Editing Nearchus (section)

== Indus River Voyage ==
In 326 BC, Nearchus was made admiral of the fleet that Alexander had constructed at the [[Jhelum River|Hydaspes]] (A 6.2.3; ''[[Indica (Arrian)|Indica]]'' 18.10). However, his [[trierarch]]y was a financial responsibility – that is, Nearchus put up the money for the boats (Heckel, p.229); and there were plenty of other trierarchs in the [[Indus River|Indus]] fleet who were not natural-born sailors. Strabo recounts that the Himalayan range of Emodus was close to the construction of the fleet near [[Taxila]], providing ample supplies of fir, pine and cedar timber.<ref>{{cite book|last=Vincent|first=William|url=https://archive.org/details/b28761157|page=[https://archive.org/details/b28761157/page/15 15]|title=The Voyage of Nearchus from the Indus to the Euphrates: Collected from the Original Journal Preserved by Arrian, and Illustrated by Authorities Ancient and Modern ...|date=1797|publisher=T. Cadell, jun. and W. Davies|language=en}}</ref> Initially, the fleet progressed down the Hydaspes much like a triumphal military parade, accompanied by a land-based entourage of the main armed forces of Alexander including cavalry, elephants and loot trains. At the confluence of the [[Chenab River|Acesines]] and Indus Rivers, Alexander founded a city called [[Alexandria on the Indus|Alexandria-on-the-Indus]], assigning it to the satrapy of [[Oxyartes]] (father of [[Roxana]]) and populating it with [[Thracians|Thracian]] troops.

Some of the ships were damaged, and Nearchus was instructed to remain behind to oversee repairs, before continuing down the river. This perhaps indicates some knowledge of shipbuilding, but he could hardly have been the only one qualified. The voyage down the Indus River lasted from 326 to 325 BCE and resulted in the capture of native Indian towns. By the time the Macedonians had reached Pattala (modern Bahmanabad in Sindh, Pakistan), Nearchus prepared to lead 17–20,000 men for an expedition into the Persian Gulf, while Alexander continue through the [[Gedrosia|Gedrosian desert]]. Nearchus was not the only Greek naval officer to have pursued a voyage down the Indus River—this was also done by [[Scylax of Caryanda]] under the commission of [[Darius the Great]], according to Herodotus.

Nearchus remained in command of the fleet for the voyage from the Indus to the [[Persian Gulf]], which he recorded in detail (and which was used extensively for [[Arrian]]’s ''[[Indica (Arrian)|Indica]]''). Again, although he was the admiral, in command of the fleet, great seamanship was not required – the naval responsibilities were [[Onesicritus]]’. Nearchus compiled the story of his expedition into a written work—the ''Indike''—which is now lost but informs some of the content in Arrian's ''Indica'' and [[Strabo|Strabo's]] ''[[Geographica]].'' This work likely consisted of two parts: one detailing India's frontiers, size, population, castes, fauna, flora, cultures and militaries, and the other describing his home-bound voyage toward Babylon.  Nearchus described, according to Arrian, how commodities like [[rice]], [[sugarcane]] and [[cotton]] fabrics and textiles were cultivated, manufactured and traded in the Indus Valley.