Bulletin 40 - March 1990: Miscellany

Miscellany

The Arabian Gulf Gazetteer Foundation is an organization which aims primarily at providing an annual account of archaeological activities throughout the Gulf area. The Gazetteer has recently been established at Leyden University and is intended to function not so much as a journal but as an annual annotated archaeological site bibliography. Communication should be sent to Dr. E.C.L. During Caspers, Dept. of Archaeology, Sectin of South and South-West Asia, Reuvensplaats 4, P.O. Box 9515, NL-2300 RA LEIDEN, The Netherlands.

Wilfred Thesiger, doyen of 20th Century Arabian explorers, made one of his very rare visits to the UAE early last month, calling in on Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Al Ain, as well as meeting old acquaintances. In the company of our patron, he also attended the ENHG meeting of 5 February. His Arabian Sands, first published in 1959 records his travels across the Empty Quarter in the 1940s during which he became the first 'outsider' to enter the Liwa Oasis. While in the UAE Thesiger launched an exhibition of 13 rare black and white photographs, which were shown publicly for the first time.

Many of the Editor's slides have been affected by fungus in the hot, humid conditions of Das Island. If any reader has this problem, film cleaning products containing a fungicide are available from the Tetenal range of chemicals. Details can be obtained from Photec Products, 133 High Holborn, London WC1V 6PX. If the growth has proceeded too far, however, damage may well be permanent because fungus growth can liberate substances which affect the color dyes, as well as distort or etch the gelatin of the backing.

On 28 May 1989 up to eight rats were seen in daylight at the base of a Zizyphus tree next to the Khor Kalba sewage tip. They remained in tangled scrub, some feeding on grass shoots. Coloration was light orange-brown with whitish underparts. The tail was markedly longer than the body. There was a nest three meters up in the tree and one rat climbed agilely through the branches and into the nest. No very young rats were seen. It was assumed that these rodents were a light-colored version of the Black Rat. (See "Some Rodents of the UAE" by J.N.B. Brown, Bulletin 38, pp 9-13.)