The Gates of India: Being an Historical NarrativeHoldich, Thomas Hungerford, Sir
History
The Gates of India: Being an Historical Narrative
Holdich, Thomas Hungerford, Sir
Afghanistan -- Description and travel; Balochistan (Pakistan) -- Description and travel
From Armail we have a two-days' march assigned by Istakhri and Idrisi
as the distance to the town of Kambali, or Yusli, towards India. These
two places have, in consequence of their similarity in position,
become much confused, and it has been assumed by some scholars that
they are identical. But they are clearly separated in Ibn Haukal's
map, and it is, in fact, the question only of which of two routes
towards India is selected that will decide which of the two cities
will be found on the road. There is (and always must have been) a
choice of routes to the ancient port of Debal after passing the city
of Armail. That route which led through Yusli in all probability
passed by the modern site of Uthal. Close to this village the
unmistakable ruins of a considerable Arab town have been found, and I
have no hesitation in identifying them as those of Yusli. About
Kambali, too, there can be very little doubt. There are certain
well-known ruins called Khairokot not far to the west of the village
of Liari. We know from mediæval description that Kambali was close to
the sea, and the sea shaped its coast-line in mediæval days so as
nearly to touch the site called Khairokot. Even now, under certain
conditions of tide, it is possible to reach Liari in a coast
fishing-boat, although the process of land formation at the head of
the Sonmiani bay is proceeding so fast that, on the other hand, it is
occasionally impossible even to reach the fishing village of Sonmiani
itself. The ruins of Khairokot are so extensive, and yield such large
evidences of Arab occupation that a place must certainly be found for
them in the mediæval system. Kambali appears to be the only possible
solution to the problem, although it was somewhat off the direct road
between Armail and Debal.
From either of these towns we have a six-days' journey to Debal,
passing two other cities _en route_, viz. Manabari and the "small but
populous town of Khur."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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