Skip to item: of 32
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

'NOTES ON THE ISLANDS OF BAHRAIN AND ANTIQUITIES BY CAPTAIN E. L. DURAND, 1 ASSISTANT RESIDENT, PERSIAN GULF.' [‎28r] (18/32)

The record is made up of 1 file (14 folios). It was created in Aug 1879. 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. .

Transcription

This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.

Apply page layout

11
80. He would make the land of Hagar the birth place of the Chaldeans,* the
* Erastothenes. (® en 5 ha ")' ftimately connected
chaniasii. ^ ith tliG Islima6litGs,f and the founders of Baby-
ssu c„u ngtt „ t p llnj . Kf ; ; ? ed ; K 1 halid ,• T ? ha 1 nl 1 ah ' Khalt '
verbal forms of the same root * ' a ' atld HaVllehl aS mere
81. The Chaldeans are, however, supposed to have had a Scvthic or
luranian origin, and a large library and much study would be necessary before
judging of the reliability of such derivations.
82. Is it possible that the forms of burial of different races were distinct
enough to give some clue, and that further researches amongst the wilderness
of tombs in good preservation here may throw some light into a dark paffe
of history ?
83. I noticed above the Scythic customs of burial and transport of the
dead to the land of the Gerrhi, to the point at which the Borysthenes becomes
navigable.
84. Is it possible that there should be any ethnic affinity, to account for the
likeness of names between Gerrhus and Gerrha, or is it one of those mere
resemblances which are so common and unreliable ?
85. Granting however that Gerrha was near here, what more likely than
that these islands might have been used in the manner suggested above ?
86. I have been told by Arabs that there are many large ruins on the main
land, and one man in particular told me that they found traces of building, stone,
and pillars at a place where salt is quarried. The bottom of the Gulf behind
Bahrain has, I believe, never been carefully explored.
87. To return however to the mounds at Ali. On my first arrival I went
over and round many of the bigger ones, and at last my perseverance was rewarded
by finding an entrance into one of these (under a flat stone near the summit)
through which, lying down, we were just able to creep, and on getting beyond
the opening we found ourselves in a long passage or gallery, which was however
blocked with fallen masonry a few yards in front of us.
88. The roof of this passage is formed by transvere blocks of flat stone, laid
from wall to wall, about six feet in breadth, the width of the passage being
somewhat less.
89. The walls, where still intact, were covered with a coarse grained hard
plaster, and where broken showed their enormous thickness of large stones,
welded together in the same rough plaster building.
90. Prom the general form of these greater mounds I should think they had
been pillared circular edifices with slightly domed or flat roofs. I saw no
trace of carving on any of the blocks of stone lying about on these mounds.
All that were so exposed were of huge size, and I think most are of a species
of hard sand-stone, of limestone at any rate; though every block bore
evidence .of having been shaped, they were so worn by age, that no writing,
however deep, could have remained.
91. No doubt as time wore on the inhabitants have made use of these mounds
as quarries, which may partly account for the bare appearance of many of
them) where no stone is left on the surface. The stones that were buried,
t In regard to this see his KhSldTSte populations. He says
^rlfaphM^^^ 869
above.)

About this item

Content

Letter No. 164 from Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Charles Ross, Her British Majesty's Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , to Alfred Comyn Lyall, Secretary to the Government of India, Foreign Department, 1 May 1879, enclosing notes on the islands of Bahrain and Antiquities, written by Edward Law Durand, and commenting that some of the antiquities described had not been documented before and were of interest to the British Museum who were funding further research and excavation.

The notes are broken down into the following headings:

Bahrain

  • Descriptive: describing the physical geography of the islands and their surrounding waters, the longitude and latitude and navigable access by sea;
  • Trade: describing the pearl and date trades, and ways in which trade and harbour access might be improved;
  • Interior of the Islands: describing geographical features inland;
  • Water: describing the locations of fresh springs across the island and also the availability of salt;
  • Trees and Plants; describing the flora and fauna of the islands;
  • Animals: tame animals including horses, donkeys, camels and cows
  • Wild animals: including gazelle, mongoose and hares.

Antiquities

  • Antiquarian: giving an account of the earliest known history of the islands, including their rulership by the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Arabs and Portuguese, before describing the antiquities to be found on the islands.

The notes describe the antiquities visited by Captain Durand during trips to Bahrain, including all the mosques on the islands; an old stone water well found in a date grove near Bilad-i-Kadim [Bilad al Qadeem]; a number of mounds at Ali [Aali] which were determined to be temples or tombs, which Durand speculates may have been the great Phoenician cemetery of Gerrha and which he spent several days exploring and excavating.

The notes include illustrations (folios 29, 30, 33 and 35) to accompany the report, which were lithographed A lithograph is an image reproduced from a printing plate whose image areas attract ink and non-image areas repel it. from originals supplied by the Foreign Department of the Government of India.

The notes also included two maps which have since been removed and are kept in the 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. Maps Collection (IOR/W/L/PS/18/B95).

Extent and format
1 file (14 folios)
Physical characteristics

Foliation: The foliation for this description commences at folio 25, and terminates at folio 38, since it is part of a larger physical volume; 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. An additional foliation sequence is also present in the top right hand corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. These numbers are written in pencil, but are not circled.

Written in
English in Latin script
View the complete information for this record

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

'NOTES ON THE ISLANDS OF BAHRAIN AND ANTIQUITIES BY CAPTAIN E. L. DURAND, 1 ASSISTANT RESIDENT, PERSIAN GULF.' [‎28r] (18/32), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/18/B95, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023576719.0x000014> [accessed 29 March 2024]

Link to this item
Embed this item

Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.

<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023576719.0x000014">'NOTES ON THE ISLANDS OF BAHRAIN AND ANTIQUITIES BY CAPTAIN E. L. DURAND, 1 ASSISTANT RESIDENT, PERSIAN GULF.' [&lrm;28r] (18/32)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023576719.0x000014">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000833.0x00011e/IOR_L_PS_18_B95_0019.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
IIIF details

This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000833.0x00011e/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image