Navigating on the Mediterranean

[Wander]

I recently saw a chart in a book showing approximate sailing times from Rome to other cities: 2 days to Pompeii (IIRC), for instance. But for the past three days I've been going through every Roman book in my library trying to find it again, and I can't.

I'm also trying to find references to the prevailing winds, and what times they tended to be from which quarter. I have a general idea that they tended to be counter-clockwise on the map (Egypt to Judea to Thrace to Greece to Italy to Gaul to Spain), but I could be dead wrong.

Does anyone know if there's a good reference online for Mediterranean navigation? Especially in the first century AD?

Many thanks in advance!

[Praefectusclassis]

Hi Wayne,
There's a recent French book (of which the title escapes me now) in which the author has puzzled out average sailing times from all known sources.
If you want something more accessible, look in Casson, Ancient Mariners or Casson, Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient World.
Prevailing winds and currents are nicely explained in Pryor, Geography, Technology and War.

[Eleatic Guest]

Lionel Casson: Speed under Sail of Ancient Ships, Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Asociation, Vol. 82, 1951, pp.136-148

[Wander]

I found a treasure trove of information in Casson's Ships and Seamanship in Ancient Times. Chapter 12, particularly, has the answers I needed about sailing times, in depth.

My thanks to both of you!