Alexander’s march into Asia

In his conquest of Asia, Alexander and his Macedonians covered a total distance of more than 35,000 km – almost a trip around the world. So much for the statistics, but trying to imagine what it meant to cover such a distance on foot over a period of 12 years is absolutely mind-blowing.  

A unique reference in this matter is Donald Engels’ book about the logistics of the Macedonian Army. He has carefully analyzed the march rates of the army, reaching an overall average varying between 20 and 24 km/day. Many factors have to be considered, such as the landscape (flat or mountainous), numerous river crossings, the climate (desert, plains, or snowy mountain tops), the political situation of the area (a warlike zone or a peaceful and subdued region), and the inevitable logistics inherent to all the previous elements.  

Most people believe that Alexander and his companions sat on their horses all day and moved much faster than the bulk of the army. Nothing is further away from the truth. A daily march could last 8-12 hours. Just try to ride a horse bareback for such a duration, feeling every single bone of the horse moving underneath you. Besides, the horse also needed his breaks. Hence any cavalryman would be happy to dismount and walk for a while. Also, an army could not march more than five to seven days in a row as both horses, and the pack animals could not withstand the pressure on their backs without a break.  

Now about the march proper, our modern vision of a file of troops stringing through the landscape looks good on a movie set but is not realistic at all. Engels gives a striking example of 65,000 personnel (I assume the army proper plus the bulky baggage train) and 6,000 cavalry moving over flat terrain, allowing them to line up ten abreast and the cavalry five abreast. He calculated that by the time the head of the column reached the next campsite, those in the rear would arrive five hours later. Such logistics implies careful planning ahead to allow all the men to enter camp before nightfall.  

It also appears that the army needed several short breaks throughout the day. A first brief halt would be made after two or three kilometers to adjust the harnesses and loads on the pack animals. Another five or ten minutes stops would occur every hour, and a longer rest period every two or three hours to feed the horses and the pack animals. If men can go on and on, animals require dire care and attention. They only eat during day time as they need the nights to sleep and regain their strength.

Engels, in his book, has calculated the time required for 65,000 to move and arrive at their destination. With ten soldiers abreast, the file of men would be 6,500 individuals long. However, the entire file would not begin marching immediately. Instead, the first man would start, and in the best of circumstances, the second man would move one second later, and so forth. Making the math, it would take more than two hours for the last man to get underway. The logic of this scenario is to prove that, whenever possible, the army would spread over as broad a front as possible.  

With only a small force of light units, Alexander could ride at high speed covering 60 or 75 km/day. This happened, for instance, during the last leg of his pursuit to catch Darius in the desert of northeast Iran. It was a neck-breaking race, most of it at night, with a select group of cavalry and the fittest of his infantry. He covered 200 km in three days! 

In today’s world, we find it hard to imagine what travelling meant in antiquity. There were no cars and no planes to cover long distances in just a few hours. Time had an entirely different dimension. Assuming that Alexander moved at a rate of 20 km/day, he spent 1750 days on the road to accomplish the total 35,000 km during the twelve years of his reign!  In other words he spent 4,8 years of his short life on the move! 

Surely something to think about!

Who decided on the mummification of Alexander?

Alexander’s death in Babylon and the cause of his death have been discussed before (see: A personal approach to the cause of death for Alexander the Great). This time, I would like to concentrate on his embalmment. 

Arrian does not mention what happened after Alexander’s death since the accounts of both Ptolemy and Aristobulus stopped at this point. However, he adds a splendid eulogy to the greatness of Alexander. Diodorus follows the same idea, stating that “He accomplished greater deeds than any, not only of the kings who had lived before him but also of those who were to come later down to our time.” 

Only Curtius’ history continues describing the mourning in the streets of Babylon by friend and foe, the earliest rivalry between the generals, and all kinds of intrigues that followed the king’s death. He is the only one to mention that Alexander laid unattended for seven days before his friends reentered the room. So much for a “friend,” right. He reports how his body did not show any sign of decay despite the Babylonian heat. As a result, the Egyptians and Chaldeans “who were ordered” to care for the body hesitated to handle it. It is only after they prayed to their gods for approval that “they emptied his body of entrails.” He goes on by saying that the gold coffin was filled with perfumes – yet nothing about the honey that covered Alexander’s body as seen by those who paid their respects to him years later in Alexandria. 

Several questions arise after reading these accounts. Curtius, for instance, is the only one to tell us about the widespread quarrel among the generals and troops alike (not yet about the matter of succession) and about the decision to embalm Alexander’s body. Plutarch casually remarks that the body remained unattended for several days. 

What transpires is that nobody stayed at Alexander’s bedside after he was declared dead. It is baffling and truly unacceptable vis-à-vis the King of Macedonia, the King of Kings, to be left without a single soul at his side to mourn him? Macedonia must have had a set procedure for treating the deceased king. Persia undoubtedly had a very ancient court protocol for such occasions! Yet, Alexander was left alone and unattended? Incredible! 

About a week later, the king’s entourage seemed to remember that their king was dead and required burial of some kind. According to Curtius, who appears the only source on this matter, “Egyptians and Chaldeans were ordered to care for the body.” Nobody says who issued such an order. The priests certainly would not act on their own to handle the remains of the King of Kings, the most powerful man of the world! Was there any discussion about the procedure and the choice of a funeral? 

In Macedonia, a king would be cremated on a fancy pyre as was done for King Philip and even applied for Hephaistion. What did the Persian tradition prescribe? I suppose a burial since the Tomb of Cyrus contained his bodily remains, although we don’t know if the corpse had been embalmed or not. In ancient Mesopotamia, everything indicates that they buried the bodies in the earth since, according to their creation myth, Ea (Enki) had created humans out of the earth's soil. So they naturally 'return' the body to the earth once the person has died. However, in Alexander’s case, the priests “emptied his body of entrails,” which indicates an Egyptian tradition. 

How, then, was it decided that Alexander should be mummified? His body was originally to return to Macedonia. The royal tradition was that their lineage would simply die if the king was not buried in his homeland. At this stage, there were no known plans to bring the king’s corpse to Egypt at all. So, maybe it was decided to keep his body in good condition until it reached Macedonia, which actually meant years later. The only people of authority present in Babylon were Alexander’s generals, who seem, however, to have been more occupied with their own importance in the wake of their king’s death than with the proper burial – or any burial at all for that matter. 

I cannot imagine Perdiccas suggesting mummification, or Nearchus, or any other commander present, except maybe Ptolemy. At a very early stage, he had decided to take Egypt as his share. Not only that but there were rumors that Ptolemy may have been an illegitimate son of Philip, making him Alexander’s half-brother. This has never been established, but the relationship was a public secret. At this stage, Ptolemy may have carried more weight than the other generals to suggest mummification. He will, however, have been careful not to disclose his secret plan to take Alexander to Egypt. Who knows? 

Another possibility is that the commanders were still fighting each other and had not decided where to bury their king despite leaving him unattended for about a week. The obvious place was Macedonia, but Babylon as the new capital of Alexander’s Empire may have been another candidate. Pending a final decision, it was wise to embalm the body to preserve it the best they could. 

But who performed the embalming on so short a notice? It is highly improbable that priests could have been summoned so quickly from Egypt. Maybe Alexander had some Egyptian doctors or priests in his entourage? That is not as far-fetched as it appears because at the time of the moon eclipse, shortly before the Battle of Gaugamela, when the army was wildly panicking, we know some Egyptian priests were present. They had told Alexander and his Macedonians that this was only an astronomical phenomenon - and hence, nothing to be worried about. This shows that he had kept Egyptian priests with him already then. These priests most certainly were familiar with the religious embalming process and able to preserve Alexander’s body for the long journey home. 

Craftsmen from across the empire created an unsurpassed funerary golden catafalque. Alexander’s preserved body was placed inside a gold sarcophagus inlaid with precious stones. It was covered with a purple funerary pall embroidered with gold, on top of which lay his armor and Trojan shield. After two years of careful and intense work, the shrine was ready, and the funeral cortege left Babylon for Pella.

As we know, the cortege never reached Macedonia since Ptolemy seized the catafalque in Syria and took it to Egypt. As the city of Alexandria was not yet entirely built, Alexander’s sarcophagus was temporarily kept in Memphis. We owe it Ptolemy’s son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, to give Alexander his last resting place in his Alexandria. 

In the following centuries, the tomb was visited by many Roman emperors till it disappeared from history. That was between the mid-3rd century and the last quarter of the 4th century AD.

Alexander preparing for the siege of Tyre

After the Battle of Issus, Alexander was more determined than ever to take all the harbors of the eastern Mediterranean to outmaneuver the Persian maritime power. He marched to Marathus (modern Amrit) and from there onward to Byblos, who both surrendered. 

The next famous city on Alexander’s route was Sidon, whose inhabitants were only too happy to get rid of their Persian satrap, Straton. They welcomed the Macedonian king as their liberator. A new ruler had to be found, and Hephaistion was instructed to search for the appropriate candidate. King Abdalonymus was a respectable and honest man, and the people loved him. Out of gratitude for this appointment, Abdalonymus, at a later age, commissioned the famous Alexander sarcophagus that is now on display at the Archaeological Museum of Istanbul.  

As Alexander marched further south, he reached powerful Phoenician Tyre. The city had prospered because of its trade in purple dye, which was highly valued throughout the ancient world. Already in the early 6^th century BC, this richness had attracted the attention of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. He laid siege to Tyre for 13 years without success. This simply illustrates the challenges Alexander was about to face.  

Tyre was of strategic importance, a massive fortress island surrounded by well-defended high walls separated from the mainland by a deep channel. It had two natural harbors, one on the north side facing Sidon and another one south looking towards Egypt. The Tyrians felt pretty secure since they enjoyed the protection of a substantial Persian fleet in both ports. 

Before reaching the city, Alexander was met by its envoys, stating that they would abide by any of his instructions. The Macedonian king gracefully thanked the representatives and expressed his wish to enter Tyre to sacrifice to Heracles, who was, in fact, their god Melqarth or Baal. Basically, the Tyrians accepted Alexander’s arrival but refused to admit him or his Macedonians inside their fortress on the island. 

Alexander needed to take Tyre to safeguard his back on his march further south to Egypt. The only way was to lay siege to the city – a tremendous and complicated task because he had disbanded most of his own fleet and the remaining ships were no match to the Persian forces. Clearly, the fortress could not be taken from the sea alone, and thus Alexander decided to build a causeway to connect the island to the mainland. It was a tedious and dangerous operation as the Tyrians had no intention to let this happen. 

Construction went underway and progressed steadily in the shallow waters near the coastline. Stones from the old city of Tyre were used for the foundation of the mole, and piles were driven into the mud to keep the stones in place (see: Alexander's Isthmus, Tyre, Lebanon). But as the Macedonians reached deeper water, matters changed dramatically. Progress slowed down because many more stones were needed to fill the depth while the Tyrian ships could now approach the causeway and attack the exposed workers. In response, Alexander built two towers mounted with artillery and faced them with hides to somehow protect his soldiers on the mole. The army could drive the enemy away from their precarious shelter with their own missiles. 

The Tyrians were not to be discouraged and decided to take a cattle-ship and stuff it with dry brushwood and straw. They added two masts to create a higher pile of inflammable material, including pitch and sulfur, to fan the fire. They also attached caldrons filled with liquids that could be poured onto the fire to increase its fury. To ensure these vessels would come as close as possible to the causeway, they added heavy ballast in the aft section to lift the bows to a maximum. Triremes pulled these burning vessels close to the Macedonia towers, and as they caught fire, the Tyrians withdrew immediately to save themselves. The fire was an absolute inferno. 

Although this attack meant a severe setback, it would not deter Alexander from executing his plan. Instead of repairing the substantial devastation, he started the works all over again. He built a broader mole at the shoreside with enough space for more towers and instructed his engineers to construct new engines.

  

Alexander, as always, saw the greater picture. He moved back to Sidon to gather as many ships as possible to annihilate the enemy navy since that was imperative to conquer Tyre. At this stage, the king was joined by two Persian satraps, who, after learning that Aradus and Byblos were in Macedonian hands, decided to side with Alexander. Sidon contributed with its own warships, bringing the total Phoenician ships to about eighty. After his victory at Issus and having taken Phoenicia, Alexander’s fleet was spontaneously joined by Rhodes with ten ships, three ships from Soli and Mallus, and ten more from Lycia. The king of Cyprus also decided to join his forces to Alexander’s and sailed to Sidon with some 120 ships. With so many of these previously Persian allies now fighting on Alexander’s side, the situation of the Macedonians suddenly looked much better. 

This most certainly was the turning point in the entire siege! 

Continued in Alexander besieging Tyre.

[Pictures from World History, Dan Diffendale (Melquart) and United States Military Academy, Dept of History (map)]

Alexander in a dream of Nebuchadnezzar

What’s a dream, one would ask, but in antiquity, dreams were taken very seriously. Kings and those who could afford it would have a priest or a seer to interpret them. 

It so happens that the Prophet Daniel resided at the court of King Nebuchadnezzar and was able to explain his strange vision. 

Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon from 605 until 562 BC. He led a series of successful campaigns, including the conquest of Jerusalem, where he plundered the famous Temple of Solomon and took the people of Judah into captivity. Among the prisoners was the Prophet Daniel, whom  Nebuchadnezzar invited to stay at his court. 

At first, Nebuchadnezzar called in his own diviners, magicians, enchanters, and Chaldean astronomers and astrologers to clarify his dream, but they were unable to offer any explanation. Then Daniel was led before the king. 

Daniel confirmed that in his vision, Nebuchadnezzar had seen an immense statue whose radiance was spectacular and frightening at the same time. Its head was made of gold, the chest and arms of silver, the lower back and thighs of bronze; the legs were made of iron, and the feet were a mixture of iron and clay. As the king looked at the statue in his dream, a stone hit the feet and pulverized the iron and clay. The entire statue made of gold, silver, and bronze was crushed and collapsed in the process. 

Following this introduction, Daniel explained the meaning of this unusual dream. Nebuchadnezzar, who conquered the world (as considered in his days), is the gold head. After him, another kingdom would rise, lesser than his. Then again, a third kingdom, a bronze one, would dominate the world. The ensuing fourth kingdom would be hard as iron, like iron that pulverizes and crunches everything. Like the iron, this last kingdom would pulverize and crush them all. 

The feet partially made of iron and partially of clay as seen by Nebuchadnezzar, meant a divided empire. It would be strong as iron. However, the toes made of a mixture of iron and clay meant that they would be strong in one part and weak in another. As iron and clay could not be bonded, the people could not unite either. 

The empires to succeed Nebuchadnezzar’s are not being named, nor are the names of the kings to come. Scholars have discussed this endlessly, but a very plausible sequence seems to be that the second silver empire would be that of Darius I the Great, followed by the third bronze Persian Empire the largest kingdom that ever existed in antiquity. The fourth kingdom was the Greek rule started under Alexander the Great that fell apart after his untimely death and was split into four kingdoms that fought each other and never bonded together (the Diadochi). 

How and why Daniel was capable of explaining this vision of King Nebuchadnezzar and how Daniel’s explanation was pasted onto the future kingdoms has been subject to endless discussions. But this is. after all, an entirely different matter, which I’ll not develop here.

Needles to say that the story comes from the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament.

Cnidos revealing more heads from ancient statues

In 2013, excavations in Cnidos focused on the largest Byzantine Church and the theatre. Work also started at the Temple of Dionysus, of which the floor was swept clean. Yet during Byzantine times, this temple was converted into a church of which we can only see the rounded apse. Excavators defined the propylon of this temple and re-erected the columns in the gallery. 

[Picture from the Hurriyet Daily News]

Other archaeological work took place at Cnidos in 2016 and was centered around the theatre (see: Latest excavations at Cnidos). Since then, excavations continued without interruption, contributing to the overall picture of this famous city (see: Making Cnidos more appealing to the tourists?). 

This year, archaeologists have unearthed five marble heads, one of them belonging to the goddess Tyche, protector of cities. The other four heads represented male figures who have not yet been identified. They were found close to the Corinthian Monument, and all belong to Hellenistic and Roman times. 

In my earlier post, Was Alexander the Great aware of Cnidos? I explained the vital role the city played over the years. It gained more fame displaying the first nude woman ever, i.e., the Aphrodite, who was worshipped as the goddess of Good Sailing.

Ways to preserve mosaics

Most archaeological sites we can visit nowadays date from Roman times. In the 2nd century AD, Rome reached its apogee under the reign of the five "good" emperors: Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius. They constructed monumental public buildings, and the houses of the Roman citizens were also lavishly decorated, often with frescoed walls and telling mosaic floors. 

The best-known examples are the houses and villas in and around Pompeii and Herculaneum. Still, many sites in Greece (like Pella and Vergina) and Turkey (like Ephesos and Sagalassos) also treasure such striking walls and floors. 

Some mosaic floors are left in situ where they rightfully belong, in which case they need to be protected from the elements. Shelters for this purpose are then constructed. However, even these shelters need to be maintained, which is not always the case. 

Another way of protection is to cover the mosaics with a tarp held in place with a layer of gravel. This procedure requires less maintenance as only the edges have to be checked. Many curious visitors will be tempted to push the tarp and the gravel aside to look underneath. The mosaic floors are "eaten" away from the fringes without careful and repeated care. 

Anyway, this manner of preservation is a favorite among archaeologists because it requires little or no maintenance. However, plants' roots may damage and displace the tiny tesserae. 

The most appropriate way to save a mosaic is to remove it from its spot and entrust it to the care of a museum where it hopefully will be on display. 

Such removal is very time-consuming and expensive as the top layer of the tesserae has to be detached from the existing floor in one piece. For this purpose, archaeologists use a large wooden cylinder around which the mosaic is rolled face down. A facing of two layers of fabric and an adhesive are applied to prevent losing tesserae or damaging the surface during this tricky operation. The entire mosaic floor can then be moved to its new location using a panel of aluminum honeycomb and resin following the most recent techniques. 

When strolling through a museum, the visitor is seldom aware of the effort and delicate work involved in displaying the mosaics for us to enjoy. We better take a closer look next time we visit a museum!

The Sanctuary of Eleusis

Eleusis has been on my wish list for many years. For some reason or another, my visit was always postponed or canceled. But after much perseverance and determination, the opportunity arose, and I walked through the very entrance to the site. 

It so happens that this was where the Sacred Way ended, the one on which in antiquity the procession had started, leaving the Kerameikos in Athens. All that remains is a large paved area, once framed by two arches. [The picture shows the Sacred Gate at the Kerameikos in Athens]

We owe the earliest version of the Eleusinian Mystery to an unknown poet from the 6th century BC who composed the Homeric Hymn to Demeter. The Hymn describes the abduction of Persephone (or Kore), Demeter’s daughter, by her uncle, Hades, god of the Underworld. Demeter, the goddess of the earth and fertility of the land, set out on a desperate adventure to find her back. On her search, she rested here at Eleusis, where she found hospitality. To thank King Celeos and the people of Eleusis for their kindness, she rewarded them with the knowledge of agriculture and the “Mysteries” – sacred wisdom to be experienced and learned at Eleusis. 

Demeter’s quest continued, however. Overcome by sadness, she searched long and far relentlessly. Immersed in grief and loss, the seasons stopped, and living things ceased to grow and died. Facing the extinction of life on earth, Zeus, the brother to both Hades and Demeter and father to Persephone, intervened, commanding Hermes to bring Persephone back. However, because she had consumed some pomegranate seeds while with Hades, she was obliged to stay with him. As the order given by Zeus could not be ignored, the compromise was that Persephone would spend four months each year with Hades. These are the winter months. With Persephone's return to the surface of the earth comes spring, the planting of the seeds, summer, and the harvest in autumn. 

Over time, the Eleusinian Mysteries were open to everybody, male, female, or even slaves, as long as they followed the prescribed initiation. Eventually, most of Athens’ citizens, among which we count Pericles and Aristotle, were initiated and joined by prominent Romans like Marcus Aurelius.

We know little about the formalities around the annual Mysteries but almost nothing about their secret rituals. The celebration, which started in autumn, lasted nine days. This began with preparations, purification rites, and sacrifices in Athens proper. On the fifth day, the procession moved to Eleusis along the 20km Sacred Way. 

Several days of festivities at Eleusis followed, including the initiation proper, lasting an entire night. Otherwise, we have little insight into the rites because the participants were sworn to secrecy, and disclosing the mystery was a capital offense. One thing that transpires is that initiation helped to reduce one’s fear of death. Many writers imply that participating permanently and positively changed their lives. Cicero, for instance, stated that initiated gained the power not only to live happily but also to die with a better hope. 

The Eleusinian Mysteries remained popular for at least eight centuries. As Eleusis was part of Athens’ territory, the latter gained much prestige and fame. Christianity, here as elsewhere, gradually took over. 

Before entering the Sanctuary through the Greater Propylaea, one cannot miss the Temple of Artemis on the right-hand side. It dates from the 2nd century AD when much of the Sanctuary was reconstructed and expanded. All that’s left of this temple is the crepidoma and bits of columns among other pieces of architecture. 

The Greater Propylaea, also from the 2nd century AD, has left more vestiges. This tall entrance gate was a reduced copy of the better-known Propylaea at the Acropolis in Athens, built some 600 years earlier. It was erected by Emperor Hadrian and finished by Marcus Aurelius. 

Slightly behind this majestic gateway is a large cave-like opening in the rock considered an entrance to the Underworld. There was a small temple dedicated to Hades (the Roman Pluto). 

The primary building and heart of the sanctuary was the enormous Telesterion, where the Mysteries were celebrated. It was conceived by Tyrant Peisistratus upon instructions of Athens. Three sides of the inner space were occupied by seven rows of seats allowing a crowd of participants to observe what happened. Five rows of Ionian columns supported one of the most extensive roofs in the world (50x50m). The entrance on the southeast was protected by a portico supported by twelve columns of white marble standing in stark contrast with the dark stones of the outer walls. The Telesterion kept the most important element of the megaron, the Adyton, which coincided with the Anaktoron, the sanctum sanctorum. Here the sacred objects were kept only shown to those initiates and officials of the Mysteries who were allowed to enter. 

This marvelous construction was destroyed during Xerxes’ expedition, but soon plans arose to rebuild it twice the size of Peisistratus’ concept. Being too ambitious, the Telesterion was reduced to the rectangular shape we recognize today, offering seating for 4,000 people. 

Of course, it takes a lot of imagination to picture this unusual structure since all there is left to see is this wide paved area dotted with a few stubs of columns. The rock-cut tiers of seating are the most remarkable remnant of this striking building. The memory of the place is still there, but only limited evidence of what went on inside.

At the far end of the site is a small museum worth the visit, as always. The most striking relief of Demeter and Persephone has been moved to the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, but a copy is kept within these walls. 

It’s only on the way back that I notice the remains of the Lesser Propylaea, about halfway between the Greater Propylaea and the Telesterion. Noteworthy is the Roman relief on which ears of wheat, Demeter's gift to humankind, are clearly depicted.

About ancient seafarers

It never ceases to amaze me how far and wide ships in antiquity could travel. Those seafarers must have been very adventurous and determined to sail to unknown destinations. 

We are far more familiar with men like Vasco de Gama or Christopher Columbus discovering faraway lands than Egyptians leaving their hieroglyphs in Australia (The Gosford Glyphs in New South Wales). But for now, let us stay a little closer to home and trace some of the trade routes beyond the Mediterranean (see: The flooded remains of Kekova Island), skirting the southeastern coast of Africa, the southern part of the Arabic peninsula, and Southeast Asia. 

During his reign, Ptolemy II Philadelphus (283 to 246 BC) founded the port of Berenice or Baranis, named after his mother, Berenice I, on the west coast of the Red Sea. Over time, this city became an important trading center that was active along the east coast of Africa, Arabia, and faraway India (see: Link between Egypt and Gandhara under Ptolemy Philadelphus). 

A similar itinerary may have already existed in the days of Darius I, who built a canal between 522 and 486 BC that connected the Nile with the Red Sea (see: The Canal of the Pharaohs, the Suez Canal of antiquity). The foundation stone to mark the event was discovered in 1866 when the modern Suez canal was constructed.

As mentioned briefly in the present post, the trading activities are based on the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, written by a Greek merchant from Alexandria between 40 and 55 AD. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea has been discussed in detail by James Hancock in an article published in the World History Encyclopedia, which highlights the many trade routes and harbors used. The merchant’s diary is the earliest comprehensive insight into this extensive travel web. 

Once Egypt fell into Roman hands in 30 BC, trade through the ports of the Red Sea increased dramatically. The principal turnover harbors were Berenice and Myos Hormos, where the goods arrived on camel caravans from deeper inland. The ships unloaded their cargo in these same ports from where other caravans brought the incoming goods to Roman Alexandria on their return. 

Ships heading for Africa or India, known to leave between July and September, were steered through the middle of the Red Sea to avoid the dangerous coastline. Those heading for Africa passed the Horn of Africa and hugged the coast south to Rapta, near modern Dar es Salaam. This voyage took about two years to complete. The trade involved Egyptian linen, wine, glass, and metal artifacts to be exchanged for African ivory, tortoiseshell, myrrh, and frankincense. Thanks to the local traders doing business with India, the merchants could find cinnamon, Indian fabric, and fine muslin. 

[Picture from World History. PHGCPM (CC BY-SA)]

The ships bound for India stopped at the harbor of Aden and then at Qana on the southern end of the Arabic peninsula (today’s Yemen), where they took advantage of the monsoon winds to sail across the Indian Ocean to India. Barbaricum was their first harbor near modern Karachi on the Indus River. Here, they unloaded their cargo of Egyptian linen, wine, glass vessels, silver and gold plates, frankincense, coral, and topaz. In exchange, they loaded cotton fabric, silk yarn, turquoise, lapis lazuli, indigo, nard (a kind of spikenard), and other herbs like costus and lyceum. As the Romans’ confidence grew, the sailors ventured further south to Muziris on the Malabar Coast and hence to Sri Lanka. The Tamils of the island traded their pepper for gold. Black pepper seemed very popular as it constituted about three-quarters of the homebound cargo! The mainland Indians gladly offered ivory and pearls, whereas silk and semi-precious stones were brought in from as far as the Valley of the Ganges and the Himalayas. 

It is astonishing how all this knowledge and trade faded away in the Middle Ages when men like Vasco da Gama and other intrepid seafarers had to rediscover it.