‘Persian Gulf pilot comprising the Persian Gulf and its approaches from Ras al Hadd, in the south-west, to Cape Monze, in the east.’ [33v] (71/404)
The record is made up of 199 folios. It was created in 1932. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
22
CLIMATE AND WEATHER
[Chap. I.
August. —Much cooler; air clearer and drier after the rain;
monsoon breeze and swell moderate or light, and the wind more
westerly at night. Sometimes heavy weather and rain occur.
Native craft go to sea again early in the month. On the western
5 part of the coast, the weather is the same as in July.
September. —The south-west monsoon usually ends about the
beginning of this month; light winds, with a decreasing swell,
but at times strong west-south-westerly winds, with a heavy swell,
continue up to the middle or latter part of the month. Light airs
10 and calms are common. On the western part of the coast, the
temperature continues very hot, with light variable winds and
an occasional fresh shamal. In 1872 there was an easterly gale,
with rain, lasting a few hours; this is exceptional.
October. —Fine, clear, and dry; light sea breezes, and calms;
15 land breezes usually very light, but occasionally fresh for a few
hours. Sea smooth.
November. —As in October; but sometimes about the middle of
the month, squally from eastward, with unsettled weather and
ground swell, probably due to bad weather to the south.
20 December. —Fine, with moderate land and sea breezes. The land
breezes are often strong towards the end of the month, when a
moderate gale from north-east to south-east, with rain, is frequent.
A shamal occurs at times on the western part of the coast. The
weather is usually clear, but the land is sometimes obscured by
25 dust. It is often exceptionally clear, and very cold after rain.
Sea generally smooth. In December and January, the bad weather
of the
Persian gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
sometimes reaches Cape Jask, or still farther
eastward.
Temperature. —The average temperature for the whole year is
30 about 75° at the head of the Gulf, increasing southward to about
80° at Lingeh and decreasing slightly towards the eastern part of
the Makran coast. The average for the year is about 82° at Muscat,
where the temperature of the cooler part of the year is higher than
in the other sections. The hottest period, in the Gulf, with an
35 average temperature of about 92°, is about August; but it tends
to come earlier in the year on the coasts subject to the influence
of the monsoon, which prevents any increase in temperature after
June or July. Thus the hottest month is June, with 93° at Muscat
and 87° at Pasni. The coolest month is January, with an average
40 temperature of 52° at Basra, increasing to over 60° in the southern
part of the Gulf, and to 67 0 at Jask. On the Makran coast the average
temperature in January is about 65°, and at Muscat 71°.
Extreme temperatures. —The greatest range of extreme temperatures
occurs near the head of the Gulf, where temperature is likely to fall
45 to about 40° each year, and to rise to about 110°. Occasionally tem
peratures below the freezing point occur, the lowest recorded at
Basra being 24°; the highest temperature recorded there is 122°.
In the northern part of the Gulf, generally, temperature may be
expected to range from 50° to 105° in the course of the year, but a
50 range of 41° to 109° has been experienced at Lingeh. At Muscat
the extreme range is from 49° to 116°, from Jask to Gwadar 41°
to 114°, but at Pasni 31° to 115°.
Temperature of the sea. —The conditions during summer in the
Persian gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
are the more trying to those on board ship from the
55 excessively high temperature of the sea, which has been known to
About this item
- Content
Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. pilot comprising the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and its approaches, from Ras al Hadd, in the south-west, to Cape Monze, in the east. Published for the Hydrographic Department of the Admiralty by His Majesty’s Stationery Office, London, 1932. Eighth edition.
The pilot begins with a number of introductory sections:
- Notice of caution when approaching British ports, including the closure of ports and examination of vessels entering ports (folio 1v, inside front cover);
- Notations of supplements and annual summaries of notices to mariners relating to this book (folio 2);
- Cautionary notes on the measurements, including those for (bearings, longitude, latitude, depth) given in the pilot, and the different methods of shading used to indicate colours of flags, tidal light signals and beacons in the pilot (folio 5);
- Advertisement to the eighth edition (folio 6) providing an outline history of the pilot, and updates to the latest edition;
- Contents page (folios 7v-8), referring to the pilot’s pagination;
- A list of views (illustrations), with reference to the pilot’s pagination (folio 8v);
- A glossary of terms (folio 9), organised alphabetically, and with an indication of their origin (Arabic, Baluchi, Hindustani, Persian);
- Notes on the system of orthography (folios 10-11);
- Information relating to Admiralty charts and other hydrographic publications and general navigation (folios 12-19), with sections on the correction of Admiralty charts, and their degree of reliance, navigational publications, including the Admiralty lists of lights and wireless signals, tide tables, and general remarks relating to practical navigation;
- A map of the head of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , dated July 1932, indicating those areas covered by Admiralty charts (folio 20v);
- A map of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and Gulf of Oman, dated July 1932, with an indication of those areas covered by Admiralty charts mentioned in the pilot (folio 21v);
- An insert (folio 22) detailing those elements not included in the present volume.
The main body of the pilot is arranged in chapters and appendices as follows:
- Chapter 1 - General Remarks: physical features, depths, political and administrative divisions, British representation, ports and anchorages, towns and population, languages, supplies, products, trade, currencies, weights and measures, the pearl fisheries, health, meteorological information (pressure, winds, cyclones and depressions, climate and weather, humidity, rainfall, dew, fog, visibility), currents, tides, tidal streams, signals, communications, pilots, deratisation, native craft, piracy, obtaining information, presents, coal, fuel oil, docks, repairs, standard time, passages;
- Chapter 2 - Approaches to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. from the south; the coasts of Oman, Batinah, and Ash Shamailiyah; Ras Al Hadd to Dibah;
- Chapter 3 - Approaches to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. from the east; the coasts of Las Bela, Makran, Persian Makran, including Jask; Cape Monze to Jask;
- Chapter 4 - Entrance to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; Ruus al Jabal and the Persian coast, including Bandar ’Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] and Qishm [Kīsh] island; Dibah to Ras Ash Sha’am and Jask to Charack [Bandar-e Chārak];
- Chapter 5 - Northeast side of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; the coast of Persia; Charack to Ras Ash Shatt, including Bushire;
- Chapter 6 - The southwest side of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; the coast of Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , and the eastern side of Qatar; Ras Ash Sha'am to Ras Rakan;
- Chapter 7 - The southwest side of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; western side of Qatar, Bahrain [referred to as Bahrein throughout], and the coasts of Nejd [Najd] and Kuwait; Ras Rakan to Khor ’Abdullah;
- Chapter 8 - The head of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; coasts of Persia and Iraq; Ras Ash Shatt to and including the Shatt al ’Arab; the Tigris and Euphrates;
- Appendix 1 - List of ports available for underwater repairs, with details of the largest dry or floating dock or patent slip at each port;
- Appendix 2 - List of principal ports, showing the particulars of depth at approach and anchorage, rise of tide;
- Appendix 3 - Meteorological data (air pressure, air temperature, rainfall, wind) - for Muscat, Pasni, Jask, Bushire, Bahrain; Kuwait, Mohammerah [Khorramshahr], Basra;
- Appendix 4 - Places suitable for magnetic observations;
- Appendix 5 - Tidal streams, with tables for four locations, including Henjam, and semi-diurnal and diurnal factors.
Throughout the main chapters there are illustrations of the parts of the coastline being discussed by the accompanying text. These illustrations, which are a mix of line drawing and reproductions of watercolours, indicate the profile of the land, and highlight distinctive topographical features such as trees and forts.
- Extent and format
- 199 folios
- Arrangement
The pilot is arranged into eight chapters (I-VIII) and five appendices (I-V). The arrangement of chapters is geographical, moving from the easternmost point of the Gulf in chapter II to the westermost point in chapter VIII. The contents page (ff 7-8) and alphabetically ascending index (ff 182-93) refer to the pilot’s pagination system.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. It begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the inside of the back cover, on number 199.
Pagination: There are two printed pagination systems, which generally situate numbers in the top-left corner of versos and the top-right corner of rectos. The first, which uses Roman numerals, runs through the pilot’s introductory pages (ff 6-19). The second pagination system uses Arabic numerals, and runs through the remainder of the pilot (ff 23-197).
The number of each chapter is indicated throughout the chapter (expressed as ‘Chap.’ and the chapter number as a Roman numeral) in the top-left corner of rectos and the top-right corner of versos. The lines of text on each page in each chapter are numbered in intervals of five (i.e. 5, 10, etc.)
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- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/20/C251
- Title
- ‘Persian Gulf pilot comprising the Persian Gulf and its approaches from Ras al Hadd, in the south-west, to Cape Monze, in the east.’
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:145v, 145ar:145av, 146r:198v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence