title: Dire straits
abstract: This paper examines the potential dangers of two waterways connected to the western Indian Ocean – namely, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Khambhat (or Cambay) – together with some of the measures taken to reduce them in the first three centuries of the Common Era. The dangers on these waterways range from piracy to sudden shoals. This paper evaluates two forms of human responses to these dangers in particular: namely, “top-down” strategies implemented by ancient states and “bottom-up” tactics emplo