Travels in Africa, Egypt, and Syria, from the year 1792 to 1798

by William George Browne

It was mentioned to me that there were many other ruins near; but after walking for some time where they were described to be, and observing that they pointed out as ruins what were in fact only rough stones, apparently detached from the rock, I returned fatigued and dissatisfied. The Shechs had provided for us a dinner in a garden, where we were unmolested by intruders; and the sun being then near the meridian, I took the opportunity of observing its altitude by means of an artificial horizon. They who are best versed in these matters will be far from thinking this the most accurate method of determining the latitude. But the result was not materially different, though in the sequel I repeated my observation. It gave N. L. 29° 12′, and a fraction:—the long. E. F. 44° 54′.

The following day I was led to some apartments cut in the rock, which had the appearance of places of sepulture. They are without ornament or inscription, but have been hewn with some labour. They appear all to have been opened; and now contain nothing that can with certainty point out the use to which they may have been originally applied. Yet there are many parts of human sculls, and other bones, with fragments of skin, and even of hair, attached to them. All these have undergone the action of fire: but whether they are the remains of bodies, reposited there by a people in the habit of burning the dead, or whether they have been burned, in this their detached state, by the present inhabitants, it must now be difficult to affirm. Yet the size of the catacombs would induce the belief that they were designed for bodies in an unmutilated state; the proportions being, length twelve feet, width six, height about six. The number of these caverns may amount to thirty, or more.

Having found a monument so evidently Egyptian in this remote quarter, I had the greater hope of meeting with something more considerable by going farther; or of being able to gain some information from the natives, or the Arabs, that would fix exactly the position of the remains, if any such there were, of the far-famed Temple of Jupiter Ammon. The people of Siwa have communications equally with Egypt and Fezzan, and the wandering Arabs pass the desert in all directions, in their visits to that small territory, where they are furnished at a cheaper rate with many articles of food than they can be in the towns of Egypt. They pass thither from Elwah, from Feium, and the district of Thebes, from Fezzan, from Tripoli, from Kahira, and from Alexandria. It seemed therefore unlikely that any considerable ruins should exist within three or four days of Siwa, and unknown to them; still less so that they should be ignorant of any fertile spot, where might be found water, fruits, and other acceptable refreshments.

I therefore, by means of my interpreter, whom I had always found honest in his report, and attentive to my wishes, collected three of the Shechs who had shewn themselves most friendly to us, with my conductor, and two other Arabs who happened to be there. They entered freely into conversation about the roads, and described what was known to them of Elwah, Fezzan, and other places. But in the direction laid down for the site of the temple, they declared themselves ignorant of any such remains. I inquired for a place of the name of Santrieh, but of this too they professed their ignorance. Then, said I, if you know of no place by the name I have mentioned, and of no ruins in the direction or at the distance described, do you know of no ruins whatever farther to the westward or south-west? Yes, said one of them, there is a place called Araschié, where are ruins, but you cannot go to them, for it is surrounded by water, and there are no boats. He then entered into an enchanted history of this place; and concluded with dissuading me from going there. I soon found, from the description, that Araschié was not the Oasis of Ammon, but conceiving it something gained to pass farther west, and that possibly some object might eventually offer itself that would lead to farther discovery, I determined, if it were possible, to proceed thither.

For this purpose we were obliged to use all possible secrecy, as the Siwese were bent on opposing our farther progress. An agreement was therefore made with two persons of the poorer class of the natives, for a few zecchins, that they should conduct us to Araschié; and if what we sought for was not there found, that they should, on leaving it, proceed with us to the first watering-place that they knew directly to the southward. The remainder of the time I stayed at Siwa was employed in combating the difficulties that were raised about our departure; and it was not till Monday, 12th March, that we were enabled to commence our journey west.

The Oasis which contains the town Siwa, is about six miles long, and four and a half or five wide. A large proportion of this space is filled with date trees; but there are also pomegranates, figs, and olives, apricots and plantains; and the gardens are remarkable flourishing. They cultivate a considerable quantity of rice, which, however, is of a reddish hue, and different from that of the Delta. The remainder of the cultivable land furnishes wheat enough for the consumption of the inhabitants. Water, both salt and fresh, abounds; but the springs which furnish the latter are most of them tepid; and such is the nature of the water, air, and other circumstances, that strangers are often affected with agues and malignant fevers. One of those springs, which rises near the building described, is observed by the natives to be sometimes cold and sometimes warm.

I had been incommoded by the cold in the way, but in the town I found the heat oppressive, though thus early in the season. The government is in the hands of four or five Shechs, three of whom in my time were brothers, which induced me to suppose that their dignity was hereditary; but the information I received rather imported that, ostensibly, the maxim detur digniori was observed in the election, though, in fact, the party each was able to form among the people, was the real cause of his advancement. These parties, as well as the Shechs, are continually opposed to each other, which renders it difficult to carry any measure of public utility. The Shechs perform the office of Cadi, and have the administration of justice entirely in their own hands. But though external respect is shewn them, they have not that preponderating influence that is required for the preservation of public order. On the slightest grounds arms are taken up; and the hostile families fire on each other in the street, and from the houses. I observed many individuals who bore the marks of these intestine wars on their bodies and limbs. Perhaps too it is to the debility of the executive power that we are to attribute some crimes, that seem almost exclusively to belong to a different state of society. While I was there, a newly born infant was found murdered, having been thrown from the top of a house. I understood that these accidents were not unfrequent. It would seem an indirect proof of libertinism in the women, which, however, no other circumstance led me to suppose. Inquiry was instituted, but no means offering to identify the perpetrator of the crime, the matter was dropped. The complexion of the people is generally darker than that of the Egyptians. Their dialect is also different. They are not in the habitual use either of coffee or tobacco. Their sect is that of Malik. The dress of the lower class is very simple, they being almost naked: among those whose costume was discernible, it approaches nearer to that of the Arabs of the desert, than of the Egyptians or Moors. Their clothing consists of a shirt of white cotton, with large sleeves, and reaching to the feet; a red Tunisine cap, without a turban; and shoes of the same colour. In warm weather they commonly cast on the shoulder a blue and white cloth, called in Egypt melayé; and in winter they are defended from the cold by an ihhram, or blanket. The list of their household furniture is very short; some earthen ware made by themselves, and a few mats, form the chief part of it, none but the richer order being possessed of copper utensils. They occasionally purchase a few slaves from the Murzouk caravan. The remainder of their wants is supplied from Kahira or Alexandria, whither their dates are transported, both in a dry state, and beaten into a mass, which when good in some degree resembles a sweet meat. They eat no large quantity of animal food; and bread of the kind known to us is uncommon. Flat cakes, without leaven, kneaded, and then half baked, form part of their nourishment. The remainder consists of thin sheets of paste, fried in the oil of the palm tree, rice, milk, dates, &c. They drink in great quantities the liquor extracted from the date tree, which they term date-tree water, though it have often, in the state they drink it, the power of inebriating. Their domestic animals are, the hairy sheep and goat of Egypt, the ass, and a very small number of oxen and camels. The women are veiled, as in Egypt. After the rains the ground in the neighbourhood of Siwa is covered with salt for many weeks.

Having left our temporary residence, we proceeded, myself and my interpreter on horseback, our original conductor on foot, and the two men we had hired each on an ass: but we had not gone far, before one of the latter told us that it would be necessary to return, as the people of the town were in pursuit of us, and would not permit us to go and disinter the treasures of Araschié.

We nevertheless continued our journey for two days, without any particular molestation; in constant alarm indeed, from the pretended vicinity of hostile tribes, but without actually seeing any. At the end of that time we arrived at the place described to us. It is not far from the plain of Gegabib[6]. I found it an island, in the middle of a small lake of salt water, which contained misshapen rocks in abundance, but nothing that I could positively decide to be ruins; nor indeed was it very likely that any such should be found there, the spot being entirely destitute of trees and fresh water. Yet I had the curiosity to approach nearer to these imaginary ruins; and accordingly forced my horse into the lake. He, from fatigue and weakness, or original inability to swim, soon found himself entangled, and could not keep his head above water. I fell with him, and was unable immediately to detach myself: at length, when I found myself again on dry ground, the circumstances I was under prevented me from making further observation on this island and lake.

After having visited this place, we continued our journey south, according to the agreement made with our guides, but found the pursuit equally fruitless. After having, at the end of the third day, arrived in lat. 28. 40. or nearly so, we became much distressed for water. We remained a whole night in suspense concerning our destiny, when at length a supply of this necessary refreshment was found. Not having, however, discovered any thing that bore the least resemblance to the object of our search, we were obliged to think of returning, as well from the importunity of the Arabs, as from our own fatigue and unpleasant sensations. We did so, and having fallen into the strait road from Siwa to Alexandria, we arrived at the latter place, without any new occurrence, on Monday, 2d April 1792.