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<p><tt>I'm not following why ancient Hebrews and 7th century Arabs should have been ignorant of whales. They both had coasts, or were very close to people that did, the former on the Mediterranean and the latter on the Red Sea, Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean. Even if whales were never sighted at sea by sailors, they would still be known through occasional beachings. This was not the middle of a large continent, as for MVS peoples. I'm sure whales would have been well known throughout most of the Middle East since the beginning of human habitation there.</tt><br>
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<tt>Rory</tt><br>
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