Ptolemy

“ Unfortunately the section which he has devoted to a full examination of Ptolemy's India is the least satisfactory portion of his work. His system of identification is based on a wrong principle, and many of the conclusions to which it has led are such as cannot be accepted. His work is notwithstanding, as Yule says, " a precious mine of material for the study of the amcient grography of India." ”

“ It is surprising that with all his fame, which had even in his own lifetime become pre-eminent, that the particulars of his personal history should be shrouded in all but total darkness. Nothing in fact is known for certain regarding him further than that he flourished in Alexandria about the middle of the 2nd century of our æra, in the reign of Antoninus Pius, whom he appears to have survived. ”

“ India beyond the Ganges comprised with Ptolemy not only the great plain between that river and the Himâlayas, but also all south-eastern Asia, as far as the country of the Sinai (China) . Concerning these vast regions Ptolemy is our only ancient authority. ”

“ He points out, however, that his system required correction both as to the method of delineating the sphere on a plane surface, and as to the computation of distances, which he generally exaggerated. He censures him likewise for having assigned to the known world too great a length from west to east, and too great a breadth from north to south. ”

“ Of Ptolemy's own system, the more prominent characteristics may now be noted : He assumed the earth to be a sphere, and adopting the estimate of Poseidonios fixed its circumference at 180,000 stadia, thus making the length of a degree at the equator to be only 500 stadia, instead of 60O, which is its real length. ”

“ I conclude by presenting the reader with a translation of some chapters of the Introductory Book,* where Ptolemy in reviewing the estimate made by Marinos of the length of the known world from west to east, has frequent occasion to mention India and the Provinces beyond the Ganges, which together constitute what is now called Indo- China.
Book L, Cap. 11.
§ 1 . What has now been stated will suffice to show us what extent in breadth it would be fair to assign to the inhabited world. ”

“ His work on Geography formed a sequel to his great work on Astronomy, commonly called the Almagest. From its title Γεωγραφικὴ Ὺφἠγησις, an Outline of Geography, we might be led to infer that it was a general treatise on the subject, like the comprehensive work of Strabo, but in reality it treats almost exclusively of Mathematical, or what may be called Cosmical, Geography. ”

“ The Roman mile contained 8 stadia, or about half a stadium less than an English mile. A stadium of 600 Greek feet was very nearly the 600th part of a degree, and 10 stadia are therefore just about equal to a Nautical or Geographical mile. According to Eratosthenes, a degree at the Equator was equal to 700 stadia, but according to Poseidônios it was equal to only 500. The truth lay between, but Ptolemy unfortunately followed Poseidônios in his error. ↑ "The equinoctial line was of course perfectly fixed and definite in Ptolemy's mind, as an astronomical line ”

“ Klaudios Ptolemaios, or as he is commonly called, Ptolemy, was distinguished alike as a Mathematician, a Musician, an Astronomer and a Geographer, and was altogether one of the most accomplished men of science that antiquity produced. ”

“ The name is a Sanskrit compound, meaning * great river.' Yule differs from Lassen with regard to the other identifications, making the Tyndis one of the branches of the Mahdnadi, the Dosaron, — the Brahmani, the Adamas, — the Vaitarani, and the Kambyson (which is Ptolemy's western mouth of the Ganges) — the Suvarnarekha.
The Dosaron is the river of the region in- habited by the Dasamas, a people mentioned in the Vishnu Purdna as belonging to the south-east of Madhya-desa in juxta-position to the Sabaras, or Suars. ”

“ This is beyond doubt the famous city of Kanyakubja or Kanauj, which has already been noticed under the list of towns attributed to PrasiakS, where the name is given as Kanagors. Ptolemy, while giving here the name more correctly has put the city hopelessly out of its position with reference to the Ganges, from which he has removed it several degrees, though it stood upon its banks. ”

“ Philo- logists, however, have made persistent efforts to penetrate the disguise which conceals the original forms of the names so much dis- torted by Ptolemy, and have succeeded in establishing a great number of satisfactory identifications, as well as in hitting upon others which have a balance of probability in their favour — a similar service has been rendered by the archseological investigations which have now for many years been systematically prose- cuted under the auspices of the Indian Government. ”

“ Sera Metropolis (Ho-nan) 38° 35' 83° 68' ↑ By the intercepted angle is meant the angle contained by two straight lines drawn from Kdry, one running north-east to Kouroula and the other parallel to the Equator. In Ptolemy's map Kouroula is so placed that its distance in a straight line from Kory is about double the distance between the meridians of those two places. ”

“ Bishop Caldwell's Introduc- tion to his Bravidian Grammar, valuable for identification of places in the south of the Peninsula; the Bombay Gazetteer, edited by . Mr. J. M. Campbell, who has carefully investi- gated the antiquities of that Presidency • the volumes of Asiatic Researches-, the Journals of the Boyal Asiatic Society and of the kindred Societies in India ; the Journals of the Boyal Geographical Society ; the articles on India and places m India in Smith's Dictionary of Cla^si^ cal Geography, ^viiien almost all by Mr Viii PreMCBi Vaux ; articles in the Indian Antiquary ”

“ Two corrections must therefore be applied to Ptolemy's longitudes—one-sixth must be deducted because of his under-estimate of the length of a degree along the Equator, and 6° 50′ must be added bocause Ferro was so much further west than ho supposed. Subject to those corrections his longitudes would be fairly accurate, provided his calculations of distances were otherwise free from error. ↑ The aotnal latitudes of the places here mentioned may be compared with those of Ptolemy : —
Beal Lat. Ptolemy's Lat. ”

“ For to quote his own Page:Ancient India as described by Ptolemy - John Watson McCrindle.djvu/34 Page:Ancient India as described by Ptolemy - John Watson McCrindle.djvu/35 Page:Ancient India as described by Ptolemy - John Watson McCrindle.djvu/36 Page:Ancient India as described by Ptolemy - John Watson McCrindle.djvu/37 distance right across may, therefore, be estimated at about 2,030 stadia, since we have to deduct a third because of the navigation having followed the curvature of the Gulf, and have also to make allowances for irregularities in the length of the courses run. ”

“ On Arkatos (p. 64) 332 7. On the River Adamas (p.. 71) 333 8. On Mount Sardonyx (p. 77) 334 9. On Talara (p. 90) 334 10. On Pounnata (p. 180) 334 11. On Arembour (pp. 180, 182) ...... 334 12. On Abour (p. 184) 334 13. OnArgyra (p. 196) 334 14. On the Golden Khersonese (p. 197) . 335 15. On the Loadstone rocks (p. 242) . . 335 16. On the sandy deserts of Baktria (p. 270) 335 17. On the River Ochos (p. 273) 335 18. On the Avestic names of rivers, &c., in Afghanistan 336
19. On the Griffins or Gryphons (p.295) . 338
PTOLEMY'S GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA AND SOUTHERN ASIA. ”