226 On Hipparchus 
may employ in the decorations of the thea- 
tres, or even in fancy-architecture. 
This work was executed in the year 
990 of the Hegira (1582 after the birth 
of Chrift) in the reign of Sultan Mourad, 
‘whom we call Amourad Ill. Mourad, 
the elder fon of Selim Il. fucceeded his 
father, after he had caufed his five bro- 
thers to be put to death in the year 982 
(1574) :—he died on the fixth of Djo- 
mady 1, 1003. (a7th of January 1595) 
inthe soth year of his age. 
The fecond manufcript is a collection 
of five. works of the celebrated Perfian 
poet A bdoul Rabhman el-Djamy, author 
of Beharifian, from which i have pub- 
lifhed feveral extracts. : 
The third manufcript contains Collo- 
guies of Lovers, collected by Kemel ed- 
dyn el-Sulthan Hhocein ben ei-Sulthan- 
Menfiour ben Nafler, ben Omar Cheyk 
ben Tymour.” 
a 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
ON HIPPARCHUS THE GEOGRAPHER. 
IPPARCHUS, one of the moft anci- 
it ent geographers, who lived at Alexan- 
dria, 150 years before the birth of Chrift, 
did not intend to write a new geography, 
on forming his fyftem, but only defigned to 
criticife and to correct that of EraTos- 
THENES: However, his merits in the {ci- 
ences were neverthelefs confiderable. He 
was the firft who conceived the idea of 
founding geography exclufively upon af- 
tronomical obfervations, efpecially upon 
thofe of the eclipfes. . The reftoration of 
the ideas of Hipparchus is attended with 
the greateft difiiculties, efpecially as we 
not only are not in pofleffion ot his work, 
but alfo the extraéts, which STRABO gives 
us from it, are very fhort, and the num- 
bers frequently corrupt. Mr. GOSSELIN, 
a member of the French National Inftitute, 
has made a very fuccefsful attempt to ac- 
complifh this difficult talk. He has com- 
pofed two tables, containing the principal 
Jongitudes and latitudes fixed by Hippar- 
chus, as well as the refults of his own 
Yaborious inveltigations. He has added 
two maps which exhibit a view of the fy 
tem of that geographer, and facilitate the 
comparifon with that of EratgPhenes. Hip- 
parchus and Eratojthenes fixed the degree 
of the equator at 100 fiadia (a ftadiuin con- 
tains 125 geometrical paces, correfponding 
with our furlong,) and computed the cir- 
cumference of the terreftrial globe to be 
352,000 fiadia. As for the aflertion of 
Piiny, who fays that he had computed 
29,000 jaaia more, it is fufliciently proved 
the Geographer. rApril 4, 
to be an error, perhaps of the inaccurate 
hiftorian himfelf. The refults of Mr. 
Goffelin’s acute inquiries into the account 
of Jongitudes and latitudes given by Hip- 
parchus in comparifon with thofe of his 
anteceffor, whom he criticifed, are nearly 
as follows : Hipparchus has made no alte- 
ration with regard to the account which 
Eratofthenes gives of the length of the 
Mediterraneum, nor does he deviate from 
him in his ftatement of that of the northern 
coafts of Europe. He, however, has given 
amore correct form to Greece, fituared 
on the fouthern coaft, which-Eratofthenes 
reprefented exorbitantly long. But as for 
the geography of the coaft of Afa, Hip- 
parchus has introduced a great number of 
errors, which arofe from his placing the 
fituation of Taurus too far to thenorthward, 
and from his attempting to correét. the 
ftatement of his anteceflor upon that bafis, 
which could not but make him commit 
continual errors. ‘Thence Afia receives on 
the map of Hipparchus a form widely 
different’ from that which Eratofthenes 
gave to it, and it extends much farther 
towards the north. ‘The fituation of the 
northern Perfian provinces, Hyrcania, 
Aria, Beéria, &c. &c. could not but be 
mifplaced. A ‘different caufe produced 
the fame error with regard to Carmania 
and Gedrofia, which were reprefented too 
fmall, becaule Hipparchus affigned a fouth- 
eait dire€tion to the Indus. Apparchus 
retained the meafures of his anteceffor, for 
the Hither-India, as far as to the banks 
of the Ganges; but a great difference. is 
feen in the fhape of the Hither India, of 
which Hipparchus’s map contains the firtt 
delineation. While Exratofthenes fill re- 
prefents the Ganges as difemboguing itfelf 
into the eaftern ocean, Hipparchus knows 
already that it lofes itfelf in a guiph (the 
gulph of Bengal) ; and on his map are ieen 
the more diftant countries, Pegu and the 
peninfula Malacca, though ina falfe form, 
becaufe he imagined they formed a continent 
firetching to the fouth and then to the 
welt, inclofing the Indian ocean, and mak- 
ing alarge baion-ofit. Thefe obfervations 
will enable our readers to Judge of the 
merits of Hipparchus. He thought that 
the opinions of Eratofthenes of the fhape 
and fituation of the Afiatic countries were 
not fuficiently founded on a. tolid bate. 
He perceived how neceflary it was the lat- 
ter fhould be fought in aftronomica! obfer- 
vations; but being in want of them, -he 
fell, in attempting to correct his anteceilor, 
into a feries of errors, by which the antient 
geography of Afia was rendered ftill more 
deiective, inflead ef being improved, 
GN 
