DESCRIPTIONS OF EGYPT. J 87 
is a small creek, denominated Mine or Belled-el- 
Habesh, which is supposed to correspond with the 
ancient Berenice. It is situated in N. L. 23° %8' 9 
extending more than a degree beyond the parallel 
of Syene, in which Berenice is placed by the an- 
cients •> but from the inaccuracy of their astrono- 
mical calculations, it is sometimes better to trust 
their itineraries and remarks on the curvature of a 
coast than their celestial observations. The port 
of Habesh is marked by small rocky islands, but 
these have been too inaccurately observed for deter- 
mining the positions of the ancients to which they 
correspond. The ancients mention a Sapphire, a 
Topaz, and an Emerald isle in the Red Sea, but 
seem to differ from each other concerning their po- 
sition. Berenice was built by Ptolemy Philadelphus, 
a little after the establishment of Myos Hormus. 
Situated in a lower part of the Arabian Gulf, it fa- 
cilitated navigation, by rendering it practicable to 
mariners to take advantage of the regular winds. 
The inland route between Coptos and Berenice 
was opened with an army by the same prince, who 
established stations along it for the protection of 
travellers. * This relation, which is given by Strabo, 
accords with the Adulitic inscription preserved in 
Cosmas, which records the Ethiopian conquests of 
f Strabo a Casaub. p. 1169. 
