The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c5.s1.t1.12

c5.s1.t1.12

According to Pliny, the city of Alexandria, in Opianum, was situated at 50 Roman miles, or 45·96 English miles, from Ortospana, and at 237 Roman miles, or 217·8 English miles, from Peucolaitis, or Pukkalaoti, which was a few miles to the north of Peshâwar. As the position of Ortospana will be discussed in my account of the next province, I will here only state that I have identified it with the ancient city of Kabul and its citadel, the Bala Hisar. Now Charikâr is 27 miles* to the north of Kabul, which differs by 19 miles from the measurement recorded by Pliny. But as immediately after the mention of this distance he adds that “in some copies different numbers are found,”† I am inclined to read “triginta millia,” or 30 miles, instead of “quinquaginta millia,” which is found in the text. This would reduce the distance to 27½ English miles, which exactly accords with the measurement between Kabul and Opiân. The distance between these places is not given by the Chinese pilgrim Hwen Thsang; but that between the capital of Kiapishe and Pu-lu-sha-pu-lo, or Purushapura, the modern Peshâwar, is stated at 600+100+500 =1200 li, or just 200 miles according to my estimate of 6 li to the English mile. The last distance of 500 li, between Nagarahâra and Purushâwar, is certainly too short, as the earlier pilgrim, Fa Hian, in the beginning of the fifth century, makes it 16 *yojanas*, or not less than 640 *li*, at 40 *li* to the *yojana*. This would increase the total distance to 1340 *li*, or 223 miles, which differs only by 5 miles from the statement of the Roman author. The actual road distance between Charikâr and Jalâlâbâd has not been ascertained, but as it measures in a direct line on Walker’s map about 10 miles more than the distance between Kabul and Jalâlâbâd, which is 115 miles, it may be estimated at 125 miles. This sum added to 103 miles, the length of road between Jalâlâbâd and Peshâwar, makes the whole distance from Charikâr to Peshâwar not less than 228 miles, which agrees very closely with the measurements recorded by the Roman and Chinese authors.