The Chain Of Granite Mountains Continued To Our
Right, Parallel With The Road, Which Was Overspread With Silex, And
Farther On We Met With A Kind Of Basaltic Tufa, Forming Low Hills
Covered With Sand.
We then descended, and at six hours and a half
entered the valley called Wady Mokatteb [Arabic].
The appellation of
Djebel Mokatteb, which several travellers have applied to the
neighbouring mountains, is not in use. To the north of the entrance of
this valley near the foot of the higher chain, is a cluster of magazines
of the Bedouins, at a spot called El Bedja [Arabic].
The Wady Mokatteb extends for three hours march in the direction N.W.;
in the upper part it is three miles across, having to the right high
mountains, and to the left a chain of lower sandrocks. Half way down, it
becomes narrower, and then takes the name of Seyh Szeder [Arabic]. In
most places the sand-rocks present abrupt cliffs, twenty or thirty feet
in height. Large masses have separated themselves from the cliffs and
lie at their feet in the valley. These cliffs and rocks are thickly
covered with inscriptions, which are continued with intervals of a few
hundred paces only, for at least two hours and a half; similar
inscriptions are found in the lower part of the Wady, where it narrows,
upon the sand-stone rocks of the opposite, or north-eastern side of the
valley. To copy all these inscriptions would occupy a skilful
draughtsman six or eight days; they are all of the same description as
those I have already mentioned, consisting of short lines, written from
right to left, and with the singular character represented in p. 479,
invariably at the beginning of each. Some of them are on rocks at a
height of twelve or fifteen feet, which must have required a ladder to
ascend to them. They are in general cut deeper than those on the granite
in the upper country, but in the same careless style. Amongst them are
many in Greek; containing, probably, like the others, the names of those
who
WADY BADERA
[p.621] passed here on their pilgrimage to the holy mountain. Some of
the latter contain Jewish names in Greek characters. There is a vast
number of drawings of mountain goats and of camels, the latter sometimes
represented as loaded, and with riders on their backs. Crosses are also
seen, indicating that the inscribers were Christians. It should be
observed that the Mokatteb lies in the principal route to Sinai, and
which is much easier and more frequented than the upper road by Naszeb,
which I took in my way to the convent; the cliffs also are so situated
as to afford a fine shade to travellers during the mid-day hours. To
these circumstances may undoubtedly in great measure be attributed the
numerous inscriptions found in this valley.
We rested for the night, after a day’s march of nine hours and a
quarter, near the lower extremity of the Seyh Szeder, and just beyond
the last of the inscriptions. The bottom of the valley is here rocky,
and as flat as if the rock had been levelled by art.
June 4th.—At a few hundred paces below the place where we had slept, the
valley becomes very narrow, the mountains to the right approach, and a
defile of granite rocks is entered in a direction W. by S. called Wady
Kenna [Arabic], where the tomb of a saint of the name of Wawa [Arabic]
stands. I was told afterwards at Cairo, by some Sinai Bedouins, that
lower down in Wady Kenna there is a very deep cavern in the rock. At
three quarters of an hour we passed to the right of the defile, and
turned N.W. into a valley called Badera [Arabic]. The valley of Badera
consists of sand rock, and the ground is deeply covered with sand. We
ascended gently in it, and in an hour and three quarters reached its
summit, from whence we descended by a narrow difficult path, down a
cliff called Nakb Badera [Arabic], into an open plain between the
mountains; we crossed the plain, and at two hours and a quarter entered
Wady Shellal [Arabic], so called from
WADY SHELLAL
[p.622] the number of cataracts which are formed in the rainy season, by
the torrents descending from the mountains. A great number of acacia
trees grow here, many of which were completely dried up; during the
whole of our morning’s journey not a green herb could be discovered. We
here met several Bedouins on foot, on their way from Suez to Feiran.
They had started from the well of Morkha early in the morning; and had
ventured on the journey without water, or the hope of finding any till
the following day in Wady Feiran. We gave them each a draught of water,
and they went off in good spirits, purposing to pass the afternoon under
some shady rock, and to continue their journey during the night. We
descended the valley slowly, W.N.W. and at the end of four hours and a
half reached its termination, opening upon a sandy plain on the sea-
shore. Many bones of camels were here lying about, as is generally the
case on the great roads through the desert; I have observed that these
skeletons are found in greatest numbers where the sands are deepest;
which arises from the loaded camels passing such places with difficulty,
and often breaking down in them. It is an erroneous opinion that the
camel delights in sandy ground; it is true that he crosses it with less
difficulty than any other animal, but wherever the sands are deep, the
weight of himself and his load makes his feet sink into the sand at
every step, and he groans, and often sinks under his burthen. It is the
hard gravelly ground of the desert which is most agreeable to this
animal.
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