# The Northern Ḥeǧâz/Chapter 4

CHAPTER IV
AL-ʻAḲABA TO MADIAN
The negro Mḥammad, who was guarding our camels on the pasture, sent me word that there were neither annuals nor perennials in the neighborhood and urgently advised that we should quickly finish our work at al-ʻAḳaba and continue our journey. I accordingly sent Šerîf to Mḥammad, so that they might drive the camels on to the well of Ajla (Fig. 30) and let them drink there. But the animals did not wish to drink the fresh water from the well, preferring to go to the seashore where they very readily drank from the many springs which flowed there. At low tide the rocky shore was laid bare for a distance of about two hundred meters, uncovering numerous springs which gushed forth with great strength.
AL-ʻAḲABA TO ḤAḲL
At 2.04 P. M. we left al-ʻAḳaba, making our way in a southerly direction between the gardens and the sea. At the southern extremity of the gardens, at 2.15, we fell in with a man riding on a camel in the direction of the oasis of Ḥaḳl. Joining us, he told me the names of the various places that were visible. On the eastern shore of the gulf there is a group of yellowish mountains from which run numerous deep and shallow šeʻibân. Many of these have watercourses as deep as twenty meters, hollowed out amid small stones mixed with clay; and there are also places where the sejâl trees grow. No green plants were visible anywhere. Immediately behind the gardens we crossed the šeʻîb of Ammu Sidd, which rises at Ḫala’ Ḏâḫne; then we crossed al-Ḫoloẓâni, al-Ǧowšijje, and at 2.28 ar-Râhbijje, which comes from the mountain of Abu Ruẓumân, the rocky spur of which thrusts itself down to the sea. At low tide the spur is separated from the water by a strip about twenty meters broad, covered with many boulders and with soft sand into which our animals slipped up to their knees. At high tide the sea washes against the foot of the spur’s rocky wall, and in stormy weather the waves ​rise to a height of many meters, wearing away the rocks. At this point it is impossible to cross between the sea and the steep wall, so a bridle path about four meters broad has been cut across the spur about one hundred meters from the Fig. 30—By the well of Ajla. sea, and a small watchtower (Fig. 31)—called al-Brejǧ—has been set up to prevent the Bedouins from occupying the rocks surrounding the saddle path and thus intercepting the pilgrims on their journey. This steep path, artificially cut out from the rock, was originally called ʻAḳabat Ajla, and from it the present settlement and stronghold of al-ʻAḳaba has received its name.
At three o’clock we rode across the šeʻîb of Umm Ḥajt; at 3.10 we had Riǧm ad-Darak on our right; at 3.30 we crossed the šeʻîb of Šrejḫ, which comes from the northern slope of al-Ḫalal and joins Umm Sidre on the left; and at about 3.45 we rode through the šeʻibân of aš-Šmejsijje, al-Mḥaǧǧar, and al-Jemanijje. Beyond the last-named the mountains recede toward the east, and between them and the sea there extends an undulating plain about two kilometers broad, on which the eṯmân grows in some places. From 4.22 to 6.45 we halted ​in the šeʻîb of al-Arwaḥ in order to let the camels graze a little, and here we made a fire from the long-thorned branches of the sejâl, this being the only wood we could find (temperature: 40.8° C).
Fig. 31—ʻAḳabat Ajla, watchtower of al-Brejǧ.
At 6.50 we rode across the šeʻîb of al-Ḥeṣâni. The road leads along the seashore itself, beneath a brittle slope of white marl, about six meters high, through which the šeîb of al-Ḫalal—which we crossed at 7.08—has worn away a deep channel. After 7.30 we proceeded across the marshy soil of al-Mamlaḥ, which extends to the southeast as far as the low hills of Ḥeḳînt ar-Rimṯ. Later we crossed the šeʻîb of al-Mrâtijje (formed by the union of al-Ḳrejẓi and an-Nwêbʻe) and beyond it al-Esâwed. ​The night was extremely dark, for the stars were partially hidden by haze. On the right, the sea was phosphorescent and appeared to be illuminated by numerous lamps burning beneath the water. The fever was shaking me again, and I was glad when we settled down at 8.30 at a short distance from the road among the rimṯ bushes near the šeʻîb of Sâhjet al-Maʻʻâzi. Fearing that some robber from al-ʻAḳaba might creep up behind us or that some traveler along the trade route might hear our voices and steal something from us, we kept guard over our encampment all night.
On Thursday, June 8, 1910, we started off at 4.34 A. M. (temperature: 27.8° C). At 4.40 we rode through the Sâhjet ad-Dirri and passed along the marl slope of ad-Debbe. The sejâl trees which grow there are low and stunted, and their trunks and tops bend eastward, a sure sign of prevailing westerly winds. At 5.08 we rode round two piles of stones, one covering the grave of a Bedouin, the other marking the place where his blood had been shed. He had been riding to Egypt with his nephew. At this place the nephew shot him and rode on to Egypt with his uncle’s horse and all his property. But the man who had been shot roused himself from his swoon long enough to tell of the villainous deed to a traveler, who, by the ordinance of Allâh, was passing that way; after which he died. The traveler buried the man and announced to his son that he should avenge his father.
By the sea we noticed numerous piles of shellfish. In the autumn the Arabs camping by the seashore collect these shellfish, warm them over a fire, and when they are half-open eat the contents. At 5.20 we rode through the deep channel of al-Ktejf, hollowed out in the marl of ad-Debbe. On the left this šeʻîb joins the šeʻîb of Ammu Ḥsi. On the shore itself, by the šeʻîb of al-Ktejf, there stood three high palm trees. About one hundred and fifty paces to the south rises a salt spring, to the east of which extends a large burial place.
At 5.34 we caught sight of the oasis of Ḥaḳl. Steep slopes thrust the road towards the sea, and in places broken rocks are piled up across it. The crossing below Keṯîb al-Mbassi is dangerous. A steep slope about forty meters high, completely covered with fine sand, rises sheer from the sea, and in this the road has been artificially cut. But the soft marl does not adequately resist the attacks of the waves; it ​ Fig. 32—Ḥaḳl from the east. ​breaks and crumbles so that nothing remains of the broad road but a narrow footpath, which in places is scarcely forty centimeters wide. During storms at sea, when the waves reach the footpath, the connection with the south is cut off.
Keṯîb al-Mbassi is often beset with robbers, who lie in wait for the rich trade caravans; Fig. 33—Our guide Farrâǧ. but these hostile bands have suffered more than one defeat there. In the spring of 1907 the Ḥwêṭât at-Tihama—who owe allegiance to the head chief Abu Ṭḳêḳa—made a raid against the ʻImrân who were encamping by the šeʻîb of al-Ktejf. The latter, being forewarned of the approaching danger, carried a great number of stones to the edge of the slope Keṯîb al-Mbassi and hid behind them. When the last man of the enemy passed along the footpath about five hundred meters long advancing from the south to its northern extremity, the ʻImrân began to roll large and small stones down on both ends of the path, in this way killing six of the enemy and compelling all the rest—over two hundred in all—to beg for mercy. At the southern end of this footpath is the spring of Ḥḳejl, near which there are four groups of palm trees.
At 6.12 we reached the outlying palm trees of the small oasis of Ḥaḳl. These trees form a narrow strip extending southward along the shore. Among and behind them rise numerous springs, the water of which, however, is either salt or brackish and causes violent fever. Hence the saying: “Ḥaḳl is the ruin of reason, ḥaḳl salab min al-ʻaḳl.” Only to the south of the šeʻîb of al-Mabrak is there a spring with good fresh water. Near it are several huts built of palm leaves and therefore called ʻešše (nest, bower). To the north of ​these huts, on the right-hand side of al-Mabrak and to the east of the date palms, there grows a group of dûm palms (Fig. 32).
We remained in the šeʻîb of al-Mabrak from 6.25 to 7.28. Four men and two women came up to us and very willingly described to me the vicinity of Ḥaḳl, asking if one of them could accompany us as a guide. I selected a short, thickset man, named Farrâǧ ar-Rwêkbi (Fig. 33), to come with us to the nearest camp of the ʻImrân.
While I was negotiating for the guide, Ismaʻîn shot twelve ḳaṭa’ birds (a species of partridge), which were drinking from the fresh spring. Nowhere in this oasis are there any traces of old buildings, and, as there was absolutely no pasture in the vicinity for our camels, we could not remain in Ḥaḳl.
ḤAḲL TO ʻELW AS-SIRR
At 8.38 we went on to the left side of the šeʻîb and proceeded in a southeasterly direction across the undulating, bare, parched region of al-Haša’, which gradually merges into the elevation of Sahab aṭ-Ṭabaḳ. At 9.20 we had the palm groves of al-Ḥmejẓa and al-ʻEnâbijje on our right hand, in a deep notch; and we rode into the šeʻîb of al-Ḥmejẓa at the spot where it is joined by the šeʻîb of al-Emejḳ. At the head of the latter stands a small weli (shrine) of Sheikh Ḥmûd. The saint Ḥmûd is called the liberator of the prisoners, fakkâk al-maḥâbîs. If an Arab who has been imprisoned by the Turkish Government appeals to him, he will set him free, even though he may be in chains. It is seldom that he assists a Turk or a Črkas (Circassian).
At ten o’clock we descended into the šeʻîb of al-Ǧille, known as Umm Ǧurfejn in its middle part, where there was a settlement of liberated black slaves. Their chief was called Faẓlallâh. They live like the Arabs, breeding goats as well as a few sheep and camels. They comprise thirty-six families ​and obey Eben Maḳbûl, the head chief of the ʻImrân. Many of them are the descendants of Egyptian soldiers who guarded the various halting places on the Pilgrim Route leading from Egypt by way of al-ʻAḳaba to al-Medîna and Mecca.
At 10.30 we came upon the plateau of al-Mṛejra, where we remained from 10.47 to 1.15. The camels chewed at the hard woody portion of the eṯmân. To the south of Umm Ǧurfejn rise the hills of al-Asmar, from which the šeʻibân of ar-Ramṯi, aṭ-Ṭawṭahijje, Ǧeḏû and al-ʻArajḳên proceed toward the west. The šeʻîb of aš-Šrejḥ divides the hills of al-Asmar from the ridge of the same name. Toward the north rise the broken peaks of at-Tnejnîr and east of them the huge cones of al-Ḥadab. My companions boiled the ḳaṭa’ birds, but after two hours they were even harder than when they were put into the water.
At 1.45 P. M. we had the šeʻîb of Salab al-ʻArejf on our right; at 2.15 Umm Mešta was on our left; and at 2.45 Sejḥ al-Ḳṣejr. These šeʻibân come from the rocks of al-Ḳerîn and al-ʻAwǧijje. At the northern foot of al-Ḳerîn is the well Bîr Ǧedîd, while the spring of ʻArejǧa rises on the southern foot. The hills gradually grow into mountains. The šeʻibân become narrower and deeper. Except for the grayish-green sejâl trees, there was no vegetation. At 3.20 we saw on our right the šeʻîb of al-Msejḥeṭ which comes from the spring of the same name; on our left was al-Hwêwîra, separated by the ridge of as-Sedâra from Sejḥ al-Ḳṣejr; and at 4.38 Feǧǧ al-Kalḫ was on our right, while on our left lay the šeʻîb of Sejhîǧ near Mount al-Hawâra. We reached the plain of ʻElw as-Sirr, upon the northeastern portion of which are the three isolated dome-shaped peaks of Manâẓer aš-Šerḳi. South of these extends the ridge of al-Farwa with the broken cone of as-Silmi. Finding that this plain furnished pasture for our camels, we encamped at 5.31 P. M. beneath a high red rock, from which we obtained a view of the surrounding country (temperature: 32.5° C).
To the west of ʻElw as-Sirr extends the narrow ridge Šrejf al-Maktale, west of which is Umm Râšed and, still farther, al-Kalḫi. From the eastern slope of al-Maktale rises the šeʻîb of ad-Dabr, which runs in a north-westerly direction and is joined on the right by the šeʻibân of al-Ḥadab and aṯ-Ṯmejmijje, on the left by Ḫṭejmijje and al-ʻAjn. Šeʻîb ad-Dabr comes to an end beneath the hills of al-Ḥamẓa on the shore of the Red Sea. Southwest of Šrejf al-Maktale and south of Umm Râšed, rain water collects in the šeʻîb of al-Eḥẓêri, the branches of which are al-Ḫrûṭ and ​al-Ḥaša’ on the right and al-Ḥsej on the left. The šeʻîb of as-Sulṭânijje runs from al-Kalḫi. South of this šeʻîb and north of al-Eḥẓêri stands the small shrine al-Weli ʻAzzâm.
There was once a pregnant woman who was walking along the seashore, unable to find any water. Being very thirsty, she knelt down and begged Allâh to have mercy on her. At that very moment she gave birth to a male child. Being too weak to hold him in her arms, she laid him beside her on the ground, and behold, at the child’s feet a spring gushed forth. Allâh had saved mother and child. The spring, hence, is holy, and it is called ʻAzzâm. This story is probably an echo of the legend of Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis, 21:15.
Farther south the šeʻibân of Ǧennijje, al-Ṛurajje, and al-Klejb extend from the hills of an-Nâṭeš toward the sea. These šeʻibân start in the mountains of Ḳrejdât al-Arnab, al-Ašhab, and al-Mḥejmeẓ, south of Šrejf al-Maktale. At al-Ašhab rises the šeʻîb of Ṛalâl; at al-Mḥejmeẓ the šeʻibân of Umm Ḥaṣa and an-Nimrijje, in the latter of which is the spring of Ṯiṛeb. To the east of an-Nâṭeš the šeʻîb of an-Neḳwa joins al-Klejb, dividing an-Nâṭeš from aš-Šaḳḳa. The southern border of an-Nâṭeš is formed by the šeʻîb of an-Nḫejl. From it the mountains of al-Ḳorẓijje and as-Sîḳijje rise to the southeast, descending steeply to the sea near the copious well Bîr Marša’. The šeʻîb of the same name ends in the šeʻîb of Ḫarḫûra near al-Marša’. To the south of the latter the šeʻibân run in a southwesterly direction and end near Ṭajjebt Ism, where there is a small grove of date palms.
Ṭajjebt Ism is a small oasis belonging to the ʻAmarîn clan, which comprises only eleven families. Formerly this clan possessed the whole region between the valley of al-Abjaẓ and the sea, but the greater part of the families have migrated to the neighborhood of Wâdi Mûsa.
The large spring of al-Lâwi rises between Ṭajjebt Ism and Bîr Marša’, north of the šeʻîb of as-Swêḥel. It is situated at the foot of the Ǧehâmân, which we could also see both from Ab-aḏ-Ḏên and ʻElw as-Sirr.
East of ʻElw as-Sirr the ridge of al-Farwa forms the watershed between the šeʻibân running in a westerly direction and the deep valley of al-Abjaẓ extending southward. This valley starts near the shrine al-Weli Samʻûl, at the junction of three branches. The longest of these is aṣ-Ṣahab, which extends from the east, from the hills of aẓ-Ẓorf and the ridge of aẓ-Ẓahr. On the left it is joined by the šeʻibân of al-ʻAjenât, aẓ-Ẓell, aš-Šrejf, and al-Kiswe, and on the right by aš-Šuḳḳa, which comes from the cones of al-Malfi and Abu Rḥajjât. The northern branch, al-Wâset, begins under the name of al-Ḥṣajd, between Umm Burḳa’ and the rocks Ḥzejb al-Bîẓ and al-Muʻallaḳ. The šeʻibân which merge with it on the right are al-Hawi (in which is the spring of al-ʻAwǧijje), al-Bakra, Ammu Kaẓm, Ammu-t-Tîn, and Šeʻibân ar-Raẓijje; on the left it is joined by Umm Ǧaser (which comes from near the well of the same name on the northern foot of the ar-Rîlân rocks), by al-Mǧejfel (which rises between ar-Rîlân and al-Ḳaḥaze), and finally by al-Ḥrejǧ. The third branch, as-Sejâle, starts from the ridge of al-Farwa and divides Ḳlejb ar-Retâme from the Eḳṭân rocks. With the valley of al-Abjaẓ merge on the eastern side the following šeʻibân: al-Ḥarâḳîṣ, which begins among the rocks of Ṛurâb; Srejm and Ṯbêt, coming from the large mountain al-Maʻṭijje; al-Ḫbejt, bordering al-Mwêleḥ to the south; al-Mḥemm, which joins with ​al-Ḫeǧijje; Sejḥ al-Ḳṣejr; al-Metâha; aṣ-Ṣdejr; al-ʻEmejḳ; ʻAleǧân, made by the junction of al-Mḥaṭṭa and al-Ṛâra; Amwas, formed by the combination of Fejḥân, ar-Râḥa, and Emtân; and, finally, at the water of al-Bedʻ and ruins of Ḥawra, the šeʻîb of an-Nmejr. On the right the valley al-Abjaẓ is joined by the shorter šeʻibân of Sidd near the spring of al-Wuǧêra, by aš-Šerâf, as-Seʻêd, aṭ-Ṭleje, al-Ḥṣâne, Mašra’, Umm ʻEšš, Ḫarm al-ʻÂḳer, Asejḥer, az-Zerâfa, al-Maḳje, and Ekḳâd.
ʻELW AS-SIRR TO THE ŠEʻÎB OF AL-MISMA’
Having spent a peaceful night, we left our encampment at 4.34 A. M. on Friday, June 10, 1910. There were a number of isolated rocks scattered over the plain, among them, on our right, the small red rock of al-Ḥmejdijje, said to be inhabited by a spirit. At 5.20 we reached the rocks of aš-Šaraf and Umm Ǧidde, between which the Pilgrim Route of as-Sulṭânijje swings off, maintaining, however, its generally southeasterly direction from al-ʻAḳaba to the šeʻîb of aš-Šerâf, through which it reaches the wâdi of al-Abjaẓ where it trends southward.
Leaving the Pilgrim Route, we rode in a southerly direction along the foot of ad-Daʻǧânijje. At six o’clock we met two riders on camels and three wayfarers traveling from west to east. Having greeted our guide, they stopped with him for about ten minutes, after which the riders went on eastward, while the wayfarers joined us. Falling into conversation with them, I discovered that one had an admirable knowledge of the region, so I asked him to accompany us as a guide. He accepted my offer and told me that he was going to fetch his riding camel which his father was watering at the well of Bwâra.
At 6.24 A. M. we entered a gap about three hundred meters broad and rising to the south, which we followed until 7.20, when we halted. The baggage was unloaded, and Ismaʻîn and Šerîf, together with the old guide, drove the camels to the well of al-Bwâra, which flows in a deep šeʻîb. The new ​guide returned with the animals, but without his own camel. His excuse was that his father had driven it away; but the real reason was that he did not wish to risk his camel’s being stolen. I asked him to draw for me in the sand a plan of the whole shore of al-Ḥmejẓa as far as ʻAjnûna, with the various šeʻibân and the mountains from which they run. From his statements and his plan I myself drew a sketch map. Twice I rubbed out his drawing and asked him to sketch the šeʻibân again on each occasion from a different side—and I thus found that he never contradicted himself. His statements as to direction and distance were accurate. He measured distance either in terms of camel rides or of marches on foot.
At 8.50 we proceeded farther southward. At 9.20 we reached the elevation of Ḳrejdât al-Arnab, and we remained beneath a high granite peak until 12.30. Originally we had intended to eat, but we had five hungry ʻImrân with us, and our stock of supplies was already running short. Consequently Mḥammad urged me to complete our cartographical observations rapidly and then continue our journey. Only the heaviest baggage was unloaded from the camels, the lighter articles being left on them. Accompanied by the new guide, Tûmân and I climbed to the top of the peak, from which we intended to sketch the surrounding district. At first we went up a slope of crumbling stone which shifted with every footstep. We then clambered from boulder to boulder until we reached a projection which we took to be the actual summit, but we soon discovered that the latter was situated farther on towards the west. It consisted of vertical ribs between which we cautiously climbed upwards. The upper ends of these ribs rose up like a wooden fence and were so smooth that we had to crawl among them at full length. The summit was formed by a single boulder three meters long and two meters broad at the top. As I am subject to dizziness, I could not look downward into the precipitous chasm, more than one hundred and fifty meters deep. Having completed our work, we went down again, the descent proving even more difficult and dangerous than the ascent. Before we were safely down blood was drawn from our hands and feet. The camels were already loaded, so that we could continue our journey immediately. Our uninvited guests had waited a long time for our return, but not knowing where ​and when we should prepare the midday meal they had finally departed.
Passing through a narrow, rocky ravine we came at 12.50 P. M. to a šeʻîb which contained an abundant growth of plants, and here we stayed until 2.30 P. M. Our guide was acquainted not only with the region lying between the right-hand side of the al-Abjaẓ valley and the sea but also with the territory situated to the east and northeast of al-Abjaẓ. From his various remarks I gathered that he was a chief of robbers and that he only occasionally visited his tent. He was willing to accompany us as far as al-Bedʻ, where he had left with the Mesâʻîd two stolen camels that he intended either to sell or to send to Egypt. Of all our camels, he liked best the one that Ismaʻîn was riding. He stroked it and patted it at every opportunity, which made Ismaʻîn afraid that the man would steal the animal during the night.
At 2.59 we observed the mountain range of al-Mwêleḥ to the southeast. It consists of two horizontal strata, the lower one white, the upper one black. From this range proceeds the šeʻîb of the same name, which joins with al-Abjaẓ on the left-hand side. East-southeast of al-Mwêleḥ rise two cones of Jabb, and southwest of these cones we could see the ridge of aš-Šemrâḫ with several high pyramids denoting the pass of al-Ḫeǧijje. On our left we had the head of the šeʻîb of Seʻêd, which joins al-Abjaẓ opposite the šeʻîb of al-Mwêleḥ. At 3.10 the guide showed me the spring of ʻEjert al-Kabš on the right, while on the left we saw the ravine of Ḥṣij al-Benn with several black boulders, said to be possessed by spirits (mamlûkât). At 3.20 we had the šeʻîb of al-Klejb on our right and aṭ-Ṭrejfi on our left. Through a gap in the left-hand rocky wall we perceived at 3.32 three palm trees above the fountain of Môjet al-Ḥṣâne. At 3.45 we rode around a large pile of stones heaped up upon the grave of al-Welijje Saʻîde, or the holy woman Saʻîde, who is said to help women in distress or illness. At 4.05 we observed the šeʻîb of Medliǧ on the left, and south of it Mount aẓ-Ẓrejbijje, with springs of the same name, from which proceed the šeʻibân of ad-Dbâklijje and al-Mešall, which join with al-Ḥṣâne and end in Wâdi al-Abjaẓ.
We rode through the šeʻîb of al-Ḥṣâne until 4.20, when we reached the red elevation of as-Snejdʻe and the shallow channels of ar-Rîḥijjât. To the southeast glistened the red ​and white strata of the al-Lowz mountain range, south of which, on the mountain of al-Maḳla, we saw the high, white, shining pyramid of Nṣejlet al-ʻAjn, from which the large spring al-ʻAjn flows to the southwest. From this spring there are roads leading to the passes Naḳb al-Madsûs and Naḳb al-Maḳla; and southeast of the latter is the well of Maṭʻama with the holy tree of the same name. The pass of al-Maḳla divides the mountain range of al-Maḳla from the black mountain of ar-Râḥa. North of al-Lowz we saw a deep, dark gap—the šeʻîb of al-Mḥemm—and east of it a clear, white strip, which was the road to the pass of al-Ḫeǧijje, near which there is a well with good water. To the left of us rose the hills of al-Ḳaṭṭâr, and on our right to the southwest the guide pointed out the spring of Rîḥa at the foot of al-Ašhab.
At 4.24 we crossed the šeʻîb of an-Nwêbʻe, which starts on Mount al-Mḥejmeẓ from the spring of the same name. West of al-Mḥejmeẓ flows the spring of aṯ-Ṯiṛeb, and southwest that of Šowša. The region through which we passed was completely barren. There was no vegetation on the rugged, rock-strewn slopes; in the river beds there grew some scattered ratam and rimṯ, but no verdure was upon them. The guide drew my attention to the fact that we were approaching an area in which there had been no adequate rain for four years and that he therefore doubted whether we could find any pasture for our camels on this part of our journey.
At five o’clock we reached a low elevation called ʻArejf al-Ṛalâjîn, where the Arabs dig out meerschaum from which they cut their short pipes. Smokers from the whole of the northern half of the Ḥeǧâz are said to come here. Many of them carry away on their camels as much as two loads of the soft stone and sell it to their fellow tribesmen. Southwest of ʻArejf al-Ṛalâjîn rises Mount Mrâḥ, the vertical ribs of which surmount the ridge by almost four meters. In the broad šeʻîb of al-Mašra’ we found numerous traces of Arabs and their flocks, arẓ maṭḳûḳa (trodden ground), but no pasture for our camels. The guide pointed out to me Môjet Šowša in a short šeʻîb to the west and to the east the large, black mountain aš-Šaʻâl. At 5.25 we crossed a footpath leading to the spring of ʻArejǧa, and at 5.35 we perceived the broad, gray ridge of al-Ḫbejt running in the direction of al-Abjaẓ.
It was 6.15 before we found at the eastern bank of the šeʻîb of al-Misma’ a few green rimṯ bushes, beside which we ​encamped (temperature: 30° C). The camels were hungry and tired and the road was stony, so that we could not leave this place after our evening meal. We therefore made a fire under a large boulder, but after cooking the supper we immediately extinguished it in order that its flame might not betray us. The camels knelt, one close beside the other; whereupon we fastened their two front legs together. Then we lay down in a circle around the animals, with the new guide between Ismaʻîn and Mḥammad. He was not called upon to act as guard during the night.
THE ŠEʻÎB OF AL-MISMA’ INTO WÂDI AL-ABJAẒ
On Saturday, June 11, 1910, we started off at 4.34 A. M. (temperature: 22° C) through the šeʻîb of al-Misma’ which forms the beginning of the šeʻîb of Asejḥer, in which, at five o’clock, our guide Slîmân pointed out to me the water of al-Ḫarada. He also showed me farther to the southeast on the left side of the wâdi of al-Abjaẓ the deep gaps formed by the šeʻibân of an-Nzêrât that join with aṣ-Ṣdejr and al-ʻEmejḳ. South of them we could see the šeʻibân of al-Mḥaṭṭa and al-Ṛâra extending to the šeʻîb of ʻAleǧân. At 5.20 we saw the narrow peak of Ab-aḏ-Ḏên to the southeast. We then came to the beginning of the šeʻîb of Zerâfa, which forms the western border of the territory belonging to the ʻEmêrât, a clan of the Ḥwêṭât at-Tihama numbering about one hundred tents. On the south their territory extends as far as the oasis of al-Bedʻ, on the north as far as al-Weli Samʻûl, and on the east it reaches to the mountain of Šemrâḫ and al-Maḳla. South of this clan the Mesâʻîd encamp, and to the north the ʻImrân. At 6.04 we rode between the rugged hills of al-ʻAjdijje and the mountains of Abu Rijâš, where the šeʻîb of al-Ḥḳâf begins. After being joined on the right by the šeʻibân of aš-Šarma and Ǧehâmân, which extend from the mountains of Ardâd, al-Ḥḳâf penetrates the hills of ar-Rafîd and ends on the seashore near the oasis of Ṭajjebt Ism.
Our guide explained that the territory between Ḥaḳl and Ṭajjebt Ism used to belong to the ʻAmarîn clan. They had migrated to Egypt and to the neighborhood of Wâdi Mûsa, so that only about ten families remained in the original territory and these few were now encamped with the ʻImrân. The latter are also accompanied on their nomadic wanderings by about ​twenty families of the Fawâjde clan of the tribe of Beni ʻOḳba, which once ruled over the tribes of the Maʻʻâze and the Ḥwêṭât at-Tihama and is said to have been descended from the Ṯamûd tribe that built rock dwellings at al-Ḥeǧr and Moṛâjer Šuʻejb. Today the ruins of these dwellings, as well as the oasis of al-Bedʻ, belong to the Bedaʻîn clan of the Mesâʻîd tribe. The Mesâʻîd are not akin either to the ʻImrân or to the Ḥwêṭât at-Tihama, and they form two equally numerous clans, the Bedaʻîn and Farâḥîn together consisting of about one hundred and twenty tents. The Farâḥîn sojourn for the most part between the šeʻîb of al-Ḳijâl and Râs Fartak (Cape Fartak), while the Bedaʻîn remain north of them between the oasis of al-Bedʻ and Maḳna on the seashore.
At 6.38 we rode through the šeʻîb of al-Maḳje and approached the black mountain of al-Ḫšêrme. To the southeast we saw the mountain of Zihed, which resembles a kneeling camel. Its isolated peak rises above the entrance to the šeʻîb of al-Ḫrob.
To the northwest rose the high obelisk of Ab-aḏ-Ḏên, separated from the lower one of Abu Rijâš by the broad šeʻîb of Faršt ʻEdd. At 7.15 the broad šeʻîb of Frejšt al-ʻEḳejl opened out on our right. The region through which we were passing was completely void of life. Nowhere did we see animals or birds, nowhere was there any green growth of vegetation. The ratam bushes were absolutely bare, as though dried up, and even the hardy acacia sejâl, which defies the drought, had not a single leaf. My right eye was not yet well, and my left one also began to pain me. The fever returned.
At eight o’clock we had the huge mountain of Lebûn on our left, and we admired the mountains of ar-Râḥa and al-Maḳla, covered with a delicate veil of haze. These mountains form the watershed of the Wâdi al-Abjaẓ—and thus of the Red Sea and the lowlands traversed by the railway to al-Medîna. West of the saddle Naḳb al-Maḳla yawned the deep ravine of Fejḥân, through which a road leads from the valley of al-Abjaẓ to the well al-ʻAjn and farther on to the passes Naḳb al-Madsûs and Naḳb al-Maḳla. At 8.30, on our right lay the small šeʻîb of Ḫajjij, with the water of the same name at its entrance; at 8.40 we saw the small šeʻîb of ʻEḳejl, which comes from al-Klejḫi and Ṭrejf al-Bawwâl.
​At 9.28 we entered the Wâdi al-Abjaẓ at the point where it is joined on the left by the šeʻîb of ʻAleǧân. In the broad, white river bed of al-Abjaẓ we found an abundance of rimṯ bushes, but they too were completely dead. However, on the left-hand side in a small basin through which winds the channel of al-Abjaẓ—below this point known as al-ʻEfâr or al-ʻEfâl—we could see a darker clump of rimṯ bushes at the foot of a high, black peak. We turned aside towards them and remained beside them from 9.46 until 12.42. Rain water had been collecting for some time in this basin, so the roots of the rimṯ were still able to nourish the grayish-green leaves. Our camels grazed on the rimṯ for a few minutes and then proceeded to search for other plants, but, finding none, they knelt down one after the other and rested. To us this was a discouraging sign, for it showed us that the animals were already very tired (temperature: 37.5° C).
Accompanied by the guide and Tûmân, I climbed up to the black peak, beneath which we sat down. The ascent required more than half an hour and was dangerous in places, as we had to crawl on our stomachs up the smooth slope. We named this peak Samra’ Tûmân (Fig. 34), and the guide promised to see to it that the Bedouins should call it by the same name.
Southwest of Samra’ Tûmân rise the dark brown peaks of Ḳdâd, Eṣdeḥ, aṣ-Ṣoḳḳ, and al-Laṭṭ, from which the šeʻibân of at-Ṯemîle, aṣ-Ṣoḳḳ, al-Ḳṣâra, Abu Ḥlejfi, and Abu Dwejme reach to the sea. On the watershed to the southeast rises the black range of ar-Râḥa, on the western slopes of which are situated the cones of Umm Ǧâḏeb, Ṣelf, and al-Ferš. In the southern part of ar-Râḥa, by the cone of al-Ferš, flows the spring ʻAjn Marra, near which rises the šeʻîb of aṯ-Ṯmejmijje, joining with Fejḥân. Somewhere near the middle of this šeʻîb is the spring of Ḳammâḥ, from which the pass Naḳb an-Naššâš leads eastward. To the north of Ḳammâḥ is Naḳb al-Aḥejmer. To the south of ar-Râḥa the watershed is formed by the brown and white streaked hills of al-Muʻaffara, the southern spur of which is called al-Ṛâjme. Az-Zihed towers to the west of al-Ṛâjme and to the north of az-Zihed stretch the narrow ridges of al-Ḥrejbe, al-Mnîfe, aḏ-Ḏbejbi, aš-Šedîḫ, al-Kbejda, al Ḥemâra, an-Nmejr, Lâha, al-Ṛarâḳ, and Mikwan al-Ḥâǧǧ, which slope toward the southwest.
A little before noon a strong, south-southwesterly wind arose which, though it failed to moderate the intense heat, at least set the air in motion and thus facilitated our breathing. We felt the full strength of it as we were moving toward the south through the broad valley of al-Abjaẓ. This valley is covered with a layer of fine sand, from which isolated ​clumps of rimṯ bushes emerge like small islands. It is bordered to the right and left by high, rocky walls, through which break numerous šeʻibân, large and small. After one o’clock the wâdi became tapering and twined round the spur of Mikwan al-Ḥâǧǧ, which extends towards al-Abjaẓ from the east. Egyptian Fig. 34—Samra’ Tûmân from the northwest.
troops always occupied this spur when the pilgrimage caravans passed this way, for on several occasions the Arabs had attacked and robbed the pilgrims near here. Our guide Slîmân related how his father Sâlem had taken part in such an attack. The Egyptian soldiers had built a wall of rough stones on the mountain spur, behind which they had set up two small cannons. Not seeing any hostile Bedouins anywhere about, they were looking at the approaching pilgrims, admir​ing the decorated camels carrying gifts from Egypt to Mecca and the splendid palanquins of the Egyptian ladies and gentlemen, and keeping no watch on the higher rocks to the east. But it was precisely in these rocks that the ʻImrân were concealed with the Beni ʻAṭijje. Creeping down softly toward the soldiers, they flung themselves upon them with a great shout. Some they killed, others escaped. The Bedouins set light to fuses and fired at the pilgrims who were crowded together in the narrow valley beneath the spur, where they were completely unable to defend themselves. The victims were thoroughly plundered by the Bedouins. Slîmân said that his father carried off two camels, upon which he loaded various garments, carpets, and food, and that in addition he made off with a small bag containing forty-eight gold coins.
TO THE RUINS OF ḤAWRA’
At 1.50 P. M. we saw on our right the small šeʻîb of Eḳdâd, which comes from Ṭrejf al-Bawwâl, and to the southeast we could see the flat elevations of aẓ-Ẓerw and al-Ṛarâḳ, composed of red and white strata. At 2.22 we had the small šeʻîb of Amwas on our left hand, and on our right the short šeʻîb of al-Krejbât.
Slîmân recited a poem which he had composed in my honor, but Mḥammad and Ismaʻîn would not let him finish it, declaring that they had composed a better poem; whereupon they also said a few verses. But Slîmân disposed of them, saying that their verses were not original, being a mere repetition of his idea.
Toward three o’clock there was a change in the appearance of the country. The serried granite mountains disappeared, and on both sides and ahead of us we saw limestone hills and uplands, covered at the foot with a moderately deep layer of sand. The slopes of these hills and uplands were more gradual than those of the hills through which we had come, and the šeʻibân were shallower and broader but with no vegetation. At three o’clock we could see to the south through a notch of no great depth the high, red ridge of an-Nmejr and above it higher brown mountains with the white strata of al-Muʻaffara. The valley of al-Abjaẓ gradually grows broader, and the channel on the western side runs along a high, yellow escarpment known as Ṣafra’-l-Bedʻ. This escarpment ​is composed of countless pillars nearly all of the same height, some of which are hollowed out and lie in the river bed. At 3.22 we had the šeʻîb of Emtân on our left, while on our right, above the escarpment, were the uplands of Sbejlât and Šiḳḥ. Fig. 35—From Ḳaʻedân Râbeṛ looking northeast. At 4.12 we reached the defile of Ḳaʻedân Râbeṛ at the point where the escarpment of Ṣafra’-l-Bedʻ swings off somewhat to the southeast (Figs. 35, 36). The channel of al-Abjaẓ penetrates through the bend thus formed, thereby cutting the defile. The river bed, scarcely twenty meters broad and covered with a growth of dark green ṭarfa trees, is bordered on the right and left by walls more than fifty meters high, formed of horizontal, yellow, red, and blue strata. The rays of the sun were reflected from the southeastern wall, and there quivered a rainbow spectrum around the separate strips of color. Seen from the south, the defile produces an even more overwhelming impression. The southern façade resembles a gigantic fortress with olive-blue foundations, violet walls, and a high, slender, yellow, rectangular tower sharply cut with battlements and numerous round loopholes. Behind this fortress, far on the northeastern horizon, rises the purple mountain range of Lowz ​and to the south of it the half white and half black mountains of al-Maḳla and ar-Râḥa; while in front of the latter, nearer the valley, are the lower hills known as al-Ḥemâra and al-Kbejda, the colors of which range from grayish-green to orange-yellow. In the river bed numerous half buried sejâl trunks were visible.
Fig. 36—From Ḳaʻedân Râbeṛ looking southeast.
At 4.30 we reached a grove of dûm palms and made our way across some ancient walls that stretched crosswise and lengthwise through the valley. These were the remains of gardens. Here the river bed is more than fifty meters broad and five meters deep and is completely covered with a growth of ṭarfa. From the south the fans of date palms beckoned to us, and at 4.55 we were near the palm gardens where here and there we could see huts built of palm leaves. Toward the east the gardens are shut off by a white marl slope about thirty meters high.
On all sides there are springs of various sizes, the water of which flows together and forms a stream, beside which we halted at 5.20. Some men and women of the Bedaʻîn were watering goats and camels and filling their skin bags. The men scarcely replied to our greeting. But they inspected us ​with covetous eyes, asked what our intentions were, and wished to conduct us immediately to their chief who was encamped a few kilometers to the south. Ismaʻîn and Slîmân declared that we would remain at al-Bedʻ that day to let our hungry camels graze and to rest ourselves a little, Fig. 37—Our guide at al-Bedʻ. so that we could not visit the chief until the morrow. When the men and women had departed, we were joined by a youth about sixteen years old (Fig. 37) in a tattered shirt, who invited us to enter his palm hut. Thanking him for his courtesy, I offered him our hospitality. We were in urgent need of a companion belonging to the rapacious Mesâʻîd, who would protect us from his fellow tribesmen. Knowing that he could obtain from us his fill of bread—which, he asserted, he had not tasted for more than a year—the youth began to drive our camels together, urging us not to camp by the water, because if we stayed there we should be stung by gnats during the night. I asked him to lead us to the caves Moṛâjer Šuʻejb (Fig. 38).
At 5.40 we left the meadow, through which flows the stream al-ʻEfâr, mounted a slope about ten meters high, and proceeded to the ruins of Ḥawra. These ruins are nearly five-tenths of a kilometer long from southwest to northeast and about four hundred meters broad. Half a kilometer to the south there are similar ruins, composed of piles of old building material, long, white foundation walls, and a quantity of débris. Not a single building had been preserved. They were constructed of soft limestone, which, though very easy to work with, could not resist the wind, sand, and rain. It has disintegrated into fine dust, some of which still lies in small heaps, while the rest has been carried away by the wind. ​There are about ten heaps of larger size and more varied composition, in which it might, perhaps, be possible to find something.
Behind the ruins we branched off a little to the west into a small šeʻîb and found ourselves in front of monumental tombs hollowed out in the white limestone rock (Figs. 39, 40, 41). These tombs obviously recall Wâdi Mûsa. We encamped by them at 5.56. Having made some examination of the surrounding neighborhood, we obtained our geographical latitude for the evening (temperature: 31.8° C).
Our new guide brought up a lame old man driving a lean goat, which he offered to sell for the sum of four meǧîdijjât ($3.60). Ismaʻîn and Mḥammad handled the animal and then returned it to the old man with the suggestion that he let it graze until its bones were covered with at least as much flesh as one ḳaṭa’ bird (see above, p. 94). I could not sleep at all during the night, as I was tormented by fever, and our new companion Sâlem kept up a continual shouting to warn any possible robbers that we were under his protection. Whenever Sâlem was quiet, our old guide, the robber Slîmân (Fig. 42), shouted in an even louder voice that he would shoot anyone who interfered with us or our property.
AT MADIAN
On Sunday, June 12, 1910, I visited the necropolis of Moṛâjer Šuʻejb before sunrise. The tombs had been hollowed out of the soft limestone rocks. In front of each one the slope had been cut away to form a vertical wall, and through this wall had been cut a door that led into a large excavated room, on the floor and on walls of which were the individual graves. Many of the entrances were adorned with crumbling decorations (Figs. 43–52). The necropolis is over one kilometer long and nearly two hundred meters broad, but not a single grave had been completely preserved. The soft limestone rock had crumbled and cluttered the rooms and the doorways. The best preserved graves are those in the western part, where the rock is somewhat harder; the northern and especially the southern parts have completely decayed. For more than two hours I crawled from tomb to tomb, searching for inscriptions, but I did not find a single one. They had been carved out in the soft limestone walls, which had ​ Fig. 38—Map of the site of ancient Madian. ​ Fig. 39
Fig. 40
Fig. 41 Figs 39, 40, 41—In the necropolis, Madian. ​crumbled and vanished. But the walls of several tombs had received a fairly thick coating of firm mortar, and in about five tombs I came upon insignificant traces of Nabataean inscriptions written in black upon this coating of roughcast. Fig. 42—The robber Slîmân. Even of these, however, not a single letter had been completely preserved. After a vain search I photographed several tombs and then went on with Tûmân and Sâlem to the ridge of al-Mṣalla, where we sketched the surrounding district. It was not easy to reach this ridge, as its sides had broken away at a height of about ten meters, so we were compelled to make a detour of more than two kilometers in order to ascend it from the north. On the ridge we found about fifty ​circles marked out on a stone elevation. Sâlem said that those who wish to pray to Šuʻejb stand inside these circles.
The lowland, in which the extensive ruins of Ḥawra and the oasis of al-Bedʻ are situated, is bordered on the east by the hills of al-Ḫarûs, al-Kbejda, Fig. 43—A sepulcher, Madian. and aš-Šedîḫ; on the west by aš-Šiḳḥ, ʻAǧʻûǧe al-Ḳṣâra, and ʻAbdejn; and on the southwest by al-Ḥamra and aṭ-Ṭlâḥ. To the north of al-Mṣalla extends the white plain of al-Brejṯem; and to the southwest, al-Ḥamẓa, in which is situated the well of the same name. The rain water flows from both these plains through the šeʻîb of Maḳna to the grove of date palms bearing the same name situated on the shore.
​ Fig. 44, 45, 46—Plans of sepulchers, Madian.
Fig. 47—Interior of a sepulcher, Madian.
The oasis of Maḳna belongs to the Fawâjde clan. They dwell in twenty huts, ʻarâješ, of palm leaves and cultivate about fifty date palms and large vegetable gardens. Al-Fawâjde are the remainder of the Beni ʻOḳba tribe, various clans of which migrated during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, some to the territory of al-Kerak, some to Egypt.
To the south-southwest of al-Ḥamra’ extend the limestone hills of Umm Ḳefa’, Umm Losof, and al-Mesadd, forming the watershed between ​Maḳna and the valley of al-Abjaẓ—the latter being known in its lower part as al-ʻEfâl. From these hills the šeʻibân of al-Mṛejzel run to Maḳna, penetrating the table-land of al-Fḥejṯât, al-Ḥaraǧ, and al-Mabʻûḳ, in which rises the spring of al-Amṛar; Fig. 48—A sepulcher, Madian. while the springs of ʻEjâne and al-Far-​
| Fig. 49 | Fig. 50 |
| Fig. 51 | Fig. 52 |
| Figs. 49, 50, 51, 52—Sepulchers, Madian. ||
To the east of Râs al-Ḳaṣba extend the šeʻibân Woḳob, as-Sbejti, al-Ḳmejle, an-Naḫala, al-ʻAṣla—all three of which proceed from the plateau of an-Ndejra—as well as al-ʻEšš, Abu Ẓufra, and al-Ḳijâl, rising on the southern slope of Matent aš-Šujûḫ.
In the oasis of Ḳijâl dwells the al-Farâḥîn clan of the Mesâʻîd tribe. This clan numbers about sixty families who live in tents or huts made of palm leaves. They cultivate date palms, pomegranates, and various vegetables.
Al-ʻEfâl, or al-ʻEfâr, is joined on the right, to the south of al-Bedʻ, by the broad valley of Umm Hašîm, which extends from al-Ḥamra’ to the southeast between Umm Ḳefa’, al-Ḫbejrât, and aṭ-Ṭlâḥ on the west, and Ṭwejjel Ǧedʻân on the east. Farther south al-ʻEfâl is joined on the right by Rbejla, known in its western part as al-Mṣejr, which proceeds from ar-Rîše and penetrates Matent aš-Šujûḫ. From the east al- Efâl is reached by the šeʻibân of al-Mhâš, which begin under the name of al-Ṛarîd near the ridge of aš-Šedîḫ; by al-Marra umm Ǧarda’, formed by the šeʻibân of al-Ḫomsi, al-Minḳâši, Ḳdejdi, and al-Ḳtejbe, which come from the hills of aḏ-Ḏbejbi and al-Mnîfe; and still farther on by Mšâš al-Ḥawa, al-Kûs, and al-Ḫrob, the latter being joined by the šeʻibân of al-ʻEsejle, ar-Râka, and al-Mrâḥ, which begin in the mountain range of az-Zihed and al-Mrejfeḳ.
We had not yet finished our work when Šerîf, out of breath, shouted to us from below that the Mesâʻîd had surrounded Mḥammad and our camels and were about to steal the animals. Seizing our firearms we hastened with Ismaʻîn to Mḥammad’s aid. Šerîf remained with the baggage. The attacking party numbered eight. From afar we heard them cursing the Government at Constantinople and the Sultan and threatening to kill Mḥammad if he fired at them. The leader informed me that he would at once take me and all my effects to his chief, saying: “Order your companions to pack your things immediately and to come with us to our chief. Here in al-Bedʻ no Government issues orders, here he alone issues orders, and you must submit to his will.”
To this I replied: “I submit only to the will of Allâh, by no means to the will of any of his creatures. There is no son of the Arabs in the whole of the Ḥeǧâz who could force me to do what I do not wish to do. Deliver a greeting to your chief from me and tell him that I shall not go to him, the chief of the Mesâʻîd, but to the chief of the Ḥwêṭât at-Tihama, ​and I make known to all of you present that I am journeying before the countenance and under the protection of the chief Abu Ṭḳêḳa, and he who harms me or my companions, or hinders us on our journey, let him fear the vengeance of the chief Abu Ṭḳêḳa. You know that his sword is sharp and his arm is long.”
“We do not fear Abu Ṭḳêḳa; he does not hold sway over us,” the Arab answered.
“Nevertheless,” I went on, “you pay him annual tribute for his protection and send him gifts. If you do not fear him, then know that there are six of us, that each of our rifles has six charges, each of our revolvers ten, and Allâh, who led us into your country, will not permit a single one of our shots to miss its aim.”
Paying no heed to the robbers and their leader, I caught hold of my camel, urged it to kneel down, jumped into the saddle, and turned towards our baggage. My companions drove the rest of the camels on before me. We did not even look behind us at our assailants.
While we were packing up our baggage, Sâlem, our companion, told me that he could not accompany me to the chief Abu Ṭḳêḳa, as one of his relatives had killed a subject of Abu Ṭḳêḳa, who attended to a palm garden in the oasis of Šarma; but he added that he had found another guide for me. This proved to be a man of about sixty, who had a very marked squint. Mḥammad spat when he first saw the new guide and called upon Allâh to us from bad omens and from the misfortune which is brought by every person who squints.
At eleven o’clock we rode off in a southeasterly direction past the ruins of Ḥawra, crossed the stream of al-ʻEfâl, and at 11.26 halted by the ruins of al-Mâlḥa (Figs. 53, 54). This was a pilgrimage station established after the sixteenth century. Northeast of al-Mâlḥa appear the ruins of an old building—the watchtower al-Birǧ, with a well. After halting for twenty minutes, we turned off towards the south and at 11.55 came upon the large, quadrangular, ruined fortress of al-Malḳaṭa, situated at the southern edge of the oasis. Here the broad ramparts and deep trenches are still clearly visible, surrounding great piles made up of ruins of old buildings that have fallen to decay. Some of the walls can be traced for a distance of one hundred paces. Only a strip of soft ​ Fig. 53 Fig. 54 Fig.53—Rain pool of al-Mâlḥa. Fig.54—From al-Mâlḥa looking northwest. ​limestone, about forty centimeters broad, forms the remains of each wall on the surface. Around the fortress there is an abundant growth of dûm palms.
In the oasis of al-Bedʻ we found four settlements. The most ancient one seemed to me to be al-Malḳaṭa; the next oldest, the settlement to the south of Ḥawra; and the most recent, al-Mâlḥa and al-Birǧ. Ḥawra is certainly of Nabataean origin.
According to the Arabic and classical authors, this oasis is identical with ancient Madian, the Madjan of the Arabic authorities.
* ↑ The poet an-Nâbiṛa, who was a member of the Ḏubjân tribe to which the land east of the region of Ḥesma’ belonged and who lived about 600 A. D., mentions (An-Nâbiṛa, Dîwân [Derenbourg], p. 292: [Ahlwardt], p. 21; Jâḳût, op. cit., Vol. 4. p. 797) the camping places between the fertile lowland of Nuʻmi and the valleys of al-Aǧâwel and al-Asâwed.—As he was well acquainted with the camping places of the northern Ḥeǧâz and mentions them often in his poems, we must locate these three spots in the northern Ḥeǧâz. Rowẓe Nuʻmi would then be identical with the fertile lowland by the well of an-Naʻemi: the valleys of al-Aǧâwel with the broad lowlands near Mount Ǧawla; and the valley of al-Asâwed, if this name is accurately given, we should locate in the vicinity of the well of al-Esâwed.Az-Zamaḫšari (Jâḳût, op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 587) locates the lowland of an-Nuʻmi on the seashore, the Tihama, thus confusing it with the valley of al-Aǧâwel. Burḳa Naʻmi is the name of a half-reddened, half-black cone above the well of the same name.
* ↑ I think that in Ptolemy, Geography, VI, 7: 27, Agkale is a corruption of the Arabic word Ḥaḳl. The location tallies.Al-Bekri, Muʻǧam (Wüstenfeld), p. 26, writes that Ḥaḳl is situated on the shore of the oasis of Tejma in the territory of the Ǧuḏâm tribe.According to Jâḳût, Muʻǧam (Wüstenfeld), Vol. 2, p. 299, Ḥaḳl is a place sixteen miles from Ajla, in the direction of al-Medîna. ʻAzza, the beloved of the poet Kuṯejjer, had a garden there. In agreement with Ibn al-Kalbi, Jâḳût makes Ḥaḳl the landing place of Tejma.—The distance between Ajla and the oasis of Ḥaḳl is thirty-five kilometers. It is doubtful whether this oasis was ever of any importance to Tejma. The landing place Ẓbe’ is situated 150 kilometers nearer Tejma than is Ḥaḳl.
* ↑ Aš-Šerâf is the ancient pilgrims’ halting place, Šaraf al-Baʻl or Šarafe Beni ʻAṭijje.Jâḳût, op. cit., Vol. 1. p. 675; Vol. 3, p. 278, mentions Šaraf al-Baʻl but does not know whether it is a place in Syria or a mountain on the Pilgrim Route from Syria.—Jâḳût was not familiar with the Pilgrim Route from Egypt.Al-Ḳazwîni (died 1283 A. D.). Aǧâ’ib, (Cairo, 1321 A. H.), Vol. 1, p. 234, says that the mountain of Šaraf al-Baʻl rises on the Pilgrim Route leading from Syria to al-Medîna. On it there is a large building for the statues of deities wrought so artistically in stone that it would have been exceedingly difficult to do the same work in wood. Everyone marvels at the height of the building, the size of the stones, and the length of the pillars.—The name Šaraf al-Baʻl is printed Šaraḳ al-Baʻl. The place now is full of isolated rocks curiously eaten away by sand and wind, rain, frost, and sun.
* ↑ Ptolemy, Geography, VI, 7: 27, records in northern Arabia Felix a place Makna or Maina, which is certainly identical with our oasis. The name Maina recalls the šeʻîb of al-Maʻajjenât, in which the settlement of Maḳna is situated.During his residence at Tebûk, Mohammed imposed annual taxes upon the Jews living in the settlement of Maḳna and gave them a charter (al-Wâḳedi, Maṛâzi [Wellhausen], p. 405; al-Belâḏori [died 892 A. D.]. Futûḥ [De Goeje], p. 60). These taxes—which consisted of a quarter of the yield of the sea fisheries, date palms, and weavers’ looms—were received by ʻUbajd ibn Jâsir ibn Numajr of the Saʻdallâh clan, as well as by a certain Ǧuḏâmi from Banu Wâjel, who went to Tebûk and became a Moslem. Mohammed assigned a hundred grass plots to ʻUbajd’s horse, and these plots still belonged to the Saʻd and Wâjel clans at the time of al-Wâḳedi (died 823 A. D.). Later, ʻUbajd put his horse in the care of a certain Jewess in the settlement of Maḳna, assigning to her sixty of the hundred grass plots. These plots were taken away from the heirs of the Jewess only toward the close of the rule of the Omayyads, but the heirs of ʻUbajd did not obtain them. The charter was said to have been lost, and the one which was exhibited in the settlement of Maḳna at the end of the ninth century and which was intended for the Beni Ḥubejba and the inhabitants of Maḳna, was said to be an undoubted forgery.Ibn Ḥaǧar (died 1449 A. D.), Iṣâba (ʻAbdalḥaj), Vol. 2, p. 1070, does not believe the tale about ʻUbajd’s horse.Jâḳût, Muʻǧam (Wüstenfeld), Vol. 4, p. 610, writes that Maḳna is situated not far from Ajla.
* ↑ The poet Kuṯejjer (died 723 A. D.) describes (Jâḳût, op. cit., Vol. 4. p. 26) the journey along the valleys of al-Buḍajʻ, the well of Una’, and the shore of Ḳijâl.—Al-Buḍajʻ (not an-Nuṣajʻ, as is given in the text) is identical with the region of al-Beẓîʻ the well of Una’ (not Uba’) with the well of ʻAjnûna’: and Ḳijâl (not Ḳibâl) with the valley of al-Ḳijâl to the northwest of ʻAjnûna’.