SIWA [Illustration: THE WALLS OF SIWA] SIWA THE OASIS OF JUPITER AMMON BY C. DALRYMPLE BELGRAVE WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY GENERAL SIR REGINALD WINGATE BART., G.C.B., ETC. ETC. ILLUSTRATED WITH SKETCHES AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY THE AUTHOR JOHN LANE THE BODLEY HEAD LTD. LONDON: VIGO STREET, W. 1 _First Published in 1923_ Printed in Great Britain at _The Mayflower Press, Plymouth_. William Brendon & Son, Ltd. TO MY MOTHER CONTENTS CHAPTER I THE COAST Siwa — Whereabouts — The ex-Khedive and Germans — The ancient Libyans — The coastal belt — The Mariut Railway — Mersa Matruh — The Bay — Antony and Cleopatra — Greek Traders — Motor Maniacs — Sponge fishers — From Matruh to Sollum — Barrani and Bagbag — Sollum Bay — Western Desert Arabs, characteristics, tents, carpets, appearance, marriage customs, women — An Arab meal — “Gold tooth” — Buried money — Horses — Hawking — Silugi hounds — Hunting — Shooting — The Scarp — Flowers — The Rains — Houses — The Cruiser _Abdel Moneim_ — A tripper 1 CHAPTER II THE DESERT The Frontier Districts Administration — The Camel Corps — Harimat — Story of a stove — The Booza Camp — The men — Diary of trek from Sollum to Siwa — Departure — Augerin, a Roman cistern — Bir Hamed — A desert dance — Ascent of Scarp — Qur el Beid — Camel riding — Evening on the desert — Camp — Utter desert — Mud pans — Mirage — “Khuz” bread — Desert tracks — Bisharin trackers — Night marching — A caravan — “The country of Dogs” — Among the ravines — The Megahiz Spring — Siwa — District Officer’s House — “Taking over” wives — A typical day — Siwan manners — The Sheikhs — The staff — View from Siwa — Aghourmi village — A slave woman — A rifle raid 37 CHAPTER III THE HISTORY OF SIWA FIRST PERIOD. THE TEMPLE OF JUPITER AMMON The Siwan Deity — A local religion — Legendary origin of the God — Herodotus — The Kingdom of the Ammonians — Lysander’s visit — Cambyses — A lost army — Cimon’s death foretold — The “Fountain of the Sun” — The temples — The King’s court — The temple to-day — Alexander visits Siwa — His adventures on the way — Ritual of the temple — Decline of its fame — Strabo’s theory — The Romans — Christianity 74 SECOND PERIOD. MEDIÆVAL SIWA