Harbours and Settlements in Cyrenaica

1978 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 43-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Little

One of the over-riding factors ensuring the ease of Greek and Hellenistic civilisations' expansion throughout the Mediterranean basin, and the geographical factor which lent a cohesive potential to the Roman world was the Mediterranean Sea itself. During the 7th century B.C. it was the sea which provided outward access for the Greek colonial migration, and then later ensured communication between colony and mother city. The great weight which Greek colonists attached to securing an easy access to their maritime communication lines was a major consideration in determining the siting of the colonial cities. The increasing size of ships during the 5th–3rd centuries B. C. coupled with the vastly increased volume of maritime trade which characterised the Hellenistic period were major stimuli to the artificial development of those natural harbours on which the colonial cities were based.Any study of classical harbours in Cyrenaica must begin with an examination of the literary sources of which two are particularly relevant. They are; the Stadiasmus Maris Magni (1), and Herodotus' account of the original Greek colonisation of Cyrenaica from the island of Thera (2). The Stadiasmus is a document to which at present no precise date can be assigned, but in its final form it is probably not later than the end of the 2nd century A. D., and it would seem to be a palimpsest. The Stadiasmus lists the harbours along the entire North African Coast from Alexandria to Tunis, and, being written by seamen for the guidance of seamen it is the equivalent of the modern Admiralty Pilot. The list of harbours which it provides indicates that there was a very strictly graded hierarchy of natural harbour types, for no less than six different nouns are used to describe harbour entities according to their geographical qualities. In the Cyrenaican section of the Stadiasmus nine harbours are listed which can be divided into three distinct groups according to the words used to describe them. The three groups are headed by the terms Euphormos, Hormos and Panormos in ascending order of merit, and each denotes a very specific type of natural harbour. The root word, Hormos, meaning a tore or collar, is used in a maritime context from the earliest literary times, and is so used by Homer. The various prefixes which are attached to the word, Euph and Pan, denote natural harbour types which either excel or in some way fail to match the norm, the Hormos. In its sense of ‘collar’ the word conveys a notion of the configuration of the ideal harbour, i.e. a land-locked bay to provide shelter for shipping with access to the sea.

Author(s):  
Simon Hornblower

Political and literary considerations alike suggest that the Alexandra dates from about 190 BC and that its closing sections celebrate the victory of the Roman consul Titus Quinctius Flamininus over Philip V of Macedon at the battle of Kynoskephalai in 197 BC. Lykophron’s world is essentially the Mediterranean and Black Sea zones. It ranges from Spain across to Phoenicia. All the kingdoms which succeeded Alexander the Great are featured in the poem, but the Seleukids less prominently than the rest. The poem’s Spartan and Theban myths are shown to have resonance for the Hellenistic period. Only Athens is regarded as a place of memory. Some great federations, notably the Boiotian, Aitolian, and Lokrian, are traceable in the poem, and with a particularly Hellenistic twist.


2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
pp. 753-761 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khalifa Sifaw Ghenghesh ◽  
Ezzedin Franka ◽  
Khaled Tawil ◽  
Momtaz Wasfy ◽  
Salwa F. Ahmed ◽  
...  

Typhoid fever is endemic in the Mediterranean North African countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt) with an estimated incidence of 10-100 cases per 100,000 persons. Outbreaks caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi are common and mainly due to the consumption of untreated or sewage-contaminated water. Salmonella enterica Paratyphi B is more commonly involved in nosocomial cases of enteric fever in North Africa than expected and leads to high mortality rates among infants with congenital anomalies. Prevalence among travellers returning from this region is low, with an estimate of less than one per 100,000. Although multidrug resistant strains of Salmonella Typhi and Paratyphi are prevalent in this region, the re-emergence of chloramphenicol- and ampicillin-susceptible strains has been observed. In order to better understand the epidemiology of enteric fever in the Mediterranean North African region, population-based studies are needed. These will assist the health authorities in the region in preventing and controlling this important disease.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 1977-1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isla R. Simpson ◽  
Richard Seager ◽  
Tiffany A. Shaw ◽  
Mingfang Ting

Abstract In summer, the atmospheric circulation over the Mediterranean is characterized by localized intense subsidence and low-level northerlies over the central to eastern portion of the basin. Here, simulations with the Community Atmosphere Model, version 5 are used to investigate the influence of the elevated terrain of North Africa and the Middle East on this summertime circulation. This builds on previous work that recognized a role for North African topography in localizing the Mediterranean subsidence. By flattening the two regions of elevated terrain in the model, it is demonstrated that, while they both conspire to produce about 30% of the summertime subsidence, contrary to previous work, the mountains of the Middle East dominate in this topographic contribution by far. This topography, consisting primarily of the Zagros mountain range, alters the circulation throughout the depth of the troposphere over the Mediterranean and farther east. The model results suggest that about 20% of the Mediterranean summertime moisture deficit can be attributed to this mountain-induced circulation. This topography, therefore, plays an important role in the climate of the Mediterranean and the large-scale circulation over the rest of Eurasia during the summer. Further stationary wave modeling reveals that the mountain influence is produced via mechanical forcing of the flow. The greatest influence of the topography occurs when the low-level incident flow is easterly, as happens during the summer, primarily because of the presence of condensational heating over Asia. During other seasons, when the low-level incident flow is westerly, the influence of Middle East topography on the Mediterranean is negligible.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerstin Schepanski ◽  
Marc Mallet ◽  
Bernd Heinold ◽  
Max Ulrich

Abstract. Dust transported from North African source region toward the Mediterranean basin and Europe is an ubiquitous phenomenon in the Mediterranean region. Winds formed by large-scale pressure gradients foster dust entrainment into the atmosphere over North African dust source regions and advection of dust downwind. The constellation of centers of high and low pressure determines wind speed and direction, and thus the chance for dust emission over Northern Africa and transport toward the Mediterranean. Here, we present characteristics of the atmospheric dust life-cycle determining dust transport toward the Mediterranean basin. Using the atmosphere-dust model COSMO-MUSCAT (COSMO: COnsortium for Small-scale MOdelling; MUSCAT: MUltiScale Chemistry Aerosol Transport Model), a complementary analysis of dust source activation, emission fluxes, transport pathways, and deposition rates is provided with focus on the ChArMEx (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment) special observation period in June and July 2013. Modes of atmospheric circulation, identified from empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of the geopotential height at 850 hPa are used for investigating the characteristics of the atmospheric dust life-cycle regarding the atmospheric circulation over the Mediterranean. Two different phases are identified from the first EOF, which in total are explaining 45 % of the variance. They are characterized by the propagation of the subtropical ridge into the Mediterranean basin, the position of the Saharan heat low and the predominance Iberian heat low and discussed illustrating a dipole pattern for enhanced (reduced) dust emission fluxes, stronger (weaker) meridional dust transport, and consequent increased (decreased) atmospheric dust concentrations and deposition fluxes. In case of a predominant high pressure zone over the western and central Mediterranean (positive phase), a hot spot in dust emission flux is evident over the Grand Erg Occidental and reduced level of atmospheric dust loading occurs over the western Mediterranean basin. The meridional transport in northward direction is reduced due to prevailing northerly winds. In case of a predominant heat low trough linking the Iberian and the Sahara heat low (negative phase), meridional dust transport toward the western Mediterranean is increased due to prevailing southerly winds resulting into an enhanced atmospheric dust loading over the western Mediterranean. Altogether, results form this study illustrate the relevance of knowing dust source location in concert with atmospheric circulation. The study elaborates the question on the variability of dust transport toward the Mediterranean and Europe in dependence on the atmospheric circulation as a driver for dust emission and a determinant for dust transport routes, exemplarily for the two-month period June to July 2013. Ultimately, outcomes from this study contribute to the understanding of the variance in dust transport into a populated region.


Author(s):  
Henry George Farmer

Among the folk instruments of music in North Africa the primitive lute, guitar, or pandore known as the gunbrī or gunībrī stands facile princeps. Look where you will from Egypt to Morocco, from the Mediterranean to the southern confines of the Sūdān, and you will find this instrument in some form or other, although its name may have slight variation.2 It is essentially an instrument of the people, and is but rarely found in the hands of the professional musician of the town orchestra (ribā'a al-āla), who usually confines his attention to the more refined 'ūd (lute), kūītra (mandoline), or ṭtunbūr (pandore) among the stringed instruments whose strings are plucked. All and sundry among the people at large who are impelled to try their hand at music, take up the igunbrī or gurībrī——the noisy youth, the whining beggar, the strolling minstrel, the industrious workman, the respectable merchant, and the faqīr of the religious fraternity (zāwiya)——each thinking himself an adept as a performer.


Modern Italy ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valter Coralluzzo

After outlining the trends of Italian Mediterranean politics, this article examines the relationship between Italy and the Maghreb region. As a result of its central geographic position, acting as a natural bridge between Europe and Africa, Italy is undoubtedly more exposed and vulnerable than other countries to any critical developments in the political and economic situation of this area, so it is understandable that it occupies an increasingly important position in Italian foreign policy. Italy has especially considered it in its national interest to make it a specific, high priority to contribute to stabilising this region through multilateral and bilateral initiatives aimed at reinforcing political dialogue and economic cooperation with the coastal countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean. The aim has been to create a safety net around Italian maritime borders against the risks posed by an uncontrolled increase in migration (to which Italy is more exposed than other countries), the instability of North African energy resources and Islamist terrorists infiltrating Italian territory. Apart from examining the concerns regarding the Maghreb region that have become crucially important for Italian national interests (security, immigration, development, energy), the article analyses the salient elements of bilateral relations between Italy and the Maghreb countries, particularly Libya.


Antichthon ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 30-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eliezer Paltiel

, gloated Roman soldiers after the battle of Magnesia. To the historian they have left the task of assessing the ex-greatness of the Seleucid empire under the shadow of the victor. That all subsequent Seleucid rulers were compelled to play to the Roman audience when acting on the Mediterranean stage needs no emphasis. However to gauge more precisely the degree of their dependence is much more difficult.Prima facie, the literary tradition offers at least one document that clearly delineates the extent of Roman control over Seleucid affairs. The Treaty of Apamea established φιλία (= amicitia) between the Roman people and King Antiochos III , and it is widely assumed that this treaty governed relations between Rome and the Seleucids during the subsequent half-century. However, a cursory reading of the literary sources immediately reveals two or three striking facts that contradict this assumption.


1986 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janice J. Gabbert

Pirates were frequently employed by the Diadochoi and the Epigonoi of Alexander as an auxiliary military or naval force, and some examples are given below. Unfortunately, the surviving evidence does not allow us to do more than make the general statement. The evidence for piratical activity is largely in the form of personal anecdotes, and the evidence for the nature of Hellenistic military and naval establishments is nothing more than a record of a few persons and/or positions. The authors of our scant literary sources, especially those who wrote many generations after the events which they describe, were not attempting to analyse the role of pirates for posterity, thus they often use the word ‘pirate’ with a notable lack of precision, if they use it at all. Nevertheless, a review of the existing evidence suggests a rather remarkable degree of social and occupational mobility in the third century B.C.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-102
Author(s):  
Mark Letteney ◽  
Matthew D. C. Larsen

This article identifies a military prison (carcer castrensis) in the Roman legionary fortress at Lambaesis (Tazoult, Algeria) and contextualizes the space among North African carceral practices evidenced in epigraphic, papyrological, and literary sources of the first through fourth centuries CE. The identification is made on the basis of architectural comparanda and previously unnoticed inscriptional evidence which demonstrate that the space under the Sanctuary of the Standards in the principia was both built as a prison and used that way in antiquity. The broader discussion highlights the ubiquity of carceral spaces and practices in the ancient and late ancient Mediterranean, and elucidates some of the underlying practices and ideologies of ancient incarceration.


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