Sailing Around Erythraean Sea: Thirty Seven

In the last Section, it seems, the unknown sailor had been taking his return voyage, and at Sohar (ancient name Ommana), Oman; he had been taking a look at the export from Ommana to Arabia and Barygaza and the import therefrom to Ommana. Now, return to the original as translated by Wilfred H. Scoff:

Beyond the Ommanatic region there is a country also of the Parsidae, of another kingdom, and the bay of Gedrosia (Casson: Gulf of Terabdoi), from the middle of which a cape juts out into the bay. Here there is a river affording entrance for ships, with a little market-town at the mouth called Oraea, and back from the place an inland city, distant a seven days' journey from the sea, in which also is the King's court; it is called 
Rhambacia [ Casson notes the name was inadvertently admitted in the manuscript]. This country yields much wheat, wine, rice and dates; but along the coast there is nothing but bdellium.

My Search:-

1. Bay of Gedrosia: Hellenized name of the part of coastal Balochistan that roughly corresponds to modern day Makran coast. In books about Alexander the Great and his successors the area reffered to as Gedrosia runs from northeastern edge of the strait of Hormoz to the Indus River.

2. Parsidae: Now he is shifting his focus to Persian Gulf. Parsidae is ancient term for the Persian people. Specifically refers to native tribes of the region, Persia. They are associated with Persis, modern day Fars province Iran. It is on the eastern coast of Persian Gulf. Maharlu lake is in this region. It is situated southeast of Shiraz city. Parsidae was part of Achaemenid Empire (550BCEto 330BCE) and later the Sassanian Empire (224CEto 651CE)

3. The bay of Gedrosia: Chabahar Bay, Makran coast. There are two ports along the bay: Shahid Kalantari and Shahid Behesti. But at the time under discussion the bay must have been a natural port having safe anchorage.

4. Oraea: The modern day name is Ormara. It is in Gwadar District of Balochistan Province of Pakistan. It is on the Makran coast. It is about four hundred and fifty kilometres east of Chabahar Bay. It is a crescent shaped bay. Alexander the Great stayed here with his army way back from Sindh. One of his generals, Ormoz died here, and the city was named after him.


5. Bdellium (Commiphora wightii):
Bdellium is a semi-transparent oleo-gum resin extracted from Commiphora wightii plants.

6. Rhambacia: It is Modern day Bela, now a city on the banks of Hub River Balochistan. Though according to Lionel Casson the name was inadvertently put in the manuscript of Periplus Maris Erythraea, I think it is significant, since it shows, wheat, wine, rice and dates, sourced internally were insufficient to meet the needs of the country, and the same were imported as described in section Thirty Six. Balochistan and and Makran coast had been a corridor of human migration to Malabar coast. Some of the tribes and their languages were trapped there as the Brahui people and their language.

End of the section.

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