Sergei says:
>2. Saxo regularly mentuions variuos (small and big) islands in the
>sea. Do you know any islands in the Black Sea?
Almost. The Danube Delta and well westward is composed of Islands that don't
show up on many maps, essentially ground encircled by branching action of
the Danube. They were used for defensive advantage by many groups of
intrusives, and are tied to legend regarding many..like Bastarnae. The
largest of these inland islands, not delta proper, are called today: "Insula
Mare a Brailei" and (are you ready for the word?) "Balta a Ialomitei" ("The
Big Island of Brailei" {local city} and "The Intermittent Lakes of
Ialomitei" {another town}) A balta essentially = a big mud puddle after a
rain, that takes too long to go away. These essentially stretch out north
to south for 120 km or so, as two adjoining land features defining the
border with Dobrodgea and Muntenia, at the North running portion of the
Danube before it cuts ESE to the Black Sea at the true Delta where other
Islands also propagate. The larger named ones, above are also broken into
smaller true islands by smaller river branches, and lakes and streams. The
Romans found the whole complex a strategic weakness, and were forced to
place isolated outposts well north of the Delta as a defense. The real and
apparent islands from a Black Sea perspective (Constanta to Odessa) or a
Danube perspective, or overland through this region , would be: scores
(variuos, small and big :-) .
>3. Saxo's Ruscia/Rutenae situated somewhere east of Denmark (and one
>had to make his way to Rutenae via some sea passing some islands). If
>Denmark was in today's Ukraine, what location would you suggest for
>Ruthenia?
I have a printed English translation of a 12th Cent. German monk refering to
Romanians in Moldavia at war with "Ruthenian neighbors". That narrows the
Ruthenians in his reference to either Ukraine or Poland, and the islands
reinforce Ukraine.
Cu Stima;
Regards;
Rex H. McTyeire
Bucharest, Romania
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