongst the lower classes of people in Asia, requires a less quan- tity of land to support it, than the style of living of the same classes in England, a considerable deduc- tion may. be made; and instead of 15,000 square miles, we may, perhaps, substitttte 12,000. Now, it will appear, that this reduced sum of square miles, equals, within part, the whole area of Lower Mesopotamia; and even the whole tract properly denominated BabyUmia and Ckaldea, including all the arable and pasture land, from whence Babylon could conveniently have been sup- plied, by the inland navigations, was little more than double the above aggregate, taken at 13,000 square mUes. And though it be true, that the qua- lity of the Babylonish lands, in most places, was superior in fertiUty, to those of England ; yet, oil the other hand, a prodigious deduction must be made for the marshes and lakes of Lower Mesopo> tamia and Chaldea« It then becomes a question.
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whether matters can be so constituted, as that nearly the half of the products of a considerably eztensiTe country^ can be transported to any one paint within it ; or whether, if that were practica- ble, the inhabitants of that spot coukl afford to pur- chase them, at a price so greatly enhanced^ as the curcnmstances of the case mnst necessarily render ihem?
The reader should be aware, tliat we have here stated every particular, at the lowest ; for it may be observed, that if Babylon contained only the lowest number of square miles set forth in our statement, that is, 72 ; and had been built and inhabited in the manner of London, the ivhole country of Babylonia, Chaldea, &c. equal to about the half of South Bri- tain, would not have been equal to the supply of its inhabitants; which would have amounted to little less than four millions.
Probably then, we ought to conclude that the founder of Babylon extended, either through osten- tation or ignorance, the walls of this city, so as to include an area that could never be filled up with habitations ; for it is not so much the extent of the waUs, as the difficulty of collecting, in the first instance, and of supplying, in the second, the wants of so great a population, as the space must necessa- rily have contained, that staggers our belief. A despotic prince, who commanded the labours of his subjects in so complete a degree as to be enabled to rear such vast, and such useless piles, as the Egyp- tian Pyramids, could perhaps, with equal ease, have extended a wall of brick round a space equal to the
og 2
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largest given dimensions of Babylon : but to ooUect
together a number of people sufficient to occupy it, with any degree of convenience to themselves, and of advantage to the public at large, might be beyond the power either of a Icing of Egypt, or of Babylon. Therefore this fiimous city in all probability occupied a part, only, of the vast space inclosed by the wall. It is a question that no one can positively answer, what proportion of the space was occupied T but from certain circumstances that we shall presently mention, it is possible that nearly two-thirds of it might have been occupied, in the mode in which the large cities of Asia are built ; that is, in the style of some of those of India, which we have ourselves seen ; they having gardens, reservoirs of water, and large open places within them. Moreover, the houses of the common people consist of one iloor only ; so that of course, fewer people can be accom- modated in the same compass of ground, in an In- dian, than in an European city. This accounts at once for the enormous dimensions of some of the Asiatic cities ^ : and perhaps we cannot allow much
* The Ayin Acbaree states, that the wall of Mahmoodabad, in Guzerat, was n square of seven cotiet, which are equal to about 1 3 miles. We know no p.irticulars oonoeniiiig it, farther than that it was founded by Mabmood, the first Mahomedan oon- queror of India.
Taking the extent of Gour (the ancient capital of Bengal) at the most reasonable calculation, it was not less than 15 miles in length, extending along the old bank of the Ganges, and firom two to three in breadth. See the Memoir of the Map of Hin- doostan, page 51. See also the general idea of Asiatic ctties. In the same Memoir, page 58.
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less than double the space to accommodate the same number of Asiatics, that Europeans would require.
Herodotus indeed says, that Babylon abounded in houses from 8 to 4 stories in height which, however, does not do away the idea of tlie greater part being huts of one floor only. In the Indian cities also, a great many houses of the like kind occur ; but generally speaking, so much more open ground is attached to these, than to the huts, as to leave no balance in favour of population, from the additional stories.
That the area inclosed by the walls of Babylon was only partly built on, is proved by the words of Quintus Curtius, who says, lib. v. c. 4, that " the buildings (in Babylon) are not contiguous to the Walls, but some considerable space was left all round." He says, the space of one jugerum ; which being a square measure, equal to about -J of an acre ; and expressed by Pliny, lib. xviii. c. 3, to be 240 feet in length, by 120 in breadth ; perhaps 240 feet may be intended for the breadth of the void space ; as Diodorus says much the same thing ^ What follows, in Curtius, is not so easy to com- prehend: he says, " nor was the inclosed space entirely occupied by buildings ; nor more than 80 stadia of it.* Is a square of 80 stadia meant! Then about \ of the space was occupied ; and 80 square stadia is too inconsiderable a space, where the whole area is more than ten times as great.
* We have somewhere met with the jugerum^ used as a met- ture of length; but cannot recollect where. Dr. Greaves con* fliden it as a space of 240 feet in length, when applied as above.
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Nor, (says he) do the houses join ; perhaps from motives of safety. The remainder of the space U euliivated ; that in the event of a siege, the inha- bitants might not be compelled to depend on sap* plies from without Thus far Curtius.
Diodorus describes a vast space taken up by the palaces and public buildings. The inclosure of one of the palaces (which appears to be what is called by others the citadel ; of which^ more in the se- quel) was a square of 15 stadia, or near a mile and a half; the other of 5 stadia : here are more than 2|- square miles occupied by the palaces alone. Be- sides these* there were the temple and tower of Bo- lus, of vast extent ; the hanging gardens, &c.
The present city of Bussorah, according to the description of M« Niebuhr, and others, is much to the point of our argument ; and is also situated in the very same region with ancient Babylon. The circuit of its walls, according toM. Niebuhr, is about 7 British miles ^ (Mr. Irwin says 12), and may con* tain about 3 square miles ; and yet M. Niebufar reckoned, in 1766, only 40 to 50,000 inhabitants. The ground within the walls has both date-groves and corn-fields in it: and M.Niebuhr very aptly
' According to Herodotus, it really happened durin*? one of its sieges, that the inhahitants derived mucli advantatje from the laiids within the walls ; but had half of tlie area remained in the state of fields, it would not liave fed, in the usual way, one-sixth part of the inhabitants residing on the other half. But the mode of living, during a siege, is very difierent ; and a small quantity of proviaiona goes a great way.
' He says a Gennan mile and a half.
13
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compares it to ancient Babylon, in this respect. By the plan, it seems as if less than one-third of the space was occupied by habitations^ &c. in the usual style of building in Asia ^
Although the above notices do not convey any correct idea of the quantity of space occupied by the buildings, yet we may collect most clearly,- that much vacant space remained within the walls of Babylon : and this, in our idea, does away the great difficulty respecting the magnitude of the city itself. Nor is it stated as the e£bct of the subsequent de- cline of Babylon ; but as the actual state of it, when Alexander first entered it : for Curtius leaves us to understand, that the system of cultivating a large proportion of the inclosed space, originated with the foundation itself ; and the history of its two rieges, by Cyrus and Darius Hystaspes, seems to shew it. See Clio, 190 ; and Thalia, 150, et seq.
But after all, it is certain, and we are ready to allow, that the extent of the buildings of Babylon was great, and far beyond the ordinary nse of capi- tal cities then known in the world : which may in- deed be concluded, from the manner in which the ancients in general speak of it ^ In particular, what
* At the rate of 50,000 to 9 square miles, Babylon at 72» should have contained 1, £00,000.
' however, we believe the report of Diodorus, the area of Nhmeh was much greater than that of BabyloOf taken on the report of Oitarofans. If the report of Strabo be adopted, Baby- Ion fidls but litde short of Nineveh, in respect of the area con* tained within its walls ; and if that of Herodotus, Babylon very &t exceeds it. But, it must be supposed, at all events, that much open space remained in Nineveh, as well as in Babykm.
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Strabo says of it, and of Seleueia ; together with what Pliny says of the latter, proves, by comparisons which are very strikiog, that Babylon had been by 6r the largest city known to those writers. Strabo says, p. 737, that Seleueia wa8> in his time, larger than Babylon ; the greater part of which was be- come a desert. This implies that Babylon, in its then state^ was in the next degree, in point ofeine, to Seleueia : for the greaier part of Babylon (thai is, of the former city, we may suppose), was deserted, and yet Seleueia, which was a very large city, is re- presented only as being larger than Babylon, when in that reduced state. To add to this, Pliny, at perhaps 70 years after Strabo, says, lib. Ti. c 26, that Seleueia contained 600,000 people ; yet, we can hardly suppose that it had increased during that intenral ; because Ctesiphon, previous to the time of Strabo, had become the winter residence of the Par- thian kings. So that it may be inferred, at least, that Seleueia, a very large city, containing 600,000 inhabitants, was rather less than haff the original size, and contained less than half the original popu- lation of Babylon : and, of course, that the popula- tion of the latter, during its most flourishing state, exceeded twelve hundred thousand; or, perhaps, a miUian and a quarter*
It has been said, page 446, note, that London and its environs (by which is meant to exclude the parts that are only classed as such, by being inserted in the bills of mortality), may be supposed to occupy 15|- square miles, of British measure ; and also, in the same place, that, very probably, according to the
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scattered way in which Babylon, in common with other Asiatic cities, was built, nearly double the quantity of space would be occupied by an equal
number of people in tbat city ; or say, 30 miles. Now, according to this proportion, the miliiou and quarter <^ people in Babylon should have covered, or at least have occupied, nearly 47 square miles ; or within one mile of | of the whole space of 72 miles, taken on the report of Clitarchus, and others, who accompanied Alexander. The reader will re- collect that the report of Curtius, as we understand it, is a square of 80 stadia, which is equal to about ^ of the area, according to his ow n statement of the circuit ; which is 368 stadia. Thus the two results di£fer no more than about part.
Were we to admit, that the whole area of 7d miles, or, according to Strabo, 80 miles, was occu- pied ; it would be stepping beyond the bounds tbat probability warrants, according to what has yet oi^ fered itself to our notice, in a situation that could not command supplies by sea. The measure of population, and consequently the extent of the ground built on, roust have been regulated by the power of afifording supplies of provisions and neces- saries to the inhabitants ; and this must have a refer- ence, not only to the state of the surrounding country, but to the facility of transporting its productions* It has been ahready stated, that the access to Baby- lon, by water, was not easy : for so far from being open to all the world, for supplies, the communica- tion with the adjacent countries was but imperfect :
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and one of those countries, Arabia, afforded little or nothing.
Perhaps, in no case whatsoever, can the sise of an mUmd capital be extended, so as to bear any pro- portion to the extent of an overgrown empire : be- cause the prices of provisions and necessaries, keep- ing pace with the increase of the people collected together, they cannot, in the end, aflford to purchase them. And although this applies more particularly to inland situations, yet it applies, in a degree, to maritime situations also.
It may be remarked, that Diodorus says, that Senuramis brought together, from different parts of her empire, two millions of workmen, to build her city of Babylon. It is possible, that this number may have been the popular estimate of the inhabitants of the city : and so &r is certain, that, at the rate allowed above, the 72 square miles would have con- tained more than nineteen hundred thousand. But it may rationally admit of a doubt, whether two mil- lions of people, or any number approaching to thai measure of population, were ever brought together, in one city, since the creation of the world. One might have expected it in China, if any where ; but the population of Pekin, we believe, falls much be« low that of London. Probably, there is a certain maximum of population, which is determined by the local circumstances of each situation, combined with accidental ones ; and which may therefore vary in all. The reader will easily figure to himself some of these circumstances. Perhaps London may be capi^
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bie of as great an extension as any European city : nnce the plenty, and portable nature, of its fuel, is such, as to be afforded almost as cheap as in many of
its provincial towns ; the country around it plenti- ful, and the communications easy; its port con- venient for the importation of grain, from all the world ; and its fleets equal both to the transporta- tion, and to the protection of it. But even these advantages have their limits : besides, the habits of living require other articles of prime necessity, which can only be drawn from the produce of the country itself ; and Which, on the gradual extension of the city, must be brought from places more and more remote, until the prices become enhanced to an in- convenient and insupportable degree.
We shall next inquire into the geograpkieal posi- tion and remains of Babylon : the former of which, being, as we trust, very satisfactorily ascertained, by the authorities that will be adduced (ancient as well as modern), there will, of course, be little doubt con- cerning the identity of the latter *.
I. By the traditions of the Oriental writers in general ; and of the natives on the spot.
II. By the notices found in ancient authors, cor- responding with those traditions : and
III. By the description of its remains, by modern
* The reader is feferred to Map, No. VI. at page 41-1, for explanations reipecting the geographical situation of Babylon.
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travellers^ compared with the ancient descriptions. Of these, in their order.
First, Of the traditions of the Oriental geo- grapherS; &c.
Abulfeda says ' that Babel, anciently a celebrated city, which communicated its name to the whole province, (Babylonia,) has now nothing more than a village on its site. There are still to be seen the ruins of structures of the highest antiquity, which induces a belief that a great city stood there. He adds, that in ancient times the kings of Cafutan re- sided there. Also, that HeUah stands on the land of Bahel: as well as Swra, which is near to Kasr Ibn Hobeira*.
M. Otter, quoting the Turkish geographer, Ibra- him Effendi, says, that ** Bahel is close to Hellak •* and on the left hand ' (t. e, on the west) of the road, in going from Hillah to Bagdad."
The Arabs and inhabitants on the spot, not only give the name of Babel to the district round about Hillah ; but have also pointed out to many Euro- pean travellers (in particular Delia Valle, Pere Emanuel, Niebuhr, and Beauchamp), vast ruins and heaps of earth or rubbish, on both sides of the Euphrates, as the remains of the ancient city, spoken of by Abulfeda, and other Eastern writers.
The Oriental geographers give the latitude of Babel from 32' 15' to 32' 25'. The centre of it,
* See Irak ; article Babel.
* lb. articles Hellah and Kiur Hobeira,
* Vol. ii. p. 211.
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admitting the ruin taken for the tower of Belus to be the remains of that edifice, should be in latitude 32* 31' : since these remains are about three G. miles
to the northward of Hillah, which, by observation, is in about 32' 28' •.
M. Otter informs us that Hillah, according to the Kanan, is in latitude 32*^ 25\ which diffisrs oidy three minutes from the report of M. Niebuhr
Secondly, By the notices in ancient authors.
Herodotus says, that the fountains of bitumen at Is, from whence the bitumen, used in the construc- tion of Babylon, was brought, were situated at eight journies above that city. (See the note to page 443.) There are some copious fountains of this kind, near Hit, a town on the Euphrates, at 128 G. miles above HiUah, reckoning the distance along the bank of the Euphrates. This distance answers to eight ordi- nary journies of a caravan, of 16 miles each, direct; and is at the same rate as the six journies, at which Hit is reported to lie from Bagdad, according to M« Niebuhr. There can be no doubt, therefore, that Nil is the place intended by Is; and which should have been written //.
The Theodosian tables allow 44 Roman miles be- tween Seleucia and Babylon ; and these produce 32 G. miles in direct distance, allowing for the inflexions of the road : for it can hardly be doubted that road distance was intended. The 44 MP. direct, wouUl
' M. Niebuhr says Sj^" 2S': M. Beauchamp^ diS' 38'; no doubt falsely printed* ' Vol. ii. S09.
BABYLOlf.
give 95 G. miles. AcoorcKng to Pliny, lib. vi. c. 26;
Seleucia was built at the distance of 3 MP. from Ctesiphon ; and on the opposite, or western^ bank of the Tigris : and the site of Ctesiphon u zeoogniied by the remains of the stately palace of C3kosroe9 (now named Tank Kesra, or the Throne of Chos- roes This palace is placed, on the authority of M. Niebuhr, Mr. Ives, M. Beauchamp, and Abul- feda, at 19 G. miles to the sonth-eastward of Bag- dad There can hardly be a shadow of doubt respecting the site of Ctesiphon : for, according to Abulfeda, Tauk Kesra stood within that of Modmn, which he says was named by the Persians, ThaUa* Jim \ meaning Ciesipham ; it hemg well known that Modain, by which is meant the two cities, was the collective name for Seleucia and Ctesiphon, amongst the Arabian conquerors of Persia. Ctesiphon was the Parthiam^ or as Abul&da calls it» the Persiam name ; which is exactly the same thing.
These remains stand very near to the eastern bank of the Tigris, at a few miles below the conflux of the Diala river with the Tigris; as Pliny says that
' Abulfeda's Irak, article Modain, or Madain. Otter, vol. ii. p. 37. — D'Herbelot, article Noushirwan, Sec also Irwin's and Ives's Travels ; of which more in the sequel.
• M. Niebuhr furnishes tlie bearing. See his Vot/n^c cn Arabic^ vol. ii. p. Mf), French edition. Al)ulteila, nrticli- Mo- dain, says, th:it ii is a day's journey below BaL;(la(l ; whidi is ecjii.'il to 18 Arabic miles, or 19 geographic. The distiince on the map is reckoned from the bridge of Bagdad. See Map, No. VI. facing page 441.
* Also, hbnnin ; according to Reiske's spelling. Otter writes !irU6on, and Esban'm. Vol. ii. p. 37.
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Ctesiphori and Seleucia did, in respect of the Me^' dian Choaspes ; wliich is evidently meant for the Diala. It agrees also with the position of the Nahr Malka, a royal canal, leading from the Euphratea into the Tigris : for it joined the latter at Seleucia* A part of the bed of this canal is still to be traced ; and it existed so late as the time of the Bagdad Caliphate. It is said, also, by M. Beaiu^amp, that the foundations of the walls of Seleucia may be traced. Of Ctesiphon, aUo, very considerable re- mains are visible ^.
M. Beauchamp % who visited both the site of Baby«% Ion, and of Tauk Keara, says, that they are 12 leagues asunder : and also, that Tauk Kesra is 6 leagues from Bagdad. And, in effect, the particular ruin named by the natives. Babel, or Makloube (taken for the tower of Belus), is, on our construction S 39 G. miles to the SSW of Tauk Kesra; answering to 12 farsangs, or Persian leagues. And this latter is also 19 such miles from Bagdad, answering to six fersangs. But as the whole breadth of Seleuda, and half that of Babylon, is induded in the 12 fiursangs
* Mr. Ives describes very particularly the remains of Ctesi- pbon, or Modain, p. 290 ; as well as the stupendous palace of Cfaosroes, which marks its site. See also Irwin's Travels, vo]« ii. p. 851 ; and Otter, vol. ii. p. 56.
* See the European Magazine for May, 1792, p. 338, et seq.
* The geographical construction alhided to, is founded on the materials furnished by a number of persons, and will be found in the Map, No. VI. I'lio follouinj^ are the persons whose works have been consultt d: Niebulir, Ivcs, Irwin, Otter, Kvers, Thevenot, Delia V alle, Tcxeira, EUrisi, Abull'edu, and 13albi.
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reckoned between Tank Kesra and Makloube, it will be found that the 44 MP. of the tables, taken at 32
G. miles, direct, will agree to the interval of space between the approximating parts of the two cities ; which might even be less than 32.
Strabo says (p. 738.) that Selencia was built at the distance of 300 stadia from Babylon ; and as these are to be taken at the rate of 700 to a degree, 26 G. miles will be the distance intended.
Pliny says (lib* vL c. 26.) that they were 90 miles asunder : but this differs so much from all the other accounts, that we shall lay it out of the question.
Now, the whole of these authorities, taken to- gether, clearly point out the position of ancient Babylon to be at, or near, the present city of Htttdh, or Hellah, which is known to have been built of the bricks of the ancient city ; and is said to stand on a part of its very site. For it agrees in point of dis- tance, from Ctesiphon and Zr, or HH ; and is ex- pressly pointed out by the Oriental geographers, and the people on the spot ; and moreover retauis its an- cient name of Babel, And lastly, the identity of the position intended by the Oriental geographers is proTcd by the latitude.
Thirdly, By the descriptions of its remains, by modern travellers, compared with the ancient de- scriptions.
According to the description of this city, by He- rodotus, it stood in a large plain : the exterior of it was a square, surrounded by a lofty wall ; and it was divided into two equal parts by the Euphrates, which passed throu^^li it. In the centre of one of
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tliese divirions; stood the temple and tower of Belus ;
in the other, the spacious palace of the king. We have already spoken of the extraordinary dimensions of the wall that surrounded Babylon ; which are ra* riously given, from 480 to 360 stades. The first of these numbers is (as we have seen), from Herodotus, whose measures both of the enceinte and every other part, are enormous and improbable ; occasioned, as we are ready to believe, by corruptions of the toxt. As an instance of the latter, he is made to say, that reeds were placed at every 30th course of brick- work, in the Babylonish buildings ; but modem travellers find them at every 6th, 7th, or 8th course, in Aggarkuf, apparently a Babylonish btdlding : and M. Beauchamp found them at every course, in some of the buildings in Babylon. We have therefore disregarded his numbers on the present occasion. Even the dimensions given by Strabo are beyond probability, as far as respects the ketghi of the Walls, which he gives at 50 cubits, or 75 feet. The thickness, 32 feet, if meant of an earthen rampart, faced with brick, fiiUs short of our modem ramparts, which are about 48 feet at the base ; the parapet alone being IS feet, yet leaving an ample space for two carriages to pass each other, which is the most that Strabo says of the space on the wall of Babylon. And as a eatmon proof parapet was not required, at Babylon, several carriages might have gone abreast on a rampart of equal solidity with ours. There is, therefore, nothing extraordinary in this particular ^
* Kcspectiog the height and thickness of the walls ol Baby ion, VOL. I. H h
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With respect to the two principal structures m this stupendous city, the auieUaied pataee (caHed
also by some the citadel), and the temple and tower of Belus — the general description of the first is given hy Diodorus^ of the latter by Herodotus. They are both wondeifhl in their kind ; the first far the ex- tent of the ground which it covered, and which is represented to have been a square of near a mile and
tbere are great variatioiM in the different reports. Probably, we ought to receive the acoounts of the kter writers, as the most correct ; for the same reason that we gave a preference to dm report of the extent of the city. The Macedonians, and latter Greeks, had more leisure to examine and measure the objects that presented themselves, than casual observers. Pliny seems to have copied Herodotus ; whilst Strabo probably fidlowed the Macedonian reports. Diodorus also makes a striking distinc- tion between the reports of the early, and die iateTf writers. It may liave been, that 50 cubits, or about 75 feet, was the height of the city wall, measured, perhaps, from the bottom of the ditch ; and the thickness, S2,
The following are the statements of the different authors, re- specting the measures of Babylon.
|
Circuit in StsdH. |
HilBbtitfUieWaUk |
Braadib oftlM Walli. |
|
|
Herodotus . . PUny, GO MP. Ctesias . . • • Clitarchus . * Curtius .... Strabo . • • . |
480 480 360 365 368 385 |
Culnft Feet. 200 = aOO • 300 |
Cubilt. Ftet. 50 = 75 |
|
100 = 150 50 = 75 |
— 32 — 32 |
* Fifty wg}fm ne given, it should probably be fifty cubits.
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a half® : the other for its bulk and height; its base ^one being said to be a cubic stade, surmounted by seven towers, which suceeisiTely diminished as they rose. More will be said concerning this towor in the sequel ; when it will appear that there nrnst either be an error in the text of Herodotus, in this place ; or that he had been grossly deceived in point of information.
Herodotus has not said in which of the divisions of the city, the temple and palace respectively stood ; but it may be pretty clearly collected from Diodorus, that the temple stood on the eoMt side, and the palace on the west ; and the remains found at the present day, accord with this idea. For, Diodorus describes the great palace to be on the west side, the LESSER palace on the east ; and there also was the brasen statue of Belus. Now, he makes such a distinction between the two palaces, as pliunly to shew that the one on the west was to be regarded as THE PALACE ; and, consequently, was the palace in- tended by those who place a palace, to answer on the one side, to the temple of Belus on the other. It is also to be collected from Herodotus, Clio, 181, that the palace and the citadel were the same : he says, '' the royal palace fills a large and strongly defended space," in the centre of one of the divisions.
Diodorus says, that the temple stood in the centre
* DcBcripCioDs of the palaces will be found in IModonis, lib. iL c. 1. And a general idea of the extent and porition of the walls of Babylon, as alio of the relative situations of the public
buildings, will be found in the Map opposite page 441.
H h 2
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of the city ; Heroclotus, m the centre of thai ditnsum
of the city in which it stood, as the palace in the centre of its division. But the description of Dio* dorus is pointed^ with respect to the fact of the palace bdng near to the bridge, and consequently to the river bank : and he is borne out by the descrip- tions of Strabo and Curtius, both of w horn represent the hanging gardens to be very near the river : and all agree that they were within, or adjacent to, the square of the Jhriified paktee They were sup- plied with water, drawn up by engines from the Euphrates. Consequently, the p<ilace should have stood nearer to the centre of the city itself, than to that of the diyision in which it stood ; since the divi* sion was more than four miles broad : and it appears natural enough that the princess should avail herself of the prospect of a noble river, a stadium in breadtb^ flowing near the palace, instead of withdrawing two miles from it And it appears probable, that the
' Strabo, p. 7dS. He says, that " the Euphrates flows through the middle of the city ; and the pensfle gardens are ad* jacent to the river ; from whence they were watered."
* Diodorus describes a vmdied passage, under the bed of the Euphrates, by which the queen (Sbmiramis) could pass from one palace to the other> on different sides of the river, (which was a stadium in breadth ; according to Strabo, p. 7S8.) without cross- ing it. This serves at least to shew, that the palaces were very near to the river banks.
At a time when a tuhnkl of more than half a mile in length under the Thambs, is projected, it may not be amiss to mention the reported dimensions of the tunnel made by Semiramis, under the Euphrates; which, however, was no more than SOD feet in length, or less than ^ of the projected tunnel under the Thames.
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temple was also at no great distance from the oppo- site bank of the river ; that is* the eastern bank
A presumptive proof of the supposed position of the temple, should the words of Diodorus be regarded as ambiguous, is, that the gate of the city, named BeUdian, and which we must conclude to be deno- minated from the temple, appears pretty clearly to have been situated on the east side. When Darius Hystaspes besieged Babylon (Thalia 155, et seq.) the Belidian and Cissian gates were opened to him, by Zopyrus ; and the Babylonians fled for refuge to Ae temple of Belus ; as, we may suppose, the nearest place of security. The Cissian, or Susian gate, must
That of Semiramis is said to have been 1 5 feet in breadth, and 12 in height, to the springing of the arch ; pi rhaj)s 20 in all. The ends of the vault were shut up with brazen satt s. Diodorus had an idea that the Euphrates was 5 stadia in breadth. See Ub. ii. c. 1.
The Euphrates was turned out of its channel in order to effect this purpose. Herodotus^ who is silent concerning the tunnel, says, that the river was turned aside in order to build a bridire. Diodorus describes a bridge also. There is an absurd story told in both these historians, respectinir the disposal of the water of the river, during the time ot buildinj^ the bridge, &'C. According to them, the water was received into a vast reservoir, instead of the obvious and usual mode, of making a new channel, to con- duct the river clear of the work constructing in its bed, into the old chatmel, at a point lower down.
* Here it is proper to remark, that there is this specific dif- ference between the descriptions of Herodotus and of Diodorus : the first says, that the centres of the two divisions were occupied, respectively, by the palace and temple ; but Diodorus, by two palaces ; and although he speaks of the temple also, yet he does not point out its place. The square of the temple itself was two stadia.
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surely have been in the eastern front of the city, as Susa lay to the east; and, by circumstances, the Belidian gate was near it ; as the plan was laid that Persiam troops were to be stationed opporite to these gates : and it is probable that matters would be so contrived as to facilitate, as much as possible, the junction of the two bodies of Persian troops that were first to enter the city, as a kind of forlorn hope.
It may also be remarked, that the gates at which the feints were made, previous to the opening of the Belidian and Cissian, were those of Ninus, Chaldea, and Semiramis. The first, towards Ninus or Nineveh, must have been, of course, to the n&rih ; and the Chaldean, to the south: and perhaps that of Semiramis to the north-east, between the Beli- dian and Ninian ; as that of Cissia to the south-east, between the Belidian and Chaldean. As it is un» questionable, that the Ninian and Cissian gates were in the eastern division of Babylon, since the countries from whence they are respectively denominated, lie to the east of the Euphrates, it may be collected that the attack was confined to that division alone (and what army could invest a fortress of thirty-four miles in circuit?) And if this be admitted, the Belidian gate, and temple of Belus, must have stood on the east side of the Euphrates
* HercNkititt says, that there were one hundred gatea m Che chreuit of the city ; whieh being a space of thirty-four milea, allowa three galea to etch mile. It ia oertain, that in modem fortreaaea, the eommaaieatioiia widi the country are not ao nu- meroua, in proportion to their extent : nor on the other hand.
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Taking for granted, then, that the tower of Belus stood in the eastern division of the city, we shall examine the descriptions of it.
It appears that none of the Greeks who describe it, had seen it, till after it had been either rumed by Xerxes, or gone so far to decay, that its original de- sign was not apparent. Herodotus himself, there- fore, admitting that he viewed it, might not he a perfect judge of the design, or of the original height of the Buperstmctare : and this may account for his exaggerated description ; perhaps imposed on liim, by some of the citizens of Babylon, long after the upper stories were fallen to ruin. The mass of rublHsh, mentioned by Strabo, seems to prove this.
All the descriptions are very brief; and Strabo is the only one who pretends to give the positive mea- sure of the elevation of the tower; though all agree in stating it to be very great The, square of the temple, says Herodotus, was two stadia (1,000 feet) ;
are tfaey so fiur aiunder as to have only three u a firont of eight and a half miles. Probably the rest might have been smaller portals, which were shut up^ duriog a siege.
It may indeed be concluded, that there were fewer gates and oommunicatioos with the country, on the west, than elsewhere ; for it maybe recollected, that Alexander wished to enter the city by the west, (after his return from India), m order to avoid the evil foretold by the soothsayers ; but was compelled to give up the attempt, by reason of the marshes and morasses on that side. (See Arrian, lib. vii.) We are told also by Diodorus, lib.iii. c 1. that the number and depth of the morasses round about Ba- bylon, made a smaller number of towers, in the nature of bas- tions, necessary for the defence of the wall. There were only two hundred and fifty of these in the whole circuit of thirty-four miles.
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and the tower itself one stadium ; in which Strabo agrees. The former adds, "In the midst, a tower rifles^ of the sohd depth and height of one stadium; upon which, resting as a base, seven other turrets are built in regular succession. The ascent is on the outside, which, winding from the ground, is conti- nued to the highest tower ; and in the middle of the whole structure, there is a convenient resting-place. In the last tower is a large chapel, in which is placed a couch, magnificently adorned ; and near it a table of solid gold, but there is no statue in the place." Clio, 181. He afterwards (183.) describes another chapel, lower down in the structure, with golden statues, tables, and altars: all of which appear to have been forcibly taken away by Xen^es, who aL>o put the priest to death.
Strabo (p. 738.) says, that the sepulchre of Belus was a pyramid of one stadium in height; whose base was a square of like dimensions ; and that it was ruined by Xerxes. Arrian agrees in this parti- cular; and both of them say, that Alexander wished to restore it, that is, we may suppose, .both the tower and temple, but that he (bund it too a great a labour; for it is said, that ten thousand men were not able to remove the rubbish, in the course of two months. Arrian calls it a stupendous and magni- ficent fiftbric ; and says that it was situated in the heart of the city. Diodorus, lib. ii. c. 1. says, that it was entirely gone to ruin, in his time; so that nothing certain could be made out, concerning its de- sign ; but that it wasof an exceeding great height, built of brick, and cemented with bitumen ; in which thci
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Others generally agree. Diodorus adds^ that on the top was a statue of Belus^ forty feet in height ; in an upright posture. It has been the practice to
make the statues placed on the tops of buildings, of such a height, as to appear of the natural size, wlien viewed from below : and if this rule was followed in Babylon, the tower should have been of about the height of five hundred feet, for the statue itself, in order to be viewed from a convenient station, clear of the base ; and admitting the retreats of the stones to be regular, must have been from six hundred to six hundred and fifty from the eye below : and, at that distance, a statue of forty feet high would have appeared nearly of the size of a man.
It is imposrible to suppose, for a moment, that the statement of the height and fashion of the tower, as it appears in Herodotus, can be true, since it describes the base of it to be a solid cube of a stadium, or five hundred feet; on which arose seven other towers, diminishing gradually to the top. Let any one» the least conversant in the dimensions of buildings, re- volve in his mind the idea of a perpendicular wall five hundred feet in height, and as much iu length 2 And thb, one side of a base only, for a superstruc- ture that must be supposed to bear some proportion to it! Surely Herodotus wrote breadth and length, and not breadth and height; which would agree with Strabo ; and then we are left to conceive (as . Strabo also says), a pyramid, consisting of the eight stories; or base with seven retreats, described by Herodotus ; and consequently, of a form and height not very ditierent from those of the great pyramid at
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Memphis ; only that the retreats were wider, and less numerous ; and the top, perhaps, flatter K That it was exceeding lofty, must be conceiTed by
the mode of expression of those who describe it : and if it be admitted that the whole fabric was a stadium iu height, as Strabo says, and as appears probable ; eren this measure, which is about five hundred feet, must be allowed to be a vast height, for so bulky a structure, raised by tbc hands of man ; for it is about twenty feet higher than the great pyramid of Mem- phis; and would exceed the lofitiest pile in this Island (Salbbury steeple) by one hundred feet'. But as the base of the great pyramid is about seven hundred feet square, or nearly once and a half that of the tQwer of Bel us, the solid contents of the pyramid must have been much greater \ The
* There are pagodas in India, particularly in the Penmsnla, that answer precisely to this kind of pyramid. The great pagoda in Tanjorc, wliicli has even more stories than the tower of Behis, comes up exactly to our ick-a. See tlic drawing of Tan- jore, puhlislied hy my friend Mr. Dalrynijile, in 1776.
* It is said, by Dr. Greaves, that the old sti t ple of St. Paul's, previous to the fire of H)6(j, was live hundred and twenty feet in height ; which was, of course, forty higher than the pyramid ; and twenty higher than the tower of lielus.
* It is well known that travellers differ exceedinglv in their reports of the dimensions of the great pyramid, owing to the impossibility of measuring the sides of its base ; which are in a great measure covered w ith heaps of sand drifted against them, by the w ind : so that the corners alone remain naked to the foundations. Our countryman. Dr. Greaves, a mathema- tieian and astronomer, about the middle of the last century, measured the great pyramid by means of a base and tpiadrant ; and aiSirm^ tiiat the sides of the pyramid are aix hundred and
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Greeks, with Aleiander, who saw and described the tower, had also seen the pyramids: but they make no comparison between either their bulk, or their
altitudes. The tower, from its having a narrower base, would appear much more than twenty feet higher than the pyramid The space occupied by the mass of ruins, taken for the tower (tf Belus, ap- pears, as far as can be judged, to agree with the
ninety-three feet of the English standard, and the diagonal pre- cisely ihe same ; so that each of the four rtcltMng tides of it form a perfect equilateral triangle, bating the top, which termi- nates in a plain aurftce of thirteen feet square. He also affirms, that the perpendicular altitude of the same pyramid is four hun- dred and eighty-one feet
Another English gcndeman (Mr. Graves) measured the same pyramid a few years ^o. His report is seven hundred and twenty-seven to seven hundred and twenty-eight feet, eaeh side ; and the dbgonal six hundred and eighty-three; giving an altitude of four hundred and fifly feet only.
Had M. Niebuhr measured the pyramid, we should have listened to his report with tlic attention and respect due to his authority : hut ho only paced it. However, tlie result, as it res- pects the l)ase, approaches to Dr. Greavcs's. For he reckoned one lumdred and forty of his paces, which lie calculates at five Danish feet each, Riving a total of seven hundred and ten feet; equal to about six hundred and eighty-five English. If we take his pace at five Koinan feet, the result will be much the same. But he sinks the altitude very much below either of the others.
It is proper to remark, that although the great pyramid is somewhat larger at the base, than the second, yet that the latter, in M. Niebuhr's idea, is the highest of the two, being built up to a poitit ; whereas the greater terminates with a plane .of thirteen feet scjuare.
* The reader is referred to the Map opposite page til, wlierc a comparison is made between the section of tlie pyramid, and that of the tower.
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idea that may be collected from the descriptions of it ; considering that, as so great a portion of it was fermed of earth, very much of the mass must have heen washed down by the rain; which, accord- ing to Delia Valle and Beauchanip, has worn deep ravines in its sides. Much also must have been dis- sipated, in dry seasons^ by the winds.
With respect to the form of the tower — some have surmised, that the winding path on the outside, gaye occasion to the report of eight towers placed one above the other: but had it derived its character from this drcumstance alone, it would have had a very different appearance from that of a regular pyramidal form, as is described by Strabo : although a winding path might have been so contrived, as to preserve the regularity of the figure.
Authors differ also, in respect of the manner in which the tower was completed at the top. Hero- dotus says, that it terminated in a spacious dome, in the nature of a chapel, or temple ; but others say, an observatory. Diodorus says, that the statue of Belus was at the top : Herodotus, lower down the building. Who shall decide ? Xerxes is said to have removed the statues ; so that, of course, Herodotus could not have seen them.
Delia Valle, when at Bagdad, in 1616, (see his Travels, Vol. ii.) had the curiosity to visit the site of Babylon ; which is well known to the people of tliose parts, as well by its name of Babel, as by the tra- ditions concerning it. He found, at the distance of about three miles to the northward of Hillah, and at no great distance from the eastern bank of the Eu-
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ph rates, a vast heap of ruins, of so heterogeneous a kind, thaty as he expresses it, he could find nothing whereon to fix his judgment, as to what it might have been, in its original state. He recollected the descriptions of the tower of Belus, in the writings of the ancieuts, and supposed that this might have been the remuns of it. He paced its drcumference and found it to be 1134 of his ordinary steps, which cannot well be rated lower than 2^ English feet each; but may have been 2^. At the former rate, the circuit would be 2552 feet ; whence the diraen- rions of each side of the ruin ^ould have been 638 feet ; but he himself reckons that number of steps equal to } of a league. An Italian league is about |- of an English league, of three statute miles ; con- sequently, the circuit would be 900 yards, or some- what more than half an English mile. Each side, then, would be 660 feet ; requiring nearly a mean between 2^ and 2 J, for the length of each step, which appears probable ; the Roman pace, or double step, being about 4 feet 10 inches of our standard.
There can be little doubt, but that the base has been increased by the falling ruins ; although it must be supposed, that such parts of them as con- sisted of burnt bricks, have been removed, as most of the other ruins of the same kmd have been ; and as even the foundations of the city walls, and of other structures, in Babylon, continue to be, to this day; and that for the purpose of building houses in other places. At all events, the base of the ruin must far exceed that of the original fabric: and, by the way, it may be concluded, that, if the Greeks
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found the tower of Belus, when in such a state, as that the dimensioDS of its base could be ascertained, a stadium in length and breadth* the standard of the Madium mnst hare been nearer 500 than 600 feet
Indeed, it can hardly be supposed, even when the furnace-baked bricks of the ruin were removed, that the remaining matter would form a mass of less than 660 feet on each side ; supposing it to have been 500 originally. It may be concluded, that the uppermost stories consisted more of masonry, than earth; but the lower, chiefly of earth, which was retained in its place by a vast wall of sun-diied bricks, the outer part, or feeing of which, was com- posed of such as had undergone the operation of fire. Strabo says, that the sides of the tower were of burnt bricks.
Delia Valle's description of this vast ruin contains much information, and also much internal eridence, concerning the position and dimensions of the tower of Belus. He goes on to say, that the mountainous ruin in question, like most other ruins, does not present a regular figure, but is of diffi»rdnt heights in different places ; and that the highest part of the palace at Naples is not so high as some parts of this ruin. In some places, the sides are steep and craggy ; in others, thejr form a slope that may be ascended ; and there appeared the traces of torrents that had been occasioned by the running off of the rain water. On the top, he saw what might be taken for caverns or cells; but they were in so ruinous a state, that he could not judge whether they made a part of the original design, or were excavated since; in fact,
13
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that the whole appeared like a mass of confusion ; none of its members being distinguishable.
With respect to the materials, he found that two lorts of brides had been made use of; theonebaTing been simply dried in the sun, the other baked in the furnace. Of the latter sort, which seem to have been employed only in such parts of the fabric, as were either the most exposed to the weatiier, or which required a greater degree of solidity than the rest, there were by far the smallest proportion ; and with these, a cement, either of lime, or of bitumen, had been used : but the parts which he dug into, were, generally speaking, fonned of sun-dried bricks. It is obvious, howerer, that his researches in this way must have been very much limited, both as to the number of places, and the depth to which he pene- trated. These bricks, (if they desenre the name,) were laid in cktff mortar only; and with this, or with the bricks themselves, broken reeds, or straw, had been mixed. He is, however, silent concerning any laijers of reeds ; although such have been ob- served by M. Beauchamp, in this place ; and by several others in the ruin Aggarkuf, near Bagdad.
He observed the foundations of buildings around the great mass, at the distance of 50 or 60 paces; but beyond that, to a great distance, the whole was • a clear, and an even plain. These foundations ap- pear to prove a great deal, respecting the temple and tower of Belus. For if the 50 or 60 paces on both sides of the ruin be reckoned equal to 260
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feet, and the base of the ruin GGO, we have a total of 920 feet ; or only 80 feet short of the two stadia, which, Herodotus says, was the dimensions of the square of the indosure of the temple of Belus ; in which the pyramidal tower stood. May it not then be suspected, that the foundations are a part of those of a range of buildings, which formed the indosure of the area in which the tower, stood ; and which buildings, in effect, constituted the temple itsdf?
Altliough Delia Valle's route must have led him across the whole extent of the eastern division of Babylon, yet he takes no notice of any remains, save those already mentioned. M. Niebuhr and M. Otter, did not indeed traverse the very same ground, be- cause they took the direct route from Hillah to Bagdad, which leads to the eastward of the nuns; but which, notwithstanding, crosses almost the whole length of the site of Babylon, between the supposed tower of Belus, and the east front of the city wall. See Map, at p. 441.
By the information collected by these gentlemen, at Hillah and elsewhere, it is certdn that other re- mains of walls and edifices are in existence, although enveloped in woods or coppices. M. Otter was told, that the site of Babylon was generally covered with wood: (Vol. ii. p. 211.) and M. Niebuhr, that amongst the hillocks or emineiices formed by its ruins, are found, here and there, trees that appear to be very aneieiU, as having been left untouched by the inhabitants ; although (as he observes) from the
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gulf of Persia to that neighbourhood, no other kind of trees^ except date and other firuit-trees, are to be seen ^.
M. Niebuhr was also informed (it is to be re-
' The hanging gardens (as they are called), which had an area of about acres, had trees of a considerable sixe growing in them : and it is not improbable that they were of a species different from those of the natural growth of the alluvial soil of Babylonia. Curtius says, that some of them were eight cubits in the girth ; and Strabo^ that there was a contrivanoe to pre- Tent the large roots from destroying the superstructnre, by buildiiig vast hollow piers, whidi were filled with earth to receive them. These trees may have been perpetuated in the same spot where they grew, notwithstanding that the terraces may have subsided, by the crumbling of the piers and waUsi that supported them ; the ruins of which may finrm the very eminences spoken of by M. Niebuhr ; and which are covered with a particular kind of trees. Such a mass of ruins could not but form a very considerable eminence. See the descriptions of the gardens, in Diodoms, lib. ii. c 1 ; Strabo^ p. 738 ; and Cortiusylib. c. 1. Josephus (contra Ap» lib. i. c. 19.) quotes Berosus, who also mentions them.
" There is little doubt but that the gardens contained at least Sf acres. Biodorus says, they formed a square of 400 feet ; Curtius, that they were supported by 20 waUs, 11 feet distant from each other; which spaces, together with the thickness of the walls, wiU at least make up 400 feet. Strabo says, four jugera ; but the just-mentioned dimensions require more than five. They had a view over the city walls, and were said to be SO cubits high. Finally, they were said to have been made to gratify the whim of a mistress ; and it most be confessed, that such fiincies appear more appropriate to such a duraeter, than to die sober wishes, and rational modes of expence, that may be expected in a queen eonsort ; at least one who partook of the patriotism of her husband ; and who would by all means prevent a monument of his folly from being exhibited alofl, to the view of the surrounding country.
VOL. I. I i
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gretted tluit be could not have been enabled to ▼isit
the ruins of Babylon generally), that the principal ruins^ answering to those seen by Delia Valle, were situated about three miles to the NNW oi Hillah. He says also, that such part of the walls, as stood above ground, hare long ago been carried away ; but that the foundations continue to be dug up, and are carried to Hillah. And that in the tract of Babel, on both sides of the Euphrates, are. seen many eminences that are dug into for bricks, as well as heaps of bricks themselves. These bricks, he says, are afoot square, and remarkably well baked ; and having originally been laid in matter that had no degree of tenadty, they were easily separated ; and that without breaking them. Vol. ii. page 235. The caravanserai of Hillah, as he was told, was built, at no very distant period, of those bricks ; and the town itself in the 11th century, according to M. Otter.
M. Beauchamp, \'icar General of Babylon, and Corresponding Member of the French Academy of Sciences, visited these celebrated ruins several times within the last twenty years. Of all the European travellers, none seems to have had so good an oppor- tunity of examining them as M. Beauchamp ; he having, apparently, prosecuted his inquiries at his fullest leisure, and under a protection that left his attention undisturbed ; advantages that none of the others seem to have possessed. Nor was his atten- tion confined to this spot only ; for he visited many other places both in Mesopotamia and Persia. His description of what he saw in the eastern quarter of
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Babylon^ is here given the last in order of the dif- ferent accounts, because it seems on the whole to convey the moat information of any, considered in a general point of view ; although- it &U8 short of some of the others* in respect of paiticttlars. It also supplies certain defects of the other descriptions. Still, however, he has rather excited, than gratified, our curiosity.
We hdve inserted in the text such parts only of M* 6eauchamp*8 descriptions, as apply immediately to our subject ; and the remainder is thrown into the form of notes. This arrangement has been made, in order that the reader's attention may not be diverted from the main object ; leaving him to examine the curious iacU stated in tlie notes, after- wards
The ruins of Babylon are very visible a league north of Hellah. There is, in particular, an eleva- tion which is flat on the top ; of an irregular figure ; and intersected by ravines. It would never have been suspected for the work of human hands, were it not proved by the layers of bricks found in it. Its height is not more than 60 yards. It is so little elevated, that the least ruin we pass in the road to it, conceals it from the view To come at the bricks, it is necessary to dig into the earth. They are
' We have not been able to obtain a copy of the original, from whence the translation of M. Beaucharop*s correspondence, inserted in the European Maf^azine for 1792, was made.
• This, however, is the mass of ruins, which Delia Valle describes ; and which we take for the remains of the tower of Belus,
I i 2
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baked with fire, and cemented with aepki, or bitu- men ; between each layer are found osiers.
" Above this mount, on the side of the river, are those immense ruins, which have served, and still serve, for the building of Hellah, an Arabian city, containing 10 or 12,000 souls. Here are found those large and thick bricks, imprinted with un- known characters, specimens of which I have pre- sented to the Abbe Bartbeiemy. This place, and the mount of Babel, are commonly called by the Arabs Maklouhe, that is, turned toj^sy-tuinDy, I was informed by the master-mason employed to dig for bricks, that tlie places from which he procured them were large thick walls, atul sometimes cham- bers. He has frequently found earthen yessels, engraved marbles, and, about eight years ago, a statue as large as life, which he threw amongst the rubbish. On one wall of a chamber he found the figures of a cow, and of the sun and moon, formed of varnished bricks*. Sometimes, idols of clay are found, representing human figures. I found one brick on which was a lion, and on others a half-moon in relief* The bricks are cemented with bitumen, except in one place, which is well preserved, where they are united by a very thin stratum of white ce- ment, which appears to me to be made of lime and sand.
* Diodorus, lib. ii. c. 1, says, that there were drawn m coUmt$9 on the bricks, used in building the wall of the great palace, va- rious animals ; also a repraaentation of a general hunting of wild beasts, &c. Src. The bricks were painted before they were burnt.
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" The bricks are every where of the same dimen- sioTis, one foot, three lines square, by three inches thick OeeasionaUy, layers ct osiers in bitumen ' are found, as at Babel.
*' The master-mason led me along a valley, which he dug out a long while ago, to get at the bricks of a waU, that, from the marks he shewed me, I guess
•
* " Most of llic bricks found at MakUmhe have writing on them : but it dot s not appear tliat it was meant to be read, for it is as common on bricks buried in the walls, as on those on the outside. I observed that each quarter has a peculiar impression : I mean, that we find but one series of letters, and arranged in the same manner, in one place.
" Besides the bricks with inscriptions, there are solid cylin- ders, three inches in diameter, of a white substance, covered with very small writing;, resemhliiiL; the inscriptions of Persepolis, mentioned by Chardin. — Black stones, which have inscriptions . engraved on them, are also met with. These, I was told, were found at Broussa, which is separated from Makloube by the river." (From the text of M. Beaucliamp.)
" " The quantity of bitumen that must have been employed in building Babylon, is scarcely credible. Most probably it was procured from //// on the Kuphrates, where we still find it. The master-mason told me, that he found some in a spot which he was digging, about 20 years ago ; which is by no means strange, as it is common enough on the banks of the Euphrates *. I have myself seen it on the road from Bagdad to Juba, an Arabian vil- lage, seated on that river." (From M. Beaucbamp.)
* We may remark on this report of the mason's, that Diodorus says, that great quantities of bitumen flow out of the ground at Babylon ; that these springs supphed it for the building of the city ; and that it was in such plenty, that it was even used for fuel ; (lib. ii. c. 1.) Herodotus, however, brings it from It, or
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to have been 60 feet thick. It ran perpendicular to the bed of the river^ and was probably the wall of the city. I found m it a jsubterranean canal, which, instead of being arched over, is covered with pieces
of sand-stone, six or seven feet long, by three wide. These ruins extend several leagues to the north of Hellah, and incontestibly mark the situation of an- cient Babylon
employed two men for three hours in clearing a stone which they supposed to be an idol. The part which I got a view of, appeared to be notliing but a shapeless ma^ : it was evident, however, that it was not a simple block, as it bore marks of the chisel, and there were pretty deep holes in it ; but I could not find any inscription on it. The stone is of a black grain ; and from the large fragments of it found in many places, it appears that there were . some monuments of stone built here. On the eastern side, 1 found a stone nearly two feet square, and six inches thick, of a beautiful granite, the grain of which was white and red. All these stones must have been brought from some distance, as this part of the desert contains none. On the same side of the city, as I was told by the master-mason, there were walls of varnished bricks, which he supposed to have been a temple ^J*
• The reader may recollect tliat uc have assumed 8^ British miles, or about three French leagues, for the s(|uare of the in- closure of iJabylon.
* I inintjine medals must he found in the ruins of Babylon, if sought alter : hut the Arabs pick tliem up only when they know Europeans are desirous of tliem. One of copper was brought
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These are all the notices that we have been able
to collect respecting the ruins of that quarter of Babylon^ which lies on the east of the Euphrates : and before we adduce the ifery brief description of idiat has been seen on the west, it may be proper to make a few observations on the reports of Ddia Valle and Beauchamp.
It would appear that all M. Beauchanip*s descrip- tions relate to the eastern division : for he says» that
Bromsa ' is separated from Makhube by the river" (Euphrates) : and it is well known that Broussa lies on the west side ; and therefore Mak- loube, the name given to that part of the ruins of
me whilst I was there. In comparing it with different Parthian medals, I ohscrved that all the heads of the latter bore a kind of mitre; that of the former, a crown of flowers *.
" The master-workman informed me that there were three cities in which antiquities are found : Bahel, or Makioube ; Broussa, two leagues SK of Ilellah, in tlie desert; and Kaides, (Al Kaddcr) still farther distant than Broussa. I was told that many marble statues were found in the latter, but it is danger- ous to go thither without a strong guard." (From M. Beau- champ.)
' Broussa, called by the Arabs Bonrsa, is supposed to be Bor- sippa of Strabo (739.) and of Justin (lib. xii. c. 13.); to which place Alexander retired, when he was warned by the Chaldeans not to enter Babylon by the cast. According to Josephus, (contra Ap. lib. i. c. 20.) it ought to be near to Babylon. It appears, from Strabo, to have been a place of great celebrity, as a place of worship, Ptolemy has Barsita, but more remote from Babylon. Broussa it only six miles to the south-east of its site.
* In the anny of Xerxes, the CUnaiu, or Sutmn$f wore miiret, but not the Medes or Persiuis. Polym. 62,
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Babylon seen by Inm^ must stand on the easi ade, of course. It is certain that^ in two places, M. Beau- champ speaks of what lie saw on the east side, which might imply that he likewise saw something on the west also : we therefore wish that he had ex- pressed himself either more clearly, or more fully, in this respect
As for Delia Valle, we may clearly perceive that he yisited the eastern quarter only.
It may be obserred, that M. Beaucharop's de- scription of the mount of ruins (or tower of Belus, as we will use the reader's permission to call it), agrees, as far as it goes, with Delia Valleys. The latter gives a positive idea of the extent of its base, the former of its height : by which we take it to be a square of 640 to 660 English feet, hy about 200' in height, in its present ruined state : and conclude that its base may have been originally a square of 500 feet, and its altitude the same : so that it con- tained less matter than the great pyramid.
With respect to the nature of the bricks in this fabric, these gentlemen do not altogether agree ; M« Delia Valle saying that they were of two sorts, sun-dried and Jurnace-baked : but M. Beauchamp describes but one sort, that is, the latter. He says,
* We here speak under correction, having never seen any •eooiml;t Mve the translation in the European Magasine; of which, however, it may he conceived, there can he little reason lo doubt the accuracy.
' M. Beauchamp says 180 feet. These, of course, must be taken for French, and are equal to about 192 En^ish feet : or 8ay> as it is a matter of guess, 200.
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however, that in order to get at these, it is necessary to dig into the earthy where they are found in layers : the earth, therefore, if really eueh, mmt have com- posed a part of the fabric : but may not this earth be the mass which Delia Valle describes as being com- posed of sun-dried bricks ^ It is certain that the ruin named Aggark^f, near Bagdad, which seems to possess the characteristic of a Babylonish building, (as having reeds between the courses,) is composed chiefly of sun-dried bricks. Every traveller who has described it, seems to have considered its bricks, as having been umply dried in the sun, M. Nie- buhr and M. Evers S are positive as to this point : and the reports of Ives and Taverniere imply it. But Mr. Ives observed, that those which remained in the building, were softer than those which lay scattered about, amongst the rubbish, at the foot of the ruin. We therefore conclude, that two sorts of bricks were used ; as Delia Valle also reports of the tower of Belus ; for it cannot well be supposed that Bun-dried bricks would become harder by lying ex- posed to the weather. And indeed it appears extra- ordinary altogether, that bricks, simply dried in the sun, or, in other words, clods of earthy should pre- serve their form, and not moulder down nearer to a natural slope, like other earth, in a course of so many ages.
It appears e<^ually unaccountable, that Delia Valle
• This gentleman published a Journal of bu Voyage from India to England, in 1784.
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should. have overlooked the layers of reeds, osiers, or whatsoever was placed between the courses of masonry in the tower aa that Beauchamp should not Iwve obflerred the ^uthdried bneks, and cfay mortar, in Hie tame place. Yet we cannot doubt but that all the three exist amongst the ruins in question. It is no new observation^ that one man observes one thing, and another, another.
According to Strabo, p. 788, the Euphrates was only a stadium \n breadUi at Babylon; which ac- count has been cavilled at. Texeira, who crossed it in a boat at Musseib, about 20 miles above the site of Babylon, guessed it to be about 200 paces wid^ or from 450 to 500 feet. M. Niebuhr had a better opportunity of ascertaining its width at Hillah, a part of the site itself, by means of the bridge of boats there. He says it is 400 feet (if Danish, then about 890 English) wide at that place, which is even below Strabo's report. Accordingly, when we read of the vast breadth allowed to the Euphrates by Diodorus (who says that the bridge of Babylon was five stadia in length) ; and by Rauwolf, Shirley, and others, we must not receive their testimonies as founded on fact* As to its breadth at Tliapsacus, or any other place higher up, it can be no guide in forming a judgment of it ia this part ; for here it is very deep * ; there shallow: and although it is very wide at Thi^sap
* He speaks only of broken reeds, or straw, in the mud ce- ment, between the sun-dried bricks.
* Texeira was told tliat it was 30 &et deep at Bfusaeib. Hence, it may be concluded, that it was at least eery deep diere.
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cm, it was exceedingly narrow near Zeugma and
Roumkala
Delia Valle iafonns jib, that the pafiicml&r eoune of the Euphrates is from west to eMsi, throogh Ihe
plain of Babel ; by which we should understand that it was such near the ruin of the tower of Belus : and by what he says of it higher up, (for he coasted the river bank for more than 30 miles Ahoive the site of Babylon,) as well as by the information of Texeira, the Euphrates forms some very deep wind- ings in this part. Its general course, for 40 miles aboye^ and the same distance below, Babylon, is from NNW 4- W toSSE ^ E : but more particularly at and above that site, it is from NNW to SSE.
Below Hillah, Mr. Ives's party traced it, and found its course to be remarkably serpentine. (See the Map opposite page 441.) And this b^ng the efiect of the current of the river, on a loose soil, its bed must have been subject to great clianges : so that, in its course of eight or nine miles through the city, a ▼ast expence must have been required to protect the banks from the depredations of the stream. And we are accordingly told, by Herodotus, Diodorus, and Curtius, that a provision was made for this purpose^ by a strong wall cemented with bitumen, in the
' It may be inferred, from the circumstance of Alexander's ordering a bason to be dug at Babylon for his fleet, that there was not room in the river for it ; (Arrian, lib. vii.) In effect, the present state of the Euphrates at the site of Babylon, sliews wliat it nuist have been anciently : or indeed it ouglit to be rather lar^^er there 7ion', than anciently ; since the canals that were drawn from it to the Tigris no longer exist.
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nature of an embankment, on both sides. Herodo*
tus, moreover, tells us, that because the city was endangered by the rapid current of the river, (per- haps rendered more rapid by its being straitened by artificial works« in its passage through the city,) a part of its waters were drawn off by an artificial canal, or canals, far above the city : so that, during the floods, the river of Babylon could only be con- ridered as the principal channel of the Euphrates : and thus might carry nearly the same body of water at all seasons'.
We are not told in positive terras, whether or not the four sides of Babylon fronted the four cardinal points of the heavens. The only notice concerning it is, that Diodorus says, the Euphrates runs to the aouthy through the midst of Babylon :" and which may, nevertheless, be meant only in a general sense. Those, however, who have indulged their fancies in making a plan of that city, have not only made its sides to face the cardinal points, but have conducted the river through it, in a straight channel, from north
* The territory round Hfllah, named Basel at the present day, is oampowd chiefly of plains, whose soil is rich ; smd tbe river banks are bordered with willows. We cannot forget the pathetic words put into the mouths of the captive Jews, by the author of the cxxxviith psalm :
*< By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
*' We hanged (Hir harps upon the mUam in the midst thereof For there they that carried us away captive, required of us a nmg: and they that wasted us, required of us attrlA, saying, sing us one of the songs of Zion.
" How shall we sing th« Lord's soug iu a strange hmd?"
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to south ; and made it to divide the city into two equal parts. It may, however, be supposed that two <^ its udes were parallel to the general course of the riyer, which, as we have said, is NN W and SSE ; or perhaps more oblique : and even if a new channel had been prepared for it, through the site of the intended city, it might be expected that com^ mon sense would have given it a direction that was conformable to the general course of the stream. As M. Beauchamp says, that certain foundations, which he took for those of the city wall, ran at right angles with the course of the river^ this circumstance is in favour of our supposition ^
It may reasonably be concluded, that very great changes have taken place in the course of the river^ since the date of the descriptions of Babylon, by the early Greek authors. No doubt^ the temple of Belus was farther from the river, at that time, than the descriptions of the moderns allow it to be, (taking the mount of ruins for the tower,) so tliat the river ran more to the west. (See again the Map opposite page 441.)
We shall now enter on the description of the
ruins, seen in the western quarter of Babylon. Here it may be remarked, that, as the visits of European travellers have been mostly confined to the eastern quarter of the ancient city ; and that, as their in- quiries may be supposed to be directed by the peo- ple of the country, it may be inferred, either that
* The streets of cities, in hot dimates, ought indeed to lie in a direction that is oblique to the cardinal points ; because more shade is thrown during the hottest part of the day.
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the principal part of the remaiiur m on tliat Me ; or that, if such exist on the west, the closeness of the woods, or some other obstacle, prevents a ready aoon» to thenu The former snpposilioa seems, however, the mosi probahle one
M. D'Anville informs us, in his Euphrates and Tigris, pages 116 and 117, that he had seen a MS. relation of the travels of the missionary, Pere Emar miel de St« Albert, wfaidi the author had commi- nicated to M. Bellet, at Constantinople ; and whieh the latter had sent to D'Anville's great patron, the Duke of Orleans. In it, the author says, that he had seen in the western quarter of Babylon, (the oilier quarter he did not visit) extennve ranges of walls, partly standing, partly fallen ; and of so solid a construction, that it was scarcely possible to de- tach from them the large bricks of a foot and a hm^ eqtmre^ which the buUdings qf Babylon were conetrueteeL The Jews, settled in those parts, call these remains, the prison of Nehuchod- omosor" M. D'Anville says, they might with more propriety call it his palace. Perhaps the great solidity of the fibric might lead them to condude, that it was nnnecessarily strong for a palace ; but it was a fortified palace.
M. Niebuhr visited a ruin on the west side of the Euphrates, but far too low down the river, in respect of the tower, to be regarded as the palace. From the brevity of the Pere Emanuel's description we cannot determine, absolutely, whether the ruins seen by these two gentlemen were one and the same: but we should certainly conclude the contrary : for
Jd
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what M. Niebuhr saw, was, in his idea, rather a vast heap of bricks, than a structure ; having above, or rinng ouk of it, a tower of brick oi great ihickneis. Vol. n. p. 2S& He does not give any dimenrions either of the one, or of the other ; having had but little time to examine it ; being without an escort^ and in immediate danger from some Arabs, who seemed to menace Inm. We with him, that some future traveller may have a better opportmiity o£ exannning
Independent of its general situation, it cannot, from the description, be regarded as th» tower of Belus: because its dimensions were so small, that
M. Niebuhr himself took it for a watch-tower, when he saw it from a distant place. Nor does it accord with the description! of the ruin seen by P. Ema*- nuel. No doubt, over so widely extended a space, as the site of andent Babylon, and its environs, there ought to be a great variety of remains. But if those seen by Delia Valle were in the centre of the eiiff, or even of the eastern division of it, as the temple of Belus is said to have been, those seen by M. Niebuhr could not have been included within the circuit of the wall, since the two ruins are more than nine miles from each other, in a direction of N£ and SW. Indeed one cannot conceive the ruin on the
• The reader may easily conceive with what disadvantage an anticjuary pursues his iiKjuiricsin the despotic regions of Turkey and Persia, where lie is not only hesct hy handitti, in every re- tired situation, but even finds an eneniv in the comniunitv at large, because the prejudices of education are sharpened by the persecuting spirit ot the popular religion.
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west ride to have been less than two or ihiee nubf
from the SW angle of the city.
The bricks^ of which the fabric seen by M* Niebtthr was built» were famace-baked. Nothing is said concerning the nature of the cement ; nor are any reeda mentioned, either by P. Emanuel, orBf. Niebuhr.
M. Niebuhr further says — At the time when Babylon was in a flourishing state, and the country about it full of buildings, there must have been a
fine view of it from this tower : for, at tlie foot of it may be seen the mosque of All (Mesjid Ali) which is at least eight leagues distant."
As we do not hear of any remains of the super' structure of the walls of Babylon, at this time, it may be concluded that the materials of them have been generally removed to build other cities. But this was not done in very early times ; for although the city declined soon after the foundation of Seleu« cia, and was a deserted place in the time of Pliny, yet it appears that the city walls, as well as the tower of Belus, remained, although not enture. We learn both from Niebuhr and Beauchamp, that the foundations of buildings, and apparently, of the walls of the city also, (but particularly from the former) continue to be dug up, and transported to other places, for the purposes of building; that large heaps of rubbish are discernible in many places ; and that the square bricks, of large dimensions (such as are above described in the tower of Belus, and in the walls of the ruined palace), are scattered over the tract round Hillah. These bricks too, are to be
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traced amongst the buildings of Bagdad , and other cities ; as we £nd Roman bricks^ in and about those towns that weie fimnerly Roman stations, in thb Island. The palace of Chosroes in Ctesiphon (now called Tank Kesra) appears to have been built of bricks, brought irom the ruins of Babylon ; as the dimensimis are so nearly the same, and the propor- tions so ringolar. Those who have made it their business to examine and inquire into such matters, have always found that tlic materials of ancient cities have been employed in the building of new ones, in cases where new foundaticNus have been esta- blished in the same neighbourhood ; and when snch materials could conveniently be transported by inland navigations, they are found at very great distances from their ancient place : much further, indeed, than Bagdad or Seleucia are from Babylon. In efifect^ the remains of ancient cities throughout tlie world, are those only, which are either too firmly cemented to be worth the labour of separating ; too fiir distant from a convenient rituation, to be worth the expense of transportation ; or w^hich, from their nature, are not applicable to ordinary purposes. For a deserted city is nothing else than a quarry above ground, in which the materials are ready diaped to every one's hands. And although, during the times of regular government, these ruins may become private pro- perty, or the property of the state, yet in the history cf every country, there have happened intervab of anarchy and confusion, during which, such ruins have
' Delia V alle, Vol. ii. VOL. I. K k
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been regarded sa common to* all. In the above
point of view, the Babylonians, Romans, and Ben- gallers, may be said to have provided a stock of materials for building, for the uae of posterity ; fiN>m the durable nature of their bricks but the bricks used in the building of some modern cities, seem to have been designed rather for the use of the age in which they were made, than for posterity. The ancient bricks that have preserved their durability are of yarious dimensions. Those made by the Ro- mans, had their want of thickness made up in length and breadth. The Bengal bricks had all l^eir proportions very smalL The Babylonish bricks are, as for as we know, the thickest and Largest of all ancient bricks. However, they do not appear to have exceeded by more than one-fourth of an iach in thickness, that oi the thickest of modem bricks. So nearly do the experiments of ancient and modern times agree !
The dimensions of the furnace-baked bricks at Babylon, are reported pretty much alike, by Beau- champ and Niebuhr. The first gives them at one foot and three lines square, by three inches in thick- ness : the latter at a foot square ; but omits to state the tliickness, otherwise than that they were nearly of the same standard with our bricks. M.
' T])c citv of MauMnh is built almost entirely from tlie rcniaitis of Goiir, the ancient c:i))ital ot Ik iiiral. Moorshedahrul is partly built from the same: and the bricks of Gour still atl()r(l a con- stant supply of materials for building. Its stone ])illars have been distributed between NToorsliedabad, Dacca, and Monghir: and sotue of the blocks oftitouc were used in the new citadel of Fort William, at Calcutta.
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Beauchamp*s account, from the complexion of it, must be regarded as the most accurate; and it hemg, of course, in French measure, the bricks may be reckoned rather above 13 inches square hj nearly 3\ thick, in English measure. M. Niebuhr appears to have intended the Danish foot, which is rather shorter than the English. The report of P. Emanuel, which allows a foot and ka^, and which standard he extends to the bricks generally through* out Babylon, must be considered as inaccurate. Mr. Ives says, that the bricks in Tauk Kesra are c^oHt a foot square, by three inches thick; which general correspondence of dimensions may be regarded m a proof of their having been originally brought from the ruins of Babylon ^ The sun-dried bricks in Aggarkuf, according to Ives, were of the same length and breadth as the others ; but not being in- tended for the furnace, there was no necessity for reducing their thickness to that standard, which experience had shewn was convenient for baking in the fire : they were therefore 4}-, instead of 3 inches, in thickness. Possibly, if the matter had been exa- mined into, the sun-dried bricks in tlie tower of Belus would also have been found much thicker than the baked ones
" M. Bcaucliamp however says, tliat these are only 10 inches square by ft\ in thickness. In English measure about lOf by 24.
• By the polite attention of Dr. Gray, Secretary to the Royal Society, it became known to tbe Author, that there was a ahi- dried brick in the British Museum ; and which is said to have been taken out of the ruin, called the tower of Babel : no doubt, Aggarkuf. This brick, as nearly as iti dimenskms can be ascer-
Kk2
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M. Beauchamp seems to take it for granted, that
cement, either of bituraen, or lime, was employed in all the masonry in ancient Babylon. But we do not conceive that the private buildings were constructed with mch cement, because of the perfect and whole state, in which the bricks are found, that were taken from the ruins in general : and because the Baby- lonians appear to have had a cheaper substitute for it, in the clay mortar, mentioned by Delia Valle : and in thai, of what kind soever it might be, which is spoken of by M. Niebuhr. (See above, ])agc 482.) From what Delia Valle also reports, we should con- clude, most decidedly, that certain part* only of the public buildings, including the city walls, were cemented with bitumen ; perhaps those which were
tained, (for, from its friable nature, it has lost its regular fiwin) is 1 24 inches by 12f ; and is in thickness. Broken reeds ap- pear, in some parts of it: but if they were really mixed with the day, it most be in a very small proportion, from the eery gretU weight of the brick ; and it appears more probable^ that the reeds are nothing more than a part of those, on which the brick lay, whilst in its soft state ; and that they were not intended to enter into its composition.
It will be seen that this has a very near agreement with Ives's report of the bricks in Aggarkuf; but this brick was not brought away by his party, for he says, p. 298, that they took only a piece of each sort ; together with some of the reeds out of tlie layers, and some of the eemetU; which latter, be calls *' mud or time, mixed with broken reeds, as we mix hair with mortar." -
Since the Babylonish bricks do not differ much in dimensions from a foot, may it not be, tbat they might be made from the
standard of tlieir focd measure ? From the great weight of the bricks, it may be inferred iliat tlie workmen were very strong, able-bodied men.
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exposed to the weather, or to inundations K And by what we shall presently adduce, there appears to have been no necessity for an indiscriminate use of the bitumen.
M. Niebuhr says, that the large bricks, which were remarkably well-burnt, " had been laid in matter that had so small a degree of tenacity, that they were easily separated ; and that, witlioiit break- ing them." But on the contrary, in the ruin of the palace seen by P. Emanjiel, the construction was of so solid a nature, that it was scarce possible to se- parate tliem." He does not, liowever, appear to have described the nature of the cement. It was probably bitumen : but we are not possessed of suffi- cient knowledge on the subject, to enable us to de- termine on the degree of cohesion belonging to that substance, when employed as a cement for bricks ; but there seems no doubt but that it was extremely cohesiye*.
* On occasion of an inundation, about the year 1733, tlic foun- dations of the walls in Bagdad were covered with compositioa, of whidi bitumen made a part. (Ives, page 281.)
' The cement in the remarkable fortress of AlkaddeVy in the Chaldean Desert, according to M. Gannichacrs description of it, appears to be bitumeiu We know not the date of its construc- tion.
The wall of Media (which shuts up the isthmus between the Euphrates and the Tigris, above Babylon), was built of burnt brickSf laid in bitumen. (Xenophon, Anub. lib. ii.) and the walls of Perisabour, in Babylonia, taken by Julian, were of the same materials: (Anim. Marc. lib. zxiv.) So that in those days, bitumen was much m use as a cement ; but it appears to have been disused in succeeding times. None appears in the nuns of Ctesiphon* or in Bagdad.
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As to the lime cement, very little of that appears to have been used. The crude material was at a distance ; and although Babylon might have been well supplied with fuel (as Balbi says that the forests below Hit still supply Bagdad with that article)^ yet a ready-prepared cement must have come to market much cheaper.
If we consider the natural state of things in Babylonia, and then inquire what is done in other countries, under similar circumstances, we may rea- dily conceive what the nature of the ordinary build* ings in ancient Babylonia was. This comitry, then, very much resembles Bengal in soil and appearance ; being, like that, formed of the depositions of great rivers. The soil of Bengal furnishes a material, which not only serves the purpose of making excel* lent bricks, but that of a useful land of cement like- \s ibc. The ordinary brick bouses are there built of a very small-sized brick, well burnt in the fire, and laid in clay wrought to a proper consistency ; but no lime mortar is used, otherwise than for arches, or for a coping, to prevent the nun from penetrating the wall ; and sometimes, though rarely, in laying foundations. This kind of construction is called cuicka, or slight ; in contradistinction to pueca, or strong ; which latter term Is applied to masonry, built wholly with lime cement. The cutcha walls are made much thicker than the pucca ; and if plastered over, and kept dry at the top, will bear the requisite pressure, and stand as well, perhaps too, as long, as those built with lime mortar of the country ; which, by the bye, is some of tlie strongest in the
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world. Moreover, few countries have so great a quantity of rain, as Bengal ; few less than Babylonia.
The nature of the mortar used in the ancient fa- brics seen by Delia Valle and by Ive6« proves that the Babylonians built with clay mortar, as is prac- tised by the Bengal people ; and by those of Bagdad, the modern Babylon. And this reminds us of a .pas- sage in Genesis (chap. xi. ver. 3.) relating to tbe building of the tower of Babel, (whicb might possi* bly have been a part of the original city of Baby- lon ; perhaps the very tower of Belus, so often men- tioned^ before it took the form described above.) It says^ they had brick for stone> and sUme for mortar." Now, is not thu particularly descriptive of one of the modes of building, in Babylonia ; and which, in essentials, resembles the Bengal cutcha ?
The bricks used in the Bengal euieka, having been originally well burnt, and afterwards easily separated, are equal in quality to new bricks: and therefore are equally valuable, in the construction of other houses* But this is not the case of those used in tbe pueea work ; for they will more easily break than separate, as is said of those in the Babylonian palace \ If then, it be admitted, that a mode of building, similar to that of the cutcha in Bengal, obtained in Babylon, which from the above circum- stances appears highly probable, we ought not to
• When the French ajrain fortified Pondicherry, after tlio de- struction of its works by the English, in 1761, they sawed the masses of brick-work, that liad been blown up, into blocks of a convenient size for building, and used theui accordingly. The bricks could not be sejjaraled.
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wonder that we see so few remains of Babylon, am
the spot. Had the materials of its buildings, in general^ been so difficult to separate, as those of the palace seen by P. Emanuel, we should unquestion- ably find much greater remains of that celebrated dty.
Herodotus, in his account of the building of Babylon, says, that the Babylonians intermixed reeds with the bitumen, used as cement, in building the* walls ; which were made of bricks baked in a furnace. We collect from his description, that these layers of reeds were introduced at certain distances, between the courses of bricks, in order to render the masonry more compact: the text says, at every thirtieth course. But we conceive that the number is corrupted (as may be perceived in other instances, in this and most other ancient authors), because M. Beauchamp says, that the osiers, or whatsoever was meant by the reeds, by Herodotus, are placed be- tween every two layers of bricks, in the tower of Belus ; and in other great ruins, higher up, he says that the osiers were only laid oeeaskmaUy." Ab this mode of building with reeds between the courses appears to have prevailed only amongst tlie ancient Babylonians, we may reasonably conclude, that Aggarkuf is of Babylonian origin, by its having this characteristic mark in it \ In this ancient, and very
* Aggarkuf t or Akkarkuff, is a ihapdess maas of nuns, 126 feet in height, by 100 In diameter ; and appears to be solid. It stands about nine miles to the westward of Bagdad, and oonsisCs entirdy of sun-dried bricks, mixed with reeds. It is surrounded by ruins, and heapa of bricks. A drawing of it, with a descrip*
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singular fabric^ Mr. Ives, and others^ found reeds, or rushes, at every 6th« 7th, or 8th course, of sun- dried bricks. No bitumen was used there ; for Mr* lyes drew out the reeds from the wall with ease ; a proof that they were not laid in any tenacious kind of cement ; on the contrary, he says, that it was no other than mud or sUme, amongst which broken reeds were nuxed ; as we mix hair with mortar." These, he says, were as fresh, as if lately placed there ; and being less subject to decay than the substance of the wail, they project beyond it, and are therefore fully open to investigation. M. Nie» buhr says, they were layers of rushes, of two fingers breadth in thickness. Others call them reeds, of the kind of which coarse matting is made in that country; and all (but Mr. lyes) agree in saying that the reeds form layers between the courses of hrich-work. But, it is certain, that Delia Valle agrees with Ives in saying that broken reeds or straw were mixed with the clay cement, between the sun-dried bricks, which he saw ; although he does not say they were in layers. This, however, was in the ruin of the tower of Belus. It can hardly be doubted, that by the broken reeds, Ives meant the same thing, which others meant by the layers of reeds : and it may also be bUbpoctcd that what Delia Valle saw, was originally the some kind of arrangement ; only that
tiooy is given by Mr. Ives, page 298 ; Europeans call it the tower of Babel. It might perhaps have been a royal fle|N]khre.
M. Niebuhr, p. 248, thought there was some resemblance between the ruin of Aggarkuf, and that before spoken of, in page 494.
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the part he dug into might have been overturned, and the reeds thrown into that kind of disorder which would present the appearance he describes. Or, the disorder might haye been caused by the very mode of digging itself.
It is not perhaps very easy to determine the use of the layers of reeds, where the cement was of so tenacious a quality, as bitumen is commonly reported to be. Nor can we reason with any effisct, on a subject, on which we are so little informed. It may however be remarked, that as on different occasioDS, the layers were introduced at different distances from eacb other, each method had probably a reference to some particular object, or use, which we cannot un- derstand. Thus, in the tower of Belus, M. Beau- champ says, that the onerM were placed at every course ; but in some other great ruins, only oeea« sionalhj : and in both these instances, the materials were bricks, baked in the furnace, and laid in bUumen. Again, we find reeds laid in clay mortar, between ewnrdried bricks, at every 6th, 7th, or 8th course, in Aggarkuf: and also between the same kind of bricks in the tower of Bolus ; for Delia Valle describes the same appearances there, as Ives does at Aggarku£ So that the practice of using reeds, or some substitute for them, was almost umversaL Had they been used only with clay mortar, we might have concluded that they were necessary, in order to bind together a mass that appeared to be too loosely held by the cement alone ; but this sup- position is done away, by the practice of using the same reeds with the cement of bitumen.
13
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We can |)erceiYe a slight advantage in the use of the reedsy where mud cement was used ; and as this mode of building, no doubt, obtained long before
the time when bitumen began to be used as cement in Babylonia, it is possible that the custom may have been blindly transferred to a case« where the ' reason of the thing should have rejected it ; as may be seen on other occasions. As the reeds added strength to a wall cemented with clay, they might eicpect the same eiiect from them, in one cemented with bitumen ; admitting that the reeds did not in any shape counteract the cohesive quality of the bitumen : but it is certain, that it does not appear to require any such aid. But after all, there may be a quality in bitumen, which may prevent its hard- ening, where the air is absolutely excluded, as in the middle of a wall ; and the reeds may have dis- posed it to harden. When exposed to the air, it is known to grow hard very soon.
Thus, we have endeavoured to establish the geo- grapliical position of Babylon ; and may safely con- clude that it stood in the place assigned to it. Many circumstances concur to prove it : for the distances given by Herodotus from /r, or Hit; and by Strabo, and the Theodosian Tables, from Seleuda ; the traditions of the Orientals concerning it ; their report of its latitude, and the name of the district round it, which is Babel to this day ; together with the ruins, which are of no ordinary kind ; all conspire to place the site of ancient Babylon at, and about, the present town of Hillah ; and the particular ruin which may be taken for that of the tower of Beius
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(which was said to stand in the centre of one of the divisions), at 3] British miles to the NNW of Hillah.
The decline of Babylon is dated from the founda- tion of its rival, Seleucia, on the Tigris, by Seleucus Nicator (A. C. 293). In the time of Strabo, Seleucia was become a larger city than Babylon^ the greater part of which was become a desert. He says, Alex* ander's successors disregarded Babylon; the Per- sians destroyed part of it ; and the negligence of the Macedonians, added to the natural decay occasioned by time, completed its ruin ; especially alter Seleucus transferred the seat of empire to his new city. Strabo, p. 738.
Pliny, who appears to have written 70 or 80 years after Strabo, says, that it was then a descried place ; but that the temple (or the tower) of Belus was yet standing. In this, he differs from Strabo and Arrian ; the first of whom says, that it was destroyed by Xerxes ; the latter only says, that it was out of repair, and that Alexander wished to restore it, Strabo says, that 10,000 men would not hare been able to remove the rubbish in two months ; p. 738. We may therefore understand wliat they say with this limitation ; that the tow cr of Belus was gone to decay, but was not absolutely destroyed, in their times. As to Babylon itself, we trace its rapid de- cline in what Strabo and Pliny say, at the distance of much less than a century from each other. And, as we have observed before, what Strabo says con- cerning it is a strong fact ; and goes also towards proving that Babylon was a wonderfully large place.
Diodorus says, speaking of his own times, that
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but a small part of Babylon remained inhabited ; the greater part of the tract within the walls being turned into fields : but this does not agree with Strabo ; and it is probable that Diodorus might not have been aware, how much of the area remained in the state of fields, from the beginning.
The history of the subsequent decline of Babylon* we are not acquainted with. Whilst the walls re- mained, it became (according to St. Jerome) a park, in which the Parthian kings took the diversion of hunting* This appropriation might, perhaps, pre- serve the walls to a later period, than in the usual course of things they would have remained. After that, it is probable, that as the walls decayed by time, depredations were also made on them ; and their materials gradually removed to build houses, and cities, and even palaces, in other situations.
The palace of Chosroes ( Tank Kesra ) is sup- posed to have been built about the time of Justinian^ and of Babylonish bricks ^ : and as Babylon had
• Tauk Kesra is a vast building, of nearly 3U0 feet in Icnfrth in front, by 160 in tlepth ; having in the centre a vaulted hall, which is between 90 and 100 feet in lieight, to the top of the arch, whose span is more tlian 80. Its walls are of a degree of strength fully proportioned to the weight of the superstructure ; the piers of the vault being about 25 feet in thickness, and the front wall 19 J. It is void of elegance, and gives the idea of a barbarous imitation of Grecian architecture. Mr. Ives has given a drawing and description of it in his Voyage (p. 288) : and Mr. Irwin (vol. ii. p. 351), who also speaks of the building, says, that the drawing is just in every respect, save that the arch is not Hat enough ; for tlie drawing makes it semicircular. M. Beauchamp is very particular in his description of it (see
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BABTLOK.
declined to much before the foundation of Ctesiphon,
it is probable that the latter was built of the same bricks also. At the date of the foundation of Bag- dad (AJ>^762), it is probable that Babylon was so totally gone to decay as to furnish brieks for the new city generally. And this is the idea of Delia Valle, to whom the bricks in question were familiar. Hil- lah is allowed by all to have been built of these biieks : and, in ^ect» it stands on a part of the very site of ancient Babylon.
It must not be omitted, that Herodotus states, that Darius Uystaspes, on the taking of Babylon by the stratagem of Zi^yrus, " levelled the teaUe, and took away the gates ; neither of which Cyrus had done before." Thalia, 159. But let it be remarked, that Darius lived about a century and half before Alex* ander; in whose time tiie walls iqppear to have been in their original state ; or at least, nothing b said that implies the contrary. And it cannot be be- lieved that if Darius- had even taken the trouble to level 34 miles of so prodigious a rampart as that of Babylon, that ever it would have been rebuilt, in the manner described by Ctesias, Clitarchus, and others, who describe it at a much later period. Besides, it would have been quite unnecessary to level more than a part of the wall, in order to lay the place open : and in this way, probably, the historian ought to be understood.
Enrnpe.m Magazine, 1792). D'llerbclot refers its foiindrition to ("liosrocs I. called also Nouscliirwan, in the sixtli century of our era. (Article Nouscliirwan). He is called by the Arabs Kesra ; whence Tauk Kesra, or the throne (or palace J of Kesra,
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Should the antiquities of Bahylon become an ob- ject of curiosity amongst the learned, there is little doubt but that it might be abundantly gratified^ if researches were diligently pursued for that purpose. The position and extent of the city walls might pro- bably be ascertained, even at this day ; as, no doubt, both the rampart and ditch must have left visible traces, although inundations may have raised the general level of the country itself. The delineation and description of the site and remains would prove one of the most curious pieces of antiquity that has been exhibited in these times.
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SECTION XV.
CONCERNING THE DISPOSAL OF THF TEN TRIBES OF THE JEWS, WHICH WERE CARRIED INTO CAPTIVITY, TO NINEVEH : COMMONIiT CALLED THE HRST CAP- TIVITY.
The Ten Tribes carried first to Nineveh, and (Iicn distiibutcd in Media — The Afijlians, h if some, taken for these Trifies — Cap- tivity of the Syrians o/' Damascus, tvho n ere carried to Kir, or Assyria — Captivity of the Two Tribes and half; aud of the Remainder of the Ten J'rihcs — Conjecture rcsjK ctiii^ tin: Cities q/" Media, in which they jvcre placed : I labor and l lalali, (or Chabor and Chalacho ) by the River Gozan ; and other Cities of the Modes — Abliar taken for Habor ; Halah (or Chalacho), for Chalcal ; Kizil-OxaOy for the Gozan — Jcipx placed also in Rages anrf Ecbatana, according to Tobit — Tombs of l^sthet and Daniel — Ispahan, origimllif a Jewish city — The Circt/m- Miances of the first Captivity wanting — Improbabilittf of the Removal of the whole Nation of Israel : from the greatness of their Numbers — thoie Numbers probdhly erroneous in the eopieM cf the Scriphtra; with the ntpposed foundation of that Error — Circtmttaneei the second Captivity adduced, and applied to the vibst, as a parallel case — Only certaio Classes of the Judeans removed: the bo^ ^ the People re*' mamed — History of Tobit, throms much light on the Distri' Imtion and Settlement of the Jews in Media^^etss employed in Stations of Trust and Confdenee hy their new Masters — Per* matiency of Eastern Customs exemplifed — The Policy of Pbtsb the Great of Russia, tn the Distrihution of the Swedish
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CAPTIVITY AND DISPOSAL Ol' THK TEN TlUBliS. 513
Captives^ similar to that of the Kiiiff of Assyria — Great Num- bers of Jews found in Babylonia in after times — Observations of Diodorus Siculus res2)€cting Uie Jews.
The ten tribes of Israel, or rather those amongst them, who were carried into captivity by the king of AssTRUj first to Ninereh, and afterwards distributed among the cities of Mbdia, bare been sought after, without success, in ahiiost every age. Some of the Asiatics have taken the Afghan nation for these expatriated Jews ; either from a general resemblance of feature between them, or from prevailing tradi- tions. But surely, the whole nation of Israel itself could not have been removed from Palestine into Assyria and Media : nor can it reasonably be sup- posed, that more than certain classes of persons, and those the least numerous, were thus transplanted ; , from the obvious difHculty attending the removal of so great a body of people.
It happens, unluckily, that the particular circum- stances of the FIRST captivity (that is, of the ten tribes) are not given, like those of the last (Judah and Benjamin) ; but if the inferences that may ob* viously be drawn from the history of the latter, may be allowed to apply to the former, they are clearly in favour of tlic above supposition. And since no detail of facts is given concerning the first captivity, it may perhaps be allowable to apply those which arise on what may be deemed a simUar case.
There are several notices of a general kind, con- cernincf the transplanting of the Israelites, from their own country to that of Assyria, &c in the books of
VOL. I. h\
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tlie Kings and Chronicles, and ako hi Jotephos.
Their removai was accomplished, not by one, but by two distinct operations, and by different princes, at the distance of near 20 years from each other: be- sides which, the ))eop1e of Damascus (not Jeui9y but Syrians), w ere also removed nearly at the same time with the first of the Israelites. The two and tribes beyond (that is, to the east of) Jordan, namely, those of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Mana»- SEH, were first of all carried away by Tiglath-Pileser, king of Assyria : and, at the distance of the above interval, the remainder of the ten tribes, by Shalman- eser. But the captivity of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, into Babylonia, by Nebuchadnezs»r, about 115 years after the last, has nothing to do with the present question concerning the ten tribes ; other- wise than as it seems apparently to furnish a parallel case, from whence some important conclusions may be drawn. And the carrying away of the Dama- sc£N£S, is to be regarded in the same point of view %
* Josephtts says (Antiq. lib. x. cb. 9.) that the entire inteiral between the earrying away of the ten, and of the two tribefl, was
ISO years, 6 months, and 10 days. This account should rather relate to the first carrying away of the two and Imlf tribes beyond Jordan ; but even then, our systems of chronology allow 13^ years for the interval.
The chronolofry of Dr. Usher, and of Sir Isaac Newton, allow the followin<^ dates for the events mentioiu-d in this Section. Captivity of the t\\ o and half tril>es, and of the Syrians of
Damascus, by Ti^lath Pilcser, before Christ 740 — ■ of the ten tribes, by Sliahnantser . • • . 721
• of Judah, by Nebuchadnezzar 60C
Destruction of JcnisaK-m 589
Decree of Cyrus for the return of the Jews • . . . 536
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OF THE T£N TRIBBS.
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These last were taken away by Tiglath Pileser % about tbe year 740 B. C. : and was done, it appears, at the sc^citation of the king of Judea, against those of Israel and Syria, who threatened him. It is said (2 Kings xvi. 9.) that the king of Assyria took Damascus, dew tfarir king, Rezin, and carried the people captive to Km by which the country of Assyria is unequivocally meant®. But Josephus says (Antiq. ix. c. 12, 3.) that they were sent to Upper Media ; that Tiglath Pileser sent a colony of Assyrians in their room; and that, at the same time, . he afflicted the land of Israel, and took away many captives out of it.
Concerning the removal of the two tribes and ka^, whose country bordered on that of Damascus, about the same time, and by the same king» the
* Called abo Tilgath Pikieter,
' AMyria, (that is, Assyria proper , the country situated be- yond the Tigris, and south of Taurus ; and of which Nineveh was the capital,) is often designed in the Scriptures by the name of Kir, or Kf,i-r. Besides tlie place just mentioned, it is found in Amos, ch. ix. ver. 7. " Have not I brou/rht up the Assyrians from Kir?'' Again, cli. i. vcr. 5. " Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir." In Isaiah, xxii. vcr. 6, it is mentionid with Elam, intended for SusOf (and perhaps Persia also) — " Atr uncovered the shield."
The name Kir is traceable at present in that country. The loftiest ridge of the Kurdistan mountains (Carduchian) i.s named KiarCf according to M. Otter. The province adjacent i.s named Hakiari (Niebuhr) ; the Kiouran tribe of KourdSf inhabit tlie eastern part of Assyria (Otter) ; Kerkook, a large town, and other places of less consequence, have the prefixture Kcr or Kir to them. (Niebuhr.) It is possible that the name of the Cardu' chian people may have had the same root.
l1 2
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following particulars may be collected. In 2 Kings, XV. ver. 29, it is said that " Tiglath Pileser, king of Assyria, took Ijon, and Abel-beth-Maacha^ Janoaby Kadesh, and Hazor, and Gilead and Gfalilee ; all the land of NAi'irrALi, and carried them captive to As- syria." But in the account of the same transaction in 1 Chron. ver. 26, it is said that Tiglath Pileser ** carried away the RsuBSNrrBs, the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halahy and llahor, and Hara, and to the river of Gozaft, unto this day." The chronology oi this event is given at 740 years B.C. '
Josephus, in relating the same transaction, Antiq. lib. ix. c. 11, 1, says, that Tiglath Pileser " carried away the inhabitants of Gilead, Galilee, Kadesb^ and Haaor \ and transplanted them into his own king- dom;*' by which, in strictness, Assyria should be understood : but it appears from the book of Tobit,
* It may lie observed, lihat NapktaU is omitted in die latter reading ; >. e* hi the Chronicles ; and this should seem to be the
most correct ; for Tobit, who was of the tribe of Naphtali, was carried away, not by Tiglath Pileser, but by Shahiianesor ; if, as no doubt is the case, he is intended by Emanassar, in Tobit, ch. i : for .Sennacherib was the huccessor of the latter, in Tobit ; as of the former, in other parts of tlie Bihle.
Pul is also mentioned in the same verse, (i. e. the 2Gth of the fifth chapter of the 1 Chron.) which alludes to an earlier transac- tion mentioned in 2 Kings, xv. ver. 19. and is to tliis ellbct ; that Pul (tlie Sardanapalus of Herodotus, no doubt), king of Assyria, invaded Israel under the reign of ^fenahem, (B.C. 773,) when the latter gave to the king of Assyria 1000 talents of silver to insure his protection.
* Kadesh and Hazor were certainly in tlie country of Napb" tali, and so iar Josepbus agrees with the book of Kings*
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OF THE TEN TRIBES.
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that Media was also subject to him ; so that there is no contradiction*
We come next, in order^ to the proper subject of the ten tribes.
In 2 Kings, xvii. ver. 6. Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, is said to haye carried away Iseabl into Assyria, and to hare placed them in Halah and in Ilabor, by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the MedesT And this is repeated in chapter xxviii. ver« 11 *• The chronology of this event is fixed at 721 B.C. or 19 years after the removal of the two and half tribes to the same country and cities. It is proper to remark, tliat although Hara is one of the places, to which the two and half tribes were sent, it does not occur amongst the places to which the ten tribes were said to be carried. Of this, more will be said in the sequel.
Josephus, speaking of the same event, says, (Antiq. ix. c. 14, 1.) that Shalmaneser took Samaria (that is, the capital of the Israelites), demolished their government, and transplanted all the people into Media and Persia ; and that they were replaced by other people out of Cuthah; which, says he, (in section iii. of the same chapter) is the name of a country in Persia, and which has a river of the same name in it. Of the Cutheans, continues he, there were Jive tribes, or nations ; each of which had their own. gods; and these they brought with them into
* Usher writes these names, (we suppose from the Hebrew,) Chalacko, Chabor, and Nehar Oozan, And for Hanh he has Haram* Pages 64 and 68.
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Samaria. These, be observes, were the peoplo afterwards called Samaritans; and who, although they had no pretensions, affiscted to be kinsfolk to the Jews. And hence, we may suppose, arose the violent animosity that subsisted between the two nations.
In lib. z. c. 9, 7, he repeats the substance what he had said before; adding, that the Cutheans had
formerly belonged to tlie inner parts of Persia and Media
In the Biblei, 3 Kings, zviL yer. 24, it b said» that the people brought to supply the place of the
Israelites were from five places ; i. e. Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath % and Sepharvim : and also, that they worshipped as many different deities.
Thus, we hare before us, the history of the removal of the ten tribes of Israel, at different pe« riods ; as also of the people of Damascus, to the same countries : all which was effected by the kings of Assyria ; who resided, or whose capital was at Nineveh, at the nde cS the Tigris ; and who posi- sessed, in addition to Assyria (by which is to be understood that country at large, as in pages 233 and 237), the country of Media also. But» previous to the SECOND CArmriTY (or that of Judah) by the Babylonians, these last had become masters of all Assyria ; Nineveh had been destroyed ; and Baby- lon become the capital of the empre of Assyria^ thus enlarged by conquest
^ This is according to Mr. Whiston's translation. * Can this be t]ie Hauiath, or Jiamak, q£ Syria ?
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OF TU£ T£N TAIBBS. 519
Before we proceed to set forth the circumstances of the seeaml captivity, with a view to the illustra- tion of the first, it will be necessary to adduce some general matter, in order to clear the way for the more etfectual application of the circumstances in qnestioii. And first, we shall endeavour to ascer- tain the positions of the places to which the ten tribes were sent ; that is, Halah, Ilahor, the river of Gozan, and the cities of the Medes : concerning which, it may be remarked, that Josephus does not appear to take any note, odierwise than by mention- ing generally the countries of Media and Persia ; from which countries also, he says, the Cuthites were brought. So that he might possibly have sup- posed, that there was a complete diange of countiy, between the two people ; which, however, does not appear probable.
There is found in the country anciently named Media * (now called Al Jebal and Ikak Ajahi), in the remote northern quarter, towards the Caspian sea, and Ghilan, a considerable river named Ozan ; or with the preiixture to it, KizUi-0zAJ4 ^ Kisul
* By this is meant Media Major cxdft not die two Mediae, eollectively. See the diidnctioii in page S57«
* The K^gU^Oiumf aooording to Mr. Hanway, Vol. t. p. 261, " is one of the moat/ammu riven in FermaT He iqpoke of the 9mfkn of Peniay at burge; and waa then on the road between OAslon and Htmaiiam* The Ki«l-Osan ia certainly one of the ktrgett rivers of that tract.
Olearios (lib. and vii.) writes it KitUomn; and describes it as a very rapid, and considerable river. Delia VaUe writes it Ckizil Uten (Vol. iv. Letter 5). This river springs from the country anciently named Matietu
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signifies red, and has doubtless been added by the Turkish hordes, wlio apply this term to other rivers ; for instance, the Halys is named KixiUErmak ; and that branch of the OxuSf which reaches the Casinaa sea, is named KitiL There is also found a city named Abhar, or Hahar, situated on a branch of the river Ozan ; and this city has the reputation of bdng exceedingly ancient. There is, moreover,
(between TehrtM and Hamadan), and taking its coune eastward, falls into the SW part of the Caspian sea ; penetrating, in its way, the great ridge of mountains that divides Media from the CatputH pformoes*
From the upper level of Media, it descends with a nqpid and furious course, through a frightful chasm, which its waters have worn, through the base of the mountains, which is many mfles in width ; when, having reached the lower country of GHkaUt it ^ides with a navigable course to the sea. Previous to its de- scent, il odlects the waters of Ahhar and Cathmt Src. under the name of Skak^rud, and the collective waters take the name of Itperud, and Seft-rudt or the white river ; perhaps, from its long continued foaming course througli the mountains ; for • Delia Valle says, that its waters themselves have a reddith tinge.
Travellers describe with horror, the road which leads along the side of the chasm ; and which is the only one, practicable for loadud luiists, from Gliilan to Ispahan. It is generally ex- cavati (1 from tlie steep rocky clilf which impends over the dreatUul gulf below : ami along it, the traveller holds loosely, the bridle of his beast, whilst he leads him along, fearing to be drawn after iiim, should a false step be made. See Robert Bruce, Olearius, Ilanway, &'c. This chasm is about 180 miles to the westward of the Casj)ian strait.
1 1 may be remarked, that Delisle has a district of the name of Ouzaiiy near the river in (juestion ; and that Oleai ius lias I 'fzan^ classed with CJui/cal, cVc. in Ailerhigian ; which province is se- parated from Al Jebal, by tlie river Ozan.
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bordering on the river Ozan itself, a district of some extent, and of great beauty and fertility, named Ckalcal ; having within it, a remarkably strong
position of the same name, situated on one of the hills, adjoining to the base of the neighbouring mountains, which separate it from the province of Ghilan. Perhaps we may be allowed to regard these, as the river of Gozan, and the Habor, and Halah, of the Scriptures. Both of the latter are said to be by the river of Gozan, in 2 Kings, xvii. ver. 6. Halah, as it appears in the Vulgate, is written Ckalacko by Dr. Usher ; which is not much unlike Chalcal ; and considering the various acci- dents that may have corrupted the writing of the one, or the other of them, it is not unlikely to be the place meant. Habor, he writes Ckabor. The Asiatics allow to the city of Abhar, a great anti- quity ; and why should not its name have remained, as well as those of Babylon, and Nineveh ; which are known, and familiarly a])plied, to the respective situa- tions of those celebrated cities ? The name Ozan, too, which comes so near to Gozan, being so closely con- nected in geography with both, gives strength to the supposition ^
' The name of Abhar is variously w ritten. It is Abhar y by Abulfeda (Reiskc's translation) ; Abhcr^ \U T\ni\ot\ 6a r, Han- way ; Ilabar, Taverniere ; Abker, Delia Valle ; Ebheff Cbardin ; and Ebbeker, Olearius.
Abhar appears in the Tables of NaseredUin and Ulugbeig. Chardin speaks of its antiquity ; so does Taverniere. Chardin also says, that it is a small city, situated in a delightful country, weU watered. Also, that Abliar» in coming from the west, is
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Hara, to wliicli, as well as to Habor, and Ilalah, the and Itu^' tribes were sent^ is written Haram in Usher. This name, we cannot ni^y ; bat there b a district named Taram^ or Tmrim, bordering also on the Ozan, and occupying the space between those of Abhar and ChalcaL If it can be supposed that the initial has been changed, no place appears more likely to be the one intended *•
Rages, the modem Rey, a city in which others of the Jews resided (according to the testimony of Tobit, who had himself visited them, chapter i. ver. 14), stood in the same quarter of Media. In Echo- tana, by the same anAority, there weio odier Jews settled ' : and the Oriental geographers assure us,
die fint plaoe ivfaeie the Penun hmgtuge b epoken* From thenoe Mttwaid to India* aU is Pmin s to die weat, Tnrfciah,
A hbbU riyer panes through AUiart and joiaa die Kimtr Owan^ wUch latter is idNmt 45 inileB from Abbar«
Cooceming CAafeaf- we learn firom OleariuBi In his geogra- phical deacription of Persia, (lib. t.) that Chaleal is one of the diabricts c€ Aierhigian. He also passed through it, in his way from Ardehfl to Casbin (same book), and fixes its sitnation. DeOa Valle also passed through it ; and describes the position of the strong post of Chaleah Vol. iv. Lett. 5.
' Delia Valle (in the same Letter) gives the position of the district of Tarom, or Taron, Otter, Vol. i. 188, et scq. quotes the Turkish geographer concerning Tarini, situatcil at one joumoy to the north of Sultanny ; and also Abulfeda, who places it eight joumies to the eastward of TebriZi or Tauris. These notices are decisive of its position.
* It has been said, in p. 360, that Hamadau stands on the site of Ecbalana. M. Otter says. Vol. i. p. 182, that the report (of the people of the country) is, that it was ruined by Nabuchodo- uosor, whom tiie Oriental naine bukbetuiwusre : and that tbey
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that a towD« which is now either a luborb, or be- come a part, of the city of Ispahan, was anciently
peopled by Jews. So that we have here every rea- sonable testimony, concerning the positions of cer- tain of the eiiieM of the Medes, in which the J£ws were placed ; and peilu^, the same may also be admitted respecting the identity of Hubwr, Halah, and Gozan,
The following are the notices respecting the Jewish town at the nte of the present city of Ispahan ; and of the planting of a Jewish colony in it. M. Otter says. Vol. i. p. 203, " the report of the Persians is, that on the original foundation or establishment of Ispahan, it included the site of four villages, named Kearran, Kemueh^ Joubarff, and Deshet ; and that these villages were so ancient as the times of the kings T amour Is and Jemchid (whose reigns. Sir William Jones fixes in the 8th
shew the tomb of Esther at that place, to which the Jews pro- ceed in pilgrimage. He also speaks of the great d(\irree of cold there, in winter ; but he visited it in tunimer, wlicn the climate was remarkably pleasant. The moantain of Elmend {Oronie§ of the Greeks), situated at one league from it, is always eorcfed with snow. It may be recollected, that Ecbatana was the mmmtr residence of the Persian kings.
As the tomb of Esthsb is shewn at Hamadarij or EcbatanOt so is that of Damusa, at Suit taken for Suta. (Otter, VoL u. p. 5S.)
Josepbua speaks of Daniel's tower ; (at Siua, aeooiding to St. Jerome's copy, though other eopies Ecbatana.) This tower was the burial place of the kings of Media, Persia, and Parthia ; and, from the exquisite nature of its architecture and materials, remsined in a state of preservation in the time of Josephus. (Antiq. x. c U.)
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nnd 9th centuries before Christ). M. Otter adds, that " Kaikobad having resolved to estabUsh his capital here> drew together a vast concourse of people ; and that during the rdgn of Buf^hm^ nture, or Nahuehodonosor, a great number of Jews came and settled tliemselves in the quarter called^ to the present time, Jauoudia \'*
Abulfeda also speaks of the Jewish town at Ispahan (article Belad al Gahalt). He says, that Bochtansar, whan he destroyed the city of Jeru- salem, sent the inhabitants to this place, who built themselves a town, which took the name of Jaho* DiAH. That OiQjong was the name of the most ancient of the towns or villages on the site of IspahaTi ; and that Jahudiah was built at the dis- tance of two miles from it. Also, that in process of tune, Gajjong declined, whilst the Jewish town increased ; particularly by the acoesnon of Maho- medan tribes. And finally, that the name Jahudiah remained. It is certain, however, that we have not been able to find this name in any of the writings of modem travellers : and it may be, that it is now no longer to be found, but in books. Abulfeda wrote in the 14th century ^
' This ijilbrmation appears, IVoni Golius, to have been col- lected from Hamdalla. Golius writes tlie names of ll»c lour villages, from the Arabic original, Kirdn, Koxcc, Gioubdra, and Dcrdext. (See the notes on AltVaganius, p. 21 G.) Golius also quotes Jakutus, who speaks of the Jewish city on the site of Ispahan.
* The (^'fijjong, or Gajjuy of Reiske's Abul&da, is written O'iejfum by Golius, from the Arabic of Jakutus.
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These historical, or traditionary notices^ point strongly towards the establishing of a fact, which is but slightly mentioned in the Scriptures ; although the notices in question confound together the two captivities of the Jews : by assigning to the captives brought by Nebuchadneszar, to Babylonia, the place of those brought by Shalmaneser and others to Media. Kaikobad, according to Sir W. Jones, reigned in the beginning of the seventh century before Christ, which was about a century qf/cr the transplanting of the ten tribes to Media. But notwithstanding these differences, there is much internal eyidence contained in the notices ; perhaps more, than if the particulars had corresponded with the Bible history ; for then, they might have been supposed to be copied from it. And, on the whole, this testimony respecting the settlement of the Jews in Ispahan (which, it is to be recollected, is situated within ancient Media), together with the name of the suburb or city, JahiuUa, appear to be strong circum- stances ; particularly when combined with the above notices respecting the cities of the Medes,
In effect then, we find the Jews scattered over the country of Media, (then a part of the dominion of Assyria) from Eebatana to Rages; and from Ahliar and tlie river Ozan to Isjmlian. And hav- ing thus attempted to point out the places of resi- dence of the Jews, carried away in the first capti-
D'Herbelot appears to consider Jahudiah as a different place from Ispahan, although situated in the same province of Media. See tlie artide Etfahan in D'UerbeloL
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viTY, we shall next inquire, whether it is probable that the whole nation of Israel was transplanted to Nineveh and Media; or that certain classes of people only, and those the least numerous, were carried away ?
It has been already remarked, that there are no particulars given, respecting the carrying away of IsRABL to Nineveh, as of Judah to Babylon : and that we may, perhaps, be allowed to consider both as [)iirallcl cases ; and thence infer, that the conduct of the king of Nineveh, was much the same with that of the king of fiabyloni
Josephus says (see above, page 517), that all the nation of Israel \vas taken away, and their places supplied by the Ciitheans, The Bible (2 Kings, di. xvii. and xviii.), leaves us to under- stand the same, if taken literally: that is, that Shalmaneser " carried Israel away into or umto Assyria ;" and that people were brought from divers countries, and placed in the cities of Samaria, instead of the children of Israel : and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.**
Certainly, if these accounts are to be taken li- terally, we must suppose uo other, than that the whole nation was carried away; which supposi- tion, however, occasions some difficulty, not only from the numbers to be carried away, but from the obvious difficulty of feeding by the way, and of finally placing in a situation where they could be fed, so vast, and in a great degree, so useless a mul- titude, when removed to a strange country. Where- soever they came, they must cither have been
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starved themselves, or they must virtually have dis- placed nearly an equal number of the king's subjects, who were alroady aettled, and in habita of maintain* ing themfdves, and probably of aiding the state
They were said to be carried to Nineveh. This residue of the ten tribes (that is, seven and a half) eannot be estimated lower than at two-thirds of the population of Nineveh itself. And it may be asked, v/ho Jed them, in their way across Syria and
' In the enumentioB of the tribes of Judas and IskabLi in 9 Sennidt xxiv. theie were aaid to be, of fighting men 800,<M>0, in Inrael, 500,000 in Judah. In 1 Chron* xxi. there is this dif> ferenoe, that there are given, respectively, 1,100,000, and 470,000. Take the mean of the two accounts, we have 1,435,000 fighting men. According to the data fiimished by the actual enumeration of a parish in Dorsetshire^ by that
WOETBT CmSBK, Sud TBUK PATRIOT, WlLUAM MOBXON PiXT,
Esq. the persons copoile of bearing arms, appear to form about tL/ourih part of a community. Consequendy, there should have been near 5| millions of people m Palestine : but as the number of square miles in that country hardly exceed 7250, there must have been some mistake in the copying of the original document. It appears, diat the most populous country in Europe, that iSf (or was) the Netherlands, has no more than £00 persons on each square mile; and taking this proportion for Palestine, there could only have been 1,450,000, or less than a million and half. Is it not probable then, that the numbers given, were Aoae of the nMe population t
Were we to avail ourselves of the Bible statement, and take between 3^ and 4 millions, for the people of Israel ; and of tlicse, three-fourths for the 7^ tribes carried away by Shalmancscr, that is, more than 2^ millions, wc miirht well rest tlie argunu nt tliere. But oven reduced to the more probable number of 700,000 ami upwards, how was such a multitude to be provided lor ? Nor iii thin stated to be au act ol ncccasUi/, but of choice .'
13
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Mesopotamia, to Nineveh ? And admitting an ex- change of the Cutlieans for the Israelites, on so extended a scale, as to include the agricultural and working people of all classes, a sovereign who should make such an exchange, where an interval of space, of near 1000 miles, intervened, would at least disco- ver a different kind of policy from that which, in our conception, was followed by the king of Assyria.
The Tartar, or other Nomadic tribes, which either transport themselves to a distant country, or have been transplanted by others, are in a predicament totally different from agricultural tribes. With the former, the business of life goes on, by the way ; and nothing is lost by a removal, which leaves no- thing behind, and places every thing valuable in prospect. Most of the people whom Tamerlane transplanted, were- Tartars; and the Eretrians and Boeotians were very few In number ^
We shall now state the particulars that are given, respecting the Babylonish captivity.
It appears then, that Nebuchadnezzar carried away the principal \nhMiaTkts, the warriors, and artisdJis' of every kind; and these classes only; leaving behind, the husbandmen, the labourers, and the poorer classes, in general; that is» the great body of the people
* Lands were assigned to the /i refriflW*, by the king of Persia; as appears by the j)eti(ioii of Apollonins to Bardancs, to restore them. Notliing of this kind is said concerning tlie Israehtes.
• *' And be (Nebuchadnezzar) carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the nnghty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craltsmen and smiths ; none re>
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May it not be concluded^ that much the same mode of conduct was pursued by the king of Nine- veh, as by him of Babylon ; although it is not par- ticularized? It cannot be supposed that either Media or Assyria wanted husbandmen, although they might want merchants, men qf science, and of tetters, and artisans: and that they did want certain of the classes whidi were carried into cap- tivity, will be made evident, by their eniployinq- some of the captives in situations of trust and high com- mand.
The story of Tosrr throws much light on the
condition of the captive Israelites in Assyria and Media : and it is very curious to remark, how the habitual industry, perseyerance, . adroitness, and knowledge of business, possessed by the Jews, raised
mained, save t\w poorest sort of people of the laad." 2 Kings, xxiv. vtr. 14.
** And all the men of might, even seven tliousand, and crafts- men and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylont" Ver. 16.
Afterwards, on the destruction of Jerusalem by the same Ba- bylonians, on occasion of the revolt of Zedekiah, it is said that *' the remnant of the niuhitude" that were in the city was carried away, and that " the poor of the land were left, to be vine- dressers and husbandmen." Chap. XXV. ver. 11 and IJ^. Ge- daliah was left ruler over them.
On occasion of the murder of this Gedaliah, the Jews fled into Egypt, fearing the anger of the Babylonians, who might have imputed the massacre to the Jewish people in general, although innocent. These Jews, upon the taking of Egypt, were also carried into captivity. And such, says Josephus, was the end of the Hebrew nation.
VOL. I. Mm
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them to stations of trust under their new masters ; and gave them opportunities of enriching themselves. Tobit and Achiacanu, his kinsman, both hdd em- ployments, either in the state, or in the royal hoose- hold, or both ; under the kings of Assyria, in Ni- neveh. Tobit was amongst the captives taken away by ShahmaAeser, from the remainder of the ten tribes left on this side Jordan, after the two and half had previously been carried away by Tiglath Pileser : and was himself of the tribe of Naphtali. The fol- lowing is an abstract of his history. (See the book of Tobit.)
He was made purveyor to Shalmaneeer (or
Enemessar) ; and, we must su})pose, grew rich ; for he le/Y in trust with a friend at liages, in Media, ten talents of silver. But Shalmaneser dying, was succeeded by Sennacherib, whose wanton cruelty to the captive Jews, heightened by the failure of his attempt on Judea, occasioned Tobit to fail under liis displeasure : his property was forfeited, and he was compelled to flee from Nineveh, through fear of his life. The tyrant, however, was quickly dispatched, and was succeeded by bis son Esarhaddon, (Sfirc/ie- donus of Tobit,) who, like his grandfather Shalma- neser, appears to have understood the value of the services of the Jews ; and to have regarded them with a favourable eye. Achiacarus, the nephew of Tobit, was a])pointed to a high office in the govern- ment; and by his intercession, Tobit returned in peace to Nineveh, and was there supported by him. After this, it appears that he went into Elynmis; that is. we suppose, to Susa; but neither the
is
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mand, nor the time of his stay, are mentioned. It is probable^ that, as Esarhaddon united the kingdom of Babylon to that of Nineveh, &c. he made use of
Susa^ as his ic inter capital, as was the practice of the Persian monarchs, afterwards ; and that Tobit accompanied his nephew, who followed the king, aa a matter of course. .
After this, we find him again at Nineveh (see chapter xi. ver. 16.) ; from wliencc he disi)atches his son Tobias, to Rages, by way of Ecbatana, for the money. At the latter place, he marries his kinswoman, Sara; and sends a messenger on to Rages. The mode of keeping and deUvering the money, was exactly as at present, in the East. Gabael, who kept the money in trust, " brought forth hags, which were sealed up, and gave them to him;' and received in return, "the hand-writing,'* or acknowledgment, which Tobias had taken care to require of his father, before he left Nineveh. The money, we learn, (chap. i. ver. 14.) was left in trust, or as a deposit , and not on usury ; and as it may be concluded, with Tobit s seal on the bags. In the East, in the present times, a bag of money passes (for some time at least) currently from hand to hand, under the authority of a banker's seal, without any examination of its contents.
Two camels were taken from Ecbatana to Rages, for the money. The ten talents of silver, which should have been equal in weight, according to Dr. Arbuthnot, to about 940 lb. avoirdupois, might be conveniently carried on two camels. Only two per- sons accompanied them, which shews that the
M m 2
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country must have been very quiet; since the dis- tance between Ecbatana and Rages ia upwards of 200 of our miles : and, it may be observed, that
Tobit regarded Media as a more settled country than Assyria ; which is shewn as well in his own conduct^ as in his advice to his son.
This history of Tobit shews, not only that the Jews were distributed over Media, but that they filled situations of trust and confidence. And, on the whole, it may be conceived, that the persons brought away from the land of Israel, were those from whom the conqueror expected useful services, in his country, or feared disturbances from, in their own. In effect, that the classes were much the same, with those brought away from Judea, by the king of Babylon: and that the great body of the people remained in the land, as bdng of use there, but would have been burthcnsonic, if removed : con- sequently, that those who look for a nation of Jews, transplanted into Media, or Persia, certainly look for what was never to be found ; since no more than a select part of the nation was so transplanted.
In the distribution of such captives, it might be expected that a wise monarch would be governed by two considerations : first, to profit the most by their knowledge and industry ; and, secondly, to place them in such a situation, as to reuder it extremely difficult for them to return to their own country. The geographical position of Media appears favour- able to the latter circumstance, there being a great extent of country, as well as deserts, and deep rivers between ; and it can scarcely be otherwise than that
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the Jews, by their communication with the Egyptians and Phcenidaiis, together with their own habits of life, were in possession of many branches of know- ledge, that had been but imperfectly communicated to the Medes.
One cannot help adverting to the policy which led Peter the Great of Russia to place the Swedish cap- tives in Siberia, in preference to the more civilized parts of his empire ; namely, that his subjects in that remote part might profit by the superior knowledge of the arts of life, possessed by these captives. More- over, by the wide and dreary tract of country which was placed between them and their homes, they would find it impracticable to return ; at the same time, thaty by remaining at large, their minds were left more at ease, than if subject to a more rigorous confinement nearer home.
One circumstance appears very remarkable. Al- though it is positively said, that only certain classes of the Jews were carried to Babylon at the latter cap- tivity ; and also, that on the decree of Ctrus, which permitted their return, the principal part did re- turn, (perhaps 50,000 in all,) yet so great a number was found in Babylonia, in aftertimes, as is really astonishing. They are spoken of by Josephus> as possessing towns and districts in tliat country, so late as the reign of Fhraates, about 40 years before Christ. They were in great numbers at Babylon itself; and also in Seleucia and Susa. Their in- crease must have been wonderful ; and in order to maintain such numbers, their industry and gains also must have been great But it must also have been^
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that a very great number were disinclined to leave the country in which they were settled, at the date of the decree. Ammianas MarceUiniu, so late as the expedition of Jalian, speaks of a Jews' town at the side of one of the canals between the Euphrates and Tigris
The numbers of Jews reported by Benjamin of Tudela (in the 12th century,) to have resided in the different cities in the East, are so much beyond pro- bability, that it may be supposed he included the whole population of the cities, and not that of the Jews alone.
We shall conclude this inquiry with a short view of
the report of Diodorus Siculus, concerning the Jews.
It appears that he either wrote, or intended to write, a history of the wars against the Jews, (by the kings of Syria, we suppose,) but nothing more ap- pears than a fragment of his xlth book, stating his inteatiou ; and giving also (prul)al)ly as an intro- duction,) a short history of the origin of the Jewish nation, as a body of strangers in Egypt, of their ex- pulsion from Egypt, and of their settlement in Judea; agreeing in tlie principal events of their history, with that of their legislator, Moses ; but with a far dif- ferent colouring. In another fragment (of his zxxivth book,) he gives a short account of their subjection by Antiochus Epip/iaties, and of his indecent pro- fanation of the temple and altar. And again, in his first book, c 7, he touches slightly on the subject of their religion, and institutes, in common with those
" Aoitn. Marcel, lib. xxiv.
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of the Egyptians, Cretans, Getes, 8cc. From these passages, collectively^ it appears, that he considered the Jews, although not as a popular, or an amiable, people, yet as a very wonderful people ; whether in respect of their institutes, which kept them distinct from the rest of the world ; of their municipal laws, which accomplished the purposes of useful education, and frugal habits (the foundation of a vast popula- tion, considering the general sterility of their coun- try); of their unaiterahle firmness and patience under misfortunes, or of their obstinate brayery in combat. But he obsenres, that through the great change in empires that had taken place, and the consequent and unavoidable admixture of the Jews with foreign nations, many of the ancient laws and customs of the Jews had been changed or laid aside. If this could be said, in the days of Augustus, how different must tlie Jews of our days l)e tiom those of remote times, when they appear to us unlike all the rest of the world ; and a Idnd of standing muuclb !
END OF VOL. I.
LONDON :
GILBUT & miVlirOTOH, PRINTBBS, ST. JOUIl'S SQUARE.
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