Pliny’s Description of the Route to India

The Route

The Nile

  • From Juliopolis (2 miles or 3.2km from Alexandria) to Coptos.
  • It is a 308 mile (495km) journey sailing up the Nile in 12 days using the Etesian winds (northerlies).

The Eastern Desert via Wadi Hammamat

  • Travel was mostly by night to avoid the extreme heat of the Desert, staying by day in water stations known as Hydreumata. Some caravans took their own armed guards:
  • Coptos to Berenice: 257 miles crossing the Eastern Desert by night in a Camel caravan, in 12 days.
    1. First water station: Hydreuma 22 miles (35km) from Coptos
    2. Second water station: one day’s travel
    3. Third water station: 95 miles (153km) from Coptos
    4. Fourth water station:
    5. Fifth water station: 184 miles (296km) from Coptos
    6. Sixth water station:
    7. Seventh water station, ‘New Hydreuma’: 230 miles (370km) from Coptos.
    8. Eighth water station, ‘Old Hydreuma’: 237 miles (381km) from Coptos. Defended by an Auxiliary Vexillatio, with a capacity for a Caravan of 2,000 people
    9. Berenice: 257 miles (413km) from Coptos

The Red Sea

  • Berenice to Ocelis
    • Ocelis was near the Bab el Mandeb Strait on the Arabian coast.
    • Sailing took 30 days and vessels departed around 21st June.
    • A permanent north-northwest (NNW) wind blows at Force 5-6 (19-30 mph) the whole length of the Red Sea between April and October.
  • Ocelis
    • Ocelis was the first port of call, after leaving Egypt, to collect fresh water. Indian vessels were not permitted to enter the Red Sea beyond Ocelis.
  • Cane
    • The alternative to Ocelis was Cane, in Arabia, the source of Frankincense.
  • Muza
    • The third option was Muza, but this was not recommended.

The Indian Ocean

  • Ocelis
    • From Ocelis to Muziris in India was 40 days sail, using the ‘Hippalus’ wind (the south western Monsoon) if available.
  • Muziris
    • Muziris was the nearest Port of Trade in India. However, Pliny did not recommend it, saying it was full of Pirates.

Total Journey Time and dates of departure

  • Approximately 14 weeks (3 to 4 months):
    • 12 days from Alexandria to Coptos.
      • Unloading of vessels and loading of Camel caravan.
      • Set off from the first week of June onwards, coinciding with the Annual Rise of the Nile and using the Etesian winds (Northerlies).
    • 12 days from Coptos to Berenice.
      • Loading of vessels.
      • Setting off around Midsummer, the 21st June, and before or at the latest, immediately after, the Heliacal Rising of Sirius, the Dog Star (around 20th July in 128 CE).
    • 30 days from Berenice to Ocelis.
      • Watering and provisioning of vessels.
      • Set off around the 21st July. The Southwestern Monsoon (Hippalus), blows from June to August in the Gulf of Aden.
    • 40 days from Ocelis to Muziris.
      • Arrive around the 1st September.
      • The Southwestern Monsoon ends around the end of September.

Archers

  • Pliny states in Book VI that companies of Archers were carried on board because of the danger from Pirates on the Indian coast.
  • Lucian (c.125-180 CE) also states that the Romans continued this practice of Archers on board merchant vessels.

The Return Journey

  • The Inter Monsoon Period
    •  This starts in mid October and ends in mid December.
  • The Northeast Monsoon
    • This starts in December and ends in March. It brings cool winds and clear skies with some rainfall.
    • Vessels commenced their return journey at the beginning of December and had to leave before the 13th of January or miss the returning winds.
    • They departed India using the northeast Monsoon Wind.
  • Arrival in the Red Sea
    • Vessels used a southeasterly or southerly wind to turn north and sail up the Red Sea.
    • This enabled merchants to complete a round trip journey within one year.

Other Roman Documents relating to Roman Trade with India

  • Alexandrian Tariff
    • The Tetarte (quarter tax) was paid in Alexandria on Imports from the East.
    • The Alexandrian Tariff was a list of 54 Items from the East that were subject to Duty.
    • It was issued by the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius between c. 176-180 CE.
  • Coptos Tariff
    • This was a listing of the people and the animals that had to pay road tolls between the Nile and the Red Sea.
  • Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
    • The document describes two sea routes from Egypt, one across to India and the other down to Africa, with all distances measured from Berenice.
  • Pliny’s Description of the Route to India
  • Muziris Papyrus
    • It is a contract between a Merchant of Alexandria and an Alexandrian Financier, regarding a cargo of Pepper and Spices from Muziris.
    • The contract describes a Loan Agreement for a cargo worth approximately 9,000,000 sesterces carried from Muziris in India, on a Roman vessel called the ‘Hermapollon’.
  • Diocletian's Price List
    • Issued in 310 CE, Diocletian’s Price List was an Edict proclaiming the Maximum Prices, ‘Edictum de Pretiis Rerum Venalium’, which was designed to stop runaway inflation.
    • It is a useful tool for historians to appreciate the cost of Roman goods and services.

Roman Coin Hoards in India

  • Coin hoards consisting of Gold Aurei and Silver Denarii have been found along the coast from Mangalore and Muziris around the southern tip of India and up to the south eastern ports.
  • The coins date from Augustus (27 BCE-14 CE) to Nero and cover a period of circa 120 years.

 

The Red Sea, the Arabian Sea and India

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