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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [‎247] (251/542)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (271 folios). It was created in 1917. It was written in English and Arabic. 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. .

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f 2£
ROUTE 55 : HODEIDAH—SAN'A 247
miles,
total, stages.
Road now ascends, dips, winds round
spurs, then ascends again, in well-buttressed
zigzags, but with bad surface ; dominated by
Mazar Fort above, on 1.
6 m. A tar ah crest, track continuing up a valley;
3 m. on, crosses brook, then rises rapidly in
steep zigzags over very bad surface; at
about 6 m. Hajrah Plateau is reached. Thence
a fairly well-made road rising gently. Castel
lated village of Hajrah, perched on high
rock, 600 yds. to 1., commands road.
13 m. Hajrah Pass, summit reached ; alt. 6,000 ft.
Dir. SE., by steep descent of about 500 ft.; then road
turns E., and is broad and good into Menakhah,
which first comes into view at about 3,000 yds.,
across valley, its forts commanding this part of
road. About | m. before town, white-domed
spring, with drinking water, to 1.
101 32 MENAKHAH, town ; see I, p. 167.
From this point to Suq el-Khamls is the most insecure
part of the road.
Dir. NE., very winding course, good for 1 m.; then
track zigzags down 2,500 ft. into the i?ajar ravine,
which is reached after a further 7 m. ; well-
traced and buttressed, but neglected, and there
are frequent £ washouts ' ; necessary to dismount
in places.
Road now turns E., crosses two ravines, and
continues over a succession of difficult stony
ascents and descents.
10 m. Beit el-Mahdi, Ottoman post on small
eminence, 800 yds. to r.
2 m. Idz, walled hamlet (alt. 5,360 ft.) close on r.,
and stronghold on high mound to 1. Still
more hilly country is now entered. At 2 m.
Beit er-Rabh to r. ; 3 m. on, road passes for
half a mile through densely-bushed gorge,
between high precipitous rock walls not more
than 50 ft. apart; ideal cover for ambush.
Here, camel-track up Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Siham comes
in r. (see above, p. 246).

About this item

Content

This volume is A Handbook of Arabia, Volume II, Routes (Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Department: May, 1917) and contains details on routes in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as information on transport and lines of communication arranged on a geographical basis. Chapters concerning meteorological information, hygiene and disease, and vocabularies have also been incorporated. The volume was prepared on behalf of the Admiralty and the War Office. The sources from which the routes have been compiled, together with notes on directions and distance, appear at the head of each chapter, while some sections have been compiled on the basis of native information. Authorities cited include: George August Wallin, William Gifford Palgrave, Carlo Claudio Camillo Guarmani, Lady Anne Blunt, Charles Huber, Julius Euting, Gerard Leachman, Gertrude Bell, Anders Christian Barclay Raunkiær, William Henry Irvine Shakespear, and John Gordon Lorimer.

The volume includes a note on confidentiality, title page, and a 'Note' on the compilation of the volume. There is a page of 'Contents' that includes the following sections:

  • Chapter 1: Methods of Transport;
  • Chapter 2: Communications, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
  • Chapter 3: Routes, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
  • Chapter 4: Meteorological Observations;
  • Chapter 5: Hygiene and Disease;
  • Chapter 6: Vocabularies;
  • Appendix: Note on the System of Transliteration and Glossary of Topographical and Common Terms;
  • Index;
  • Plates.

There is also a 'List of Maps' and a 'Note on the Spelling of Proper Terms'.

There is one map contained in this volume: 'Map 5. Key Map of Routes'. In addition, there are nine plates by Douglas Carruthers, Captain William Henry Irvine Shakespear, Captain Gerard Leachman, and Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Barrett Miles.

Extent and format
1 volume (271 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged in chapters. There is a contents page, list of maps, alphabetical index, and list of plates.

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 map which is inserted at the back of the volume, on number 271.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [‎247] (251/542), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/E84/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023896535.0x000035> [accessed 7 March 2025]

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