THE BOTANICAL EXPLOUATWN OF ARABIA, 
455 
Al)out tifi R.€. — after tt A.l>, — ^Hirabo born at Amasia in Pontus. Spent 
liis life in travel and study. “I liave travellctl,’ ‘ he says, “from 
Armenia to the parts of Tyrrhenia adjacent to Sardinia ; towards 
the south from the Euxine to the borders of Ethiopia.” Of his 
Geographica in 17 books, nos. XI-XVI are devoted to Asia. Here 
are passages relating particularly to i^abia. He gives the general 
character of the southern Hamad near Petra. He knew an immense 
dreary tract, south of the Hamad, largely sandy with thorny desert 
vegetation, and a few wells and palm oases, a tract which at last 
merged into a region of greater plenty. He was aware of something, 
too, of the incense-land of Hadraniaut. 
He also gives an account of the expedition of Aelius Gallus, 
Eparch of Egypt, who, by order of the Roman Emperor, undertook 
the conquest of inner Arabia. ^ 
The first edition of Strabo’s Geographica appeared at Venice 
(1516). Good editions are those by Muller and Dlibner (1853-56), 
and Meineke (1552-53). 
See also : E. H. F. Meyer. — Versuch botanischer Erleutemngen 
zu Strabon u. eincTu Fragment doa Dikiiarchus. Konigsberg, 1852. 
Marcel Dubois. — Examen do la Geographic de Strabo, 1891. 
ARAB BOTAI^ISTS ftTlI— 14TI! CE^’fUEV. 
Died 895 A.R. — Abu Sraiilfadt Ahmad ileiB llaud AddaiurL— Visited 
the holy places. Gives many botanical observations from the neigh- 
bourhood of Medina. Wrote in addition to many other books one on 
plants. (See Wiistenfeld. Arabische Arzte n. 92). 
Siiberberg, B. — Das Pflaiizenbuch des Abu Hanifa. Strassburg, 
1910. 
9S5-9S9 .4.0. — Istakhri. — Born in the Persian province Ears. He was 
not a naturalist but a good observer. He describes many parts of 
Arabia, Syria, Mesopotamia, Armenia, Persia and India According 
to some he wrote between 915-919 the “book of climates” or 
“ countries.” 
Liber ciimatum auctore Abu Ishac el-Faresi vulgo el-Lssthachri. 
E(;odicc Gothano edidit J. H. Moeller. Gothae, 1839. 
Das Buch der Lander von Schech Ebu Ishak el Farsi el Isztachri. 
Alls dem Arabischen ubersetzt von A. D. Mordtmann. Nebst * 
eiuciu Vorworte von C. Ritter. Mit 6 Karten. Hamburg, 1845. 
Istakhri i.s also the author of a work that for a long time had 
been ascribed to Ibn Haukal. See : 
