Geography

​Therefore, those who sail to India even now also speak of the sizes and appearances of the beasts, but say that they are neither in schools nor do they often attack, but are frightened away by shouting and the trumpet and depart. And they say that the beasts themselves do not approach the land, but that when they decompose, their bones, having been stripped of flesh, are easily washed ashore by the waves and supply the aforementioned material to the Ichthyophagi for building huts. Nearchus says that the size of the whales is twenty-three fathoms. Nearchus also says that he exposed as false a certain thing that was quite believed by those in the fleet, to the effect that there was a certain island in the passage which caused those who anchored there to disappear. For a certain light vessel, when it came near this island while sailing, was no longer seen. And some who were sent in search did not dare to land on the island, but while sailing out called the men with shouting, and when no one answered, they returned. While everyone blamed the island, he himself said that he sailed and, having anchored, landed with a part of his fellow-voyagers and went around the island. And since he found no trace of those sought, he gave up hope, returned, and informed the men that the island was falsely blamed (for the same destruction would have befallen him and those who landed with him), but some other manner of disappearance had happened to the light vessel, since ten thousand other causes are possible.

​Carmania is the last part of the seacoast starting from the Indus, and is much further north than the mouth of the Indus. However, its first promontory projects toward the south into the great sea, and having formed the mouth of the Persian Gulf opposite the promontory from Arabia Felix which is within sight, it curves toward the Persian Gulf until it joins Persis. And much of it also extends in the interior between Gedrosia and Persis, advancing further north than Gedrosia. Its fertility shows this; for it produces all kinds of crops and has large trees, except the olive, and is watered by rivers. Gedrosia, on the other hand, differs little from the country of the Ichthyophagi, so that barrenness often prevails; wherefore they guard the annual harvest, rationing it for several years. Onesicritus says that there is a river in Carmania which brings down gold dust; and that there are mines of silver, copper, and red ochre; and that there are two mountains, one of arsenic and the other of salt. It also has a certain desert bordering already on Parthyaea and Paraetacene. It has agricultural products similar to the Persian ones in other respects, and especially the vine. Of this vine, that which is called Carmanian among us often has a cluster of grapes two cubits long, being both dense-berried and large-berried, which is likely to be even more luxuriant there. Most of them use asses even for war because of the scarcity of horses; and they sacrifice an ass to Ares, whom alone of the gods they worship, and they are warriors. No one marries until he has cut off the head of an enemy and brought it to the king. The king hangs up the skull on the palace, and having sliced the tongue finely and mixed it with flour, tastes it himself and gives it to the one who brought it and his relatives to consume. The most honorable is the one to whom the most heads have been brought. Nearchus says that most of the customs and the dialect of the Carmanians are Persian and Median. The mouth of the Persian Gulf is greater than a day’s sail across.