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Sec. iii]   THE OLD PORT OF TiZ   93

both derived from Nearchos's account, the conjectural reading of TEiŒa Atµva

for Tap.Eva   suggested by Tomaschek in Arrian's text appears to me
very convincing.5

In view of this classical mention of the harbour of Tiz it seems doubly significant that in spite of a diligent search I failed to trace any remains indicating occupation of the site dating back to pre-Muhammadan times. This is in keeping with the fact that a similar absence of remains which might indicate settlements due to early trade intercourse by sea between the region of the Persian Gulf and India was observed by me on my journey of 1932-3 along the coast of the Gulf.6

No evidence of early occupation was found in the caves which I had occasion to examine at Tiz and to which brief reference still remains to be made. One of them, known as Bânsiti, is situated on the precipitous face of sandstone cliffs about 100 feet above the torrent bed and about 1,000 yards to the north-west of the valley entrance. It is roughly hemispherical in shape with a diameter of some 18 feet. It is said to be regularly visited by Hindus trading at Châhbâr, and a multitude of pilgrims' graffiti in Nâgari and Lahndâ scripts are to be seen on the plastered walls. A coarsely built platform within the cave, surmounted by a small cone, is supposed to mark the resting-place of a saint. Outside there once existed a similar small cave, of which the outer half has fallen away through the crumbling of the rock face. Here, too, plenty of graffiti are to be seen; one of them is dated in the aka year 1734 (A.D. 1812) . About 40 yards to the east is another larger cave about 20 yards in diameter; this appears to be mainly natural, though traces of white plastering are to be seen on parts of the rock walls. On its eastern side there opens a rift in the rock leading down into what local belief takes to be an unfathomable depth. Some 300 yards farther to the east there opens a third cave, still larger and certainly natural, which serves as a shelter for sheep.

SECTION iv—THROUGH THE HILLS OF MAKRAN

On January 30th we started from Tiz in order to make our way through the hill chains to the north towards the basin of Bampûr. The physical features of that great drainageless area raised some hope of my finding there remains of prehistoric civilizations which might link up with those I had been able to trace in the course of my former explorations in British Balüichistân and Makrân. It was necessary to press on in view of the fact that the climatic conditions of that drainageless basin, desertic in character and of comparatively low elevation,

5 Cf. Tomaschek, Sitzungsberichte der K. Aka-   6 But see also below, pp. 236 sq., for another

demie der Wissenschaften, Wien, 1890, cxxi. p. 34. possible explanation. Bageia and Kuiza cannot be definitely identified.