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'Handbook of Mesopotamia. Vol. IV. 1917' [‎14v] (33/530)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (263 folios). It was created in 1917. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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24
INTRODUCTION
passes of the Eastern Taurus on the north, north-west and north-east ;
from the south-west comes the road from Birijik by Severek: from
the south the road from Mardln across the depression between the
Tur Abdin on the east and the Qarajeh Dagh country on the west:
in 1916 the Turks were reported to be intending to construct a rail
way from Eas el-'Ain to Diarbekr by Mardln, a work which, it was
said, was to take precedence of the extension of the line to Nisibin
and Mosul. From the south-east there are tracks across the Tur
Abdin from Jezlret-ibn-'Omar. Lastly, the Tigris below Diarbekr can
be used for downstream raft-navigation. Above Jezlret-ibn-'Omar that
river is bridged only at Diarbekr. The principal route to the north
avoiding Diarbekr is that from Jezlret-ibn-'Omar to Sairt and thence
to Bitlis ; but even this before the war seems to have been as far as
Sairt only a rather difficult mule-track. The few other routes to the
north which do not pass through Diarbekr (such as the Mardin—
Bismll—Farqln line and the Severek—Chermuk—Arghana road)
seem to have been of minor importance.
Routes hetween Mosul andDiarhehr. — The Tigris, between
Diarbekr and Mosul, flows through a number of deep and narrow
gorges, and the swiftness of the current and the rapids formed
by rocks and gravel banks appear to make it impracticable for
upstream navigation. But there is a good deal of downstream
raft traffic on this part of the river (see III Gr). The most
usual line for caravan traffic from Mosul to Diarbekr before the
war seems to have been that by Jezlret-ibn-'Omar, Nisibin, and
Mardln.
Jezlret-ibn-'Omar can be reached from Mosul by a number of
routes. The country to the east of the Tigris is for the most part
easily undulating and well watered, and contains a fair number of
Moslem, Christian, and Yezidi villages. The immediate neighbour
hood of the 1. bank of the Tigris between Mosul and Feishkhabur is
too broken to admit of easy movement, and therefore the river valley
in this region is avoided by traffic. The principal obstacles en
countered are the line of the Jebel Abyadh and the Khabur river,
a large tributary of the Tigris. A dilapidated led before the
war to the top of the pass over the Jebel Abyadh above Zakho, but
the northern side of the pass seems to have been impracticable for
wheels. At Zakho the Khabur is bridged, and hence a road leads
to Jeziret-ibn-'Omar along the north side of the Khabur and then by
the 1. bank of the Tigris. This, though practicable for carts, is difficult
in spring or after rain owing to the number of streams to be crossed.
The Jebel Abyadh can be turned at its western end by a route pass
ing through or near Feishkhabur, whence either the Zakho bridge

About this item

Content

This volume is A Handbook of Mesopotamia, Volume IV, Northern Mesopotamia and Central Kurdistan (Admiralty War Staff Intelligence Division, April, 1917), covering Mesopotamia north of the line joining Rowanduz, Mosul, Meskeneh [Maskanah], and Aleppo, up to Van, Bitlis, Diarbekr, and Mar‘ash. The volume was prepared on behalf of the Admiralty and War Office, and appears to be based on official and unofficial publications and maps which are cited in a bibliographical section in the volume.

The volume includes a note on confidentiality, a title page, 'Note', and 'Abbreviations'. There is a page of contents which includes the following sections:

  • Introduction;
  • Itineraries;
  • River Routes (The Tigris, The Euphrates);
  • Land Routes (Central Kurdistan, Routes between Mosul and Diarbekr, Routes between the Plain of Diarbekr and the Moutains to North and West, Routes between the line Diarbekr-Mardīn and the Euphrates, Interior of Norther Jezīreh, West of the Jaghjagha Su, The Euphrates Valley and Country West thereof, Across the Taurus between the Euphrates and Mar‘ash, and Aleppo-Mar‘ash);
  • Railways (Aleppo-Ras el-‘Ain-Tel Ermen);
  • Gazetteer of Towns;
  • Bibliographical Note;
  • Transliteration of Names;
  • Glossary;
  • Index;
  • Plates;
  • 'Sketch Map of Routes'.

The volume contains 15 plates, which illustrate the content of the various chapters, and 1 map entitled 'Mesopotamia: Outline Map Showing Routes'.

Extent and format
1 volume (263 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged by numbered routes. There are pages of contents, an index, and a list of plates. There is one map house in a pocket.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover and terminates at the inside back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio (except for the front cover, where the folio number is located on the verso The back of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'v'. ).

Pagination: The volume also has an original printed pagination sequence.

Written in
English in Latin script
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'Handbook of Mesopotamia. Vol. IV. 1917' [‎14v] (33/530), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/MIL/17/15/41/6, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023517293.0x000022> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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