[Footnote 340:  Or al Kolzom, which signifies the swallowing up.  Here, according to Albufeda in his description of Mesr or Egypt, Pharaoh was drowned, and the town and the sea took this name from that event. Kolzum is doubtless the ancient Clysma, as indicated both by the similarity of names, and the agreement of situation.  It was in the road of the pilgrims from Egypt to Mecca, but is now destroyed.  Dr Pocock places Clysma on his map about 15 min. south from Suez.—­Ast.  I. 131. b.]

[Footnote 341:  Kus is a town near the Nile, a little way south of Kept, the ancient Koptos; which shews that Kossir must be the ancient Berenice, as formerly observed in a note on the Journal of de Castro.—­Astl.  I. 131. c.]

[Footnote 342:  In this name of Aydhab, the dh is pronounced with a kind of lisp, like the English th in the words the, then, &c.  About 1150, in the time of al Edrisi, this was a famous port, and carried on a great trade.  Both the king of Bejah or Bajah, a port of Nubia, and the Soldan of Egypt, had officers here to receive the customs, which were divided between these sovereigns.  There was a regular ferry here to Jiddah, the port of Mecca, which lies opposite, the passage occupying a day and a night, through a sea full of shoals and rocks.  In his description of Egypt, Abulfeda says Aydhab belonged to Egypt, and was frequented by the merchants of Yaman, and by the pilgrims from Egypt to Mecca.—­Astl.  I. 131. d.]

The coast of Bahr al Kolzum runs northward from Aden[343], and proceeds thence round the coast of al Yaman (or Arabia Felix), till it comes to the borders thereof.  Thence it runs north to Joddah.  From Joddah it declines a little to the west, as far as Jahafah, a station of the people of Mesr (Egypt), when on pilgrimage to Mecca.  Thence advancing north, with a small inclination towards the west, it washes the coast of Yanbaak (Yamboa).  Here it turns off north-westwards, and having passed Madyan it comes to Aylah.  Thence descending southwards it comes to the mountain al Tur[344], which thrusting forwards separates two arms of the sea.  Thence returning to the north, it passes on to al Kolzum, where the description began, which is situated to the west of Aylah, and almost in the same latitude.

[Footnote 343:  From Aden the coast leading to the Straits of Bab al Mandab runs almost due west, with a slight northern inclination, about 115 statute miles, or 1 deg. 45 min. of longitude to Cape Arah, which with Cape al Mandab from the two sides of the Straits of Mecca or Bab al Mandab, having the island of Prin interposed, considerably nearer to the Arabian than the African shore.—­E.]

[Footnote 344:  A mountain so called near Sinai, which likewise goes by that name.—­Ast.  I. 151. h.—­This mountain of al Tur forms the separation between the Gulf of Suez and that of Akkaba, its western extremity forming Cape Mahomed.—­E.]