formed one navigable inlet into the heart of the great empire
just mentioned; whilst the Red Sea afforded another, at a
considerable distance westward. The latter terminates with
the Gulfs of Suez and Akabah at the northern, and the
Straits of Báb-el-mandeb at the southern extremity; whilst
the well known Straits of Hormuzd mark the entrance of
the former, and its .upper, or north-western extremity is
formed by the estuary of the Euphrates. Through the whole
of the territory stretching from this river eastward to the
valley of the Indus, and westward to that of the Nile, a
remarkable similarity prevails in the geographical features.
On glancing at the most striking objects, the mountains,
it will be remarked, that several great branches quit the
elevated plateau about the springs of the Euphrates, Tigris,
&c., and take different directions; but chiefly eastward, southward,
and westward, from the summit of Ararat. Two of
these, the Zagros and Elburz, gradually diverge, in distinct
lines, as far as the eastern limits of ancient Persia; whilst the
no less s t r ik in g arms of the Taurus proceed to the opposite
extremities, .and preserve the same bold features, as they
spread .their numerous ramifications over Asia Minor, Syria,
northern Mesopotamia, and Arabia. Owing to the deficiency
of large rivers, and the scarcity of running streams, cultivated
spots are rare; whilst dry, untenanted valleys, extensive plains,
and gigantic plateaux, broken by rugged mountains, form the
prevailing characteristics of the countries under consideration.
In a wide expanse of territory, stretching, with various
elevations, at least 25° from north to south, such extremes
may be looked for as will bear out the remarkable description
of the younger Cyrus.1 Thus, the northern and central portions
of the plateaux of Irán and Arabia, as well as a great
part of Asia Minor, enjoy a temperate climate; whilst an
intense cold prevails in the northern parts of Afghánistán,
in nearly the whole of Kurdistan, and on the elevated mountain
ranges and high valleys on both sides of Ararat. Yet
1 “ In the dominions of my father,” said the Prince, “ people perish with
cold at the one extremity, whilst they are suffocated with heat at the other.”—
Xenophon’s Anabasis, Book I., pp. 61, 68. Ed. Hutch. 1735.
notwithstanding this difference of climate, throughout the
whole a great similarity prevails in the vegetable and animal
worlds; and in these respects the valley of the Nile, the
plains of Mesopotamia, and those of Arabia southward of
Mecca, together with the central and southern parts of Irán,
have much in common.
Exclusive of the provinces occupied by Russia, the space
between the Indus and the Mediterranean sea forms three
kingdoms almost of equal size. , Persia occupies the centre,
Afíghánistán the eastern, and the different provinces of
Asiatic Turkey the opposite, or western extremity. Instead,
however, of following the subdivisions of each of these portions,
it seems preferable to consider the whole as constituting
two great divisions, separated from each other by the basin
of the Euphrates, with its continuation, the Persian Gulf;
Asia Minor, Syria, Arabia, and Egypt being on one side of
this natural line of bisection; and, on the other, an equal
portion of territory, which, under the name of Irán, formed
the eastern, or principal part of the ancient Persian empire
of Darius Hystaspes.
The surface of írán extended 1280 geographical miles
in length, from Sumeüsát on the Upper Euphrates, eastward
to Taxila on the Indus ; and nearly 900 miles in breadth,
from the shores of Gedrosia, in 25° north latitude, to the
banks of the Oxus, near Samarkand, in 40° north latitude.
The latter river and the Caspian Sea form the northern
limit of this great division ;> the Erythrean Sea1 is on the
southern, whilst the rivers Indus and Euphrates constitute
the eastern and western extremities. In Irán nature has
displayed her works on a scale of unrivalled grandeur;
more particularly by the formation of the gigantic plateau
which, from the base of Ararat, spreads eastward almost
to the Indus, and again, westward, into Armenia and
Upper Georgia, as well as into parts of Asia Minor,
Azerbayán, and Kurdistán; at an elevation of about 5000
1 This name was applied to the Indian Ocean, as well as the two gulfs
which it forms on each side of Arabia.—Pliny, lib. VI., cap. xxiii. and
xxiv.
VOL. I . F