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Astronomy. — “Determination of the geographical latitude and 
longitude of Mecca and Jidda executed in 1910—'11.” By 
Mr. N. Scuettema. Part I. (Communicated by Prof. E. F. 
VAN DE SANDE BAKHUYZEN). 
(Communicated in the meeting of May 25, 1912). 
I. Introduction. 
Mecca as we know is the holy city and the meeting-place for 
Mohammedan believers. Yearly some 200.000 gather there from 
different parts of the world in order to make their pilgrimages and 
many of them stay there for a couple of years to gain a thorough 
knowledge of the doctrines of their religion. 
From an cconomical and political point of view as well as for 
the history of religion Mecca is a place of great significance. Moreover 
it forms an important starting-point for the geography of the interior 
of Arabia. Hence it is not surprising that constant efforts have been 
made to obtain closer and the most accurate possible knowledge 
about this centre of the Islam; but great and peculiar difficulties 
are connected with these endeavours on account of the fact that 
entrance into the “holy domain” is strictly prohibited to non- 
Mohammedans. Only now and again a few KEurepeans succeeded in 
stealthily penetrating into it and spending there some time. 
It is well known that among these stands first our compatriot the 
present professor Dr. C. Snovck HURGRONJE, who spent some eight 
months in Mecca and put down his exhaustive researches in his 
standardwork about this town. It stands to reason that my position 
as Consul of the Netherlands at Jidda, the harbour of Mecca, often 
brougbt me into contact with this scholar, and it was he who in 
the course of our talks drew my attention to the fact that so much 
scientific work might be done in the Hedjaz. In particular he pointed 
out that even the geographical position of Mecca was not accurately 
known and he raised the question if I might not supply this deficiency. 
Others had succeeded in making fairly accurate plans of the town 
but its absolute position had not yet been determined with sufficient 
exactness. Lack of good instruments, which are not easily transport- 
able and the necessity of taking care that no attention was drawn 
in the vicinity had generally prevented astronomical observations. 
The only person by whom direct determinations of the latitude 
and the longitude of Mecca have been published is Aut Brey EL ABASSI, 
or at any rate the man who under that name travelled in many 
