SOKOTRA,East African Islands

Socotra or Soqotra is a small archipelago of four islands and islets in the Indian Ocean off the Horn of Africa some 350 km south of the Republic of Yemen. The archipelago consists of the mountainous main island of Socotra (3625 km² ) and three smaller islands known collectively as "the Brothers", Abd Al Kuri, Samha, Darsa, plus other uninhabitable rock outcrops. Abd Al Kuri and Samha have a population of a few hundred people between them; Darsa is uninhabited. The principal city is Hadiboh. The inhabitants of Socotra raise cattle and goats. The climate is generally tropical desert, with rainfall being light, seasonal (winter) and more abundant at the higher ground in the interior than along the coastal lowlands. Socotra has three geographical terrains: the narrow coastal plains, a limestone plateau permeated with karstic caves, and the Haghier. Socotra appears as Dioskouridou ("of the Dioscurides") in the 1st century Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, a navigation aid. In the notes to his translation of the Periplus, G.W.B. Huntingford remarks that the name Socotra is not Greek in origin, but from the Sanskrit dvipa sukhadhara ("island of bliss"). A local tradition held that the inhabitants were converted to Christianity by Thomas in AD 52, and in the 10th century the Arab geographer Abu Mohammed Al-Hassan Al-Hamdani stated that in his time most of the inhabitants were Christians. The explorer Tristão da Cunha put ashore in the early 16th century and considered Socotra conquered for Portugal, at which time Christianity had disappeared from the island except for stone crosses at which Alvares said people worshipped. However, during a visit of the island in 1542, Francis Xavier found a group of people claiming to be descended from the converts made by St. Thomas. The islands passed under the control of the Mahra sultans in 1511, but eventually became a British protectorate in 1886, for whom it was an important strategic stop-over. With the independence of Yemen, the islands arrived at their current arrangement.

1890s Wood Engraving Antique Map

Approximate Overall Size: 7 X 10 1/2 inches

CONDITION: Book Plate INTEXT MAP - Excellent Condition. Beautiful with excellent detail. There is Text on Front and Back Side.