thirty feet in width down to the limestone rock. Portions of this work have probably been done at the expense of pious Mussulmans, to facilitate the passage of the Haj. Two Arabic inscriptions on the rock, one of them at the top of the ascent, apparently record the author of the work. Near the top is something like a modern improvement; a new road having been cut lower down on the side of the ridge, rising by a more gradual ascent. The whole road is said by Makrizi to have been first made by Ibn Ahmed Ibn Tulûn, Sultan of Egypt in A. D. 868-84.1 We reached the top of the steep ascent at 8 o'clock; but continued to rise gradually for half an hour longer, when we came to Râs en-Nukb, the proper "Head of the Pass." Here however we had immediately to descend again by a short but steep declivity, and cross the head of Wady el-Kureikireh running off S. to Wady Tâba', of which it would seem to be a main branch. Ascending again along a ridge at the head of this valley, still on a course W. N. W., we had on our right a deep ravine called Wady er-Riddâdeh, running eastward, a tributary of the Musry. At 9 o'clock we finally reached the top of the whole ascent, and found ourselves on the high level of the desert above. During the whole way, we had many commanding views of the Gulf and of el-'Arabah; which latter as seen from this distance seemed covered in parts with a luxuriant vegetation. But we had viewed it too closely to be thus deceived. The point where we now were, afforded the last, and one of the finest of these views. The castle of 'Akabah still bore S. E. by E. and the mouth of Wady el-Ithm E. by S. At 9h 25'we came to the fork of the roads, called Mufârik et-Turk, where the Hajroute keeps straight forward, while the road to Gaza 1) Makrizi, as cited by Burckhardt, p. 511. turns more to the right. The former, so far as we had now followed it, bears every mark of a great public route. This pass is especially famous for its difficulty, and for the destruction which it causes to animals of burden. Indeed the path is here almost literally strewed with camels' bones, and skirted with the graves of pilgrims. Having thus reached the level of the great western desert, we left the Haj-road, and setting our faces towards Gaza and Hebron, on a course N. W. we launched forth into the "great and terrible wilderness." We entered immediately upon an immense plain, called Kâ'a en-Nükb, extending far to the West, and apparently on so dead a level, that water would hardly flow along its surface. It has, however, as we found, a slight declivity towards the W. and N. W.; for on our left was the commencement of a shallow Wady called el-Khureity, running off in that direction. The plain, where we entered upon it, was covered with black pebbles of flint; then came a tract of indurated earth; and afterwards again similar pebbles. whole plain was utterly naked of vegetation. The desert however could not be said to be pathless; for the many camel-tracks showed that we were on a great road. One of the first objects which here struck our view, was the Mirage, presenting the appearance of a beautiful lake on our left. We had not seen this phenomenon in the whole peninsula, nor since the day we left Suez; and I do not remember that we ever again had an instance of it. The On this high plain, we now found ourselves above all the peaks and hills through which we had just before ascended. We could overlook them all, and saw beyond them the summits of the eastern mountains, which the level of the plain, on which we were, seemed to strike at about two thirds of their altitude. From this and other circumstances, we judged the elevation of this plain to be about fifteen hundred feet above the level of the Gulf and el-'Arabah. Far in the South, ridges of high land were visible; and nearer at hand, at the distance of three or four hours, a range of high hills called Tawârif el-Belâd running from E. S. E. to W. N. W. the middle of which at 9 o'clock bore S. W. Further to the right lay a similar ridge, called Turf er-Rukn, running in a direction about from S. S. E. to N. N. W. and highest towards the northern end, which bore at the same time N. 70° W. The Haj-route passes along at the northern base of this range; and S. W. of it is the well eth-Themed, from which water is obtained for the caravan.2 The plain we were crossing was terminated in this part towards the N. by a ridge of low dark-coloured granite hills, running off W. S. W. which we reached at 11 o'clock. This ridge, a similar one beyond, and the tract between, all bear the name of el-Humeirâwât. Passing through these hills, our course became N. N. W. for the remainder of the day. We now crossed another open plain, having at some distance on our left Wady el-Khureity. In some of the smaller water-courses were a few herbs and some Seyâl-trees. We passed the next range of hills before noon; and from it descended to Wady el-Khŭmîleh at 12h 10', a broad shallow depression coming from the right from near the brow of el-'Arabah, and full of herbs and shrubs. Towards the left a wide open tract of the 1) According to the barometrical measurements of Russegger, who crossed the desert from the Convent to Hebron a few months after us, the elevation of the castle Nukhl above the sea is 1496 Paris feet. This point is probably somewhat lower than the plain in question. See Berghaus' Annalen der Erdkunde, etc. Feb. und März, 1839. p. 429. 2) Burckhardt's Travels in Syria, etc. p. 448. This mountain is the Dharf el-Rokob of that traveller; but although we inquired much after this name, we could not make it out in this form. His guides were from the desert E. of the 'Arabah, and had perhaps another name or a different pronunciation. Rüppell gives it very corruptly the form Darfureck. desert extended beyond the northern extremity of Turf er-Rukn; and through this plain runs Wady Mukutta' et-Tawârik after having received the Khureity and other Wadys. The Mukutta' runs on northwesterly to join the Jerâfeh, which was continually spoken of as the great drain of all this part of the desert. The Khumîleh continued for a time parallel to our route. The smaller Wadys were now full of herbs, and gave to the plain the appearance of a tolerable vegetation, indicating that more rain had fallen here than further South in the peninsula. Far in the W. N. W. ridges apparently of limestone hills were visible, running from S. to N. At 12 o'clock a small Wady called el-Erta crossed our path from the right and joined the Khŭmîleh. A low limestone ridge now lay before us, which we crossed through a gap at half past one; and came upon the broad sandy Wady or rather plain el-'Adhbeh, descending towards the left. On the northern side of this latter we encamped at 3 o'clock, not far from the foot of another similar ridge. From this point the high northern end of Turf er-Rukn bore S. 60° W. . The weather had been all day cold, with a strong North wind; it was indeed the most wintry day I had experienced since entering Egypt. Our Arabs were shivering with the cold, and this induced us to encamp so early. They kindled large blazing fires; and at night, as they sat around them, the light flashing upon their swarthy features and wild attire, the scene was striking and romantic. The camels, like their masters, crouched and crowded around the fires, and added to the picturesque effect of the scene. The general character of the desert on which we had now entered, is similar to that between Cairo and Suez,―vast and almost unbounded plains, a hard gravelly soil, irregular ridges of limestone hills in va rious directions, the Mirage, and especially the Wadys or water-courses. On reaching this high plateau, we were somewhat surprised to find all these Wadys running towards the N. W. and not towards the East into the 'Arabah, as we had expected from its near vicinity. To all this desert our Arabs gave the general name of et-Tîh, "Wandering," and said that the mountain ridge which skirts it on the South, takes the same name from the desert.1 This whole region, up to the present time, has been a complete terra incognita to geographers. Not that travellers had not already crossed it in various directions; for Seetzen in 1807 had gone from Hebron to the Convent of Sinai; and Henniker in 1821, and Bonomi and Catherwood and their party in 1833, had passed from the Convent to Gaza. Yet there exists only a meager record of all these journies, so meager indeed, that the respective routes can with difficulty be traced.2 M. Linant was said also to have visited some parts of this desert; but has given no report. Burckhardt likewise crossed in 1812 from Wady Ghŭrundel and the 'Arabah to Nukhl and 'Ajrûd; but his notes are here less full than usual. Rüppell in 1822 explored the Haj-route to 'Akabah. Of the road, therefore, which we were now to travel, there was no report extant; nor was I aware until after my return to Europe, that any portion of it had been followed by M. Callier in 1834. We felt, consequently, that we were in part 1) The name et-Tîh as applied to this desert, is found in both Edrîsi and Abulfeda; who refer it to the wanderings of the children of Israel. Edrîsi par Jaubert, I. p. 360. Abulfed. Tab. Syr. ed. Köhler, P. 4, et Addenda. So too Ibn el-Wardi, ibid. p. 170. 2) Seetzen in Zach's Monatl. Corresp. XVII. p. 143, seq. Henniker's Notes, etc. p. 256, seq. Arundale's Tour to Jerusalem and 3) Burckhardt's Travels, etc. p. 444, seq. Rüppell's Reisen in Nubien, etc. p. 241. 4) See his Letter to Letronne, Journal des Savans, Jan. 1836. am not aware that any thing further has yet appeared. |