Of the Northeast Frostie Seas, and Kyngdomes lying THAT WAY, DECLARED BY THE DUKE OF MOSCOUIA, HIS AMBASSADOUR, IT is doubtlesse a marueilous thyng to consyder what changes and alterations were caused in all the Romane Empyre by the Gothes and Vandales, and other Barbarians into Italy. For by their inuations were extinguyshed all artes and sciences, and all trades of Merchandies that were vsed in dyuers partes of the worlde. The Romane yeeres of The desolation and ignoraunce whiche insued hereof, continued as it were a cloude of perpetuall darknesse among men for the space of foure hundred yeeres and more, inso- Four hun muche that none durst aduenture to goe any whyther out of ignoraunce. theyr owne natiue countreys: wheras before the incursions of the sayde barbarians, when the Romane Empyre floryshed, they myght safely passe the seas to all partes of East India, East India whiche was at that tyme as well knowen and frequented, as in olde time. it is nowe by the nauigations of the Portugales. And that this is true, it is manifest by that whiche Strabo wrytteth, Strabo. who was in the tyme of Augustus and Tiberius. well knowen rychesse of For speakyng of the greatnesse and ryches of the citie of The great Alexandria in Egypt (gouerned then as a prouince of the Egypt. Romanes), he wrytteth thus:-This onely place of Egypt is apte to receyue all thynges that come by sea, by reason of the commoditie of the hauen, and lykewyse all suche thynges VOL. II. A A as are brought by lande, by reason of the ryuer of Nilus, The citie of whereby they may bee easely conueyed to Alexandria, beyng Marueylous by these commodities the rychest citie of merchauntes that is Alexandria. rychesse. naunce and reuenues of manes. and India. Arabia. in the worlde. The reuenues of Egypt are so great, that Marcus Tullius sayth in one of his orations, that kyng Ptolomeus, surnamed Auleta, the father of queene Cleopatra, had of reuenues twelue thousande and fyue hundred talentes, whiche are seuen millions and a halfe of golde. If therefore The gouer this kyng had so great reuenues when Egypt was gouerned the Ro- of so fewe and so negligently, what myght it then be woorth to the Romanes, by whom it was gouerned with great diligence, and theyr trade of merchaundies greatly increased by Trogloditica the trafficke of Trogloditica' and India: wheras in tyme past there coulde hardly be founde xx shyppes togeather that The gulfe of durst enter into the gulfe of Arabie, or shewe theyr prowesse without the mouth of the same. But at this present, great nauies sayle togeather into India, and to the furthest partes of Ethiope, from whence are brought many rich and pretious merchandies into Egypt, and are carried from thence into other countreys. And by this meanes are the customes redoubled, aswel by such thynges as are brought thither, as also by suche as are caryed from thence, forasmuche as great customes aryse of thynges of great value. And that by this The rych voyage infinite and pretious merchaundies were brought from the redde Sea and India, and those of dyuers other sortes then are knowen in our tyme, it appeareth by the fourth volume of the ciuile lawe, wherein is described the The com- commission of Themperours Marcus and Commodus, with Tours Mar- the rehearsall of all such stuffe and merchandies, wherof custome shoulde be payde in the redde sea, by suche as Ethiope. Rych customs, esse whiche were brought in olde time from India and the redde sea. mission of Thempe cus and Comodus. 1 The Troglodytes were so called from their practice of dwelling in caves; the name being derived from 7pwyλŋ, a cavern, and ĉvva, to enter. They were located in various parts of the east; but their most considerable settlement, called Trogloditica, was on the western shores of the Red Sea, about the region of modern Abyssinia: ancient authors, however, differ as to the extent of their territory. had the same in fee farme, as were payde the customes of all other prouinces partayning to the Romane Empyre; and they Also that iuyce or lyquour whiche is geathered of wooll, and of the heare of the Indians. riches the kings of it had by customes. By these woordes it doth appeare, that in olde tyme the said nauigation by the way of the red sea was wel knowen, & muche frequented, & perhaps more then it is at this The great present: Insomuch that the ancient kynges of Egypt, consyderyng the great profite of the customes they had by the viages of the red sea, and wylling to make the same more The noble easie & commodious, attempted to make a fosse or chanel, of the kings which should begin in the last part of the said sea, where was a citie named Arsinoe (which perhappes is that that is nowe Arsinoe. called Sues), and should have reached to a branch of the riuer of Nilus, named Pelusio, whiche emptieth it selfe in Pelusio. enterpryses of Egypt. Damiata. Nilus. Copto. our sea toward the East, about the citie of Damiata. They determined also to make three causeys or hygh wayes by land, which shoulde passe from the sayd branch to the citie of Arsinoe but they founde this too difficult to bryng to passe. In fine, king Ptolomeus, surnamed Philadelphus, ordeyned another way, as to sayle vppon Nilus, agaynst the course of the riuer, vnto the citie of Copto, and from thence to passe by a desart countrey, vntyl they come aboue the red sea, to a citie named Berenice, or Miosormo, where they imbarked al their merchandise and wares for India, Ethiope, and Arabie, as appeareth by the wrytyng first of Strabo (who wryteth that he was in Egypt) and then by Plinie, who was in the tyme of Domitian. Strabo also, speaking of the saide A nauigable fosse or trenche whiche was made towarde the redde sea, Berenice. trenche made from red sea. Lacus amari. King Se sostre. miticus. Egypt to the wryteth thus: There is a trenche that goeth towarde the red Sea, & the gulfe of Arabie, and to the citie of Arsinoe, whiche some call Cleopatrida, and passeth by the lakes named Amari (that is) bytter, because in deede they were fyrste bytter but after that this trenche was made, and the ryuer entred in, they became sweete, and are at this present ful of foules of the water, by reason of their pleasantnesse. This trenche was fyrste begunne by king Sesostre, before the battaile of Troy. Some say that it was begunne by king King Psam- Psammiticus, while he was a childe, and that by reason of his death it was left imperfect; also, that afterwarde, King Darius succeeded in the same enterprise, who woulde have finished it, but yet brought it not to the ende, because he was enfourmed that the redde sea was higher then Egypt, and that if this lande (diuiding both the seas) were opened, all Egypt shoulde be drowned thereby. King Ptolomeus woulde indeede haue finished it, but yet left it shut at the head, that he myght, when he woulde, sayle to the other sea, and returne without peryll. Here is the citie of Arsinoe, and neare vnto that, the citie called Heroum, in the vttermost parte of the gulfe of Arabie, towarde Egypt, with many King Ptolomeus. The citie wryteth of ble trenche. portes and habitations. Plinie likewise, speaking of this What Plinie trenche, sayth: In the furthest parte of the gulfe of the nauigaArabie, is a porte called Danco, from whence they determined to bringe a nauigable trenche vnto the riuer of Nilus, whereas is the first Delta. Betweene the saide sea and Nilus, there is a streict of land of the length of .lxii. miles. The firste that attempted this thing, was Sesostre king of Egypt, & after him Darius king of the Persians, whom Ptolomeus folowed, who made a trenche a hundred foote large, and The largethirtie foote deepe, being .ccc. miles in length, vnto the lakes length of the named Amari, and durst proceede no further for feare of inundation, having knowledge that the red sea was higher by three cubites then all the countrey of Egypt. Other say that this was not the cause: but, that he doubted yf he shoulde haue let the sea come any further, all the water of Nilus shoulde have been thereby corrupted, whiche onely ministreth drynke to all Egypt. nesse and trenche. viage by Egypt to the But notwithstanding all these thinges aforesayde, all this viage is frequented by lande from Egypt to the redde sea, Thi in whiche passage are three Causeyes or hygh wayes. The red sea fyrst begynneth at the mouth of Nilus, named Pelutio: All whiche way is by the sandes, insomuche that if there were not certayne hygh Reedes fixt in the earth, to shew the ryght way, the Causey could not be found, by reason the wynde euer couereth it with sand. The seconde Causey is two myles from the mountayne Cassius: And this also, in the ende of threescore myles, commeth vpon the way or Causey of Pelusius, inhabited with certayne Arabians, called Antei. The thyrde begynneth at Gerro, named Adipson : and passeth by the same Arabians, for the space of threescore myles, somewhat shorter, but full of rough mountaynes, and great scarcenesse of water. Al these Causeyes leade the way to the citie of Arsinoe, builded by Ptolomeus Philadelphus, in the gulfe Carandra, by the redde sea. This Ptolomeus was the fyrst What king that searched all that part of the red sea, whiche is called discouered. Ptolomeus |