According to Nearchus, Alexander’s admiral who commanded an expedition
from the mouth of the Indus to the Persian Gulf, these seas were alive with
huge, spouting whales that were so aggressive they had to be kept away from
the ships by blowing trumpets.
From just east of Kane to the ports of northern India is 1,200–1,400
miles. For the Roman trade the most important of these were Barbaricum on
the Indus delta (near Karachi) and Barygaza (as it was known in Western
sources; to the Indians it was Bhrigukachchha; today it is near Bharuch),
perched on a steep hill where the Narmada River dividing northern and
southern India meets the Gulf of Cambay. Sailors knew they were getting
close to the Indian coast, according to thePeriplus, when they encountered
large swarms of snakes“that emerge from the depths to meet them.”Nor
was this the most disconcerting feature. Mighty tides swept along the
northwest coast in some places, roaring into harbors at full and new moons
driving ships sideways or capsizing them. The area between Barbaricum and
Map 9.1Asia and the Indian Ocean 500BCE-700CEFollowing thePeriplus 105