Remarks on the City of Sort, or Sert, of Edrisi and other Arab
Geographers — Description of it by Leo Africanus — Position of
Sert, on the Authority of Abulfeda — Zaffrān considered as Asna
— Remarks of Major Rennell on these Places — Remains at Medīnét
Sultàn considered as those of Sort — Columns and other Remains
described by Signor Della Cella, in the Neighbourhood of Zaffrān
— Train of Argument adopted by the Doctor on this Occasion —
Remarks of the same Writer on the Tower of Euphrantas, and the Town
of Charax, as laid down by Strabo — Nature of the Inscriptions
on the Columns alluded to by Signor Della Cella — Formidable
Appearance of the Coast at Zaffrān — General Appearance of the
Country in its Neighbourhood — Species of Crocus abounding there
— Obliging Treatment of our Party by the Arabs of Zaffrān —
Arrival at Medīnét Sultàn — Description of its Remains —
Further Remarks on the Tower of Euphrantas — Arrival at Nehīm
— Aukward Situation of Shekh Mahommed el Dúbbah — Visit of
the Dúbbah to our Tent — Object of it discovered — Departure
of Shekh Mahommed, well pleased with the result of his Visit.
It is in the neighbourhood of Zaffran (if the measurements of Edrisi
be correct) that we must look for the remains of the city of Sort or
Sert. They are placed by this geographer at two hundred and thirty
Arabic, or two hundred and forty-six geographic, miles from Tripoly:
at least such is the distance given in the gross; for the detail (as
Major Rennell has already observed) allows no more than two hundred
and ten Arabic miles, or two hundred and twenty-two geographic.
The first distance, of two hundred and forty-six geographic miles,
would carry us seven miles beyond Zaffran, and within three of
Jedeed, which is ten miles to the eastward of Zaffran.
The distance in detail, or two hundred and twenty-two geographical
miles, would bring us within two miles of Jiraff, and fourteen
beyond Mahad Hassan; while the number of days allotted by Edrisi,
for the journey in question from Tripoly to Sort, which is eleven,
would give a distance (on the computation of Major Rennell) of two
hundred geographic miles only; and this would bring us within six
miles of Mahad Hassan, that is, six miles to the westward of that
place. These measurements, considered with reference to the places
enumerated, would induce us to place the city of Sort either at
Mahad Hassan, or at Zaffran, or perhaps in the neighbourhood of
Jedeed; for it is at these places that the greatest assemblage of
ruins may be observed.
To the westward of Mahad Hassan is the marsh, and at Jiraff there
are nothing but sand-hills. Between Jedeed and Shuaisha[1] there
are a good many scattered ground-plans, apparently of slightly-built
dwelling-houses (which seem to be those pointed out by Signor Della
Cella as the remains of the Charax of Strabo,) and many insulated
forts, and other scattered remains of building, may be observed on
the road from Jedeed to Medīnét Sultàn.
It appears, on the authority of Leo Africanus, that there was nothing
more remaining, in his time, of the city of Sort (or, as he writes
it, Sert,) than a few inconsiderable vestiges of the walls[2]; and,
if this statement is to be taken literally, it will scarcely be
possible to fix the site of the town with any accuracy in a tract
of country where ruins abound.
We will content ourselves with repeating, that it may either be
placed (upon the authority of the measurements stated above) at
Mahad Hassan, at Zaffran, or in the neighbourhood of Jedeed; but
if we are to fix it on the authority of Abulfeda, we must remove
it further eastward, to the neighbourhood of Medīnét Sultàn,
which is the spot we should ourselves prefer for it.
Abulfeda, in mentioning the remains of the city of Sort, informs us
that on the _west_ of them is a Gulf called Rodaik, or Rodakiah,
(apparently the same) says Major Rennell (with the Zadic Sinus of
Edrisi) near which stands the town of Asna, one hundred and two
Arabic miles, or one hundred and eight geographic, to the south-east
of the Promontory of Kanem.
The Promontory of Kanem may be considered as the western
extremity of the Greater Syrtis (say the Cephalas Promontorium
in the neighbourhood of Mesurata); and a distance of one hundred
and eight geographical miles from Mesurata would bring us within
five miles of Zaffran, that is, five miles to the west of it; for
Zaffran is one hundred and thirteen miles from Mesurata. According
to this measurement, we should be induced to place Asna at Zaffran,
in the absence of any ruins, as we have stated above, between that
place and Mahad Hassan[3].
The town of Asna is laid down by Edrisi at forty-six Arabic miles
from the city of Sort; and this distance added to the hundred
and eight above stated would bring us to the neighbourhood of
Medinet Sultàn, which is one hundred and fifty-one geographic
miles from Mesurata. If we suppose, with Major Rennell, that
forty-six has here been substituted for twenty-six, the latter
measurement would bring us to Shuaisha, where there are certainly,
as we have already stated, some inconsiderable remains, but not
apparently those of a town. About two miles south-east of Medinet
Sultàn are decided remains, of an ancient town, called Medina[4],
(the city) which from the circumstance we are about to mention,
we should be inclined to suggest as the most eligible position
(at least in our opinion) for the city of Sort.
The distance of Asna from the western point of the Syrtis, as
given by Abulfeda, is found to correspond sufficiently well with
that of Zaffran from Mesurata. Sort is stated to be situated to
the eastward of Asna, at a distance of forty-six Roman miles from
that place, according to the testimony of Edrisi; and the distance
of Zaffran from Medina (forty-seven M. P.) corresponds very well
with this statement, the latter place being, at the same time,
to the eastward of the former.
We may add that the term Sort, or Sert, is not known at the present
day to the Arabs as applied to any city or town; but is merely used
to designate the tract of country which lies between Sooleb and
Barca. The ruins of Medina are situated within this territory;
and supposing them to be actually the remains of Sort, we may
imagine that when this city lost its former name, it continued to
be distinguished as _the_ city, (the Medina) of the district to
which its name of Sort had been transferred[5].
This arrangement will place the city of Sort at least forty miles
to the eastward of its position according to the measurements
above stated from Edrisi: but a short distance in reckoning is
always preferable to a long one, and we should on that account
prefer taking the distance of Sort from Asna to reckoning it from
Tripoly as above. For the same reason the measurement of Abulfeda,
from the Promontory of Kanem to Asna, is more likely to be correct
than that of Edrisi from Tripoly to the city of Sort.
The Gulf of Rodaik (or Rodakiah) might have served to elucidate this
question had there been anything like it remaining; but it will be
seen, on a reference to the chart, that there is no appearance on
this part of the coast which can at all be considered as a gulf;
and this will of course equally apply to the Sinus Zadic of Edrisi.
We will not at present pursue this subject further, but leaving
our readers to judge, from the data already given, how far we may
be authorized in placing the city of Sort in the position we have
ventured to suggest for it, we will proceed to notice some remains
which are found in the neighbourhood of Zaffran.
In traversing this part of the Syrtis, Signor Della Cella discovered
a square column of tolerable height and placed upon a pedestal. It
was composed, he says, of sandstone, but so corroded by time that
the characters which entirely covered its four sides had become
altogether unintelligible. An hour afterwards he arrived at a second,
and, after a similar interval, at a third of these erections, all
equally covered with writing and so much decayed that, what with
the little time which he had at his command, and the state of ruin
in which the pillars were found, he could not succeed in putting
together a single word of their inscriptions. “Opposite to the
first of these columns” (he adds) “on the part next the sea,
rise the remains of a tower surmounted with a cupola, and this spot
is called Elbenia[6].”
The Doctor confesses himself at a loss to decide for what purpose
these pillars could have been erected; but suggests that, supposing
Zaffran to be Aspis, the ancient tower with a cupola which is near it,
and, “as Strabo says, συνεχης to Aspis,” must inevitably be the πυργος,
or tower named Euphrantas of that geographer. From this conclusion he
is induced to suspect that, as the tower of Euphrantas was the boundary
of the Cyrenaic and Carthaginian territory under the Ptolemies, the
three pillars above mentioned were erected to mark the limits of those
countries, as well as to record other matters which (he says) were
usually engraved by the ancients on objects of this nature.
Finding his courage rise at this happy coincidence of ancient with
what he terms modern geography, Signor Della Cella now assumes a more
decided tone, and taking boldly for granted what he has just advanced
on supposition, proceeds to deduce from it an unqualified conclusion;
and this leads him into his favourite practice of scepticism, for
which his deeply-rooted antipathy to all commentators and editors
seems to have given him a most decided partiality.
“Encouraged by this coincidence,” (are the Doctor’s own words)
“in my opinion, so plausible, of ancient and modern geography,
I no longer hesitate to believe that the ancient ruins which we
met with on the road, after three hours’ journey from Elbenia,
point out the spot which is called, by Strabo, Charax.”
Without attempting to give the least description of these ruins,
or any explanation of the reasons why he thinks they are those of
Charax, the Doctor all at once proceeds to criticise the passage
in Strabo, and to offer a new reading for the approbation of
his friend, the professor, on the subject of the silphium and
the liquor which was extracted from it. We do not pretend to any
skill in logic, but the train of argument here adopted by Signor
Della Cella does certainly appear to us a little extraordinary:
it seems to run thus—“If Zaffran be Aspis, the tower with
a cupola must be the tower of Euphrantas; and, as the tower of
Euphrantas was a boundary under the Ptolemies, the three square
pillars with the illegible inscriptions are also boundaries; and
the ruins which are met with three hours afterwards are those of
Charax, which Strabo says was used by the Carthaginians for a fair,
at which the juice of the silphium was exchanged for wine; and,
as I read in this passage, juice of the silphium, instead of juice
and silphium; or, as Buonacciuoli very badly translates it, ‘il
belgioino e il silfio.’—You will agree with me (he concludes,
addressing the professor) in this little alteration in the text of
the Grecian geographer.”
He then leaves the subject, records another march through a very
hot day, and describes a visit with which he was honoured by
the Bey in his tent, and the excellent supper which he made off
an ostrich’s egg, which His Highness in his munificence had
presented him with. The supper and the chapter finish together,
and the Doctor goes to sleep, without further discussion, as soon
as the meal is over.
The position of Zaffran, with respect to the marsh, and to the port
which bears its name, will perhaps authorize us to consider it as
the Aspis of Strabo; and we have already stated the reasons why we
think it not improbable that it may be: but the necessity for placing
Charax and the tower of Euphrantas in the positions assigned to them
by Signor Della Cella, does not seem, in our opinion, to be quite
so great as the Doctor has imagined. For the tower surmounted with
a cupola, which he has supposed to be the same with the tower of
Euphrantas, has no pretensions whatever to half the antiquity which
it would be necessary in that case to assign to it: it is in fact
nothing more than a rudely-formed Arab building, and never could,
at any time, have aspired to the title of tower, had it even been
built under the dynasty of the Ptolemies. It appears to have been
a dwelling-house, somewhat resembling the tomb of a Marábūt;
but being situated on the top of a range of hills overlooking
the road, it appears more important from below than could well be
imagined by those who might only have examined it closely; and it
is probable that the view of it which Signor Della Cella obtained,
and which suggested to him the analogy between it and the tower of
Euphrantas, was from the road in the plain below. It is certainly
somewhat singular that, in a place where several ancient forts may
be observed, the Doctor should have pitched upon an Arab building
as the boundary of the Cyrenaic and Carthaginian territory; but
had he even been willing to adopt one of the forts as the tower, it
would have been difficult to select any one from the number which
had more claim than the rest to that distinction; and there does
not, in fact, appear to be any building at Zaffran sufficiently
conspicuous to be considered as the structure in question.
It seems to us that the tower of Euphrantas should be looked for in
some commanding situation, which either occasioned its being built,
or selected as a boundary for the kingdoms we have mentioned; and
there seems to be no more reason for placing it at Zaffran than
at Medīnet Sultàn, where there are also many forts; except that
the term συνεχης, (following upon, or succeeding to,) which
Strabo uses to point out its position, would induce us to place it
as soon after Aspis as circumstances would seem to allow. At all
events, we do not hesitate in rejecting the “torre sormontata da
una cupola” as the tower of Euphrantas; and we should much rather,
if it be necessary to place this structure at Zaffran, select for
its representative one of the fortresses already mentioned, than
any building like that which is suggested by Signor Della Cella,
were it even of ancient construction.
There is another building which stands in a conspicuous position
on the same range of hills where the Doctor’s tower is situated,
and to which it is difficult to assign any use, unless we suppose it
to have been a sepulchral or other monument, built as a conspicuous
object merely. It occupies a square of about twenty feet, and could
have been little more at any time than a mass of solid stone and
cement, the space which is left in the centre being not more than
four or five feet square, and without any apparent communication
with the exterior. The height of the whole building appears to
have been about thirty feet, but little more than the basement
upon which it has been raised now remains; and this estimation
is made from a computation of the quantity of fallen materials,
and from the probable proportion of the height with the breadth
given. The basement itself is six feet in height, and composed
of well-shaped stones, some of which are five feet long, and from
twelve to sixteen inches in height and thickness: above this no more
than three feet of the superstructure now remain in any part; but
the base of a pilaster, which still appears in one of the angles,
proves that the exterior at least has been constructed with some
attention to architectural ornament. The outer part only of this
structure is _built_, the whole of the interior, with the exception
of the space mentioned in the centre, having been filled up with
unshaped stones deeply bedded in cement, the proportion of which
is much greater than that of the rubble thrown into it.
Were it not that the base of the remaining pilaster appears to be
a Saracenic imitation of the Greek, we should be disposed to allow
a greater antiquity to the building in question than it seems to
us from this circumstance to possess: for the stones employed in
it are of good size, very regularly placed, and well finished,
and the cement which has been used is excellent. Attached to this
tower, for such it may be called, although it never could have been
employed for military purposes, are the remains of a subterranean
storehouse for grain, the roof of which is raised about a foot from
the ground above it and composed of cement: between this and the
tower there is a sort of well, which appears to be the entrance to
the storehouse, but which was too much encumbered with rubbish to
allow of our descending into it. Some traces of walls attached to
the roof of the storehouse may be seen in the ground-plan annexed,
but we could not determine whether either these, or the souterrain
itself, were originally attached to the building.
No architectural remains could be perceived among the fallen ruins
of the tower by which we might have been enabled to fix the time
of its erection with more precision; and the base of the pilaster
which we have mentioned at the angle of the building, is the only
evidence of this nature which we could obtain.
To us this structure appears to be Saracenic; but if others should
be disposed to think differently, and to adopt it as the tower of
Euphrantas, the circumstance of its having (at least in our opinion)
been built as an object merely without any other apparent use,
might perhaps be considered by some persons, to favour the idea;
and we are a little surprised that Signor Della Cella did not adopt
it in preference to the building which he has pointed out.
With regard to the columns with the illegible inscriptions, which
the Doctor supposes to have been boundaries; we know of no other
objects which will at all answer to his description but those at
Hámed Garoosh; and our guides, as well as the Arabs of the place,
were obstinate in persisting that there were no others of any kind.
The columns at this place are “tolerably high,” and they are
also quadrangular, and have the advantage of a pedestal, as the
Doctor has remarked of his boundary stones. But then they are
not of sandstone, nor of any stone at all, that is, not of any
blocks of stone, but merely of small irregular fragments of stone,
put together with cement, with which they are cased, and which
gives them the appearance at a little distance of being formed of a
single piece. Then, instead of one, there are two upon one pedestal,
and unless we suppose that the Doctor saw them in one direction
only, when the two were in one, it is not easy to account for this
difference between his description and the reality. The characters
which are upon them do certainly coincide with those mentioned by
Signor Della Cella, so far as the circumstance of their being wholly
illegible is concerned; for they consist altogether of unmeaning
scrawls, and of some of those marks which are used by the Arabs
to distinguish their particular tribes[7], and have been scratched
for the amusement of those who may from time to time have stopped
to rest themselves in the shade which the pillars afforded.
It will be seen by the drawing of them, that these pillars are of
different sizes, although they may, perhaps, have been once of equal
height; and we will not venture to hazard any conjecture with regard
to the purpose for which they may have been erected: they cannot be
seen from the sea-shore, or the lower road, although they are but
a short distance from both; for notwithstanding they are placed
on a ridge of hills, they are so situated in the hollow in which
they stand, as to be indistinguishable from below. In rejecting,
however, the “torre sormontata da una cupola” as the boundary
established in the time of the Ptolemies, we may, perhaps, at the
same time, dispense with the columns which Signor Della Cella has
imagined to regulate the division; and it will not in that case be
of any great importance whether the square pillars at Hamed Garoosh
be or be not the same as those which the Doctor has mentioned. For
our own part we see no building whatever in this neighbourhood,
which answers to our idea of the tower of Euphrantas, either with
regard to its nature or position; and as we find other buildings
to the eastward of Zaffran which seem to us better calculated for
boundary towers, we are content to take a more extended sense of
the term employed by Strabo (συνεχης) than Signor Della Cella
thinks it prudent to adopt.
We cannot take our leave of Zaffran without noticing the very
singular and formidable appearance of the beach at this place and its
neighbourhood; and had we not ourselves beheld the extraordinary
scene which it presented, we should scarcely have believed it
possible that the force of the sea could, under any circumstances,
have raised the large blocks of stone which are piled up on this
part of the coast[8]. The occasional regularity in which these are
heaped one above another, induced us, on the first view of them, to
imagine that they had been intentionally placed there for the purpose
of a breakwater; but the long extent of the ranges soon proved the
improbability of this supposition and the idea was dismissed as
heartily as it had been entertained. Heaps of sand and sea-weed are
thrown up with these blocks of stone, and the roar and confusion
which a moderate gale of wind here occasions, are such as in other
places will seldom be found to accompany the most violent weather[9].
The general appearance of Zaffran is however by no means unpleasing,
although it is destitute, like the rest of the Syrtis, of the
advantages afforded by trees. The monotony of the flat and marshy
surface, so predominant in other parts, is here broken by hills which
are covered with verdure and overspread with a variety of flowers;
some of the valleys are partially cultivated, and the flocks
of sheep and goats which are scattered over the higher grounds,
together with the tents of the Arabs who inhabit the place, give an
appearance of cheerfulness and comfort to the scene which contrast
renders doubly agreeable.
The water which is found here, and which is excellent and plentiful,
contributes at the same time in no small degree to increase the
attractions of the place; and though the claims of Zaffran might be
humble, were it placed in a more favoured country, we may venture
to affirm that no traveller who reaches it will ever be disposed
to analyze too minutely its pretensions to actual beauty.
Zaffran is a place of some note in the district of Syrt; it affords
excellent pasturage, and furnishes large supplies of corn, wool,
and manteca. The name which it bears would lead us to imagine
that this place has been originally famous for its saffron;
Zaffran is the Arab term by which that plant is distinguished,
and we know that the northern coast of Africa has been noted for
the excellence of the saffron which it produced[10]. We could not,
however, perceive any traces of the plant properly so called; but
the whole neighbourhood of Zaffran is overspread with a species of
crocus from which saffron might very possibly be extracted.
The best saffron of our own times is that which is made from the
crocus, by selecting the pistils and carefully drying them in a
kiln; and the colour of the plant which we saw was well calculated
to suggest the idea that it might be usefully employed in a similar
way: it is a bulb, with a flower somewhat larger than the crocus,
and grows to a height of four or five inches. We had collected a
few specimens, but the nature of our journey did not allow of our
stopping to have them properly dried, and we afterwards found, on
unpacking them at Bengazi, that the damp had destroyed them, together
with some others which we had collected in passing through the Syrtis.
The inhabitants of Zaffran are Bedouins, as are also all those of
the other parts of the Syrtis; for there is not a single inhabited
town or village to be found between Mesurata and Bengazi. We found
them hospitable and obliging, and never entered one of their tents
without receiving a cordial reception: their simple fare of milk and
dates was always freely offered, and our horses were regaled with
a feed of corn which they usually found very acceptable. Fresh milk
was not always to be had, but they were never without a good supply
of léban (sour milk, or more properly butter-milk), and we were
seldom unwilling to alight from our saddles to take a draught of
this patriarchal beverage, which a long day’s hard riding through
a country without roads, and under the influence of an African sun,
made infinitely more palatable than will easily be imagined by
those who can spare it for their pigs.
We were often much amused on these occasions with the surprise which
our appearance created, and at the contest between ill-repressed
curiosity and the respect which our Arab friends were desirous of
shewing to their guests.
This struggle usually lasted till we had finished our repast, and our
hosts would then begin to draw a little nearer to the mats which they
had spread upon the ground for our seats; the women to examine our
dress more minutely, and the men to handle our sabres and fire-arms.
The white linen of which our turbans and under garments were
composed excited the greatest admiration in the former, while our
double-barrelled guns, and pocket-pistols with stop-locks, were the
objects of attraction to the latter. In a very short time the reserve
of both sexes would begin to wear away very rapidly, and the whole
family of our host would crowd round us indiscriminately each trying
to be heard above the other: one question after another poured in
upon us from all sides, and either nobody waited for an answer,
or the answer was given by half a dozen of the family at once,
each expressing a different opinion from that of his neighbour. At
length, when no satisfactory conclusion could be formed upon the
subject of their inquiry, they would wait to have the question
formally answered by ourselves; and the real use of every object
which excited their curiosity was generally so different from all
those which they had assigned to it, that the whole party, then
waiting in silent expectation for the result, would burst out all
at once into the loudest exclamations of surprise, and sometimes
into fits of laughter, which laid them rolling on the ground, and
left them scarcely strength to rise when we got up to take our leave.
Among the numerous objects of attraction, our compass, telescopes,
and watches, excited universal admiration; and the reason why the
hands of the latter should move round of themselves, and why the
needle of the compass should always turn to the northward, must
have been canvassed among them for many months afterwards.
Why a man or a camel could be seen distinctly through a tube,
when they could scarcely be seen at all, at the same distance,
without it, will afford equal matter for speculation: and the next
European who may visit the tents of our friends will probably hear
an account of these wonders so much disfigured by misrepresentation,
and so much exaggerated by the enthusiasm of Arab fancy, as will
lead him to doubt whether they ever saw what they are describing,
or to believe that they are telling him some whimsical story which
has no better foundation than those of the Hundred and one Nights
or the description of a Mahommedan Paradise.
We found the men of Zaffran active, healthy, and well made,
and the women pretty and well-behaved; the dress of the former
consists merely of a coarse baracan, with a red cap, and sandals
of camel’s hide.
The women wore a loose cotton shirt under the baracan, and instead
of the sandals were furnished with laced boots. They had as usual
a profusion of rude ornaments, and charms to avert the evil eye,
and were not at all anxious to keep their faces veiled or to avoid
the society of strangers. A small looking-glass and a few strings
of beads were received with delight by the fairer part of this
community, and a knife, with a few flints, and some powder, were
accepted very thankfully by the men.
Our Chaous, who sometimes attended on these occasions, never omitted
an opportunity of displaying his own knowledge, and took a large
share in the explanation of the different objects of attraction. He
never omitted to beg for an exhibition of our chronometer, that
he might have an opportunity of descanting upon the manner in
which we regulated it, which he used to say was done by _weighing
the sun_[11]; and poor Sala, our attendant on such occasions,
was always called upon to produce the quicksilver used for the
artificial horizon, which never failed to excite the astonishment
and delight which our dilettante Chaous had anticipated.
Having purchased a supply of corn for our horses, which is here
deposited, as is usual in Northern Africa, in cisterns or storehouses
which have been excavated by the ancients, we left Zaffran, and
continued our journey to Jedeed, where the tents were pitched for
the night. This mode of preserving corn is frequently alluded to by
ancient writers, and Varro has asserted that wheat thus preserved
will keep for fifty years, and millet for more than a hundred[12].
From Jedeed we proceeded on to Shuaisha, passing by Bennet Hadeed and
Hamed Garoosh, where are the remains of some forts, and a building
called by the natives Rumīa (or Christian), but which has nothing to
mark it as such, nor anything to recommend it to further notice. The
country from Zaffràn to Hamed Garoosh becomes gradually higher,
and in the valleys is well cultivated. We noticed many flocks of
sheep and goats, some oxen and camels, and found in all parts hares,
plovers, quails, curlews, wild-ducks, a few snipes, and a multitude
of jackalls, which latter were indeed, throughout the journey, our
constant companions. The evening setting in stormy, with heavy rains,
we were very late in reaching our tents, and having passed unexamined
some part of the coast, we remained at Shuaisha the whole of the
following day (the 16th) in order to complete it. Between Jedeed
and Shuaisha the coast is formed in small bays, and has some sunken
rocks very close in shore: at about a quarter of a mile from the
latter place, to the westward, we found the remains of a building
shewing itself through the side of the cliff which covered it; its
height from the foundation was about twenty-five feet, but its plan
could not of course be obtained without previous excavation. At nine
o’clock, on the 17th, we left Shuaisha, passed Marábut Duscarga
(the remains of an old fort), and in seven hours reached Medīnet
Sultàn, where we found a good supply of sweet water.
Medīnet Sultàn has been an important military position, as the
remains of several strongly-built fortresses still remaining there
attest; these buildings, like those at Zaffràn, are quadrangular,
and the foundations of strong walls, communicating with the forts,
are seen to cross them in various directions.
The plans of the buildings are more perfect than those of Zaffràn,
and are upon a larger scale; those of the walls, however, could not
be determined, and would require, from their ruined state, a very
long and attentive examination, before their original dimensions
and precise points of contact could be ascertained. We have given
the plans of two of the forts, one of which, though apparently very
perfect, is unprovided with any visible entrance. Two gates will be
observed in the outer works of the other, although none is apparent
in the habitable part of the building, which constitutes the most
important part of it.
Within a square, or rather quadrangular, inclosure, attached to
another of the same size, is a subterranean storehouse, or reservoir,
which has been first excavated in the soil, then formed with rough
stones, and lastly coated with an excellent cement, which is still
in a very perfect state. The descent to this souterain is by a
square well of trifling depth, which was so much overgrown and
encumbered, as not to be immediately perceived. Having with us the
means of procuring a light, we succeeded, without much trouble,
in descending into the chambers which are excavated on each side
of it, and in procuring the plan which appears in the plates. We
were in hopes to have found some inscription on the walls, which we
have already described as being very perfect, but nothing appeared
but a few rude and unimportant Arab scrawls. In the neighbourhood
of the military position, which we have noticed above, are the
remains of the town already mentioned, called Medīna, where there
are a number of wells and tanks in very good preservation; but the
buildings above ground are in so mutilated and ruinous a state,
as to render any satisfactory plan of them impossible, without a
great deal of previous excavation.
So little is mentioned by any writer (with whose works we ourselves
are acquainted) of the buildings contained in the Syrtis, that it
will for the most part be difficult to assign any other name to the
remains of forts and towns at present existing there, than those
by which the Arabs of the country now distinguish them. Charax is
pointed out by Strabo as occurring after the tower of Euphrantas;
but before the position of this town can be ascertained, it will
be necessary to decide upon that of the tower itself, which, in a
country presenting a continued chain of forts from one extremity to
the other, is by no means very easily established. The Philæni[13]
villa is also offered to our notice; but its position must depend
upon that of the Philænean altars, which we are told by Pliny were
merely of sand, and which we know were not remaining in the time
of Strabo[14].
Were it not that a more eligible position for the tower of
Euphrantas occurs further eastward, at a place called Bengerwàd,
in the neighbourhood of Houdea, we should have been inclined to
adopt Medīnet Sultàn as a port where the tower might very well be
looked for; and the circumstance of its being nearer to Zaffràn
(which we have already given our reasons for identifying with
Aspis) would certainly point it out as the more eligible position
of the two, so far as the meaning of the term συνεχης may be
concerned[15]. But the local advantages which the tower we shall
hereafter mention at Bengerwàd possesses (considered both as a
boundary fortress, and as a very conspicuous object), would certainly
induce us to give a greater latitude to the term in question, than
we should, under other circumstances, have ventured to allow; and
we have accordingly given this fortress the preference in fixing
the position of the tower of Euphrantas, or rather in suggesting a
position for it which there is so little authority for fixing with
accuracy [16].
At Medīnet Sultàn there is a sandy bay in which boats might
find shelter with particular winds; and a lake commences here,
apparently deep, which communicates with the sea in two places, and
extends itself along the coast to the eastward. We narrowly examined
the points of communication, in expectation of finding a passage
through them by which small vessels might have entered the lake;
it being probable, from its vicinity to the ruins above-mentioned,
that the lake might have been used as a port. But the nature of
the beach without, which was altogether stony, running out into
dangerous shallows impracticable for vessels of any kind, rendered
the existence of such a passage impossible. The coast between this
place and Garoosh is high, and the land terminates towards the
sea in cliffs, with a low sandy beach, and rocky points at the
foot of them; but from the wady eastward it lowers again, and is
marked only by sand-hills. Upon the lake we noticed a great many
flamingoes, with red bills and legs; the head and neck were white,
the primary feathers of the wings black, and crimson in the inside;
the secondaries and tertials were grey, and the under coverts
crimson: several coveys of snipes and curlews were also observed
along the lake, which, as well as all other lakes and marshes in the
Syrtis, is salt and unfit for use. On leaving Medīnet Sultàn we
continued our route along this low and marshy ground, which extends
itself as far as Nehīm, where our tents were pitched for the night,
near two wells of excellent water. There were no remains of building
that we could perceive along this track, with the exception of a few
stones on two little eminences, which had been rudely put together
for Marábut tombs. We learnt also from Shekh Mahommed, that the
country inland was equally devoid of interest, and unoccupied by
buildings of any kind. At Nehīm there is a sandy bay, into which
ships might send their boats, with almost all winds, for water,
at three wells which are situated near the beach.
At Hámmah also, a bay a few miles farther eastward, water may be
procured almost at all times, the sea being rendered smooth by a
shoal which stretches itself across the entrance of the bay. The
two bays may be known by a promontory situated nearly midway
between them, on which there are some ruins of an ancient fort
which formerly overlooked the cliff, but these are now too much
fallen to be perceived from the sea.
While we were pitching the tents, and all hands were employed, some
of our horses got loose, and Shekh Mahommed el Dúbbah, who had just
come up with us on his trusty mare, was violently assailed by them
on all sides. He called out most lustily for help, and in the mean
time exhibited uncommonly good horsemanship; wheeling about rapidly
in all directions, and making his mare kick out in the intervals,
to the no small amusement of our whole party, who were at first
too much overcome by laughter to give him any effectual assistance.
As the attack however began to grow serious, from the number and
impetuosity of our valiant Shekh’s assailants, we soon recovered
ourselves sufficiently to make a diversion in his favour, and
eventually to secure all the horses, though not before the Dúbbah
was quite out of breath, and had broken his gun in his defence.
The next morning he entered our tent with the fragments of his
ill-fated weapon in his hand; and after he had squatted himself down
as usual, and paid his two or three customary salams, and a variety
of fulsome compliments, which always preceded any request he had
to make, he began to expatiate upon his rencontre of the preceding
evening, and the address which he had shewn on the occasion: he
concluded by holding forth the shattered remains of his béndikah
(musket), and observing that the Dúbbah had now nothing to defend
himself with in case of an attack from the formidable bands of
robbers which he had always asserted to be lying in wait for us. As
we had no time to spend in trifling, and were not inclined to take
the hint by presenting him with one of our muskets, we suddenly
changed the subject, to the discomfiture of his hopes, and began to
make inquiries about the camels which he was to provide us with at
Boosaida, where we expected to arrive the next day. He replied that
he had already given directions about them, but that he thought it
would be better that he should proceed on in advance of the party,
to make arrangements for their being in readiness on our arrival;
he proposed in the mean time to leave his eldest son as his _locum
tenens_, who had lately come from the eastward to pay his respects
to his father.
This proposal being agreed to, we remained silent for a few moments,
in expectation that he would rise and leave the tent; we were
however disappointed, for the Dúbbah kept his post, and it was
evident that he had something more to ask. The customary toll
of a little brown sugar had already been allowed and accepted;
for Shekh Mahommed, though old, had not yet lost his relish for
sweets, and we usually indulged him when he visited our tent
with a few spoonfuls of his favorite dainty. His approbation had
also been extended, as usual, to the knives, pens, and pencils,
pocket-pistols, and powder-flasks, and other little things usually
lying about the tent, without any of them having been offered
to him: yet he still remained sitting, to our great annoyance;
for besides taking up our time, as we thought, very unnecessarily,
he was all the while colonizing our carpets and mats with the fleas
and other animals which escaped from his baracan; and this article
of his dress (which indeed was generally his only one) was at all
times sufficiently well provided with these residents to allow of
very extensive emigration. At last our patience was exhausted, and
our complaisance very nearly so; the watch was pulled out, and when
we had expressed our surprise that it should be so much later than
we had imagined, we ventured to ask of our white-bearded visitor
if it would not be better that he should set out in advance, as he
had himself so very prudently suggested. Upon this the Shekh rose,
to our great delight, and after paying his adieus with the air of
a man who was wholly occupied with other reflections, he took the
Doctor aside, and with a significant half-smile upon his countenance,
begged he would furnish him with the exhilarating medicine which
he had promised him on a former occasion. The secret was disclosed
which had so baffled our penetration; for the Dúbbah confessed
that as he was going home, from which he had been some time absent,
he was particularly desirous of assuming an animated and youthful
appearance in the presence of his young and handsome wife, who,
he was fearful, he said, had already began to fancy him a little
too old for her. He described this girl, to whom he had lately
been married, as uncommonly pretty and only sixteen years of age;
and concluded by saying he did not despair, Imsh Allah (please
God), that with the Doctor’s assistance, he might yet contrive
to make himself agreeable to her! Our chagrin was now succeeded by
a violent fit of laughter, which we freely indulged in at the old
Shekh’s expense, and which he bore very goodnaturedly: the Doctor
was not long in preparing the draught; and the Dúbbah had no sooner
deposited it in his old leathern pouch, as safely as a glass phial
could conveniently be put up with flints and steel, musket balls, old
nails and horse-shoes, which were usually observed to be assembled
there, than he mounted the gallant mare who had so well conducted
herself the night before, and brandishing his stirrups, rode off at
full gallop, well pleased with the result of his long-winded visit,
and anticipating all the wonderful effects of the cordial which
the Doctor had so considerately bestowed upon him.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 1: In this neighbourhood we must look for the Macomades
Syrtis of the Itinerary.]
[Footnote 2: Serte (says Leo) è una città antica, edificata,
come alcuni vogliono, da gli Egitti, e secondo altri dai Romani,
benchè siano alcuni da oppinione che ella fosse edificata da gli
Africani. Come si fu, hora è rovinata, e credesi che la distrussero
i Mahumettani; ancor che Ibnu Rachik, historico, dice dai Romani;
ne altro in lei si vede fuori che qualche picciolo vestigio delle
mura.—(L. Afr. in Ram., 5ta parte.)]
[Footnote 3: If Mahād Hassān may be taken as the _Turris Hasan_
(or Cosr Asan) of Edrisi, with which it appears to correspond,
we may fairly venture, perhaps, to place Asna at Zaffrān, that
place being thirty M. P. from Hasān, on the testimony of the
Arab geographer, and Zaffrān thirty geographic miles from Mahād
Hassān. The wells of Zaffrān are, at the same time, on the beach,
as those are said to be which Edrisi has mentioned at Asna.]
[Footnote 4: Medīna is the Arabic term for a city, and Medīnet
Sultàn, as it is termed by the Arabs, may be translated, royal city,
or city of more than ordinary distinction.]
[Footnote 5: The remains of Medīnet Sultàn are on a larger scale
than those of Medīna, and might on that account have been termed
Sultàn; but they are rather those of an important military station
than of a city, and we prefer taking Medīna as the position of
Sort for this reason.]
[Footnote 6: Viaggio da Tripoli, &c., p. 77, 78.]
[Footnote 7: We subjoin a few of these characteristic marks, with
the names of the tribe, to which they belong, attached. Some of them,
it will be seen, resemble Greek letters, and when they are well cut,
have a very knowing appearance.
Mogharbé, Ouarghir, Wéled Sulimàn, Orfilli, Wéled Ben-Miriam,
[Illustration]
Wéled Abou-Saif, Gedádfa, Hemámla, Zoazi, Zoeia,
[Illustration]
Hassoun, Gebshia, Name forgotten.
[Illustration]
]
[Footnote 8: The drawing annexed will give some idea of the manner
in which these blocks are disposed.]
[Footnote 9: The dangerous peculiarities of the Gulfs of Syrtis are
frequently noticed by the ancients; but the following passage from
Sallust seems to allude more particularly to the powerful action of the
surf, so conspicuous in the instance which we have just described.
Nam ubi mare magnum esse, et sævire ventis cœpit, limum, Arenamq:
et _saxa ingentia fluctus_ trahunt; ita facies locorum cum ventis
simul mutatur. Syrtes ab tractu nominatæ.—(Bell. Jugurth., p. 78.)]
[Footnote 10: The saffron of the Gharian mountains has been described
by Leo Africanus as the best in the world.]
[Footnote 11: Shaw observes that this expression is used in the
neighbourhood of Tunis, and indeed it is very common among the
Arab tribes in general.]
[Footnote 12: “Quidam granaria habent sub terris, speluncas, quos
vocant σειρους, ut in Cappadocia ac Thracia. Alii, ut in Hispania
citeriore, puteos, ut in agro Carthaginiensi et Oscensi. Horum solum
paleis substernunt: et curant ne humor aut aer tangere possit, nisi cum
promitur ad usum. Quo enim spiritus non pervenit, ibi non oritur
curculio. Sic conditum triticum manet vel annos quinquaginta: milium
vero plus annos centum.”—(De Re Rustica, i. 57.)
See also Cæsar (de Bell. Afric., cap. 25). “Est in Africa
consuetudo incolarum, ut, in agris, et in omnibus fere villis,
sub terra specus, condendi frumenti gratia, clam habeant, atque id
propter bella maxime, hostiumque subitum adventum præssarent.”]
[Footnote 13: The Φιλαινου κωμη (of Ptolemy) υφ᾽ ην οι ομωνυμοι βωμοι,
οριον Αφρικης—between which and Charax, his φαραξ κωμη, Ptolemy
has however laid down some inconsiderable places.]
[Footnote 14: Ου γαρ νυν ὁι φιλαινων μενουσι βωμοι αλλ᾽ ὁ τοπος
μετειληφε την προσηγωριαν·—(Lib. iii. p. 171.)
In intimo sinu fuit ora Lotophagon, quos quidam Alachroas dixere, ad
Philænorum Aras: ex harena sunt eæ.—(Nat. Hist., lib. v. c. 5.)]
[Footnote 15: It must be recollected that Strabo has described the
tower of Euphrantas as _contiguous to_, or _immediately succeeding_,
the port of Aspis, for so we must translate συνεχης, if we
take it in its strict and literal sense.]
[Footnote 16: Among the several towers which present themselves
at Medīna Sultàn, there is no one which could be pointed out as
more conspicuous in position than another; and were the tower of
Euphrantas to be fixed at this place, it would scarcely be possible
to select one of them as its probable representative.]