The ancient clue to Raphta’s existence

“... after two night and day runs, lying due west ... comes Menuthias Island, about 300 stades from the mainland. It is low and wooded and has no rivers, a wide variety of birds, and mountain tortoise. There are no wild animals except crocodiles; these, however, are not harmful to humans. The island has sewn boats and dugout canoes that are used for fishing and for catching turtles. The inhabitants of this island also have their own way of going after these with baskets, which they lower instead of nets around the mouths of [rocky inlets].

“Two runs beyond this island comes the very last port of trade on the coast of Azania, called Raphta, a name derived from the aforementioned sewn boats, where there are great quantities of ivory and tortoise shell.

“The region is under the rule of the governor of Mapharitis, since by some ancient right it is subject to the kingdom of Arabia as first constituted.

“The merchants of Muza [in modern Yemen] hold it through a grant from the king and collect taxes from it. They send out to it merchant craft that they staff mostly with Arab skippers and agents who, through continual intercourse and intermarriage, are familiar with the area and its language.

“These are just about the very last ports of trade on the coast of Azania to the right of Berenice. For, beyond this area lies unexplored ocean that bends to the west and, extending on the south along the parts of Ethiopia and Libya and Africa that turn away, joins the western sea.”