National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

direct consequences of the long preceding drought. But the famine produced by
it had driven away a very large portion of the population to the island of Bahrein
and the Arabian coast. What was to be seen of the rest strongly impressed me
both here and farther on with the great preponderance of Arab stock in the
population. Nowhere along the narrow coastal belt were old remains to be
found; nor could I learn of any on the long island of Qishm, Nearcho's Oarakta,
sighted across the narrow waters of the Clarence Strait, which the route up to
the fishing hamlet of Birkeh Suffīn skirts. Before reaching this halting-place, and
also at Sidār, some miles to the east of Khamīr, we found the narrow passage left
for the track between the foot of precipitous rocky spurs and the sea closed
by decayed towers and walls, forming a chiusa. But these bore no sign of any
great age.

Two marches from Birkeh Suffīn brought us past Bandar Mu'allim, another
hamlet almost wholly deserted, to Lingeh. Before reaching this once flourishing
small port on Christmas Eve we passed the large fishing village of Kung, where,
after the loss of Hormuz, the Portuguese had maintained a trading station of
some importance for close on a century. Its history has been fully treated by
Captain A. H. Stiffe.¹ Extensive low mounds close to the west of the village
with remnants of walls extensively quarried for building material mark the
position of the old settlement. But 'the old Portuguese factory, a large white
ruined building', the walls of which still stood at the time of Captain Stiffe's visit
(about 1857–60) though 'in a very tottering condition', could not be definitely
located.

About half a mile to the north-east of Kung there stretches for about 600
yards close to the shore a flat sandy area covered with pottery debris. Judging
from the numerous fragments found there of a very superior glazed ware and the
total absence of structural remains above ground, it appears that the occupation
of this site preceded the establishment of the Portuguese factory and dates from
medieval times. Besides fragments of Chinese porcelain, perhaps too small for
exact dating, and some pieces of decorated Persian ware, many pieces could be
picked up of a very fine glazed ware in varying shades of brown and green,
often with a mottled appearance and showing a ribbed surface. Some pieces are
skilfully decorated with patterns in different tints of brown (Kung. 29, 33, 40;
Pl. XXVI). It is likely that the curious story recorded from local tradition by
Captain Stiffe, about an artisan of former times who manufactured very superior
pottery with the good clay to be found near Kung, relates to this ware.

The town of Lingeh occupies open ground between the sea and a low, much
eroded plateau stretching away towards the great salt marsh of Mihrakān in the