Libya: A Lonely Planet Guidebook (2007)

The second edition of Lonely Planet’s guide to Libya (written by Anthony Ham) was published in 2007. I have compared it to the first edition from 2002, which I used during a trip to Libya in 2004. I found some flaws in the book, and I wrote to Lonely Planet to tell them about them. You can see some of the points which I raised in my letter, if you check my review of the first edition posted here on my blog.

The text has been revised and updated. Some sections are shorter than before; and some sections have been moved around. The page numbers are not the same as before. When I checked the second edition, I found that all the passages which I had mentioned in my letter to the publisher had been rewritten, so the mistakes and the unfortunate statements had disappeared. In this case the people of Lonely Planet decided to listen to feedback from a reader, which is a good thing.

However, this does not mean that there are no mistakes in the second edition. Let me give you some examples:

* The caption to the picture on page 7 says:

 

“Be mesmerised by the Mediterranean vistas from the theatre of Leptis Magna.”

 

But this picture does not show the theatre; it shows the amphitheatre in Leptis Magna. Perhaps this mistake should be blamed on the picture editor and not the author. I am quite sure Anthony Ham knows the difference between a theatre and an amphitheatre.

* On page 84 we hear about the ancient temple next to the arch of Marcus Aurelius. Ham claims it was dedicated to “Taki (the Roman god of fortune).” But the Roman god of Fortune is known as Fortuna. Where does the word “Taki” come from? I think I know what happened. The Greek god of fortune is known as TYCHE, sometimes spelled TYKE. I suspect someone told Ham the Greek name, but when he wrote it down, he made a mistake, and the word was changed into “Taki.”

* On pp. 122-123 we hear about the Italian arch in Medinat Sultan. Ham describes it as a “more-than-5-m-tall Italian-built arch.” It was indeed more than five meters high, it was 31 meters high. Why not give the correct figure?

* He also mentions the reliefs from the arch, which are now scattered on the ground, saying: “These once adorned the façade of the arch.” In fact, they were placed on the inside of the arch.

* One fragment is described with these words:

 

“The closest one to the gate shows Mussolini (second from the left) being saluted by his soldiers.”

 

In fact, Mussolini is on the right side of this fragment. The figure second from the left is the Italian king Vittorio Emanuele III. Mussolini is not being saluted by his soldiers; he is saluting the king.

* On page 136-137 we hear about the ancient church of Qasr Libya with the famous mosaics. Ham mentions panel # 18 saying the panel shows the nymph “Kastelia of Delphi.” In fact the Greek letters in the panel read “KASTALIA.” Most English writers would probably prefer the spelling “Castalia.”

* Ham also mentions panel # 3 saying it shows “the New City of Theodarius.” In fact the Greek letters in the panel read “POLIS NEA THEODORIAS,” i.e. “the New City of Theodorias.” It seems Ham is a bit confused about the spelling of the name.

* The town formerly known as Olbia was re-founded (and renamed) in AD 539, but this is not mentioned here. Ham mentions the Roman emperor Justinian, also known as Justinian the Great, but he does not mention that the new town was named after the emperor’s wife Theodora.

For more information about Theodora see The Power Game in Byzantium by James Allan Evans.

* Cyrene is presented on pp. 141-147. But the famous philosopher Synesius, who was born in this city around AD 370, is not mentioned in this section. From ca. 410 to his death in ca. 413, Synesius worked as a bishop in Ptolemais (today Tolmeita) which is presented on pp. 134-136. But he is not mentioned in this section, either.

For more information about Synesius see Synesius of Cyrene: His Life and Writings by J. C. Nicol.

* On page 198 there is a silly misprint which was not found in the first edition. Ham mentions the German explorer Heinrich Barth and continues: “On 6 July 185, Barth wrote…” In the year 185! No! Barth lived 1821-65 and travelled in Africa 1850-55. In the first edition the same passage appears on page 235, and here we have the correct year: 1850. This silly misprint seems to be the result of sloppy editing.

The second edition is, in many ways, a good book, but as you can see, there are some flaws here and there.

I have sent a message to Lonely Planet to tell them about these flaws. I hope they will not be found in the next edition.

PS. Here are two references, which are not listed in the second edition of Lonely Planet’s guidebook, because they were published after 2007:

(1) If you are going to visit the western part of Libya, known as Tripolitania, you should consult Tripolitania by Philip Kenrick (2009).

(2) If you are going to visit the eastern part of Libya, known as Cyrenaica, you should consult Cyrenaica by Philip Kenrick (2013).

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Anthony Ham,

Libya Lonely Planet,

Second edition, 2007, 272 pages

 

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For more information about the ancient history of Libya see my blog:

Libya: The Lost Cities of the Roman Empire 

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