Interesting, Dierk, but it doesn't work for me. Pliny doesn't connect the
two bodies of water in any sort of road-map manner, and he seems to be
describing sites, not itineraries. (And I did say "clockwise" for these
lakes, not counter-clockwise as with his Mediterranean coast route coming
up from Egypt). In the larger context he also describes toparchies and
other features. If it is a military map, it is a very full one. More
likely several different sources doing different things.
Do we have much information on ancient Roman mapping procedures? Is Pliny
likely to have had access to maps in our sense of the word? His walls must
have been lined with them!
Regarding the Dead Sea locations, I don't understand what you are saying
about Machaerus and Callirhoe (currently shown as less than half way down
the east side of the Dead Sea) in relation to the other sites. Didn't the
main north-south road go down the east side of the Dead Sea towards Petra?
Granted that Pliny's source(s) might have mentioned Machaerus as the
southeastern limit of the district of Judaea, how is it southerly from
"Arabia of the nomads"? And how does he imagine getting from Machaerus to
the land of the Esseni (and thence to Engedi and Masada)? How do you
imagine it?! I think there is less here than meets the eye! And I think
that "infra" simply means down(hill)!
'till later,
Bob
> Bob,
>
> If Pliny used a Roman source (and i have no doubt), then it was a military
> report that describes the central section of ancient army route
> Damascus-Petra, here: Paneion army crossing-Daphne near Antiocheia (sounds
> familiar!) in the Semechonitis-Asor ["a meridie" (<seen> to the south) is
> Tarichea; "ab oriente" (from the east) are Iulias and Hippo and "ab
> occidente" (from the west) is Tiberias]-Philoteria-Skythopolis crossing. But
> instead to follow the route Jordan crossing near Jericho-
> Philadelpheia-Petra, the source remains on the western side of the Jordan
> and follows the by-road to the standard army route like Pompey in the
> Nabatean campaign 63 BC, ie Skythopolis crossing-Alexandreion-Jordan
> crossing near Jericho. Now the source leaves the parallel army route and
> enters the Jordan flats and faces the northern shore of the Dead Sea ["ab
> oriente" (from the east) nomad Arabia, ie `arabah of Peraia]. Now it takes a
> look to the south [and - quite correct - "a meridie" there is Machaerus and
> Callirhoe, logically "ab occidente" (from the west) the "Esseni", "infra
> hos" [below them] is Engada, "inde" [from there] Masada.
>
> It follows exact the mentioned military route plus an additional cavalry
> trip to Masada and, thus, the course of the River Jordan incl. the Dea Sea.
> I didn't say that somebody took a canoe to collect the material! Your
> counter-clockwise orientation is, then, to be nullified.
>
> Tot ziens.
> Dierk
--
Robert A. Kraft, Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania
227 Logan Hall (Philadelphia PA 19104-6304); tel. 215 898-5827
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