Strabo*, to take the one for the ancient city Canopus, the other for the branch of the same name. But, unless at the time of the inundation, this, no less than the Sebennitic and Pelusiac branches, are of little account; in as much as the Nile discharges itself chiefly through those only of Rozetto and Dami-ata. What was observed long ago, though upon a different occasion, concerning the drying up of these channels, is now literally come to pass. Nilus in extremum fugit perterritus orbem, Occubuitque caput, quod adhuc latet; ostia septem Ovid. Metam. de Phaeton. Scandarea, as Alexandria is called at present, has two ports; the new one, which the vessels of Europe resort to, and the old one, where those only from Turkey are admitted. The former is what Strabo calls the Great Portf, lying to the eastward of the Pharos; the other is his port of Eunostus, where was also the Cibotus, which had formerly VOL. II. I Εςι ή απο Πηλυσις ταραλια προς την έσπεραν πλευσι, μέχρι μεν ε Κανωβίκη ςόματος, χιλίων τ8, και τριακοσίων σαδίων, ὁ δη και βασιν τε Δελτα εφαμεν. Εντευθεν δ' επι Φάρον τιην νησον αλλοι σάδιοι πεντήκοντα προς τους έκατον. Strab. lib. xvii. p. 1140. [Canopus inde, ab Alexandria sc. duodecimo disjungitur lapide. Ammian. lib. xxii. c. 41.] Κανωβος δ' εςι πολις εν εικοσι και έκατον ςαδίοις απο Αλεξαν δρειας πεζη ικσιν. p. 1152. -Μετα δε τον Κανώβον εσι το Ηρακλειον το Ηρακλέας έχον ίερον. Είτα το Κανωβικον 5ομα, και η αρχη τε Δελτα. p. 1153. Μετα δε ςομα το Κανωβικον εςι το Βολβίτικον. Είτα το Σέν Εννίτικον και το Φατνικον. τριτον ὑπαρχον τω μεγέθει παρα τα πρώτα δυο, οις ώρισαι το Δέλτα.Τω δε φατνίκω συνάπτει το Μενδήσιον. Είτα το Ταντικον, και τελευταίον το Πηλεσιακον. Ετι δε και άλλα τέτων με ταξυ, ὡς αν ψευδοςοματα ασημοτερα. Strab. ibid. + Strab. 1. xvii. p. 1144-5. formerly a communication with the Lake Mareotis, that lies behind it to the south. The present city is situated betwixt them, upon what was probably the Septem Stadium of Strabo *; whereas the old city lay further towards the N. and N. E. Considering the great devastations which have attended the Saracen conquests in other places, it is somewhat extraordinary, that the greatest part of the ancient walls, together with their respective turrets, should have continued entire, quite down to this time. In the same condition likewise are the cisterns, which, at the overflowing of the Nile, were annually supplied with water. These were of a great depth, having their walls raised, by several stages of arches, upon which likewise the greatest part of the city itself was erected. The grandeur and sumptuousness of the ancient Alexandria, may be further estimated from two rows of beautiful granate pillars, (several whereof were standing in 1721), which may be supposed to have constituted the street that is described by Strabo, and reaching from the Necropolitic† part of the city, to the gate of Canopus. The cryptæ, or catacombs, which gave denomination to it, are most of them remaining; being little different from those that have been described at Latikea, and were probably intended for the same use, and not for the reception of mummies or embalmed bodies, like those at Sakara near Memphis. *Strab. 1. xvii. p. 1141. † Id. p. 1145. Pompey's Pompey's pillar lies at a distance to the southward of the old city. It is of the Corinthian order, though the foliage of the capital is badly executed. In expectation, it may be presumed, of finding a large treasure, buried underneath it, a great part of the foundation, consisting of several fragments of different sorts of stone and marble, has been removed; so that the whole fabric rests at present upon a block of white mar ble scarce two yards square, which, upon touching it with a key, in the same manner with the beautiful statue of at Rome, sounds like a bell. Some of the broken pieces of marble which I have mentioned, are inscribed with hieroglyphics; a circumstance which may induce us to suspect, that this pillar was not erected by the Egyptians, (who could not well be imagined thus to bury their sacred inscriptions), but by the Greeks or Romans; nay, later perhaps than Strabo, who would scarce have omitted the description of so remarkable a curiosity, which could not but fall under his observation. The Delta was computed to commence from the Canopic branch of the Nile, which fell in at Me-dea; from hence to Rozetto, the caravans are guided, for the space of four leagues, by a range of pillars, as in the Lake of Marks, p. 235. The channel which supplied Alexandria with water, lies all the way upon the right hand; and, for want of being employed as formerly, discharges itself chiefly into this of Me-dea. There are few or no tokens of the Nile's inundation to be met with, from Alexandria to Rozetto; the whole tract appearing to have been originally either a continuation of the sandy coast of Libya, or else to have been an island. In sailing likewise to the eastward, besides several smaller hillocs of sandy ground, we see a pretty large one to the E. of the Bolbutic* mouth of the Nile, another of Cape Brullos, and a third to the W. of DamiAll these might have been originally so many islands, and have served from their very tuation to give the first check to the stream; and afterwards, by gradually collecting and retaining the mud, have laid the first foundation of the Delta. But further notice will be taken of this curious subject. ata. si Except at the time of the inundation, when the whole country is one continued lake, no diversion can be attended with greater pleasure than travelling upon the Nile. At every winding of the stream, such a variety of villages, gardens and plantations, present themselves to our view, that from Rozetto to Kairo, and from thence all the way down, by the other branch, to Dami-ata, we see nothing but crowds of people, or continued scenes of plenty and abundance. The many turnings of the river, make the distance, from Kairo to each of those cities, near cc M. though, in a direct road, it will scarce amount to half that number. Kairo, *This seems to be the same that is taken notice of by Strabo, ander the name of ΑΓΝΟΥ ΚΕΡΑΣ. Μετα δε το Βολβίτινον σαρα επιπλέον εκκειται ταπεινη και αμμώδης ακρα· καλείται δε Αγνά κέρας. 1. xvii. p. 1153. Kairo, or Al Kahirah*, or in the eastern appellation, Al Messer, lies nearly two miles to the E. of the Nile, and fifteen to the southward of the Delta, as Memphis †, which lay over against it, on the western shore, is said to have done. It is built in the form of a crescent, under the northern shade of that mountain, where the ancient castle of the Babylonians ‡ was situated. The Khalis, the Amnis Trajanus|| of the ancients, which annually supplies the city with water, runs from one point of it to another, and is little more than five miles long. Kairo therefore, or Grand Kairo, according to the usual appellation, is much 6 inferior * Al Kahirah, i. e. Victrix, a vicit, subjugavit. Gol. The same interpretation hath been put upon Kair-wan, notwithstanding what hath been already observed, p. 116. Occuba,' says D'Avity, 'bastit au mesme lieu où il avoit defait le Comte Gre'goire, une ville qu'il nomma Cayre, c'est-a-dire Victoire; puis 'on l'appelle Cayravan, c'est-a-dire deux Victoires, a cause 'd'une autre que les Arabes y obtinrent depuis.'--Vid. La Description generale de l'Afrique par P. D'Avity, p. 49. But the inhabitants of Egypt, and of all the Levant, usually call Kairo Messer, a name taken from Mizraim the son of Cham, the first planter of this country. Urbs Fostat est ipsamet Metsr, sic dicta 'a Misram filio Cam, filii Noe, cui pax: ipse enim eam ædificaverat 'primitus. Dicitur autem appellata fuisse Fostat, quod volente 'Amro filio Aas, post captam Metsr, proficisci Alexandriam, præ'ceperit ut præcederet eum Alfostat (i. e. tentorium) et figeretur aut transportaretur ante se: quare accidit ut columba descende'ret, ovum in ejus vertice pareret. Quod ad Amrum delato, jus'sit ut relinqueretur tentorium eodem in situ, donec columba ovum 'suum perficeret.' Geogr. Nub. p. 97. + Μέμφις δ' έτι απο τα Δέλτα τρισχοινον εις αυτην. Strab. ut supra. Plin. 1. v. c. 9. Strab. 1. xvii. p. 1160. || Δι' ής (Ηλιοπολεως) και Βαβυλωνος πολεως Τροίανος, ποταμος δει. Ptol. Geogr. 1. iv. c. 5. |