Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champa; Vol. II: Suvarnadvipa) v2.c13.14
Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champā; Vol. II: Suvarṇadvīpa) v2.c13.14
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v2.c13.14
It is a very singular characteristic of the Archipelago that one part of it, including Borneo, Celebes, Sumatra, Java and Bali is separated by shallow sea from Asia, and the other part, including New Guinea, Flores, and Lombok is similarly separated from Australia. Between these two parts, however, the depth of the sea has been found to be from 1000 to 3,557 fathoms, although in some places, as between Bali and Lombok, the two regions are separated by a strait not more than 15 miles wide. The study of the fauna corroborates the natural difference between these two regions, and we might accordingly divide the Archipelago into an Asiatic and an Australian Zone.