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ASSYRIAN DISCOVERIES. 
 
LONDON . 
 
 PRINTED BY GILBERT AND RIVINGTON, LIMITED 
 ST. JOHN'S SQUARE. 
 
ASSYRIAN DISCOVERIES; 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF EXPLORATIONS AND 
 DISCOVERIES ON THE SITE OF 
 NINEVEH, DURING 
 1873 and 1874. 
 
 By GEORGE SMITH, 
 
 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ORIENTAL ANTIQUITIES, BRITISH MUSEUM, 
 AUTHOR OF "HISTORY OF ASSURBANirAL," 
 ETC. ETC. 
 
 WITH ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 SEVENTH EDITION. 
 
 Sontton : 
 
 SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE, & RIVINGTON, 
 
 CROWN BUILDINGS, 188, FLEET STREET. 
 
 1883. 
 
 [All rights reserved.} 
 
TO 
 
 DR. BIRCH, LL.D., 
 
 KEEPER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ORIENTAL ANTIQUITIES, 
 
 BRITISH MUSEUM; 
 PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIETY OF BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY; 
 PRESIDENT OF THE ORIENTAL CONGRESS, 
 ETC. ETC. ETC., 
 4lS A RESPECTFUL TRIBUTE TO HIS LEARNING AND GENIUS, 
 THIS WORK 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 HE following work was written to give in 
 a permanent form some account of the 
 excavations undertaken in 1873 and 1874 
 on the site of Nineveh ; and the principal 
 discoveries which have resulted from these operations. 
 The honour of having started this enterprise belongs 
 to the proprietors of the " Daily Telegraph " news- 
 paper, and at the close of the first expedition they 
 presented the firman and excavating plant to the 
 trustees of the British Museum to facilitate the re- 
 newal of the work. The second expedition was only 
 to take advantage of the remainder of the time allowed 
 by the firman, and I was directed to close the ex- 
 cavations within the period allowed by the concession 
 of the Porte. 
 
 I have been working in the territory of the Turkish 
 empire, and it is with regret that I have had to 
 mention the unsatisfactory conduct of many of its 
 agents. I have not made the most of this ; I have 
 
viii 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 omitted many incidents of bad conduct, and have 
 stated those I have mentioned as moderately and 
 slightly as possible ; but I could not have passed the 
 subject over entirely without falsifying my narrative. 
 I have not the smallest doubt that in the government 
 of Asia the Turks arei not alive to their own interests,, 
 and particularly in the oppressive laws and persecution 
 of the Christians. The American missions in Asiatic 
 Turkey are doing a noble work in the country, but 
 they can only be useful in proportion to the amount 
 of official support they receive from England and 
 America* 
 
 In the body of my work I have acknowledged the 
 assistance I received from several gentlemen, official 
 and private, in my expeditions. To these I must add 
 the name of M. Peretie, the French consul at Mosul, 
 who was of great assistance to me in my dealings 
 with the Turkish officials, and took as much interest 
 in my affairs as if I had been a fellow- subject with 
 himself. The presence of M. Peretie at Mosul, and 
 his generous attention to British interests* makes the 
 want of a British consul less felt ; but it is extremely 
 unfortunate that in the wide extent of country be- 
 tween Aleppo and Baghdad there is not a single 
 British representative. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 HAPTEE I.— Former Excavations and Disco- 
 veries in the Valley or the Euphrates and 
 Tigris. 
 
 Interest of subject. — Botta's excavations. — 
 LayarcTs works. — Eawlinson. — Hormuzd Eassam. — 
 Loftus. — Decipherment of cuneiform. — Grotefend. — Eawlinson. 
 — Behistun text. — Hincks. — Oppert. — Later decipherers . p. 1 
 
 Chapter II. — Discoveries from 18G0 to 1872. 
 
 Date of Jehu. — Annals of Assurbanipal. — Eclipse, B.C. 763. — 
 Pekah. — Hoshea. — Azariah. — Early Elamite conquest. — Eeli- 
 gious calendar. — Sabbaths. — Early Babylonian history. — Chal- 
 dean account of the deluge. — Offer of the " Daily Telegraph" . 
 
 Chapter III. — From London to Mosul. 
 
 Paris.— Marseilles. — Mediterranean. — Palermo. — Etna. — 
 Syra. — Smyrna. — Alexandretta. — Beilan. — Hotels. — Pass of 
 Beilan. — Afrin. — Eobber. — Aleppo. — Turkish holiday. — 
 Euphrates. — Tcharmelek. — Orfa. — American missions. — 
 Christians in Turkey. — Varenshaher. — Eiver Khabour. — 
 Nisibin. — Eising of Shammer Arabs. — Sofuk. — Abdul Kareem. 
 — Tellibel. — Djezireh. — Eiver Tigris. — Khabour. — Zaccho. — 
 Mule driver. — Nineveh 15 
 
X 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter IV. — Visit to Babylonia. 
 
 Mosul. — The serai. — Turkish pacha. — French consul. — In- 
 scription of Vul-nirari. — Raft. — Nimroud. — Kalah Shergat. — 
 Rocks and cave. — Tekrit. — Baghdad. — Col. Herbert. — Babylon. 
 — Babel. — Extent of walls. — Kasr. — Hanging gardens. — Birs 
 Nimrud. — Seven stages of tower. — Ruin of Babylon. — Hymer. 
 — Tel Ibrahim. — Cutha. — Arab encampment. — Road to Mosul. 
 — ErviL— The Zab.— The Ghazr.— Eerry ... 46 
 
 Chapter V. — Excayations at Nimroud. 
 
 Toma Shishman. — The mound. — Tower. — Palaces. — History. 
 — Temple of Nebo. — South-west palace.— Model of hand. — 
 South-east palace. — Painted wall. — Winged figures. — Graves. — 
 House building. — Arab entertainment. — Close excavations 69 
 
 Chapter VI. — Excavations at Kouyunjik:. 
 
 Wall of Nineveh. — Northern gate. — The Khosr. — Great gate. 
 — Nebbi Tunas. — Kouyunjik. — Palaces — History. — Capture of 
 Nineveh. — Library. — Hammum Ali — North palace, Kouyunjik. 
 — Law tablet. — Deluge fragment. — Discoveries. — Khorsabad. — 
 Orders to close. — Syllabary. — Visit to Nimroud . • 86 
 
 Chapter VII. — Eeom Mosul to England. 
 
 Backsheesh. — Mill stream. — Jebel Abjad. — Power of rivers. 
 — Deluge mountains. — Stories. — M. Costi and Mr. Kerr. — 
 Desert Arabs. — Nisibin. — Wounded Arab. — Orfa. — Abraham's 
 pool.— Castle. — Biradjik — Aleppo. — Turkish custom-house. — 
 Deceit. — Alexandretta. — Antiquities seized. — Their release 104 
 
 Chatter VIII. — Second Journey to Mosul. 
 
 Release of antiquities. — New discoveries. — Syrian robber. — 
 Severe winter. — Tcharmelek. — Calah. — Dinasar. — Turkish con- 
 scription. — Abdul Kareem. — Irregular soldiers. — Nisibin. — 
 Entertainment. — Dancing boy. — Derunah. — Post travelling 110 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 xi 
 
 Chapter IX. — Excavations at Kouyunjik. 
 
 Ali Eahal. — Turkish governor. — Eedif Pacha. — New policy. 
 — Turkish demands. — Temples. — Curious pottery. — Early 
 palace. — Eoman bottle. — North palace. — Kuined entrance. — 
 Perfect bilingual tablet. — Inscriptions of Shalmaneser I. — 
 Palace of Sennacherib — Entrance. — Library chamber. — Fork. — 
 Historical cylinders. — Difficulties. — Close of work . 135 
 
 Chapter X. — Eeturn fhom Assyria. 
 
 Khan Baleos. — Mosul. — Departure. — Severe weather — Stop- 
 page. — Tel Adas. — Semil. — Discontent of soldiers. — Want of 
 pay. — Durnak. — Crossing the Hazel. — Djezireh — Circassian 
 guides. — Their outrages. — Varenshaher. — Orfa. — Curiosities. — 
 Biradjik. — Antiquities stopped. — Eide to Aleppo. — Difficulties 
 with pacha. — Eelease of boxes. — Embarkation. — Eeturn 153 
 
 Chapter XI. — The Izdubar or Elood Series of Legends. 
 Chaldean account of flood. — New portions. — Izdubar. — 
 Probably Nimrod. — Antiquity of legends. — Conquests of 
 Izdubar. — His illness. — Hasisadra. — The flood. — Erech. — 
 Conquest of Monster. — Zaidu — Heabani. — Humbaba. — Ishtar. 
 — Divine bull. — Death of Heabani. — Izdubars sorrow. — His 
 journey. — The giants. — Hasisadra. — Account of deluge. — 
 Building the ark. — The flood. — Mountains of Nizir. — The birds. 
 — Translation of patriarch. — Cure of Izdubar. — His lament. — 
 Ghost of Heabani. — Comparison with Bible and Berosus. — 
 Eemarks 165 
 
 Chapter XII. — Early Babylonian Texts. 
 
 Elamite conquest. — Sargon of Akkad.-— His birth. — Concealed 
 in ark. — Agu. — Temple of Bel. — Prayer for the king. — Dungi 
 king of Ur. — Kudurmabuk. — Hammurabi. — Conquest of 
 Babylonia. — Early bilingual text. — Turauian writing. — Semitic 
 writing. — Eiagu. — Text from Kouyunjik. — Kurigalzu. — Mero- 
 dach Baladan I. — Eoyal grant. — Boundary stone. — Curses 2-3 
 
xii 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter XIII. — Early Assyrian Inscriptions. 
 
 Early pottery. — Text of Vul-nirari I, — Shalmaneser. — Temple 
 of Ishtar.— Tugulti-ninip. — Babylonian wars. — Mutagil-nusku. 
 — Assur-risilim.— Tiglath Pileser I. — -Assur-nazir-pal . . 242 
 
 Chapter XIV. — Inscriptions of Tiglath Pileser II., B.C. 
 745 to 727. 
 
 Annals of Tiglath Pilesei. — Their importance. — Tablet from 
 Nimroud. — Babylonian wars. — Eastern wars. — Arabian wars. — 
 Syrian tribute list. — Building of palace. — Fragments of annals. 
 — Azariah. — Menahem. — Eezon. — His defeat. — War in Pales- 
 tine. — Pekah. — Hoshea. — Confirmation of Bible . . 253 
 
 Chapter XV. — Inscriptions of S argon, b.c. 722 to 705. 
 
 Historical cylinder.— Median chiefs. — War with Ashdod. — 
 Azuri. — Ahimiti. — Tavan .— Eevolt. — Turning watercourses. — 
 Judah. — Edom. — Moab. — Embassy to Pharaoh. — Egypt's 
 weakness. — Advance of Sargon. — Flight of Tavan. — Seal of 
 Sargon 288 
 
 Chapter XVI. — Inscriptions of Sennacherib, b.o. 705 to 681. 
 Cylinder C. — Intermediate record. — Titles. — War with Mero- 
 dach Baladan. — Conquest of Babylonia.— Conquest of Kassi — 
 Ellipi. — War in Palestine. — Elulias of Zidon. — Zidqa of Askelon. 
 — Bevolt of Ekron.— Battle with Egyptians. — Hezekiah. — Siege 
 of Jerusalem. — Submission and tribute. — Second Babylonian 
 war. — Letter from governor ... 295 
 
 Chapter XVII. — Inscriptions of Esarhaddon, b.c G81 to 668. 
 New texts. — Wars with Tirhakah.— Bahal of Tyre. — March 
 through Palestine. — Meroe. — Desert. — Want of water. — Long 
 marches. — Conquest of Egypt. — Wars of Sennacherib. — Suzub. 
 — Elamites. — Plunder of temple of Bel. — Babylonian dated 
 tablet 811 
 
 Chapter XVIII. — Inscriptions or Assurbanipal, b.c 668 
 to 626. 
 
 Greek Sardanapalus. — Library. — Former publication. — Egyp- 
 tian history. — Sabako. — Tirhakah. — Undaraane. — Text. — Titles. 
 
I 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 xiii 
 
 — Campaign against Tirhakah.— Revolt of Egypt. — Death of 
 Tirhakah. — Undamane.— Second Egyptian campaign. — Siege of 
 Tyre. — Arvad. — Gyges of Lydia. — Psammitichus. — War with 
 Minni. — War with Elain. — Eevolt of Babylon. — Wars with 
 Elam. — Restoration of Nana. — Arabian war. — Armenian em- 
 bassy. — Restoration of palace. — Restoration of temples. — Brick 
 from Babylon . 317 
 
 Chapter XIX. — Inscriptions of Bel-zakir-iskun, kino of 
 Assyria, and ins Successors. 
 
 Want of Monuments. — Obscurity of history. — Bel-zakir- 
 iskun. — Cylinder. — Fall of Assyria. — Rise of Babylon. — Nebu- 
 chadnezzar. — Evil Merodach. — Nergalsharezer. — Method of dat- 
 ing. — Nabonidus. — Belshazzar. — Cyrus. — Cambyses. — Darius. 
 
 — Trilingual text. — Artaxerxes. — Parthian date. — Important 
 evidence ......... 381 
 
 Chapter XX. — Miscellaneous Texts. 
 
 Hymn to light. — Translation. — Invocation to Izdubar. — His 
 worship. — Babylonian text — Prayer to Bel. — Inundation. — 
 Seven evil spirits. — Their work. — Bel. — Sin, Shamas, and Ishtar. 
 — Attack on the moon. — War in heaven. — Message to Ilea. — 
 Mission of Merodach. — Comparison of legends. — Character of 
 deities. — Astronomy. — Four seasons. — Intercalary month.— 
 Astrolabe. — Observation of eclipse. — Respect for laws. — Epi- 
 graphs. — Letter. — Deed of sale. — Date of Assurbanipal. — Sale 
 of slave. — Syllabaries. — Bilingual lists . , . 391 
 
 CnAPTER XXI. — Foreign Inscriptions. 
 
 Baghdad lion. — Egyptian monarch. — Ra-set-nub or Saites. — 
 Founder of Shepherd power. — Tablet of Rameses. — Date of 
 monument. — Hyksos. — Expelled by Amosis. — Worship of Set. 
 
 — Type of lion. — Hamath inscription. — Seals at Nineveh. — 
 Cypriote inscription. — Phoenician texts. — Contract tablets. — 
 Pehlevi inscriptions. — Later texts. — Nisibin. — Destruction of 
 monuments 420 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter XXII. — Objects Illustrating Arts and Customs. 
 Larger sculptures already discovered. — Hand in wall. — Lintel. 
 — Head of Ishtar.— Shoulder of statue. — Winged bull. — 
 Assyrian columns. — Crystal throne. — Crystal vase. — Name of 
 Sennacherib. — Lamps. — Lamp-feeder. — A ssyrian fork. — Glass. 
 — Eoman bottle. — Glass seal. — Pottery. — Cypriote style. — 
 Chariot group. — Commerce. — Personal ornaments. — Rings. — 
 Beads. — Seals. — Later occupation of mound. — Destruction of 
 antiquities , . 428 
 
 Chapter XXIII.— Conclusion. 
 
 Difficulty of work. — Short time. — Good results. — Babylonian 
 kings. — Assyrian kings. — New inscriptions. — Uncertainty of 
 chronology. — Assyrian history. — Jewish history. — Pul. — New 
 light on the Bible. — Origin of Babylonian civilization. — Turanian 
 race. — Semitic conquest. — Flood legends. — Mythology. — Con- 
 nexion with Grecian mythology. — Astronomy. — Architecture. 
 — Importance of future excavations . . . . 437 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 AP, Frontispiece. 
 2. Side of portal excavated by M. Botta at Khorsabad, 
 to face p. 2. 
 
 8. Black obelisk, discovered by Layard at Nimroud,l 0. 
 4. View of Nimroud, 49. 
 
 5. Terra-cotta winged figure, 78. 
 
 6. Photograph of figure of warrior on painted brick from south-east 
 
 palace, Nimroud, to face p. 80. 
 
 7. Plan of site of Nineveh, to face p. 80. 
 
 8. The Jebel Djudi, or Deluge mountains, to face p. 103. 
 
 9. View of bay of Alexandretta from Beilan, 110. 
 
 10. Bronze lamp, 140. 
 
 11. Pottery from Kouyunjik, 141. 
 
 12. Procession of warriors, 142. 
 
 13. Eoman bottle, 143. 
 
 14. Terra-cotta vase, 140. 
 
 15. Bronze fork, 147. 
 10. Bone spoon, 147. 
 
 17. Dead buffalo in water, 148. 
 
 18. Photograph of marble model of winged bull, to face p. 174. 
 
 19. Emblems of the gods on stone of Merodach Baladan I., to face 
 
 p. 236. 
 
 20. Head from statue of the goddess Ishtar, from her temple, 
 
 Kouyunjik, 218. 
 
xvi 
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 21. Photograph of lintel of doorway , great court of Sennacherib's 
 
 palace, to face p. 308. 
 
 22. Photograph of terracotta bilingual tablet, to face p. 392. 
 
 23. Object with Cypriote characters, 423. 
 
 24. Model of hand found in wall, 429. 
 
 25. Bronze throne, discovered by Layard at Nimroud, 432. 
 
 26. Terra-cotta lamp, 433. 
 
 27. Terra-cotta lamp-feeder, 433. 
 
 28. Bronze bracket, 434. 
 
 29. Bronze style, 434. 
 
ASSYRIAN EXPLORATIONS AND 
 
 DISCOVERIES. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 FORMER EXCAVATIONS AND DISCOVERIES IN 
 THE VALLEY OF THE EUPHRATES 
 AND TIGRIS. 
 
 Interest of subject. — Botta's excavations. — Layard's works. — 
 Rawlinson. — Hormuzd Rassam. — Loftus. — Decipherment of 
 cuneiform. — Grrotefend. — Rawlinson. — Behistun text. — Hincks. 
 — Oppert. — Later decipherers. 
 
 ~HB interest attaching to the valley of the 
 Euphrates and Tigris is of the widest 
 kind ; and, excepting the land of Pales- 
 tine, no other part of the globe can com- 
 pare with it in the importance of its traditions, its 
 history, and its monuments. 
 
 It is the home of man's earliest traditions, the 
 place where Eden was supposed to have been ; some 
 of its cities are stated to be older than the Flood ; it 
 is the land of the Deluga and of the tower of Babel, 
 and it is the birthplace of the great race of Israel 
 
 13 
 
2 
 
 FORMER EXCAVATIONS 
 
 which, has played so important a part in the religious 
 history of the world. 
 
 In Babylonia arose the first civilized state, and its 
 arts and sciences became the parents of those of the 
 Greeks, and through them also of our own. 
 
 Watered by two of the noblest rivers in the world, 
 on each of these stood a great capital, Babylon on 
 the Euphrates, Nineveh on the Tigris ; cities which 
 in the earlier period of history were unrivalled, and 
 which even in their ruins have attracted the attention 
 of travellers in all ages, from the time of their over- 
 throw until now. M. Botta, who was appointed 
 French consul at Mosul in 1842, was the first to 
 commence excavations on the sites of the buried 
 cities of Assyria, and to him is due the honour of the 
 first discovery of her long lost palaces. 
 
 M. Botta commenced his labours at Kouyunjik, 
 the large mound opposite Mosul, but he found here 
 very little to compensate for his labours. New at 
 the time to excavations, he does not appear to have 
 worked in the best manner ; M. Botta at Kouyunjik 
 contented himself with sinking pits in the mound, 
 and on these proving unproductive abandoning them. 
 
 While M. Botta was excavating at Kouyunjik, his 
 attention was called to the mounds of Khorsabad by 
 a native of the village on that site ; and he sent a 
 party of workmen to the spot to commence excava- 
 tion. In a few days his perseverance was rewarded 
 by the discovery of some sculptures, after which 
 abandoning the work at Kouyunjik, he transferred 
 
AND DISCOVERIES. 
 
 3 
 
 his establishment to Khorsabad and thoroughly ex- 
 plored that site. 
 
 M. Botta' s workmen had sunk a well at Khorsabad, 
 and arrived at one of the palace walls. Subsequent 
 excavations led to the discovery of many chambers 
 and halls, faced with slabs of gypsum carved over with 
 mythological figures, battle scenes, processions, and 
 similar subjects. Long inscriptions in the cuneiform 
 character ran along the middle of most of the slabs, 
 and some of them were also inscribed at the back. 
 The palace which M.Botta had discovered was built by 
 Sargon, king of Assyria, B.C. 722 to 705 ; it is one of 
 the most perfect Assyrian buildings yet explored, and 
 forms an excellent example of Assyrian architecture. 
 
 Beside the palace on the mound of Khorsabad, M. 
 Botta also opened the remains of a temple, and a 
 grand porch decorated by six winged bulls, under 
 which passed the road from the city to the palace. 
 The operations of M. Botta were brought to a close 
 in 18 1 5, and a splendid collection of sculptures and 
 other antiquities, the fruits of his labours, arrived in 
 Paris in 1846 and was deposited in the Louvre. 
 
 Afterwards the French government appointed M. 
 Place consul at Mosul, and he continued some of the 
 excavations of his predecessor. Among other an- 
 tiquities he discovered one of the gates of the city to 
 which the palace of Sargon belonged. This gate was 
 flanked on each side by gigantic winged bulls, and 
 the space between them was spanned by an arch 
 springing from the backs of the bulls. 
 
 B 2 
 
4 
 
 FORMER EXCAVATIONS 
 
 Mr. Layard, whose attention was early turned in 
 this direction, visited the country in 1840, and after- 
 wards took a great interest in the excavations of 
 M. Botta. At length, in 1845, Layard was enabled, 
 through the assistance of Sir Stratford Canning, to 
 commence excavations in Assyria himself. On the 
 8th of November he started from Mosul, and de- 
 scended the Tigris to Nimroud. Next morning he 
 commenced excavations, and soon discovered the 
 remains of two palaces. Mr. Layard has described in 
 his works with great minuteness his successive exca- 
 vations, and the remarkable and interesting discoveries 
 he made. At Nimroud he found several buildings, 
 palaces, and temples ; at Kouyunjik he found the 
 palace of Sennacherib, and one of the great gates of 
 the city ; at Nebbi-yunas a palace of Esarhaddon, and 
 minor monuments at various other sites. After 
 making these discoveries in Assyria, Mr. Layard 
 visited Babylonia, and opened trenches in several of 
 the mounds there. On the return of Mr. Layard to 
 England, excavations were continued in the Euphrates 
 valley under the superintendence of Colonel (now Sir 
 Henry) Rawlinson. Under his directions, Mr. Hor- 
 muzd Rassam, Mr. Loftus, and Mr. Taylor excavated 
 various sites and made numerous discoveries, the 
 British Museum receiving the best of the monuments. 
 
 The materials collected in the national museums of 
 France and England, and the numerous inscriptions 
 published, attracted the attention of the learned, and 
 verv soon considerable light was thrown on the 
 
AND DISCOVERIES, 
 
 5 
 
 history, language, manners, and customs of ancient 
 Assyria and Babylonia. 
 
 The key to the reading of the Persian cuneiform 
 writing had been discovered by Grotefend; but it 
 was left to Sir Henry Rawlinson, in his great work 
 on the Behistun inscription, to read the records of 
 Darius and first decipher the accompanying Scythic 
 and Assyro-Babylonian texts ; thus giving a clue to 
 the reading of the thousands of inscriptions dis- 
 covered in Assyria and Babylonia. 
 
 The study of the cuneiform writing was carried 
 on with great zeal and success by Sir H. Rawlinson, 
 Dr. Hincks, Dr. Oppert, Dr. Norris, M. Menant, and 
 H. Fox Talbot, Esq., and recently by M. Lenormant, 
 Rev. A. H. Sayce, and Dr. Schrader. Other scholars 
 have also assisted in the work, but have not taken 
 any prominent position in deciphering the inscrip- 
 tions. Beside the original discovery, the chief merit 
 in deciphering the Assyrian inscriptions belongs to 
 Sir H. Rawlinson, who in 1851 published the dis- 
 covery of the capture of Samaria by Sargon, the war 
 against Hezekiah by Sennacherib, and the names of 
 many persons and places mentioned in the Bible. 
 
 In 1862 Sir Henry Rawlinson published one of 
 the most remarkable Assyrian documents yet dis- 
 covered, the Assyrian eponym canon, a chronological 
 document giving the outlines of the Assyrian official 
 chronology. This inscription is invaluable in the 
 comparison of Assyrian and Scripture history. 
 
 In 1863 he published a number of discoveries, in- 
 
G 
 
 FORMER EXCAVATIONS 
 
 eluding the tablet containing the synchronous his- 
 tory of Assyria and Babylonia. Next after Sir Henry 
 Rawlinson comes Dr. Hincks, a successful student 
 both of the Egyptian and Assyrian, and on some 
 points the close rival of Sir Henry Rawlinson. Each 
 of the other scholars has contributed his share to 
 the discoveries which have been made from time to 
 time ; these are so numerous that it would take too 
 long to do justice to them here, but the accounts of 
 previous explorations and discoveries will be found 
 in the following works : — 
 
 Botta. Monument de Ninive, Paris, five vols,, 
 1849-50 ; Memoire sur 1'Ecriture Cuneiforme As- 
 syrienne, Paris, 1849. 
 
 Layard. Nineveh and its Remains, London, 1851 ; 
 Nineveh and Babylon, London, 1853 ; Monuments 
 of Nineveh, London, 1851 ; second series, 1853 ; 
 Inscriptions in the Cuneiform Character, London, 
 1851. 
 
 Lofius. Travels in Chaldea and Susiana, London, 
 • 1856. 
 
 Place. Ninive et l'Assyrie, Paris, 1870. 
 
 Grotefend. Zur Erlauter. d. babylon. Keilschrift, 
 1840 ; Bemerkungen zur Inschrift eines Thongefasses 
 mit niniv. Keilschrift, Gottingen, 1850-1; Die Tri- 
 butverzeichniss d. Obelisken aus Nimrud, Gottingen, 
 1852 ; Erlauter. der babyl. Keilinschrift aus Behistun, 
 Gottingen, 1853; Erlauter. zweier Ausschr. Nebu- 
 kadnezar's in babyl. Keilschr., Gottingen, 1854, and 
 some minor papers. 
 
AND DISCOVERIES. 
 
 7 
 
 Raivlinson (Sir H. 0.) Commentary on the Cu- 
 neiform Inscriptions of Babylon and Assyria, London, 
 1850 ; Babylonian text of Great Inscription at Be- 
 histun, London, 1851 ; Memoir on the Babylonian 
 and Assyrian Inscriptions, London, 1854; Notes on 
 the early history of Babylonia, London, 1856 ; Ortho- 
 graphy of some of the later royal names of Assyrian 
 and Babylonian history, London, 1856; Cuneiform 
 Inscriptions of Western Asia, vol. i. 1861 , vol. ii. 
 1866, vol. iii. 1870, and numerous papers in the 
 Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society from 1850 to 
 1864, and in the " Athenseum" from 1851 to 1867. 
 
 Hinclcs. Numerous papers in the " Athena3um," 
 Transactions of Royal Irish Society, Journal of Royal 
 Asiatic Society, Journal of Sacred Literature, from 
 1850 to 1866. 
 
 Oppert. Etudes Assyriennes, Inscription de Bor- 
 sippa, Paris, 1857 ; Rapport au Ministre del'Instruc- 
 tion publique, Paris, 1857 ; Expedition en Mcsopo- 
 tamie, Paris, 1863 ; Elements de la Grammaire 
 Assyrienne, Paris 9 1860, second edition, 1868 ; Com- 
 mentaire de la grande Inscription du Palais de 
 Khorsabad, Paris, 1865 ; Histoire des Empires de 
 Chaldee et d'Assyrie, Paris, 1865 ; Les Inscriptions 
 de Dour-Sarkayan (Khorsabad), Paris, 1870. 
 
 Norris. Memoirs on the Scythic Version of the 
 Behistun Inscription, London, 1853 ; Assyrian and 
 Babylonian Weights, London ; Assyrian Dictionary, 
 vol. i. 1868, vol. ii. 1870, vol. iii. 1872. 
 
 Fox Talbot. Various papers in the Journal of 
 
8 EXCAVATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 
 
 Sacred Literature, Journal of Royal Asiatic Society, 
 and Journal of Biblical Archseology. 
 
 Lenormant. Essai sur un Monument Mathema- 
 tique Chaldeen, Paris, 1868 ; Lettres Assyriologiques, 
 Paris, 1871 ; La Magie chez les Chaldeens, Paris, 
 1874; Les premieres Civilisations, Paris, 1874; 
 Manuel d'histoire ancienne de l'Orient, Paris, 1869 ; 
 Choix de textes Cuneiformes inedites, Paris, 1873. 
 
 Menant. Les Briques de Babylon, Paris, 1859 ; 
 Sur les Inscriptions Assyriennes du Musee Britan- 
 nique, 1862-3 ; Inscriptions de Hammourabi, Paris, 
 1863 ; Expose des Elements de la Grammaire As- 
 syrienne, Paris, 1868; Le Syllabaire Assyrien, 
 Paris, 1869-73 ; Legons d'Epigraphie Assyrienne, 
 Paris, 1873. 
 
 Sayce. On Akkadian Grammar, Journal of Philo- 
 logy, 1870; Assyrian Grammar, London, 1872; 
 articles in Transactions of Society of Biblical 
 Archaeology. 
 
 Schrader. In Zeitschrift d. d. Morgenl. Gesellsch., 
 1869 ; Die assyrisch-babylonischen Keilinschriften, 
 Leipzig, 1872 ; Die Keilinschriften und das alte 
 Testament, Giessen, 1872. 
 
 Brandts. Ueber d. histor. Gewinn aus d. Entziffer. 
 der assyr. Inschriften, Berlin, 1856. 
 
 De Saulcy. Recherches sur l'Ecriture Cuneiforme 
 Assyrienne, Paris, 1849. 
 
 Rawlinson (George). The five Great Monarchies 
 of the ancient Eastern World, second edition, London, 
 1871 ; Herodotus, second edition, London. 
 
Chapter II. 
 
 DISCOVERIES FROM 1866 TO 1872. 
 
 Date of Jehu. — Annals of Assurbanipal. — Eclipse, "B.C. 763. — 
 Pekah. — Hoshea. — Azariah. — Early Elamite conquest. — Re- 
 ligious calendar. — Sabbaths. — Early Babylonian history. — Chal- 
 dean account of the deluge. — Offer of the " Daily Telegraph." 
 
 "VERYONE has some bent or inclination 
 which, if fostered by favourable circum- 
 stances, will colour the rest of life. My 
 own taste has always been for Oriental 
 studies, and from my youth I have taken a great 
 interest in Eastern explorations and discoveries, 
 particularly in the great work in which Layard and 
 Rawlinson were engaged. 
 
 For some years I did little or nothing, but in 1866, 
 seeing the unsatisfactory state of our knowledge of 
 those parts of Assyrian history which bore upon the 
 history of the Bible, I felt anxious to do something 
 towards settling a few of the questions involved. I 
 saw at the time that the key of some of the principal 
 difficulties in the case lay in the annals of Tiglath 
 Pileser, and I wrote to Sir Henry Rawlinson to ask 
 him if the casts and fragments of the inscriptions of 
 
10 
 
 DISCOVERIES 
 
 this reign were available for reference and examina- 
 tion. Sir Henry Rawlinson, with whom I had cor- 
 responded before, took a generous interest in any 
 investigations likely to throw light on the studies in 
 which he held so distinguished a place, and he at 
 once accorded me permission to examine the large 
 store of paper casts in his work-room at the British 
 Museum. 
 
 This work I found one of considerable difficulty, as 
 the casts were most of them very fragmentary, and I 
 was quite inexperienced, and had little time at my 
 disposal. 
 
 by the Assyrian monarch from different countries ; and 
 attached to the second one is an inscription which was 
 deciph ered independently by Sir Henry Rawlinson and 
 the lateDr. Hincks, andwhichreads," Tribute of Jehu, 
 
 In this my first examination 
 of original texts, I did not 
 obtain much of consequence 
 belonging to the period I 
 was in search of ; but I lighted 
 on a curious inscription of 
 Shalmaneser II., which formed 
 myfirst discovery in Assyrian. 
 On a remarkable obelisk of 
 black stone, discovered by 
 Layard in the centre of the 
 
 HP" mound of Nimroud, there are 
 
FROM 1S0G TO 1872. 
 
 11 
 
 son of Omri (here follow the names of the articles), I re- 
 ceived." It was recognized that this was the Jehu of 
 the Bible, but the date of the transaction could not 
 be determined from the inscription. The new text 
 which I had found gave a longer and more perfect 
 account of the war against Hazaei king of Syria, 
 and related that it was in the eighteenth year of Shal- 9 *t 
 $ *° maneserwhen he received the tribute from Jehu. 
 
 A short account of this text I published in the 
 " Athena3um," 1866, and being encouraged to pro- 
 ceed in my researches by Sir Henry Eawlinson and 
 Dr. Birch, the keeper of the Oriental department of 
 the British Museum, I next set to work on the 
 cylinders containing the history of Assurbanipal, the 
 Sardanapahis of the Greeks. The annals of this 
 monarch were then in considerable confusion, through 
 the mutilated condition of the records ; but by com- 
 paring the various copies, I soon obtained a fair text 
 of the earlier part of these inscriptions, and Sir Henry 
 Rawlinson proposed that I should be engaged by the 
 trustees of the British Museum to assist him in the 
 work of preparing a new volume of " Cuneiform In- 
 scriptions." Thus, in the beginning of 1867, 1 entered 
 into official life, and regularly prosecuted the study 
 of the cuneiform texts. I owed my first step to Sir 
 Henry Rawlinson, whose assistance has been to me 
 of the greatest value throughout my work. 
 
 My next discovery related to the tablet printed in 
 " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. ii. p. 52, and there 
 called a tablet of distribution of officers. This tablet I 
 
12 
 
 DISCOVERIES 
 
 found to be a canon of Assyrian history, and ascer- 
 tained that the eclipse mentioned in it corresponded 
 with the one in " L'Art de verifier les dates," for 15th 
 June, B.C. 763. On pointing out my evidence to Sir 
 Henry Rawlin son, he rememberedahistoricalfragment 
 which corresponded with this tablet, and by fitting it 
 into the tablet he completed and proved the discovery. 
 
 I now again took up the examination of the annals 
 of Tiglath Pileser, and had the good fortune to find 
 several new fragments of the history of this period, 
 and discovered notices of Azariah king of Judah, 
 Pekah king of Israel, and Hoshea king of Israel. 
 
 In the same year, I found some new portions of 
 the Assyrian canon, one with the name of the Shal- 
 maneser who, according to the Second Book of Kings, 
 attacked Hoshea king of Israel. In 1868, continuing 
 my investigations, I discovered several accounts of an 
 early conquest of Babylonia by the Elamites. This 
 conquest is stated to have happened 1635 years before 
 Assurbanipal's conquest of Elam, or B.C. 2280, which 
 is the earliest date yet found in the inscriptions. 
 
 In the year 1869, I discovered among other things 
 a curious religious calendar of the Assyrians, in which 
 every month is divided into four weeks, and the 
 seventh days, or " Sabbaths," are marked out as days 
 on which no work should be undertaken. 
 
 During 1870, I w^as engaged in preparing for publi- 
 cation my large work on the history of Assurbanipal, 
 in which I gave the cuneiform texts, transcriptions, 
 and translations of the historical documents of this 
 
FROM 18G6 TO 1872. 
 
 13 
 
 important reign. The work, which was very expen- 
 sive, on account of the cuneiform type, was published 
 in 1871, at the cost of Mr. J. W. Bosanquet and 
 Mr. H. Fox Talbot. 
 
 My next discoveries were in the field of early 
 Babylonian history, and these were published in the 
 first volume of the " Transactions of the Society of 
 Biblical Archaeology." 
 
 In 1872, I had the good fortune to make a far 
 more interesting discovery, namely, that of the tablets 
 containing the Chaldean account of the deluge. The 
 first fragment I discovered contained about half of 
 the account ; it was the largest single fragment of 
 these legends. 
 
 As soon as I recognized this, I began a search 
 among the fragments of the Assyrian library to find 
 the remainder of the story. 
 
 This library was first discovered by Mr. Layard, 
 who sent home many boxes full of fragments of terra- 
 cotta tablets, and after the close of Mr. Layard' s 
 work, Mr. Hormuzd Rassam and Mr. Loftus re- 
 covered much more of this collection. The fra£- 
 ments of clay tablets were of all sizes, from half an 
 inch to a foot long, and were thickly coated with 
 dirt, so that they had to be cleaned before anything 
 could be seen on the surface. Whenever I found 
 anything of interest, it was my practice to examine 
 the most likely parts of this collection, and pick out 
 all the fragments that would join, or throw light on 
 the new subject. My search for fragments of the 
 
U DISCOVERIES FROM 18G6 TO 1872. 
 
 Deluge story was soon rewarded by some good finds, 
 and I then ascertained that this tablet, of which I 
 obtained three copies, was the eleventh in a series of 
 tablets giving the history of an unknown hero, named 
 Izdubar; and I subsequently ascertained that this 
 series contained in all twelve tablets. These tablets 
 were full of remarkable interest, and a notice of them 
 being published, they at once attracted a considerable 
 amount of attention, both in England and abroad. I 
 arranged to give the public, as soon as possible, a 
 translation and account of these fragments in a lecture 
 before the Biblical Archaeological Society, and this 
 was delivered on the 3rd of December, 1872. My 
 latest discoveries and completer accounts of these 
 tablets vv r ill be given in my present work. 
 
 In consequence of the wide interest taken at the 
 time in these discoveries, the proprietors of the " Daily 
 Telegraph " newspaper came forward and offered to 
 advance a sum of one thousand guineas for fresh re- 
 searches at Nineveh, in order to recover more of these 
 interesting inscriptions, the terms of agreement being 
 that I should conduct the expedition, and should 
 supply the " Telegraph " from time to time with ac- 
 counts of my journeys and discoveries in the East in 
 return. 
 
Chapter III. 
 
 FROM LONDON TO MOSUL. 
 
 Paris. — Marseilles. — Mediterranean. — Palermo. — Etna. — 
 Syra. — Smyrna. — Alexandretta. — Beilan. — Hotels. — Pass of Bei- 
 lan. — Afrin. — Robber. — Aleppo. — Turkish holiday. — Euphrates. 
 — Tcharmelek. — Orfa. — American missions. — Christians in Tur- 
 key. — Yarenshaher. — River Khabour. — JNTisibin. — Rising of 
 Shammer Arabs. — Lofuk. — Abdul Kareem. — Tellibel — Djezireh. 
 — River Tigris. — Khabour. — Zaccho. — Mule driver. — Nineveh. 
 
 HE offer of the proprietors of the " Daily 
 Telegraph " being accepted by the trus- 
 tees of the British Museum, I received 
 leave of absence for six months and 
 directions to proceed to the East and open excava- 
 tions for the recovery of further cuneiform inscrip- 
 tions. It would have been better to have waited 
 until the next autumn before starting, but I desired 
 that there should be no disappointment to the pro- 
 prietors of the " Daily Telegraph," who had gene- 
 rously offered to pay the expenses, and who naturally 
 wished some letters in return while the subject was 
 fresh in the public mind, so I resolved to start at 
 once, and after receiving much advice and assistance 
 
10 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 from my friend Mr. Edwin Arnold, himself an old 
 Eastern traveller, I got off from London on the 
 evening of the 20th of January, 1873, and crossed 
 the Channel during the night. As the weather was 
 stormy, I paid the usual tribute to Neptune; but 
 reached the French coast in good condition for 
 breakfast. On my way I fell in with an active 
 partizan of the fallen empire, going back to France to 
 try to work a change in political affairs there. This 
 gentleman lightened my journey and amused me 
 very much by his endeavours to whitewash the late 
 French government, and to persuade me to read 
 some recent passages in history through his spec- 
 tacles. 
 
 I rested the next night in Paris, and on the 
 morning of the 22nd went to view the Assyrian 
 collection at the Louvre, some notice of which I sent 
 to the " Telegraph.'' 
 
 It is impossible in a short notice to give a correct 
 description of this admirable collection, w r hich, al- 
 though not of great extent, contains several valuable 
 antiquities, the larger part of which were discovered 
 by M. Botta at Khorsabad, and principally belong to 
 the reio;n of Sar^on, the monarch mentioned bv 
 Isaiah. 
 
 Among the remarkable objects in the Louvre there 
 is a bronze statuette of the time of Kudur-mabuk, an 
 early Elamite king, and a series of metal tablets 
 inscribed with the records of Sargon, which were 
 buried in the foundations of his city in the mound of 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 17 
 
 Khorsabad. After a hasty glance at these and 
 numerous other treasures, I departed in the evening 
 for Marseilles, where I arrived on the afternoon of 
 the 23rd, and at mid-day on the 24th of January I 
 left Marseilles for the East. 
 
 The whole of this part of my journey was new to 
 me, and consequently had a double interest ; but it 
 has been passed over by many travellers and often 
 described before, so I can dismiss it with a short 
 notice. I took passage on one of the steamers of the 
 Messageries Maritimes company, named the " Said." 
 
 Passing out of ' the harbour of Marseilles, I got a 
 good view of the fortifications built for the defence 
 of this port, and looking from an unprofessional 
 point of view, it seemed to me that if they ever came 
 into use some of the fine houses near the sea would 
 be in very .exposed positions ; but it is always diffi- 
 cult to accommodate fortifications to a large and 
 flourishing city. 
 
 There is a desolate, weather- worn appearance about 
 the south coast of France, and an apparent absence 
 of good sites for seaports and harbours; rugged 
 rocks appear everywhere, and although in many 
 places romantic, they appear to be of the same cha- 
 racter all along the shore. Passing along the straits 
 which divide Corsica from Sardinia, some fine 
 scenery presents itself, beautiful rocks, bays, pro- 
 montories, and islands are seen in succession, and 
 among other places, Caprera, the island home of 
 Garibaldi, comes into view. The coast, however, 
 
 c 
 
18 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 still presents the same desolate appearance, and very 
 few boats are seen. 
 
 The captain of the " Said/' M. Girard, was a 
 capital companion on the voyage, and paid the 
 greatest attention to his passengers. I was much 
 indebted to him throughout the journey; he had 
 read of my recent Assyrian discoveries, and when- 
 ever we came to any place likely to interest me, he 
 took me on shore to examinee it. 
 
 On the morning of the 26th we came in sight 
 of Sicily, and entered the bay of Palermo. The 
 weather was now fine, and the appearance of the 
 island beautiful. The city of Palermo is built round 
 the bay, and it is backed by fine sloping mountains, 
 which seemed covered by verdure even at this time 
 of the year. The appearance of the city from the 
 sea is charming, and the bay appears well sheltered, 
 and affords excellent anchorage. Palermo seems to 
 enjoy a fair amount of prosperity ; there was at this 
 time in the bay a good show of foreign shipping, 
 including some British vessels. I went on shore 
 with Captain Girard, and we made our way up the 
 principal street. There are many noble old man- 
 sions, and much on every side to remind one of days 
 gone by. We passed into the cathedral, a fine 
 building evidently the work of different ages, and in 
 it we saw the tombs of the old kings of Sicily. 
 Some of these monuments are very fine, and the 
 interior of the building altogether seemed fitted for 
 the gorgeous ceremonials of the Italian worship. 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 19 
 
 Service was then going on in the cathedral, but the 
 point that seemed most painful to English eyes was 
 the confessional, which was carried out during the 
 service and in the church. Over the principal 
 entrance of the building stood a portrait of Victor 
 Emmanuel. This astonished me very much, on 
 account of the hatred of the Catholic clergy to him. 
 
 Passing out of the cathedral, we went to view a 
 Roman villa which had been excavated and cleared 
 for inspection, being protected all round by an iron 
 rail. The solid thick walls, the mosaic pavements, 
 courtyard, and various rooms and offices, formed a 
 curious picture of the style of this great nation now 
 passed away. Considerable interest appears to be 
 taken in archaeology at Palermo, and other remains 
 have been discovered in the same neighbourhood. 
 Palermo has prospered very much since the forma- 
 tion of the kingdom of Italy, but there still remains 
 round it the curse of brigandage. Passing out of 
 Palermo in the evening, we steamed towards the 
 straits dividing Italy from Sicily. Just before dawn 
 the next morning the captain sent to wake me, and I 
 went on deck to enjoy the lovely view of sunrise 
 over Etna. Night still hung over the landscape, and 
 the lights of iteggio on the Italian shore, and 
 Messina on the Sicilian coast, fringed the sea on 
 either side like rows of stars. Soon after, the first 
 rays of the morning sun tinted the top of Etna with 
 a fiery pink, and the mountain stood out like a giant, 
 towering above all the surrounding hills, clothed in a 
 
 c 2 
 
20 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 mantle of snow, with, a few light, fleecy clouds 
 playing about its summit. Gradually the glow of 
 light crept down the side of Etna, while a dark 
 leaden hue spread over the rest of the scene ; then as 
 the light descended, and peak after peak caught the 
 rays, new effects of light and shade were given, ever 
 varying, but always beautiful. The morning dis- 
 persed the clouds, and put an end to these pleasing 
 views ; but there continued to be ample interest in 
 watching the southern shore of Italy, with its 
 romantic and beautiful scenery. 
 
 Our course now lay towards the Greek archipelago, 
 and on the 28th we passed the bay of Navarino, the 
 scene of the disastrous defeat of the Turkish fleet. 
 A little later we passed a bold rock, jutting out into 
 the sea with steep and lofty sides, having half-way 
 up from the sea a solitary cell, in which resides a 
 hermit who cultivates a patch of sloping ground 
 round his dwelling, but principally subsists on the 
 alms of strangers. Just past his hermitage are seen 
 on a ledge of the rock the remains of a considerable 
 monastery, the ruined arches of which seem almost 
 like fantastic portions of the rocks which back them. 
 The feelings which prompted men to build on these 
 rugged rocks, and to inhabit such lonely and inac- 
 cessible spots, must have been in marked contrast to 
 the spirit of intercourse and activity now so uni- 
 versal. 
 
 Next morning, 29th, we came in sight of Syra, 
 and anchored in front of the town. Syra is the 
 
TO 310 SUL. 
 
 21 
 
 principal port of the Greek archipelago, and is a 
 thriving and important place. It has a large and 
 increasing trade, and appeared to be much frequented 
 by Austrian vessels. The town presents a beautiful 
 appearance from the sea, being situated on the side 
 of a hill facing the harbour, the houses rising one 
 above another until they nearly crown the eminence. 
 
 Many of the buildings are of marble, and look 
 very fine in the distance, while it is a common custom 
 to paint a light tint over the faces of the houses, so 
 that these add to the general effect. 
 
 The main portion of the town is inhabited by 
 Greeks, who profess the faith of the Eastern church, 
 but some of the people are Catholics, and such is the 
 feeling between the two that they have to inhabit 
 different portions of the town, the Catholic quarter 
 lying higher up the hill with a zone of neutral 
 territory to separate it from the Greek town. Even 
 this division does not prevent strife, and the inter- 
 mediate space is sometimes the scene of conflicts be- 
 tween adherents of the two faiths. 
 
 I went on shore with the captain, landing at the 
 base of the rocks to the left of the town. On ap- 
 proaching the shore I found that the appearance of 
 fertility observed from the vessel was deceptive ; the 
 rocks round Syra having a green colour, while the 
 ground is as barren and stony as it can well be. The 
 captain tried some shooting, but only bagged one 
 bird about as large as a sparrow. We now abandoned 
 the field and passed through the tanners' quarter, the 
 
22 ' FROM LONDON 
 
 place of a thriving industry, the appearance of which 
 Avas very curious ; from there we went to the office 
 of the Messageries company, and afterwards visited 
 the theatre and cathedral. The appearance of the 
 public buildings is not so fine on close inspection, as 
 the stone with which they are built is left too rough. 
 
 The Greeks of Syra, and in fact of most other 
 places, are large, strongly-made people, but they 
 have not the symmetry of form and classical features 
 of the Greeks of antiquity ; they are active and enter- 
 prising, and are taking the lead all over the East. 
 
 In the afternoon we left Syr a, and next morning 
 anchored in front of the town of Smyrna. I had now 
 arrived in the Turkish dominions, and Smyrna was 
 the first town I saw in Asia. 
 
 On reaching the deck in the morning I was sur- 
 rounded by a number of Greeks, touts for the different 
 hotels ; these men pressed their services upon me, 
 offering to show me everything, from the temple of 
 Diana to the bazaars of Smyrna. I declined their 
 aid, and with some little difficulty got rid of them, 
 but I was followed by one gentleman who thought 
 me rather green ; he informed me that the others 
 were all cheats, advised me not to have anything to 
 do with them, and wound up by hoping I would go 
 ashore in l^is boat. I thanked him for his informa- 
 tion, and told him that when I wanted to go on shore 
 I could find a boat, and so I sent off the last of my 
 persecutors. Later in the day I went on shore with 
 the captain, and we no sooner touched the land than 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 23 
 
 we were followed by two men who wanted to show 
 us over the town ; one of these, an old Jew, followed 
 us all the time, and did all he could to induce us to 
 make purchases at the various shops. We passed 
 along the principal streets and through the bazaars ; 
 all the thoroughfares were very narrow, and crowded 
 with various animals and people carrying packages : 
 it was difficult to pick our way among these crowds, 
 which distracted our attention from the shops and 
 goods. All sorts of things were exposed for sale, 
 including antiquities, arms, uniforms, and Eastern 
 dresses. Here and there were Eastern refreshment 
 houses, where natives were cooking dirty-looking 
 messes ; one of these dishes appeared to me particu- 
 larly repulsive, it consisted of small portions of meat 
 and intestines of kids strung on skewers like cat's 
 meat, and roasted before a charcoal fire. This dainty 
 appeared in particular request, and the sellers were 
 calling aloud to the passers-by not to miss the oppor- 
 tunity of trying it, as it was then in perfection. In 
 the market-place we saw a number of natives getting 
 up a fight between some turkeys and a cock, and they 
 seemed to enjoy it immensely. Next day we went to 
 Caravan Street, the spot from which all the caravans 
 start for the interior of Asia. This road was in a 
 worse state than any of the others, and if possible 
 more crowded ; it was nothing but one long mud- 
 pudding, through which continually passed strings of 
 camels in each direction, every caravan being led by 
 a donkey, which carried the. personal effects of the 
 
FROM LONDON 
 
 owner. Smyrna itself is a town of very mixed 
 appearance, half European and half Asiatic; the 
 inhabitants do not appear to be very favourable spe- 
 cimens ; a well-known Oriental traveller has described 
 the place as containing the rag-tag of Europe and the 
 bob-tail of Asia. The commerce of the city is con- 
 siderable, but the water grows shallower every year, 
 and the port is gradually silting up. 
 
 At Smyrna we had several new passengers bound 
 for the same port as myself, Alexandretta. "We also 
 took on board a number of Asiatics going on pil- 
 grimage ; they travelled fourth class, living on the 
 deck at the fore part of the vessel : they were exceed- 
 ingly devout and equally filtlry, and from the time 
 they took possession we avoided that part of the 
 vessel. 
 
 On the 1st of February we arrived at Rhodes, and 
 again landed to inspect the town. There are some 
 curious old cannon in the fort, and many buildings 
 worth visiting. Among other places we looked into 
 one of the mosques ; some of the faithful were de- 
 voutly engaged in worship within the building, and 
 their shoes, which they had taken off according to 
 Oriental custom, stood at the porch. I could not 
 avoid the reflection that in our own highly-favoured 
 country those boots would not have remained long at 
 the door. 
 
 Next day we passed along the southern coast of 
 Asia Minor, here called Caramania. This coast is 
 bold and rocky in the extreme, and there did not 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 25 
 
 appear to be either shelter or port over the whole 
 distance. At one spot there stood the ruins of a 
 large town, walls, houses, aqueducts, and other 
 structures covered the whole space, and some parts 
 seemed as if only abandoned yesterday; the whole 
 scene, however, was utterly desolate, not a human 
 being or sign of cultivation being visible. 
 
 On the 3rd we arrived at Mersina, a small port 
 doing a great amount of trade, the goods being 
 brought from the interior on camels. The appear- 
 ance of Mersina is very unfavourable, and the town 
 is unhealthy, there being always a great amount of 
 fever. The port is not sheltered, and in rough 
 weather landing is difficult. From Mersina we 
 steamed to Alexandretta, the port to which I was 
 bound ; and bidding farewell to Captain Girard, I 
 went on shore in company with Mr. Forbes, an 
 English merchant, aud we called on Mr. Franck, the 
 British consul. 
 
 The consul and Madame Franck received us very 
 kindly, and we stayed and lunched with them before 
 starting. Mr. Franck at once assisted me to get a 
 servant, and Mrs. Franck packed up some useful 
 things for the road. I remained some hours at 
 Alexandretta while preparations were made for the 
 journey, and was able to examine the place. 
 
 Alexandretta is the finest port on the Syrian 
 coast ; the bay is well sheltered and the anchorage 
 good ; the place seems shut in by mountains, and on 
 a broad spit of sand lying along the water at the 
 
2G 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 foot of the mountains the town is built. The 
 scenery round is beautiful, and the position is 
 suitable for building a large port, but Alexandretta 
 is only a small place, badly built and unhealthy. 
 The commerce of the place is considerable, and all 
 goods, to go overland to Aleppo or Baghdad, pass 
 through here. 
 
 I landed at Alexandretta on the 4th of February, 
 and the same day in the afternoon started for Mosul. 
 After passing along the level ground for a little 
 distance, we began to ascend the mountains, which 
 looked so picturesque from Alexandretta. The road 
 here is very fair for Turkey, and the scenery beauti- 
 ful. As I was new to this travelling, it took us 
 three hours to get from Alexandretta to the first 
 station, Beilan. I was accompanied by two of my 
 fellow-passengers in the " Said," Mr. Forbes and Mr. 
 Kerr. Mr. Forbes was on a pleasure trip into the 
 interior, and Mr. Kerr was going to Aleppo on busi- 
 ness. Arriving in the evening at Beilan, we looked 
 for accommodation, and first turned to a new khan 
 just building ; only the skeleton of this place was up, 
 and it did not appear sufficient for our purposes, so 
 we went further on to the residence of one named 
 Yakub, who kept what he was pleased to call the 
 " hotel" of Beilan. This place consisted simply of 
 rough wooden rooms and benches, with a strong 
 suspicion of vermin. Mr. Forbes, an experienced 
 traveller, declared he smelt bugs and fleas, not to 
 mention other things, and mounting again, he rode 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 27 
 
 back to the khan, choosing the insufficient shelter in 
 preference to the small company. 
 
 Mr. Kerr and I resolved to stay and try it, and 
 Mr. Forbes called on us a little later to dine. Our 
 hotel had no windows, holes in the wall served that 
 purpose, and the boards or logs of the floor were 
 placed so wide apart that there seemed some danger 
 of slipping down into the next apartment ; a bench 
 served as table, the guests brought their own 
 cutlery, &c, and dispensed with tablecloths as a 
 useless luxury. The single course consisted of a 
 tough fowl that might have remembered the Assyrian 
 empire. After our rich repast, Yakub, the pro- 
 prietor, brought to us a book, in which his various 
 visitors had written their experience of his place. 
 Yakub, who could not read, thought that these 
 entries were all praise, and begged us to add some 
 notice of our satisfaction to the collection. We took 
 the book and looked it through ; it was full of the 
 richest and most appropriate remarks about the 
 " hotel : " one discoursed about the age of the fowls, 
 another about the vermin ; others gave cautions to 
 the travellers who might come after ; one advised his 
 successors not to fall through the holes in the floor, as 
 they would be astonished at the appearance of the 
 apartment below, another wrote that the place was 
 comfortable, and the holes in the floor " very con- 
 venient." After inserting some remarks in this 
 book, Mr. Forbes left, and Mr. Kerr and myself 
 commenced a battle with the fleas; ultimately our 
 
28 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 weariness got the better of us, and we fell asleep. 
 I awoke in the night and found a heavy storm was 
 raging, which bid fair to spoil our next day's travel- 
 ling. Next day Mr. Forbes went on to Antioch, and 
 Mr. Kerr and I rode through the Beilan pass. 
 Beilan itself is romantically situated in the gorge of 
 the pass, the houses being built up the mountains on 
 each side. There are beautiful springs and streams 
 of water, and the rocks in some places are covered 
 with maiden-hair. The pass of Beilan is the only 
 road from Alexandretta to the interior, and if a rail- 
 way is ever constructed in this part of the world, 
 this pass is the only place which will present any 
 great engineering difficulty. The local traffic in the 
 interior of Asiatic Turkey is, however, so small, 
 that a railway could only pay the contractors, and it 
 would take many years before any internal traffic 
 could be developed. The storm which had happened 
 in the night had made the pass slippery and difficult 
 to travel over, and I was glad after riding through 
 it to rest at the coffee station of Delebekir. This 
 station is situated near where the pass opens on the 
 plain of Antioch; on the right lies the lake of 
 Antioch, a large sheet of water with swampy sides, 
 which sometimes extends over a considerable part of 
 the plain. 
 
 The resting place at Delebekir is a hut of the 
 rudest description, and here we sat a few minutes to 
 partake of Turkish coffee before going on the next 
 stage of the journey. Our road now lay across an 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 20 
 
 extensive plain, through which wanders the river 
 Kara Su, a tributary of the Orontes, a broad, shallow, 
 sluggish stream. The whole plain is wild and deso- 
 late, overgrown with rushes and wild plants, but 
 capable of a high degree of cultivation. Across the 
 swampy parts were ruined causeways and ancient 
 bridges, all in a state of dilapidation very characteristic 
 of Turkey. In the evening we came to Ain Bada, a 
 station where the plain is broken by ranges of hills. 
 Here we put up at the khan, and shared its accom- 
 modation with a number of native travellers going 
 between Alexandretta and Aleppo. The khan was 
 as usual a rough building of stones and mud thatched 
 over to keep out the rain. The ground formed the 
 floor, a slight depression in the middle made a place 
 for a fire, and round the sides was a rough platform 
 of boards to sleep upon. We sat on this platform, 
 smoking and drinking coffee, and watching with 
 amusement the native travellers. These gentlemen 
 appeared to have been playing some game of chance 
 and quarrelled over it ; they broke out into bad 
 language and called each other cheats, the matter 
 ending in a fight. The Arabs pulled and tugged 
 each other all about the place, and presently laying 
 hold of one of their number, pushed him by general 
 consent out of xlie khan. We now had peace, and soon 
 made ourselves comfortable for the night, and early 
 in the morning started again on our w^ay. The road 
 from Ain Bada passes through a wild and more 
 rugged country, intersected by sterile mountains, on 
 
30 
 
 FRO 31 LONDON 
 
 which a few goats only find subsistence ; it is broken 
 about the middle by a plain really part of the plain of 
 Antioch, through which here runs the river Afrin, 
 also a tributary of the Orontes. At Afrin we rested 
 to have our mid-day meal, and here we heard of the 
 exploits of a famous robber who was at large in the 
 district. This man had been one of the irregular 
 soldiers in the Turkish army, but afterwards had 
 abandoned the service and taken to the road. He 
 had carried on his depredations for some years, and 
 with all their efforts the authorities had failed to 
 capture him. A reward was now offered for his 
 capture, but had as yet produced no result. This 
 man was guilty of no cruelty in his robberies, and 
 through a little generosity to some of the villagers 
 he secured himself friends and hiding-places when 
 the agents of the government were after him. A 
 •little while before I arrived there, he had plundered 
 the station of Afrin. Coming in the night with a 
 band of followers, he hammered at the door and 
 called out that they were travellers who had lost 
 their way, and begged shelter until the morning. On 
 the owner opening the door, he was seized and 
 bound, while the robbers ransacked the place and 
 carried off everything but an old clock. While we 
 were at Afrin a party of Turkish irregulars arrived, 
 and the officer in charge of the detachment imme- 
 diately inquired my business in the country ; but 
 without waiting for an answer, he showed his pene- 
 tration by saying, " Oh, I know, you are come to 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 31 
 
 survey the country for a railroad." Leaving Afrin, 
 we journeyed to Termanin, where we put up for the 
 night. Here we lodged at a private house, and were 
 more comfortable than we had yet been. I saw little 
 of the place, but the country seemed to consist of 
 rich plains, crossed and broken here and there by 
 barren, stony mountains. On the morning of the 
 7th of February we started early from Termanin, 
 and rode to Aleppo. The road was rough and hilly, 
 and this part of the country lies a considerable 
 height above the sea. Outside the city we were met 
 by M. Costi, a friend of Mr. Kerr, and we put up 
 at an apology for an hotel, called the " locanda." 
 Aleppo is a fine city, and is said to have nearly half a 
 million of inhabitants. It has a noble castle, and is 
 surrounded by fortifications. All the best of the 
 city is Saracenic in its architecture, and the castle 
 and walls are now partly in ruins. The streets are 
 narrow, and paved with small slippery stones ; the 
 houses are very fair for an Eastern town, and there 
 are many public buildings. 
 
 In the evening, Mr. Kerr and I paid a visit to M. 
 Costi, who lived in the Christian quarter of the town. 
 It was late at night when Ave returned to the locanda, 
 and, as there are no lights in the streets of these 
 Eastern cities, Ave Avere escorted home by a man 
 bearing a large Oriental lantern. 
 
 Next morning, I called on Mr. Skene, our consul 
 at Aleppo. He received me in a most friendly 
 manner, and offered me every assistance in his poAver. 
 
82 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 I was afterwards continually indebted to his good 
 offices while in the Turkish territory. 
 
 It was now the Turkish festival of Korban Bairam, 
 and all business was suspended, so I could not move 
 from Aleppo ; and being obliged to stay, I wandered 
 round the city to see the festival. Everybody was 
 out, and all seemed enjoying themselves in a very 
 childish fashion, grave, bearded men taking turns in 
 swings like so many boys at a fair. On Sunday we 
 rode out to see the public gardens, which are very 
 good : they were established by a former pacha, but 
 have been for some time neglected, as his successors, 
 being pious Moslems, and consequently bigoted and 
 ignorant, do not understand the use of such places. 
 
 On the 11th, I completed my arrangements, and 
 started on the 12th of February for Mosul. A Swiss 
 gentleman, travelling on business to the same place, 
 asked leave to accompany my caravan, and we started 
 together from Aleppo about mid-day, arriving in the 
 evening at Tel Karamel, where we put up with the 
 chief of the village. We were installed in a large 
 building, divided by mud partitions into four or five 
 parts, in one of which was a raised place, which was 
 assigned to us. Into the rest of the building they 
 brought our mules and all their own cattle. As soon as 
 we were settled, a crowd of natives came in, and stood 
 all round us, to observe our manners and customs ; 
 such was the curiosity of these people that they did 
 not separate until they had seen us go to bed. 
 
 Next morning we rode to the village of Bcglabeg, 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 and, on the 14th, from Beglabeg to Muzar. On the 
 15th of February, we started early in the morning, 
 and after a ride of about three hours came in sight 
 of the river Euphrates. As I looked on this noble 
 stream, called in ancient days the Great River, 
 thoughts of the mighty empires and powerful 
 monarchs once ruling beside its waters passed 
 through my mind. The river is worthy of its 
 associations : it is a broad, powerful stream, grand 
 even now in its neglected condition. 
 
 We arrived at the river opposite the town of 
 Biradjik, and, crossing in one of the ferry-boats, 
 made our way along the narrow, crooked streets to 
 the khan. When I started from Aleppo, I intended 
 to ride to Diarbekr, and take a raffc from there to 
 Mosul ; I consequently engaged my caravan to go to 
 Diarbekr. I now asked my mule-driver to go to 
 Mosul, but he refused : he was a native of Baghdad, 
 and wanted to go to that town, and Mosul was 200 
 miles nearer to his home than Diarbekr, so that it was 
 to his advantage to go to Mosul ; but he saw that I 
 desired to change the route, and resolved to make as 
 much money as possible out of the circumstances. 
 
 Finding I could do nothing with him, I took him 
 to the court. The court-house was like a fair Eastern 
 dwelling. On reaching it, we were ushered through 
 the door into an open court, surrounded by a balcony ; 
 and ascending to the balcony by a flight of steps, we 
 were admitted into the police-court, or judgment 
 hall. The method of proceeding here is very com- 
 
 D 
 
84 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 fortable, and the officials were very polite. All sat 
 round the room on cushions, as is the custom in the 
 East, and coffee and cigarettes were passed round 
 before entering upon business. After some little 
 difficulty an agreement was made with the driver, 
 and we prepared to start next morning. Biradjik, 
 the town at which I was staying, is more substantially 
 built than most Eastern towns ; a light, soft stone, 
 apparently half chalk, half limestone, serves for many 
 of the structures. The town is situated on an uneven 
 elevation of this stone, just at the edge of the 
 Euphrates ; it is a station of some importance, and 
 possesses a large ruined castle, which is very curious. 
 Biradjik is probably the Tul-barsip of the Assyrian 
 inscriptions, which was added to the Assyrian empire 
 B.C. 856. 
 
 On the 16th of February, I started from Biradjik, 
 and travelled to Tcharmelek. Tcharmelek is a curi- 
 ous-looking village, and its dome-shaped dwellings 
 strikingly resemble some of the pictures of villages 
 in the Assyrian sculptures. On finding an apartment 
 here, the natives crowded round us as they did at 
 Tel Karamel. But there was a sound of rude music 
 in the distance, which, they said, proceeded from a 
 wedding company, so, after seeing us into bed, the 
 natives turned off to see as much as they could of the 
 bride and bridegroom. On the 17th, we rode to 
 Orfa. The road from Tcharmelek to Orfa gradually 
 becomes rougher and more rocky as you proceed, and 
 in the latter part is artificial, being carried along the 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 35 
 
 side of a mountain gorge. On emerging from this 
 gorge, a wide fertile plain is seen extending for many 
 miles, and almost entirely surrounded by mountains. 
 Just by the gorge, Orfa is situated, partly built on 
 the plain, and partly up the face of a hill. It is a very 
 old town, with some relics of various ages : there are 
 buildings of the Roman and Saracenic time, inscrip- 
 tions in Greek, Pehlevi, and Arabic, and many curious 
 tombs cut in the rock. I called on Pastor Hagub, of 
 the American mission, and from him received a kind 
 welcome. He gave me some details of the noble work 
 now being accomplished by the American missiona- 
 ries in these countries, and of the difficulties which 
 they met with. People in England and America, 
 who read every now and then in the papers that the 
 Grand Vizier has issued an order for the protection 
 of liberty of conscience, and conceding justice to the 
 Christians, little know the useless character of such an- 
 nouncements. The grinding tyranny under which the 
 Christians suffer, and the defiance of all solemn pro- 
 mises in places beyond the notice of the representa- 
 tives of European powers, clearly show the nature of 
 the Moslem rule. It is an astonishing fact that a 
 Christian country like England upholds the Porte, 
 and yet does not insist on justice being done to the 
 Christians in Turkey. No end of promises are given, 
 but any one conversant with Turkey knows the dis- 
 tance between promise and performance. Probably it 
 is not generally known in England and America that 
 no Mahometan in Asia dare turn Christian. Until 
 
 d 2 
 
36 
 
 FE03I LONDON 
 
 this state of affairs is altered, missions in Asiatic 
 Turkey will not produce the fruit they ought. 
 
 After bidding farewell to Pastor Hagub, I made 
 ready to leave Orfa on the 18th, but the weather was 
 so stormy that it was some time before I could get 
 off. A Turkish gentleman, who had come to Alexan- 
 dretta in the same vessel as myself, had travelled up 
 the country nearly at the same time, and was now at 
 Orfa. He started on the 18th to go on farther, but 
 got wet through in the storm, and turned back. 1 
 tried to persuade him to start again with me, but he 
 would not venture. I went off about mid-day, the 
 storm having subsided. The road was in an awful 
 condition through the rain, and resembled a mud- 
 pudding ; and we had not gone far before we came 
 near a camel lying down in the path. Just before 
 we reached it, the camel suddenly got up, and our 
 animals taking fright started off ; mine carried me 
 half across a field, when I managed to pull it up. 
 My Swiss companion was not so fortunate ; he rode a 
 mule, and this creature at once threw him. He dropped 
 into the mud-pudding, and arose painted from head 
 to foot. After this little misfortune, we managed to 
 reach Adana without farther adventure. Round 
 Adana, and in the region beyond it, snow had been 
 falling, and we could see the mountains in front 
 covered with it. The house we put up in at Adana 
 had one curiosity — its door was formed of an ancient 
 threshing-machine. This was a large frame of wood, 
 in which were fixed hundreds of small worked flints, 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 37 
 
 similar to those which, are found in prehistoric de- 
 posits. The use of such an instrument shows the 
 small amount of change produced by thousands of 
 years in the East. 
 
 Leaving Adana we rode over part of the mountain 
 range of Karajah Dagh, which was covered with 
 snow and bitterly cold, and obtained a very indiffer- 
 ent shelter at Dashlook. The chief of Dashlook is 
 much under the influence of his wife, who has more 
 power than women usually possess in the East. This 
 lady, who is a confirmed smoker, begged some to- 
 bacco from us, which I readily presented to her, as 
 she was a hospitable hostess. 
 
 On the 20th we rode to Tel Gauran, or Telligori, 
 where we had again a kind reception, and starting 
 from there early in the morning, arrived in the 
 middle of the day at Varenshaher. Varenshaher is 
 a poor village situated in the midst of the ruins of a 
 fine Roman town ; it serves as a government station 
 between Orfa and Nisibin. Here we changed our 
 guides, and I then went on to an encampment which 
 they called Engerlu. This part of the country is 
 very curious ; the soil is throughout a rich red earth, 
 and the country is nearly level from the Karajah 
 Dagh and Mardin mountains on the north, to the 
 Hamma and Sinjar hills on the south ; but all along 
 the northern part the ground is covered by fragments 
 of scored weatherbeaten rock, thicker near the moun- 
 tains and gradually becoming less numerous farther 
 south ; as a general rule, wherever a hill stands up 
 
38 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 in tlie plain the hill is covered with these boulders, 
 even where there are few or none on the plain. The 
 mountains north of this plain give rise to a consider- 
 able number of small streams, which unite lower 
 down to form the river Khabour. On the 22nd we 
 arrived at one of the principal branches of this river ; 
 we found it difficult to cross, as we had lost the 
 road to the ford, and the whole country is so desolate 
 that we found no one of whom to inquire. The 
 banks of this stream were very beautiful ; it had cut 
 out a deep valley, passing through the top soil and a 
 stratum of rock similar in appearance to the Mardin 
 mountains ; at the bottom of this cutting it was 
 flowing then, a beautiful stream swollen by the winter 
 rains. We contrived to descend this gully, and then 
 forded the stream, and as we climbed up the face of 
 the rocks on the other side we startled a pair of 
 eagles which had made their nest in the rock. 
 
 Soon after we found again the road to Nisibin, and 
 came in sight of the towers of Dinasar, which are 
 visible for many miles. I endeavoured to reach the 
 place, but at sunset found myself still many miles 
 away. The evening was beautiful, and the setting 
 sun threw splendid tints on to the Mardin mountains 
 to the north ; lovely colours which we seldom see off 
 the painter's canvas played about these peaks, and I 
 was so taken by the beautiful scene that I lingered 
 to look at it until the sun went down. Darkness 
 now setting in I lost my way, but was fortunately 
 found by one of my guides, and after some difficulty 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 39 
 
 we reached tlie village of Aburumeha. The inhabi- 
 tants of this place were Christians, but they showed 
 no hospitality, and at first refused to receive me. I 
 could not, however, go on in the night, so I compelled 
 them to give me a shelter, and in the morning started 
 for Nisibin. 
 
 I tried hard to reach Nisibin, but the animals were 
 too jaded, and I had to be content to put up at Kasr 
 Serjan and start again for Nisibin on the 24th. Early 
 in the day we arrived at this town. Nisibin was 
 once a considerable place, but is now a poor town 
 very little better than a village, it was a large Assy- 
 rian city, the seat of one of the governors, who took 
 rank as an eponym, and there are extensive mounds 
 and ruins attesting its former prosperity. I left 
 Nisibin the same day, and travelled on to the Chris- 
 tian village of Kobuk. This village and many of the 
 places round were plundered by the Arabs ir the 
 last Shammer war. The circumstances of this affair, 
 as I heard them in the country, were as follows. 
 
 One great interest of the works of Layard consists 
 in the splendid description he gives of the various 
 Arab tribes he met during his travels. Layard re- 
 lates how Sof uk, chief of the great tribe of Shammer, 
 applied to the pacha of Baghdad for a body of 
 Turkish troops to assist him in subduing some tribes 
 who had thrown off their allegiance to him. The 
 governor of Baghdad pretended to agree to this, and 
 sent a detachment of soldiers ; but when the Arab 
 chief trusted himself to them, they murdered him and 
 
40 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 sent his head as a trophy to Baghdad. After this 
 his son Ferhan became chief of the Shammer, and 
 being of a pacific disposition, submitted to the Turk- 
 ish government ; but Ferhan had a brother, named 
 Abdul Kareem, of more independent spirit, and great 
 influence among the Arabs. The Turkish governors 
 were anxious to break the power of the Shammer, 
 and I was told that one of them tempted Abdul 
 Kareem to a rising against the Turks. Abdul Kareem 
 took the bait, and broke out into rebellion, a consi- 
 derable number of the tribes following his standard. 
 The Turks had drafted into this region a considerate 
 number of Circassian emigrants who had taken service 
 in the Turkish irregular forces, and Abdul Kareem 
 endeavoured to persuade them to revolt and join 
 him ; they, however, stood firm, and formed excellent 
 auxiliaries to the Turkish army. The Arabs, under 
 Abdul Kareem, spread themselves over the country 
 and plundered as far as the Mardin mountains, but 
 they were ultimately defeated in a battle by the 
 Tigris, and many of them driven into the river. 
 Abdul Kareem escaped from the slaughter and re- 
 mained at large for a little time, but the Turks tempted 
 one of his friends, the chief of the tribe of Mentafice, 
 and he invited Abdul Kareem to a banquet, at which 
 the Turkish soldiers, being in ambush, captured the 
 Shammer chief and sent him to Baghdad. Abdul 
 Kareem was tried at Baghdad, but the court could 
 not decide on his guilt in the matter, so he was ordered 
 to be sent to Constantinople for his case to be judged ; 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 41 
 
 but when he arrived at Mosul, the Turkish govern- 
 ment sent orders to hang him without farther trial, 
 and the execution took place on the bridge of Mosul. 
 It is of course necessary to keep under the Arab 
 tribes, but every well-wisher to Turkey must desire 
 that this should be accomplished without treachery 
 and bad faith. 
 
 From Kobuk I travelled on the 25th to Tellibel ; 
 the whole road gave signs of cultivation and there 
 were many villages, but the travelling was very 
 tedious. At Tellibel our accommodation was bad ; 
 we received a little room in the interior of a house, 
 with only one hole situated in the roof for ventilation 
 and letting out the smoke. The place ' was very 
 stuffy, and yet the natives crowded in to see us, ^nd 
 we were forced to clear them out of the room before 
 we could do anything. In the night I was awakened 
 by hearing somebody lashing about with a riding- 
 whip ; and calling out to ask what was the matter, 
 my companion told me that a cat trying to descend 
 from the hole in the roof had fallen on to him and 
 woke him up ; he took hold of his whip and laid 
 about him, but as it was dark I think puss escaped. 
 
 Next morning we started for Djezireh over an 
 undulating country crossed by deep ravines; the 
 country gradually became more interesting as we 
 neared the Tigris, and for a considerable part of the 
 day we enjoyed a view of the Jebel Djudi range of 
 mountains, which lay beyond Djezireh. These moun- 
 tains were half covered with snow, and the contrast 
 
42 
 
 FROM LONDOX 
 
 between the pure white of the snow and the black 
 rock of the mountain range was remarkable. The 
 whole of the country which we had traversed from 
 the Euphrates was a vast table-land, and on gaining 
 sight of the Tigris we saw that the stream ran at the 
 bottom of an enormous valley or cutting worn out of 
 this table-land by the action of the water. "We de- 
 scended by a precipitous path to the side of a smaller 
 cutting, at the bottom of which flowed a tributary of 
 the Tigris. The appearance of this cutting was 
 curious. All the upper rocks, here and for a consider- 
 able distance along the Tigris, consist of a mixture of 
 gravel stones and large pebbles cemented together 
 like a pudding. The sides of the valleys were cut by 
 the action of the water into steep, upright faces, and 
 in some places the cliffs were undermined. Enormous 
 masses of the upper strata had become detached, and 
 some had fallen into the valley below and into the 
 rivers, others, catching on projecting ledges, stood as 
 if ready to fall ; in their fantastic shapes and curious 
 positions they looked as if some giants had been there 
 at play. 
 
 Crossing the tributary of the Tigris, I entered the 
 town of Djezireh, situated on the right bank of the 
 Tigris. When I was at Aleppo, I heard that there 
 was a revolt at Djezireh, and that, a Turkish force had 
 been sent to quell it, which had been accomplished 
 with considerable bloodshed. I gained no satisfac- 
 tory information how far these statements were true, 
 but I was advised by some timid people not to go to 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 43 
 
 the town. Djezireh, when I reached it, was quiet 
 enough ; it was in possession of a large military force, 
 and soldiers appeared everywhere. Djezireh is a 
 miserable-looking town, its inhabitants are Kurds, 
 and are a rough, savage-looking race ; but the posi- 
 tion of the town is very fine, and the scene on every 
 side one of varied beauty. Rocks, streams, and 
 mountains surround it, and in front flows the majestic 
 Tigris, beyond which lies Jebel Djudi, with its dark, 
 precipitous peaks. The town, however, lies too low, 
 and is so shut in that it is not healthy. 
 
 At Djezireh, I saw a madman wandering about the 
 streets perfectly naked, and we were here annoyed 
 by some dancing boys, a race of professionals peculiar 
 to Turkey. In the night, some of the Turkish 
 soldiers turned our horses out of the stalls, and 
 carried off some of the horse gear. My Swiss com- 
 panion was unluckily the principal sufferer in this 
 robbery ; he had all along had great difficulty with 
 his animal, which sometimes caused considerable fun 
 by the pranks it played him, and now, having lost his 
 stirrups, he was still worse off. 
 
 On the 27th we left Djezireh; but I had not got 
 used to the native food, and was unwell in conse- 
 quence, so when we reached Naharwan I halted my 
 party and rested until the morning. 
 
 On the 28th we left Naharwan and rode along by 
 the river Khabour. We first forded the Hazel, a 
 tributary falling into the Khabour from the north, 
 and then a little later we forded the Khabour. Both 
 
44 
 
 FROM LONDON 
 
 these streams are wide, powerful bodies of water, and 
 are always forded with difficulty. After crossing the 
 Khabour, we travelled along the south bank of the 
 river until we reached Zaccho, a compact little town, 
 well posted on an island in the middle of the Kha- 
 bour, and connected with the south by a bridge across 
 one arm of the river. There is a strong castle in 
 Zaccho, once held by a Kurdish chief, of whose 
 murder by a Turkish soldier Layard gives an account 
 in his work. It was Friday when I arrived at Zaccho, 
 and the Mahometan priest was calling out his prayers 
 from the top of the minaret. I noticed then and at 
 other times that, bitterly fanatical as the Mahome- 
 tans are, their public and private prayers are a 
 mockery, for which they have no real respect, 
 although they seldom neglect them. 
 
 I saw that many of the women of Zaccho were 
 bathing in the Khabour, and sitting in the sun on 
 the bank to dry themselves, quite regardless of 
 passers-by. Having made some purchases in Zaccho, 
 I started after dinner to go through the Zaccho pass, 
 a romantic passage across the mountain range of 
 Jebel Abjad, and on reaching the southern side of 
 the range, emerged on the wide plains of Assyria. 
 That night I put up at Assi, a village just through 
 the pass, and on the next morning went on to Tel 
 Addas. My mule-driver had been very troublesome 
 all the way, and kept declaring that the animals were 
 over-driven, especially one mule, which he said was 
 worth " khamseen lira," or fifty pounds. On reach- 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 45 
 
 ing Tel Addas, lie declared they were being killed, 
 and charged me to complete the cruel work by driving 
 them at once to Mosul. I said certainly, if he wished 
 it, and ordered my horse to be saddled again ; but 
 when he saw I was in earnest, he begged to stay 
 there that night. He then quarrelled with his assis- 
 tant, and with the villagers, and they took him out- 
 side, and gave him a sound thrashing. "When under- 
 going this punishment, he kept calling out in most 
 submissive tones to my people to come and help him ; 
 we thought, however, that the lesson would do him 
 good. 
 
 Next day (2nd of March) I started before sunrise, 
 and arrived about nine in the morning at the ruins 
 of Nineveh. I cannot well describe the pleasure with 
 which I came in sight of this memorable city, the 
 object of so many of my thoughts and hopes. My 
 satisfaction was all the greater as I thought that my 
 journeys were over, and I had only to set to work in 
 order to disinter the treasures I was seeking. 
 
Chapter IV. 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 Mosul. — The serai. — Turkish pacha. — French consul. — Inscrip- 
 tion of Vul-nirari. — Eaft. — Nimroud. — Kalah Shergat. — Rocks 
 and cave. — Tekrit. — Baghdad. — Col. Herbert. — Babylon. — Ba- 
 bel. — Extent of walls. — Kasr. — Hanging gardens. — Birs Nimrud. 
 — Seven stages of tower. — Ruin of Babylon. — Hymer. — Tel Ibra- 
 him. — Cutha. — Arab encampment. — Boad to Mosul. — Ervil. — 
 The Zab— The Ghazr.— Ferry. 
 
 N arriving at the ruins of Nineveh, I 
 resolved to examine them before going 
 into Mosul ; but I only went over the 
 northern part, and had to leave the 
 other portions for the afternoon and subsequent, 
 visits. 
 
 On the 3rd of March I called at the serai, or 
 government house, which lies outside the city of 
 Mosul, towards the south. The serai is a square 
 building of two storeys, built round a courtyard, one 
 face overlooking the river Tigris. Here I paid my 
 respects to the governor, Abdi Effendi, who had 
 just arrived in Mosul. When staying in Aleppo, 
 Mr. Skene, the British consul, had given me letters of 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 47 
 
 introduction to Shibli Pacha, or Shimli Pacha, 
 governor of Mosul ; and, before writing, Mr. Skene 
 carefully looked in the published lists, to see if the 
 pacha was still at Mosul, as Eastern governors are 
 continually changed. Shibli, however, was deposed 
 before I reached Mosul, and Abdi Effendi appointed 
 in his place. In illustration of the ruinous manner in 
 which these countries are governed, I may mention 
 that there have been nineteen pachas at Aleppo in 
 the last seventeen years. When I called on the 
 governor of Mosul, I asked for guides to accompany 
 me to Kalah Shergat, as I wished to visit that site. 
 Abdi Effendi at once stated that he had received 
 orders from Baghdad not to allow any one to inspect 
 the sites and ruins in his district, and not to allow any 
 collection of antiquities to be obtained. I told him 
 that I knew I could not excavate without a firman, 
 but I now only wished to see the sites, and he might 
 send an agent with me to watch that I did not move 
 anything. The pacha was, however, quite unreason- 
 able about the matter, and declared that he must 
 prevent me looking even at the mounds. I could 
 not agree with this doctrine, and as we had no repre- 
 sentative at Mosul, I called on the French consul, to 
 ask his advice on the matter. The French consul 
 had in his possession at this time a fine stone tablet 
 from Kalah Shergat, which he showed me, and he 
 asked me what the inscription was about. I examined 
 it, and told him that it was a record of Vul-nirari I., 
 king of Assyria, B.C. 1320, and as I desired to obtain 
 
48 
 
 VISIT TO BABYIONIA. 
 
 all the Assyrian antiquities I could get, I arranged 
 to purchase the stone of him. 
 
 On the next day I went over the water and ex- 
 amined the mounds of Mneveh again, and telegraphed 
 to England to know if the firman was yet granted 
 for excavating. As I obtained no satisfactory in- 
 formation I resolved to go to Baghdad, and the river 
 Tigris being now in flood I directed a raft to be 
 constructed to float down the river. The raft was 
 composed of skins inflated with air and fastened to 
 a frame of rough logs ; on one part of this frame a 
 rough shelter was raised and covered over with some 
 matting ; this shelter formed a sort of house in which 
 we slept on the journey. 
 
 On the afternoon of the 7th I committed myself to 
 this wretched craft and commenced to descend the 
 river. As Ave floated down the Tigris from Mosul 
 the gigantic mounds of Kouyunjik and Nebbi Yunas, 
 with the ruins of the wall of Nineveh, began to re- 
 cede from our gaze ; and we came in sight of the 
 mound of Yaremjah, and later of the mounds of 
 Hammum Ali, on the west of the Tigris. On ar- 
 riving opposite the mound of Nimroud, the scene of 
 Layard's first excavations, I stopped the raft and 
 landed to examine the place. It was a long walk 
 from the river to the mound, and after examining 
 the trenches I turned to go back to the raft, but night 
 came on, and I had considerable difficulty in reaching 
 the place where it was moored. I resolved to stay 
 the night there as the weather was stormy, and 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 40 
 
 I very soon found my house on the raft was almost 
 useless, the rain coming clown and penetrating the 
 roof in various places, rendering us very uncomfort- 
 able. 
 
 Next morning we started the raft, and soon heard 
 the noise of the waters falling over the dyke of Nim- 
 rod. This obstruction in the river consists of an 
 artificial dyke or causeway across the Tigris, which 
 the natives ascribe to the giant hunter. Over this 
 
 View of Nimkoud. 
 
 obstruction the river fell roaring like a cataract, 
 but as there was plenty of water in the stream we 
 passed it easily. There are several of these obstruc- 
 tions in the river between Mosul and Tekrit. 
 
 After passing the dyke we saw many mounds on 
 both sides of the river ; among these were Tel Sharf 
 by the Zab, Tel Nazir on the west bank, Ningoub 
 and Tel Makook. Several of these mounds have been 
 pierced, but no systematic excavations have been 
 made. At night a storm came on and we were driven 
 on shore. The raft-house now proved utterly valuc- 
 
 E 
 
50 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 less to keep out the rain, and the wind almost blew 
 it down. Next morning we again started, but the 
 storm continued, and we arrived at Kalah Shergatin 
 a shower of rain. Although the mounds were very 
 slippery from the rains, I went on shore and explored 
 them under considerable difficulty, but as I did not 
 expect to have another opportunity of visiting the site 
 I took advantage of this, bad as it was. Kalah Shergat 
 is an enormous site, embracing in the circuit of the 
 walls over two miles and a half, while all round this 
 centre, mounds are scattered over the plains right 
 away to the hills which back it. The ruins are rather 
 triangular in shape, one face lying along the Tigris, 
 and at the northern end rises a great pyramidal mound, 
 the ruins of the ziggurrat or tower. Between this 
 mound and the river Tigris the Turks have built 
 a station for their soldiers, and every scrap of brick 
 and stone that they could collect on the mounds, they 
 have used in this structure. For this reason there is 
 very little to be seen on the site. The mounds are 
 mainly composed of clay and sun-dried bricks, and 
 all the upper portions show numerous signs of later 
 occupation. 
 
 I descended the northern face of the mounds an J 
 went to an encampment of the Shammer Arabs to 
 inquire if they knew of any inscriptions, and they 
 directed me to the Turkish station, where I saw the 
 shaft of a column with a Pehlevi inscription. 
 
 Kalah Shergat marks the site of the city of Assur, 
 a place of very great antiquity, which was the capital 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 51 
 
 of Assyria as early as the nineteenth century before 
 the Christian era. In the fourteenth century B.C. 
 Nineveh began to take its place, and from that time 
 Assur gradually declined, but the city continued to 
 be a place of considerable importance and often a 
 residence of the kings. About B.C. 823, jealous of the 
 rise of Kalah, where Shalmaneser,king of Assyria, had 
 fixed his court, the city of Assur revolted in favour of 
 his son, Assur-dain-pal, but it was soon after captured 
 by the royal army under Samsi-vul, a younger brother 
 of the rebel prince, and from this time lost its im- 
 portance, and is seldom afterwards mentioned. The 
 town, however, continued to exist, and was occupied 
 long after the Assyrian period. 
 
 Leaving Kalah Shergat, I again descended the 
 river, and soon after came to an Assyrian fort on the 
 same side of the Tigris. This structure is built of 
 large stones and sun-dried bricks, it is now in very 
 ruinous condition, and the Tigris is eating away the 
 face next the stream. Some of the scenery along the 
 river is beautiful, the rocks especially are very fine, 
 one of them is crowned by the ruins of an old castle; 
 in another place, where the cliffs tower up straight 
 out of the stream, there is a cave in the rocks attached 
 to which is a curious legend. It is said that a griffin 
 or monster in the old times lived in this cave, and 
 took human victims from the surrounding districts. 
 The wild desolation of the spot, the romantic and 
 inaccessible position of the cave, combine to make 
 this a fitting place for such a legend. 
 
 e 2 
 
52 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 Passing this place on my raft, I watched the Tigris 
 roaring and foaming round the fallen masses of rock 
 at the foot of the cave, and I could not help remarking 
 the striking similarity of this story to one of the 
 Izdubar legends. I believe that this is a modern 
 version of this ancient story, and that the legend has 
 been handed down in this country since the days of 
 Izdubar. 
 
 The river was now rapidly rising, and its swelling, 
 sweeping flood seemed almost the only thing of 
 life in the whole picture, the cities which lined 
 its banks are now most of them in ruins, their 
 vast mounds the only witnesses of their former 
 grandeur; the great races which once lived on its 
 shores are replaced by a few wandering Arabs ; the 
 solitude of the scene, and the remembrance of the 
 difference between the past and the present, have a 
 depressing effect on the traveller, and he seems also 
 exiled from all the life and activity of the world. 
 Now and then, as the river pursued its swift and 
 silent course, we were startled by a noise like 
 thunder, and, turning to see the origin of the com- 
 motion, found that portions of the banks, undermined 
 by the water, had fallen into the stream. 
 
 On the 10th of March we arrived at Tekrit, a 
 miserable-looking town on the western bank of the 
 Tigris. Here we changed our boatmen and made 
 a few new purchases for the journey, after which 
 we again commenced the descent of the river. The 
 character of the scenery now entirely changed ; instead 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA, 
 
 53 
 
 of the hills and rocks we had seen in the earlier part 
 of our course the country became one dead level of 
 alluvium, while the bare and desolate banks gave 
 place to extensive plantations and groves of palm 
 trees ; the stillness of the desert was broken by the 
 noise of Arab water-wheels, and signs of life and 
 animation became more frequent as we proceeded, 
 and at one place a number of Arab women swam 
 from the shore to our raft to offer us some milk for 
 sale. 
 
 Gliding past the town of Samarab, we saw the 
 gilded dome of its mosque glittering in the evening 
 sun, and next day reached within four hours of 
 Baghdad. Now, however, a strong south wind sprang 
 up, and our raft being unable to proceed, we moored 
 it along the shore, and on the 12th of March, engaging 
 some horses of an Arab, rode into Baghdad. Our 
 road lay along the western banks of the Tigris, and 
 for some distance consisted of a desolate wilderness ; 
 across this now swept a hot south wind, carrying 
 with it blinding clouds of sand. On the right hand 
 were visible the ruins of the walls of a gigantic 
 Babylonian canal, and the lofty tower of Tel Nimroud 
 at Akkerkoof. Near Baghdad the scene changed, 
 and we passed gardens and groves of palms. Here 
 the country was well cultivated and had a pleasing 
 appearance ; there stand near, a village and a Maho- 
 metan religious edifice of some sanctity, and I saw 
 what very much astonished me — a tramway working 
 between the village and * Baghdad. Entering the 
 
54 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 western suburb of Baghdad, I was just in time to 
 cross the bridge of boats, which was being taken to 
 pieces on account of the flood. I then made my way 
 to a khan, and after some refreshment went to pay my 
 respects to Colonel Herbert, our representative at 
 Baghdad. Colonel Herbert was very kind, and at once 
 offered me apartments in the Residency, with every 
 assistance in his power towards fulfilling the object I 
 had in view. I stayed with Colonel Herbert while at 
 Baghdad, and took advantage of his kind offers. He 
 assisted in the matter of the firman, procured me 
 letters to the authorities, obtained for me guides and 
 government orders, and gave me advice about the 
 country. 
 
 Baghdad is a city of romantic associations, and in 
 my mind was always associated with the stories of 
 the "Arabian Nights." I think it often happens that 
 such cities on inspection do not realize first expecta- 
 tions, but no complaint can be laid against Baghdad 
 on this score. The city is large, and principally built 
 on the eastern bank of the Tigris ; there are many finu 
 buildings and large bazaars, and outside the town there 
 are miles of gardens and abundance of productions. 
 From my window in the Residency I enjoyed a charm- 
 ing prospect ; immediately in front was a plantation 
 with orange trees, vines, and sweet-smelling plants, 
 beyond this a splendid view of the river Tigris then 
 in flood, and on the other side of the water a grove 
 of palm trees with a primitive Arab machine for % 
 raising water from the river to irrigate the ground. 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA 
 
 55 
 
 On my mentioning to Colonel Herbert the difficulties I 
 had mei with at Mosul, he at once asked the pacha if 
 he had issued orders to Mosul that no one should see 
 the mounds, and the pacha declared that he had not. 
 I cannot of course tell which was wrong, the pacha of 
 Baghdad, or the one at Mosul ; but I have since got 
 used to the issue of orders and their denial or repu- 
 diation by Turkish officials. 
 
 As soon as I had settled my monetary affairs I set 
 to work to obtain antiquities, and see as much as 
 possible of the ruins in this region. On the 14th of 
 March I purchased several inscriptions, including a 
 number of dated tablets of the time of the Baby- 
 lonian, Persian, and Parthian periods ; and the same 
 day I started to examine the ruins of Babylon, and 
 rested the first night at Anazat. 
 
 Next day I reached Mahawil, and on the 16th of 
 March left Mahawil for Babylon. The whole road 
 was covered with vestiges of former civilization ; 
 mounds could be seen in various directions, and the 
 country was intersected by the banks of numerous 
 ancient canals. 
 
 The first ruin at Babylon which we came in sight 
 of was the northern collection of mounds, called 
 Babil, but sometimes known as the Mujelliba. I 
 passed along the eastern side of this ruin, but could 
 not reach it there, as a considerable canal lay be- 
 tween the road and the ruin, but I went farther 
 south and then turned up again to inspect it. This 
 ruin is a square mound about 200 yards each way, 
 
56 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 the sides facing the cardinal points ; it is steep and 
 lofty, and in one place the south-east corner is said to 
 reach a height of 140 feet. The surface is furrowed 
 by numerous ravines, and there are traces of cham- 
 bers, tunnels, and passages in various parts. No 
 proper efforts have been made to examine the struc- 
 ture of this ruin, and in climbing through the old 
 trenches and tunnels there is a sense of bewilderment 
 and confusion which prevents an accurate survey of 
 the indication of buildings. I descended into a 
 cutting in the middle of the ruin, at the bottom of 
 which lay a large block of stone ; while there, part of 
 the upper portion of this well fell in, showing the 
 insecure condition of the place. This ruin I believe 
 covers the remains of the temple of Bel and the great 
 tower of Babylon ; this mound is surrounded by a 
 rampart which I think joined the northern corner of 
 the wall of Babylon. Ancient authors have stated 
 that Babylon was surrounded by a wall, represented 
 by different authorities as from forty to sixty miles 
 in circumference ; this, however, I think a gross 
 exaggeration, for which there is not the slightest 
 ground either in the inscriptions or in the present 
 remains. I saw remains of what appeared to be 
 walls ; these have been admirably surveyed by former 
 travellers, and I believe indicate a wall about eight 
 miles round, making Babylon nearly the same size as 
 the sister capital, Nineveh. In shape the city appears 
 to have been like a square with one corner cut off, 
 and the corners of the walls of the city may be said 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 57 
 
 roughly to front the cardinal points. At the north 
 of the city stood the temple of Belus, now represented 
 by the mound of Babil ; about the middle of the city 
 stood the royal palace and hanging gardens, both, I 
 believe, represented by the mound of the Kasr. The 
 Kasr is a vast mound irregular in height ; its sides 
 face the cardinal points ; it is said to be in some places 
 seventy feet above the plain, and is about 700 yards 
 in length and breadth. All authorities agree that 
 here was situated the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, but 
 the hanging gardens have been placed in a different 
 position by almost every writer. I have weighed the 
 evidence and examined the site, and my own con- 
 clusion is that they were on the west side of the Kasr 
 mound, between the palace and the river Euphrates. 
 It is unfortunate that while whole volumes have been 
 expended on dissertations and speculations on the 
 size and buildings of Babylon, no satisfactory attempt 
 has been made to ascertain the truth by excavation. 
 The isolated pits and tunnels made here and there 
 in the mounds are acknowledged to have had no 
 effect on these questions, and the recovery of Babylon 
 is yet to be accomplished. 
 
 On the mound of the Kasr there are still to be 
 seen beautiful piers and buttresses of fine yellow 
 bricks, but nothing has been done to trace the building 
 to which they belong. Some writers make them part 
 of the palace, but I think it more probable that they 
 belong to the hanging gardens. In oiiq of the hollows 
 of the northern portion is seen the rough stone lion 
 
53 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 standing over the figure of a man, which lias so often 
 been referred to by travellers. Of the solitary tree 
 once standing on the mound, by some supposed to 
 be the last relic of the celebrated hanging gardens, 
 only the trunk remains. Travellers and tourists 
 have pulled it to pieces for the sake of having a 
 fragment of the wood. 
 
 Passing south of the Kasr, I examined the mound 
 of Amram, a large irregular elevation, by some sup- 
 posed to cover a palace or temple ; it appears, how- 
 ever, to be only an enormous rubbish heap, and 
 probably only marks the spot where the old city was 
 most thickly inhabited. Amram promises little or 
 nothing to an explorer, the most important places to 
 examine being the Babil and Kasr mounds, and the 
 walls. From Amram I rode to the bridge of boats, 
 and crossed to the western side of Hillah, where I 
 took up my quarters at the khan. 
 
 On the 17th of March, I started from Hillah to 
 the mound of Birs Nimrud, which lies to the 
 south-west. We had scarcely left Hillah, when we 
 saw this splendid pile ; but a marsh now extended 
 over a large part of the intervening country, and I 
 had to travel several miles round its southern edge 
 before I could reach the site. Birs Nimrud is one of 
 the most imposing ruins in the country ; its standing 
 in the midst of a vast plain with nothing to break the 
 view, makes the height of the ruins more impressive. 
 The principal mound rises about 150 ft. above the 
 plain ; it is in the shape of a pyramid or cone, and at 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 59 
 
 its top stands a solid mass of vitrified bricks. There 
 is a splendid view of the country from the top, the 
 surrounding towns and ruins being visible for many 
 miles. Sir Henry Rawlinson, who examined this 
 site, made out that it was a tower in seven stages : 
 the lowest stage 272 ft. each way, and 26 ft. in 
 height ; the second stage was 230 ft. each way, and 
 26 ft. high; the third stage was 188 ft. in length 
 and breadth, and 26 ft. high ; and the fourth stage 
 was 146 ft. each way, but only 15 ft. high. From 
 receptacles in the corners of one of these stages, 
 Sir Henry Rawlinson obtained inscribed cylinders, 
 stating that the building was the temple of the seven 
 planets, which had been partially built by a former 
 king of Babylon, and, having fallen into decay, was 
 restored and completed by Nebuchadnezzar. The 
 Birs Mmrud is most probably the Tower of Babel 
 of the Book of Genesis. Beside the large mound of 
 the tower, there are other vast heaps of lesser eleva- 
 tion covering the ruins of the buildings and walls of 
 the city of Borsippa, within which the temple of the 
 seven planets stood. While I was at Birs Mmrud 
 there came on a violent storm, which recommenced 
 in the night. This weather seriously hindered my 
 investigations. 
 
 On the 18th, I again examined the Kasr, and some 
 of the smaller ruins of Babylon, and purchased some 
 inscriptions from the mounds ; but I closed my in- 
 vestigations with a feeling that the time I had spent 
 here was far too short to make a proper examination 
 
GO 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 of the ruins. Before parting with Babylon, I will 
 give a short sketch of its history. 
 
 Babylon is said to have existed before the Flood, 
 and in the Book of Genesis it is given as the site of 
 the tower. The city is first mentioned in the inscrip- 
 tions of Izdubar at the time when the Babylonian 
 monarchy was being formed by the uniting of a number 
 of little stages. The great building, or rather block 
 of buildings, at Babylon consisted of the temples of 
 Merodach and Zirat-banit, and the accompanying 
 ziggurrat or tower, called the house of the foundation 
 of heaven and earth. When these buildings were 
 first erected is lost in the obscurity of the past; 
 they were restored by a king named Agu or Agu- 
 kak-rimi at a very early period, and again by Ham- 
 murabi, who made Babylon the capital of the whole 
 country somewhere in the sixteenth century B.C. 
 Babylon was captured by the Assyrians under 
 Tugulti-ninip, B.C. 1271, and again by Tiglath Pileser, 
 B.C. 1110. In the ninth century B.C. it was con- 
 sidered a great sanctuary, and Shalmaneser, king of 
 Assyria, came here to offer sacrifice to Bel, B.C. 851 . 
 Babylon was taken by Tiglath Pileser II., king of 
 Assyria, B.C. 731, who made himself king of the 
 country, and performed a great festival to Bel n o. 
 729-8. The city was captured, B.C. 722, by Mero- 
 dach Baladan, the Chaldean, who held it twelve 
 years, until he was expelled by Sargon, who in turn 
 ruled the city. On the death of Sargon the city 
 passed through various evolutions, and was several 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 GL 
 
 times captured by the Assyrians, when at the 
 close of the last war between Sennacherib and the 
 Babylonians, B.C. 691, the Assyrian monarch cap- 
 tured the city again and destroyed it. Babylon was 
 restored and rebuilt by Esarhaddon, the son of Sen- 
 nacherib, and was once more besieged and captured 
 by Assurbanipal, king of Assyria, B.C. 648. Again 
 the city revolted and fell before the Assyrians, B.C. 
 626, but now it was to enjoy a period of repose and 
 prosperity. 
 
 Nabu-pal-uzur, the Nabopolassar of the Greeks, 
 who commanded the army in this war, was appointed 
 king of Babylon, B.C. 626, and at once commenced 
 the restoration of the country. Some time later he 
 sent and made an alliance with the Medes, and 
 having revolted against Assyria took Nineveh in 
 conjunction with the Medes, and at the close of 
 his reign sent his son Nebuchadnezzar to conquer 
 Syria. While the young prince was on this expe- 
 dition, Nabopolassar died, and Nebuchadnezzar 
 succeeded to his throne. He entirely rebuilt the 
 city of Babylon, and made it the most magnificent 
 city in the world. The tower and temple of Belus, 
 the hanging gardens, the magnificent palace, and the 
 walls of the city were all his work, and scarcely a 
 ruin exists in the neighbourhood without bricks 
 bearing his name. 
 
 A few years after the death of Nebuchadnezzar the 
 Babylonian power declined, and Babylon itself was 
 taken by the Medes and Persians under Cyrus, B.C. 539. 
 
G2 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 After one or two fruitless attempts at revolt, the city 
 finally settled down under the Persian dominion, 
 and on the defeat of their power passed to Alex- 
 ander the Great. From this time, whatever changes 
 happened in Asia only brought a change of masters, 
 and Babylon sank gradually until the city became a 
 complete ruin. A little to the south rose the town 
 of Hillah, built with the bricks found in the old 
 capital. The natives have established a regular 
 trade in these bricks for building purposes. A num- 
 ber of men are always engaged digging out the 
 bricks from the ruins, while others convey them to 
 the banks of the Euphrates. There they are packed 
 in rude boats, which float them down to Hillah ; and 
 on being landed they are loaded on donkeys and 
 taken to any place where building is in progress. 
 Every day when at Hillah I used to see this work 
 going on as it had gone on for centuries, Babylon thus 
 slowly disappearing, without an effort being made to 
 ascertain the dimensions and buildings of the city, 
 or recover what remains of its monuments. The 
 northern portion of the wall, outside the Babil 
 mound, is the place where the work of destruction is 
 now most actively going on, and this in some places 
 has totally disappeared. 
 
 On the 19th of March I left Hillah, and rode out 
 into the desert to see the ruins of Hymer. Here 
 was a tower in stages similar to that at Birs Nimrud, 
 but of much smaller dimensions. Some excava- 
 tions had been made with no result, the place, as 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 G3 
 
 usual, not having been investigated on any scientific 
 plan. One of our party found here a fragment of 
 alabaster, with a cuneiform inscription. From this 
 ruin I rode to an enormous site, named Tel Ibrahim, 
 the principal mound at which is three-quarters of a 
 mile long. It is in a crescent form, with a smaller 
 mound lying in the hollow. I saw walls and 
 masses of brickwork protruding from heaps of rub- 
 bish in various places. Sir Henry Rawlinson had 
 identified the mounds of Tel Ibrahim as the site of 
 Cutha, the great, seat of the worship of Nergal. 
 
 Leaving Tel Ibrahim, I crossed a trackless desert, 
 covered with numerous ruins, and intersected by the 
 dry beds of ancient canals ; it is now a waterless 
 waste, with a few dry plants and flocks of locusts. 
 As we proceeded, the mirage raised on the horizon 
 deceptive appearances of gigantic ruins and great 
 rivers, which vanished as we approached, and the sun 
 went down before we reached any shelter. After 
 sunset the lights of various Arab encampments were 
 seen in the distance, and riding up to one of these, I 
 asked a shelter for the night. This the Arabs re- 
 fused, but they sent on two men to guide us to 
 another encampment. Here also they refused my 
 party shelter, so we lay down in the open beside the 
 encampment. We purchased a kid of the Arabs, and 
 made a supper, and, the night being cold, we got up a 
 good fire ; but in the morning I was astonished to 
 find that my pillow, and the waterproof with which I 
 had covered my bed were quite wet with the dew. 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 Unable to get water to wash, or breakfast, I started 
 on the 20th before sunrise, and we found our way 
 with considerable difficulty. We passed an Arab 
 tribe migrating for pasture — a curious sight, camels, 
 horses, and sheep, men and women, with all their 
 furniture and effects, on the move. About mid-day 
 we reached a station, and obtained some refreshment, 
 and rode in the afternoon to Baghdad. I now 
 examined some interesting inscriptions belonging to 
 Michael Minas, the British vice-consul at Baghdad, 
 which he has since presented to Sir Henry Rawlin- 
 son. 
 
 On the 22nd, I had an interesting visit to the 
 Indian prince resident at Baghdad. He is a most 
 hospitable and excellent man, well known in these 
 parts for his kindness and generosity. Soon af te 1 " this 
 I heard that the firman was granted, and having my 
 powers, I at once made preparations for starting, as I 
 wished to reach Mosul and commence excavations as 
 soon as possible. I had some difficulty in procuring 
 animals for the journey, but ultimately made arrange- 
 ments to go by post horses, and started in the after- 
 noon, after bidding farewell to my hospitable friends 
 at Baghdad. I left this part of the country with 
 great regret, as I was far more desirous of excavating 
 here than in Assyria. Babylonia is the older and 
 richer country, and is a field not worked nearly so 
 much as Assyria. 
 
 I left Baghdad on the 27th of March, at three 
 o'clock in the afternoon, and rode to the first station, 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. G5 
 
 Gededa. Here there was no change of horses, so I 
 went on at once to Naharwan, the next stage. This 
 portion of the journey was travelled in the night, and 
 under considerable difficulties. I rode a very good 
 horse, but the driver of the lu^ga^e had a vicious 
 animal, which upset the caravan by kicking over the 
 luggage horse, and breaking my largest box. I was 
 forced to exchange animals with the driver before we 
 could again proceed, and my new horse gave me a 
 most uncomfortable time, the result being that it was 
 four o'clock in the morning before we reached Nahar- 
 wan. Here, after a rest, I once more started, and 
 rode to Delli Abas. On the 29th, I left Delli Abas, 
 and rode in the morning to Kufre. After some re- 
 freshment at Kufre, I travelled in the afternoon to 
 Karatapa. The people of the post-station at Kara- 
 tapa tried to persuade me to stay the night there, as 
 they said there was a flooded river between that 
 place and the next station which was very difficult 
 to pass. I declined to listen to them, and started 
 about eight in the evening. The country across 
 which I travelled here is in general a wide plain 
 bounded on the east by mountain ranges, which are 
 the sources of numerous rivers. These rivers take in 
 general a southern or south-western direction, and 
 cross the plain to fall into the Tigris. During the 
 spring, the period of the year at which I was travel- 
 ling, these streams are generally flooded by the melt- 
 ing snows of the mountains and the rains, and form 
 serious obstacles in crossing the country. The Turkish 
 
 F 
 
GG 
 
 VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 government has not bridged these waters, or con- 
 structed proper roads, and even at Baghdad, the 
 capital of Turkish Arabia, there is only a bridge of 
 boats. 
 
 On the night of the 29th, after leaving Karatapa, a 
 heavy storm came on, and, as it was quite dark, I 
 was astonished at our guides keeping the proper 
 road. The echo of the thunder seemed to come from 
 the mountains on our right, and roll across the vast 
 plain with a desolate, empty sound, peculiar to these 
 vast solitudes. The lightning vividly lit up the 
 scene from time to time, showing us for the moment 
 the features of the county, but only to deepen by 
 contrast the darkness which followed. 
 
 About one o'clock in the morning we heard the 
 roaring of the flood, and soon reached the river we 
 had been told of. After riding some little distance 
 along the bank, we came to a place where the river 
 spreads out like a fan, and is divided by three islands 
 into four channels, each as wide as a goo.d-sized river. 
 Here we crossed the stream, and then made our way 
 to Kormata, where we lay down in the courtyard of 
 the post-house until the morning. On the 30th, I 
 had a bad headache, and only rode a single stage to 
 Taou. The weather was very unfavourable, and the 
 road in a bad state. On the 31st of March, I left 
 Taou, and rode to Kerkook, intending to go on to 
 Altun Kupri ; but, after starting from Kerkook, I was 
 driven back by the weather. A furious storm came 
 on, and being soon wet through, we turned back, and 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 G7 
 
 waited until the morning. There is a considerable 
 mound at Kcrkook, and I was offered an inscription 
 of Nebuchadnezzar found here. On the 1st of April 
 I started for Altun Kupri, and soon reached it. Here 
 there was again difficulty from the water. The river 
 of the lower or lesser Zab, which passes here, is 
 divided into two streams by an island, on which 
 stands the town of Altun Kupri. There is a steep 
 bridge of one arch, which connects the town with the 
 south. This we crossed, and then awaited the pre- 
 paration of a raft to cross the other branch of the 
 river. As soon as this was ready we got off, and 
 started for Ervil. It is a long stage between Altun 
 Kupri and Ervil, and we arrived at the latter place 
 after dark. Ervil is the site of the Assyrian city of 
 Arbela, and in the plains outside it was fought the 
 great battle between Alexander and Darius. I had 
 no time to examine the place, but I saw in passing 
 that there were mounds rivalling in size those of the 
 Assyrian capital. Over the principal mound a 
 Turkish fortress is built, which would make it diffi- 
 cult to excavate here ; but as Arbela was a great 
 city, much may be expected here whenever it is 
 explored. 
 
 On the 2nd of April I left Ervil to ride to the 
 post-station of Zab, on the river of that name. The 
 Zab, a rapid, strong stream, was much swollen by the 
 rains, and again presented a difficulty as to crossing. 
 It was a long time before we could get a raft, and the 
 passage was difficult on account of the swiftness of 
 
 F 2 
 
VISIT TO BABYLONIA. 
 
 the stream. Once over the water, I started for Mosul, 
 and accomplished the distance in three hours and 
 three-quarters. On the way I passed the swollen 
 stream of the Ghazr, a tributary of the Zab. This 
 water was so deep that my horses had to be led 
 through the stream by naked Arabs, the river reach- 
 ing nearly to the backs of the animals. Passing 
 through the outskirts of Nineveh, I now once more 
 came in sight of the mounds of that capital, and the 
 town of Mosul. We rode through the ruins of the 
 great gate of Nineveh, past the mound of Nebbi 
 Yunas, and to the junction of the Khosr and Tigris, 
 where the ferry boats were kept, for the flood of the 
 Tigris was so great that the bridge of boats was re- 
 moved. All the ferrymen had gone home, and after 
 a vain attempt to get assistance we turned back, and 
 went to the stone bridge which juts into the Tigris, 
 but does not go right across the river. Here we fired 
 a pistol, and did what we could to awaken the watch- 
 man, but it was three hours before we got a boat to 
 ferry us over the river. 
 
Chapter V. 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 Toma Shishnian. — The mound. — Tower. — Palaces. — History. — 
 Temple of Nebo. — South-west Palace. — Model of hand. — South- 
 east Palace. — Painted wall. — Winged figures. — Graves. — House 
 building. — Arab entertainment. — Close excavations. 
 
 E^j&^^iN" the 3rd of April I resolved to com- 
 mence excavations on the mound of 
 Nimroud, and the same day I was 
 visited by Toma Shishman, or Toma 
 the Fat, who had been superintendent of the work- 
 men under Mr. Layard. Toma was well worthy of 
 the epithet attached to his name, being very fat and 
 short-winded ; he did not look at all a serviceable 
 superintendent, but he boasted grand things about 
 his knowledge of the mound and its contents. He 
 had seen where everything came from, and was pre- 
 pared to find tablets, inscriptions, or sculptures, in 
 fact, whatever I liked. Toma said I could not find 
 anything, he was sure, without his assistance, and 
 he was rather astonished when I showed him some 
 inscriptions. I got rid of him by telling him I would 
 
70 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 engage liim as soon as I commenced at Kouyunjik, 
 but at present I intended working at Nimroud. Toma 
 returned to the charge next day, and visited me every 
 day until I left for Nimroud . 
 
 On the 4th I called on the pacha to present my 
 letters and orders and acquaint him with my plans ; 
 he now took a different turn and professed great 
 friendship, offering me every assistance in his power. 
 The preparation of tools and material for the work 
 occupied some days, and in the meantime I rode over 
 to Nimroud on the night of the 5th of April, and 
 next day inspected the mound. The mounds of 
 Nimroud represent the Assyrian city of Calah ; they 
 consist of an oblong enclosure formed by the walls of 
 the city, and a mound in the south-west corner which 
 covered the palaces and temples. The palace mound 
 is the principal ruin, and to this I directed my atten- 
 tion; its length is about six hundred yards from north 
 to south, and it is about four hundred yards in 
 breadth from west to east. At the north-west corner 
 of the mound stands a lofty cone 140ft. in height; 
 this covers the ruins of the great ziggurrat or tower 
 of Calah, which was excavated by Mr. Layard and 
 found to be square at the base, faced with hewn 
 stone for a height of 20 ft., and 167 ft. 6 in. each 
 way. The northern and western faces show rude 
 piers and some ornamentation. Entering a tunnel in 
 the eastern face of the cone, I made my way through 
 a succession of galleries in the base of the building, 
 but these are now in a dangerous condition from the 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 71 
 
 fall of portions of the roofs. Excepting for these gal- 
 leries the whole structure appears to have been solid, 
 the body built of sun-dried bricks, cased at the 
 bottom with stone, and above with burnt bricks. 
 South of the pyramid lies a ravine, and crossing this 
 we arrive at the north-west palace, one of the most 
 complete and perfect Assyrian buildings known. 
 This palace is about 350 ft. in length and breadth, 
 and consists of a* central court 120 ft. by 90 ft., 
 surrounded by a number of halls and chambers, the 
 principal entrance being on the north. The trenches 
 excavated here by Mr. Layard are still partially open, 
 and the gigantic winged human-headed bulls and 
 lions at the entrances, the mythological scenes and 
 processions, figures of the king and attendants, may 
 be seen in their places; and many of the chambers 
 can be traced. South of this ruin are some trenches 
 with a few fragments representing what Mr. Layard 
 calls the upper chambers, and east of this lie the 
 ruins of the centre palace, also in a very dilapidated 
 condition. Nothing can now be traced of the plan 
 of these structures. 
 
 Crossing another ravine, which forms the prin- 
 cipal ascent to the mound from the west, we come 
 to the south-west palace, a building unfinished; 
 the sculptures found in it belonging to earlier 
 palaces, and having been transported here to be 
 recarved for the new one. Some of the sculptures 
 were placed with their face to the wall, and others 
 upside down. Many of these sculptures can be seen, 
 
72 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 especially at the southern part of the building, and 
 evidently come from the north-west and centre 
 palaces. 
 
 East of the south-west palace, across another 
 ravine, are the ruins of the south-east palace, an 
 inferior building to the others, few of the walls 
 being faced with stone, and none of them sculptured. 
 Passing northward from the south-east palace, we 
 come to the remains of the temple of Nebo, at the 
 entrance of which stand two colossal statues of the 
 deity. Next, to the north of this are the ruins of the 
 causeway leading up from the city on to the mound, 
 and past this is a space with no building, which was 
 probably laid out in gardens ; outside this space, to- 
 wards the city, stood a wall which shut in the palaces 
 from the gaze of the people. North of this space we 
 come to two temples, one of which lays towards the 
 east ornamented at the entrance by two lions, one now 
 in the British Museum, the other remaining in its 
 place. The other temple joins the south-east corner 
 of the tower, and its entrance is guarded by two 
 winged human-headed lions. 
 
 The Assyrian city of Calah, now represented by 
 the mounds of Nimroud, is said to have been founded 
 by Nimrod, but of this original city nothing is known. 
 A city was at a later period built on the spot by Shal- 
 maneser I., king of Assyria, B.C. 1300, but this after- 
 wards fell into decay, and was destroyed during the 
 subsequent troubles which came on the Assyrian 
 empire. Assur-nazir-pal, who ascended the Assyrian 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 73 
 
 throne, B.C. 885, resolved to rebuild the city ; and 
 bringing numbers of captives taken during his wars, 
 he set them to work to rebuild Calah, and then 
 settled them there to inhabit it. The north-west 
 palace and the temples near the tower were the work 
 of this king, and from these came most of the fine 
 Nimroud sculptures in the British Museum. Shal- 
 maneser II., king of Assyria, succeeded his father 
 Assur-nazir-pal, b.o. 860. He built the centre palace 
 and the base at least of the south-east palace. Vul- 
 nirari III., his grandson, B.C. 812, built the upper 
 chambers and the temple of Nebo ; and Tiglath 
 Pileser II., B.C. 745, rebuilt the centre palace. Sargon, 
 king of Assyria, B.C. 722, restored the north-west 
 palace, and his grandson, Esarhaddon, B.C. 681, built 
 the south-west palace. Lastly, the grandson of Esar- 
 haddon, Assur-ebil-ili, the last king of Assyria, rebuilt 
 the temple of Nebo just before the destruction of the 
 Assyrian empire. Thus the city of Calah possessed 
 buildings of all the best periods of Assyrian history, 
 and during a considerable part of the time it was the 
 rival of the city of Nineveh. 
 
 My first excavations at Nimroud were undertaken 
 on a small scale, as I was awaiting the receipt of some 
 money, and I commenced at the temple of Nebo. 
 Here I discovered some inscriptions, but they were 
 most of them duplicates of texts already known, 
 belonging to Shalmaneser II., B.C. 860, and Assur- 
 ebil-ili, B.C. 620. Excepting the stone basement of 
 the temple and a few chambers round it, the whole 
 
74 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMR UD. 
 
 was m a ruinous condition. After tlie city had declined, 
 this part of the mound appears to have been used as 
 a granary. An excavation had been made on the 
 eastern face, and a large tunnel burrowed through 
 the walls and chambers on this side. This tunnel I 
 found packed with grain, black and rotten from age. 
 In the central part excavations had been made for 
 tombs, and these had also destroyed considerable 
 portions of the temple. This part of the mound had 
 evidently been founded by Shalmaneser II., B.C. 860, 
 but the temple was mainly the work of his grandson, 
 Vul-nirari III., B.C. 812. The front and more pro- 
 minent parts of the building were of large squared 
 blocks of stone at bottom and sun-dried bricks above. 
 On each side of the entrance stood a colossal figure 
 of Nebo with crossed arms, in an attitude of medita- 
 tion. Inside the building were found during the 
 former excavations four smaller figures of the god 
 with inscriptions round the dress stating that they 
 were erected by the governor of Calah in honour of 
 the king Vul-nirari (b.c. 812) and his wife, the queen 
 Sammuramat (Semiramis). Here was also found a 
 monolith of the Assyrian king Samsi-vul, B.C. 825, 
 which properly belonged to the temple of Ninip. 
 My principal purpose in excavating on this spot was 
 to obtain some additional fragments of the reign of 
 Tiglath Pileser II., B.C. 745, and in one of the eastern 
 chambers, just beside a fallen wall of kiln-burnt 
 bricks, I came on the upper portion of a tablet of this 
 monarch. I immediately searched the neighbour- 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 75 
 
 hood to find any other portion that might be there, 
 but there was no other fragment of the inscription 
 near. When passing along a tunnel cut through 
 the main wall of the temple by some former exca- 
 vator, a terra-cotta model of a hand which had once 
 been embedded in the upper part of the wall fell from 
 the roof of the tunnel, and I subsequently found here 
 a second of these objects. Some fragments of 
 winged figures and inscriptions also turned up, but 
 nothing of great interest except the Tiglath Pileser 
 inscription. 
 
 I excavated on the northern portion of the south- 
 west palace principally to verify fragmentary texts 
 already known ; having uncovered these I took paper 
 impressions and copies, but undertook no other work 
 in this direction. Many of the inscriptions in the 
 south-west palace have suffered very much since the 
 excavations of Mr. Layard. 
 
 At the conical mound marking the site of the 
 ziggurrat or tower, I resolved to search for the 
 foundation cylinders ; but when I came to examine 
 the structure, I had very little hope of finding them. 
 During the former excavations at Nimroud, unsuc- 
 cessful efforts had been made to find these cylinders, 
 and great tunnels had been driven into the solid 
 brickwork at each corner in search of them. I tried 
 all these places again, and with equal want of suc- 
 cess. Incidentally, from the remains on the southern 
 face exposed during these operations, I came to the 
 conclusion that there was a flight of steps on that 
 
76 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 side leading up to the tower. Most of my trendies 
 in the tower were, however, fruitless, only solid 
 masses of sun-dried brick being met with. I selected 
 the north-west corner for a more systematic effort, 
 and had some machinery constructed for lowering 
 men and material. I then sank a well inside the 
 stone facing of the tower, and nearly reached the 
 base of the structure, but no cylinder was found. 
 Under these circumstances, I am compelled to sup- 
 pose that the cylinders were higher up in the tower, 
 and were lost at the time the casing of burnt 
 bricks fell from the building. The stone basement 
 of the tower reaches to a height of 20 ft., but about 
 the line of the stonework it was faced with fine kiln- 
 burnt bricks. Most of this brick facing has fallen, 
 and subsequent inhabitants of these regions have 
 used them in various later structures. 
 
 While I was working at Nimroud one of the men 
 said that the rain had exposed the corner of a slab 
 by the north-west palace, and I sent a party of 
 workmen to investigate the spot ; but the slab was 
 only plain. In clearing the ground by the slab, the 
 ruin of a brick wall was exposed. This wall was 
 partly broken down, and in clearing away the rub- 
 bish there appeared a model of a fist planted upright 
 in the wall, embedded in mortar between the bricks. 
 On the fingers of the fist was an inscription of Assur- 
 nazir-pal, king of Assyria, B.C. 885. 
 
 In the south-east palace I instituted systematic 
 excavations, and discovered several chambers. On 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMH OUT). 
 
 77 
 
 examining this part of the mound, I saw a con- 
 siderable tunnel in the south face, commencing on 
 the sloping part of the mound. This tunnel ap- 
 peared to go along the middle of a chamber, the 
 floor having been cut through and appearing in a 
 line on each side of the tunnel. Farther on, the 
 tunnel reached the wall at the end of the chamber, 
 and the face of this had been cleared for some little 
 distance ; then, descending below the foundation of 
 this wall, the tunnel ran for some distance into the 
 base of the mound. I commenced on the two sides 
 of this cutting, and cleared away to the level of the 
 pavement, soon coming to the wall on each side. 
 The earth I cleared out of the chambers I threw 
 down the old tunnel to fill that up. The southern 
 wall of the chamber had fallen over into the plain, as 
 it was here close to the edge of the platform, and 
 the chamber commenced with two parallel walls 
 running north and south. The right-hand wall, in a 
 place near the edge where it was much broken down, 
 showed three steps of an ascent which had gone 
 apparently to some upper chambers. Farther on, it 
 showed two recesses, each ornamented on both sides 
 with three square pilasters. The left hand showed 
 an entrance into a second chamber, running east to 
 west, and from this turned a third, going parallel 
 with the first. Altogether in this place I opened six 
 chambers, all of the same character ; the entrances 
 ornamented by clusters of square pilasters and 
 recesses in the rooms in the same style. The walls 
 
73 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 were coloured in horizontal bands of red, green, and 
 yellow on plaster ; and wliere the lower parts of the 
 chambers were panelled with small stone slabs, the 
 plaster and colours were continued over these. In one 
 of these rooms there appeared a brick receptacle let 
 into the floor, and on lifting the brick which covered 
 this, I found six terra-cotta winged figures, closely 
 
 packed in the receptacle. Each figure was full- 
 faced, having a head like a lion, four wings, with one 
 hand across the breast, holding a basket in the other, 
 and clothed in a long dress to the feet. These 
 figures were probably intended to preserve the 
 building against the power of evil spirits. One of 
 the chambers to the east of my first trench opened into 
 a square apartment paved with slabs of stone, and 
 walled round with the same material. This place, 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 70 
 
 which was on the edge of the mound, appears to 
 have been used for domestic offices. There was a 
 circular hole in one of the pavement slabs, which 
 opened into a drain, and I found that this and a 
 second drain both passed along in an easterly direc- 
 tion, and traversed the south front of the palace to 
 the south-east corner. Here the mound and the 
 drains turned, forming a circular end, and from 
 these the drains ran along the east face of the 
 mound. At the circular corner (the south-east 
 corner) of the mound ? I found a fragment of the 
 outer wall. This consisted of bricks enamelled and 
 painted over with war scenes. The fragment I 
 found has the figure of a warrior, and part of the 
 wheel of a chariot. Over the scene was part of 
 an inscription in painted characters, the word 
 " warriors " still remaining. In the chambers little 
 was found of the Assyrian period. I obtained some 
 pottery, a plain bronze dish, part of a terra-cotta 
 model, and numbers of large terra-cotta beads. The 
 ornamentation of the south-east palace, and the 
 nature of the few objects found in its chambers, led 
 me to the conclusion that it w^as a private building 
 for the wives and families of the kings. 1 had been 
 quite uncertain as to the date, until, on opening the 
 drains which went round the palace, I found the 
 bricks were inscribed on the under side with a 
 legend of Shalmaneser II., B.C. 860, who must have 
 been the builder of this palace. 
 
 While excavating here, I ran several trenches 
 
80 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT JSTIMROTID. 
 
 through the space between the south-east and south- 
 west palaces ; but the buildings here were totally 
 destroyed. Fragments of elaborate carved pave- 
 ments, wall plaster with paintings in the Egyptian 
 style, portions of winged bulls and sculpture, were 
 all that turned up, and I did not obtain any plan or 
 idea of the buildings in this part. 
 
 In the centre of the mound I made some slight 
 excavations ; but my operations closed before any- 
 thing of interest was discovered. 
 
 All the eastern and southern portions of the 
 mound of Nimroud have been destroyed by being 
 made a burial-place. The ruins had been excavated 
 after the fall of the Assyrian empire, walls had been 
 dug through, and chambers broken into, and the 
 openings filled up with coffins. These coffins were 
 various in shape, not two being alike. Most of them 
 were so short, that the bodies had to be doubled up 
 to get them in. The coffins were of terra-cotta, 
 some of them ornamented and painted ; but com- 
 moner graves of the same period only contained 
 large jars or urns in which the remains were packed, 
 the poorest being buried without any covering at all. 
 Generally the coffins were covered with one or two 
 stone slabs from the neighbouring palaces, and then 
 closed up with large sun-dried bricks. These burials 
 are of all ages ; some I opened belonged to the 
 period of the successor of Alexander the Great, in 
 the third century B.C. From the tombs I obtained 
 beads and ornaments, rings, bracelets, &c. 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 81 
 
 When T commenced excavations at Nimroud on 
 the 9th of April, I lodged in the house of a man of 
 influence among the Arabs here, named Udder. His 
 wife was a woman of some intelligence for an Arab, 
 and was continually blessing her husband with addi- 
 tions to his family. The young olive-branches lived 
 about the place like so many pigs, any washing or 
 attention being quite out of the question. Their 
 mother, whose name was Tiha, remembers Mr. 
 Layard very well. During the time this great 
 explorer was in these parts Tiha was much younger, 
 of course, and was then accounted one of the beauties 
 of the place. The tribe to which these people belong 
 is the Shematteh, and they inhabited in Layard' s 
 time the village of Nimroud, but since the excava- 
 tions had ceased the village had declined and the 
 people had abandoned it. In J 872 some of the 
 people returned, and others were coining back when 
 I was excavating. These families were patching up 
 all the old huts and making the place available for 
 their services. 
 
 I desired to have a house more to myself after 
 a while, and therefore ordered the men to build me a 
 place on the mound. First of all I traced on a spot 
 chosen for the purpose the plan of my house, then 
 the men appointed roved about over the mound and 
 collected all sorts of fragments of old bricks and 
 stones. I had to look sharp after them to prevent 
 them from taking anything of consequence, and some- 
 times, after all my trouble, I found they had got 
 
 G 
 
82 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMH UD. 
 
 hold of a valuable inscription or other antiquity and 
 were about to wall it up in the house. With the 
 fragments they gathered from the mound they joined 
 a collection of sun-dried bricks brought from the old 
 village of Nimroud. A donkey was regularly em- 
 ployed so many times a day transporting these 
 materials, and after they were collected I laid the 
 foundation of the walls by placing rows of bricks 
 on the lines I had drawn. The builders then made 
 some Arab mortar ; and for this purpose they dug 
 up and turned over a large square of ground. Next, 
 donkey-loads of dung and skins full of water were 
 brought and well mixed in this space, the workmen 
 taking off their clothes and stirring up the pudding 
 with their hands and feet. In building the walls 
 the stones and bricks were laid in position and then 
 well bedded in this mortar — all these operations 
 being executed by hand. When the walls were 
 high enough to serve as screens from my obser- 
 vation and the heat of the sun, the workmen would 
 lie down behind them and smoke their pipes, and 
 I sometimes caught the whole party so engaged. 
 After the walls were finished preparations were 
 made for roofing, and for this purpose the whole 
 party went off on an excursion to the banks of the 
 Zab, taking several donkeys with them, which they 
 loaded with brushwood cut from the vicinity of the 
 river. They were some days over this, and then 
 made a fresh mud-pie to bind together the brush- 
 wood. This made a very good top, and it was 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 83 
 
 levelled for walking on by spreading on the surface 
 the usual mixture of dung and wet clay. An out- 
 side staircase to reach the roof, and some wooden 
 doors which I had made in Mosul, completed the 
 structure, which internally consisted of four rooms, 
 and formed a very convenient residence for this 
 country. 
 
 During my excavations at Nimroud I was some- 
 times annoyed by parties of the Jebour Arabs bent 
 on forcing their services on me, or determined on 
 plunder. In order to prevent the jealousy and dis- 
 putes which sometimes arose I chose my workmen 
 as far as possible from all the different tribes in the 
 neighbourhood, from the Shematteh or people of 
 Nimroud, the Jehaish or people of Naifa, a village 
 just by the Tigris, the inhabitants of the village of 
 Selamiyeh, and some of the Jebours. 
 
 On the 28th of April a party of Turkish military 
 officers visited the mounds, and after I had shown 
 them over the excavations we were escorted to the 
 village of Nimroud by my workmen, who engaged in 
 mock combats with sword, shield, and spear, for the 
 amusement of my visitors. Later in the evening 
 I went out with a guard of honour, and visited the 
 doctors on their raft, which was moored by the bank 
 of the river. After my return to the village the 
 Arabs made up a musical entertainment opposite the 
 door of the house where I was staying. The men 
 of the village sat down in a circle, reserving the 
 interior space for the performers. All the per- 
 
 G 2 
 
84 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROTTD. 
 
 formers were men and boys, the women looking 
 on from a distance. The entertainment began 
 by one of the musicians starting a song, which 
 was taken up by the others and accompanied by 
 clapping of hands. The singing was succeeded by 
 dancing in a slow Arabic fashion; it should, how- 
 ever, rather be described as capering about, for the 
 great point appeared to be, to show as much action of 
 the arms and legs as possible. After this followed 
 some peculiar performances by two men, and then a 
 dusky little Arab boy, quite naked, leaped into the 
 ring and commenced springing about, all the by- 
 standers attempting to strike him. He avoided these 
 blows and leaped about the ring in all directions, 
 to the great amusement of the assembled Arabs. 
 Songs, dances, and performances succeeded each other 
 after this until a late hour, when I retired from the 
 meeting, and the Arabs broke up their party. 
 
 Toma Shishman, who had visited me at Mosul, 
 being anxious for employment, got a passage on a 
 raft passing down the Tigris and landed opposite 
 Nimroud to call on me. I had already promised to 
 employ him as soon as I opened excavations at Kou- 
 yunjik, and he feared I had forgotten this. One day, 
 while I was engaged on the mound of Nimroud, he 
 came to me and brought a petition written out for 
 him in fair English by a Chaldean priest at Mosul. 
 This petition set forth that he, Toma, had served 
 Mr. Layard during the former excavations in the 
 capacity of chief of the workmen, and since then he 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT NIMROUD. 
 
 85 
 
 had been reduced in fortune and was now anxious 
 to serve me in the same capacity. As I intended to 
 work at Kouyunjik I engaged Toma from the 1st of 
 May, and directed him to proceed to Mosul and 
 get together a body of workmen to commence exca- 
 vations at Kouyunjik. 
 
 The distance from Nimroud to Mosul is about 
 twenty miles by road, and I bad to provide for 
 Toma an animal to ride upon. I found some dif- 
 ficulty in this, as Toma was fat, heavy, and unwieldy, 
 and people did not care about his riding their don- 
 keys so far. At last I succeeded in getting him an 
 ass, and, setting him on it, packed him off to Mosul. 
 The animal bore his w r eight for some time, but about ' 
 the middle of the journey fell, making Toma kiss the 
 ground. Toma declared himself much shaken, and 
 on arriving at Mosul laid up, instead of engaging the 
 men for me. 
 
 I stayed at Nimroud until the 4th of May, and then, 
 after the workmen had finished, I started to ride 
 during the night to Mosul. At this time the days 
 were very hot and travelling by night was pleasant, 
 and after an easy journey I reached the bridge of 
 Mosul, to find, as before, neither bridge nor ferry for 
 crossing to the town. I was so drowsy with my 
 ride that I sat down on the stonework where the 
 permanent bridge ends, and fell asleep while waiting 
 for the ferry. In the morning I was ferried over to 
 Mosul, and on the 8th of May I sent and closed the 
 excavations at Nimroud. 
 
Charter VI. 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 Wall of Nineveh. — Northern gate. — The Khosr. — Great gate. 
 — Nebbi Yunas. — Kouyunjik. — Palaces. — History. — Capture of 
 Nineveh. — Library. — Haramum Ali. — North Palace, Kouyunjik. 
 — Law tablet. — Deluge fragment. — Discoveries. — Khorsabad.— 
 Orders to close. — Syllabary. — Visit to Nimroud. 
 
 "HEN" I arrived at Mosul I was astonished 
 to find Toma had done nothing, and 
 I set to work to get men and prepare 
 for the excavation. 
 Toma's excuse was that the joss (donkey) on which 
 he rode from Nimroud had shaken him so much in the 
 fall that he had been ill ever since ; but when he saw 
 that I engaged men without his intervention he began 
 to fear I might exclude him from the work, and he 
 soon collected a body of men, and when I came to 
 the mound on the 7th of May I found Toma bringing 
 his workmen to the spot. 
 
 The ruins opposite the town of Mosul, which mark 
 the site of Nineveh, will be best understood by the 
 aid of the accompanying plan. 
 
Plan of the Site of Nineveh. 
 
 Page 87. 
 
£XCAVATIOJSTS AT KOTJYTJNJIK. 87 
 
 The ruins of Nineveh are situated on the eastern 
 bank of the Tigris ; they consist now of a large enclo- 
 sure covered with low mounds surrounded by the ruins 
 of a magnificent wall, about eight miles in circuit, 
 and broken on the western side by two great arti- 
 ficial mounds, Kouyunjik or Tel Armush, and 
 Nebbi Yunas. Through the middle of the city 
 flows the stream of the Khosr, entering through 
 the eastern wall and passing out through the western 
 wall by the southern corner of the mound of Kou- 
 yunjik. 
 
 The mounds of the wall of Nineveh are said to be 
 in some places even now nearly 50 ft. high, while 
 the breadth of the debris at the foot is from 100 ft. 
 to 200 ft. 
 
 Diodorus states that the walls of Nineveh were 
 100 ft. high, which was probably not beyond the 
 truth ; but, as the upper part of the wall is every- 
 where destroyed, it is impossible to prove the matter 
 at present. The breadth of the wall was probably 
 50 ft. — excavation, however, might determine this 
 with certainty. 
 
 The western face of the wall of Nineveh is over 
 two and a half miles long ; it faces towards the town 
 of Mosul and the river Tigris. At the northern and 
 southern corners the river closely approaches the 
 wall, but, between the two points the Tigris bends 
 out to the west, making a bow-shaped flat of land 
 about a mile broad between the wall and the river. 
 On the western side, with their outer border in a line 
 
88 EXCA VA TIONS A T KO TJYTJNJIIL 
 
 with the wall, lie the two palace mounds called Kou- 
 yunjik and Nebbi Yunas, to be described later. 
 
 Where the western wall at its northern corner 
 abuts on the Tigris it is joined by the northern wall, 
 which is about a mile and one-third long. There is 
 a considerable mound in one part of this wall, which 
 marks the site of a tower and of the great northern 
 gate of Nineveh. The entrance, which was excavated 
 by Mr. Layard, is adorned by colossal winged bulls 
 and mythological figures, and paved with large slabs 
 of limestone ; it appears to have been under the 
 centre of the tower, which had a depth from front to 
 back of 330 feet. The northern wall is continued 
 from the north-eastern corner by the eastern wall, 
 wilich is three and a quarter miles long.. Nearly 
 half way along this side the wall is broken by the 
 stream of the Khosr, which, coming from the east, 
 passes right through the site of Nineveh and runs 
 into the Tigris, Where the stream of the Khosr 
 breaks through the wall the floods have destroyed 
 a portion of the defences ; enough remains, however, 
 to show that the lower part of the wall in this part is 
 built of large blocks of stone, probably to resist the 
 water ; and in the river itself, in a line with the wall, 
 stand fragmentary blocks of solid masonry, which 
 Captain Jones, who made the best survey of the 
 ruins, considers to be remains of a dam to turn 
 the Khosr into the ditch. I am rather inclined to 
 think that they are part of a bridge over which the 
 wall was carried. 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK, 89 
 
 South of the Khosr, where the road to Ervil and 
 Baghdad passes through the eastern wall, stands a 
 double mound, marking the site of the Great Gate of 
 Nineveh, the scene of so many triumphal entries and 
 pageants of the Assyrian kings. 
 
 As this was the grandest gate in the wall of 
 Nineveh, it would be an important spot to excavate. 
 Outside the easteru wall Nineveh was shielded by 
 four walls and three moats, making this side of the 
 fortification exceptionally strong. The eastern and 
 western walls are connected at their southern extre- 
 mities by the south wall, which is the shortest and 
 least important of the defences of Nineveh, measuring 
 little more than half a mile in length. 
 
 The two palace mounds, called Kouyunjik and 
 Nebbi Yunas, are situated on the western side of the 
 city, and at one time joined the wall. Nebbi Yunas 
 is a triangular-shaped mound, crowned by a village 
 and burying-ground. It is called Nebbi Yunas from 
 the supposed tomb of Jonah, over which a mosque is 
 erected. 
 
 Excavations were made here by Mr. Layard, and 
 afterwards by the Turkish Government. The works 
 showed the existence of palaces here, the first built 
 by Vul-nirari, B.C. 812, the next by Sennacherib, B.C. 
 705, who, after finishing his great palace on the 
 Kouyunjik mound, built a new one here late in his 
 reign. Erom this building came the fine memorial 
 cylinder, with the account of the expedition against 
 Hezekiah, king of Judah. The third palace at Nebbi 
 
90 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KO TJYUNJIK. 
 
 Yunas was built by Esarhaddon, son of Sennacherib, 
 B.C. 681, and from here came three memorial cylin- 
 ders, containing tbe bistory of tbis reign. North of 
 Nebbi Yunas, just above the stream of tbe Khosr, 
 lies the largest mound, on the site of Nineveh, Kou- 
 yunjik. 
 
 The eastern and southern faces of the mound, from 
 the north-east to the south-west corner, are bounded 
 by the stream of the Khosr, which has been artificially 
 diverted to flow round it. The mound at one time 
 was surrounded by a casing of large squared stones, 
 and some former excavator had cleared a consider- 
 able space of this facing at the northern part of the 
 mound. The Turks have since built a bridge part of 
 the way across the Tigris, and for this purpose they 
 pulled down and carried away the exposed facing 
 wall of Kouyunjik, and the basement wall of the 
 palace of Assurbanipal. 
 
 The northern part of the Kouyunjik mound is 
 occupied by the palace of Assurbanipal, called the 
 North Palace, and the south-western part by the 
 palace of Sennacherib. Between the two palaces, 
 and on the eastern part of the mound, there exists a 
 wide space of ground, on which no Assyrian building 
 has been discovered. According to the Assyrian 
 inscriptions, there were at least four temples in this 
 space — two temples to Ishtar,the goddess of Nineveh, 
 a temple to Nebo and Merodach, and a ziggurat or 
 temple-tower. 
 
 Nineveh was founded by Nimrod, king of Baby- 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOTJYTJNJIIL 01 
 
 Ionia, and during the dominion of his successors 
 there stood here a temple to " Ishtar, daughter of 
 the god Hea." In the nineteenth century B.C. we 
 find Assyria constituted into a monarchy, under rulers 
 whose capital was at the city of Assur (Kalah Sher- 
 gat), and one of these, named Samsi-vul, restored the 
 old temple of Ishtar at Nineveh. After this, for 
 some centuries, we hear nothing of Nineveh, until the 
 reign of Assur-ubalid, B.C. 1400, who restored again 
 the temple of Ishtar. From this time, the city 
 gradually rose, until B.C. 1300, when Shalmaneser, 
 king of Assyria, repaired the temple of Ishtar, now 
 again in ruinous condition, and built a palace at 
 Nineveh, making the city the seat of government. 
 His son, Tugulti-ninip, B.C. 1271, made some addi- 
 tions to the temple of Ishtar ; and this structure was 
 again restored by Assur-dan, king of Assyria, B.C. 
 1200. Mutaggil-nusku, his son, B.C. 1170, rebuilt 
 the palace ; and the next monarch, Assur-risilim, B.C. 
 1150, rebuilt both the palace and temple. Tiglath 
 Pileser, his son, B.C. 1120, continued his father's 
 buildings here ; and the next king, Assur-bel-kala, 
 B.C. 1100, made a public fountain, in the shape of a 
 female figure. His brother, Samsi-vul III., B.C. 1080, 
 again built the temple of Ishtar. Assur-nazir-pal, 
 who reigned B.C. 885, rebuilt both the temple and 
 palace with great splendour, and his example was 
 followed by his son, Shalmaneser II., B.C. 8(50; but 
 towards the close of this monarch's reign, the Nine- 
 vites were dissatisfied with the transfer of the govern- 
 
02 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT K0T7YUNJIK. 
 
 ment to Calah (Nimroud), and Nineveh revolted in 
 favour of his son, Assur-dain-pal. This attempt at 
 revolution was suppressed by Samsi-vul, brother of 
 the revolting prince, and in B.C. 825, Sanisi-vul IV. 
 succeeded to the crown. He also adorned the temple 
 of Ishtar, and his son, Vul-nirari III., B.C. 812, built 
 a new temple to Nebo and Merodach. Hitherto all 
 the public buildings had been on the platform of 
 Kouyunjik, bat Vul-nirari founded a new palace on 
 the mound of Nebbi Yunas. The next monarch who 
 embellished Nineveh was Tiglath Pileser II., B.C. 
 745, who built a palace by the bend of the river 
 Khosr. After the death of Tiglath Pileser, Nineveh 
 was neglected in favour of a new royal city, built by 
 Sargon, B.C. 722, at Dur-sargina (Khorsabad) ; but 
 the temples were kept in repair, and Sargon restored 
 the sanctuary of Nebo and Merodach. In the year 
 B.C. 705, Sennacherib came to the throne, and he at 
 once set to work to restore the glory of the great 
 capital of Assyria. The old palace of Nineveh, the 
 work of so many monarchs, had again fallen into 
 decay, and he entirely removed it. Then turning the 
 course of the river Khosr, which had undermined the 
 mound, he forced it to flow more to the south ; and 
 he increased both the height and extent of the mound. 
 On the south-west part he now built a magnificent 
 palace, which in extent exceeds all other Assyrian 
 palaces yet found. On the northern part of the 
 mound he built a palace for his son, and on the 
 mound of Nebbi Yunas a second palace for him- 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK. 93 
 
 self. The great walls of the city were also the 
 work of this monarch. After the death of Senna- 
 cherib, his son, Esarhaddon, B.C. 681, built a second 
 palace on the Nebbi Yunas mound, and a temple 
 to Shamas. His son and successor, Assurbanipal, B.C. 
 668, restored the various palaces and temples built by 
 his father and grandfather, and constructed a beautiful 
 palace on the northern part of the Kouyunjik mound, 
 on the site of one formerly built by Sennacherib. 
 Nineveh, was now in the height of its glory, but these 
 vast works had been raised in great part by slave 
 labour, and the captives taken in war toiled in 
 building her walls and palaces. The city saw triumph 
 after triumph, until in the time of Assurbanipal it 
 ruled over an empire stretching from Egypt and 
 Lydia on the west to Media and Persia on the east. 
 
 The end was, however, swiftly coming, and Nabo- 
 polassar, the Assyrian general who left the city at 
 the command of his monarch to subdue a revolt in 
 Babylonia, was destined soon to return the conqueror 
 of Nineveh itself. A coalition of Necho, king of 
 Egypt, Cyaxares, king of Media, and Nabopolassar, ">£-2>^ 
 king of Babylon, was formed against Assyria, and the 
 Medes and Babylonians, after defeating the Assyrian 
 < I : forces, laid siege to Nineveh. The lofty walls of the 
 city long resisted their efforts, but after two years 
 there happened a great overflow of the Tigris which 
 swept away part of the wall of the city. Through 
 the breach the besiegers entered on the subsiding 
 of the flood, and captured the city. The last king of 
 
94 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYVNJIK 
 
 Assyria, finding his city was taken, made a pile of 
 all his valuables in the palace, and setting fire to it 
 perished himself in the flames. The city was now 
 plundered and at once destroyed ; it did not gradually 
 decay like Babylon, but from the time of its capture 
 it ceased to have any political importance, and its site 
 became almost forgotten. 
 
 On the 7th of May I commenced work at Kouyun- 
 jik on the library space of the south-west palace, the 
 building raised by Sennacherib, and on the 9th of 
 May I started some trenches at the south-eastern 
 corner of the north palace built by Assurbanipal. 
 There was nothing of interest in the trenches at first, 
 as all the sculptures had been discovered by former 
 excavators, and my object was the recovery of in- 
 scribed terra cotta tablets. On the 10th of May I 
 resolved to visit the site of Hammum Ali, and started 
 out in the evening after paying the men. Hammum 
 Ali is a site on the right or western bank of the 
 Tigris, about sixteen miles below Mosul. The place 
 is said to be a summer resort for the people of Mosul, 
 and is noted for the medicinal properties of some 
 bitumen springs. Passing through the southern gate 
 of Mosul, the way l?y for some few miles along a low 
 good road ; we then turned along a rugged, rocky 
 path which was very tiring to travel over, and at the 
 end of this descended again into a plain in which 
 stands Hammum Ali. War was at the time raging 
 among the Arab tribes on the west of the Tigris. 
 The great tribe of the Aneiza, which occupies the 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUJSTJIK. 95 
 
 desert between Aleppo and the Tigris, had been 
 moving as usual for plunder, and one branch or de- 
 tachment had attacked a tribe named Abu Mohammed. 
 The detachment of the Aneiza was defeated, and the 
 Abu Mohammed, following up their success, put to 
 death with great cruelty every one of the opposite 
 party they met. In revenge the Aneiza were moving 
 towards the Tigris, attacking the various tribes in 
 that direction, and a few days before my visit to 
 Hammum Ali, they had a brush in that neighbour- 
 hood with a division of the Shammer Arabs, and had 
 plundered them of all their flocks and herds. The 
 various wandering tribes on the w r est of the Tigris 
 were now flying across the river to escape the Aneiza, 
 and we met on the way to Hammum Ali numbers of 
 the fugitives carrying all their goods and driving 
 their cattle before them. 
 
 It was night when I arrived at Hammum Ali, but 
 I contrived to get some refreshment, and afterwards 
 spread my blanket on the ground and fell asleep. 
 Early in the morning I rose, and having procured 
 some breakfast went out to visit the mounds. There 
 are several artificial elevations here, giving indications 
 of the existence at one time of a considerable city, 
 the principal mound appearing to be the ruin of a 
 ziggurat or tower. A tunnel had been opened in 
 this by the French excavators, but nothing of con- 
 sequence had been found, the interior consisting of 
 sun-dried bricks with layers of large stones. After 
 inspecting the mounds I examined the village, and 
 
9G EXCAVATIONS AT KOJJYTJNJIK. 
 
 the bitumen springs or wells. A roofed bath-house 
 is built over these, and the famous water is in a bath 
 or pool, with a stage all round it for the convenience 
 of the bathers. People of both sexes bathe in the 
 pool, the water of which is of an inky colour, with 
 lumps of bitumen floating about in it. The interior 
 of the building round the pool has been used as a con- 
 venience, and is in a state of indescribable filthiness. 
 
 Turning from this I rode through the low ground 
 by the side of the Tigris, and then along the face of 
 the cliffs overhanging the water, and soon arrived at 
 Mosul, from which I crossed over to Kouyunjik to 
 see the progress of the excavations. My trenches in 
 the palace of Sennacherib proceeded slowly and pro- 
 duced little result, the ground being so cut up by 
 former excavations that it was difficult to secure 
 good results without more extensive operations than 
 my time or means would allow; inscriptions, the 
 great object of my work, were however found, and 
 served as compensation for the labour. 
 
 In the north palace the results were more definite. 
 Here was a large pit made by former excavators from 
 which had come many tablets ; this pit had been used 
 since the close of the last excavations f^r a quarry, 
 and stones for the building of the Mosul bridge had 
 been regularly extracted from it. The bottom of the 
 pit was now full of massive fragments of stone from 
 the basement wall of the palace jammed in between 
 heaps of small fragments of stone, cement, bricks, and 
 clay, all in utter confusion. On removing some of 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIIL 
 
 07 
 
 these stones with a crowbar, and digging in the 
 rubbish behind them, there appeared half of a curious 
 tablet copied from a Babylonian original, giving 
 warnings to kings and judges of the evils which 
 would follow the neglect of justice in the country. 
 On continuing the trench some distance further, the 
 other half of this tablet was discovered, it having 
 evidently been broken before it came among the 
 rubbish. 
 
 On the 14th of May, my friend, Mr. Charles Kerr, 
 whom I had left at Aleppo, visited me at Mosul, and 
 as I rode into the khan where I was staying, I met 
 him. After mutual congratulations I sat down to 
 examine the store of fragments of cuneiform inscrip- 
 tions from the day's digging, taking out and brushing 
 off the earth from the fragments to read their contents. 
 On cleaning one of them I found to my surprise and 
 gratification that it contained the greater portion of 
 seventeen lines of inscription belonging to the first 
 column of the Chaldean account of the Deluge, and 
 fitting into the only place where there was a serious 
 blank in the story. When I had first published the 
 account of this tablet I had conjectured that there 
 were about fifteen lines wanting in this part of the 
 story, and now with this portion I was enabled to 
 make it nearly complete. 
 
 After communicating to my friend the contents of 
 the fragment I copied it, and a few days later tele- 
 graphed the circumstance to the proprietors of the 
 " Daily Telegraph." Mr. Kerr desired to see the 
 
 n 
 
98 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 mound at Nimroud, but, as the results from Kouyun- 
 jik were so important, I could not leave tlie site to 
 go with, liim, *so I sent my dragoman to show him the 
 place, remaining myself to superintend the Kouyunjik 
 excavations. 
 
 The palace of Sennacherib also steadily produced 
 its tribute of objects, including a small tablet of 
 Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, some new fragments of 
 one of the historical cylinders of Assurbanipal, and a 
 curious fragment of the history of Sargon, king of 
 Assyria, relating to his expedition against Ashdod, 
 which is mentioned in the twentieth chapter of the 
 Book of Isaiah. On the same fragment was also part 
 of the list of Median chiefs who paid tribute to 
 Sargon. Part of an inscribed cylinder of Sennacherib, 
 and half of an amulet in onyx with the name and 
 titles of this monarch, subsequently turned up, and 
 numerous impressions in clay of seals, with imple- 
 ments of bronze, iron, and glass. There was part of 
 a crystal throne, a most magnificent article of furni- 
 ture, in too mutilated condition to copy, but as far as 
 t is preserved closely resembling in shape the bronze 
 one discovered by Mr. Layard at Nimroud. 
 
 On the evening of Saturday, the 17th of May, 
 after paying the workmen, 1 started to examine the 
 mounds of Khorsabad. I crossed the Tigris, and 
 passed through the ruins of Nineveh, by the side 
 of the Khosr river, and went over the country to the 
 mound of Kalata. From the lateness of the hour, 
 I was unable to inspect Kalata, and put up in a 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOTJYTJXJIIL 
 
 village near that mound. Rising early next morn- 
 ing, I went to the mound of Kalata, a large, conical, 
 artificial elevation, which had been tapped by former 
 explorers. The only thing that could be seen of 
 any account was a chamber in the side of the 
 mound, which appeared to me like a tomb. The 
 vault had been recently rifled of its contents, and 
 I was told several antiquities had been found 
 there. From Kalata I went to Barimeh, a well- 
 built village near the foot of the mountains of Jebel 
 Maklub, and, passing through a beautiful country, 
 rode to Khorsabad. A fine stream, a tributary of the 
 Khosr, flows from Barimeh to Khorsabad. In one 
 place there is a pretty waterfall, and signs of cultiva- 
 tion and fertility are visible in every direction. The 
 neighbouring mountains and streams, the fields and 
 flowers, combine to make this district a contrast to 
 the vast brown plains of most of Assyria, and fully 
 justify the choice of Sargon, who fixed on the site of 
 Khorsabad to build his capital. 
 
 The ruins of Khorsabad represent the old Assyrian 
 city of Dur-sargina, and consist of a town and palace 
 mound. The wall of the town is nearly square, 
 rather over a mile each way, the angles of the square 
 facing the cardinal points. On the south-west face 
 of the wall there is the fortified enclosure of a 
 citadel, and on the north-west face, along which 
 runs the stream from Barimeh, stands the palace 
 platform, somewhat in form of the letter T, the 
 base of the letter being turned to the north-west, 
 
 H 2 
 
100 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOTJYUNJIK. 
 
 nearest to the stream. This part of the mound near 
 the water is the highest, and covers the remains of 
 the palace and a temple. The excavations here by 
 M. Botta have been made in a systematic manner, 
 and have laid bare a considerable portion of the palace, 
 some of which can still be seen ; but most of it has 
 been covered again, to preserve it. I spent some 
 time in inspecting these ruins, and then returned to 
 Mosul. 
 
 I have said I telegraphed to the proprietors of 
 the " Daily Telegraph " my success in finding the 
 missing portion of the deluge tablet. This they pub- 
 lished in the paper on the 21st of May, 1873 ; but 
 from some error unknown to me, the telegram as 
 published differs materially from the one I sent. In 
 particular, in the published copy occurs the words 
 " as the season is closing," which led to the inference 
 that I considered that the proper season for excavat- 
 ing was coming to an end. My own feeling was the 
 contrary of this, and I did not send this. I was at 
 the time waiting instructions, and hoped that as good 
 results were being obtained, the excavations would be 
 continued. The proprietors of the " Daily Telegraph," 
 however, considered that the discovery of the missing 
 fragment of the deluge text accomplished the object 
 they had in view, and they declined to prosecute the 
 excavations further, retaining, however, an interest in 
 the work, and desiring to see it carried on by the 
 nation. I was disappointed myself at this, as my 
 excavations were so recently commenced ; but I felt 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUTUNJIK. 101 
 
 I could not object to this opinion, and therefore pre- 
 pared to finish my excavations and return. I con- 
 tinued the Kouyunjik excavations until I had com- 
 pleted my preparations for returning to England, 
 and in the north palace, near the place where I found 
 the tablet with warnings to kings, I disinterred a 
 fragment of a curious syllabary, divided into four 
 perpendicular columns. In the first column was 
 given the phonetic values of the cuneiform charac- 
 ters, and the characters themselves were written in 
 the second column, the third column contained the 
 names and meanings of the signs, while the fourth 
 column gave the words and ideas which it repre- 
 sented. 
 
 I searched all round for other fragments of this re- 
 markable tablet, pushing my trench further through 
 the mass of stones and rubbish, the remains of the 
 fallen basement wall of the palace. Large blocks of 
 stone, with carving and inscriptions, fragments of 
 ornamental pavement, painted bricks, and decora- 
 tions, were scattered in all directions, showing how 
 complete was the ruin of this portion of the palace. 
 Fixed between these fragments were found, from 
 time to time, fragments of terra-cotta tablets ; and 
 one day a workman struck with his pick an over- 
 lying mass of mortar, revealing the edge of a tablet, 
 which was jammed between two blocks of stone. 
 We at once cleared away the rubbish, and then, 
 bringing a crowbar to bear, lifted the upper stone 
 block, and extracted the fragment of tablet, which 
 
102 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYTJNJIK. 
 
 proved to be part of the syllabary, and joined the 
 fragment already found. The greater part of the 
 rest of this tablet was found at a considerable distance 
 in a branch trench to the right. It was adhering to 
 the roof of the trench, and easily detached, leaving 
 the impression of all the characters in the roof. 
 
 Two other portions of the sixth tablet of the deluge 
 series also came from this part. They relate to the 
 conquest of the winged bull, and will be given with 
 the other portions of the Izdubar series. 
 
 On my left in this excavation stood a mass of solid 
 rubbish, which had been undermined during the 
 former excavations ; and a crack having started 
 between this and the mound at the back of it, it 
 stood as if ready to fall into the trench. For some 
 time the workmen were afraid to touch it; but I 
 expected some fragments there, so I directed them to 
 attack it from the top, and was rewarded by several 
 parts of tablets. A second trench on the right 
 yielded a good text, being a variant account of the 
 conquest of Babylonia by the Elamites, B.C. 2280. 
 Most of the fragments from this part were obtained 
 with considerable difficulty, on account of the masses 
 of stone which bad to be removed to get at the 
 inscriptions. 
 
 In the northern part of Sennacherib's palace I 
 made some excavations, and discovered chambers 
 similar to those in the south-east palace at Nimroud. 
 Here no inscriptions rewarded me ; but in the part of 
 the temple area near this I discovered a new frag- 
 
EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK. 103 
 
 ment of the cylinder of Bel-zakir-iskun, king of 
 Assyria, B.C. 626. Further to the south-east in this 
 part of the mound I discovered brick inscriptions of 
 Shalmaneser, B.C. 1300, and his son, Tugulti-ninip, 
 B.C. 1271, both of whom made restorations and addi- 
 tions to the temple of Ishtar. Here was a later wall, 
 in constructing which some fine sculptures of the age 
 of Assur-nazir-pal, B.C. 885, had been cut up and 
 destroyed. 
 
 Such were my principal discoveries at Kouyun- 
 jik, and I closed the excavations there on the 9th 
 of June. While I stayed at Mosul I made many 
 friends among the Catholic missionaries and the 
 merchants in the town, and in company with some 
 of them I paid a farewell visit to Nimroud on the 
 4th and 5th of June. On the 8th of June, as I 
 was about to leave the country, I gave a farewell 
 dinner to my friends, and next day we took leave of 
 each other, I starting for Europe with my treasures. 
 
Chapter VII. 
 
 FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 Backsheesh. — Mill stream. — Jebel Abjad. — Power of rivers. — 
 Deluge mountains. — Stories. — M. Costi and Mr. Kerr. — Desert 
 Arab*. — Nisibin. — Wounded Arab. — Orfa. — Abraham's pool. — 
 Castle. — Biradjik. — Aleppo. — Turkish custom-house. — Deceit. 
 — Alexandretta. — Antiquities seized. — Their release. 
 
 the 9th of June, when preparing to start 
 I had to meet those innumerable applica- 
 tions for backsheesh, that is, presents, 
 which are so disagreeable in the East. 
 Everyone, whether he had done me any service or 
 not, equally felt justified in asking for money, and 
 it seemed as if half the town were coming for 
 presents. I kept one of my boxes open until six 
 o'clock in the evening to receive the last discovered 
 antiquities, and, my caravan being in readiness at the 
 khan, I at once started for England. Several of my 
 Iriends went across the Tigris with me, and on the 
 beach of the eastern bank, between Nineveh and 
 Mosul, I bid farewell to them and rode on to Tel 
 Adas. Passing the gloomy shadows of the ruins of 
 
FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 105 
 
 Nineveh, I rode along by night to the next station, 
 and reached Tel Adas about a quarter to three on 
 the morning of the 10th of June. 1 stayed at Tel 
 Adas until the afternoon, and about a quarter to five 
 started again. The road here was beautiful by night, 
 and in one place we came to a fine stream and mill. 
 The road here gradually ascended from the south 
 until it reached a high ridge almost like an embank- 
 ment; then it descended by a steep path to the 
 bank of the stream. Turning on one side of this, we 
 travelled to the east a little distance up the stream 
 until we found a place where we could ford it ; then, 
 turning to the left, we passed along the other bank, 
 and had to ford some more water before reaching the 
 straight road. Our way now lay through an undu- 
 lating country, with low swelling hills and ridges of 
 red earth. I passed Semil and went on to Gershene, 
 where I stopped until the afternoon of the ] 1th of 
 June. About a quarter past four in the afternoon 
 of the 11th I started from Gershene, intending to go 
 round the western end of the range of mountains 
 named Jebel Abjad, but my guide turned out to be 
 unacquainted with the road. We travelled along 
 the plain for some distance, and about sunset, taking 
 a wrong turn to the right, got entangled in the 
 mountains. We rode about in the dark in the vain 
 attempt to find the way, or to cross into the plains 
 north of the mountains. The moon now rose, brightly 
 shining over the scene and seeming to light up the 
 upper parts of the mountains ; but the shadows of the 
 
10(5 
 
 FROM 3IOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 higher peaks, some of them 2,500 feet above the sea, 
 fell over the glens and ravines through which we 
 tried to force our way, rendering the light uncertain 
 and deceiving. 
 
 The scenery by day would have been very romantic, 
 and it was rendered in some respects more so by the 
 uncertain light in which we were travelling. Towering 
 rocks, precipices, caverns, and waterfalls seen in suc- 
 cession, sometimes half shrouded in shadow, some- 
 times in the pale light of the moon, made far more 
 impression on the imagination than they would have 
 done in the day. After some hours of wandering 
 we got across the mountains, and then tried to reach 
 the banks of the Khabour. The river Khabour and 
 its affluent, the Hazel, here run in a direction from 
 east to w r est in the plain, which is bounded on the 
 north by the Jebel Djudi, or Mountains of the Ark, 
 and on the south by the Jebel Abjad, across which 
 we had just passed. The dark rugged forms of the 
 Jebel Djudi could be seen standing out in the dis- 
 tance, and towards this range we directed our steps. 
 On reaching the plain of the Khabour we rode 
 through a vast field of wild plants, the smell from 
 which was most fragrant, but they grew so thick and 
 high that they almost covered us on horseback ; and, 
 fearing to lose ourselves in this jungle, we turned 
 back and skirted the mountain until we came near a 
 village, and entering this, tired with my night's 
 wandering, I threw myself on a heap of corn and 
 slept until sunrise. At dawn I obtained a guide from 
 
FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 107 
 
 the village and went down to the Khabour, the cross- 
 ing of which was a work of some difficulty. I passed 
 over it where it is divided into several streams, and, 
 passing some rocky heights, descended into a wide 
 level plain, originally the bed of the Tigris, when in 
 this part of its course it flowed more to the east. 
 Vast water- worn cliffs and rocks stood on either side, 
 some worn into shapes resembling the old ruins 
 which lower down now line the river. In all this 
 country the one natural phenomenon that impressed 
 me most was the power of running water. The 
 enormous cuttings, valleys, and river beds, and the 
 power and swiftness of the rivers are very marked, 
 and it is evident that in former times the strength 
 of these waters was very much greater. Riding up 
 out of this hollow we came to a beautiful scene ; 
 there was a ruined station on a rocky height, many 
 trees and numerous wild flowers, conspicuous among 
 which was the bright Oleander. Here was a waterfall, 
 which now, supplied with abundant water, was, I 
 think, the prettiest I had ever seen. Directly after, 
 I passed among masses of recent pebbly rocks along 
 a ledge overhanging the Tigris. Here the river 
 seems undermining the eastern bank, and vast frag- 
 ments of rock torn from the cliffs lay in the stream 
 below. 
 
 Passing down from the rocks to the sands, I rode 
 along the bank to the bridge of boats at Djezireh, 
 and crossed into the town about half-past nine on 
 the morning of the 12th of June. I soon found 
 
ICS FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 the residences of my old friends, M. Costi and 
 Mr. Kerr, and, receiving a hearty welcome from 
 them, put up at their house. When I lost myself 
 on the Jebel Abjad I also lost sight of my luggage 
 and antiquities, and now I waited at Djezireh until 
 they arrived. Almost my only amusement was to sit 
 on the top of M. Costi's house and watch the evolu- 
 tions of a detachment of Turkish soldiers then 
 encamped on the pebbly beach between Djezireh 
 and the Tigris. On the other side of the Tigris, 
 past some gently sloping hills, stood the Jebel Djudi, 
 or Deluge Mountains. In these mountains they have 
 found coal and bitumen, which may account for the 
 tradition of the ark being localized here. In the 
 valley at the foot of Jebel Djudi there is a village 
 where, according to the popular tradition, Noah lived 
 after the deluge and planted his vineyard. When 
 I was in the East mining operations were going on at 
 the Jebel Djudi, and many absurd stories were in 
 circulation among the people. One of these reports 
 was to the effect that a miner at work on Jebel Djudi 
 had suddenly come on an ancient door buried in the 
 earth, and that they had telegraphed to Constanti- 
 nople before venturing to open it. In the East, in 
 times of trouble and expected attack, it is customary 
 to bury treasures, and the people are always dreaming 
 of such hoards. Next day, the 13th of June, my 
 luggage arrived safely, and at six in the evening 
 I started on the road to Nisibin. 
 
 M. Costi made up an entertainment at parting, 
 
FRO II MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 109 
 
 consisting of a lamb stuffed and roasted whole, and 
 we found an old garden under tlie shadow of some 
 ruins where we partook of it, and I then got off on 
 my journey. We wound up the mountain road which 
 ascends the side of the gorge in which Djezireh is 
 situated ; through the trees we saw the stream, looking 
 charming in the evening light, and then passing out 
 of sight of this, we rode along undulating plains, 
 strewn here and there with glacial boulders, and 
 arrived at Tellibel, where we had stayed on the 
 journey out. Leaving Tellibel, I rode to Deruneli, 
 a miserable village, where we changed guides. 
 I stayed the day at Deruneh, and started in the 
 evening of the 14th of June for Nisibin. The road 
 here at this time of the year is excellent, and the 
 riding by night enjoyable. Along the southern 
 horizon I saw the reflection of numerous fires ; the 
 people of the villages having reaped their fields, 
 were burning everything in their neighbourhood, 
 that the desert Arabs mi^ht find no forage. The 
 hand of the wandering Arab is to-day, as ever, 
 against every man's hand, and their hand against 
 his. During these nightly rides I enjoyed magni- 
 ficent views of the heavens ; Venus rose each morning 
 like a lamp, and all the stars had a brilliancy with 
 which people in northern climes are not familiar. 
 
 It was daylight before I reached Nisibin, and I 
 found the town presenting a much more pleasing 
 appearance than on my former visit. The spring 
 had produced a verdure in the surrounding scenery 
 
110 FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 which made a good contrast to its winter appearance. 
 At Nisibin I saw, in passing, the mounds of the old 
 Assyrian city and the columns of a classical temple. 
 On the evening of the loth of June I left Msibin, 
 but my horse falling lame I stopped in the middle of 
 the night, and did not start again until five o'clock in 
 the morning; even then my progress was slow, and 
 it was two o'clock in the afternoon before I reached 
 Dinasar. At Dinasar there are large mounds and 
 ruins of minarets and other buildings, attesting the 
 former existence on this spot of a large city. 
 
 At half-past three in the morning of the 17th 
 I left Dinasar for Varenshaher, but, taking a 
 wrong turn, travelled too much to the north on a 
 much longer road, near the Mardin mountains ; the 
 result was I fell in with a region covered with 
 worn glacial boulders, — these stones were black 
 in colour, weatherbeaten, and pitted all over with 
 holes, like so many great cinders. Riding over 
 these was very fatiguing, and at six in the evening I 
 gave up hope of reaching Varenshaher, and rested in 
 some tents which fortunately stood near at hand. 
 Next morning I started at half-past five and toiled 
 again over this cinder bed, not reaching Varenshaher 
 until midday. Here, while waiting for my luggage, 
 the Turkish officer in charge invited me to take some 
 refreshment, and while we sat together a man was 
 brought in who had been attacked by one of the 
 Circassian zabtis, or irregular troops. His clothes 
 were cut through and covered with blood, and there 
 
FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. Ill 
 
 were six long sword-cuts on his back, which presented 
 a sickening spectacle, resembling a piece of hacked 
 meat. 
 
 The Turkish officer sent orders to search for the 
 man accused of this attack, and afterwards sat down 
 to judge some smaller cases. Two men then came 
 forward, and disputed about the ownership of a 
 sheepskin, and made as much bother about it as if it 
 had been a thousand pounds. After hearing the 
 learned arguments in this case, I prepared to leave 
 Varenshaher, and bade farewell to the Turkish 
 official. 
 
 Varenshaher stands in the midst of the ruins of an 
 extensive city ; there are remains of fine fortifications, 
 columns of buildings, arches and vaults, all of the 
 same black stone which is so thickly spread over this 
 region. I started from here at a quarter to four in the 
 afternoon, and reached Tel Gauran in two hours. The 
 chief of Tel Gauran received me kindly, remembering 
 me from my former visit. While at Tel Gauran I 
 saw a wandering Mahomedan holy man, or dervish ; 
 he was very dirty, very lazy, and very devout, and 
 only interrupted his prayers to light his pipe or search 
 for the vermin that annoyed him. Many of these 
 wandering holy men are to be seen at this time of the 
 year, and coming just after the harvest they are able 
 to get better gifts from the faithful. 
 
 At a quarter to six in the morning of the 19th of 
 June I started from Tel Gauran, and arrived at ten 
 o'clock at a good village named Mizar. The chief of 
 
112 FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 Mizar was a stranger to me, but a hospitable man, who 
 gave me a good reception. From Mizar I started in the 
 afternoon and rode to Dashlook, where I met again the 
 old lady who seemed to rule this village ; she was the 
 sister of the chief of Mizar, and had married the chief 
 of Dashlook ; in her house again I was well received. 
 I made her a present of a pipe and some tobacco, as 
 the old lady is an inveterate smoker. At Dashlook 
 also there was a holy man, who complained that with 
 all his sanctity he was neglected for me. I did not 
 stay the night at Dashlook, but passed on in the 
 evening to Yedok, and at six o'clock in the morning 
 started from there for Orfa. Our road lay along by 
 dry white rocks which reflected the glare of the sun 
 and made the heat oppressive. 
 
 When we reached Adana, I turned into a fruit- 
 garden and bought some fruit while I enjoyed a rest, 
 then started again, and came into the plain in which 
 Orfa stands. This region is so shut in by mountains 
 that the air seems still and oppressive, and on this 
 day the sun appeared to give an intense heat here, 
 which was difficult to bear ; the air seemed luminous, 
 and floated in waves before the eyes, while any little 
 wind that arose appeared as if it came from an oven. 
 Glad to escape this I hastened into Orfa, which I 
 reached about half-past twelve in the day, and visited 
 Pastor Hagub, whom I have formerly mentioned. I 
 talked over my work and various discoveries with 
 the pastor, and then went with him to see some of 
 the curiosities of Orfa. We came first to a beautiful 
 
FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 113 
 
 stream and pool as full of fisli as it could be ; this is 
 the Pool of Abraham, the inhabitants believing that 
 Orfa is the Ur of the Chaldees, the birthplace of the 
 Father of the Faithful. The pool is consequently held 
 sacred, and no one is allowed to catch the fish with 
 which it abounds. Passing from here we entered a 
 garden and partook of Turkish coffee, and then began 
 to ascend a rocky height on which the castle is 
 situated. The road lay on the left, and formed a 
 steep winding ascent reaching to the top of the rock 
 on which the castle stands, but I saw before reaching 
 the summit that artificial means had been used to 
 make the fortress more impregnable. A deep and wide 
 cutting had been made behind the walls of the castle, 
 completely isolating that portion of rock on which 
 the fort was built. In various places in the face of 
 the rock, excavations had been made for tombs, but 
 all these appeared to have been rifled. From the 
 top of the rock we gained a splendid view of the city, 
 which lay stretched at our feet like a panorama. We 
 had to pass right round to the front of the castle to 
 enter, and when inside found ourselves in the midst 
 of ruins of all ages. I copied a stone covered with a 
 Greek inscription, and further on came to two Corin- 
 thian columns standing in a heap of ruins. On the 
 shaft of one was a Pehlevi inscription, and below it 
 an inscription in Arabic. On the outside wall of the 
 castle was another Arabic inscription. 
 
 Leaving the old city of Orfa about six o'clock in 
 the evening of the 21st of June, I travelled along the 
 
 I 
 
lli FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 rough, stony road leading to the Euphrates, and 
 rested in the night at a village about one hour east 
 of Tcharmelek. 
 
 Early the next morning I started for Tcharmelek, 
 and arrived there about seven o'clock. Then, leaving 
 Tcharmelek in the evening, I travelled towards 
 Biradjik. Some of my people becoming sleepy on the 
 way, and no village being near, we all wrapped our- 
 selves in our blankets, and lay down on the top of a 
 well. Before morning we had started again, and 
 arrived about eight o'clock at Biradjik. 
 
 Biradjik, like most other towns on the route, 
 seemed much improved in appearance by the change 
 of season ; the numerous small streams looked very 
 refreshing, and the fruit-gardens were in excellent 
 order. The whole town, in fact, had a superior look, 
 so much of it being built of stone, different from the 
 squalid mud huts so common in the East. 
 
 On the 24th I crossed the Euphrates by the ferry, 
 and rode to Okusolderan, taking a different and 
 better road than that I travelled on before ; and 
 next day I journeyed to Tel Karamel. In this 
 part of the way I got into a rugged valley, between 
 two lines of hills — a wretched road, full of stones 
 and impediments. Turning to the, right, out of this, 
 I crossed to Tel Karamel, and found my caravan, 
 which had come by a better road. On the 26th 
 I rode from Tel Karamel to Aleppo, over a chalky 
 region, and, entering the city, put up again at the 
 locanda. I was now involved in a difficulty with 
 
FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 115 
 
 the Turkish authorities, as the custom-house officials 
 refused to let the antiquities pass. I was deprived of 
 the assistance of Mr. Skene, the English consul, as he 
 was away on a holiday ; but I showed my firman, to 
 prove my right to the antiquities, and the customs 
 officers said, if I would unpack all the antiquities, 
 and show the things to them at the custom-house, 
 they would give me a letter to the port to pass the 
 things. I accordingly opened all my boxes, and, 
 having new boxes made there, repacked the antiqui- 
 ties. The Turkish officers laughed at the appearance 
 of the old fragments of inscriptions, and called them 
 rubbish, making fun at the idea of taking care of such 
 things. They gave me the letter to the port of 
 Alexandretta ; but although the things were worth- 
 less in their eyes, they could not resist the temptation 
 to play me false, and I found later, on presenting my 
 letter, that it was an order to seize my boxes. On 
 the 1st of July, in the evening, I left Aleppo, having 
 engaged a caravan to Alexandretta. This journey 
 was no pleasure, as I rode a wretched beast, which bad 
 a fixed idea that the true road always lay to the left 
 of where I wanted him to go. He had a queer, pump- 
 handle motion, and was inclined to drop on his knees 
 on the slightest occasion. My first station past Aleppo 
 was Elkod, and, leaving there on the 2nd of July, I 
 rode to Afrin, where I dined under the cool shade of 
 the trees. In the afternoon I went on to Ain Bada, 
 where I put up for the night, and next morning 
 started across the plains of Antioch. Most of the 
 
 i 2 
 
1L6 FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 streams here were bow dry, and the plain was in 
 good condition for travelling. At Delebekir I left 
 the plain, and began to ascend the pass of Beilan. 
 For some distance I saw on the left the lake of 
 Antioch, until, turning at the spot where the Aleppo 
 and Antioch roads meet, on the way to Beilan, I lost 
 sight of the lake, and passed along the right of a deep 
 defile in the mountains to Beilan. At Beilan I put 
 
 View op Bat of Alexandretta peom Beilan. 
 
 up at the new khan, which was just finished, and is 
 excellent in accommodation and position. From here 
 I once again caught a glimpse of the sea through 
 a gorge between the mountains, and saw the vessel 
 riding at anchor which was to take me home. At 
 Beilan I met a number of engineers sent out by the 
 Porte to survey the line of the proposed Euphrates 
 Valley railway ; but their presence here was a stand- 
 
FROM 3I0SUL TO ENGLAND. 117 
 
 ingjoke. Nobody believed the Turks would ever 
 make the proposed line ; and it was said that Turkey 
 was seeking a loan in the European market, and as 
 soon as that matter was concluded the engineers 
 would be recalled, and signs of activity again cease. 
 Before I returned to the East, it did happen 
 curiously enough that these engineers were with- 
 drawn; and I do not think anything has come of 
 this survey, any more than of others which have 
 preceded it. 
 
 On the 4th of July I left Beilan, and rode down 
 the rocky path leading to Alexandretta, then along 
 the spit of sand into the city. Here I called on Mr. 
 Franck, the British consul, who was delighted to see 
 me, and hear of my success. He went with me to 
 the custom-house to present the letter for passing 
 the antiquities ; but when the letter was opened, it 
 was found to contain an order to stop them, the 
 Turkish officials having made me the bearer of a 
 letter directed against myself. Mr. Franck, as British 
 consul, now assisted me in every way. We showed 
 the firman of the Sultan, but it was cunningly pointed 
 out that even this was given with a flaw in it. We 
 reminded the officials that the boxes were the pro- 
 perty of the British Government, and took other 
 steps, but all was of no avail, and the customs 
 authorities ended by seizing the antiquities. 
 
 Such was the conduct of the Turkish officers to 
 the agent of a nation which had been foremost in up- 
 holding Turkey. Deprived of the antiquities I had 
 
118 FROM MOSUL TO ENGLAND. 
 
 gained with so much toil, I at once took passage for 
 England, where I arrived on the 19th of July. The 
 antiquities were afterwards released at the request of 
 the British ambassador at Constantinople, and were 
 shipped by Mr. Franck for England, where they 
 arrived safely, and were deposited in the British 
 Museum. 
 
Chapter VIII. 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY TO MOSUL. 
 
 Eclease of antiquities. — New discoveries. — Syrian robber. — 
 Severe winter. — Tcharmelek. — Calah. — Dinasar. — Turkish con- 
 scription. — Abdul Kareem. — Irregular soldiers. — Nisibin. — En- 
 tertainment. — Dancing boy. — Derunah. — Post travelling. 
 
 FTER the Turkish government had re- 
 
 leased the collection of antiquities, and 
 they had arrived in England, great 
 interest was taken in the results of the 
 expedition, and the trustees of the British Museum, 
 seeing that other portions of the Museum cuneiform 
 inscriptions existed at Kouyiinjik, directed me to 
 return to Mosul and excavate during the* remainder 
 of the period of the firman, this concession closing 
 on the 9th or 10th of March, 1874, and the trustees 
 set aside a sum of £1,000 for this work. 
 
 While I remained in England, between my first 
 and second journey, I made some interesting dis- 
 coveries, partly in the old collection, and partly in 
 the new collection which I had just excavated. 
 
120 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 Among these were the fragments of an official Baby- 
 lonian chronology, and a valuable portion of the 
 Assyrian canon, referring to the period of Shalma- 
 neser, king of Assyria. These were published at a 
 meeting of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, and 
 the same evening the decision of the trustees of the 
 British Museum was announced. 
 
 Under the direction of the trustees of the British 
 Museum I left London on the 25th of November, 
 1873, and, traversing the same route as before, 
 arrived at Alexandretta on the 9th of December. 
 Mr. and Madame Franck received me very kindly, 
 and my arrangements were soon made for going up 
 the country. On the same day I bid farewell to the 
 consul and Madame Franck, little thinking that for 
 one of us it was the last time. Soon afterwards, 
 while Mr. Franck had gone to England on business, 
 Madame Franck was taken suddenly ill and died. 
 I journeyed on the 9th to Beilan and put up at the 
 khan, but the place was much duller than on my 
 former visit ; all the engineers who had been sur- 
 veying for the railway had been withdrawn, and 
 there was only the usual caravan traffic. On the 
 morning of the 10th I left Beilan and travelled 
 through the pass to Delebekir, intending to go on 
 from there to Afrin, but my horses were such poor 
 animals that I gave up the attempt and turned into 
 Am Bada, putting up at the khan. Next day I went 
 on to Injerlikoy, and on the 12th to Aleppo. Here 
 I received a welcome from Mr. Skene, our consul, 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 121 
 
 and Mrs. Skene insisted on making up a basket of 
 good things for the road, to refresh me on my 
 journey to Mosul ; the thoughtful kindness of my 
 friends was afterwards of excellent service to me 
 in the wilderness. While I stayed at Aleppo I met 
 a gentleman whom I had known at Mosul during 
 my former visit. He told me that things had changed 
 for the worse since I was there ; suspicion was enter- 
 tained as to my object, and the irregular soldiers who 
 were in my employ had been closely questioned as 
 to what I had discovered and taken to Europe. One 
 of these irregular soldiers, named Dervishaher, had 
 been faithful and trustworthy while with me before, 
 and I wished him to come and meet me on the road, 
 intending again to employ him ; so I sent a telegram 
 from Aleppo to Mosul to ask him to come to Nisibin 
 to meet me. 
 
 The country round Aleppo was now free from the 
 incursions of the robber whom I mentioned in the 
 account of my former journey. A reward had been 
 offered for his apprehension, and a friend of his, the 
 keeper of the mill of Tel Karamal, resolved to betray 
 him for the money. One night, a little before my 
 second journey, Gurro, as the robber was named, 
 called at the mill, and was hospitably received ; but 
 while sitting at supper, he was set upon, and after a 
 desperate resistance, overpowered and carried to 
 Aleppo, where he was in prison when I arrived. 
 
 On the 1 5th of December I left Aleppo, and met in 
 my course very bad weather. I travelled to a village 
 
122 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 named Aclitareen and there put tip for the night, 
 departing next morning for Zambour, which I made 
 my next station. On the morning of the 17th I 
 started from Zambour, when the weather suddenly 
 becoming worse I was enveloped in a storm of rain 
 and snow. I galloped along to get out of this and 
 soon descended to the bank of sand on the right of 
 the Euphrates, but had to wait there a long time 
 before I could get a ferry-boat to take me across. 
 This difficulty was, however, ultimately removed, and 
 I was ferried over to Biradjik, glad enough to get 
 shelter. Next morning the weather looked unpro- 
 mising, but I was anxious to get on, and started 
 for Tcharmelek. We had scarcely got disentangled 
 from the rocks round Biradjik when the storm com- 
 menced and gradually increased in violence. If 
 there had been a convenient village on the road 
 I would have turned into it, but there was nothing 
 in the way of a station until I came to Tcharmelek, 
 a distance of about thirty miles. The storm was so 
 furious that I could not see Tcharmelek even when I 
 was close to it, and the first intimation I had of my 
 approach to the village was from smelling the smoke 
 from the native fires. I think shelter was seldom 
 more welcome than it was to me on reaching 
 this village, as my animal was exhausted and would 
 not have stood the weather much longer. Our host 
 at Tcharmelek ushered us through a low door into 
 one of the tall sugarloaf-shaped houses, and soon 
 made up a good fire of camels' dung in the middle 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 123 
 
 of the room, round which we sat warming and drying 
 ourselves. Here we were forced to stay the next 
 day, as, although the weather was better, our animals 
 and goods were not yet fit to start again. On the 
 20th I got off again and reached Orfa, where I had 
 some trouble with my mule driver, who did not want 
 to go to Mosul. Ultimately, I agreed to let him off 
 at Nisibin, and started for that town on the 22nd. 
 The road from Orfa to Nisibin is long and severe in 
 winter, and there are very few good stations on the 
 way. I made my first stage at Adana, and moved 
 on the 23rd to Zibini. Here a curious circumstance 
 happened : we were sitting in a hut, crowded round 
 a fire in the middle of the building, as it was very 
 cold, when one of the company in the course of con- 
 versation mentioned that in that neighbourhood there 
 was a holy tribe, the men of which could lick red- 
 hot iron without it harming them. I do not take 
 any notice of such statements myself ; but one of my 
 party, against my wish, challenged the villagers to 
 produce a man of this tribe and try his powers. 
 Directly afterwards a dark, sinister-looking Arab 
 entered the hut, and I saw at once that he was the 
 magician. The villagers produced a sickle, which 
 was laid on the fire and heated until red-hot, and 
 then the Arab, taking it up by the handle, held the 
 glowing mass in front of him and started a chant or 
 incantation ; this was taken up by all the bystanders, 
 and while they were repeating it the man put out 
 his tongue and appeared to lick the red-hot iron over 
 
124 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 and over again, producing a seething noise like that 
 of heated metal in contact with water. . Immediately 
 after this exhibition all the natives round, who fully 
 believed in this man's supernatural powers, clustered 
 round him, kissing his hand and the hem of his gar- 
 ment. I gave the magician a small backsheesh, 
 which he showed no thanks for, and he soon relieved 
 us of his presence and disappeared in the darkness. 
 
 Next day I went on from Zibini to Varenshaher, 
 where I changed my guards, and in the afternoon I 
 started from Varenshaher to find a lodging in the 
 wilderness. This appeared to be no easy task; but 
 we fell in with a chief going towards Varensha, and, 
 offering him a cigarette, got into conversation, and 
 induced him to show us to his tents, where we put up 
 for the night. 
 
 This encampment was called Calah. Its chief was 
 a man of business. He set me down as a merchant 
 at once, and told me that if I would leave him a sum 
 of money he would purchase for me all the wool 
 from the tribes round the neighbourhood, and we 
 might do a profitable business. I excused myself 
 for the present from this venture, and next morning 
 left the chief, who. still harped on this string. One 
 of the Arabs went a short way with us from the 
 encampment to show the road, and after a good 
 day's travel, I stopped at Dinasar on the evening 
 of Christmas Day. At Dinasar I stayed at the same 
 house I put up at during my former visit to this part. 
 The reception room for travellers at Dinasar is on the 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 125 
 
 upper floor of the house, and is reached from the court- 
 yard by a flight of stone steps ; the room is oblong in 
 shape, one end being occupied by the chimney, the 
 other by the door, while there is a raised platform 
 on each side for the mats and carpets of guests. 
 
 On this occasion, I found one side of the room 
 occupied by a Turkish officer, who had come on 
 recruiting business, and I took possession of the 
 other. After greeting each other, I had time, while 
 waiting for tea, to examine my companion. He was 
 dressed in the inevitable blue uniform, and buttons 
 ornamented with the device of the crescent and star. 
 Over his legs he wore a capacious pair of boots 
 reaching to his thighs, and he had a long sword, 
 which trailed on the ground. Otherwise he seemed 
 rather sparely provided, but being a soldier he made 
 himself at home wherever he went. The mission of 
 this officer was in connection with the conscription, 
 which is rigorously carried out in this part of the 
 world. The Turkish government keeps up a force 
 in Asia which seems excessive in a time of peace, and 
 the conscription by which the army is recruited falls 
 heavily on the Mahomedan population. The young 
 men, the strength of the Mahomedan villages, are 
 drained away into the army, and the wealth and 
 population of the country, instead of increasing, in 
 some places decline. There is, however, less reason 
 to regret this as the army is recruited entirely from 
 the Mahomedans, and their decay gives some hope 
 for civilization. 
 
12G 
 
 SECOND JOTJBNEY 
 
 The officer whom I met at Dinasar in pursuit of 
 his mission, summoned to his presence the chief of 
 Dinasar and the head man of the neighbouring 
 village, and they attended, looking not particularly- 
 delighted with his business. Proceedings commenced 
 by the officer drawing a large roll of papers from 
 his pocket ; and the learning of the military official 
 appearing rather slender, he was assisted in deci- 
 phering the documents by an intelligent young sol- 
 dier in attendance on him. After reading out the 
 government orders to the chiefs, the Turkish officer 
 made them a speech, reminding them of the result 
 of disobedience, and calling their attention to the 
 fate of Abdul Kareem. No blush appeared on the 
 face of the Turk as he alluded to the death of the 
 unfortunate chief, which he appeared to think was 
 justly deserved. I invited the officer to take tea 
 with me, and when my cooking apparatus, travelling 
 bed, and other useful things were exhibited, his men 
 broke out into exclamations of astonishment ; but 
 the Turk himself said he was well acquainted with 
 such things, in fact, he had some precisely like them, 
 only he had left them at Constantinople. Next 
 morning I rose early to ride to Nisibin, and the 
 Turkish officer happened to mount at the same time. 
 He appeared to desire my company on the road, and 
 deceived me by saying that the road he was going on 
 was a nearer way to Nisibin, his direction being 
 towards the Mardin mountains. I, however, had no 
 idea of staying with him, and, putting spurs to my 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 127 
 
 horse, was soon out of sight. A shower of hail now 
 coming on, I turned into a village by the road for 
 shelter, and was told the deception he had practised 
 on me. Leaving a message with the villagers to turn 
 back my caravan, I led my party across the fields, 
 and regained the Nisibin road. The road to Nisibin 
 from Dinasar is good ; but the weather was a great 
 obstacle, a strong east wind blew all day, and, being 
 in our faces, hindered the animals a great deal, while 
 the sharp storms of hail from time to time, driven in 
 our faces by the wind, cut like pins and needles. At 
 Amudia, about six hours from Dinasar, I put up for 
 a rest and dinner, and after dinner, resolving to ride 
 at once to Nisibin, directed the zabti, or irregular 
 soldier who accompanied me, to bring on the saddle- 
 bags afterwards, as there was no danger or need for 
 his attendance on the road. 
 
 These irregular soldiers commonly attend Euro- 
 peans travelling in the East in the capacity of guides 
 and guards, and are very useful to the traveller. 
 The men are supposed to be paid a monthly salary 
 by the government for maintaining themselves and 
 their horses, and they are appointed two suits of 
 clothes a year. I .suppose the necessary sums for 
 these objects regularly appear in the estimates ; but, 
 from some unknown reason, very often the clothes 
 and pay never reach the soldiers. I 'have known 
 some men who had received no money or clothes 
 for fourteen months. The appearance and condition 
 of these men are sometimes most miserable : scarcely 
 
128 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 two are dressed alike, and scarcely two armed alike ; 
 some have gun and pistols, some only a sword or 
 spear. The most remarkable points about them are 
 their boots and shoes ; all of course have something 
 on their feet, but very often the two boots are not a 
 pair, and sometimes they had one boot and one 
 slipper. They are in every sense of the word " irre- 
 gulars." In the section of country from Varenshaher 
 to Derunah, most of these zabtis or zaptiya are Cir- 
 cassians, numbers of whom are colonists in Asiatic 
 Turkey. These Circassians are called by the natives 
 Chetchen ; they are brave, fanatical, and inveterate 
 thieves. When I informed my Chetchen that I 
 would ride to Nisibin without him, the Arabs round 
 also said there was no need of protection on the 
 road ; but a second Chetchen, who happened to be 
 in the room, asserted that the road was sometimes 
 dangerous. One of the Arabs at this answered, "Oh, 
 no, there is no danger ; and if there is any, then it 
 is only from the Chetchen." This turned the laugh 
 against the Chetchen, who are both hated and feared 
 by the Arabs. 
 
 I left Amudia with my dragoman, and we urged 
 our horses to reach Nisibin. Coming in sight of 
 a village built among the ruins of an ancient fort, 
 about half way between Amudia and JSTisibin, I did 
 not stop to examine it, but rode past as quickly as 
 possible, as the weather was becoming worse and 
 worse. A storm of rain and hail was gathering. I 
 was anxious for a good shelter, and therefore glad 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 129 
 
 enough to see Nisibin, winch I entered about four in 
 the afternoon. I went to the khans, but they were 
 in a wretched state with mud and rain. I tried 
 the coffee-shop, but there was no accommodation, so 
 I turned at last to the serai, and asked the governor 
 to recommend me a lodging. The governor kindly 
 gave me shelter in the serai, and the place proved 
 tolerably comfortable. The room allotted to me was 
 that in which official business was usually trans- 
 acted, but it was similar in arrangement and ap- 
 pearance to the one at Dinasar. There was a good 
 fire of logs at the upper end of the apartment, and 
 altogether it was a welcome shelter from the storm, 
 which now raged with pitiless fury. Coffee, after 
 the Turkish fashion, was brought round, and soon 
 afterwards my host invited me to dinner. While 
 the repast was preparing, there entered a tall, 
 powerful-looking man, and a youth, apparently 
 about fourteen years old. The youth was evidently 
 a dancing boy, one of a class peculiar to Turkey ; 
 and I saw that he and his companion had come to 
 take part in a musical entertainment. Our dinner 
 was a good one, served with the politeness and 
 gravity of the East : it included various meats, fish, 
 preserved grapes, beautiful honey, and wound up 
 with pilaw or pilaff, a native dish of rice. After 
 coffee had again been handed round, the guests 
 began to drop in, and preparations were made for 
 an evening's entertainment. Two musicians now 
 entered, one having a tambourine, and the other an 
 
 K 
 
130 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 instrument called a kanun, resembling a dulcimer, 
 tlie strings resting on two bridges. The performer 
 sits with this instrument on his knee, and plays with 
 both hands. The assembly included the rank and 
 fashion of Msibin. One officer present understood 
 Russian ; and a gentleman from the town who was 
 present took occasion to inform me that he was a 
 Christian. After the necessary tuning up, the tall 
 man, who appeared to be the leader of the party, 
 commenced the entertainment. He gave out a series 
 of coarse jokes, and went through performances of a 
 disgusting character, and when these had gone on for 
 some time, one of the company presented him with a 
 cigarette, which he eyed with some show of suspicion, 
 and then proceeded to smoke : it was half filled with 
 gunpowder, and exploded in his face, and he then 
 pretended to be much injured. His performances 
 produced roars of laughter among the audience, in 
 which the gentleman who called himself Christian 
 joined. Meanwhile the boy had retired and changed 
 his clothes, returning to the room in a dress of faded 
 finery, fringed all round, flounced, and coloured red 
 and blue. Next followed tunes on the kanun, and 
 songs in Turkish, Kurdish, and Arabic, in some of 
 which the dancing boy joined. The youth then com- 
 menced dancing, and kept it up for a long time. His 
 movements were rather odd than graceful : he swung 
 abbut, waving his arms, and rattling some little brass 
 bells attached to his fingers, jumped, capered, and 
 rocked his head backwards and forwards on his neck, 
 as if it was loose on its joint. 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 1C1 
 
 Music and dancing continued until a late hour, 
 but the interest of the audience never flagged, and 
 whether it was an obscene jest, a dreary song, or an 
 idiotic twist of the head, it came all the same to the 
 company. I was glad when the entertainment came 
 to an end, and I was able to retire to my couch. 
 Next day the storm raged as fiercely as ever, and 
 I could not move from Nisibin, but on the 28th I 
 resolved to start, in spite of the weather, and having 
 sent on my luggage and animals early in the after- 
 noon, only stayed to lunch with the governor before 
 leaving. I had previously requested the governor 
 to give me an escort across the desert, as I desired 
 to go by the shorter road to Mosul, and he promised 
 to do so, but said I must first go to Deruneh, and 
 cross the country from there, lie gave me a letter, 
 which he said contained the requisite instructions to 
 the governor of Deruneh, but on arriving afterwards 
 at that place I found his instructions were to the 
 reverse effect. This was the second time I had been 
 treated in this way by a Turkish official. I engaged 
 two zabtiya or irregular soldiers, directing that one 
 should be sent forward with my luggage, while the 
 other stayed behind to accompany me. Late in the 
 afternoon I left Nisibin, and rode on to overtake my 
 luggage, which I found not far off. It was raining 
 heavily all the time, and I saw, on coming up with 
 my caravan, that the authorities had sent out with 
 them a guide who was ill with fever and scarcely 
 able to sit on his horse. The man was wretchedly 
 
 E 2 
 
132 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY 
 
 clad and wet through, presenting a spectacle which 
 any one but a Turk would have pitied. I gave the 
 poor fellow a present, and sent him back to Msibin, 
 after which, as the weather did not improve, I turned 
 into the village of Arbat to rest for the night. At 
 this place the people swept out a tolerable room for 
 my party, but outside the houses the village was a 
 wretched sight, and the natives were walking about 
 with their naked feet in the mud, which was in some 
 places a foot deep. Next morning, the 29th, I started 
 for Deruneh, but the travelling was a wretched job, 
 partly from the state of the roads and partly from 
 the fact that my caravan, which I had hired at Nisibin, 
 consisted of poor animals quite unfit for my purpose. 
 My efforts made little impression upon them, and it 
 was night before I reached Deruneh. Deruneh is 
 about midway between Nisibin and Djezireh and is 
 principally a military and post station. I wandered 
 all round the village in a vain attempt to find a 
 shelter dry enough to put up in, but everything was 
 in such a state with mud and dirt that I was forced 
 to go to the governor and ask for apartments. The 
 governor offered me a shelter, and as he was suffer- 
 ing from fever I presented him with some medicine. 
 I delivered to him the letter from the governor of 
 Nisibin, and he on reading it informed me that the 
 order was not to send me by the short road to Mosul 
 as I wished, but to send me on to Djezireh. I had 
 now no help for it, as I did not know the desert road, 
 so I had to be contented with going to Djezireh. Soon 
 
TO MOSUL. 
 
 133 
 
 after I arrived at Deruneh the post came in from 
 Diarbekr, and as I doubted if my present animals 
 would carry me to Mosul by the Djezireh road I en- 
 gaged post horses for the journey. I desired if possible 
 to go before the Tartar who carried the letters, and 
 for that purpose started early on the morning of the 
 30th of December from Deruneh ; but the post horses 
 are trained to run together, and those I engaged, 
 finding their companions absent, would not do more 
 than a walk. No amount of persuasion, in the shape 
 of spurs and whip, had any effect on them until the 
 Tartar came up with me just by Djezireh. He 
 swung his great whip and gave a prolonged shout, 
 and my animal joined his herd in a minute. I had 
 no more trouble to make him go ; he dashed through 
 the small stream near Djezireh at a gallop, and 
 landed me at the post-office in very little time. I 
 now saw that it was best to go on with the Tartar, 
 and told him I should like to accompany him, but he 
 expressed a doubt if I could stand the fatigue, he 
 and some others believing that post travelling was 
 very rapid and tiring. I laughed at this, as it was 
 evident from the little I had seen of post travelling 
 that the Tartars did not exert themselves very much, 
 and very seldom galloped until they came in sight of 
 a town. 
 
 The same evening I left Djezireh with the Tartar, 
 but took a slightly different road from the one I 
 had travelled before. After passing the rocks near 
 Djezireh we went to the village of Naharwan, outside 
 
134. 
 
 SECOND JOURNEY TO MOSUL. 
 
 which we waited while the guides were changed, then 
 rode to the river Hazel, which we crossed, and went 
 along the north bank of the river Khabour until we 
 reached Zaccho, then fording the north branch of the 
 Khabour entered Zaccho a little before daybreak. The 
 night was cold and the journey without interest, as the 
 darkness prevented any accurate observation of the 
 country. Leaving Zaccho on the morning of the 31st, 
 I went through the pass, where I had much diffi- 
 culty, as my luggage did not sit well on the post 
 horses, and in going up and down the mountain paths 
 they upset it ; this, however, was put right when we 
 got into the plain, and we proceeded without further 
 trouble to Semil. On the night of the 31st of 
 December I rode from Semil to Mosul ; during most 
 of the time I was very drowsy, and slept on horse- 
 back, but I roused myself in the morning, when 
 about half-past four I saw in the dim twilight the 
 mounds of Nineveh ; then putting spurs to our horses, 
 we rode along by the walls of the old city, and with 
 a shout of joy entered the town of Mosul about five 
 in the morning of the 1st of January, 1874. 
 
Chapter IX. 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 Ali Eahal. — Turkish governor. — Redif Pacha. — New policy. 
 — Turkish demands. — Temples. — Curious pottery. — Early palace. 
 — Eoman bottle. — North palace. — Euined entrance. — Perfect 
 bilingual tablet. — Inscriptions of Shalmaneser I. — Palace of 
 Sennacherib. — Entrance. — Library chamber. — Fork. — Historical 
 cylinders. — Difficulties. — Close of work. 
 
 MMEDIATELY after my arrival at 
 Mosul I sent for Ali Rahal, a chief of the 
 Jebours who had been in my service 
 during my former visit, and he soon came 
 to see me. Remembering the salary and profit ho 
 had before, he demonstrated his joy at meeting me by 
 falling on my neck, embracing me, and kissing my 
 beard. I direeted Ali to engage a number of men 
 and proceed to Kouyunjik, and to dig over the earth 
 on the spot where I was excavating last year. I then 
 gave out the digging implements, and afterwards sat 
 down to breakfast. Ali at once led a party to the 
 mound and commenced work, bringing me soon 
 after a fine fragment of a tablet and a bronze figure. 
 
136 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 the firstfruits of the excavation. After breakfast I 
 went to the serai to pay a complimentary visit to the 
 governor, Abdi Effendi. Some officious person had 
 already been to him and told him of my arrival, and 
 when I entered he did not look very pleased at my 
 visit. 
 
 Just before my return to England on my last expe- 
 dition, the Turkish government, in pursuance of the 
 ruinous plan of continually changing the governors, 
 recalled the pacha of Baghdad and appointed in his 
 place Redif Pacha. I was told that Redif Pacha 
 understood French and was acquainted with some- 
 thing of European civilization, but instead of learning 
 from the West I was informed that his policy at 
 Baghdad was hostile to all foreigners. Before Redif 
 Pacha was well settled in his government I left the 
 East, but soon after I was gone he sent to Mosul, which 
 is subordinate to Baghdad, to ask why the governor 
 of that place had let me go, and what I had taken 
 with me. The two irregular soldiers who had been 
 with me during the former excavations were then 
 called up before the court and questioned as to what 
 I had discovered in the excavations, but they being 
 ignorant men could give no satisfactory account, and 
 application was then made to the French consulate. 
 The French consul told the Turkish authorities that 
 if they wished to know what I had found and removed 
 they should have asked me while in the country, and 
 that they were too late in moving in the matter then. 
 Orders were afterwards sent from Baghdad to Mosul 
 
AT KOUYTJNJIK. 
 
 137 
 
 to impede me on my return, to place a guard upon me, 
 and not to let me leave Mosul without giving up half 
 the things I discovered to be sent to the Imperial 
 Museum. I have stated that when at Aleppo T had 
 sent to ask one of the irregular soldiers who attended 
 me to meet me at Nisibin. On arriving at Nisibin I 
 soon found he had not come, and when I reached Mosul 
 I heard the reason. It appeared that on receiving my 
 message, application was made through the French 
 consul to allow the man to come and meet me, and the 
 pacha answered that the soldier should be sent ; but 
 when the messenger's back was turned the Turk 
 reversed the order, and said the man should not be 
 permitted to leave the town. It is this line of conduct 
 which makes it so difficult to deal with the Turks. 
 When on my return to Mosul I visited the governor 
 he told me part of the difficulty and declared that he 
 should have to carry out his instructions, and ho had 
 therefore sent to stop my men from excavating until 
 he saw me. I requested him to reverse this order to 
 stop my men, which he did, and then we discussed 
 the questions between the excavations and the Turkish 
 orders. I declared that I was favourable to Turkey 
 and should be very glad to see the Turkish govern- 
 ment have a good museum, and to that end I should 
 be glad to show them a number of good antiquities 
 and assist them in getting others ; but I said I could 
 not part with half of my collection without spoiling 
 it and doing them no good. I said I was sent to 
 collect fragments to complete our inscriptions, many 
 
133 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 of which being imperfect were now useless, and I 
 stated that if they took these fragments they would 
 not get complete or satisfactory inscriptions, but they 
 would prevent us from completing ours ; and I asked 
 them what would be the use if they had one half of 
 an inscription at Constantinople while we had the other 
 half in London? At this reasoning the Turks laughed; 
 they said they did not understand antiquities, and if I 
 pointed anything out I should point out worthless 
 things to them and they must have half of the things 
 I collected to make sure they had good ones. My 
 visit ended without any satisfactory result, and from 
 that time I was subject to perpetual annoyance. I 
 Avas refused guards I could trust, the Turks saying 
 that by kindness I had won the men to my interest ; 
 my movements were watched, a scribe as a spy was 
 set over the works, and my superintendents were 
 called up before the court and charged with conceal- 
 ing the antiquities. 
 
 I was informed that there were some in the town 
 who ought to have known better, who fanned this 
 ill-feeling, and told the pacha that I was only a news- 
 paper correspondent and he might do as he liked 
 with me. I must pass over the details of my disputes 
 with the Turkish officials, and relate the progress of 
 the excavations. My operations this time were con- 
 fined entirely to the mound of Kouyunjik, as my diffi- 
 culties with the Turkish officials rendered it unadvi- 
 sable to attempt any other sites. In the large space 
 extending over the middle and east of the mound 
 
AT K OUT TIN J IK. 
 
 130 
 
 where no building Las been discovered I made some 
 explorations and experimental trendies. On the 
 eastern edge of the mound overhanging the stream of 
 the Khosr were remains of sculptures and mounds 
 which had yielded inscriptions stating that they came 
 from the temple of Nebo and Merodach. This temple 
 was built by Vul-nirari III. B.C. 812, and restored by 
 Sargon B.C. 722. Here I excavated and found similar 
 inscriptions, but I believe not in their original places. 
 
 Here I must remark that itshould always beremem- 
 bered that the site of Nineveh has been inhabited from 
 the fall of the city until now, and care should be taken 
 to ascertain, if possible, the original position of the 
 inscriptions. I could gain from my short excavations 
 herenothingsatisfactory about the temple, but I found 
 two inscribed bricks of Tiglath Pileser II., b. c. 745, 
 which stated that they belonged to a palace of thai 
 monarch built at the bend of the Khosr, a description 
 which applies precisely to the locality. These bricks, 
 however, were not in their original position, and the 
 building which stood here must have been raised after 
 the Assyrian period. Broken fragments of sculpture 
 from Assyrian buildings were found in various places, 
 and among them a relief of a horseman and part of a 
 gigantic winged man-headed bull. Here I also found 
 part of a terra-cotta inscription of Sennacherib and 
 some rude clay figures of idols. To the west of this 
 position, and nearer the middle of the mound, I placed 
 several trenches. In one place I found a small 
 chamber like a shrine, solidly built of stones and 
 
140 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 cement, the walls plastered over and covered with a 
 pattern of lines disposed in lozenges. The shape of 
 the chamber was square, two corners being ornamented 
 with square pilasters, and at one end was a large 
 circular recess. In the chamber I fo und a bronze 
 
 Bronze Lamp. 
 
 lamp with two spouts for wicks. I was not satisfied 
 that this was really an Assyrian building, although 
 it may possibly have been one. Very near the 
 chamber, I found the capital of a large column but 
 traced no building to which it could have belonged. 
 
 Near the entrance of the great palace of Sennacherib, 
 and close to the spot where the former excavators 
 found a broken obelisk, I discovered inscriptions of 
 Shalmaneser I., king of Assyria, B.C. 1300, recording 
 that he founded the palace of Nineveh ; and mixed up 
 with these were remains of inscriptions belonging to 
 the same monarch, stating that he restored the temple 
 of Ishtar. From the same spot came inscriptions of 
 his son, Tugulti-ninip, the conqueror of Babylonia, re- 
 lating that he also restored the temple of Ishtar; and 
 inscriptions to the same purport of themonarchs Assur- 
 nazir-pal, B.C. 885, and Shalmaneser II., B.C. 860. 
 
AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 Ill 
 
 North of this spot I came on some very curious 
 pottery, ornamented with figures laid on the clay, the 
 nature of which will best be shown by the accom- 
 
 POTTERT FKOM KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 panying figure. Between the chambers in the centre of 
 the mound and the eastern edge the trenches revealed 
 fragments of a palace and temple. The remains of 
 the temple were most of them found in a square 
 chamber, seemingly of later date, built up of stones 
 from the Assyrian buildings near it. All along the 
 walls were placed small square slabs with inscriptions 
 of Assurbanipal dedicated to the goddess of Nineveh, 
 none of them in their original position. Near this 
 chamber I found fragments of an obelisk in black 
 stone built into a later wall, and many fragments 
 
142 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 belonging to a palace which stood in this neighbour- 
 hood : among these was an inscription of Mutaggil- 
 Nusku, king of Assyria, B.C. 1170, and several frag- 
 ments from sculptured walls with representations of 
 
 PROCESSION OF WAEEIOES. 
 
 processions of warriors. To the north of this spot 
 near the southern corner -of Assurbanipal's palace I 
 found the head of a female divinity, the hair arranged 
 in bunches of curls on each side, the face exhibiting 
 the usual corpulent style of Assyrian female beauty. 
 In the southern corner of the north palace I exca- 
 vated again for tablets, but did not here obtain so 
 many as I did in my first expedition, but among those 
 I did find, were some of great importance. One of the 
 first fragments which turned up here was the opening 
 portion of a copy from an early Babylonian inscrip- 
 
AT KOUYTJNJIK. 
 
 143 
 
 tion, giving the names of six new Babylonian kings, 
 and some curious details of early Babylonian history. 
 Some time later I found here a new portion of the 
 sixth tablet of the deluge series. Finding this de- 
 posit of tablets not yielding very 
 freely I struck new trenches round 
 it, but was rewarded by very 
 few fragments. One of the new 
 trenches, however, came upon 
 some later remains, including a 
 beautif ul blue glass Roman bottle 
 with heads on both sides; and 
 another produced a large vase of 
 the Sassanian period, with two or 
 three coins. This vase, which was 
 perfect, and one of the largest dis- 
 covered, I presented to the Imperial Museum at 
 Constantinople. Further search in the southern 
 corner of this palace revealed a ruined entrance 
 with the bases of two columns in the doorway; one 
 of these I gave to the Turkish Museum, the other I 
 brought to England. When excavating this en- 
 trance I discovered a beautiful bilingual tablet, 
 perfect, lying on the pavement near the entrance of 
 the palace. 
 
 In the south-west palace I excavated at the grand 
 entrance to see if any records remained under the 
 pavement, but there were none. This part of the 
 pavement had been broken through, and anythirj^ 
 under it had long ago been carried away. I placed 
 
EXCAVATIONS 
 
 some trenches in the grand hall and found a frag- 
 ment of inscription, and further on in the palace I 
 found several fragments. My principal excavation 
 was, however, carried on over what Layard calls the 
 library chamber of this palace. Layard, who dis- 
 covered the library chamber, describes it as fall of 
 fragments of tablets, up to a foot or more from the 
 floor. This chamber Layard cleared out and brought 
 its treasures to England, but I was satisfied on ex- 
 amining the collection at the British Museum that 
 not one half of the library had been brought home, 
 and steadily adhered to the belief that the rest of the 
 tablets must be in the palace of Sennacherib. In 
 accordance with this idea I found nearly three thou- 
 sand fragments of tablets in the chambers round 
 Layard's library chamber, and from the positions of 
 these fragments I am led to the opinion that the 
 library was not originally in these chambers but in 
 an upper storey of the palace, and that on the ruin 
 of the building they fell into the chambers below. 
 Some of the chambers in which I found inscribed 
 tablets had no communication with each other, while 
 fragments of the same tablets were in them ; and 
 looking at this fact, and the positions and distribution 
 of the fragments, the hypothesis that the library was 
 in the upper storey of the palace seems to me the 
 most likely one. 
 
 Believing that the tablets were scattered over a 
 wide area, I resolved to take a section of the palace 
 round the region of the so-called library chamber, 
 
AT KOTJYUNJIK. 
 
 145 
 
 and clear away the top earth entirely, as the ground 
 was so perforated by the old tunnels and trenches 
 that further operations of this sort were impossible. 
 Having to clear away the top earth my labour was 
 very much heavier than that of the former exca- 
 vators, and, necessarily, for some time my operations 
 were slow and my results small, but on reaching 
 the level of the palace I was amply rewarded by the 
 discovery of numerous valuable antiquities. I com- 
 menced operations by drawing an oval line about 
 700 feet round as the boundary of my field of 
 operations. This line passed over the centre of the 
 south-east court of the palace, then turning west ran 
 along north of the long gallery where Layard found 
 the representations of the dragging along of the 
 winged figures and building the mounds, then turn- 
 ing south it went along over the chambers at the 
 west of the palace, and turning eastward ran along 
 to the bottom of the south-east court. I placed my 
 men along this line in companies, and directed them 
 to first remove the hills of rubbish thrown upon the 
 surface of the mound by the former excavators, 
 carefully searching over the earth to recover any 
 fragments of cuneiform inscriptions which might still 
 remain in the rubbish. These hills of earth and 
 fragments were considerable, and some time elapsed, 
 before we got rid of them. When these were cleared 
 out of the way I commenced attacking the mound 
 itself, clearing away layer after layer of the rubbish 
 which had accumulated in ancient times over the 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 palace. At first in removing this very little was 
 found, and what did turn up consisted principally of 
 
 modern objects — coins, pot- 
 tery, and glass — but on going 
 deeper we came to the As- 
 syrian cuneiform tablets, rare 
 and fragmentary at ' first, 
 more plentiful as we de- 
 scended to greater depths. 
 In the south-eastern court 
 I penetrated to the pave- 
 
 Tekba-cotta Vase. ^ - fr(mt of Qne 
 
 of the entrances on the western side I discovered 
 the lintel of a doorway ; it was formed of a block 
 of stone six feet long, and was sculptured along 
 the face. In the centre was an ornamental cup 
 or vase, with two handles; on each side of the 
 vase stood a winged griffin or dragon, looking to- 
 wards the centre, having a long neck and an orna- 
 ment or collar round it just behind the head. Over 
 the cup and the dragon was an ornament of honey- 
 suckles. This curious lintel is the first Assyrian 
 object of the kind which has been discovered, and I 
 saw it lifted out of the excavation with much plea- 
 sure. In its fall from its elevated position it had 
 broken in two, which rendered it easier for me to 
 transport, but even then it required two donkeys to 
 carry it. 
 
 In the long gallery, which contained scenes re- 
 presenting the moving of winged figures, I found a 
 
AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 117 
 
 great number of tablets, mostly along the floor ; they 
 included syllabaries, bilingual lists, mythological and 
 historical tablets. Among these tablets I discovered 
 a beautiful bronze Assyrian fork, having 
 two prongs joined by ornamental shoulder 
 to shaft of spiral work, the shaft ending in 
 the head of an ass. This is a beautiful and 
 unique specimen of Assyrian work, and 
 shows the advances the people had made in 
 the refinements of life. South of this there 
 were numerous tablets round Layard's old 
 library chamber, and here I found part of 
 a curious astrolabe, and fragments of the 
 history of Sargon, king of Assyria, B.C. 722. 
 In one place, below the level of the floor, 
 I discovered a fine fragment of the history 
 of Assurbanipal, containing new and curious 
 matter relating to his Egyptian wars, and 
 to the affairs of Gryges, king of Lydia. 
 From this part of the palace I gained also 
 the shoulder of a colossal statue, with an 
 inscription of Assurbanipal. In another spot 
 I obtained a bone spoon and a fragment of 
 the tablet with the history of the seven evil 
 
 l 2 
 
148 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 spirits. Near this I discovered a bronze style, with 
 which I believe the cuneiform tablets were impressed. 
 In another part of the excavation I found part of a 
 monument with the representation of a fortification. 
 In the western part of the palace, near the edge of 
 the mound, I excavated and found remains of crystal 
 and alabaster vases, and specimens of the royal seal. 
 Two of these are very curious ; one is a paste seal, 
 the earliest example of its kind, and the other is a 
 clay impression of the seal of Sargon king of Assyria. 
 
 Dead Buffalo in Wateb. 
 
 Near where the principal seals were discovered I 
 found part of a sculpture with a good figure of a 
 dead buffalo in a stream. Among these sculptures 
 and inscriptions were numerous small objects, includ- 
 ing beads, rings, stone seals, &c. 
 
 When I commenced the excavations in January I 
 had only forty men, but I increased them every day 
 until they numbered nearly 600, and when they were 
 at work the mound presented an interesting appear- 
 
AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 149 
 
 ance of bustle and activity. I was reluctant to en- 
 gage so many men, as I could not exercise an effi- 
 cient control over so large a number, but the short 
 time I had to work compelled me to use every effort 
 to realize as much as possible before the close of the 
 firman. I have mentioned in the account of my 
 journey the severe weather I met with on the road 
 to Mosul. Similar weather continued while the ex- 
 cavations were on. Snow lay on the mountains in 
 sight of Mosul, and on some days ice remained on 
 the mound of Kouyunjik all day. Further up the 
 country the snow was very deep, and in the gorges 
 of the mountains attained a height of ten feet. The 
 melting snows and heavy rains swelled the river 
 Tigris, and the river overflowed large tracts of land 
 on the east bank. Dunne: these inundations the 
 bridge of boats was removed, and all traffic between 
 the two sides of the river passed ove r in ferry boats. 
 I had at one time to ferry all my men across the 
 river for several days, at great expense and loss of 
 time. At the beginning of February the excava- 
 tions ceased entirely for several days, through the 
 interference of the Turkish officials, and after I had 
 recommenced a charge was brought against me that 
 I had disturbed a Mahomedan tomb, and a Turkish 
 officer was sent to examine the mound and report 
 upon the subject. Directly I was cleared of this, I 
 had a difficulty with the owners of the mound, who 
 were encouraged by a third party to demand £250 
 compensation for my excavations. The agents of 
 
150 
 
 EXCAVATIONS 
 
 the British government had already paid in a lump 
 sum for the ground, and they had no right to demand 
 anything. I offered £10, which was ample compen- 
 sation, or I would have rented the ground, but the 
 owners declined these propositions, and carried the 
 matter before the local court. Abdi Effendi, the 
 governor of Mosul, then sent a commission to exa- 
 mine the mound, and report on the extent and nature 
 of my excavations, with a view to fix an adequate 
 sum for me to pay. The court and commission were 
 prejudiced against me, but they were compelled to 
 say I disturbed little ground, confining as I did my 
 operations to the trenches already opened and paid 
 for, but they said as I had offered £10 the court 
 could not fix on a lower sum, and judged me to pay 
 £12. I at once paid this money, telling them that I 
 was not concerned about a pound more or less, but 
 wished to be on good terms with them. After this 
 I found out one of my chiefs, Ali Rahal, in dishonest 
 practices, and dismissed him. He having a large 
 following among the Jebour Arabs gave me after- 
 wards some trouble, and to quiet matters I was 
 obliged to again take him into my service. Just 
 before the close of my excavations an accusation of 
 blasphemy was brought against my dragoman, and 
 as I saw that the governor listened to these stories, 
 and that those around me took advantage of the 
 hostility of the officials to cheat me, I closed the ex- 
 cavations on the 12th of March, and prepared to 
 
AT KOUYUNJIK. 
 
 151 
 
 leave for England. Abdi Effendi, the governor of 
 Mosul, refused, however, to let me go unless I gave 
 him half the antiquities. I told him I could not 
 comply with this, and I was kept at Mosul in conse- 
 quence until the 4th of April. All this time the 
 Turkish governor pretended to take an interest in 
 preserving the various antiquities in the country, but 
 this profession was only made to hinder me. The 
 natives broke down one side of the northern gate in 
 the wall of Nineveh, and the governor took no notice, 
 although I called his attention to it. The ruin of 
 this gateway is a great misfortune, as it was one 
 of the most curious sights at Nineveh, After 
 waiting nearly a month at Mosul, on the appli- 
 cation of the British ambassador at Constanti- 
 nople, the Porte granted satisfactory terms to settle 
 the matter. I was to have six weeks' extension of 
 time for excavations, and power to remove all dis- 
 coveries excepting half of duplicates, which were to 
 be given to the Imperial Museum at Constantinople. 
 These terms, which I heard on the 1st of April, were 
 very satisfactory, but they came so late that all my 
 money was expended, and I was not able to recom- 
 mence excavations. I therefore gave up to the 
 Turkish officers the duplicate antiquities in my col- 
 lection, and left Mosul on the 4th of April. 
 
 Before leaving the town, I pointed out to the 
 Turkish officers who had charge of the collection I 
 had given to the Porte, a number of fine sculptures 
 
152 
 
 EXCAVATIONS AT KOUYTJNJIK. 
 
 and a colossal statue, which I recommended them to 
 remove to Constantinople, but they said they would 
 not pay for moving them ; and I had even to give 
 them a box to keep the smaller antiquities in which 
 I had presented to them. 
 
Chapter X. 
 
 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 Khan Baleos. — Mosul. — Departure. — Severe weather. — Stop- 
 page. — Tel Adas. — Semil. — Discontent of soldiers. — Want of 
 pay. — Durnak. — Crossing the Hazel. — Djezireh. — Circassian 
 guides. — Their outrages. — Varenshaher. — Orfa. — Curiosities. — 
 Biradjik. — Antiquities stopped. — Ride to Aleppo. — Difficulties 
 with Pacha. — Release of boxes. — Embarkation. — Return. 
 
 AVING gone so often over the same 
 ground, I have only my troubles and 
 difficulties to relate in this journey 
 home. Having settled at last with 
 the Turkish officials, and paid no end of back- 
 sheesh, in the afternoon of the 4th of April I left 
 the khan Baleos, where I was staying, and went 
 down to the Tigris. The khan Baleos is situated 
 near the eastern corner of the town of Mosul, and is 
 a very convenient place for travellers. Mosul itself 
 is a large town surrounded by a wall and ditch, 
 about four miles round. The city was an important 
 one in the middle ages, but it is much decayed and 
 the fortifications are in ruinous condition, the streets 
 are as usual very narrow, dirty, and uneven, but 
 there are some very good houses in the town. The 
 
154 
 
 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 severe winter weather had again flooded the Tigris 
 at the time of my departure, and I had to cross my 
 party over on ferry boats. No sooner had we reached 
 the eastern shore than a storm came on, and after 
 riding in it some time, finding it did not abate, we 
 turned into the village of Kazekoi, and were obliged 
 to stay there all next day as the weather did not 
 improve. On the 6th of April I started from Kazekoi 
 to reach Tel Adas, and my caravan proceeded all 
 right at first, but a storm came on, and after riding 
 through it for gome time we reached a gully or rut 
 in the road which passed across the whole country. 
 The storm had filled this with water and it was 
 utterly impossible to get the animals across, so I was 
 obliged to turn and seek a village on the south side 
 of it. We attempted to cross the country, but found 
 the ground in such a state of bog that the mules 
 sank over a foot in the earth, and sometimes got so 
 fixed that they could not move. The storm con- 
 tinued furious, and I only got out of the difficulty 
 by engaging some wandering Arabs to drag the 
 animals out of the mud and help them along to 
 the nearest village. This hamlet was called Kufru ; 
 it presented no attractions at any other time, but 
 now in my need I was glad of any shelter and 
 ready to put up with worse accommodation. After 
 a night's rest we started on the morning of the 7th 
 of April, our host, the chief of Kufru, going with me 
 to show the way. The gully which we could not 
 pass the day before was not so full of water now, 
 
RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 155 
 
 and we forded it without danger. On this day 
 I only made Tel Adas, as the animals were tired 
 from the exertions of the previous day, and I wanted 
 to dry my clothes before going further. To-day our 
 lodging at Tel Adas presented an appearance like a 
 laundry, all my clothes and other things being taken 
 out of the boxes and arranged to dry. All these 
 things being arranged, I started again on the 8th 
 of April and rode to Semil. At Semil I found great 
 discontent, as the zabtis, or irregular troops, declared 
 that they had been paid no salary since the time 
 when Abdi Effendi was appointed governor. Some 
 of the men threw down their arms, and declared that 
 they would serve no longer ; but as I paid well for 
 their services, I was easily able to change my guides, 
 and went on from there to a place named Gulres. 
 From Gulres I started on the 9th and went through 
 the Zaccho Pass, then along to the east, ascending 
 the south bank of the Khabour to an old hig4i- 
 crowned bridge, over which I crossed the river, 
 then descended the north bank to a spot neaf its 
 junction with the Hazel. Here, at a village named 
 Durnak, I put up for the night. The chief of 
 Durnak was a wretched-looking old specimen of 
 humanity, whose appearance lent some colour to 
 Mr. Darwin's theory, and he had a son as good- 
 looking and well clothed as himself, but these people 
 thought much of themselves because they were 
 Mahomedans, and despised me as a Frangi, that is 
 a Frank or Christian, and when the son did not 
 
156 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 immediately obey him, the father called out in 
 anger, " Why don't you do it, are you a Mussul- 
 man or a Frangi?" The accommodation at Durnak 
 was not first class, and I was glad to get away next 
 morning to cross the Hazel. This stream was much 
 swollen by the rains and too deep to ford, so we had 
 to wait for a raft, which came in the course of the 
 morning. This was the most rickety old concern 
 I ever trusted myself upon, consisting of a few 
 branches of trees laid on goat-skins ; but I got over 
 without any accident, and then went on towards 
 Djezireh. Unable to reach Djezireh the same day, 
 I turned to a village beside the Tigris and asked 
 shelter, but this the people refused, and I passed on 
 until I reached a swollen tributary of the Tigris, the 
 name of which I do not know ; I crossed this with 
 difficulty, and ascended a steep hill to a village where 
 I was again refused shelter. I started my caravan, 
 and rode on again along a beautiful road with 
 romantic rocks on one side and the valley of the 
 Tigris on the other; ascending again a steep hill, 
 I came to a village on the summit, and was enabled 
 to stop. The place was not fit to sleep in, so I paid 
 some Eastern gipsies to erect me a tent, and under 
 that I slept. While here, a native band came to 
 play before my tent, making a hideous noise ; I told 
 them I did not want them and that they should go 
 away. These people answered that they must have 
 their backsheesh whether they played or not, so 
 I gave them some money to get rid of their noise. 
 
RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 157 
 
 On the 11th of April I left this village, which was 
 named Kerook, and travelled to Djezireh. On 
 reaching the shore opposite Djezireh I found the 
 river Tigris flooded and the bridge of boats re- 
 moved ; I had consequently to wait for a ferry-boat 
 to cross the river. At Djezireh I found a consider- 
 able change and great activity in the government 
 offices ; there was every sign of a new and efficient 
 governor, and if this activity continues a better state 
 of this part of the country may be expected. From 
 Djezireh I rode to Sharabarazi and from there to 
 Aznowa. In these districts the people were inhos- 
 pitable and the accommodation bad, while the rains 
 had rendered the roads so wretched that we had 
 sometimes to drag the mules one by one through 
 the mud and then wash them in the nearest stream. 
 Slow progress was made, and on the 14th I only 
 reached Nisibin, which I left next morning and tra- 
 velled to Ibrahim. 
 
 My guides at this time were two Circassians, and 
 on entering the village of Ibrahim the people said 
 they would not receive them, and one old villager 
 brought out his gun threatening to shoot the soldiers 
 if they came into his house. After much bother 
 I got another of the villagers to admit my party, 
 and then, as we sat waiting fcr tea, the master of 
 the house related some stories of the past exploits 
 of the Chetchen or Circassians, which accounted for 
 the aversion of the villagers to them. One of these 
 stories was as follows. Some time previously two 
 
158 
 
 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 Circassians called at the vilias^e and were entertained 
 by my host, who after providing a supper for them 
 offered them a bed for the night. The Circassians 
 declined to stop through the night, and went on, as 
 the villagers thought, to another hamlet ; but they 
 really only went to a ravine near, where they hid 
 themselves until about midnight. In the middle of the 
 night my host was awakened by the barking of the vil- 
 lage dogs, and got up and went out with his son, each 
 carrying a gun. They found the two Circassians had 
 made an opening in their stable and were trying to 
 get out a horse. The Circassians on being discovered 
 fled and were fired after ; but although shots were 
 exchanged on both sides the darkness prevented 
 anybody being hit. My Circassians admitted they 
 were professional robbers, and listened with indif- 
 ference to the complaints of my host; but when 
 another native taunted one of the Circassians with 
 having been driven from the house where they re- 
 fused to admit me, the man roused and said to the 
 native : " Beware, I roam these deserts like a wolf, 
 and if I catch you outside the village I will murder 
 you." And with these words of blood on his lips my 
 Circassian turned to our host and asked the direction 
 of Mecca, then, spreading his cloak on the ground, 
 he looked towards the holy city and engaged in 
 prayer as peacefully as if he did no violence. Such 
 are the people I was forced to employ, and I was 
 yet to hear more of their misdeeds. 
 
 Leaving Ibrahim I travelled along the desert to- 
 
RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 159 
 
 wards Varenshalier, and got further to the south than 
 in my former journey. On the evening of the 16th 
 of April, after a long and tiring day's ride, I found 
 refuge in some tents beside a small stream ; the 
 natives called the encampment Khazil, but the people 
 shift about, and these names cannot be depended 
 upon. From Khazil I rode on the 17th to Varen- 
 shalier, and on the way called at Calah, where I 
 stayed on my journey out. The people here were 
 glad to see me, and pressed me to stay ; they told me 
 they had been nearly ruined by the Circassians, 
 some of whom had called and been well treated, after 
 which, on leaving the tents, they had ridden off with 
 the people's horses. My host at Calah had applied 
 to the court, but could get no redress, as one of the 
 principal officers was a Circassian and the judge or 
 cadi had married a Circassian wife. The people of 
 Calah said that having no redress they had resolved 
 themselves to punish any stragglers of the Circassians 
 who fell into their power, and they said if it had not 
 been for my presence they would have seized my 
 man. In the evening I reached Varenshalier, and 
 intended to stay there, but found the place not very 
 inviting. The governor had left Varenshalier on a 
 visit to some neighbouring place, and the Chetchen 
 or Circassians, although in the service of the Porte, 
 had made up an expedition to plunder Varenshaher; 
 the deputy whom the governor had left at Varen- 
 shaher was among the victims of this raid ; one of 
 the soldiers held him by the throat, while the others 
 
IGO RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 ransacked his place. When I saw him he appeared 
 not to have recovered from his fright, and as he said 
 the robbers were still prowling abont I judged Varen- 
 shaher to be a bad place to stay in, and requested 
 the deputy to give me a guide to Orfa, as my two 
 Circassians now declared they would go no further. 
 With the new guide provided by the'deputy I started 
 about eleven o'clock at night, but I had no sooner 
 got outside Varenshaher than my guide and guard 
 bolted, leaving me in the wilderness. I wandered 
 on until, guided by the bark of some dogs, I found 
 an Arab encampment, and here I got a shelter for 
 the rest of the night. Next morning Iresolvedto travel 
 without the government guards, and I got one of the 
 Arabs to show me the road to Orfa, and he led me 
 across the desert to a path which runs between Varen- 
 shaher and Easelain, a desolate road on which 
 scarcely a tent appeared, and where there was very 
 little traffic. 
 
 After a long day's ride I found some tents pitched 
 beside a small stream, and rested there for the 
 night ; then starting again on the morning of the 19th 
 of April, went along a fair road with ruins of old 
 towns, and entered the range of mountains that 
 girdles the plain of Orfa. On emerging into the 
 plain I left my caravan and galloped across the flat, 
 here about eighteen miles, to the city of Orfa. In 
 Orfa I rested the next day, and called on the pacha, 
 a polite and intelligent gentleman, who was always 
 glad to see me. I was told that he was a bigoted 
 
RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 1G1 
 
 Moliamcdan and strongly opposed to the Christians, 
 bat of course I saw nothing of this. He spoke to me 
 of railways, canals, &c, and expressed the wish that 
 some European company would make a canal from 
 Orfa to the Euphrates, which would develope a con- 
 siderable traffic. The pacha told me of a curiosity 
 to be seen at Orfa, about which they relate a story 
 worthy of the days of Herodotus. This curiosity 
 consisted of two small figures, made of a peculiar 
 shrub, partly trained and twisted, and partly cut 
 into the form of a man and woman, very rudely done, 
 and stained over to give them the appearance of 
 having grown in that shape. The man who sold 
 these articles declared that they grew in a field far 
 away from there, and that anyone trying to draw 
 one out of the ground would be killed by the noise 
 they made, so the inhabitants, in order to obtain 
 them, tied a dog by a string to each figure, and then 
 went a long distance off. As soon as the dog pulled 
 the string and drew the creature out of the ground 
 the noise it made killed the dog, and the men coming 
 up secured the curiosity. It is a sign of the intel- 
 lectual state of this country that men who object to 
 schools and Christian influence, believe such rubbish 
 as this. 
 
 On the 21st I left Orfa and travelled to Dabun, 
 and from there went on next day to Biradjik. At Bir- 
 adjik the Euphrates was a difficulty ; the flood of the 
 river was enormous, and that day I could not cross. 
 Next morning, after making my preparations and get- 
 
 M 
 
1C2 
 
 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 ting my things to the river, the custom-house people 
 came down and declared that as my boxes contained 
 antiquities they must seize them. I showed these 
 gentlemen my firman giving me the right to the 
 things ; I showed them the order from Mosul, which 
 stated that I had complied with all the demands of 
 the Turkish government, and had the right to export 
 the things ; I showed them my government order 
 for the road, directing all the functionaries to assist 
 me on my journey with the antiquities : but it was all 
 of no avail. I was dealing with Turkish officials, 
 and they would not let the things pass. The utmost 
 I could gain was that the boxes should be locked up 
 under joint seals of the customs officer and myself. 
 Now I resolved to cross the Euphrates with my 
 dragoman and a guide and ride to Aleppo, a distance 
 of thirty hours, to lay my complaint before our 
 consul, Mr. Skene. 
 
 I started about half-past one in the afternoon, but 
 the guide at once dropped behind and disappeared. 
 Disregarding this, my dragoman and I rode on the 
 rest of the day and all night, reaching Aleppo at six 
 o'clock next morning. I at once laid my complaint 
 of the illegal seizure before Mr. Skene, who promptly 
 demanded that the pacha should send and order the 
 officers at Biradjik to release the things, and Mr. 
 Skene sent one of his own Cawasses to Biradjik with 
 my man to see that the order was carried out. The 
 pacha gave an order to release the things, but being a 
 Turkish official he sent orders also that the Biradjik 
 
RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 163 
 
 officials should send a soldier with them, and bring 
 them to him at the serai or government house at 
 Aleppo. When the things arrived at Aleppo I would 
 not consent to their being taken to the serai, know- 
 ing that I had Mr. Skene to support me ; and I sent 
 the soldier to the serai without them, telling him 
 they were the property of the British government 
 and not of the pacha. The pacha did not make any 
 further demand, as he knew he had no right in the 
 matter, but he refused to let me leave Aleppo with 
 the things, urging the ridiculous plea that my per- 
 mission to export was signed by an officer lower in 
 rank than himself, and therefore he could not re- 
 cognize it. Mr. Skene, our consul, was obliged to 
 telegraph to the British ambassador at Constantinople 
 to ask the Porte to compel the pacha to let the 
 boxes pass, and then, after the orders had come from 
 Constantinople, the pacha declared he hai not re- 
 ceived them. On pressure from Mr. Skene he was 
 afterwards forced to acknowledge the receipt of the 
 orders ; but even then our consul was obliged to 
 demand that the letters from the pacha to his subor- 
 dinates to permit the export of the antiquities should 
 be open, that there might be no more tricks. Open 
 letters were then given, which I presented at the port 
 of Alexandretta, and exported the antiquities. During 
 my forced detention at Aleppo I was often the guest 
 of Mr. Skene, who so worthily represents British in- 
 terests there. Mr. Skene has an extensive knowledge 
 of Turkey, and great experience in dealing with the 
 
 M 2 
 
.16-1 RETURN FROM ASSYRIA. 
 
 Ottoman officials. Dr. Tomazini pointed out to me, 
 during my stay here, some curious inscriptions built 
 into the walls of old mosques and houses, and among 
 these I found a new Hamath inscription. These texts 
 are named after the city of Hamath, where they were 
 first discovered. The characters in them are hiero- 
 glyphic, but quite distinct from the hieroglyphics of 
 Egypt. At present very few specimens of these 
 inscriptions are known ; so that this one in Aleppo 
 had some importance. No clue has yet been dis- 
 covered to the reading of these texts. I visited also in 
 Aleppo the Russian consul, a gentleman of consider- 
 able influence, who has a great taste for antiquities. 
 I left Aleppo on the 14th of May, and arrived at 
 Alexandre tta on the 17th. Here Mr. Franck, the 
 British consul, very kindly received me, and I stayed 
 with him until the 23rd of May, when I embarked 
 on a steamer for Alexandria, and on the 26th trans- 
 ferred myself from that to the Peninsular and 
 Oriental Company's boat " Indus," on which I re- 
 turned to England, arriving in London on the 9th 
 of June. 
 
Chapter XI. 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OR FLOOD SERIES OP LEGENDS. 
 
 Chaldean account of flood. — New portions. — Tzdubar. — Pro- 
 bably Nimrod. — Antiquity of legends. — Conquests of Izdubar. 
 — His illness. — Hasisadra. — The flood. — Erech. — Conquest of 
 Monster. — Zaidu. — Heabani. — Humbaba. — Ishtar. — Divine bull. 
 — Death of Heabani. — Izdubar's sorrow. — His journey. — The 
 giants. — Hasisadra. — Account of deluge. — Building the ark. — 
 The flood. — Mountains of Nizir. — The birds. — Translation of 
 patriarch. — Cure of Izdubar. — His lament. — Ghost of Heabani. 
 — Comparison with Bible and Berosus. — Remarks. 
 
 HESE legends, which I discovered in 
 1872, formed the subject of my lecture 
 before the Society of Biblical Archaeo- 
 logy on the 3rd of December, 1872, and 
 attracted very great attention. On that occasion I 
 principally translated the eleventh tablet in the series, 
 which contains the Chaldean account of the deluge. 
 About one-third of this tablet was then either muti- 
 lated or absent, and all the other tablets were in still 
 worse condition. In my excavations at Kouyunjik I 
 have recovered many new portions of these inscrip- 
 tions, which number in all twelve tablets, and I now 
 for the first time give an account of all the fragments. 
 
16G 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OR 
 
 There is still much required before the series will 
 be complete, and I have as yet only identified six 
 tablets out of the twelve, these are the 5th, 6th, 9th, 
 10th, 11th and 12th ; I have found, however, a great 
 number of fragments of the others which will serve to 
 fill up and illustrate the legends. Independently of the 
 fact that these tablets give the Chaldean account of 
 the flood, they form one of the most rema rkable series 
 of inscriptions yet discovered. These tablets record 
 primarily the adventures of an hero whose name I 
 have provisionally called Izdubar. Izdubar is, how- 
 ever, nothing more than a makeshift name, and I am 
 of opinion that this hero is the same as the Nimrod of 
 the Bible. 
 
 The " Izdubar Legends " appear to me to have been 
 composed during the early Babylonian empire, more 
 than 2000 years B.C. In primitive times, Babylonia 
 was divided into several small states, and the rest of 
 Western Asia was in a similar or worse condition. 
 
 So far as the fragments of the " Izdubar Legends" 
 are preserved, they lead to the conclusion that Izdubar 
 or Nimrod, a great hunter or giant, obtained the 
 dominion of the district round Babylon, and after- 
 wards drove out some tyrant who ruled over Erech, 
 adding this region to his kingdom. Later, he sent 
 and destroyed a monster which preyed on the sur- 
 rounding lands ; and a seer or astrologer named Hea- 
 bani came to his court at Erech, becoming his close 
 friend. Together Izdubar and Heabani destroy other 
 wild animals, and conquer a chief named Humbaba, 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 167 
 
 who ruled in a mountainous region full of pine-trees. 
 Another chief named Belesu was next subdued, and 
 then an animal called " the divine bull " was killed. 
 Izdubar was now in the height of his power, and 
 ruled over all the valley of the Euphrates and Tigris, 
 from the Persian Gulf to the Armenian Mountains. 
 Misfortunes now set in, — first Heabani was killed by 
 a wild animal called a " tamabukku," the nature of 
 which I have not ascertained ; next Izdubar was 
 struck with a disease, apparently, from the descrip- 
 tion, a kind of leprosy. Izdubar went on a wan- 
 dering excursion to the sea-coast to be cured of his 
 malady, and is supposed there to have met the deified 
 hero who escaped the flood. In the new fragments 
 I found at Kouyunjik, I discovered that this hero 
 bore the name of Hasisadra, which is the origin of 
 the Greek form of his name, Xisithrus. Hasisadra 
 is supposed to have told Izdubar how to obtain his 
 cure, and then the king returned to Erech, and again 
 mourned over his friend Heabani. The legends close 
 with a petition to the gods for Heabani, who, after 
 his death, is in the low er region of the departed, or 
 Hell. Hea, one of the gods, listens to this prayer, 
 and releases Heabani, who then rises to heaven. 
 
 During the early Babylonian monarchy, from B.C. 
 2500 to 1500, there are constant allusions to these 
 legends. The destruction of the lion, the divine bull, 
 and other monsters, by Izdubar, are often depicted 
 on the cylinders and engraved gems, and Izdubar in 
 his boat is also on some specimens. The legend of 
 
1GS 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OR 
 
 the flood is alluded to in the inscriptions of the same 
 epoch, and the "city of the ark" is mentioned in a 
 geographical list, which is one of the oldest cunei- 
 form inscriptions we possess. I have related how I 
 heard, on the banks of the Tigris, what appeared to 
 be one of the Izdubar legends, that of the animal 
 dwelling in the cave ; there appears to be another in 
 the curious Arabic work called the " Stories of 
 Nimrod," where we are told that Nimrod was by 
 divine power struck with disease, from which he suf- 
 fered torture, and ultimately died. 
 
 In my description of these legends I will first take 
 up the unplaced fragments as they belong to the 
 earlier tablets, and afterwards consider the more 
 perfect portions of the story. 
 
 The legends of Izdubar open with the words : " The 
 waters of the fountain he had seen, thehero, Izdubar." 
 After this line it is not possible to place any of the 
 fragments in position until we come to the fifth tablet, 
 but there are many fragments which probably balong 
 to this part, and first among these I am inclined to 
 place the fragment numbered K 3200 in the museum 
 collection. 
 
 This fragment is part of the third column of one 
 of the tablets, and it gives a portion of the account of 
 an ancient conquest of Erech, the city mentioned in 
 Genesis x. 10. The following is rather a free than a 
 literal translation. 
 
 1. his .... he left 
 
 2. his ... . went down to the river 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 1G9 
 
 3. in the river his ships were placed. 
 
 4 were .... and wept bitterly 
 
 5 placed, the city of Ganganna was power- 
 less. 
 
 6 their .... she asses 
 
 7 their .... great. 
 
 8. Like animals the people feared, 
 
 9. like doves the slaves mourned. 
 
 10. The gods of Erech Suburi 
 
 11. turned to flies and concealed themselves among 
 the locusts ? 
 
 12. The spirits of Erech Suburi 
 
 13. turned toSikkim, and went out with zabat fishes. 
 
 14. For three years the city of Erech could not 
 resist the enemy, 
 
 15. the great gates were thrown down and trampled 
 upon, 
 
 16. the goddess Ishtar before her enemies could 
 not lift her head. 
 
 17. Bel his mouth opened and spake 
 
 18. to Ishtar the queen a speech he made 
 
 19. " .... in the midst of Nipur my hands 
 
 20 my . . Babylon Bit-haduti 
 
 21 my . . I have given my hands." 
 
 This fragment relates an early conquest of Erech 
 
 which is generally called in these legends Erech 
 Suburi or Erech the " blessed." I conjecture that the 
 lost portions of the tablet relate how Izdubar freed 
 the city and obtained the government. 
 
 The next fragment is a considerable but obscure 
 
170 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OR 
 
 portion of the story ; it opens with a petition from 
 Izdubar, who appears to have had a dream and desires 
 to get a learned man named Heabani to come and 
 explain it. Heabani is a sort of hermit, very learned 
 and living a solitary life, and he appears to have been 
 in the clutches of a dragon, which inhabited a cave or 
 hole that it had dug out of the rock. 
 
 The legend is here mutilated, but it appears that 
 someone begat or created a man named Zaidu or " the 
 hunter,' 5 and he went to try to destroy the creature. 
 Zaidu stopped three days in front of the den of the 
 monster, but feared to encounter him, and turned 
 back and told his father of his failure. His father in 
 answer told him to go to Erech and lay the matter 
 before Izdubar, which he did, telling him how he had 
 climbed up to the den, but feared to attack the 
 creature. 
 
 Izdubar directed Zaidu to go again to the place, 
 and to take two females with him, that they might 
 show themselves to the monster, and he might come 
 forth and be killed. This was done according to the 
 directions of Izdubar, and then one female tempted 
 Heabani to come to Erech, in order to interpret the 
 dream of Izdubar. Here the tablet reads™ 
 
 a. He turned and sat at the feet of Harimtu. 
 
 b. Harimtu bent down her face, 
 
 c. and Harimtu spoke, and his ears heard, 
 
 d. and after this manner also she said to Heabani : 
 
 e. " Heabani like a god art thou, 
 
 /.. Why do you associate with the reptiles in the 
 desert ? 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 171 
 
 g. I will take tliee to the midst of Erecli Suburi, 
 
 h. to the temple of Elli-tardusi the seat of Anu 
 and Ishtar, 
 
 i. the place of Izdubar the mighty giant, 
 
 j. and like a bull thou shalt rule over the chiefs." 
 
 1c. She spake to him and made her speech, 
 
 I. The wisdom of his heart she turned, &c, &c. 
 
 After this Heabani goes to Erech to interpret the 
 dream of Izdubar, and becomes the close companion 
 and devoted servant of the monarch. Numerous 
 fragments give parts of the exploits of Izdubar and 
 Heabani ; but it is only when the story reaches the 
 fifth tablet that it becomes connected. At the com- 
 mencement of the fifth tablet, one of the parties in 
 the story is represented standing astonished at a 
 splendid forest of pines, near the retreat of a person 
 named Humbaba. Izdubar and Heabani are in con- 
 flict with Humbaba ; and this tablet ends with the 
 death of Humbaba, whose head is cut off. There is, 
 however, not sufficient anywhere to make a literal 
 translation. 
 
 The sixth tablet relates to matters between Izdu- 
 bar and Ishtar, the goddess of Erech ; who was the 
 goddess of love and passion, both in man and animals. 
 This fact accounts for some of the curious statements 
 of the tablet. The following is a translation of the 
 tablet : — 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1 Belesu, he despised Belesu. 
 
 2. Like a bull his country he ascended after him. 
 
172 
 
 THE IZDTJBAR OB 
 
 3. He destroyed liim and his memorial was hidden. 
 
 4. The country he wasted, setting up another 
 crown. 
 
 5. Izdubar his crown put on (setting up another 
 crown). 
 
 6. For the favour of Izdubar the princess Ishtar 
 lifted her eyes, 
 
 . 7. "I will take thee Izdubar as husband, 
 
 8. thy oath to me shall be thy bond, 
 
 9. thou shalt be husband and I will be thy wife. 
 
 10. Thou shalt drive in a chariot of ukni stone 
 and gold, 
 
 11. of which the body is gold and splendid its 
 pole. 
 
 12. Thou shalt acquire days of great conquests, 
 
 13. to Bitani in the country where the pine trees 
 grow. 
 
 14. May Bitani at thy entrance 
 
 15. to the river Euphrates kiss thy feet, 
 
 16. There shall be under thee kings, lords, and 
 princes. 
 
 17. The tribute of the mountains and plains they 
 shall bring to thee, taxes 
 
 18. they shall give thee, may thy herds and flocks 
 bring forth twins, 
 
 19 mules be swift 
 
 20 in the chariot strong not weak 
 
 21 in the yoke. A rival may there 
 
 not be. 
 
 . The next portion of the legend is mutilated. It 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 173 
 
 records how Izdubar answered Ishtar. The remainder 
 of Column I. (twenty-three lines) is too imperfect to 
 translate ; and then the legend proceeds as follows : — 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. . . . his hand 
 
 2. to Dumuzi (Tammuz) thy injured husband 
 
 3. country after country is mourning his misfor- 
 tune 
 
 4. Alalu bitru also thou didst love 
 
 5. thou didst strike him, and his wings thou 
 breakest 
 
 6. He stood in the forest, and begged for his 
 wings. 
 
 In the succeeding lines various amours of Ishtar 
 are described. These I do not give, as their details 
 are not suited for general reading. Izdubar con- 
 cludes his speech by refusing to have anything to do 
 with her. The legend then proceeds : — 
 
 36. Ishtar this heard, and 
 
 37. Ishtar was angry, and to heaven she ascended. 
 
 38. and Ishtar went to the presence of Anu her 
 father, 
 
 39. to the presence of Anunit her mother she went, 
 and said : 
 
 40. " Father Izdubar hates me, and 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. Izdubar despises my beauty, 
 
 2. my beauty and my charms." 
 
174 
 
 TJIE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 There followed here a fragmentary dialogue between 
 Ishtar and her father Anu, and she petitions her 
 father to make a winged bull, to be the instrument of 
 her vengeance against Izdubar. 
 
 The god Anu made the winged bull, and then 
 commenced a contest between Izdubar and this 
 animal. This contest is related on the mutilated 
 fragments of the fourth column, and then on the fifth 
 column and eighth line the legend is again perfect 
 and reads : — 
 
 Column V. 
 
 8. And Ishtar ascended unto the wall of Erech 
 Suburi, 
 
 9. destroyed the covering and uttered a curse : 
 
 10. " I curse Izdubar who dwells here, and the 
 winged bull has slain." 
 
 11. Heabani heard the speech of Ishtar, 
 
 12. and he cut off the member of the winged bull 
 and before her threw it ; 
 
 13. " I answer it, I will take thee and as in this 
 
 14. I have heard thee, 
 
 15. the curse I will turn against thy side." 
 
 16. Ishtar gathered her maidens 
 
 17. Samhati and Harimati, 
 
 18. and over the member of the winged bull a 
 mourning she made. 
 
 19. Izdubar called on the people 
 
 20. all of them, 
 
 21. and the weight of his horns the young men 
 took, 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 175 
 
 it. 
 
 22. 30 manas of zamat stone within them, 
 
 23. the sharpness of the points was destroyed, 
 
 24. 6 gurs its mass together. 
 
 25. To the ark of his god Sarturda he dedicated it; 
 
 26. he took it in and worshipped at his fire ; 
 
 27. in the river Euphrates they washed their hands, 
 
 28. and they took and went 
 
 29. round the city of Erech riding, 
 
 30. and the assembly of the chiefs of Erech marked 
 
 31. Izdubar to the inhabitants of Erech 
 
 32. ... a proclamation made. 
 
 Column VI. 
 
 1. "Anyone of ability among the chiefs, 
 
 2. Anyone noble among men, 
 
 3. Izdubar is able among the chiefs, 
 
 4. Izdubar is noble among men, 
 
 5 placed hearing 
 
 6 vicinity, not of the inhabitants 
 
 7 him." 
 
 8. Izdubar in his palace made a rejoicing, 
 
 9. the chiefs reclining on couches at night, 
 
 10. Heabani lay down, slept, and a dream he 
 dreamed. 
 
 11. Heabani spake and the dream he explained, 
 
 12. and said to Izdubar. 
 
 This is the close of the sixth tablet, and the seventh 
 one opened with the dream of Heabani. Of the 
 
170 
 
 THE I ZD JIB AH OR 
 
 seventh tablet I have only recovered the first line 
 which opens the speech of Heabani, — 
 
 " Seer why do the great gods take council?" 
 
 I am doubtful also if I have found any portion of 
 the eighth tablet ; but I have provisionally placed in 
 it a fragment which I discovered in Sennacherib's 
 palace at Kouyunjik, this fragment has, however, 
 relations with the story of Humbaba. 
 
 The general tenor of the fragments enables me to 
 say. two things were related in the eighth tablet; one 
 was the illness of Izdubar, which is related on the 
 fragment here given, and the other was the death of 
 Heabani, over whom Izdubar mourns bitterly. 
 
 The fragment of the illness of Izdubar reads : — 
 
 1. Izdubar in the 
 
 2. The goddess injurer of men upon him struck, 
 
 3. and in his limbs he died. 
 
 4. He spake, and said to his seer : 
 
 5. " Seer, thou dost not ask me why I am naked ; 
 
 6. Thou dost not inquire of me why I am spoiled ; 
 
 7. God will not depart; why do my limbs burn. 
 
 8. Seer, I saw a third dream; 
 
 9. And the dream which I saw entirely dis- 
 appeared. 
 
 10. He invoked the god of the earth and desired 
 death. 
 
 11. A thunder cloud came out of the darkness ; 
 
 12. The lightning struck and kindled a fire ; 
 
 13. and came out the shadow of death, 
 
 14. It disappeared the fire sank. 
 
FLOOD SFEIFS OF LEGEXDS. 177 
 
 15 struck it and it turned to a palm 
 
 tree. 
 
 16 and in the desert, thy lord was 
 
 proceeding." 
 
 17. And Heabani the dream considered and said 
 to Izdubar. 
 
 After this Heabani was struck down and killed, 
 which added to the misfortune of Izdubar. Tambukku 
 and Mikke are said to have killed Heabani ; but who 
 or what they were, the record is too mutilated to 
 show, they appear to be the names of some wild 
 animal. The ninth tablet commences the lamenta- 
 tion of Izdubar over his misfortunes, and his deter- 
 mination to go and seek Hasisadri or Xisithrus, a 
 sage, who, according to the Babylonian traditions, 
 had lived before the flood ; and after that event had 
 been translated, and now dwelt somewhere by the 
 Persian Gulf. 
 
 The ninth tablet reads — 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. Izdubar over Heabani his seer 
 
 2. bitterly lamented, and lay down on the ground. 
 
 3. I had no judgment like Heabani; 
 
 4. Weakness entered into my soul ; 
 
 5. death I feared, and lay down on the ground. 
 
 6. For the advice of Hasisadra, son of Ubaratutu 
 
 7. The road I was taking, and joyfully I went 
 
 8. to the neighbourhood of the mountains I took 
 at night. 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 THE IZBUJBAR OR 
 
 9. a dream I saw, and I feared. 
 
 10. I bowed on my face, and to Sin (the moon 
 god) I prayed ; 
 
 11. and into the presence of the gods came my 
 supplication ; 
 
 12. and they sent peace unto me. 
 
 13 dream. 
 
 14 Sin, erred in life. 
 
 15 to his hand. 
 
 The dream and message of the gods are lost, and 
 there are no other fragments of the first column. 
 The second commences with Izdubar in some fabulous 
 region, whither he has wandered in search of Hasis- 
 adra. Here he sees some giants with their feet 
 resting in hell, and their heads reaching heaven. 
 These beings are supposed to guide and direct the 
 sun at its rising and setting. This passage is as 
 follows : — 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. Of the country hearing him 
 
 2. To the mountains of Mas in his course 
 
 3. who each day guard the rising sun. 
 
 4. Their crown was at the lattice of heaven, 
 
 5. under hell their feet were placed. 
 
 6. The first man guarded the gate, 
 
 7. burning with terribleness, their appearance was 
 like death, 
 
 8. the might of his fear shook the forests. 
 
 9. At the rising of the sun and the setting of the 
 sun, they guarded the sun. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 170 
 
 10. Izdubar saw them, and fear and terror came 
 into his face. 
 
 11. Summoning his resolution, he approached 
 before them. 
 
 12. The first man of the third asked : 
 
 13. "Who comes to us with the limbs of a god 
 on his body ? " 
 
 14. To the first man, the third answered : 
 
 15. " His shape is divine, his work is human." 
 
 16. The first man of the hero asked : 
 
 17 of the gods the words he said 
 
 18 distant road 
 
 19 to my presence 
 
 20 crossing them is difficult. 
 
 These giants then discourse of the journey of 
 Izdubar. And where the story is again legible, on 
 the third column of the tablet, one of them is advising 
 that Izdubar should go to Hasisadra, whom he calls 
 his father; and he relates that he is immortal 
 (established in the company of the gods), and has 
 the knowledge of death and life. 
 
 Column III. 
 
 3. to Hasisadra, my father 
 
 4. who is established in the company of the gods 
 
 5. death and life 
 
 6. The first man his mouth opened and spake, 
 
 7. and said to 
 
 8. " Is it not Izdubar 
 
 9. who to the country anyone comes 
 
 n 2 
 
180 , THE IZDUBAB OB 
 
 On the fourth column Izdubar prays to these 
 giants ; and the first one directs him the way to seek 
 after Hasisadra. On the fifth column, this journey 
 is related ; the whole of it is much mutilated, and 
 only some fragments can be made out. The stages 
 are related in Kaspu, or lengths of from six to seven 
 miles. The road is said to be shrouded in darkness, 
 and there is no light along it. A fresh adventure is 
 met with at every stage. In the ninth stage, there 
 is a change, and he comes to splendid trees covered 
 with jewels ; and at the close of the journey (recorded 
 on the sixth column) he arrives near the sea, at a 
 place where there is a gate, and inside it a man named 
 Siduri, and a woman named Sabitu. The tenth tablet 
 commences with the transactions between Izdubar 
 and Sabitu. Izdubar desires to pass through the 
 gate, and Sabitu shuts it in his face. He then 
 threatens to break it. 
 
 Column I. 
 
 9. To go on the distant path his face was set. 
 
 10. Sabitu afar off pondered, 
 
 11. spake within her heart, and a resolution made. 
 
 12. Within herself also she considered : 
 
 13. " What is this message 
 
 14. There is no one upright in ... . 
 
 15. And Sabitu saw him and shut her place? 
 
 16. her gate she shut and shut her place? 
 
 17. And he, Izdubar, having ears heard her. 
 
 18. he struck his hands and made .... 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 181 
 
 19. Izdubar after this manner also said to Sabitu : 
 
 20. " Sabitu why dosfc thou shut thy place? 
 
 21. thy gate thou closest .... 
 
 22. I will strike the .... 
 
 In the rest of this column, which is lost, there is 
 an account of the meeting of Izdubar and a boatman 
 named Urhamsi. Urhamsi undertakes to navigate 
 Izdubar to the region where Hasisadri dwells, and on 
 the second column commences a discourse between 
 Izdubar and Urhamsi. They then procure a ship and 
 start for this region, they go along for fifteen days, and 
 Urhamsi tells Izdubar about the waters of death, which 
 he says will not cleanse his hands. This is related 
 on the fourth column. 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. Urhamsi after this manner also said to Izdubar : 
 
 2. " The tablets Izdubar .... 
 
 3. the waters of death will not cleanse thy hands 
 
 4. the second time, the third time, and the fourth 
 time, Izdubar carried his breaches 
 
 5. the fifth, sixth, and seventh time, Izdubar carried 
 his breaches. 
 
 6. the eighth, ninth, and tenth time, Izdubar carried 
 his breaches 
 
 7. the eleventh, and twelfth time, Izdubar carried 
 his breaches. 
 
 8. the twelfth time Izdubar ended his breaches 
 
 9. And he freed his body ? to ... . 
 
182 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OR 
 
 10. Izdubar did violence .... 
 
 11. in his head affliction was ended ? 
 
 12. Hasisadra afar off pondered. 
 
 13. spake within his heart and a resolution made. 
 
 14. Within himself also he considered : 
 
 15. " Why to the shore does this ship not arrive ? 
 
 16. is not ended the voyage .... 
 
 17. the man is not come to me and .... 
 
 18. I wonder he is not .... 
 
 19. I wonder he is not .... 
 
 20. I wonder .... 
 
 Thesepassages are mutilated, and itdoes not appear 
 if the breaches of Izdubar were his sins or his illness, 
 but it seems that his cure had now begun. We find 
 from the passage in lines 12 to 20 that Hasisadra was 
 expecting Izdubar and wondering why he had not 
 arrived. 
 
 The next column introduces Izdubar talking to a 
 female named Mua, and he tells Mua his feelings 
 respecting Heabani and the history of their con- 
 nection. The whole of this is too mutilated to 
 translate with any certainty, but I give a conjectural 
 translation to show the general meaning. 
 
 Column V. 
 
 1. Izdubar opened his mouth, and after this manner 
 also said to Mua 
 
 2 my presence 
 
 3 did not rule 
 
 4 before me 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 183 
 
 5. ..... . lay down in the desert 
 
 6 leopard in the desert 
 
 7. Heabani the same 
 
 8. a second there was not in the country. 
 
 9. We captured Ninaru 
 
 10. we conquered Humbaba who in the forests of 
 pine trees dwelt. 
 
 11. And again when we slew the lions, 
 
 12. in the wilderness became sick. 
 
 13. And he was killed by the same, 
 
 14 he covered and over him I mourn 
 
 15. like a lion placed him in a tomb. 
 
 There are four other lines, and then comes the 
 
 answer of Mua. 
 
 On the sixth column is related the meeting between 
 Izdubar and Hasisadra. Izdubar has asked a question 
 of Hasisadra, and the sage is answering him, where 
 the legend becomes again clear. 
 
 Column VI. 
 
 1. I was angry 
 
 2. Whenever a house was built, whenever atreasure 
 was collected. 
 
 3. Whenever brothers fixed 
 
 4. Whenever hatred is in 
 
 5. Whenever the river makes a great flood. 
 
 6. Whenever reviling within the mouth .... 
 
 7. the face that bowed before Shamas 
 
 8. from of old was not ..... 
 
 9. Spoiling and death together exist 
 
184 
 
 THE IZBUBAR OR 
 
 10. of death the image has not been seen. 
 
 11. The man or servant on approaching death, 
 
 12. the spirit of the great gods takes his hand. 
 
 13. The goddess Mamitu maker of fate, to them 
 their fate brings, 
 
 14. She has fixed death and life ; 
 
 15. of death the day is not known." 
 
 Izdubar appears to have been unsatisfied with the 
 answer of Hasisadra, dealing as it did with the general 
 question of life and death, and he desired to know how 
 Hasisadra became immortal, he probably desiring a 
 similar honour for himself. This introduces us to the 
 eleventh tablet of the series, the most perfect and by 
 far the most important of these legends. The tablet, 
 of which I give a complete translation, opens with the 
 second speech of Izdubar. 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1 . Izdubar after this manner also said to Hasisadra 
 afar off : 
 
 2. " I consider the matter, 
 
 3. why thou repeatest not to me from thee, 
 
 4. and thou repeatest not to me from thee, 
 
 5. thy ceasing my heart to make war 
 
 6. presses ? of the, I come up after thee, 
 
 7. . . . how thou hast done, and in the assembly 
 of the gods alive thou art placed." 
 
 8. Hasisadra after this manner also said to Izdubar: 
 
 9. " Be revealed to thee Izdubar the concealed story, 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 185 
 
 10- and the judgment of the gods be related to 
 thee, 
 
 11. The city Surippak the city where thou standest 
 not . . . . placed, 
 
 12. that city is ancient .... the gods within it 
 
 13 their servant, the great gods 
 
 14 the god Anu, 
 
 15 the god Bel, 
 
 16 the god Ninip, 
 
 17. and the god lord of Hades; 
 
 18. their will he revealed in the midst .... and 
 
 19. I his will was hearing and he spake to me : 
 
 20. " Surippakite son of Ubaratutu 
 
 21 make a ship after this 
 
 22 I destroy ? the sinner and life .... 
 
 23. . . . cause to go in ? the seed of life all of it 
 to the midst of the ship. 
 
 24. The ship which thou shalt make, 
 
 25. 600? cubits shall be the measure of its length, 
 and 
 
 26. 60 ? cubits the amount of its breadth and its 
 height. 
 
 27. . . . into the deep launch it." 
 
 28. I perceived and said to Hea my lord : 
 
 29. " The ship making which thou commandest me, 
 
 30. when I shall have made, 
 
 31. young and old. will deride me." 
 
 32. Hea opened his mouth and spake and said to 
 me his servant : 
 
 33 thou shalt sav unto them, 
 
180 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OB 
 
 34 he lias turned from me and 
 
 35 fixed over me 
 
 36. ....... like caves ...... 
 
 37 above and below 
 
 38. .... closed the ship .... 
 
 39 the flood which I will send to you, 
 
 40. into it enter and the door of the ship turn. 
 
 41. Into the midst of it thy grain, thy furniture, 
 and thy goods, 
 
 42. thy wealth, thy woman servants, thy female 
 slaves, and the young men, 
 
 43. the beasts of the field, the animals of the field 
 all, I will gather and 
 
 44. I will send to thee, and they shall be enclosed 
 in thy door." 
 
 45. Adrahasis his mouth opened and spake, and 
 
 46. said to Hea his lord : 
 
 47. " Anyone the ship will not make .... 
 
 48. on the earth fixed 
 
 49 I may see also the ship .... 
 
 50. .... on the ground the ship 
 
 51. the ship making which thou commandest me . . . 
 
 52. which in 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. strong 
 
 2. on the fifth dav it 
 
 3. in its circuit 14 measures ... its frame. 
 
 4. 14 measures it measured . . . over it. 
 
FLOOD 
 
 SERIES 
 
 OF LEGENDS. 
 
 187 
 
 5. I placed its roof, it .... I enclosed it. 
 
 6. I rode in it on the sixth time ; I examined its 
 exterior on the seventh time ; 
 
 7. its interior I examined on the eighth time. 
 
 8. Planks against the waters within it I placed. 
 
 9. I saw rents and the wanting parts I added. 
 
 ] 0. 3 measures of bitumen I poured over the out- 
 side. 
 
 11. 3 measures of bitumen I poured over the inside. 
 
 12. 3 . . . men carrying its baskets, they con- 
 structed boxes 
 
 13. I placed in the boxes the offering they sacri- 
 ficed. 
 
 14. Two measures of boxes I had distributed to 
 the boatmen. 
 
 15. To were sacrificed oxen 
 
 16 dust and 
 
 17 wine in receptacle of goats 
 
 18. I collected like the waters of a river, also 
 
 19. food like the dust of the earth also 
 
 20. I collected in boxes with my hand I placed. 
 21 Shamas .... material of the ship 
 
 completed. 
 
 22 strong and 
 
 23. the reed oars of the ship I caused to bring 
 above and below. 
 
 24 they went in two-thirds of it. 
 
 25. All I possessed the strength of it, all I possessed 
 the strength of it silver, 
 
188 
 
 THE IZDTTBAR OR 
 
 26. all I possessed the strength of it gold, 
 
 27. all I possessed the strength of it the seed of 
 life, the whole 
 
 28. I caused to go up into the ship ; all my male 
 servants and my female servants, 
 
 29. the beast of the field, the animal of the field, 
 the sons of the people all of them, I caused to go up. 
 
 30. A flood Shamas made and 
 
 31. he spake saying in the night : " I will cause it 
 to rain heavily, 
 
 32. enter to the midst of the ship and shut thy 
 door." 
 
 33. A flood he raised and 
 
 34. he spake saying in the night : " I will cause it 
 to rain (or it will rain) from heaven heavily." 
 
 35. In the day I celebrated his festival 
 
 36. the day of his appointment ? fear I had. 
 
 37. I entered to the midst of the ship and shut my 
 door. 
 
 38. To close the ship to Buzur-sadirabi the boat- 
 man 
 
 39. the palace I gave with its goods. 
 
 40. The raging of a storm in the morning 
 
 41. arose, from the horizon of heaven extending 
 and wide. 
 
 42. Vul in the midst of it thundered, and 
 
 43. Nebo and Saru went in front, 
 
 44. -the throne bearers went over mountains and 
 plains, 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. ISO 
 
 45. the destroyer Nergal overturned, 
 
 46. Ninip went in front and cast down, 
 
 47. the spirits carried destruction, 
 
 48. in their glory they swept the earth ; 
 
 49. of Vul the flood reached to heaven. 
 
 50. The bright earth to a waste was turned, 
 
 Column III. 
 
 1. the surface of the earth like ..... it swept> 
 
 2. it destroyed all life from the face of the earth . . . 
 
 3. the strong deluge over the people, reached to 
 heaven. 
 
 4. Brother saw not his brother, it did not spare 
 the people. In heaven 
 
 5. the gods feared the tempest and 
 
 6. sought refuge ; they ascended to the heaven of 
 Anu. 
 
 7. The gods like dogs fixed in droves prostrate. 
 
 8. Spake Ishtar like a child, 
 
 9. uttered the great goddess her speech : 
 
 10. " All to corruption are turned and 
 
 11. then I in the presence of the gods prophesied 
 evil. 
 
 12. As I prophesied in the presence of the gods evil, 
 
 13. to evil were devoted all my people and I pro- 
 phesied 
 
 14. thus : " I have begotten my people and 
 
 15. like the young of the fishes they fill the sea." 
 
 16. The gods concerning the spirits were weeping 
 with her, 
 
190 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OH 
 
 17. the gods in seats seated in lamentation, 
 
 18. covered were their lips for the coming evil. 
 
 19. Six days and nights 
 
 20. passed, the wind, deluge, and storm, over- 
 whelmed. 
 
 21 . On the seventh day in its course was calmed 
 the storm, and all the deluge 
 
 22. which had destroyed like an earthquake, 
 
 23. quieted. The sea he caused to dry, and the 
 wind and deluge ended. 
 
 24. I perceived the sea making a tossing ; 
 
 25. and the whole of mankind turned to corruption, 
 
 26. like reeds the corpses floated. 
 
 27. I opened the window, and the light broke over 
 my face, 
 
 28. it passed. I sat down and wept, 
 
 29. over my face flowed my tears. 
 
 30. I perceived the shore at the boundary of the sea, 
 
 31. for twelve measures the land rose. 
 
 32. To the country of Nizir went the ship; 
 
 33. the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship, and to 
 pass over it it was not able. 
 
 34. The first day, and the second day, the moun- 
 tain of Nizir the same. 
 
 35. The third day, and the fourth day, the moun- 
 tain of Nizir the same. 
 
 36. The fifth, and sixth, the mountain of Nizir the 
 same. 
 
 37. On the seventh day in the course of it 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 191 
 
 38. I sent forth a dove and it left. The dove went 
 and turned, and 
 
 39. a resting-place it did not find, and it returned. 
 
 40. I sent forth a swallow and it left. The swallow 
 went and turned, and 
 
 41. a resting-place it did not find, and it returned. 
 
 42. I sent forth a raven and it left. 
 
 43. The raven went, and the corpses on the water 
 it saw, and 
 
 44. it did eat, it swam, and wandered away, and 
 did not return. 
 
 45. I sent the animals forth to the four winds, I 
 poured out a libation, 
 
 46. I built an altar on the peak of the moun- 
 tain, 
 
 47. by sevens herbs I cut, 
 
 48. at the bottom of them I placed reeds, pines, 
 and simgar. 
 
 49. The gods collected at its burning, the gods 
 collected at its good burning ; 
 
 50. the gods like flies over the sacrifice gathered. 
 
 51. From of old also the great god in his course 
 
 52. The great brightness of Anu had created. 
 When the glory 
 
 53. of those gods the charm round my neck would 
 not repel ; 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. in those days I prayed for I could never repel 
 them. 
 
 2. May the gods come to my altar, 
 
102 THE I ZD JIB AH OB 
 
 3. may Bel not come to my altar, 
 
 4. for he did not consider and had made a deluge, 
 
 5. and my people he had consigned to the deep. 
 
 6. From of old also Bel in his course 
 
 7. saw the ship, and went Bel with anger filled to 
 the gods and spirits : 
 
 8. " Let not anyone come out alive, let not a man 
 be saved from the deep" 
 
 9. Ninip his mouth opened, and spake and said to 
 the warrior Bel : 
 
 10. "Who then will be saved?" Hea the words 
 understood 
 
 11. and Hea knew all things. 
 
 12. Hea his mouth opened and spake, and said to 
 the warrior Bel : 
 
 13. *■ Thou prince of the gods warrior, 
 
 14. when thou art angry a deluge thou makest ; 
 
 15. the doer of sin did his sin, the doer of evil did 
 his evil. 
 
 16. May the exalted not be broken, may the capti ve 
 not be delivered. 
 
 17. Instead of thee making a deluge, may lions 
 increase and men be reduced ; 
 
 18. instead of thee making a deluge, may leopards 
 increase and men be reduced ; 
 
 19. instead of thee making a deluge, may a famine 
 happen and the country be destroyed ; 
 
 20. instead of thee making a deluge, may pestilence 
 increase and men be destroyed. 
 
 21. I did not peer into the judgment of the gods. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 193 
 
 22. Adrahasis a dream they sent, and the judgment 
 of the gods he heard. 
 
 23. When his judgment was accomplished, Bel went 
 up to the midst of the ship. 
 
 24. He took my hand and raised me up, 
 
 25. he caused to raise and to bring my wife to my 
 side ; 
 
 26. he purified the country, he established in a 
 covenant and took the people, 
 
 27. in the presence of Hasisadra and the people. 
 
 28. When Hasisadra, and his wife, and the people, 
 to be like the gods were carried away ; 
 
 29. then dwelt Hasisadra in a remote place at the 
 mouth of the rivers. 
 
 30. They took me and in a remote place at the 
 mouth of the rivers they seated me. 
 
 31. When to thee whom the gods have chosen also, 
 
 32. for the health which thou seekest and askest, 
 
 33. this do six days and seven nights, 
 
 34. like in a seat also in bonds bind him, 
 
 35. the way like a storm shall be laid upon him." 
 
 36. Hasisadra after this manner also said to his wife 
 
 37. " Iannounce that the chief who grasps at health 
 
 38. the way like a storm shall be laid upon him." 
 
 39. His wife after this manner also said to Hasis- 
 adra afar off. 
 
 40. " Purify him, and let the man be sent away ; 
 
 41. the road that he came may he return in peace, 
 
 42. the great gate open and may he return to his 
 country." 
 
 o 
 
194 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 43. Hasisadra after this manner also said to his wife* 
 
 44. " The cry of a man alarms thee, 
 
 45. this do his kurummat place on his head." 
 
 46. And the day when he ascended the side of the 
 ship, 
 
 47. she did, his kurummat she placed on his head. 
 
 48. And the day ^hen he ascended the side of the 
 ship, 
 
 49. first the sabusat of his kurummat, 
 
 50. second the mussukat, third the radbat, fourth 
 she opened his zikaman, 
 
 51. fifth the cloak she placed, sixth the bassat, 
 
 Column V. 
 
 I. seventh in the opening she purified him and let 
 the man go free. 
 
 2. Izdubar after this manner also said to Hasisadra 
 afar off : 
 
 3. "In this way thou wast compassionate over me, 
 
 4. joyfully thou hast made me, and thou hast 
 restored me." 
 
 5. Hasisadra after this manner also said to Izdu- 
 bar. 
 
 6 thy kurummit, 
 
 7 separated thee, 
 
 8 thy kurummat, 
 
 9. second the mussukat, third the radbat, 
 10. fourth she opened the zikaman, 
 
 II. fifth the cloak she placed, sixth the bassat, 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 1C5 
 
 12. seventh in the opening I purified thee and let 
 thee go free." 
 
 13. Izdubar after this manner also saidtoHasisadra 
 afar off : 
 
 14 Hasisaclra to thee may we not 
 
 come, 
 
 15 collected 
 
 16 dwelling in death, 
 
 17 his back ? dies also." 
 
 18. Hasisadra after this manner also said to Ur- 
 hamsi the boatman : 
 
 19. " Urhamsi ..... to thee we cross to pre- 
 serve thee. 
 
 20. Who is beside the of support ; 
 
 21. the man whom thou comest before, disease has 
 filled his body ; 
 
 22. illness has destroyed the strength of his limbs. 
 
 23. carry him Urhamsi, to cleanse take him, 
 
 24. his disease in the water to beauty may it turn, 
 
 25. may he cast off his illness, and the sea carry 
 it away, may health cover his skin, 
 
 2G. may it restore the hair of his head, 
 
 27. hanging to cover the cloak of his body. 
 
 28. That he may go to his country, that he may 
 'take his road, 
 
 29. the hanging cloak may he not cast off, but alone 
 may he leave." 
 
 30. Urhamsi carried him, to cleanse he took him, 
 
 31. his disease in the water to beauty turned, 
 
 o 2 
 
198 
 
 THE IZDTIBAB OR 
 
 32. I13 cast off his illness, and the sea carried it 
 away, and health covered his skin, 
 
 33. he restored the hair of his head, hanging down 
 to cover the cloak of his body. 
 
 34. That he might go to his country, that he might 
 take his road, 
 
 35. the hanging cloak he did not cast off, but alone 
 he left. 
 
 36. Izdubar and Urhamsi rode in the ship, 
 
 37. where they placed them they rode. 
 
 38. His wife after this manner also said to Hasis- 
 adra afar off: 
 
 39. " Izdubar goes away, he is satisfied, he per- 
 forms 
 
 40. that which thou hast given him, and returns to 
 his country." 
 
 41. And he carried away the breaches of Izdubar, 
 
 42. and the ship touched the shore. 
 
 43. Hasisadra after this manner also said to Iz- 
 dubar : 
 
 44. " Izdubar thou goest away, thou art satisfied, 
 thou performest 
 
 45. that which I have given thee, and thou re- 
 turnest to thy country. 
 
 46. Be revealed to thee Izdubar the concealed 
 story ; 
 
 47. and the judgment of the gods be related to 
 thee." 
 
 48. This account like bitumen .... 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 197 
 
 49. its renown like the sight of ... . 
 
 50. when the account a hand shall take .... 
 
 51. Izdubar, this in his hearing heard, and . . . . 
 
 52. he collected great stones .... 
 
 Column VI. 
 
 1. they dragged it and to ... . 
 
 2. he carried the account .... 
 
 3. piled up the great stones .... 
 
 4. to his mule .... 
 
 5. Izdubar after this manner also said 
 
 6. to Urhamsi : " this account .... 
 
 7. If a man in his heart take .... 
 
 8. may they bring him to Erech Suburi 
 
 9 speech .... 
 
 10. I will give an account and turn to . . . ." 
 
 11. For 10 kaspu (70 miles) they journeyed the 
 stage, for 20 kaspu (140 miles) they journeyed the 
 stage 
 
 12. and Izdubar saw the well .... 
 
 13. For 13 kaspu (91 miles) to the midst of Erech 
 Suburi. 
 
 14. noble of men 
 
 15. in his return 
 
 16. Izdubar approached 
 
 17. and over his face coursed his tears, and he said 
 to Urhamsi : 
 
 18. " At my misfortune in my turning, 
 
 19. at my misfortune is my heart troubled. 
 
103 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 20. I have not done good to my own self ; 
 
 21. and the lion of the earth does good. 
 
 22. Then for 20 kaspu (140 miles) 
 
 23 then I opened the instrument 
 
 24. raised not its wall for .... I appointed " 
 
 25. And they left the ship by the shore, 20 kaspu 
 (140 miles) they journeyed the stage. 
 
 26. For 30 kaspu (210 miles) they made the ascent, 
 they came to the midst of Erech Suburi. 
 
 27. Izdubar after this manner also said to Urhamsi 
 the boatman : 
 
 28. " Ascend Urhamsi over where the wall of 
 Erech will go ; 
 
 29. the cylinders are scattered, the bricks of its 
 casing are not made, 
 
 30. and its foundation is not laid to thy height ; 
 
 31. 1 measure the circuit of the city, 1 measure 
 of plantations, 1 measure the boundary of the temple 
 of Nantur the house of Ishtar, 
 
 32. 3 measures together the divisions of Erech . . 
 
 Comment on this remarkable story I must reserve 
 for the close of the legends at the end of the twelfth 
 tablet. The twelfth tablet opens with the words 
 " Tamabukku in the house of the .... was left." 
 There are then several lines entirely lost, and the 
 narrative recommences half-way down the first column 
 with the lamentation of Izdubar over his dead com- 
 panion, Heabani. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 199 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. Izdubar 
 
 2. " Where to 
 
 3. to happiness thou 
 
 4. a seat 
 
 5. like a dispersion 
 
 6. The noble banquet thou dost not share, 
 
 7. to the assembly they do not call thee ; 
 
 8. The bow from the ground thou dost not lift, 
 
 9. what the bow should strike surrounds thee ; 
 
 10. The mace in thy hand thou dost not grasp, 
 
 11. the spoil defies thee; 
 
 12. Shoes on thy feet thou dost not wear, 
 
 13. the slain on the ground thou dost not stretch. 
 
 14. Thy wife whom thou lovest thou dost not kiss, 
 
 15. thy wife whom thou hatest thou dost not strike ; 
 
 16. Thy child whom thou lovest thou dost not kiss, 
 
 17. thy child whom thou hatest thou dost not strike; 
 
 18. The arms of the earth have taken thee. 
 
 19. darkness, darkness, mother Ninazu, 
 darkness. 
 
 20. Her noble stature as his mantle covers him 
 
 21. her feet like a deep well enclose him." 
 There is a beautiful poetical feeling about this 
 
 the earliest lamentation that has come down to us, 
 
 The story here again breaks off, and where it again 
 becomes legible on column ii. Izdubar is continuing 
 his lamentation. 
 
200 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OR 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. " Thy wife whom thou hatest was struck ; 
 
 2. Thy child whom thou lovest was kissed, 
 
 3. thy child whom thou hatest was struck ; 
 
 4. The arms of the earth have taken, thee. 
 
 5. darkness, darkness, mother Ninazu,0 dark- 
 ness 
 
 6. Her noble stature as his mantle covers him, 
 
 7. her feet like a deep well enclose him." 
 
 8. Then Heabani from the earth 
 
 9. Simtar did not take him, Asakku did not take 
 him, the earth took him. 
 
 10. The resting-place of Nergal the unconquered 
 did not take him, the earth took him. 
 
 11. In the place of the battle of heroes they did not 
 strike him, the earth took him. 
 
 12. Then . . . . ni son of Mnsun for his servant 
 Heabani wept ; 
 
 13. to the house of Bel alone he went. 
 
 14. " Father Bel, Tambukku to the earth has struck 
 me, 
 
 15. Mikke to the earth has struck me, 
 
 Column III. 
 
 1. Heabani who to fly 
 
 2. Simtar did not take him 
 
 3. the resting-place of Nergal the unconquered did 
 not take him . . . 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 201 
 
 4. In the place of the battle of heroes they did 
 not 
 
 5. Father Bel the matter do not despise .... 
 
 6. Father Sin, Tambukku 
 
 7. Mikke 
 
 8. Heabani who to fly 
 
 9. Simtar did not take him 
 
 10. The resting-place of Nergal .... 
 
 This mutilated passage points to the idea that 
 Heabani, who was killed, in vain tried to enter heaven. 
 Simtar was the attendant of the god of Hades, and 
 the other personages in this part of the story all have 
 their appropriate offices. The spirit of Heabani does 
 not rest under the earth, and attempts are made by 
 petitioning Bel and Sin, to induce these gods to trans- 
 fer him to heaven ; but all is in vain. 
 
 After this in a small fragment of column iii. there 
 is allusion to Zaidu and the female Samhat, who were 
 mentioned in an earlier part of the story ; and then 
 when the legend reopens in column iii. application is 
 made to the god Hea to bring Heabani up to heaven. 
 The legend proceeds : — 
 
 1. Simtaru 
 
 2. the resting-place of Nergal the unconquered . . 
 
 3. In the place of the battle of heroes they did 
 not .... 
 
 4. Father Hea 
 
 5. To the noble warrior, Merodach 
 
 6. " Noble warrior, Merodach .... 
 
 7. the divider 
 
202 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OB 
 
 8. the ghost 
 
 9. To his father 
 
 10. The noble warrior Merodach, son of Hea 
 
 11. the divider the earth opened, and 
 
 12. the ghost of Heabani like a prisoner from the 
 earth arose 
 
 13 and thou explainest? 
 
 14 . he pondered and repeated this. 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. Terrible seer, terrible seer, 
 
 2. may the earth cover what thou hast seen, terrible ; 
 
 3. I will not tell, seer ; I will not tell. 
 
 4. When the earth covers what I have seen, I will 
 tell thee. 
 
 5 thou sittest weeping, 
 
 6 may you sit, may you weep, 
 
 7 grow fat and thy heart rejoice. 
 
 In this obscure passage the ghost of Heabani 
 appears to address the dead body of the seer. 
 Further on, where the story is again legible, it reads — 
 
 1. " return me 
 
 2. from Hades the land of my knowledge ; 
 
 3. From the house of the departed, the seat of the 
 god Irkalla ; 
 
 4. From the house within which is no exit ; 
 
 5. From the road, the course of which never 
 returns ; 
 
 6. From the place within which they long for 
 light ; 
 
■A 
 
 FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 203 
 
 7. The place where dust is their nourishment 
 and their food mud. 
 
 8. Its chiefs also like birds are clothed with wings; 
 
 9. Light is never seen, in darkness they dwell. 
 
 10. To the place of seers which I will enter 
 
 11 treasured up a crown; 
 
 12 wearing crowns, who from days of 
 
 old ruled the earth. 
 
 13. To whom the gods Anu and Bel have given 
 renowned names. 
 
 14. A place where water is abundant, drawn from 
 perennial springs. 
 
 15. To the place of seers which I will enter, 
 
 16. the place of chiefs and unconquered ones, 
 1 7. the place of bards and great men, 
 
 18. the place of interpreters of the wisdom of the 
 great gods, 
 
 19. the place of the mighty, the dwelling of the 
 god Ner." 
 
 The contrast here between the description of Hades 
 or hell, and heaven, is striking and remarkable ; and 
 the whole passage shows the belief of the early 
 Babylonians in an after life, and two states, one of 
 sorrow and the other of bliss. From this point the 
 legend is almost entirely lost, until the sixth column, 
 which closes the series. The spirit or ghost of 
 Heabani is still speaking here, relating his experience. 
 
 Column VI. 
 1. On a couch reclining and 
 
20 1 
 
 TiJ^J IZDUBAR OB 
 
 2. pure water drinking. 
 
 3. He who in battle is slain, thou seest and I see ; 
 
 4. His father and his mother carry his head, 
 
 5. and his wife over him weeps ; 
 
 6. His friends on the ground are standing, 
 
 7. thou seest and I see. 
 
 8. His spoil on the ground is uncovered, 
 
 9. of the spoil account is not taken, 
 
 10. thou seest and I see, 
 
 11. The captives conquered come after; the food 
 
 12. which in the tents is placed is eaten. 
 
 13. The twelfth tablet of the legends of Izdubar. 
 
 14. Written like the ancient copy. 
 
 Thus, with a description of the burial of a warrior, 
 ends these remarkable legends. 
 
 With respect to the age of these curious texts, they 
 profess to belong to the era of Izdubar, and I am of 
 opinion that they cannot have been composed long 
 after his time. It is probable that the empire which 
 he founded in the Euphrates valley fell to pieces at 
 his death, and that this series of tablets was written in 
 memory of his reign, during the period of confusion 
 which followed. At any rate the allusions to this 
 history during the early Babylonian period, prove 
 that it already existed at that time. Izdubar, the 
 hero of these legends, as I have already said, pro- 
 bably corresponds with the Biblical Nimrod. He 
 is represented as a giant or mighty man, who, 
 in the early days after the flood, destroyed wild 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 £05 
 
 animals, and conquered a number of petty kings, 
 uniting their dominions into one monarchy, which 
 stretched from the Persian Gulf on the south, to the 
 land of Bitani or Bachtan, near Armenia, on the 
 north. He is a representative of the beginning of 
 empire, and a type of the great conquerors who suc- 
 ceeded him. Izdubar has a court, a seer or astrologer, 
 and officers, like later sovereigns ; and these tablets 
 are of the utmost value, as showing the manners and 
 customs and religious beliefs of his time. It appears 
 that at that remote age the Babylonians had a 
 tradition of a flood which was a divine punishment 
 for the wickedness of the world ; and of a holy man, 
 who built an ark, and escaped the destruction ; who 
 was afterwards translated, and dwelt with the gods. 
 They believed in hell, a place of torment under the 
 earth, and heaven, a place of glory in the sky ; and 
 their description of the two has in several points a 
 striking likeness to those in the Bible. They believed 
 in a spirit or soul distinct from the body, which was 
 not destroyed on the death of the mortal frame ; and 
 they represent this ghost as rising from the earth at 
 the bidding of one of the gods, and winging its way 
 to heaven. 
 
 This history of Izdubar appears to have formed a 
 national poem to the Babylonians, similar in some 
 respects to those of Homer among the Greeks. 
 Izdubar himself was afterwards esteemed a deity, 
 and at Nineveh I found part of a tablet with a prayer 
 addressed to him. 
 
206 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 The centre of the story of lzdubar is the city of 
 Erech, new represented by the ruins of Warka, on 
 the eastern bank of the Euphrates, between longi- 
 tude 45° and 46° and latitude 31° and 32°. Here are 
 extensive ruins of the ancient capital of lzdubar, 
 surrounded by a wall nearly six miles in length. 
 All round the city are vast burial-places, of such 
 extent that they have led to the conjecture that the 
 city was a holy place, like Kerbela and Nedjef in the 
 present day. 1 Erech is one of the cities mentioned 
 as the capitals of Nimrod in Genesis x. 10. In early 
 times, according to an inscription which I recently 
 discovered at Nineveh, it was called Unuk or Anak, 
 the giant city, perhaps from its connection with the 
 giant hunter Nimrod. Erech continued a great town 
 down to the twenty-third century before the Chris- 
 tian era, when it w^as captured by Kudur-nanhundi, 
 king of Elam, B.C. 2280, who carried off the famous 
 image of lshtar or Nana, which was in the temple 
 there. After this the city passed through the same 
 changes as the rest of Babylonia, and at a later period 
 formed part of the empire of Assurbanipal. When 
 the brother of Assurbanipal revolted against him, 
 the city of Erech under its governor, Kudur, re- 
 mained faithful to him, and Assurbanipal afterwards, 
 when he captured Shushan, restored to the temple of 
 Erech the image of Nana, which had been in Elam 
 
 1 See Kawlinson's " Ancient Monarchies," second edition, 
 vol. i. p. 85. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 207 
 
 1,035 years. From Erecli Assurbanipal appears to 
 have transported to Assyria the legends of Izdubar, 
 and these tablets were copied again in Assyria. 
 
 The principal incident in these legends, and the 
 most important one in relation to the Bible, is the 
 account of the flood. Izdubar is mourning for his 
 seer Heabani, and deploring his inability to replace 
 him, when he resolves to seek the advice of Hasisadra 
 or Xisithrus, the sage who escaped the flood. The 
 journey of Izdubar in search of Xisithrus is curious 
 as showing that the Babylonians, although learned 
 in some things, had no knowledge at this time of 
 geography. They held the idea that at a little dis- 
 tance from them there were giants who controlled 
 the rising and setting sun, and that the orb of day 
 was looked after and sent on in its course by these 
 beings, who had their feet in the lower regions of 
 hell while their heads touched and probably upheld 
 the heaven. Izdubar, after journeying through 
 various fabulous regions, at last coming in sight of 
 Hasisadra and his wife, asks the sage how he be- 
 came immortal, and Hasisadra, after some general 
 remarks about life and death, goes on to tell him 
 the story of the deluge. 
 
 Having given a translation of this from the tablet, 
 I will notice the account in the Bible and that which 
 the Greeks have handed down from Berosus, with the 
 view to a comparison with the cuneiform account. 
 
 The Biblical account of the deluge is contained in 
 the sixth to the ninth chapters of Genesis ; it is f ami- 
 
208 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 liar to all and within reach of all, so I will only give 
 the heads of it here. 
 
 According to the book of Genesis, as man multi- 
 plied on the earth, the whole race turned to evil, 
 except the family of Noah. On account of the 
 wickedness of man, the Lord determined to destroy 
 the world by a flood, and gave command to Noah to 
 build an ark, 300 cubits long, 50 cubits broad, and 
 30 cubits high. Into this ark Noah entered accord- 
 ing to the command of the Lord, taking with him his 
 family, and pairs of each animal. After seven days 
 the flood commenced, in the 600th year of Noah, the 
 seventeenth day of the second month, and after 150 
 days the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat, 
 on the seventeenth day of the seventh month. We 
 are then told that after forty days Noah opened the 
 window of the ark and sent forth a raven which did 
 not return. He then sent forth a dove, which finding 
 no rest for the sole of her foot, returned to him. 
 Seven days after he sent forth the dove a second 
 time, and she returned to him with an olive leaf in 
 her mouth. Again after seven days he sent forth 
 the dove, which returned to him no more. The flood 
 was dried up in the 601st year, on the first day of 
 the first month, and on the twenty-seventh day of 
 the second month Noah removed from the ark, and 
 afterwards built an altar and offered sacrifices. 
 
 The Chaldean account of the flood, as given by 
 Berosus, is taken from " Cory's Ancient Fragments," 
 pp. 26-9, as follows : — 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 209 
 
 " After the death of Ardates, his son, Xisuthrus, 
 reigned eighteen sari. In his time happened a great 
 deluge, the history of which is thus described : The 
 deity, Cronos, appeared to him in a vision, and warned 
 him that upon the fifteenth day of the month Do3sius 3 
 there would be a flood, by which mankind would bo 
 destroyed. He therefore enjoined him to write a 
 history of the beginning, procedure, and conclusion 
 of all things; and to bury it in the City of the Sun 
 at Sippara; and to build a vessel, and take with him 
 into it his friends and relations ; and to convey on 
 board, everything necessary to sustain life 5 together 
 with all the different animals, both birds and quad- 
 rupeds, and trust himself fearlessly to the deep. 
 Having asked the Deity whither he was to sail, he 
 w r as answered, c To the Gods upon which he offered 
 up a prayer for the good of mankind. He then obeyed 
 the divine admonition, and built a vessel five stadia 
 in length, and two in breadth. Into this he put 
 everything which he had prepared ; and last of all 
 conveyed into it his wife, his children, and his friends. 
 
 "After the flood had been upon the earth, and 
 was in time abated, Xisuthrus sent out birds from 
 the vessel, which not finding any food, nor any place 
 whereupon they might rest their feet, returned to 
 him again. After an interval of some days he sent 
 them forth a second time, and they now returned 
 w^ith their feet tinged with mud. He made a trial a 
 third time with' these birds, but they returned to 
 him no more : from whence he judged that the stir- 
 
 p 
 
210 
 
 THE 1ZBUBAR OB 
 
 face of the earth had appeared above the waters. lie 
 therefore made an opening in the vessul, and upon 
 looking out found that it was stranded upon the side 
 of some mountain, upon which he immediately quitted 
 it with his wife, his daughter, and the pilot. Xisu- 
 thrus then paid his adoration to the earth, and having 
 constructed an altar, offered sacrifices to the gods, 
 and, with those who had come out of the vessel with 
 him, disappeared. 
 
 " They who remained within, finding that their 
 companions did not return, quitted the vessel with 
 many lamentations, and called continually on the 
 name of Xisuthrus. Him they saw no more; but 
 they could distinguish his voice in the air, and could 
 hear him admonish them to pay due regard to re- 
 ligion ; and likewise informed them that it was on 
 account of his. piety that he was translated to live 
 with the gods, that his wife, and daughter, and the 
 pilot, had obtained the same honour. To this he 
 added that they should return to Babylonia, and as 
 it was ordained, search for the writings at Sippara, 
 which they were to make known to all mankind; 
 moreover, that the place wherein they then were, was 
 the land of Armenia. 
 
 " The rest having heard these words, offered sacri- 
 fices to the gods, and taking a circuit, journeyed 
 towards Babylonia. 
 
 " The vessel being thus stranded in Armenia, some 
 part of it yet remains in the Corcyraean mountains." 
 
 In pages 33 and 34 of " Cory's Fragments" there 
 is a second version, as follows : — 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 211 
 
 " And then Sisithrus. To him the deity Cronos 
 foretold that on the fifteenth day of the month Daesius 
 there would be a deluge of rain : and he commanded 
 him to deposit all the writings whatever which were 
 in his possession, in the City of the Sun at Sippara. 
 Sisithrus, when he had complied with these com- 
 mands, sailed immediately to Armenia, and was pre- 
 sently inspired by God. Upon the third day after 
 the cessation of the rain Sisithrus sent out birds, by 
 way of experiment, that he might judge whether 
 the flood had subsided. But the birds passing over 
 an unbounded sea, without finding any place of rest, 
 returned again to Sisithrus. This he repeated with 
 other birds. And when upon the third trial he suc- 
 ceeded, for the birds then returned with their feet 
 stained with mud, the gods translated hirn from 
 among men. With respect to the vessel, which yet 
 remains in Armenia, it is a custom of the inhabitants 
 to form bracelets and amulets of its wood." 
 
 These accounts of the flood are translated from the 
 Greek historians, who copied them from the works of 
 Berosus. 
 
 Berosus was a Chaldean priest who flourished 
 in the third century before the Christian era, and 
 who translated the records of Babylonia into the 
 Greek language. As he was well acquainted with 
 the history of his country, it is likely that his account 
 would have striking features of resemblance to that 
 in the inscriptions, and this is found to be the case. 
 The traditions of several other nations give accounts 
 
 p 2 
 
212 
 
 THE IZDUBAR OB 
 
 > of the flood, but none of them are so full and precise 
 as the Biblical and Chaldean accounts; I have there- 
 fore omitted them, and confine my comparison to these 
 three documents. The Bible, while it gives the account 
 of the flood and the saving of Noah and his family, 
 says nothing of the country he lived in, or the place 
 where he built the ark. Now the cuneiform record 
 supplies this information. It appears that after his 
 wanderings, Izdubar comes to a city on the Persian 
 gulf near the mouth of the Euphrates named Surip- 
 pak, and this city Hasisadra tells him was the place 
 where he himself had ruled and where he had built 
 the ark. It is a curious fact that Surippak is called 
 in another inscription "the ship city," or "the city of 
 the ark," in allusion to this tradition, and the supposed 
 maker of the flood was worshipped there as the " God 
 of the deluge, Hea," Hea being god of the sea and the 
 principal deity who brought the flood. These local 
 names and traditions are a striking confirmation of 
 the story of the deluge. It is also remarkable that 
 Hammurabi, king of Babylonia, whose date cannot be 
 later than the sixteenth century before the Christian 
 era, conquered Surippak, and it is called in his inscrip- 
 tion the " city of the ark," showing that the tradition 
 was well known at that time, and in one earlier docu- 
 ment the same name is given to the city. In this city 
 before the flood it is related that there lived Ubara- 
 tutu, the Otiartes or Ardates of Berosus, and the 
 Lamech of the Bible, and after him Adra-hasis or 
 Hasis-adra, the Xisithrus of Berosus and the Noah of 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 213 
 
 the Bible, a sage reverent and devout towards the 
 gods. According to both the Bible and the cuneiform 
 account the world was at this time very wicked, and 
 the Deity resolved to destroy it as a punishment for 
 its sin. In the Greek account from Berosus it is the 
 god Cronos who warns Xisithrus of the coming deluge, 
 and in the cuneiform version it is the Babylonian 
 deity Hea, showing the identity of Hea with the 
 Cronos of the Greeks. In the message of Hea to 
 Hasisadra he tells him the size he is to make the ark, 
 but the numbers are mutilated ; I conjecturally read 
 600 cubits for the length of the vessel and 60 cubits 
 for its breadth and height, but no dependence can be 
 placed on these characters. The Bible, Genesis vi. 15, 
 gives the length 300 cubits, the breadth 50 cubits, and 
 the height 30 cubits. The account from Berosus gives 
 five stadia in length and two in breadth. The inscrip- 
 tion agrees with the Bible in giving the dimensions in 
 cubits, but agrees with Berosus in giving two dimen- 
 sions instead of three as in Genesis. The answer of 
 Hasisadra to the Deity shows reluctance to build the 
 vessel, which he fears will only bring him derision 
 from old and young, and which he thinks is too great 
 an undertaking. The Deity further encouraging him, 
 he builds the vessel. The cuneiform tablet describes 
 the building of the vessel, the details of which are not 
 given in either the Bible or Berosus. 
 
 The vessel being prepared, details are given of the 
 storing of the ship with food, and placing in it the 
 treasures and animals : these matters are only slightly 
 
214 
 
 THE IZDTIBAR OB 
 
 paralleled by the Biblical and Greek accounts. There 
 is here a striking difference between the inscription 
 and the Bible with regard to the nature of the ark ; 
 the inscription making the ark a regular ship, which 
 is guided and navigated by boatmen, and it is launched 
 into the sea, all the details of the story agreeing with 
 the view that this is the tradition of a seafaring 
 people, or at least of a people lying in the lowlands 
 near the mouth of a great river such as the Euphrates. 
 Floods here are frequent, and the people are familiar 
 with these catastrophes, and the record describes the 
 deluge with a precision and power in accordance 
 with this position and the traditions of the country. 
 The Biblical account on the other hand is apparently 
 the account of an inland people, unacquainted with 
 navigation ; the ark is called a ran, a chest or box, 
 and not a ship, no guiding or navigation is men- 
 tioned, and there is no allusion to seamen. 
 
 In one point in the preparation already mentioned, 
 there is an agreement between the Bible and the 
 inscription ; both represent that the ark was coated 
 over inside and outside with bitumen. The Biblical 
 account states that only Noah, his three sons, Shem, 
 Ham, and Japhet, and their wives, eight persons in 
 all, were saved in the vessel. On the other hand 
 the cuneiform inscription represents Hasisadra as 
 taking into the ark with himself, his wife, his ser- 
 vants, his young men or " sons of the people," and 
 boatmen or seamen, in this agreeing with Berosus, who 
 states that many were saved in the ark. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 215 
 
 In the description of the coming of the deluge, 
 there is a difference between the Bible and the inscrip- 
 tion from the fact that the Bible gives the flood as 
 the work of one God, while the cuneiform inscription 
 states that a number of divinities were engaged in it. 
 The description of the deluge itself is much fuller 
 in the inscription than in the Bible or in the Greek 
 text of Berosus, and the description is very vivid. 
 As in the Bible, the text partly attributes the deluge 
 to heavy rain. With respect to the duration of the 
 flood, there appears to be a remarkable difference 
 between the Bible and the inscription. In the Bible 
 we read, Genesis vii. 11, 12 : " In the six-hundredth 
 year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seven- 
 teenth day of the month, the same day were all the 
 fountains of the great deep broken up, and the win- 
 dows of heaven were opened. And the rain was 
 upon the earth forty days and forty nights." And 
 again in the 17th verse : " And the flood was forty 
 days upon the earth." And in the 24th verse : 
 " And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred- 
 and-fifty days." Again in the eighth chapter and 3rd, 
 4th, and 5th verses : " And the waters returned from 
 off the earth continually, and after the end of the 
 hundred-and-fif ty days the waters were abated. And 
 the ark rested in the seventh month on the seven- 
 teenth day of the month upon the mountains of 
 Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until 
 the tenth month : in the tenth month on the first day 
 of the month were the tops of the mountains seen." 
 
216 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OB 
 
 And the 13th and 14th verses : " And it came to pass 
 in the six hundredth-and-first year, in the first month, 
 the first day of the month, the waters were dried up 
 from off the earth : and Noah removed the covering 
 of the ark, and looked and behold the face of the 
 ground was dry. And in the second month, on the 
 seven-and-twentieth day of the month, was the earth 
 dry." Thus the dates are here given with great pre- 
 cision and clearness, and state that the deluge alto- 
 gether lasted for one year and ten days. On the 
 other hand the cuneiform text relates that the storm 
 and flood prevailed only seven days, and that on the 
 seventh day the storm ceased, then the ship was 
 stranded for seven days on the mountains of Nizir, 
 and on the seventh day Hasisadra sent forth the birds. 
 Thus the cuneiform record only speaks of fourteen 
 days for the flood, and even allowing that it did not 
 end on the fourteenth day the time implied cannot be 
 so long as the duration of the flood in the Biblical 
 account. With respect to the mountain on which the 
 ark rested there is again a curious difference. The 
 cuneiform text states that the ark grounded on the 
 mountains of Nizir, and the indications as to the place 
 of Nizir fix it between the 35th and 36th parallels 
 of latitude east of the river Tigris. The position of 
 the mountains of Nizir is given in the inscriptions 
 of Assurnazirpal king of Assyria. 1 The Assyrian 
 monarch to reach Nizir started from Kalzu (modern 
 
 1 " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. i. p. 20, lines 3i and 36. 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 217 
 
 Shamamek near Ervil) and crossed over the lower 
 Zab near Altun Kupri. The mountains near there 
 correspond to the described position of Nizir and 
 probably represent the place mentioned in the cunei- 
 form legend. The present tradition of the country 
 places the mountain of the ark in the Jebel Djudi 
 opposite Djezireh, far to the north of the Chaldean 
 site, and the popular traditions of Western Europe 
 place the mountain on the modern range of Ararat, 
 still farther to the north. The more southern locality 
 Nizir is most likely the spot of the oldest tradition, 
 and the story has probably been subsequently attached 
 to the other mountains as later peoples learnt the 
 legend. The account of the sending forth of the 
 birds shows some points of difference. In the book of 
 Genesis it is stated that Noah sent forth a raven which 
 did not return, and a dove, which finding no rest for 
 its feet, returned to him. Seven days after, he again 
 sent out the dove, and the bird returned with an 
 olive leaf in her mouth. After another *:even days, 
 he once more sent out the dove, which returned no 
 more. The account of Berosus mentions the sending 
 forth of the birds, but does not mention what kinds 
 were tried. On the first trial the birds returned, and 
 on the second trial they came back with mud on their 
 feet, but on the third occasion they did not return. 
 The cuneiform inscription gives first the trial of the 
 dove which was first sent out, and finding no resting- 
 place returned. Next that of the swallow, which 
 returned in the same manner, and last that of the 
 
2L3 
 
 THE IZDUBAB OB 
 
 raven, which did not return. Not to pursue this 
 parallel farther, it will be perceived that v/hen the 
 Chaldean account is compared with the Biblical nar- 
 rative, in their main features the two stories fairly 
 agree ; as to the wickedness of the antediluvian world, 
 the divine anger and command to build the ark, its 
 stocking with birds and beasts, the coming of the 
 deluge, the rain and storm, the ark resting on a 
 mountain, trial being made by birds sent out to see 
 if the water had subsided, and the building of an 
 altar after the flood. All these main facts occur in 
 the same order in both narratives, but when we come 
 to examine the details of these stages in the two 
 accounts there appear numerous points of difference ; 
 as to the number of people who were saved, the 
 duration of the deluge, the place where the ark 
 rested, the order of sending out the birds, and other 
 similar matters. The cuneiform inscription differs 
 widely at its close from the Biblical account with 
 respect to the fate of the patriarch who built the ark. 
 The Bible says that Noah lived 3^0 years after the 
 flood and then died, but the cuneiform tablet and 
 Berosus both state that Xisithrus was translated to 
 the company of the gods for his piety, a reward which, 
 according to Genesis, was conferred on Enoch, the 
 ancestor of Noah. Xisithrus being translated dwelt 
 comewhere on the Persian Gulf near the mouth of 
 the Euphrates, and here Izdubar sought and found 
 him. The district of the Persian Gulf was counted 
 as a sacred region by the early inhabitants of Baby- 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 
 
 219 
 
 Ionia, and in their fabulous account of the period 
 before the flood, they represented certain composite 
 creatures, half man and half fish, as rising out of the 
 sea there, and coming to Babylonia to teach the 
 primitive inhabitants of the country the arts of 
 civilization. 
 
 In answer to the request of Izdubar Xisithrus 
 is supposed to have related to him the history of 
 the flood, and to have given directions for curing the 
 monarch of his illness, which appears to have been a 
 sort of leprosy or skin-disease. On returning from 
 this journey to seek Xisithrus, Izdubar indulges in 
 some reflections on the waste of his former life, and 
 the defencelessness of his great city Erech. After the 
 account of the visit to Xisithrus, and the story of the 
 flood, comes the twelfth and last tablet in the series, 
 in some respects the most remarkable and important 
 of the legends, for it clearly shows that the early 
 Babylonians believed in the existence of the soul, of 
 a future life, and of heaven and hell. 
 
 Heabani, the seer or astrologer of Izdubar, has 
 been killed by a tambukku, a wild animal, and 
 Izdubar utters a lamentation over him which is full 
 of poetical feeling. 
 
 Next we are told that Heabani does not rest under 
 the earth, and petitions are made to various deities 
 to transfer him to heaven. These requests are not 
 listened to until they reach Hea, who rules the 
 infernal regions ; when Hea directs a god, most pro- 
 bably his son Merodach, to release the soul of Hea- 
 
220 
 
 THE I Z DUB AU OB 
 
 bani, and he performs fcliis order. It appears from 
 these passages that the Babylonians believed in a 
 spirit or soul in man which they called a " vachikku" 
 and the vadiifcku or ghost of Heabani on being called 
 out of the earth makes a speech, apparently addressed 
 to Heabani himself, indicating a notion of a dual 
 nature in man. The abodes of the dead were sup- 
 posed to consist of two regions, one in the sky, pro- 
 sided over by Anu the god of heaven and Bel the 
 god of the earth, and the other beneath the world, 
 presided over by Hea the god of the ocean and 
 infernal regions. In the upper regions or heaven 
 were the abodes of the blessed ; there the departed 
 wore crowns, they drank beautiful waters and con- 
 sorted with the gods ; but the notions of glory and 
 honour at that day come out in the description of the 
 inhabitants of this happy region, they are the kings 
 and conquerors of the earth, the diviners and priests 
 and great men, in fact, the strong and successful 
 among mankind. On the other hand, the description 
 of the infernal regions is most vivid and powerful, 
 and is almost the same as that in the splendid in- 
 scription of the descent of Ishtar into Hades, where 
 we read : — ■ 
 
 1. " To Hades the land of my knowledge ; 
 
 2. Ishtar daughter of Sin, her ear inclined ; 
 
 3. Inclined the daughter of Sin, her ear; 
 
 4. To the house of the departed, the seat of the 
 god Irkalla ; 
 
 . 5. To the house from within which, is no exit; 
 
FLOOD SERIES OF LEGENDS. 221 
 
 G. To the road the course of which, never returns ; 
 
 7. To the place within which, they long for light ; 
 
 8. The place where dust is their nourishment, and 
 their food mud ; 
 
 9. Light is never seen, in darkness they dwell; 
 
 10. Its chiefs also like birds are clothed with win^s : 
 
 11. Over the door and its bolts, is scattered dust." 
 This dark region where the inhabitants in their 
 
 hunger devour filth and thirst for light is guarded 
 by seven gates, and surrounded by the waters of 
 death ; it is the home of the weak and conquered ones, 
 of wives who stray from their husbands, and men 
 who abandon their wives, and disobedient children. 
 These are represented as weeping in misery and cor- 
 ruption in their dark and eternal prison-house, " the 
 place from which there is no return." 
 
 By the power of Hea, who here corresponds to 
 Pluto, the lord of Hades, the ghost of Heabani was 
 delivered from this hell, and, rising out of the earth, 
 soars up to heaven. These religious ideas are re- 
 markable on account of their close similarity to those 
 of later religions and subsequent races, and their im- 
 portance is increased by their antiquity, as at the latest 
 they date more than 2000 years before the Christian 
 era. The heaven or region of the blessed was called 
 Samu, and was divided into various sub-regions 
 bearing different names, the highest being the 
 " Heaven of Ann" the supreme celestial god. Hell, 
 on the other hand, was generally called matnude or 
 aralli, but has various other titles. 
 
222 
 
 THE IZDUBAB. 
 
 The legends of Izdubar close with the description, 
 still by the vaduklcu -or " ghost/' of the burial of a war- 
 rior, which shows to some extent the customs of the 
 time,atimewhenpersonalprowessand courage in battle 
 were esteemed as the greatest glories. In connexion 
 with these legends are numerous other shorter stories 
 of the same class, one of the most curious of which is 
 part of a description of the Creation, which I found 
 in the north palace at Kouyunjik, it is however too 
 mutilated for translation. I believe that the legends 
 current in Babylonia in the time of Izdubar were 
 the foundation for the Chaldean accounts of the 
 origin of the world, the antediluvians, the flood, 
 and various other stories of primitive time. 
 
 There are in the British Museum fragments of 
 inscriptions stated to have been written in the time 
 of Izdubar, and I think the myths and wonders re- 
 lated of his reign, while they prove the ignorance 
 and superstition of the time, do not warrant us in 
 regarding his reign as unhistorical. A theory has 
 been advanced by Sir Henry Eawlinson, that the 
 legends of Izdubar describe the passage of the sun 
 through the signs of the zodiac. There is no founda- 
 tion whatever for this opinion, which is contradicted 
 by the plain narrative of the legends. The history 
 of Izdubar is poetical and exaggerated, and like all 
 early histories abounds in miracles ; but I believe it 
 contains a basis of truth, and that this monarch 
 really reigned and founded the Babylonian kingdom. 
 
Chapter XII. 
 
 EAELT BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 Elamite conquest. — Sargon of Akkad. — His birth. — Concealed 
 in ark. — Agu. — Temple of Bel. — Prayer for the king. — Dungi 
 king of Ur. — Kudurmabuk. — Hammurabi. — Conquest of Baby- 
 lonia. — Early bilingual text. — Turanian writing. — Semitic 
 writing. — Eiagu. — Text from Kouyunjik. — Kurigalzu. — Mero- 
 dach Baladan I. — Royal grant. — Boundary stone. — Curses. 
 
 ~MONG the new texts discovered during 
 my expeditions to the valley of the 
 Euphrates are several inscriptions of 
 great importance belonging to the early 
 kings of Babylonia. One of these is a new text of 
 Assurbanipal relating to the restoration of the image 
 of the goddess Xana. In the book of Genesis it is 
 stated that in the time of Abraham Babylonia was 
 under the dominion of the kingdom of Elam, and the 
 monarch of that country bore the name of Chedor- 
 laomar or Kudurlagamar. In the inscriptions of 
 Assurbanipal, who reigned B.C. 668 to 626, we are 
 told that when that Assyrian monarch took the city 
 of Shushan, the capital of Elam, B.C. 645, he brought 
 
224 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 away from the city an image of the goddess Nana, 
 which had been carried off from the city of Erech 
 by Kudur-nanhundi, the Elamite monarch at the time 
 of the Elamite conquest of Babylonia 1635 years be- 
 fore (or e.c. 2280), thus confirming the statement of 
 Genesis, that there was an early conquest of Baby- 
 lonia by the Elamites. The new text which I dis- 
 covered in the north palace, Kouyunjik, differs only 
 slightly from the ones I formerly published : the 
 variant passage in it reads — 
 
 " 1. The goddess Nana who for these 1635 years 
 
 2. had been desecrated, and had dwelt in a place 
 unsuitable to her, 
 
 3. until the days of her captivity were full. 
 
 4. Her journey to Erech, her entry to Bit-anna, 
 
 5. she had commanded to my majesty." 
 
 The rest of the inscription, describing the restora- 
 tion of the image, is similar to those in my " History 
 of Assurbanipal," pages 234-6 and 249-51. In the 
 palace of Sennacherib at Kouyunjik I found another 
 fragment of the curious history of Sargon, a transla- 
 tion of which I published in the " Transactions of 
 the Society of Biblical Archeology," vol. i. part i. 
 page 46. This text relates, that Sargon, an early 
 Babylonian monarch, was born of royal parents, but 
 concealed by his mother, who placed him on the 
 Euphrates in an ark of rushes, coated with bitumen, 
 like that in which the mother of Moses hid her child, 
 see Exodus ii. Sargon was discovered by a man 
 named Akki, a water-carrier, who adopted him as his 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 225 
 
 son, and he afterwards became king of Babylonia. 
 The capital of Sargon was the great city of Agadi, 
 called by the Semites Akkad, 1 mentioned in Genesis 
 as a capital of Nimrod (Genesis x. 10), and here 
 he reigned for forty- five years. Akkad lay near the 
 city of Sippara on the Euphrates and north of 
 Babylon. The date of Sargon, who may be termed 
 the Babylonian Moses, was in the sixteenth century 
 B.C. or perhaps earlier. 
 
 Another inscription I discovered at Kouyunjik, 
 belonged to an early Babylonian monarch named 
 Agu, who restored the temple of Merodach at 
 Babylon. A portion of this tablet w r as already in 
 the British Museum, but not sufficient to enable us 
 to judge of the date or importance of the inscrip- 
 tion. The genealogy and essential parts of the text 
 are, however, found in the new fragment which I 
 obtained from the north palace, Kouyunjik. This 
 copy belongs to the time of Assurbanipal, king of 
 Assyria, and was taken as usual from an earlier 
 document. The original was of great antiquity, 
 being inscribed most probably more than 2000 years 
 before the Christian era. There are six Babylonian 
 monarchs mentioned in the inscription, all of them 
 kings not previously known, although one of the 
 names, Suqamunu, is known as a god at a later period. 
 This inscription will give some idea of the worship 
 
 1 I have only recently discovered the identity of Akkad with 
 the capital of Sargon. 
 
 Q 
 
226 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 of the Babylonian gods at this early period. It com- 
 mences — 
 
 Column I. 
 
 "1. Agu-kak-rimi 
 
 2. the son of Tassi-gurubar, 
 
 3. the noble seed 
 
 4. ofSuqamunu, 
 
 5. named by the gods Anu and Bel 
 
 6. Hea and Merodach 
 
 7. Sin and Shamas. 
 
 8. The powerful chief 
 
 9. of Ishtar the archer 
 10. of the goddesses am I. 
 
 11. The king judicious and wise 
 
 12. the king learned and friendly, 
 
 13. the son of Tassi-gurubar, 
 
 14. the grandson 
 
 15. of Abi .... 
 
 16. the powerful warrior 
 
 17. devouring his enemies, 
 
 18. the eldest son 
 
 19. of Agu-rabi, 
 
 20. the noble seed the royal seed 
 
 21. of Ummih-zirriti, 
 
 22. The ruler of men 
 
 23. the powerful one am I 
 
 24. The ruler of 
 
 25. many peoples, 
 
 26. the warrior 
 
HAUL Y BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 27. of rulers 
 
 28. the establisher 
 
 29. of the throne of his father 
 
 30. am I. 
 
 31. The king of the Kassi 
 
 32. and Akkadi, 
 
 33. the king of Babylon 
 
 34. the great. 
 
 35. The settler of 
 
 36. the land of Asnunnak the people 
 
 37. numerous of Padan, 
 
 38. and Alman, king of Goim, 
 
 39. the people mighty, 
 
 40. the king the director 
 
 41. of the four races, 
 
 42. the follower of the great gods 
 
 43. am I. 
 
 44. When Merodach 
 
 45. the lord of the temple of Saggal, 
 
 46. and the lady of Babylon, 
 
 47. the great gods, 
 
 48. in their noble mouth 
 
 49. to the city of Babylon 
 
 50. his return commanded ; 
 
 51. the god Merodach to Babylon 
 
 52. his city set his face. 
 
 53 the god Merodach 
 
 54 my .... 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 
 
 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. I honoured, I glorified, and 
 
 2. to carry the god Merodach 
 
 3. to the city of Babylon, 
 
 4. his face I set and 
 
 5. in the will of Merodach 
 
 6. lover of my reign 
 
 7. I walked. 
 
 8. Saru-samas- the officer I called, and 
 
 9. to a remote country to the land of Hani 
 
 10. I sent him, and he the gods Merodach 
 
 11. and Zirat-banit 
 
 12. took, and 
 
 13. Merodach and Zirat-banit 
 
 14. lovers of my reign. 
 
 15. to the temple of Saggal 
 
 16. and Babylon 
 
 17. I restored them. 
 
 18. In the temple of the sun 
 
 19. for now and after time, 
 
 20. I established, 
 
 21. I restored them. 
 
 The country of Hani, to which the images of 
 Merodach and Zirat-banit had been carried, lay 
 north-east of Babylonia, and was early incorporated 
 with Assyria. It is most likely that the Babylonians 
 were worsted in war when they lost these sacred 
 images. 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 229 
 
 The record then describes that the monarch gave 
 costly robes to these gods, adorned with purple and 
 gold, together with many precious stones which were 
 given to the temple. A crown and diadem full of 
 beauty and splendidly adorned, together with other 
 valuable offerings, were also given to Merodach and 
 his consort, and the king restored the temple of 
 Saggal, the great house of Bel at Babylon, and built 
 a papaha, or shrine, for the god, called the temple of 
 Kua. The Babylonian monarch also dedicated some 
 people, a house, grounds, and plantations, for the 
 service of the temple, and the tablet gives a long list 
 of blessings invoked by the priests on the head of the 
 pious king. 
 
 1. To the king Agu 
 
 2. who the shrine of Merodach 
 
 3. had built, 
 
 4. and the temple of Merodach had restored, 
 
 Column VII. 
 
 1. the god Merodach 
 
 2. to his seat 
 
 3. had caused to enter, 
 
 4. the whole of 
 
 5. the sons of the people 
 
 6. those of them 
 
 7. the portion of the house, ground, and plantation, 
 
 8. to the gods Merodach 
 
 9. and Zirat-banit 
 
 10. he had dedicated them. 
 
230 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 11. Of the king Agu 
 
 12. may his days be many, 
 
 13. may his years be extended, 
 
 14. his reign in blessings 
 
 15. may it abound, 
 
 16. The spirit of heaven 
 
 17. wide 
 
 18. may it glorify him, 
 
 19. the increase of 
 
 20. the rain 
 
 21. may 
 
 22 
 
 23. god 
 
 24. spreading .... 
 
 25. for ever .... 
 
 26. in far off .... . 
 
 27. ennoble him. 
 
 28. To the good king 
 
 29. Agu, 
 
 30. who the shrine of Merodach 
 
 31. has built, 
 
 32. and the sons of the people 
 
 33. has dedicated. 
 
 34. The gods Anu and Anunitu 
 
 35. in heaven may they favour him, 
 
 36. The gods Bel and Belat 
 
 37. in the temple also excellent renown 
 
 38. may they give him. 
 
 39. The gods Hea 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 231 
 
 40. and Davkina 
 
 41 . dwelling in the great deep, 
 
 42. days of vigour 
 
 43. extended, 
 
 44. may they give to him. 
 
 45. The goddess Ziru lady of the high mountains, 
 
 Column VIII. 
 
 1. plenty 
 
 2. may she give to him. 
 
 3. Sin the light of heaven, 
 
 4. the continuance of his kingdom 
 
 5. for many days, 
 
 6. may he grant him. 
 
 7. The prince Shamas 
 
 8. the ruler of Heaven 
 
 9. and earth, 
 
 10. stability to the throne 
 
 11. of his empire, 
 
 12. to days 
 
 13. remote, 
 
 14. may he fix. 
 
 15. Hea lord of mankind, 
 
 16. wisdom 
 
 17. may he grant to him. 
 
 18. Merodach lover of his reign, 
 
 19. lord of fountains, 
 
 20. his fertility 
 
 21. may he give to him. 
 
232 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 22. The inscription 
 
 23. of Agu. 
 
 The end of the inscription describes that the copy- 
 was made in the time of Assurbanipal, king of Assyria, 
 B.C. 668. All these inscriptions are later documents, 
 copies of earlier texts, or containing statements re- 
 ferring to ancient events ; but those which follow are 
 inscriptions of the early Chaldean period. The first 
 of these is on a small oblong stone written in the old 
 hieratic form of cuneiform characters, the language 
 being the Turanian Babylonian, the tongue spoken 
 in Chaldea before the Semitic period. This inscrip- 
 tion belongs to Dungi, an early Chaldean monarch, 
 whose age is quite unknown, but who may be placed 
 in round numbers at at least B.C. 2000. Dungi was 
 king of ITr, then the capital of Babylonia, he was son 
 of Urukh, the earliest Babylonian monarch who has 
 left any known monuments. This inscription be- 
 longs to the city of Babylon, and is dedicated to the 
 lady or goddess of " Su-anna or Emuk-anu," one of 
 the religious names of Babylon. The text reads — 
 
 1. To the goddess of Emukanu 
 
 2. his lady ; 
 
 3. Dungi 
 
 4. the powerful hero, 
 
 5. the king of the city of Ur, 
 
 6. king of Sumir and Akkad; 
 
 7. her temple 
 
 8. has built. 
 
 The simple ancient style of the inscription re- 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 233 
 
 sembles that of other texts of the earliest period, and 
 its contents prove that Babylon was at that time 
 under the dominion of the city of Ur, which some 
 suppose to be the Ur of the Chaldees the birth- 
 place of Abraham. Another new monument dis- 
 covered at Babylon is a large heavy stone with a 
 bilingual inscription of Hammurabi. This bilingual 
 text is written in double columns, on one side the 
 Turanian, and on the other side the corresponding 
 Semitic text. Like the- former inscription, it is in old 
 hieratic Babylonian characters, and belongs to the 
 reign of Hammurabi, an early Babylonian monarch. 
 
 The subject-matter of the text probably refers to 
 some of the numerous public works executed by 
 Hammurabi, but the inscription is mutilated; its 
 great value consists in the fact that it is a bilingual 
 inscription, at least 800 years earlier than any pre- 
 viously discovered text of the same class. On the right- 
 hand half of every column of writing is the copy in 
 what is called Akkad or Turanian or proto-Baby- 
 lonian, for scholars are not agreed as to a name for 
 this early tongue. On the left hand stands the copy 
 in Semitic Babylonian, which is the translation and 
 equivalent of the other. I here give two extracts from 
 the tablet, the first with the titles of Hammurabi, the 
 second the close of the tablet, asking for blessings 
 upon him. 
 
 Hammurabi, so far as we know him, com- 
 menced his reign as king of Babylon at a time when 
 the country was divided into several states, a ruler 
 
234 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 Darned Kudur-mabuk, an Elamite, governing tlie re- 
 gion near Bagdad on the east of the Tigris, and the 
 son of Kudur-mabuk, named Bim-agu or Riagu, being 
 king of Larsa (now Senkereh) in the south of the 
 country. Hammurabi met and defeated the forces of 
 Kudur-mabuk and Rim-agu and then united Baby- 
 lonia under his own sceptre, making the city of 
 Babylon the capital of the country. The martial 
 titles in the first extract from this inscription most 
 probably refer to his successful war with Kudur- 
 mabuk and his son. 
 
 Extract from bilingual tablet :— » 
 
 1. Hammurabi 
 
 2. the king, the powerful warrior 
 
 3. destroying the enemy, 
 
 4. sweeper away of opposition, 
 
 5. possessor of his enemies. 
 
 6. Maker of battle, 
 
 7. spreader of reverence. 
 
 8. The plunderer, 
 
 9. the warrior, 
 10. the destroyer. 
 
 The second extract is one of those prayers for the 
 good and success of the monarch, which generally 
 follow large inscriptions. 
 
 1. established 
 
 2. in the four regions, 
 
 3. and in the heights of heaven 
 
 4. thy glory may they proclaim. 
 
 5. With valour 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 235 
 
 6. may tliey bless thee, 
 
 7. may their faces be propitious, 
 
 8. riches and greatness 
 
 9. may they accumulate, 
 
 10. with great exaltation 
 
 11. may they exalt thee. 
 
 The date of Hammurabi the author of this text 
 is uncertain, and we can only say at present that he 
 reigned not later than the sixteenth century before 
 the Christian era. 
 
 In the mound of Kouyunjik I found part of a stone 
 memorial tablet, apparently belonging to Riagu, or 
 Rimagu, the king who was defeated by Hammurabi. 
 The royal name, however, is mutilated ; it reads : — 
 
 1. Rim ?-agu, 
 
 2. the powerful hero, 
 
 3. the governor of TJr, 
 
 4. king of Larsa, 
 
 5. king of Sumir and Akkad. 
 
 On the reverse is a fragment recording the restora- 
 tion of some building. It is curious to find a tablet 
 of this age at Kouyunjik, but the most probable 
 explanation of the circumstance is, that this was a 
 tablet carried off from Babylonia by the Assyrians 
 during one of their wars. 
 
 The next inscription of the early Babylonian 
 period belongs to Kuri-galzu, a monarch of a foreign 
 race, who reigned B.C. 1370. This race of kings is 
 called by Berosus " Arabian." The princes of the line 
 
23G EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 were on friendly terms with the kings of Assyria, 
 and one of them, named Burna-buriyas, married Mu- 
 balidat-serua, the daughter of Assur-ubalid king of 
 Assyria, and Kara-hardas the fruit of this union 
 ascended the Babylonian throne. The Babylonians, 
 who were dissatisfied with this alliance, revolted 
 against him, putting him to death and setting up in 
 his place a man named Nazi-bugas. Bel-nirari the 
 king of Assyria took up the cause of Kuri-galzu, 
 another son of Burna-buriyas, and marched into 
 Babylonia to his aid. The Assyrians and the fol- 
 lowers of Kuri-galzu defeated and killed Nazi-bugas, 
 and Kuri-galzu ascended the Babylonian throne about 
 B.C. 1370. This monarch was a great and successful 
 prince, and is called "the unrivalled king:" the new 
 inscription belonging to him is small, written round 
 the eye of a statue, and reads " To Vul his lord, 
 Kuri-galzu son of Ki . . . It was customary in 
 the Babylonian period to make statues of metal or 
 stone and to inlay the eyes of the figures with gems 
 or agates cut to resemble the shape and colour of the 
 eyes : the eye in question is one of this class, which 
 belonged to a statue of the god Vul dedicated by 
 Kuri-galzu. 
 
 The latest inscription I discovered of this period 
 is a monolith of the grandson of Kuri-galzu, who bore 
 the name of Merodach Baladan. 
 
 This inscription is on a lar^o white stone about 
 three feet high, having on the face a rude picture 
 containing the emblems of the gods, including the 
 
Emblems of the Gods on Stone of Merodach Baladan I. 
 
 Page 236. 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 237 
 
 symbols of the sun and moon, a scorpion, dove, 
 winged lion, a ziggurat or tower and many others. 
 The back of the stone contains an inscription in three 
 columns of 115 lines of writing, giving an account of 
 a field of which this was the boundary or memorial 
 stone, and relating that this property was granted by 
 Merodach Baladan the king to his servant Maraduk- 
 zakir-izkur in return for services rendered to the 
 state. The document closes with a series of curses 
 against any one who should object to the right of 
 Maraduk-zakir-izkur over the ground, and the gods 
 whose emblems are carved on the stone were in- 
 voked to punish the defrauder. This stone adds two 
 new kings to the list of Babylonian monarchs already 
 known. Our history formerly ended with the reign 
 of Kuri-galzu, but we now know that he was suc- 
 ceeded by his son Mili-sihu and he again by his son 
 Merodach Baladan I., the date of whose reign and con- 
 sequently of this stone being about B.C. 1320. The 
 inscription on the stone reads — 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. A plantation? of 90 sehul 
 
 2. in measurements of great cubits, 
 
 3. a field of the town of Dur-zizi 
 
 4. beside the river Tigris, 
 
 5. in the district of the city of Ziku-istar. 
 
 6. Its upper side being on the west 
 
 7. of the river Tigris ; 
 
 8. its lower side being on the east, 
 
238 
 
 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 9. by the boundary 
 
 10. of the house of Nazi-maruduk 
 
 11. of the city of Ziku-istar; 
 
 12. its upper end was on the north 
 
 13. of the boundary of the city of Ilu-zagari, 
 
 14. and the house of Tunamissaki 
 
 15. the leader ; 
 
 16. its lower end was on the south 
 
 17. of the boundary of the ground in the district 
 
 18. of the city of Ziku-istar, 
 
 19. and the city of Dnr-zizi ; 
 
 20. which Merodach Baladan 
 
 21. the king of nations, 
 
 22. king of Sumir and Akkad, 
 
 23. son of Mili-sihu 
 
 24. king of Babylon, 
 
 25. grandson of Kuri-galzu 
 
 26. the unrivalled king ; 
 
 27. ■ to Maruduk-zakir-izkur 
 
 28. the governor of 
 
 29 the temple and country 
 
 30. of the city of Idbimutgal 
 
 31. of heaven and earth, 
 
 32. son of Nabu-nadin-ahi, 
 
 33. of whom the father of his father 
 
 34. was Rimini-maruduk, 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. heart of hearts (descendant) 
 
 2. of Uballad-su-maruduk, 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 239 
 
 3. the descendant of Arad-hea 
 
 4. his servant ; 
 
 5. To praise the kingdom 
 
 6. taxes 
 
 7. To sing the glory 
 
 8. of the gods Nebo and Saru, 
 
 9. and praise Sarturda 
 10. the god who begot him, 
 
 11 of heaven and earth 
 
 12. . . the house of the sun of Borsippa 
 
 13. the sudusi 
 
 14. and the preservation of the temple of Sidda 
 
 15. in the day of payment, 
 
 16. the day of going out, 
 
 17. with his lord 
 
 18. Merodach Baladan. 
 
 19. Appointed for 
 
 20. after days, 
 
 21. successive months, 
 
 22. and years 
 
 23. unbroken, 
 
 24. to that man 
 
 25. without fail, 
 
 26. I give for good 
 
 27. like the delight of heaven, 
 
 28. for a settlement, 
 
 29. in return for his work. 
 
 30. Making witness, 
 
 31. Ninip-pal-idina 
 
 32. son of Vul-nazir 
 
240 
 
 EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 33. governor of the city of Zaku-istar, 
 
 34. Nabu-nazir 
 
 35. son of Nazi-maruduk the attendant, 
 
 36. and Nabu-sanismu ? 
 
 37. son of Arad-hea 
 
 38. the dug ah. 
 
 Column III. 
 
 1. If a ruler or eunuch 
 
 2. or a citizen, the memorial stone 
 
 3. of this ground 
 
 4. takes and 
 
 5. destroys, 
 
 6. in a place where it cannot be seen 
 
 7. to any where 
 
 8. shall place it in, 
 
 9. and this stone tablet 
 10. if a nalca or a brother, 
 J 1 . or a Icatu or a . . • 
 
 12. or an evil one, 
 
 13. or an enemy, 
 
 14. or any other person, 
 
 15. or the son of the owner of this land, 
 
 16. shall act falsely, 
 
 17. and shall destroy it, 
 
 18. into the water or into the fire, 
 
 19. shall throw it, 
 
 20. with a stone shall break it, 
 
 21. from the hand of Maruduk-zakir-izkur 
 
 22. and his seed shall take it away, 
 
EARLY BABYLONIAN TEXTS. 
 
 241 
 
 23. and above or below 
 
 24. shall send it ; 
 
 25. The gods Anu, Bel, and Hea, 
 
 26. Ninip and Gula, 
 
 27. these lords 
 
 28. and all the gods 
 
 29. on this stone tablet 
 
 30. whose emblems are seen, 
 
 31. violently may they destroy his name, 
 
 32. a curse unmitigated 
 
 33. may they curse over him, 
 
 34. calamity ? 
 
 35. may they bring upon him. 
 
 36. May his seed be swept away 
 
 37. in evil, 
 
 38. and not in good, 
 
 39. and in the day of departing 
 
 40. of life may he expire, 
 
 41. and Shamas and Merodach 
 
 42. tear him asunder, and 
 
 43. may none mourn for him. 
 
 I believe the Babylonian measure of land called a 
 selcul measured about 40,000 square feet, or rather 
 less than an English acre. The stone containing this 
 inscription was discovered on the western side of the 
 Tigris, opposite the town of Baghdad. The smaller 
 fragments of the new Assyrian collection introduce 
 to us several details of other portions of early Baby- 
 lonian history, but these come properly into the next 
 division of early Assyrian texts. 
 
 n 
 
Chapter XIII. 
 
 EARLY ASSYRIAN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 Early Pottery. — Text of Vul-nirari I. — Shalmaneser. — Temple 
 of Ishtar. — Tugulti-ninip. — Babylonian wars.— Mutagil-nusku. 
 — Assur-risilim. — Tiglath Pileser I. — Assur-nazir-pal. 
 
 Y excavations at Kouyunjik and Nim- 
 roud, and the examination of Kalah 
 Shergat, have brought to light nume- 
 rous texts belonging to the period of 
 the early Assyrian empire. At Kouyunjik, in the 
 area of the temples of Ishtar, I found numerous in- 
 scriptions and fragments of all ages, the oldest of 
 which were some fragments of votive dishes, which 
 I should place at least as early as the nineteenth 
 century B.C. After these comes a fragment of a 
 tablet referring to the diplomatic relations of Assy- 
 ria and Babylonia, and mentioning some very early 
 monarchs ; this fragment is, however, a later copy, 
 and not an original document. Contemporary 
 documents commence again with the reign of Vul- 
 nirari I., B.C. 1320. In the ruins of Kalah Shergat 
 I saw many fragments of inscriptions belonging to 
 
EARLY ASSYRIAN INSCRIPTIONS. 213 
 
 this monarch, who there repaired a great temple to 
 Assur, and I purchased a fine stone tablet found at 
 this spot, which was in the hands of the French 
 consul. This tablet is inscribed on both sides, and 
 contains eighty lines of cuneiform text relating to 
 the reigns of Assur-ubalid, Bel-nirari, Budil, and 
 Vul-nirari, four successive Assyrian monarchs who 
 reigned in the fourteenth century B.C. This docu- 
 ment gives us almost all our knowledge of these 
 reigns, and shows the extent of the Assyrian terri- 
 tory and the tribes conquered during this period, 
 which was previously an obscure epoch in Assyrian 
 history. The tablet was inscribed during the reign 
 of Vul-nirari L, king of Assyria, B.C. 1320, to com- 
 memorate the restoration of the causeway of the 
 temple of Assur at that capital. The translation 
 reads — 
 
 1. Vul-nirari the noble prince appointed by heaven, 
 
 2. the noble established by the gods, 
 
 3. founder of cities, conqueror (?) 
 
 4. of the armies of Kassi, Guti (Goim), Lulumi, 
 
 5. and Subari, destroyer of all 
 
 6. the upper and lower foreigners, trampling on 
 
 7. their countries from Lubdi and Rapiqu, 
 
 8. to ... . Zabiddi and Nisi. 
 
 9. Remover of boundaries and landmarks, 
 
 10 kings and princes 
 
 11. the gods Anu, Assur, Samas, Vul, 
 
 12. and Istar, to his feet have subjected. 
 
 13. The mighty worshipper of Bel, 
 
 v ° 
 
2U 
 
 EARLY ASSYRIAN 
 
 14. son of Pudil priest of Bel, 
 
 15. viceroy of Assur, conqueror of 
 
 16. Turuki and Nirhi, 
 
 17. to the extremity of all their land, 
 
 18. king of the mountains and forests 
 
 19. to the extremity of wide Guti, 
 
 20. Gunuhlami, and Suti, 
 
 21. their streams and lands, 
 
 22. remover of boundaries and landmarks. 
 
 23. Grandson of Bel-nirari 
 
 24. viceroy of Assur also who the army of the 
 
 Kassi 
 
 25. destroyed, and the spoil of his enemies 
 
 26. his hand captured, remover of boundaries 
 
 27. and landmarks. Great grandson of 
 
 28. Assur-ubalid the powerful king 
 
 29. of whom his worship in the temple was fixed, 
 
 30. the protection and alliance of his kingdom 
 
 31. afar off like a mountain extended, 
 
 32. sweeper away of the forces of 
 
 33. wide Subari, 
 
 34. remover of boundaries and landmarks. 
 
 35. When the ascent to the house of Assur my 
 lord, 
 
 36. which was before the gate of the people of the 
 country, 
 
 37. and the gate of the judges ; 
 
 38. which in former time had been made, decayed, 
 
 39. was stopped up, and ruined ; 
 
 40. that place I constructed, 
 
INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 245 
 
 41. its measure I took, 
 
 42. with clay and earth four gurs I made, 
 
 43. I built it, to its place I restored it, 
 
 44. and my tablet I placed 
 
 45. for after days. The future prince who 
 
 46. when this place 
 
 47. becomes old and decayed, 
 
 48. its damage repairs, and my tablet written with 
 my name 
 
 49. to its place restores ; The god Assur 
 
 50. his prayer shall hear. Whoever the writing 
 of my name 
 
 51. shall efface, and his own name shall write, 
 
 52. and my tablet shall cause to cover, 
 
 53. to destruction shall consign 
 
 54. into the flood shall throw, in the fire 
 
 55. shall burn, into the water shall hurl, 
 
 56. in the ground shall cover, 
 
 57. or into the storehouse the place not seen 
 
 58. shall send and shall place it, 
 
 59. then I appoint these curses 
 
 60. to the foreigner, the stranger, the enemy, the 
 evil one, 
 
 61. the strange tongue and any one 
 
 62. a rival shall send and execute, 
 
 63. and any one who desires shall perform them. 
 
 64. Assur the mighty god dwelling in the temple 
 of Sadimatati, 
 
 65. Anu, Bel, Hea, and Ziru, 
 
 66. the great gods, the angels of heaven, 
 
246 
 
 EARLY ASSYRIAN 
 
 67. and the spirits of earth in their might 
 
 68. firmly may they seize him, 
 
 69. an evil curse quickly 
 
 70. may they curse on him ; his name, his seed, 
 his forces, 1 
 
 71. and his family, from the country may they 
 wipe out. 
 
 72. Sweeping his country, destroying his people, 
 
 73. and his landmarks. By their great mouth , 
 
 74. it is uttered, and Vul in his storming- 
 
 75. evil, may he stir up a flood, 
 
 76. an evil wind, an injurious earthquake, 
 
 77. a destruction, a failure of food, 
 
 78. the curse of famine in his country may he 
 make, rain in his country like a deluge may he send, 
 
 79. to mounds and ruins may he turn it, and Yul 
 in his evil consumption, his country may he consume. 
 
 80. Month Muhur-ili, twentieth day, eponymy of 
 Salman urns. 
 
 This tablet is of the highest importance; it shows 
 that Assyria at this time had already taken a leading 
 place in the world, and was the most powerful state 
 in Asia ; the Kassi, who were defeated both by Bel- 
 nirari and his grandson Vul-nirari, were the leading 
 tribe in Babylonia at this time. Vul-nirari, after a 
 prosperous reign, left his crown to his son, Shalma- 
 neser L, about b.o. 1300. Of Shalmaneser I found 
 several memorials, all in the temple area, in the centre 
 of the mound of Kouyunjik. One of these is a brick 
 from a palace which formerly stood in this locality. A - 
 
INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 247 
 
 short time back nothing was known of Nineveh as a 
 royal seat before the time of Assur-bil-kala. I found, 
 about seven years ago, several inscriptions showing 
 that the city was built and had a temple to Ishtar as 
 early as the nineteenth century B.C., and there is an 
 unnoticed fragment of Assur-risilim, who reigned B.C. 
 1150, among Layard's inscriptions, plate 75 F, which 
 shows that there was a palace at Nineveh in his time. 
 Now, however, we know that Nineveh was a royal 
 residence at least 150 years earlier, in the time of 
 Shalmaneser I. This inscription reads — " Palace of 
 Shalmaneser, king of nations, the son of Vul-nirari, 
 king of nations also." Other fragments turned up 
 belonging to the same palace, but nothing was ob- 
 tained in position or perfect enough to give any idea 
 of this building, probably the oldest royal residence 
 in the city of Nineveh. I discovered also a number 
 of relics of the same king from the temple of Ishtar ; 
 among these was a brick inscription, which reads — 
 
 1. To the goddess Ishtar 
 
 2. his lady Shalman- 
 
 3. -eser viceroy of Assur 
 
 4. king of nations 
 
 There is a curious peculiarity about this inscrip- 
 tion ; it divides the name Shalmaneser, part of which 
 is in line 2 and the rest in line 3. The division of a word 
 is very unusual in Assyrian inscriptions. Another 
 inscription belonging to this monarch which I dis- 
 covered at Kouyunjik, is part of a votive dish be- 
 longing to the temple of Ishtar ; from this and some 
 
248 
 
 EARLY ASSYRIAN 
 
 other fragments the early history of this ancient 
 temple can be traced. It appears that this temple 
 was founded in very early times and restored by 
 Samsi-vul in the nineteenth century B.C. One frag- 
 ment of this age from the temple I discovered on the 
 spot. After the time of Samsi-vul the temple fell 
 into decay, and was restored by Assur-ubalid, king 
 of Assyria, B.C. 1400. Again after this becoming 
 ruinous, it was restored by Shalmaneser I., B.C. 1300. 
 I have prepared a restored translation of the votive 
 
 Head fkom Statue of the Goddess Ishtae. 
 From her temple, Kouyunjik. 
 
 dish inscription of Shalmaneser ; in parts the record 
 is so mutilated that I have only given the general 
 sense. 
 
 " Shalmaneser the powerful king, king of nations, 
 king of Assyria ; son of Vul-nirari, the powerful king, 
 king of nations, king of Assyria ; son of Budil, the 
 powerful king, king of nations, king of Assyria also. 
 
INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 249 
 
 Conqueror of . . . Niri, Lulumi . . . and Muzri, 
 who in the service of the goddess Ishtar, his lady, 
 has marched and has no rival, who in the midst of 
 battle has fought and has conquered their lands. 
 When the temple of the goddess Ishtar, the lady of 
 Nineveh, my lady, which Samsi-vul, the prince who 
 went before me had built, and which had decayed, 
 and Assur-ubalid, my father, had restored it ; that 
 temple in the course of my time had decayed, and 
 from its foundation to its roof I rebuilt it. The 
 prince who comes after me, who my cylinders shall 
 see and restore to their place, like I the cylinders of 
 Assur-ubalid have restored to their place, may Ishtar 
 bless him ; and whoever destroys my records, may 
 Ishtar curse him, and his name and his seed from the 
 country root out." 
 
 The rebuilding of the temple of Ishtar was con- 
 tinued after the death of Shalmaneser by his son, 
 Tugulti-ninip, and from the same spot I recovered 
 some of the inscriptions of this monarch. One on a 
 brick states : 
 
 1. Tugulti-ninip king of nations 
 
 2. son of Shalmaneser king of nations also 
 
 3. who the temple of Ishtar the lady 
 
 4. powerful, completed 
 
 This Tugulti-ninip, king of Assyria, was one of the 
 most memorable monarchs of the period; he con- 
 quered the Babylonians and put an end to the dominion 
 of the race of Arabiankings, who according toBerosus 
 had reigned in Babylonia for 245 years. The ac- 
 
250 
 
 EARLY ASSYRIAN 
 
 count of this war I found on a fragment of the syn- 
 chronous history from the palace of Sennacherib at 
 Kouyunjik ; this fragment belongs to Column II. of 
 the document, nearly in the position of the fragment 
 printed in " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. iii. plate iv. 
 No. 3. The following is a translation of the two 
 fragments, the name of Tugulti-ninip being restored : 
 
 1. Tugulti-ninip king of Assyria and Nazi-murudas 
 king of Karduniyas (Babylonia) 
 
 2. a battle in the vicinity of the city of Kar-istar- 
 agarsalu fought 
 
 3. Tugulti-ninip the overthrow of Nazi-murudas 
 accomplished 
 
 4. from to his camp by the city of 
 
 Hu-ahi-rabati-su feared him 
 
 5. and over all these neighbouring provinces 
 
 6. he ruled from the neighbourhood of Pilazzi 
 
 7. his servants he appointed and from the river 
 Tigris the city of Armanagarsal 
 
 8. to the city of Kullar the kingdom he possessed 
 and established. 
 
 9. Bel-kudur-uzur king of Assyria Vul . . bi his 
 son king of Karduniyas 
 
 10. Bel-kudur-uzur had slain and Vul . . bi fought 
 in the midst of battle 
 
 11. in the midst of the fighting with Ninip-pal-eser 
 king of Assyria and 
 
 12. to his country he returned. After his warriors 
 numerous he gathered 
 
INSCRIPTIONS. 2ol 
 
 13. and to the city of Assur to capture it he 
 marched up. Ninip-pal-eser 
 
 14. in his camp attacked him and compelled him 
 to return to his country 
 
 15. In the time of Zamama-zakir-idin king of Kar- 
 duniyas 
 
 16. Assur-dan king of Assyria to Karduniyas went 
 down 
 
 17. the cities of Zaba, Irriya and Agarsalu he 
 captured and 
 
 18. their abundant spoil to Assyria he carried 
 away. 
 
 This passage in the old Assyrian chronicle gives a 
 curious account of the relations between Assyria 
 and Karduniyas, or Babylonia, in the thirteenth cen- 
 tury B.C. 
 
 Of Mutaggil-nusku, king of Assyria B.C. 1170, son 
 of Assur-dan, king of Assyria, I found a black stone, 
 the inscription on which when restored reads : — 
 
 1. Palace of Mutaggil-nusku 
 
 2. king of nations king of Assyria 
 
 3. son of Assur-dan 
 
 4. king of nations king of Assyria 
 
 5. son of Ninip-pal-eser. 
 
 6. king of nations king of Assyria. 
 
 This is the only inscription of this monarch yet dis- 
 covered. 
 
 Mutagil-nusku was succeeded by his son, Assur- 
 
252 EARLY ASSYRIAN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 risilim, B.C. 1150, of whom I discovered a clay tablet 
 containing his annals. It is in ancient characters, 
 and much worn. After Assur-risilim came his son, 
 Tiglath Pileser I. Of this monarch I found part of 
 a terra-cotta cylinder with his annals, but not perfect 
 enough for translation. Coming down to the time of 
 Assur-nazir-pal, B.C. 885, I found numerous inscrip- 
 tions of this period both at Nineveh and at Kalah 
 (Nimroud), and I learned from these that he rebuilt 
 the palace at Nineveh and the temple of Ishtar, which 
 had fallen into decay since it was repaired by Samsi- 
 vul, king of Assyria, B.C. 1080. Similar inscriptions 
 of Shalmaneser II., B.C. 860, the son of Assur-nazir- 
 pal, record that he made additions to these various 
 works of his father, both at the palace and temple of 
 Nineveh. At Nimroud, while excavating in the 
 temple of Nebo, I discovered two votive hands be- 
 longing to the period of Vul-nirari III., the grandson 
 of Shalmaneser II., B.C. 812. 
 
Chapter XIV. 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF TIGLATH PILESER II. 
 b.c. 745 to 727. 
 
 Annals of Tiglath Pileser. — Their importance. — Tablet from 
 Nimroud. — Babylonian wars. — Eastern wars. — Arabian wars. — 
 Syrian tribute list. — Building of palace. — Fragments of annals. 
 — Azariah. — Menahem.— Rezon. — His defeat. — War in Palestine. 
 Pekah. — Hoshea. — Confirmation of Bible. 
 
 HE reign of Tiglath Pileser is an import- 
 ant epoch in Assyrian history, and his 
 inscriptions are of the utmost value for 
 comparison with the Biblical history. 
 No less than five Hebrew kings are mentioned in the 
 annals of this monarch, three of which I had dis- 
 covered. Unfortunately the annals of Tiglath Pileser 
 are all in a mutilated condition, so that it is difficult to 
 make out some of the facts in his history. The im- 
 portance of these inscriptions in reference to the Bible 
 led me to search for additional fragments and evidence, 
 and I discovered the remains of a palace of Tiglath 
 Pileser at Nineveh, a part of a historical tablet at 
 Nimroud, and I took paper impressions and copies of 
 
254 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 some other inscriptions, so as tobe able to give a better 
 translation of these annals. From these sources I now 
 give a translation of three copies of the annals of this 
 monarch, commencing with the copy which I dis- 
 covered in the temple of Nebo at Nimroud. There 
 are among our fragments at least five versions of the 
 annals of this monarch. 
 
 Fragment of Annals of Tiglath Pileser II. king 
 of Assyria, from a tablet discovered in the 
 temple of nebo (nimroud). 
 
 1. Palace of Tiglath Pileser the great king the 
 powerful king king of nations king of Assyria king 
 of Babylon king of Sumir and Akkad king of the four 
 regions. 
 
 2. The powerful warrior who in the service of 
 Assur his lord the whole of his haters has trampled 
 on like clay, swept like a flood and reduced to 
 shadows. 
 
 3. The king who in the might of Nebo and Mero- 
 dach the great gods has marched and from the sea 
 of Bit-yakin to the land of Bikni by the rising sun 
 
 4. And the sea of the setting sun to Egypt ; from 
 the west to the east all countries possesses and rules 
 their kingdoms. 
 
 5. From the beginning of my reign to my 17th 
 year. The tribes of Ituha, Rubuha, Havaranu, Luhua- 
 tu, Harilu, Rubbu, 
 
 6. Rapiqu, Nabatu, Gurumu, Dunanu, Ubulu, 
 
TIGLATH PILESER II 
 
 255 
 
 Ruhua, Lihitau, and Marasu, the cities of Dur-kuri- 
 galzu, 
 
 7. Adini, Birtu of Sarragitu, and Birtu of Labbanat. 
 The Arameans all of them who were beside the rivers 
 Tigris, Euphrates, 
 
 8. Surappi and Ukru to the lower sea of the 
 rising sun I conquered to the boundaries of Assyria 
 I added. 
 
 9. My general prefect over them I made. In the 
 cities of Sippara, Nipur, Babylon, Borsippa, Cutha 
 Kisu, Kilmad ? and Ur, 
 
 10. cities unrivalled noble offerings to Bel and 
 Zirat-banit Nebo amd Urmitu, Nergal and Laz the 
 gods my lords I poured out and I increased in might. 
 
 11. Kar-duniyas the whole of it I possess and I 
 rule its kingdom. 
 
 12. Bit-amukkan and Bit-sahalli to their utmost 
 border I swept. Nabuusabsi and Zaqaru their kings 
 in hand I captured 
 
 13. The cities of Sarrapanu, Tarbazu Yapallu Dur- 
 kassat and Malilatu their great capitals 
 
 14. with attacks ? and missiles? I took, 155,000 
 people and children from them 
 
 15. their horses ? and cattle without number I 
 carried off, those countries to the boundaries of 
 Assyria I added. 
 
 16. . . . . like clay I trampled and the assembly of 
 their people to Assyria I sent. Kinziru their king in 
 Sape his capital I besieged. 
 
 17. Pillutu on the borders of Elam to the boun- 
 
256 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 daries of Assyria I added, in the hands of my general 
 the governor of Arapha I placed it. 
 
 18. The tribute of the kings of the Chaldeans, 
 Balasu son of Dakkuri, Nadin of Larancha, and 
 
 19. Merodach Baladan son of Yakin king of the 
 sea coast, gold, the products of the country, silver, 
 precious stones, strong wood Elutu wood oxen and 
 sheep I received 
 
 20. The countries of Zimri, Bit-Sangibuti, Bit- 
 hamban, Sumurzu, Bit-barrua, Bit-zualzas 
 
 Here the record is broken off, and although I 
 searched carefully round the spot where this tablet 
 was discovered I failed to find the rest of the inscrip- 
 tion. 
 
 The second copy of the annals is translated from 
 " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. ii. p. 67. 
 
 HlSTOKICAL TABLET OF TlGLATH PlLESER II. 
 (" Cuneiform Inscriptions" vol. ii. p. 67.) 
 
 1. Palace of Tiglath Pileser, the great king, the 
 powerful king, king of nations, king of Assyria, high 
 priest of Babylon, king of Sumir and Akkad, king of 
 the four regions. 
 
 2. The strong warrior who in the service of Assur 
 his lord has marched through the countries and like 
 a whirlwind has overspread and as captives has 
 reckoned them. 
 
 3. The king who in the might of Assur, Shamas 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE IL 
 
 257 
 
 and Merodach the great gods his lords, from the sea 
 of Bit-yakin (the Persian Gulf) to Bikni of Shamsi 
 4. and the sea of the setting sun, to Muzri 
 (Egypt), [from the] west to the east the countries 
 he has possessed, and has ruled their kingdoms. 
 
 5. From the beginning of my kingdom to my 
 17th year. The tribes of Ituha, Rubuha Havarani 
 (Hauran), Luhua, Harilu, Rubbu, Rapiqu, Hiranu, 
 Rabilu, 
 
 6. Naziru, Gulusu, Nabatu (Nabateans), Rahiqu, 
 Ka . . . Rummulusu, Adile, Kipre, Ubudu, Gu- 
 rumu, Bagdadu, Hindaru, 
 
 7. Damunu, Dunanu,Nilqu, Rade, Da . . . , Ubulu, 
 Karmaha, Amlatu, Ituha, Qabiha, Lehitau, Marusu 
 
 8. Amatu (Hamath), Hagaranu (Hagarenes), and 
 the cities of Dur-kurigalzu, Adili, Birtu of Sarragitu, 
 Birtu of Labbanat, and Birtu of Kar-bel-matati. 
 
 9. The Arameans all of them who are by the side 
 of the rivers Tigris, Euphrates, Surappi, to the midst 
 of the Ukni which is by the junction of the lower sea 
 (Persian Gulf) I captured, their warriors I slew, their 
 spoil I carried off. 
 
 10. The Aramu all there were to the borders of 
 Assyria I added, and my generals prefects over them 
 I made. Upon the mound of Kamri which the city 
 Humut they call 
 
 11. a city I built, Kar-assur its name I called. 
 People the conquests of my hand in the midst I 
 
 s 
 
258 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 placed. In Sipara, Nipur, Babil (Babylon), Borsippa, 
 Kutha, Kis, Chilmad, and Ur, cities unrivalled, 
 
 12. valuable sacrifices and libations to Bel and 
 Zirubanit, Nebo and Urmitu, Nergal and Laz, the 
 great gods my lords I poured out, and they strength- 
 ened my feet. The whole of Gan-dunias (Babylonia) 
 to its utmost extent I possess, and 
 
 13. I rule its kingdom. The Puqudu (Pekod) like 
 corn I swept away, their fighting-men I slew, their 
 abundant spoil I carried off. The Puqudu in the cities 
 of Lahiru of Idibirina, Hilimmu, and 
 
 14. Pillutu, which border on Elam, to the boun- 
 daries of Assyria I added, and in the hands of my 
 general the prefect of Arapha I placed them. The 
 Kaldudu all there were I removed, and 
 
 15. in the midst of Assyria I placed them. Chaldea 
 through its extent in hostility I swept. Nabu-usabsi, 
 son of Silani, his figh.ting-m.en on the walls of Sarra- 
 pani his city I slew, 
 
 16. and in front of the great gate of his city on a 
 cross I raised him ; I subdued his country, Sarrapanu 
 to a heap of earth I reduced ... I captured 5500 
 of their people and children, 
 
 17. his spoil, his furniture, his goods, his wife, his 
 sons, his daughters, and his gods, I carried off. That 
 city and the cities round it, I pulled down, destroyed, 
 in the fire I burned, and to mounds and ruins I re- 
 duced. 
 
 18. The cities of Tarbazu and Yapallu, I captured, 
 30,000 of their people and children, their furniture, 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE IL 
 
 their goods, and their gods, I carried off. Those cities 
 and the cities round them, 
 
 19. like a whirlwind I destroyed. Zaqiru son of 
 Sahalli against the agreement of the great gods sinned, 
 and with them set his face. Him and his great men 
 in hand I took, 
 
 20. in bonds of iron I placed them, and to Assyria 
 I brought. The people of Bit-sahalli feared and the 
 tower . • . . them, for their stronghold they took. 
 
 21. That city by siege and famine I took and threw 
 to the ground, 5400 of their people and children, 
 their spoil their furniture their goods, his wife, his 
 sons, and his daughters, I carried off. 
 
 22. The city of Amlilatu I captured, the people and 
 children, its spoil, its furniture, and its goods, I 
 carried off. Bit-sahalli through its extent like a 
 whirlwind I overspread, and I laid waste its districts. 
 
 23. Those countries to the boundaries of Assyria I 
 added. Kinziru son of Amukkan in Sape his capital 
 city I besieged him, his numerous fighting-men in 
 front of his great gate I slew. 
 
 24. The groves of palms which were in front of its 
 wall I cut down, I did not leave one, its forests which 
 extended over the country I destroyed, his enclosures 
 I threw down, and filled up the interiors. All his 
 cities 
 
 25. I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire I 
 burned, Bit-Silani, Bit-amukkan, and Bit-sahalli, 
 through their extent like a whirlwind I destroyed, 
 and to mounds and ruins I reduced. 
 
 o O 
 
260 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 26. The tribute of Balasu son of Dakkuri, and 
 Wadini of Larrak (Larancha), silver, gold, and pre- 
 cious stones, I received. Maruduk-bal-iddina (Mero- 
 dach Baladan), son of Yakin, king of the sea coast, 
 from which to the kings my fathers, formerly none 
 came and kissed their feet ; 
 
 27. terrible fear of Assur my lord overwhelmed 
 him, and to Sapiya he came, and kissed my feet, gold, 
 the dust of his country in abundance, 
 
 28. cups of gold, instruments of gold, precious 
 stones, the product of the sea, planks of wood . . 
 carried by sailors (?) costly garments, gum, oxen, and 
 sheep, his tribute, I received. 
 
 29. The countries of Zimri, Bit-sangibuti, Bit- 
 hamban, Sumurzu, Barrua, Bit-zualzas, Bit-matti, 
 Niqu of Umliyas, Bit-taranzai, Persia, Bitzatti, 
 
 30. Bit-abdadani, Bit-kipsi, Bit-sangi, Bit-urzikki, 
 Bit-sa, Zikruti,Gizinikissi, Nissi, Zibur, Urimzan, Ra- 
 husan, 
 
 31. Niparia, Buztuz, Ararami, Burumi-sarri-izzuri, 
 Saksukni, Araquettu, Kar-zipra, Gukinnana, Sakbat, 
 Silhazi, 
 
 32. which the Babylonians call strong, Ruadi, Bit- 
 munnatusqana, and Likra the heap of gold, districts of 
 rugged Media, the whole of them in hostility I over- 
 whelmed, 
 
 33. their numerous fighting-men I slew, 00,500 of 
 their people and children, horses, asses, mules, oxen, 
 and sheep, without number I carried off, 
 
TIGLATII PILE SUE II. 
 
 201 
 
 34. their cities I pulled down, destroyed, burned in 
 the fire, and to mounds and ruins reduced, the coun- 
 tries of Zimri, Bit-sangibuti, Bit-hamban, Suinurzu, 
 Bit-barrua Bit-zualzas 
 
 35. Bit-matti, Niqqu of TJmliyas, Bit-taranzai, 
 Parsua, (Persia), Bit-zatti, Bit-abdadani, Bit-kipsi, 
 Bit-sangi, Bit-urzikik, Bit-sa, and 
 
 36. Likruti of rugged Media, to the boundaries of 
 Assyria I added, the cities in them anew I built, the 
 soldiers of Assur my lord in them I set up, people 
 captured by my hands in them I placed, 
 
 37. my generals prefects over them I appointed, 
 my royal image in Tikrakki, Bit-sa, Zibur, Ararmi, 
 Burumi-sarri-izzuri, and 
 
 38. Silhazi, which the Babylonians call strong, I set 
 up. The tribute of Media, Illipa, and all the chiefs 
 of the mountains to Bikni, 
 
 39. horses, asses, mules, oxen, and sheep, without 
 
 number I received the great triumphs 
 
 of Assur my lord, which were accomplished in all 
 these countries he heard, and 
 
 40. the glory of Assur my lord overwhelmed him, 
 and to Dur-tigulti-pal-esir the city which [I had built] 
 . ... to my presence he came, and kissed my feet, 
 
 41. Horses, asses, oxen, and sheep, instruments 
 his tribute I received, 
 
 42. My general Assurdainani to rugged Media of 
 the rising sun I sent, 5000 horses, people, oxen, and 
 sheep, without number he brought, 
 
262 INSCRIPTIONS OT 
 
 43. Ulluba, Kirhu, the whole of it I took, and to 
 the boundaries of Assyria I added, an image of my 
 majesty in the mountains of Limirra I set up, in the 
 midst of Ullubi a city I built, 
 
 44. a palace my royal seat in the midst I placed, 
 the soldiers of Assur my lord, in it I set up, people 
 captured by my hands in it I placed, my general pre- 
 fect over it I appointed. 
 
 45. Saraduarri of Ararat, Sulumal of Milid, Tar- 
 hulara of Gamguna 
 
 46 Kustaspi of Kumuha, to take spoil . . . 
 
 47 near Kistan and Halpi districts of Ku- 
 muha .... 
 
 48 the river Sinzi the river like .... 
 
 49 I captured them in the midst af the 
 
 fighting .... 
 
 50 royal images • . . . 
 
 [Many lines lost here.] 
 
 51 place .... 
 
 52. her tribute to my presence she brought, a guar- 
 
 dian over her I appointed, and the men of .... I 
 subdued to my yoke. 
 
 53. The tribes of Maza, Tema, Saba (Sabcans), 
 Hiappa, Badana, Hatte, Idabahil, .... at the 
 boundaries 
 
 64. of the setting sun, who knew no rivals, whose 
 
 place was remote, the might of my dominion 
 
 they heard, and submitted to my dominion. 
 
TIGLATII PILESEE II 
 
 2G3 
 
 55. Gold, silver, camels, she-camels, and gum, their 
 tribute at once to my presence they brought, and 
 kissed my feet. 
 
 56. Idibihil to the governorship over against Muzri 
 (Egypt) I appointed. In all those countries which 
 . ... of Assur in the midst I appointed. 
 
 57. The tribute of Kustaspi of Kumuha, Urik of 
 Qua, Sibittibihil of Gubal, Pisiris of Gargamis 
 (Carchemesh), 
 
 58. Eniil of Hamath, Panammu of Samhala, Tar- 
 hulara of Gauguma, Sulumal of Mihd,Dadilu of Kaska, 
 
 59. Vassurmi of Tubal, Ushitti of Tuna, Urpalla of 
 Tuhana, Tuhammi of Istunda, Urimmi of Husinna, 
 
 60. Mattanbahil of Arvad, Sanipu of Bit-ammana 
 (Ammon), Salamanu of Moab .... 
 
 61. Metinti of Askelon, Yauhazi of Judah, Qavus- 
 malaka of Edom, Muz .... 
 
 62. Hanun of Gaza, gold, silver, lead, iron, anti- 
 mony, clothing the clothing of their country, lapis- 
 lazuli (?)... 
 
 63. . . . produce of the sea and land, taken from 
 their country, selected for my kingdom, horses and 
 asses trained to the yoke. 
 
 64. Yassurmi of Tubal, in the service of Assyria 
 delayed, and to my presence did not come, my general 
 the rabshakeh 
 
 65. Hulli son of an unknown person on his throne 
 I seated, 10 talents of gold, 1000 talents of silver, 2000 
 horses , . „ . . 
 
2G4< 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 66. My general tlie rabshekah to Tyre I sent. Of 
 Metenna of Tyre, 150 talents of gold 
 
 67. In cunning ears, attentive and open, which the 
 ruler of the gods the prince Nukimmut gave, a palace 
 of planks . . . 
 
 63. And my decorated house, like a Syrian palace 
 for my glory in the midst of Kahhi (Calah) I built . . . 
 
 69. extent of earth higher than the former palaces 
 of my fathers, from the bed of the Tigris I caused to 
 raise 
 
 70. all my people the extent ? of its drink failed 
 and .... 
 
 71. 20 great cubits the strong foundations against 
 the waters, the stone embankments I strengthened, 
 like the mass of a mountain I filled .... 
 
 72. their mounds I made, their foundations I fixed, 
 I raised their tops, J gar and f of a cubit . . 
 
 73. On the northern side I raised their gates, in 
 ivory ? hard-wood ? kakki, palm-tree planks ? [cedar] 
 and dapran. 
 
 74. The tribute of the kings of Syria, and princes 
 of the Arameans and Chaldeans, whom by the force 
 of my might I had subdued to my feet, I placed in 
 them. 
 
 75. 5J gar 4 cubits from the embankment of the 
 waters to the division of their boundary I enclosed, 
 and beyond the palaces of the world I increased their 
 work. 
 
 76. The beams of pine noble, like trees of Hasur 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II. 
 
 265 
 
 wood for . . . good . . . from Lebanon and Amma- 
 nana. 
 
 77. I covered over them to last for ever, to appear 
 the workmanship . . . beautiful stones, burkulatti I 
 made, and I adorned the gates. 
 
 78. Doors of cedar planks in pairs closing, fixed at 
 their entrances, of wood I made the interiors. 
 
 79. With sibbu zahale and ibbi, I covered, and in 
 the gates I hung. Lions and winged lions and bulls, 
 of gigantic workmanship, cunning, beautiful, valuable, 
 
 80. near I placed, and for admiration I set up, a 
 pavement of paruti stone at their base I laid down, I 
 adorned the entrance, 
 
 81. and figures carved in the likeness of the great 
 gods around I made, and they inspired reverence. 
 
 82. Coats of karri, gold, silver, and copper to com- 
 plete them I covered over them, I beautified their 
 workmanship. 
 
 83. For my royal seat its building I raised, precious 
 stones the product of sea ? and land ? I increased 
 within it, 
 
 84. the palaces of rejoicing, carrying blessing and 
 favour of the king their builder, as their name I gave. 
 
 85. The gates of the director of righteousness, the 
 judge of the kings of the four races ; receivers of the 
 taxes of land and seas, 
 
 86. which cause to enter the production of adnati, 
 to the presence of the king their lord, I proclaimed 
 the names of their gates. 
 
266 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 The third text or rather group of texts of the 
 annals of Tiglath Pileser is from the stone slabs of 
 his palace at Nimroud ; it is in very fragmentary con- 
 dition, and it is very difficult to arrange the fragments 
 in their chronological order. 
 
 Annals of Tiglath Pileser from Palace Slabs, 
 
 Nimroud. 
 
 First fragment. — The Babylonian Expedition, B.C. 745. 
 
 1. . . . Kalani? 
 
 2. . . . city of Sippara 
 
 3 Ruha 
 
 4 dain 
 
 5 Birfcu in the plain, 
 
 6. and Birtu of Kar-belmatati, the Arameans all of 
 them who are beside 
 
 7. the rivers Tigris, Euphrates, and Surappu, 
 
 8. to the midst of the river Ukni .... of the 
 Arameans all of them 
 
 9 9000 men . . . thousand 500 oxen . . * 
 
 10. I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire I 
 burned. The tribe of Rahihu .... 
 
 11. the majesty of Assur my lord overwhelmed 
 them 
 
 12. they came and kissed my feet 
 
 13. The priests of the temples of Saggal, Sidda, 
 and Sidlam .... 
 
 14. the offerings of Bel, Nebo and Nergal to my 
 presence brought .... 
 
J 
 
 TIGLATII PILESER II 2G7 
 
 Secondfragment. — Babylonian and Eastern Expeditions, 
 
 B.C. 745-4. 
 
 1 them and to their country they went, 
 
 those cities a second time I built and upon the mound 
 of Kamri 
 
 2. which the city of Humur is called, a city I built 
 from its foundation to its top I constructed, and I 
 finished it. A palace a seat of my royalty 
 
 3. within it I placed, Kar-assur its name I called. 
 The soldiers of Assur my lord within it I set up, 
 people of countries the conquests of my hand in the 
 midst I placed, 
 
 4. taxes I appointed them, and with the men of 
 Assyria I placed them. The river Patti .... which 
 from days remote had been filled up and 
 
 5 I excavated, and within it I brought 
 
 refreshing waters .... the cities of Dur-kurigalzu, 
 Sipar of Shamas, 
 
 6 Kisik, the tribes of Nakiri and Tane, the 
 
 cities of Kalain by the river Sumandas, the city of 
 Pazitu of the Dunani, Qirbutu 
 
 7 le, Budu, the cities of Pahhaz and Qin- 
 
 nipur, cities of Kar-duniyas to the midst of the river 
 Ukni 
 
 8 I possess, to the borders of Assyria I 
 
 added, my generals as governors over them I ap- 
 pointed, and from among their sheep and cattle 
 
 9 I captured, 240 sheep as an offering to the 
 
2G8 
 
 INSCRIPTION'S OF 
 
 god Assur my lord I dedicated those .... 
 
 which I had carried off, 
 
 10. in the government of the tartan, the govern- 
 ment of the lord of the palace, the government of the 
 rab-bitur, the government of Barhaziya, and the 
 government of Mazamua, 
 
 11 I placed, of one speech I caused them 
 
 to be, and with the men of Assyria I placed them ; the 
 yoke of Assur my lord like the Assyrians 
 
 12 filled .... my .... which in the time 
 
 of the kings my fathers had become desert, 
 
 13. a second time I set in order, and the land of 
 Assyria again .... 
 
 14. the city I built, a palace the seat of my royalty 
 within it I placed 
 
 15. its name I called, the soldiers of Assur my 
 lord within 
 
 16. with the people of Assyria I placed them. A 
 statue of my majesty .... 
 
 17. which by the might of Assur my lord over the 
 countries I had .... 
 
 18. 10 talents of gold as a gift, 1000 talents of 
 silver .... 
 
 19. his tribute I received. In my second year 
 Assur my lord .... 
 
 20. the countries of Bit-zatti, Bit-Abdadani, Bit- 
 sangibuti .... 
 
 21. of my expedition saw, and the city of Nikur 
 his fortress he abandoned .... 
 
 22. I protected, the city of Nikkur the soldiers . . . 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II 
 
 2G0 
 
 23. his horses, his mules, his oxen .... 
 
 24. the cities of Sassiyas, Tutasdi . . . 
 
 if 
 
 Third fragment. — Eastern Wars, B.C. 774? 
 
 1 the cities of Kusianas, Harsu, Sanastiku, 
 
 Kiskitara, Harsai, Aiubak 
 
 2 the mountains of Halihadri, the peaks 
 
 of the mountains they took, after them I pursued, 
 their overthrow I accomplished, 
 
 3 the defiles of the mountains they entered, 
 
 in the fire I burned. The city of Uzhari of Bit-zatti 
 I besieged, I captured. Kaki 
 
 4 city of Kitpattia of Bit-abdadan which 
 
 Tunaku had captured, I besieged, I captured, its spoil 
 
 5. I carried off ... . Mkur and the cities which 
 were round it again I built, people the conquest of 
 my hand in it I placed, 
 
 6. my general governor over them I appointed. 
 The countries of Bit-kapsi, Bit-sangi, Bit-tazzakki 
 like corn I swept ; their warriors numerous 
 
 7. I slew .... ascended. The rest of their 
 soldiers their limbs I cut off, and in the midst of 
 their country I left. 
 
 8 their mules, their oxen, their sheep, and 
 
 their people, without number I carried off. Mitaki 
 
 9 the city of Urdanika entered. The 
 
 cities of Urdanika and Kitipal I captured, himself, 
 his wife, his sons, his daughters, 
 
 10 those cities and the cities round them 
 
270 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire I burned. 
 Battanu son of Kapsi 
 
 11 submitted and took service, to prevent 
 
 my wasting his district. The city Karkarhundir I 
 left to him. 
 
 12 I made. Erisaziasu which against 
 
 Bizhadir of Kisira had revolted, I captured, 
 
 13. its spoil I carried off. Hamatiya of Aragi . . . 
 
 14. he quickly fled, and no one saw him .... 
 
 15. horses, oxen, sheep, good Ukni stone of . . . 
 
 16. the great gods my lords I offered. Tuni of 
 Sumurza .... 
 
 17. I accomplished. His soldiers to escape as- 
 cended .... 
 
 18. Sumurza and Bit-hamban to the borders of 
 Assyria I added .... 
 
 19. I placed. My general governor over them I 
 made .... 
 
 20. to Assur my lord I devoted. The city Ki- 
 zanti which in ... . 
 
 21. I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire I 
 burned. The lords of those cities unsubmissive . . . 
 
 22. 300 talents of Ukni stone, 500 talents of ninzu 
 of copper .... 
 
 23. the tribute of Mannukizabi of the city of Ab- 
 dadan 
 
 24. Mikki of Halpi .... I devoted. Of . . . 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II 
 
 271 
 
 Fourth fragment. — Eastern and Northern Wars, 
 b.c. 744-3. 
 
 1 Bit-ham dan, Sumurzu, Bit-barrua, 
 
 2. Bit-zualzas, Bit-matti, and Niqu of Umliyas, 
 
 3. Bit-tarilai, Persia, Bit-kapsi, and the cities of 
 Zakruti, Bit-istar 
 
 4. Nissa, Gizinkissi, Zibur, Urinna, 
 
 5. the countries of Sapira, Pustus, Ararmi, Dar- 
 sarenihu, 
 
 6. Rua, the mountains to Bit-mun, Uskakka to 
 Likraki, Silhazi 
 
 7. the fortress of the Babylonians, to the borders 
 of Assyria I added. 
 
 8. My generals governors over them I made, and 
 the tribute 
 
 9. of the lords of the Medes all of them to Bikni, 
 I received. 
 
 10. My general Assur-dain-ani to the powerful 
 Medes 
 
 11. who are at the rising of the sun, I sent. 5000 
 horses, people, oxen, 
 
 12. and sheep without number he brought. Sar- 
 duri 
 
 13. of Ararat with me revolted, and with Mati- 
 hilu 
 
 14. son of Agusi set his face. In the neighbour- 
 hood of Kastan and Halpi 
 
 15. districts of Kummuha, his overthrow I struck. 
 His people 
 
272 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 16. and all his camp I captured. The might of 
 my servants he feared, and 
 
 17. to save his life on a mare he rode, and went 
 off. 
 
 18. To the rugged mountains by night he .rode 
 and ascended them. Sarduri 
 
 19. of Ararat in the city of Turuspa his city 
 
 20. I besieged him, his numerous warriors in front 
 of his great gate 
 
 21. I slew. An image of my majesty I made and 
 in front of Turuspa 
 
 22. I raised. For 70 kaspu (about 450 miles) the 
 land of Ararat entirely 
 
 23. from top to bottom I destroyed, and marched 
 through with no resistance. 
 
 24. The lands of Ulluba, and Kirhu of Nahiri the 
 whole of it 
 
 25. I took, to the borders of Assyria I added. 
 An image of my majesty 
 
 26. in Kullimmir I set up. In Ulluba 
 
 27. a city I built, Assur-basa its name I called. 
 People of countries the conquests of my hand 
 
 28. in the midst I placed. My general governor 
 over it I appointed. 
 
 Fifth fragment. — Defeat of Northern Nations, 
 B.C. 743 ? 
 
 1 people the conquest of my hand in it I 
 
 placed • . . . 
 
TIGLATH PILES EE II 
 
 273 
 
 2 in my .... year, Sarduarri of Ararat 
 
 against me revolted .... 
 
 3 with Matihil 
 
 4. Sulumal of Milid, Tartmlara of Ganguma . . . 
 
 5 Kustaspi of Kummuha, to each other's 
 
 power they trusted 
 
 6. in the glory and might of Assur my lord with 
 them I fought, their overthrow I accomplished . . . 
 
 7. their warriors I slew, the clefts and hollows of 
 the mountains I filled with them. Their chariots 
 
 8. their .... without number I carried off. In 
 the midst of the fighting Sarduarri rode on his mare 
 and escaped 
 
 9. my hand captured, 72,950 men . . . people .... 
 
 10. Sarduarri to save his life by night rode away, 
 and his road was not seen .... 
 
 11 to the bridge of the Euphrates, the 
 
 boundary of his country I drove him, and a couch 
 
 12. his royal riding carriage, the seal of his neck, 
 the necklace of his neck, his royal chariot .... 
 
 13 their. . . . all of it numerous, without 
 
 number, his chariot, his horses his mules .... 
 
 14 his .... the army without number 
 
 carried off, a great ship, a mace .... 
 
 15 his .... numerous in the midst of 
 
 his camp, and in the fire I burned. His 
 
 16 his couch to Ishtar the queen of 
 
 Nineveh I dedicated 
 
 T 
 
274 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 Sixth fragment. — Early Syrian Wars, 
 b.c. 743-40. 
 
 Lines 1 to 8 list of conquered cities in the north. 
 9. of Ma ... . 
 
 10. over him I appointed. Of Rezon king of 
 Syria 
 
 11. 18 talents of gold, 300 talents of silver, 200 
 talents of copper 
 
 12. 20 talents of simladunu 300 ... I appointed. 
 The tribute 
 
 13. of Kustaspi of Kummuha, Rezonof Syria, . . . 
 Hirom 
 
 1 4. of Tyre, Uriakki of Que 
 
 15. Pisiris of Carchemesh, Tarhularaof Gaugama, 
 gold, silver, lead, 
 
 16. iron, skins of buffaloes, horns of buffaloes, blue 
 .... black .... clothing of wool and linen, the 
 production of their countries, numerous, 
 
 17. . . . . instruments and weapons .... in the 
 midst of the city of Arpad I received. 
 
 18. Tutamu king of Unqi against my service was 
 wicked, and forfeited his life, 
 
 19 went with me in strength. 
 
 20 of Tutamu and his great men 
 
 21 Kinalia his capital city I captured, 
 
 people and their children 
 
 22 riding horses in my army like sheep I 
 
 distributed. 
 
TIGLATII PILESEB II. 
 
 275 
 
 23 in the midst of the palace of Tutamu 
 
 my throne I placed, 
 
 24. 300 talents of silver .... 1 00 talents .... 
 
 25 clothing of wool and linen, simi 9 the 
 
 furniture of his palace, 
 
 26 Kinalia a second time I took, Unqi to 
 
 its utmost extent I conquered, 
 
 27. my general governor over them I appointed. 
 
 Seventh fragment. — War with Azariah of Judah, 
 about B.C. 739. 
 
 (" Cuneiform Inscriptions" vol. iii. p. 9, No. 2.) 
 
 1 course of my expedition the tribute of 
 
 the kings .... 
 
 2 Azariah of Judah like a . . . . 
 
 3 Azariah of Judah in ... . 
 
 4 without number to high heaven were 
 
 raised .... 
 
 5 in their eyes which as from heaven . . . 
 
 6 war and subdue the feet .... 
 
 7 of the great army of Assyria they heard, 
 
 and their heart feared .... 
 
 8 their cities I pulled down, destroyed . . . 
 
 9 to Azariah turned and strengthened him 
 
 and .... 
 
 10 like an arch .... 
 
 11 fighting .... 
 
 12 he closed his camp .... 
 
 13 were placed and his exit .... 
 
 t 2 
 
276 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 14. .... he brought down and . . , . 
 
 15 his soldiers he drew together to ... . 
 
 16. .... made to surround them and .... 
 
 17. .... his great . . . like 
 
 Eighth fragment. — War in Syria and the East, 
 B.o. 738-7. 
 
 (" Cuneiform Inscriptions" vol. iii. p. 9, No. 3.) 
 1 . . Judah .... 
 
 2. . . . . of Azariah, my hand greatly captured . . 
 
 3. . . . . right .... tribute like that of ... . 
 
 4. .... to his assistance the city of Ma . . . . 
 
 5. . . . the cities of Uznu, Sihanu, Ma, . ka . . bu 
 beside the sea, and the cities to Saua , , , 
 
 6. the mountain which is in Lebanon were divided? 
 the land of Bahalzephon to Ammana, the land of 
 Izku and Saua, the whole of it, the district of Kar- 
 rimmon, 
 
 7. Hadrach, the district of Nuqudina, Hazu, and 
 the cities of the whole of them, the city of Ara .... 
 cities helping them. 
 
 8. the cities of the whole of them the country of 
 Sarbua, the mountain the whole of it, the cities of 
 Ashani and Yadabi, of Yaraqu the mountain the 
 whole of it 
 
 9. the cities of . . . . ri, Ellitarbi and Zitanu, to 
 the midst of the city of Atinni .... Bumami 19 
 districts 
 
 10. of Hamath, and the cities which were round 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II 
 
 277 
 
 them, which are beside the sea of the setting sun, in 
 sin and defiance to Azariah had turned, 
 
 11. to the boundaries of Assyria I added, and my 
 generals governors over them I appointed. 30,300 
 
 12 in their cities and the city of Ku .... 
 
 I caused to take. 1223 people in the district of 
 Ulluba I placed. The tribe of Qura .... 
 
 13 I took the road. The tribe of Qura 
 
 . . . . across the river Zab to capture the Aklami- 
 akkazi and the Gurumi .... 
 
 14 she and the Arameans who were beside 
 
 the river, their warriors they slew, their cities they 
 captured, and their spoil they carried off ... . 
 
 15. . . . she and the Arameans in great numbers 
 came, and a battle they made, and the Arameans his 
 helpers they slew .... 
 
 16 to save his life alone he fled, and 
 
 ascended to the city Birtu of Kiniya. The city of 
 Saragitu .... 
 
 17. and the cities which were round them they 
 took. 12,000 of their people and children, their oxen 
 and sheep, Dira .... 
 
 18. to the land of the Hittites, to my presence they 
 brought. My general the governor of Lulumi, the 
 city of Mulugani .... 
 
 19 Kuri-dannitu of the people of Babylon 
 
 and the cities which were round them he took, their 
 warriors he slew .... 
 
 20 to the land of the Hittites to my pre- 
 
27S INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 sence they brought. My general the governor of 
 Nahiri, the city of Subargillu 
 
 21 and the cities which were round them 
 
 he took, their spoil he carried off. Siqila the com- 
 mander of the fortress 
 
 22 to the land of the Hittites to my pre- 
 sence he brought. 600 women of the city of Amlate 
 of the Damuni, 5400 women of the city of Dur, 
 
 23. in the city of Kunalia .... cities of Huzarra, 
 Tae, Tarmanazi, Kulmadara, Hatarra, Sangillu, 
 
 24. in the country of Unqi I placed .... women 
 of Guti, Beth-sangibuti, 1200 men of the tribe of 
 Illil, 6208 men of the tribes of Nakkap and Buda, 
 
 25 cities of Zimarra, Arqa, Uznu, and 
 
 Siannu which were beside the sea I placed. 588 men 
 of the Buda and Duna 
 
 26 250 men of the Bela, 544 men of the 
 
 Banita, 380 men of Sidu-ilu-ziri, 460 men of Sangillu, 
 
 27 men of the Iliil, 457 women of the Quti, 
 
 and Beth-sangibuti, in the district of Tuhimmi I 
 placed, 555 
 
 28. women of Quti andBeth-sangibuti,in the city of 
 Tul-garimi I placed,with the people of Assyria I joined 
 them, and the performing of service like the Assyrians 
 
 £9. I placed upon them. The tribute of Kustaspi 
 of Kummuha, Rezon of Syria, Menahem of Samaria, 
 
 30. Hirom of Tyre, Sibitti-bahal of Gebal, Urikki 
 of Qui, Pisiris of Carchemesh, Eniel 
 
 31. of Hamath, Panamma of Samhala, Tarhulara 
 of Gauguma, Sulumal of Milid, Dadilu 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II 
 
 279 
 
 32. of Kaska, Vassurmi of Tubal, Ushitti of Tuna, 
 Urpalla of Tuhana, Tuhammi of Istunda, 
 
 33. Urimmi of Husunna, and Zabibi queen of 
 Arabia, gold, silver, lead, iron, skins of buffaloes, 
 horns of buffaloes 
 
 34. clothing of wool and linen, violet wool, purple 
 wool, strong wood, weapon wood,female slaves ? royal 
 treasures, the skins of sheep their fleece of 
 
 35. shining purple, birds of the sky, the feathers of 
 their wings of shining violet, horses, riding horses., 
 oxen and sheep, camels, 
 
 36. sbe camels and young ones, I received. In my 
 9th year Assur my lord protected me, and to the 
 countries of Bit-kipsi, Bit-irangi, 
 
 37. Bit-tazakki, Media, Bit-zualzas, Bit-matti, and 
 Umliyas I went. The cities of Bit-istar, Kingi-kangi, 
 Kindigi-asu, 
 
 38. Kingi-alkasis, Kubushatedis, Ubusu, Ahsi- 
 buna, Girgira, Kimur-bazhatti and the cities 
 
 39. which are round them I captured. Their spoil 
 I carried off, I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire 
 I burned. In those days a colossal monument of the 
 god Ninip I made, and the glory of Assur my lord 
 
 40. upon it I wrote, and in the district of Baha of 
 Bit-istar I set it up. Upas son of Kipsi his people 
 gathered to the land of Abiruz. The mountains I 
 ascended, after him 
 
 41 . I pursued, his warriors I slew, his spoil I carried 
 off. His cities I pulled down, destroyed, and in the 
 fire I burned. Usura .... ruta and Burdada 
 
230 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 42. of Vistakta feared and took to the mountains. 
 After them I pursued, their warriors I slew, their 
 spoil I carried off. Burdada in hand I captured 
 
 43. their cities I pulled down, destroyed, and in the 
 fire I burned. The city of Zibur and the cities which 
 were round it I captured, I carried off the spoil. 
 Tanus 
 
 44. of ... • 
 45 
 
 46 their spoil I carried off . • . . 
 
 47. ... he gathered and to the country of . . . . 
 Dana the mountain .... 
 
 48. I ascended after them, their warriors I slew, 
 their spoil I carried off. Yahu-tarsi .... 
 
 49 of them who fled to the mountains of 
 
 Amat, a district which is at the top of Rua, the 
 mountain of ... . 
 
 f 50. after them I pursued, their warriors I slew, like 
 a single one I took them. The country of Kar-zipya 
 in ... . 
 
 51. they left. After them I pursued, and in the 
 midst of battle like a storm with Vul, I raged over 
 them .... 
 
 52. without number I carried off, not one among 
 them got away, none got up the mountains, the people 
 of Sangibuti .... 
 
 53. which the Babylonians had taken, after them I 
 ascended, and their warriors I slew, their spoil I 
 carried off .... 
 
 54. in the fire I burned. Over the country of Sil- 
 hazi which the Babylonians call the fortress, I . . . 
 
TIQLATR PILE SEE II. 
 
 281 
 
 55. of the country of Tel-assur .... noble offer- 
 ings to the god Merodach of T@l-assur I offered, the 
 city of Argu . . . , 
 
 Ninth fragment. — Northern campaigns. 
 (" Cuneiform Inscriptions" vol. iii. p. 10, No. 1.) 
 
 1 the cities of Hista, Harabisina, Barbaz, 
 
 and Tasa, to the river Ulurus I captured, their 
 warriors I slew. 8650 people, 
 
 2 300 horses, 660 asses, 1350 oxen and 
 
 19,000 sheep I carried off, I pulled down, destroyed, 
 and in the fire I burned. 
 
 3. And those cities to the borders of Assyria I 
 added. Those cities a second time I built, and people 
 the conquest of my hand in the midst of them I 
 placed, 
 
 4 in the midst I raised, and to the govern- 
 
 men of Nairi I added. The cities of Daikangar, 
 Sakka, Ippa, Elisansa, 
 
 5 Lugadangar, Quda, Elugia, Dania, Dan- 
 
 ziun, Ulai, Luqia, Abrania, Evasa, 
 
 6 their warriors I slew, 900 people, 150 
 
 oxen, 1000 sheep, horses, riding horses, and asses I 
 carried off 
 
 7. their cities I pulled down, destroyed, and in 
 the fire I burned. The people of Muqan the col- 
 lecting of my expedition saw, and the city of 
 Ur 
 
 8. which is in the midst of Muqan .... 
 
 9. their sons, their daughters, their families .... 
 
282 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 10. I cut off, and in their country .... 
 
 11. horses, riding horses .... 
 
 12. I pulled down, destroyed, and in the fire I 
 burned . . . 
 
 13. I captured I pulled down, destroyed, and in 
 the fire I burned .... 
 
 14. I captured, their warriors I slew .... 
 
 Tenth fragment. — Defeat of Rezon, Icing of Damascus. 
 
 (Layard's" Inscriptions" plate 72.) 
 
 1. • . . . his warriors I captured .... with the 
 sword I destroyed 
 
 2 rusat .... luri .... before him 
 
 3 the lords of chariots and .... their 
 
 arms I broke and 
 
 4 their horses I captured . . . his warriors 
 
 carrying bows .... 
 
 5 bearing shields and spears, in hand I cap- 
 tured them and their fighting 
 
 6 line of battle. He to save his life fled 
 
 away alone and 
 
 7 like a deer, and into the great gate of his 
 
 city he entered. His generals alive 
 
 8. in hand I captured, and on crosses I raised 
 them. His country I subdued. 45 men of his camp 
 
 9 Damascus his city I besieged, and like a 
 
 caged bird I enclosed him. His forests 
 
 10 the trees of which were without number, 
 
 I cut down and I did not leave one. 
 
TIGLATII PILESEE II 
 
 283 
 
 11 Hadara the house of the father of Rezon 
 
 of Syria, 
 
 12 the city of Samalla T besieged, I cap- 
 tured, 800 people and children of them 
 
 13 their oxen their sheep I carried captive, 
 
 750 women of the city of Kuruzza 
 
 14. .... the city Armai, 550 women of the city 
 
 ofMituna I carried captive, 591 cities 
 
 15 of 16 districts of Syria like a flood I 
 
 swept. 
 
 16 Samsi queen of Arabia who the oath of 
 
 the sun god had broken, and .... 
 
 Eleventh fragment. — War in Palestine. 
 
 1* . • • . sxt . . . . ti 
 
 2 imbalca .... 
 
 3. of the city .... 
 
 4. of the city .... districts of Beth-gu . . . . 
 
 5. of 16 districts of ... . 
 
 6. women of ... . bara, 625 women of the city 
 of ....a... . 
 
 7. 226 women of the city of ... . 
 
 8. w omen of the city of . . . hinatuna, 650 women 
 of the city of Qana .... 
 
 9. 400 women of the city of . . . . atbiti 
 
 10. 656 women of the city of Sasi .... making 
 
 11. 13,520 women of ... . 
 
 12. and their children .... the cities of Aruma 
 and Marum .... 
 
 13. the ruo'^ed mountains .... 
 
284 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 14. Metinti of Azkelon in my service was wicked, 
 and 
 
 15. with, me revolted .... the defeat of Rezon 
 
 1 6. he saw, and in striking .... 
 
 17. his own fear overcame him, and .... he died ? 
 
 18. Eukiptu his son sat in his throne, to ... . 
 
 19. he raised and prayed ? 500 .... 
 
 20. and to his city he entered. 15 cities .... 
 
 21 . Idibihilu the Arabian .... 
 
 Twelfth fragment. — War in Palestine and Arabia. 
 
 (" Cuneiform Inscriptions" vol. iii. p. 10, No. 2.) 
 
 1 the city of Hadrach to the land of Saua 
 
 2 the cities of Zimirra, Arqa, and Zimarra 
 
 3 the cities of Uznu, Sihanu, Rihisuza 
 
 4 the cities beside the upper sea I pos- 
 
 sessed 6 of my generals 
 
 5. as governors over them I appointed ... . as- 
 buna which is beside the upper sea 
 
 6. the cities .... niti, Galhi .... abil .... 
 which is the boundary of the land of Beth Omri 
 
 7 li wide the whole of it to the borders of 
 
 Assyria I joined, 
 
 8. my generals governors over them I appointed 
 Hanun of Gaza 
 
 9. who before the face of my soldiers fled, and to 
 Egypt got away ; Gaza 
 
 10. I captured . . . his furniture, his gods .... 
 and my royal couch 
 
TIG LATH PILESEE II 
 
 2S5 
 
 11. . . . . within his palace .... their gods 1 
 distributed and 
 
 12 I fixed them him like a bird 
 
 13 to his place I restored him 
 
 14 gold, silver, clothing of wool 
 
 and linen 
 
 15. ... . great .... I received. The land of 
 Beth Omri 
 
 16 illut, the tribe .... the goods of its 
 
 people 
 
 17. and their furniture to Assyria I sent. Pekah 
 their king .... and Hoshea 
 
 18. to the kingdom over them I appointed . . . . 
 their tribute of them I received, and 
 
 19. to Assyria I sent. Samsi queen of Arabia 
 
 20 slew, . . . people, 30,000 camels, 
 
 20,000 oxen 
 
 21 5000 simi . . . the country her gods 
 
 22 her goods I captured. She to save her 
 
 life 
 
 23 bazil an arid place like an ass of the 
 
 desert 
 
 Thirteenth fragment. — War in Palestine and AraLia, 
 
 B.C. 734-2. 
 
 (La-yard's " Inscriptions ," p. 66.) 
 
 1 the city .... 
 
 2 to the city Ezasi 
 
 3 Samsi queen of Arabia in the country 
 
 of Saba 
 
2S6 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 4 the people who were in the midst of her 
 
 camp, 
 
 5. the might of my powerful soldiers overwhelmed 
 her, and 
 
 6. camels and she camels .... her present to my 
 presence she sent. 
 
 7. A governor over her I appointed, and the people 
 
 of 
 
 8. Saba to my yoke I subdued. The cities of 
 
 9. Mazha and Tema, of the Sabeans, Hyappa, 
 
 10. Badana, and Hatte, of the Idibihilites, 
 
 11 who are at the boundary of the lands 
 
 of the setting sun (the west) 
 
 12. who have no rivals, and their country is re- 
 mote ; the renown of my dominion and account 
 
 13. of my victories they heard, and submitted to 
 my dominion. Gold, silver, camels, 
 
 14. she camels, and simi 9 their tribute at once to 
 my presence 
 
 15. they brought, and kissed my feet, 
 
 16 Idibihil to the governorship over the 
 
 land of Egypt I appointed, 
 
 17 whom in my former campaigns all their 
 
 cities I had reduced, 
 
 18 his helpers, Samaria alone I left. Pekah 
 
 their king .... 
 
 In spite of the deplorable state in which the annals 
 of this king still remain, the fragments of these records 
 are of the highest interest, the names of Azaiah and 
 Jehoahaz (Ahaz) kings of Judah, of Menahem, Pekah, 
 
TIG LATH PILE SEE II. 
 
 287 
 
 and Hosliea kings of Israel, of Rezon of Damascus, 
 and Hiram of Tyre, show at once their important 
 connexion with the book of Kings, while sufficient 
 remains of the later campaigns to confirm the Bib- 
 lical account of Tiglath Pileser's campaign into Syria, 
 to assist Ahaz king of Judah. The defeat of Rezon 
 king of Syria and the siege of Damascus are described 
 in the tenth fragment ; the conquest of the Philistines 
 is given in the eleventh and twelfth fragments ; the 
 spoiling of Israel, death of Pekah king of Samaria, 
 and accession of Hoshea, are given in the twelfth and 
 thirteenth fragments ; and the general submission 
 of Syria and Palestine is given in the historical 
 tablet, " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. ii. p. 67, lines 
 57 to 63. The details of these and many other 
 events show the value of these annals. Further and 
 systematic excavations at Nimroud would complete 
 these, and so give us invaluable assistance in the 
 study of Jewish history. 
 
Chapter XV* 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF SARGON, 
 
 B.c. 722 to 705, 
 
 Historical cylinder. — Median chiefs. — War with Ashdod — 
 Azuri. — Ahimiti. — Yavan. — Eevolt. — Turning watercourses. — 
 Judah. — Edom.— Moab, — Embassy to Pharaoh. — Egypt's weak- 
 ness. — Advance of Sargon. — Flight of Yavan. — Seal of Sargon. 
 
 ""HE principal inscriptions of Sargon which 
 I discovered are some fragments of an 
 octagonal cylinder, containing a long 
 text of the history of this reign and some 
 dated monuments. The cylinder is full of matter 
 valuable to the historian ; but being very mutilated, I 
 only here give two extracts, one a list of Median 
 chiefs, the other an important campaign, namely, 
 that against Ashdod, which I have restored in two 
 places by comparison with Botta's Inscriptions. 
 
 The list of Median chiefs belongs to the year 
 B.C. 713, and is curious as showing the divided state 
 of Media at that time. These chiefs are : — 
 
 1. Pharnes chief of Sikrana, 
 
 2. Ziturna chief of Musana, 
 
INSCRIPTIONS OF S ARGON. 289 
 
 3. Uppamma chief of Katalina, 
 
 4. Yasdakku chief of Amakki, 
 
 5. Istesuki chief of Isteuppu, 
 
 6. Yarzan chief of Vaqutti, 
 
 7. Aspabara chief of Kakkam, 
 
 8. Sataresu and Qururasu, 
 
 9. chiefs of Tabari, 
 
 10. and Luhbarri, rugged regions* 
 
 11. Satarparnu chief of Ubburia, 
 12* Parkuttti chief of Sidirpattianu, 
 
 13. Ariya chief of Bustu, 
 
 14. Vusra chief of Tutunenu, 
 
 15. Vastakku chief of Amista, 
 
 16. Hardukka chief of Harzianu, 
 
 17. Isteliku and Avariparnu, 
 18> chiefs of Kattanu, 
 
 19. Arbaku chief of Arnasia, 
 
 20. Karuti chief of Turzinu, 
 
 21. . . . panu chief of Barkanu, 
 
 22 chief of Zazaknu, 
 
 23 of Garkasia, 
 
 24 of Partakanu. 
 
 On the next column this cylinder gives the war 
 against Ashdod. 
 
 Account of the expedition of Sargon against Ashdod 
 from the same cylinder completed from Khorsabad 
 texts. 
 
 1. In my ninth expedition to the land beside 
 
 2. the great sea, to Philistia and 
 
 u 
 
29G INSCRIPTIONS OF S AEG ON 
 
 3. Ashdod I went. 
 
 4. Azuri king of Aslidod not to bring tribute, 
 
 5. his heart hardened, and to the kings round him 
 
 6. enemies of Assyria he sent, and did evil. 
 
 7. Over the people round him his dominion I 
 broke, 
 
 8. and carried off . . . . 
 
 9. From that time 
 
 10. Ahimiti son of ... . 
 
 11. his brother before his face over his kingdom 
 
 12. I raised and appointed him. 
 
 13. Taxes and tribute to Assyria 
 
 14. like that of the kings round him 
 
 15. over him I appointed. But the people 
 
 16. evil, not to bring taxes and tribute 
 
 17. their heart hardened and .... 
 
 18. their king they revolted against 
 
 19. and for the good he had done 
 
 20. they drove him away and .... 
 
 21. Yavan not heir to the throne, 
 
 22. to the kingdom over them they appointed. In 
 the throne 
 
 23. of their lord they seated him, 
 
 24. and their cities they prepared 
 
 25. to make war .... 
 
 26. the dominion .... 
 
 27. against capture they fortified 
 
 28. its .... they faced .... 
 
 29. and around it a ditch they excavated. 
 
 30. Twenty cubits (34 feet) in its depth they 
 made it, 
 
INSCRIPTIONS OF S AEG ON. 291 
 
 31. and they brought the waters of the springs in 
 front of the city. 
 
 32. The people of Philistia, Judah, Edom, 
 
 33. and Moab, dwelling beside the sea bringing 
 tribute 
 
 34. and presents to Assur my lord, 
 
 35. were speaking treason* The people and their 
 evil chiefs, 
 
 36. to fight against me unto Pharaoh 
 
 37. the king of Egypt, a monarch who could not 
 save them, 
 
 38* their presents carried and besought his 
 39. alliance. I Sargon the noble prince 
 40* revering the oath of Assur and Merodach, 
 guarding 
 
 41* the honour of Assur; the rivers Tigris and 
 Euphrates 
 
 42. in their full flood my warriors of my guard 
 
 43. entirely I passed over. And he Yavan 
 
 44. their king, who in his own might 
 
 45. trusted, and did not submit to my dominion ; 
 
 46. Of the advance of my expedition to the land of 
 the Hittites heard, and 
 
 47. the majesty of Assur my lord overwhelmed 
 him, and 
 
 48. to the border of Egypt, the shore of the river 
 
 49. at the boundary of Meroe .... under the 
 waters 
 
 50 he took part 
 
 51 a place remote 
 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF S ARGON. 
 
 52. .... he fled away 
 
 53. and his hiding-place was not discovered. The 
 cities of Ashdod and 
 
 [Continued from Botta] 
 
 54. Gimzo of the Ashdodites 
 
 55. I besieged and captured. His gods, his wife, 
 his sons, and his daughters, 
 
 56. his furniture, and goods, and the treasures of 
 his palace, with the people of his country 
 
 57. as a spoil I counted, and those cities a second 
 time 
 
 58. I built. People the conquests of my hands 
 
 59. from the midst of the countries of the rising 
 sun, within them I seated ; and with the people of 
 Assyria I placed them, and they performed my 
 pleasure. 
 
 This expedition against Ashdod took place B.C. 711, 
 during the reign of Hezekiah king of Judah, and it 
 is mentioned in the twentieth chapter of Isaiah, which 
 is dated, verse 1, "In the year that Tartan came 
 unto Ashdod (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent 
 him), and fought against Ashdod and took it." 
 Isaiah in this chapter denounces the conduct of 
 Egypt, and the way in which he speaks of the Egyp- 
 tians and Ethiopians in this and other chapters is 
 remarkably verified by the account given by Sargon 
 of his campaign against Ashdod. Egypt is described 
 in the annals of Sargon as a weak power always 
 stirring up revolts against Assyria, and unable to 
 help or shield the revolters when the Assyrians at- 
 
INSCRIPTIONS OF SARGON. 
 
 293 
 
 tacked them. In those days Egypt was truly a broken 
 reed. The account Sargon gives of the turning of 
 the fountains and water-courses to protect the city of 
 Ashdod strikingly parallels the similar preparations 
 of Hezekiah when he expected an Assyrian invasion, 
 Chronicles II. chap, xxxii. v. 3 and 4, and it is a 
 curious fact that Hezekiah was reigning at this time, 
 and his preparations were made according to the 
 ordinary chronology B.C. 713, only two years before 
 this invasion of Sargon. 
 
 It is also remarkable that the new text of this 
 war gives it as happening in the ninth year of the 
 monarch's reign, whereas the other records of Sargon y X%~7 
 state that it took place in the eleventh year. This 
 makes a variation of two years as to the accession of 
 Sargon, the one copy leading to the date B.C. 722, 
 while the other favours B.C. 720. Shalmaneser, the ' 7*~ * 
 
 predecessor of Sargon, had died n.c. 722, but it is 
 possible that some heir to the throne may have stood 
 in the way of Sargon during the first two years of 
 his rule. 
 
 Among the other new inscriptions of Sargon is a 
 curious inscribed seal, the device on which has the 
 usual royal emblem of the king stabbing a rampant 
 lion. The inscription round the seal reads : — Which 
 Sargon king of Assyria gave to the governor of 
 Irimuni, month Tebet, 25th day, eponymy of Taggil- 
 ana-bel. 
 
 The date of this document was B.C. 715. Some 
 other new and curious texts are on dated tablets, one 
 
294 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF SAB G ON. 
 
 of which leads to the conclusion that the district 
 which the Assyrians called Mazamua (near the Baby- 
 lonian frontier) was the Lulumu of the earlier in- 
 scriptions. 
 
Chapter XVI. 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF SENNACHERIB. 
 b.c. 705 to 681. 
 
 Cylinder C. — Intermediate record. — Titles. — "War with Me- 
 rodach Baladan. — Conquest of Babylonia. — Conquest of Kassi. 
 — Ellipi. — War in Palestine. — Elulias of Zidon. — Zidga of 
 Askelon. — Revolt of Ekron. — Battle with Egyptians. — Hezekiah. 
 — Siege of Jerusalem. — Submission and tribute. — Second Baby- 
 lonian war. — Letter from governor. 
 
 ~HE two expeditions to Assyria brought 
 to light a considerable number of texts 
 and fragments to complete texts of the 
 reign of Sennacherib. Of these I shall 
 choose two for notice ; one a cylinder which I have 
 named Cylinder C, the other a despatch from a local 
 governor to the Assyrian monarch. Some fragments 
 of Cylinder C were already in the British Museum, 
 and I published a notice of them in my " Chronology 
 of the reign of Sennacherib," London, 1871. In my 
 excavations at the palace of Sennacherib I have dis- 
 covered much larger portions of this text, which I 
 am now able to entirely restore. This cylinder is in 
 fact an octagonal prism, the text is very similar to 
 
t 
 
 296 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 that of the Taylor cylinder, and its value consists in 
 the fact that it is intermediate in date between the 
 Bellino and Taylor cylinders. The Bellino cylinder 
 contains the records of two wars, and is dated in the 
 eponymy of Nebu-liha governor of Arbela, B.C. 702, 
 and the Taylor cylinder contains the records of eight 
 wars, being dated in the eponymy of Bel-emur-ani, 
 governor of Carchemesh, B.C. 691. Cylinder C has 
 the records of four wars, two more than the Bellino, 
 and four less than the Taylor, and it is dated in the 
 eponymy of Nabu-dur-uzur governor of Dihnun, 
 B.C. 697, five years later than the Bellino, and six 
 years earlier than the Taylor text. I have here 
 translated the historical portion of the cylinder on 
 the first five faces of the document. 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. Sennacherib the great king, 
 
 2. the powerful king, king of Assyria, 
 
 3. king of the four regions, 
 
 4. the appointed ruler, 
 
 5. worshipper of the great gods, 
 
 6. guardian of right, lover of justice, 
 
 7. maker of peace, 
 
 8. going the right way, 
 
 9. preserver of good. The powerful prince, 
 
 10. the warlike hero, leader among kings, 
 
 11. giant devouring the enemy 
 
 12. breaker of bonds. 
 
SENNACHERIB. 
 
 297 
 
 13. Assur the great mountain an empire un- 
 equalled, 
 
 14. has committed to me, and 
 
 15. over all who dwell in palaces has exalted my 
 servants. 
 
 16. From the upper sea of the setting sun, 
 
 17. to the lower sea of the rising sun, 
 
 18. all the dark races he has subdued to my feet. 
 
 19. and stubborn kings avoided war, 
 
 20. their countries abandoned and like Sudinni 
 birds 
 
 21 fled to desert places. 
 
 22. In my first expedition, of Merodach Baladan 
 
 23. king of Karduniyas, with the army of Elam 
 his helpers, 
 
 24. in the vicinity of Kisu, I accomplished his 
 overthrow. 
 
 25. In the midst of that battle he abandoned his 
 camp, 
 
 26. alone he fled, and his life he saved. 
 
 27. Chariots, horses, carriages, and mules, 
 
 28. which in the midst of the fight he had aban- 
 doned, my hand captured. 
 
 29. Into his palace which is in Babylon, joyfully 
 I entered and 
 
 30. I opened also his treasure house ; gold, silver, 
 
 31. instruments of gold, silver, precious stones, 
 everything, 
 
298 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 32. furniture, and goods without number, abun- 
 dant, his consort, the eunuchs of his palace, 
 
 33. the great men, those who stand in the pre- 
 sence, male musicians, female musicians, 
 
 34. the whole of the people, all there were, 
 
 35. living in his palace, I brought out, and 
 
 36. as spoil I counted. By the might of Assur 
 my lord, 
 
 37. 75 of his strong cities, fortresses of Chaldea, 
 
 38. and 420 small cities which w^ere round them, 
 
 39. I besieged, I captured, I carried off their 
 spoil. 
 
 40. The Urbi, Arameans, and Chaldeans, 
 
 41. who were within Erech, Nipur, Kisu, 
 
 42. Harriskalama, Cutha, and Sippara, 
 
 43. with the sons of the rebel cities, 
 
 44. I brought out and as spoil I counted. 
 
 45. On my return the Tuhumuna, 
 
 46. Ribihu, Yadaqqu, 
 
 47. Ubudu, Kipre, 
 
 48. Malahu, Gurumu, 
 
 49. Ubulu, Damunu, 
 
 50. Gambulu, Hindaru, 
 
 51. Ruhua, Pekod, 
 
 52. Hamranu, Hagarenes, 
 
 53. Nabateans, Lihitau, 
 
 54. and Arameans, not submissive, forcibly 
 
 55. I captured. 208,000 people, small and great, 
 male and female, 
 
 56. horses, mules, asses, 
 
SENNACHERIB. 
 
 299 
 
 57. camels, oxen, and sheep, 
 
 58. which were without number, a great spoil 
 
 59. I carried off to the midst of Assyria. 
 
 60. In the course of my expedition, of Nabu-bel- 
 zikri 
 
 61. governor of Hararati, gold, silver, 
 
 62. great palms, asses, camels, oxen, 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. and sheep, his great present, 
 
 2. I received. The people of Hirimmi, obstinate 
 rebels, 
 
 3. with the sword I destroyed, and one I did not 
 leave. Their corpses 
 
 4. in the dust I threw down, and the whole 
 
 5. of that city I quieted. That district 
 
 6. a second time 
 
 7. I took; 1 ox, 10 sheep, 10 omers of wine, 
 
 8. and 20 omers of first fruits, 
 
 9. to the gods of Assyria 
 
 10. my lords, I appointed for ever. 
 
 11. In my second expedition, Assur my lord pro- 
 tected me, and 
 
 12. to Kassi and Yasubigalla 
 
 13. who from of old to the kings my fathers 
 
 14. were not submissive, I went. In the vast 
 forests 
 
 15. and rugged ground, on a horse I rode ; 
 
300 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 16. my chariots and foot soldiers in waggons I 
 caused to cany ; 
 
 17. difficult places on my feet like a bull I pressed 
 into. 
 
 18. Bit-kilamzah, Hardispi, and Bit-kubatti, 
 
 19. their cities, strong fortresses, I besieged, I 
 captured. 
 
 20. People, horses, mules, asses, 
 
 21. oxen, and sheep, from the midst of them 
 
 22. I brought out, and as spoil I counted, and 
 their small cities 
 
 23. which were without number, I pulled down, 
 destroyed, and reduced to heaps. 
 
 24. The tents, the pavilions, their dwellings, in 
 the fire I burned and 
 
 25. to ruins I brought. The city of Kilamzah, 
 
 26. that for a fortress I took, more than informer 
 days 
 
 27. its walls I strengthened, and people of coun- 
 tries 
 
 28. conquered by my hand in the midst I placed. 
 
 29. The people of Kassi and Yasubigalla 
 
 30. who from the face of my soldiers fled, 
 
 31. from the midst of the mountains I brought 
 down, and 
 
 32. into Hardispi and Bit-kubatti I drove, 
 
 33. to the hand of my general the governor of 
 Arrapha 
 
 34. I appointed them. A tablet I caused to make, 
 and 
 
SEKNA CHE RIB. 
 
 301 
 
 35. the glory acquired by my hand, which over 
 them 
 
 36. I had gained, upon it I caused to write, and 
 
 37. in the midst of the city I set up. The front 
 of my feet 
 
 38. I turned, and to Ellipi I took the road. 
 
 39. Before me Izpabara their king his strong cities 
 
 40. his treasure house he abandoned, and to a dis- 
 tance 
 
 41. he fled. The whole of his wide country like a 
 hailstorm I swept. 
 
 42. Marubisti and Akkad, cities 
 
 43. the house of his kingdom with 34 small cities 
 which were round them, 
 
 44. I besieged, I captured, I pulled down, I de- 
 stroyed, in the fire I burned. 
 
 45. People small and great, male and female, 
 horses, 
 
 46. mules, asses, camels, 
 
 47. oxen, and sheep, without number 
 
 48. I carried off, and until none were left 
 
 49. I caused it to be, and I reduced his country. 
 
 50. The cities of Zizirtu and Kummahlu 
 
 51. strong cities, with the small cities 
 
 52. which were round them, Bit-barru 
 
 53. the district the whole of it, 
 
 54. from the midst of his country I detached, and 
 to the boundaries 
 
 55. of Assyria I added. Elinzas 
 
 56. for a royal city and fortress, that district 
 
302 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 57. I took, and its former name I abolished, and 
 
 58. Kar- Sennacherib I called its name. 
 
 59. People of countries conquered by my hand, 
 
 60. In the midst I placed, in the hand of my 
 general 
 
 61. The governor of Harhar I -appointed. 
 
 62. On my return, 
 
 63. of the Medes remote, 
 
 64. of whom among the kings my fathers, 
 
 65. anyone had not heard the fame of their country, 
 
 66. their great tribute I received ; 
 
 67. to the yoke of my dominion I subjected them. 
 
 Column III. 
 
 1. In my third expedition to the land of the 
 Hittites 1 went. 
 
 2. Elulias king of Zidon, 
 
 3. fear of the might of my dominion overwhelmed 
 him, and 
 
 4. to a distance in the midst of the sea, 
 
 5. he fled, and his country I took. 
 
 6. Great Zidon, 
 
 7. Lesser Zidon, 
 
 8. Bit-sette, Zarephath, 
 
 9. Mahalliba, Hosah, 
 
 10. Achzib, and Accho, 
 
 11. his strong cities, fortresses, walled 
 
 12. and enclosed, his castles; the might of the 
 soldiers 
 
SENNACHERIB. 
 
 303 
 
 13. of Assur my lord overwhelmed them, and 
 they submitted 
 
 14. to my feet. Tubahal in the throne of the 
 kingdom 
 
 15. over them I seated, and taxes and tribute to 
 my dominion 
 
 16. yearly, unceasing, I fixed upon him. 
 
 17. Of Menahem of Samaria, 
 
 18. Tubahal of Zidon, 
 
 19. Abdilihitiof Arvad, 
 
 20. Urumelek of Gubal, 
 
 21. Metinti of Ashdod, 
 
 22. Buduil of Beth Ammon, 
 
 23. Kemoshnatbi ofMoab, 
 
 24. Airammu of Edom, 
 
 25. kings of the Hittites, all of them of the coast, 
 
 26. the whole, their great presents and furniture, 
 
 27. to my presence they carried, and kissed my feet. 
 
 28. And Zidqa king of Askelon, 
 
 29. who did not submit to my yoke ; the gods of 
 the house of his father, himself, 
 
 30. his wife, his sons, his daughters, and his 
 brothers, the seed of the house of his father, 
 
 31. I removed, and to Assyria I sent him. 
 
 32. Sarludari son of Rukibti their former king, 
 
 33. over the people of Askelon I appointed, 
 
 34. and the gift of taxes due to my dominion, 
 
 35. I fixed on him, and he performed my pleasure. 
 
 36. In the course of my expedition, Beth Dagon, 
 Joppa, 
 
304 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 37. Bene-berak and Azor, 
 
 38. cities of Zidqa, 
 
 39. which to my feet homage did not render, 
 
 40. I besieged, I captured, I carried off their spoil. 
 
 41 . The priests, princes, and people of Ekron, 
 
 42. who Padi their king, faithful 
 
 43. and steadfast to Assyria, in bonds of iron 
 
 44. placed and to Hezekiah 
 
 45. king of Judah gave him as an enemy ; 
 
 46. for the evil they did their hearts feared. 
 
 47. The kings of Egypt, and the archers, 
 
 48. chariots, and horses, of the king of Meroe, 
 
 49. a force without number gathered and 
 
 50. came to their help. 
 
 51. In the vicinity of Eltekeh, 
 
 52. before me their lines were placed, 
 
 53. and they urged on their soldiers. 
 
 54. In the service of Assur my lord, with them 
 
 55. I fought, and I accomplished their overthrow. 
 
 56. the charioteers and sons of the kings of Egypt, 
 
 57. and the charioteers of the king of Meroe, 
 
 58. alive in the midst of the battle my hand cap- 
 tured. 
 
 59. Eltekeh and Timnah I besieged, I captured, 
 
 60. I carried off their spoil. To Ekron 
 
 61. I approached; the priests and princes, 
 
 62. who the rebellion had made, with the sword I 
 slew, 
 
 63. and in heaps over the whole of the city I threw 
 down their bodies. 
 
SENNA CIIEEIB. 
 
 305 
 
 64. The sons of the city doing this ani the revilers 
 
 65. into slavery I gave ; the rest of them 
 
 66. not making rebellion and defiance, 
 
 67. who of their section were not, 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. their innocence I proclaimed. Padi their king 
 
 2. from the midst of Jerusalem 
 
 3. I brought out and on the throne of dominion 
 
 4. over them I seated, and tribute 
 
 5. to my dominion I fixed upon him. 
 
 6. And Hezekiah of Judah, 
 
 7. who did not submit to my yoke, 
 
 8. 46 of his strong cities, fortresses, and small 
 cities 
 
 9. which were round them, which were without 
 number, 
 
 10. with the marching of a host and surrounding 
 of a multitude, 
 
 11. attack of ranks, force of battering rams, mining 
 and missiles, 
 
 12. I besieged, I captured. 200,150 people, small 
 and great, male and female, 
 
 13. horses, mules, asses, camels, oxen, 
 
 14. and sheep, which were without number, from 
 the midst of them I brought out, and 
 
 15. as spoil I counted. Him like a caged bird 
 within Jerusalem 
 
 16. his royal city I had made, towers round him 
 
 x 
 
306 
 
 INSCBIPTIONS OF 
 
 17. I raised, and the exit of the great gate of his 
 city I shut and 
 
 18. he was conquered. His cities which I spoiled 
 from the midst of his country 
 
 19. I detached, to Metinti king of Ashdod, 
 
 20. Padi king of Ekron, and Zillibel 
 
 21. king of Gaza, I gave, and I reduced his country. 
 
 22. Beside their former taxes, their annual gift 
 
 23. the tribute due to my dominion I added and 
 
 24. fixed upon them. He Hezekiah 
 
 25. fear of the might of my dominion overwhelmed 
 him, and 
 
 26. the Urbi and his good soldiers 
 
 27. whom to be preserved within Jerusalem 
 
 28. he had caused to enter, and they inclined 
 
 29. to submission, with 30 talents of gold, 
 
 30. 800 talents of silver, precious carbuncles, 
 
 31. daggasi, great .... stones, 
 
 32. couches of ivory, elevated thrones of ivory, 
 
 33. skins of buffaloes, horns of buffaloes, izdan, 
 izku, 
 
 34. everything a great treasure, and 
 
 35. his daughters, the eunuchs of his palace, male 
 musicians, and female musicians 
 
 36. to the midst of Nineveh the city of my dominion 
 
 37. after me he sent, and 
 
 38. to give tribute 
 
 39. and make submission, he sent his messenger. 
 
 40. In my fourth expedition Assur my lord 
 
SENNACHERIB. 
 
 307 
 
 41. protected me, and my army 
 
 42. powerful I gathered and to the land of Bit-yakin 
 
 43. I commanded to go. In the course of my 
 expedition, 
 
 44. of Suzub the Chaldean, dwelling within the 
 lakes, 
 
 45. in the city of Bit- tut I accomplished his over- 
 throw. 
 
 46. He the might of my attack 
 
 47. against him found, and his heart was cast down; 
 
 48. like a bird, alone he fled, and his place was 
 not seen. 
 
 49. The front of my feet I turned and 
 
 50. to Bit-yakin I took the road. 
 
 51. He Merodach Baladan, of whom in the course 
 
 52. of my former expedition his overthrow I had 
 accomplished, and 
 
 53. dispersed his forces ; 
 
 54. the march of my powerful soldiers, 
 
 55. and the shock of my fierce attack he avoided, 
 and 
 
 56. the gods ruling in his country in their shrines 
 he gathered, and 
 
 57. in ships he caused to sail, and 
 
 58. to Nagiti-raqqi which is in the midst of the sea, 
 
 59. like a bird he fled. 
 
 60. His brothers the seed of the house of his father, 
 
 61. whom he had left beside the sea, and the rest 
 of the people of his country, 
 
 x 2 
 
308 
 
 iJsrscEiPTiojsrs of 
 
 Column V. 
 
 1 . from Bit-yakin in the lakes and swamps 
 
 2. I brought out and as spoil I counted. I 
 returned, and his cities I pulled down, 
 
 3. destroyed, and reduced to ruins. Upon his ally 
 
 4. the king of Elam terror I struck. 
 
 5. On my return, Assuivnadin-sum 
 
 6. my eldest son the child of my knees, 
 
 7. on the throne of his dominion I seated, and 
 the extent of Sumir and Akkad 
 
 8. I entrusted to him. 
 
 9. Among the spoil of those countries which 
 I carried off, 
 
 10. 15,000 bows and 15,000 spears 
 
 11. from the midst of them I selected and 
 
 12. over the body of my kingdom I spread. 
 
 13. The rest of the spoil of the rebels abundant, 
 
 14. to the whole of my camp, my governors, 
 
 15. and the people of my great cities, 
 
 16. like sheep I distributed. 
 
 The remainder of this text describes the neglect 
 into which the city of Nineveh had fallen, and the 
 works undertaken by Sennacherib to restore it. In 
 this labour he used the captives taken in his expedi- 
 tions, and he gives these as the Chaldeans, Arameans, 
 Mannians, people of Que and Cilicia, the Philistines, 
 and the Tyrians. 
 
 There is in the new collection a curious despatch 
 to Sennacherib from Pahir-bel the governor of Amida 
 (Amadiya), the first part of which I have translated. 
 
SENNACHERIB. 
 
 309 
 
 Despatch from Pahir-bel to Sennacherib. 
 
 1. To the king my lord, thy servant Pahir-bel. 
 
 2. May there be peace to the king my lord, 
 
 3. peace to the country of the king, 
 
 4. peace to the fortresses. 
 
 5. May the heart of the king my lord be well. 
 
 6. Concerning the news of Ararat (Armenia) 
 
 7. the daili I send. 
 
 8. He came here with this, 
 
 9. and told that the governor 
 
 10. of Butunni, and the second in command, • 
 
 11. sent him. In the city of Harda 
 
 12. before the officer a watch they kept, 
 
 13. and from city to city, to the city of Turuspa. 
 
 14. Before that thou writest, 
 
 15. and the messenger of Argisti came 
 ] 6. also about the matter, the news 
 
 17. I sent to thee ; and the matter 
 
 18. also thou didst not decide, and thy horses 
 
 19. which were committed to the messenger, 
 
 20. I sent. 
 
 Amida, the head of the government of Pahir-bel 
 was near the Armenian frontier ; Butunni, the dis- 
 trict mentioned, was in the same region, the city of 
 Turuspa was near the modern city of Van, on the 
 lake of Van. It was the capital of Ararat or Armenia, 
 a country generally hostile to Assyria. Argisti was 
 king of Armenia in the time of Sennacherib. After 
 
H10 INSCRIPTIONS OF SENNACHERIB. 
 
 the murder of Sennacherib by his two sons, they fled 
 into the land of Armenia. 
 
 The new collection contains several other docu- 
 ments of the reign of Sennacherib. 
 
Chapter XVII. 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF ESARH ADDON, 
 b.c. G81 to 668. 
 
 New texts. — Wars with Tirhakah.— Bahal of Tyre. — March 
 through Palestine. — Meroe. — Desert. — Want of water. — Long 
 marches. — Conquest of Egypt. — Wars of Sennacherib. — Suzub. 
 — Elamites. — Plunde of temple of Bel. — Babylonian dated 
 tablet. 
 
 HERE are several new and important 
 texts of Esarhaddon in the new col- 
 lection. Most of these are not yet 
 copied and translated ; I have therefore 
 only chosen two for my present work, which I have 
 joined together, partly from the old collection and 
 partly from the new. The first text gives an account 
 of the operations of Esarhaddon against Tirhakah 
 king of Egypt and Ethiopia, whom he conquered in 
 his tenth expedition (about B.C. 672). 
 1. That .... a second time I . . . . 
 2 I placed. Bihilu .... 
 
 3. Bel-idina in the city of Kullimmir .... 
 
 4. to the borders of Assyria added .... 
 
 5. tribute to my dominion .... 
 
312 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 6. In my lOtli expedition the God . . . • 
 
 7. I set my face to the country of Magan (and 
 Miluhha?) .... 
 
 8. which in the language of the people of Kush 
 (Ethiopia) and Muzur (Egypt) are called .... 
 
 9. I collected my powerful army which within . . . 
 
 10. In the month Nisan the first month, from my 
 city Assur I departed, the rivers Tigris and Euphrates 
 in their flood I crossed over, 
 
 11. difficult countries like a bull I passed through. 
 
 12. In the course of my expedition against Bahal 
 king of Tyre who to Tirhakah king of Kush his 
 country entrusted, and 
 
 13. the yoke of Assur my lord threw off and made 
 defiance ; 
 
 14. fortresses over against him I built and food and 
 drink to save their lives, I cut off. 
 
 15. From the land of Muzur (Egypt) my camp I 
 collected 5 and to the country of Miluhha (Meroe) I 
 directed the march, 
 
 1C. 30 kaspu of ground (200 miles) from the city 
 of Aphek which is at the border of Samaria to the 
 city of Raphia, 
 
 J 7. to the boundary of the stream of Muzur 
 (Egypt), a place where there was no water, a very 
 great desert. 
 
 18. Water from wells in buckets for my army I 
 caused to carry. 
 
 19. When the will of Assur my lord into my ears 
 entered .... my mind, 
 
ESABIIADDOK 
 
 313 
 
 20. The camels of the kings of Arabia all of them 
 . . . . them 
 
 21. 30 kaspu of ground a journey of 15 days in . . . 
 I pursued 
 
 22. 4 kaspu of ground with boulder stones . . . . 
 I went 
 
 23. 4 kaspu of ground a journey of 2 days, with 
 serpents having two heads .... death and 
 
 24. I trampled on and passed. 4 kaspu of ground 
 a journey of 2 days .... burning .... 
 
 25. of winged flies. 4 kaspu of ground a journey 
 of 2 days .... full 
 
 26. 15 kaspu of ground a journey of 8 days I pur- 
 sued .... a journey. 
 
 27. Merodach the great lord to my aid came . . . . 
 
 28. and saved the lives of my soldiers. 27 days . . . 
 
 29. of the border of Egypt the city of Magan .... 
 
 30. From the city of Makan to ... . 
 
 31. a measure of 20kaspu of ground I pursued 
 
 32. that ground was like stone .... 
 
 33. like fowl with maces .... 
 
 34. blood and marrow .... 
 
 35. The obstinate enemy to ... . 
 
 36. to the city it swept .... 
 
 This text, unfortunately fragmentary, gives the 
 description of Esarhaddon's campaign, commencing 
 with his starting from Assyria ; he crossed the Tigris 
 and Euphrates, and first attacked the city of Tyre. 
 After blockading Tyre, which had joined Tirhakah 
 king of Ethiopia against the Assyrian power, Esar- 
 
314 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 haddon marclied from Aphek in the north of Pales- 
 tine to Raphia on the Egyptian border. Already 
 here he felt the want of water ; but yet he tried a 
 march through the desert to reach Miluhha or Meroe. 
 In this journey the Assyrian army suffered severely 
 from the nature of the ground travelled over, the 
 noxious animals met with, and the want of water. It 
 is uncertain if Esarhaddon succeeded in his expedi- 
 tion against Meroe, the stronghold of Tirhakah ; and 
 it is probable, at least, that the expedition produced 
 no permanent results, and that Esarhaddon had to 
 content himself with the possession of Egypt from 
 the sea up to Thebes, which he appears to have gained 
 in his previous expedition b o. 673, the expedition in 
 B.C. 672 being his second against Tirhakah. 
 
 Among the other new texts of Esarhaddon are 
 long descriptions of his father's wars in Chaldea 
 against Suzub, the Chaldean and Umman-minan king 
 of Elam, of the plundering of the Babylonian temples 
 to satisfy the Elamite allies of the Babylonians, of 
 the ruin of Babylon in the time of Sennacherib, and 
 of his own restoration of the temples and city. 
 
 The following is a translation of the principal of 
 these texts : — 
 
 1. The Chaldean rebels disregarding 
 
 agreements, 
 
 2. a chief subject to the governor of the city of 
 Lahiri, who in the midst of the days of my father 
 
 3. before the face of the advance and attack of 
 the Assyrian generals, like a bird had fled and 
 
ESARHADDON. 
 
 315 
 
 4. came to misfortune ; in revolt and .... to the 
 city of Babylon entered and 
 
 5. joined with them. Over them they raised him, 
 and the empire of Sumir and Akkad they com- 
 mitted to him. 
 
 6. To Babylon with many sinners he joined, and 
 he Suzub the Chaldean of unknown parentage 
 
 7. the low chief, who possessed no power, to the 
 kingdom of Babylon was appointed. 
 
 8. The sons of Babylon who revolt had made, the 
 Chaldeans, Arameans, .... Arabuku, fugitives, 
 
 9. who by force and bribes, with them they caused 
 to unite, .... and made agreement ; 
 
 10. the house of the furniture of the temples of 
 Saggal they opened, and silver, gold, and precious 
 stones, of the gods Bel and Zirit-banit 
 
 11. and the gifts of furniture and goods they 
 brought out, and sent to Umman-minan king of Elam 
 
 12. who knew not wisdom and judgment. An 
 agreement with them he made and the present took 
 and 
 
 13. made a promise to gather his people, to pre- 
 pare his camp and assemble his chariots .... 
 
 14. His people he gathered, his chariots and car- 
 riages he prepared, his horses and mules he fastened 
 to his yoke, 
 
 15. The countries of Persia Anzan, Pasiru Ellipu 
 (here follows the list of countries subject to Elam 
 the people of which came with Umman-minan to 
 assist the Babylonians against Sennacherib father of 
 
31G INSCRIPTIONS OF ESABHADDOY. 
 
 Esarhaddon. The text in this part is mutilated, but 
 the rest of the history is given on the Taylor cylinder, 
 " Cuneiform Inscriptions," vol. i. p. 41). 
 
 Esarhaddon proclaimed himself king of Babylon as 
 well as Assyria, and the Babylonian contract tablets 
 of his time are dated in the years of his reign. I pro- 
 cured one of these from Babylon, dated " In the city 
 of Babylon, month Iyyar, day 22nd, 4th year of Esar- 
 haddon king of Babylon." Another tablet I pur- 
 chased in Hillah is the only known text of the reign 
 of Saulmugina, son of Esarhaddon, who succeeded 
 his father on the Babylonian throne, B.C. 668 ; this is 
 dated City of Babylon, month .... 29th day, 14th 
 year of Saulmugina 
 
 Late in his reign, Esarhaddon associated with him- 
 self on the Assyrian throne his eldest son, Assur- 
 banipal, who is mentioned with his father on some 
 of the new texts. 
 
Chapter XVIII. 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF ASSURBANIPAL, 
 b.c. 668 to 626. 
 
 Greek Sardanapalus. — Library. — Former publication. — 
 Egyptian history. — Sabako. — Tirhakah. — Undamane. — Text. — 
 Titles. — Campaign against Tirhakah. — Revolt of Egypt. — Death 
 of Tirhakah. — Undamane. — Second Egyptian campaign. — Siege 
 of Tyre. — Arvad. — Gyges of Lydia. — Psammitichus. — War with 
 Minni. — War with Elrm. — Revolt of Babylon. — Wars with 
 Elam. — Restoration of Nana. — Arabian war. — Armenian em- 
 bassy. — Restoration of palace. — Restoration of temples. — Brick 
 iroin Babylon. 
 
 "SSURBANIPAL, the Sardanapalus of 
 the Greeks, was the greatest and most 
 celebrated of Assyrian monarchs. He 
 was the principal patron of Assyrian 
 literature, and the greater part of the grand library 
 at Nineveh was written during his rei^n. The fra?;- 
 ments and texts of Assurbanipal in the new collec- 
 tion are very numerous. I only select two of these, 
 to show the character of these records, — one the 
 cylinder containing his history, which I have named 
 
318 
 
 INSCRIPTION'S OF 
 
 Cylinder A, and the other his account of the restora- 
 tion of the Babylonian temples. 
 
 Cylinder A I have twice published previously, — 
 once in my history of Assurbanipal, and a second 
 time, with the additions and corrections derived from 
 my first journey to Assyria, in the " Records of the 
 Past," vol. i. I have now some important copies of 
 this text, giving new information and variant pas- 
 sages, one remarkable new point being that Sabako 
 the Ethiopian king of Egypt is mentioned, and his 
 relationship to the other monarchs of this dynasty is 
 stated ; the result of this information may be shown 
 by the following table : — 
 
 ! ) 
 Sabaku king of Egypt Sister Tirhakah king 
 
 andEthiopiamar- of Tir- of Egypt and 
 
 ries sister of T. hakah Ethiopia 
 
 their issue 
 
 Undamane king of 
 
 Egypt and Ethiopia, successor 
 
 of Tirhakah 
 
 The cylinder of Assurbanipal is also one of the 
 finest Assyrian historical documents, and shows the 
 Assyrian view of the politics of that day. 
 
A SS JJR B A NIP A L. 
 
 310 
 
 History of Assurbanipal on Cylinder A (new text, with 
 variants from other copies). 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. I am Assurbanipal the progeny of Assur and 
 Beltis, 
 
 2. son of the great king of Riduti, 
 
 3. whom Assur and Sin lord of crowns from days 
 remote 
 
 4. prophesying his name, have raised to the king- 
 dom ; 
 
 5. and in the womb of his mother, have created 
 him to rule Assyria. 
 
 6. Shamas, Vul, and Ishtar, in their supreme 
 power, 
 
 7. commanded the making of his kingdom. 
 
 8. Esarhaddon king of Assyria the father my 
 begetter, 
 
 9. the will of Assur and Beltisthe gods his pro- 
 tectors, praised, 
 
 10. who commanded him to make my kingdom. 
 
 11. In the month Iyyar, the month of Hea lord of 
 mankind, 
 
 12. on the 12th day, a fortunate day, the festival 
 of Bal ; 
 
 1 3. in performance of the important message which 
 Assur, 
 
 14. Beltis, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, 
 
 15. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
320 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 16. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 had spoken, 
 
 17. lie gathered the people of Assyria, small and 
 great, 
 
 IS. and of the upper and lower sea, 
 
 19. to the consecration of my royal sonship ; 
 
 20. and afterwards the kingdom of Assyria I 
 ruled. 
 
 21. The worship of the great gods I caused to be 
 offered to them, 
 
 22. I confirmed the covenants. 
 
 23. With joy and shouting 
 
 24. I entered into Kiduti the palace, 
 
 25. the royal property of Sennacherib the grand- 
 father my begetter, 
 
 26. the son of the great king who ruled the 
 kingdom within it, 
 
 27. the place where Esarhaddon the father my 
 begetter, 
 
 28. within it grew up and ruled the dominion of 
 Assyria. 
 
 29 and the family increased 
 
 30 
 
 31. I Assurbanipal within it preserved 
 
 32. the wisdom of Nebo all the royal tablets, 
 
 33. the whole of the clay tablets all there were, 
 th^ir subjects I studied. 
 
 34. I collected arrows, bows, carriages, horses, 
 
 35. chariots, their furniture, and fittings. By the 
 will of the great gods 
 
ASS URBANIPAL. 
 
 321 
 
 36. who . . . . I proclaimed their laws, 
 
 37. they commanded the making of my kingdom, 
 
 38. the embellishing of their temples they en- 
 trusted to me, 
 
 39. for me they exalted my dominion, and de- 
 stroyed my enemies. 
 
 40. The man of war, the delight of Assur and 
 Ishtar, 
 
 41. the royal offspring am I. 
 
 42. When Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, 
 Ishtur of Nineveh, 
 
 43. Sarrat-kitmuri, Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Ner- 
 gal, and Nusku, 
 
 44. firmly seated me on the throne of the father 
 my begetter, 
 
 45. Vul poured down his rain, Hea feasted his 
 people. 
 
 46. fivefold the seed bore in its ear, 
 
 47. the surplus grain was two-thirds, the crops 
 were excellent, 
 
 48. the corn abundant, my face was pleased with 
 the raising of the harvest, 
 
 49 cattle were good in multiplying, 
 
 50. in my seasons there was plenty, in my years 
 famine was ended. 
 
 51. In my first expedition to Makan 
 
 52. and Miluhha I went. Tirhakah king of Egypt 
 and Ethiopia, 
 
 53. of whom Esarhaddon king of Assyria, the 
 
 Y 
 
822 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 father my begetter, his overthrow had accom- 
 plished, 
 
 54. and had taken possession of his country ; he 
 Tirhakah 
 
 55. the power of Assur, Ishtar and the great gods 
 my lords 
 
 56. despised, and trusted to his own might. 
 
 57. Of the kings and governors, whom in the 
 midst of Egypt, 
 
 58. the father my begetter had appointed ; to slay, 
 plunder, 
 
 59. and to capture Egypt, he came against them. 
 
 60. He entered and sat in Memphis, 
 
 61. the city which the father my begetter had 
 taken, and to the boundaries 
 
 62. of Assyria had added. I was going in state 
 in the midst of Nineveh, 
 
 63. and one came. and repeated this to me. 
 
 64. Over these things 
 
 65. my heart was bitter, and much afflicted. 
 
 66. By command of Assur and the goddess As- 
 suritu 
 
 67. I gathered my powerful forces, 
 
 68. which Assur and Ishtar had placed in my 
 hands ; 
 
 69. to Egypt and Ethiopia I directed the march. 
 
 70. In the course of my expedition, 22 kings 
 
 71. of the side of the sea, and middle of the sea, 
 
 all 
 
 72. tributaries dependent upon me, 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 323 
 
 73. to my presence came and kissed my feet. 
 
 74. Those kings .... of them, 
 
 75. on sea and land their roads I took, 
 
 76. the level path .... them. 
 
 77. for the restoration of the kings and governors, 
 
 78. who in the midst of Egypt were tributaries 
 dependent on me ; 
 
 79. quickly I descended and went to Karbanit. 
 
 80. Tirhakah king of Egypt and Ethiopia, in the 
 midst of Memphis, 
 
 81. of the progress of my expedition heard; and 
 to make war, 
 
 82. fighting, and battle, to my presence he gathered 
 the men of his army. 
 
 83. In the service of Assur, Ishtar, and the great 
 gods my lords, 
 
 84. On the wide battle-field I accomplished the 
 overthrow of his army. 
 
 85. Tirhakah in the midst of Memphis, heard of 
 the defeat of his army ; 
 
 86. the terror of Assur and Ishtar overcame him, 
 and 
 
 87. he went forward, fear of my kingdom 
 
 88. overwhelmed him, and his gods glorified me 
 before my camp. 
 
 89. Memphis he abandoned, and to save his. life 
 
 90. he fled into Thebes. That city I took, 
 
 91. my army I caused to enter and rest in the 
 midst of it. 
 
 92. Necho king of Memphis and Sais, 
 
 y 2 
 
324 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 93. Sar-ludari king of Pelusium, 
 
 94. Pisan-hor king of Natho, 
 
 95. Paqruru king of Pi-supt, 
 
 96. Pukkunanni-hapi king of Athribis, 
 
 97. Nech-ke king of Henins, 
 
 98. Petubastes king of Tanis, 
 
 99. Unamuna king of Natho, 
 
 100. Horsiesis king of Sebennytus, 
 
 101. Buaiuva king of Mendes, 
 
 102. Sheshonk king of Busiris, 
 
 103. Tnepkach thus king of Bunubu, 
 
 104. Pukkunanni-kapi king of Akhni, 
 
 105. Iptihardesu king of Pi-zattihurunpiku, 
 
 106. Necht-hor-ansini king of Pi-sabdinut, 
 
 107. Bukur-ninip king of Paehnut, 
 
 108. Zikha king of Siyout, 
 
 109. Lamintu king of Chemmis, 
 
 110. Ispimathu king of Abydos, 
 
 111. Munti-mi-anche king of Thebes. 
 
 112. These kings, prefects, and governors, 
 
 113. whom in the midst of Egypt, the father my 
 begetter had appointed ; 
 
 114. who before the advance of Tirhakah 
 
 115. their appointments had left, and fled to the 
 desert, 
 
 116. I restored, and the places of their appoint- 
 ments 
 
 117. in their possessions, I appointed them. 
 
 118. Egypt and Ethiopia, which the father my 
 begetter had captured, 
 
ASSURBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 325 
 
 119. again I took, the bonds more than in former 
 days 
 
 120. I strengthened, and I made covenants. 
 
 121. With abundant plunder and much spoil 
 
 122. in peace I returned to Nineveh. 
 
 123. Afterwards all those kings whom I had 
 appointed, 
 
 124. sinned against me, they did not keep the 
 oath of the great gods, 
 
 Column II. 
 
 1. the good I did to them they despised, 
 
 2. and their hearts devised evil. 
 
 3. Seditious words they spoke, and 
 
 4. evil council they counselled among themselves, 
 
 5. thus : " Tirhakah from the midst of Egypt 
 
 6. is cut off, and to us our seats are numbered.' * 
 
 7. Unto Tirhakah king of Ethiopia 
 
 8. to make agreement and alliance 
 
 9. they directed their messengers, 
 
 10. thus : " May an alliance by this treaty be 
 established, and 
 
 11. we will help each other. 
 
 12. The country on the other side we will 
 strengthen, and 
 
 13. may there not be in this treaty, any other 
 lord." 
 
 14. Against the army of Assyria the force of my 
 dominion, 
 
323 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 15. which to their aid had been raised, they 
 devised 
 
 16. a wicked plot. My generals of this plot 
 
 17. heard; their messengers 
 
 18. and their despatches they captured, and saw 
 
 19. their seditious work. These kings 
 
 20. they took, and in bonds of iron and fetters of 
 iron, 
 
 21. bound their hands and feet. The oath of 
 Assur king of the gods, 
 
 22. took those who sinned 
 
 23. against the great gods, who had sought the 
 good of their hands, and 
 
 24. who had given them favours ; 
 
 25. and the people of Sais, Mendes, Zoan 
 
 26. and the rest of the cities, all with them re- 
 volted and 
 
 27. devised an evil design. Small and great with 
 the sword they caused to be destroyed, 
 
 28. one they did not leave in the midst. 
 
 29. Their corpses they threw down in the dust, 
 
 30 they destroyed the towers of the cities. 
 
 31. These kings who had devised evil 
 
 32. against the army of Assyria, alive to Nineveh 
 
 33. into my presence they brought. 
 
 34. To Necho .... of them, 
 
 35. favour I granted him, and a covenant .... 
 
 36. observances stronger than before I caused to 
 be restored, and with him I sent 
 
 37. costly garments I placed upon him, ornaments 
 of gold 
 
A £ S TIB B A NIB A L. 
 
 327 
 
 38. his royal image I made for him, bracelets of 
 gold I fastened on his limbs, 
 
 39. a steel sword its sheath of gold, 
 
 40. in the glory of my name more than I write, I 
 gave him. 
 
 41. Chariots, horses, and mules, 
 
 42. for his royal riding I appointed him, 
 
 43. my generals as governors 
 
 44. to assist him, with him I sent. 
 
 45. The place where the father my begetter, in 
 Sais to the kingdom had appointed him, 
 
 46. to his district I restored him, 
 
 47. and Neboshazban his son, in Athribes I ap- 
 pointed. 
 
 48. Benefits and favours, beyond those of the 
 father my begetter, 
 
 49. I caused to restore and gave to him. 
 
 50. Tirhakah from the place fled, 
 
 51. the might of the soldiers of Assur my lord 
 overwhelmed him, and 
 
 52. he went to his place of Night (i. e. died). 
 
 53. Afterwards, Undamane son of Sabako 
 
 54. sat on his royal throne. 
 
 55. The cities of Thebes and Hermopolis his for- 
 tresses he made, 
 
 56. and gathered his forces 
 
 57. to fight the army of the sons of Assyria, 
 
 58. who within Memphis gathered in the midst 
 of it. 
 
 59. Those people he besieged and took the whole 
 of them, and 
 
32S INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 60. a swift messenger to Nineveh came and told 
 me. 
 
 61. In my second expedition to Egypt and 
 Ethiopia 
 
 62. I directed the march. Undamane 
 
 63. of the progress of my expedition heard, and 
 that I had crossed over 
 
 64. the borders of Egypt. Memphis he aban- 
 doned, and 
 
 65. to save his life he fled into Thebes. 
 
 66. The kings, prefects, and governors, whom in 
 Egypt I had set up, 
 
 67. to my presence came, and kissed my feet, 
 
 68. After Undamane the road I took, 
 
 69. I went to Thebes the strong city. 
 
 70. The approach of my powerful army he saw, 
 and Thebes he abandoned, 
 
 71. and fled to Kipkip. That city (Thebes) 
 
 72. the whole of it, in the service of Assur and 
 Ishtar my hands took ; 
 
 73. silver, gold, precious stones, the furniture of 
 his palace, all there was, 
 
 74. garments of wool and linen, great horses, 
 
 75. people male and female, 
 
 76. two lofty obelisks covered with beautiful 
 carving, 
 
 77. 2,500 talents {over 90 tons) their weight, 
 standing before the gate of a temple, 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 329 
 
 78. from their places I removed and brought to 
 Assyria. 
 
 79. The spoil great and unnumbered. I carried off 
 from the midst of Thebes. 
 
 80. Over Egypt and Ethiopia, 
 
 81. my soldiers I caused to march, and 
 
 82. I acquired glory. With a full hand 
 
 83. peacefully I returned to Nineveh the city of 
 my dominion. 
 
 84. In my third expedition, against Bahal king of 
 Tyre, 
 
 85. dwelling in the midst of the sea, I went; who 
 my royal will 
 
 86. disregarded, and did not hear the words of 
 my lips. 
 
 87. Towers round him I raised, 
 
 88. on sea and land his roads I took, 
 
 89. their spirits I humbled and caused to melt 
 away, 
 
 90. to my yoke I made them submissive. 
 
 91. The daughter proceeding from his body, and 
 the daughters of his brothers, 
 
 92. for concubines he brought to my presence. 
 
 93. Yahimilek his son, the glory of the country, 
 of unsurpassed renown, 
 
 94. at once he sent forward, to make obeisance to 
 me. 
 
 95. His daughter and the daughters of his brothers, 
 
 96. with their great dowries I received. 
 
330 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 97. Favour I granted him, and the son proceeding 
 from his body, 
 
 98. I restored and gave him. Yakinlu 
 
 99. King of Arvad, dwelling in the midst of the 
 
 sea, 
 
 100. who to the kings my fathers was not submis- 
 sive, 
 
 101. submitted to my yoke. His daughter 
 
 102. with many gifts, for a concubine 
 
 103. to Nineveh he brought, and kissed my feet. 
 
 104. Mugallu king of Tubal, who against the kings 
 my fathers 
 
 105. made attacks, the daughter proceeding from 
 his body, 
 
 106. and her great dowry, for a concubine 
 
 107. to Nineveh he brought, and kissed my feet. 
 
 108. Over Mugallu great horses 
 
 109. an annual tribute I fixed upon him. 
 HO. Sandasarmi of Cilicia, 
 
 111. who to the kings my fathers did not submit, 
 
 112. and did not perform their pleasure, 
 
 113. the daughter proceeding from his body, with 
 many 
 
 114. gifts, for a concubine 
 
 115. to Nineveh he brought, and kissed my feet. 
 
 116. When Yakinlu king of Arvad 
 
 117. had met his death. Azibahal, Abibahal, 
 
 118. Adonibahal, Sapadibahal, Pudibahal, 
 
 119. Bahalyasup, Bahalhanun, 
 
 120. Bahalmaluk, Abimelek and Ahimelek 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 331 
 
 121. sons of Yakinlu, dwelling in the midst 
 
 122. of the sea, from the midst of the sea arose, 
 and 
 
 123. with their numerous presents 
 
 124. came and kissed my feet. 
 
 125. Azibahal gladly I perceived and 
 
 126. to the kingdom of Arvad appointed. 
 
 127. Abibahal, Adonibahal, Sapadibahal, 
 
 Column III. 
 
 1. Pudibahal, Bahalyasup, Bahalhanon, 
 
 2. Bahalmelek, Abimelek, and Ahimelek 
 
 3. clothing of wool and linen I placed on them, 
 bracelets of gold I made and fastened on their limbs, 
 
 4. in my presence .... them. 
 
 5. Gyges king of Lydia 
 
 6. a district which is across the sea, a remote place; 
 
 7. of which the kings my fathers had not heard 
 speak of its name ; 
 
 8. the account of my grand kingdom in a dream 
 was related to him, by Assur the god my creator, 
 
 9. 
 
 thus : " The yoke .... 
 
 10. 
 
 when in remembrance .... 
 
 11. 
 
 the day he saw that dream, 
 
 12. 
 
 his messenger he sent to pray for my friend- 
 
 ship. 
 
 
 13. 
 
 That dream which he saw, 
 
 14. 
 
 by the hand of his envoy he sent, and repeated 
 
 to me. 
 
332 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 15. From the midst of the day when he took the 
 yoke of my kingdom, 
 
 16. the Cimmerians wasters of the people of his 
 country, 
 
 17. who did not fear my fathers 
 
 18. and me, and did not take the yoke of my king- 
 dom ; he captured 
 
 19. In the service of Assur and Ishtar the gods 
 my lords, 
 
 20. from the midst of the chiefs of the Cimmerians 
 whom he had taken, 
 
 21. two chiefs in strong fetters of iron, and bonds 
 of iron, 
 
 22. he bound, and with numerous presents 
 
 23. he caused to bring to my presence. 
 
 24. His messengers, whom to pray for my friend- 
 ship 
 
 25. he was constantly sending, he wilfully discon- 
 tinued, 
 
 26. as the will of Assur the god my creator, he 
 had disregarded ; 
 
 27. to his own power he trusted and hardened his 
 heart. 
 
 28. His forces to the aid of Psammitichus king of 
 Egypt, 
 
 29. who had thrown off the yoke of my dominion, 
 he sent ; and 
 
 30. I heard of it, and prayed to Assur and Ishtar, 
 
 31. thus : " Before his enemies his corpse may they 
 cast, and 
 
ASS UR B A NIP A L. 
 
 333 
 
 32. may they carry captive his servants." When 
 thus to Assur 
 
 33. I had prayed, he requited me, before his ene- 
 mies his corpse 
 
 34. was thrown down, and they carried captive his 
 servants. 
 
 35. The Cimmerians whom by the glory of my 
 name, he had trodden under him ; 
 
 36. came and swept the whole of his country. 
 After him his son 
 
 37. sat on his throne. That evil work, at the lift- 
 ing up of my hands ; 
 
 38. the gods my protectors in the time of the 
 father his begetter had destroyed. 
 
 39. By the hand of his envoy he sent and tcok 
 
 40. the yoke of my kingdom, thus : " Tae king 
 ' whom God has blessed, art thou ; 
 
 41. my father from thee departed, and evil was 
 done in his time ; 
 
 42. I am thy devoted servant ; and my people all 
 perform thy pleasure." 
 
 43. In my fourth expedition, I gathered my army ; 
 
 44. against Akhsera kino; of Minni 
 
 45. I directed the march. 
 
 46. By command of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, 
 Nebo, 
 
 47. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-Kitmuri, 
 
 48. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 49. into Minni I entered, and marched victoriously. 
 
334 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 50. His strong cities and smaller ones which were 
 without number, 
 
 51. to the midst of Izirtu, I took, 
 
 52. I threw down, destroyed, and in the fire I 
 burned. People, horses, 
 
 53. asses, oxen, and sheep, from the midst of those 
 
 54. cities I brought out, and as spoil I counted. 
 
 55. Akhsera of the progress of my expedition 
 heard, and 
 
 56. abandoned Izirtu his royal city, 
 
 57. to Istatti his castle he fled, and 
 
 58. took refuge. That district I took, 
 
 59. for fifteen days' journey I laid waste, and 
 
 60. the highlands I conquered. 
 
 61. Akhsera not fearing my power, 
 
 62. by the will of Ishtar dwelling in Arbela, who 
 from the first had spoken, 
 
 63. thus : " I am the destroyer of Akhsera king 
 of Minni, 
 
 64. as I have commanded it, it shall be accom- 
 plished." Into the hand of his servants 
 
 65. she delivered him, and the people of his country 
 a revolt against him made and 
 
 66. in front of his city his servants threw down and 
 
 67. tore in pieces his corpse. His brothers, his 
 relatives, 
 
 68. and the seed of the house of his father, they 
 destroyed with the sword. 
 
 69. Afterwards Vaalli his son sat on his throne, 
 
 70. the power of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, 
 Nebo, 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 335 
 
 71. Ishtar and Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 72. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 73. the great gods my lords, he saw, and submitted 
 to my yoke. 
 
 74. To preserve his. life his hand he opened, and 
 besought 
 
 75. my power. Erisinni his eldest son 
 
 76. to Nineveh he sent, and kissed my feet. 
 
 77. Favour I granted him, and my messenger for 
 friendship 
 
 78. I sent to him. The daughter proceeding from 
 his body 
 
 79. he sent for a concubine. 
 
 80. The former tribute, which in the time of the 
 kings my fathers, 
 
 81. they had broken off, he brought to my presence. 
 
 82. Thirty horses beside the former tribute I 
 added and fixed upon him. 
 
 83. In my fifth expedition, to Elam I directed 
 
 84. the march. By the command of Assur, Sin, 
 Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, 
 
 85. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 86. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 87. in the month Elul, the month of the king of 
 the gods Assur, 
 
 88. the father of the gods the glorious prince ; like 
 the shock of a terrible storm, 
 
 89. I overwhelmed Elam through its extent. 
 
336 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 90. I cut off the head of Te-umman, their wicked 
 king, 
 
 91. who devised evil. Beyond number I slew his 
 soldiers, 
 
 92. alive in hand I captured his fighting-men. 
 
 93. their bodies like bows and arrows 
 
 94. filled the vicinity of Shu sham 
 
 95. Their corpses the river Ulai I caused to take, 
 
 96. its waters I made to consume them like chaff. 
 
 97. Umman-igas son of Urtaki king of Elam, 
 
 98. who from the face of Te-umman to Assyria 
 
 99. fled, and had taken my yoke ; 
 
 100. with me I brought him to Elam, and 
 
 101. I seated him on the throne of Te-umman. 
 
 102. Tammaritu his third brother, who with him 
 
 103. fled ; in Hidalu I appointed to the kingdom. 
 
 104. Then the servants of Assur and Ishtar over 
 Elam 
 
 105. I caused to march, I acquired power 
 
 106. and glory. On my return 
 
 107. against Dunanu the Gambulian, who to Elam 
 
 108. trusted ; I set my face. Sapibel 
 
 109. the fortified city of Gambuli I took ; 
 
 110. into that city I entered, its people entirely 
 
 111. I carried off. Dunanu and Samgunu 
 
 112. opposers of the work of my kingdom, 
 
 113. in strong fetters of iron, and bonds of iron, 
 
 114. I bound their hands and feet. The rest of 
 the sons of Belbasa, 
 
 115. his kin, the seed of his father's house, all 
 there were, 
 
ASSUEBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 337 
 
 116. Nabonidus and Beledir sons of Nabu-zikir- 
 
 esses 
 
 117. the tigenna, and the servants of the father 
 their begetter, 
 
 Column IV. 
 
 1. with the .... and Tebe, 
 
 2. people of Gambuli, oxen, sheep, asses, 
 
 3. horses, and mules; from the midst of Gambuli 
 
 4. I carried off to Assyria. Sapibel 
 
 5. his fortified city, I pulled down, destroyed, and 
 into the waters I turned. 
 
 6. Saulmugina my younger brother, benefits I had 
 given to him, and 
 
 7. had appointed him to the kingdom of Babylon 
 .... and gave him 
 
 8 chariots I fixed and 
 
 9 cities, fields, and plantations. 
 
 10. Tribute and taxes I caused to return, and 
 more than the father my begetter, 
 
 11. I did for him. And he these favours 
 
 12. disregarded, and devised evil. 
 
 13. He spoke of good, 
 
 14. but within his heart he was choosing evil. 
 
 15. The sons of Babylon whom in Assyria I bene- 
 fited, 
 
 16. servants dependent upon me, sinned and 
 
 1 7. wrong speech they spoke with them 
 
 18. and cunningly to pray for my friendship, 
 
 19. to Nineveh to my presence he sent them. 
 
 z 
 
338 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 20. I Assurbanipal king of Assyria to whom the 
 great gods excellent fame 
 
 21. have renowned, and have created to him right 
 and justice ; 
 
 22. the sons of Babylon of them in state chairs 
 
 23. I set them up, costly garments 
 
 24. I placed upon them, rings of gold I fastened on 
 
 25. their feet, and the sons of Babylon of them 
 
 26. in Assyria they were set up, they were 
 honoured 
 
 27. before the giving of my command. And he 
 Saulmugina 
 
 28. my younger brother, who did not keep my 
 agreement, 
 
 29. the people of Akkad, Chaldea, Aram, and the 
 sea-coast, 
 
 30. from Aqaba to Bab-salimitu, 
 
 31. tributaries dependent on me, he caused to re- 
 volt against my hand. 
 
 32. And Umman-igas the fugitive who took 
 
 33. the yoke of my kingdom, of whom in Elam 
 
 34. I had appointed him to the kingdom; and the 
 kings of Goim, 
 
 35. Syria, and Ethiopia, 
 
 36. which by command of Assur and Beltis my 
 hands held ; 
 
 37. all of them, he caused to rebel and 
 
 38. with him they set their faces. The great gates 
 of Sippara, 
 
 39. Babylon, Borsippa, and Cutha, they raised and 
 broke off the brotherhood, 
 
A SS TIB B A NIB A L. 
 
 339 
 
 40. and the walls of those cities, his fighting men 
 
 41. he caused to raise. With me they made war 
 and 
 
 42. the making of my sacrifices and libations, 
 before the presence of Bel son of Bel, 
 
 43. the light of the gods Shamas, the warrior 
 Ninip he stopped, and 
 
 44. caused to cease the gifts of my fingers. 
 
 45. To turn away the cities, seats of the great 
 gods, of whom their temples 
 
 46. I had restored, adorned with gold and silver, 
 and 
 
 47. within them had fixed images ; he devised 
 evil. 
 
 48. In those days then a seer in the beginning of 
 the night slept, and 
 
 49. dreamed a dream, thus : " Concerning the 
 matter which Sin was arranging and 
 
 50. of them who against Assurbanipal king of 
 Assyria 
 
 51. devised evil; battle is prepared, 
 
 52. violent death I appoint for them. With the 
 edge of the sword, 
 
 53. the burning of fire, famine, and the making of 
 pestilence, I will destroy 
 
 54. their lives." This I heard and trusted to the 
 will of Sin 
 
 55. my lord. In my sixth expedition I gathered 
 my army, 
 
 56. against Saulmugina I directed the march. 
 
 z 2 
 
340 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 57. "Within Sippara, Babylon, Borsippa, and 
 Cutha, 
 
 58. him and part of his fighting men I besieged 
 and captured 
 
 59. the whole of them. In town and country 
 without number 
 
 60. I accomplished his overthrow. The rest 
 
 61. with the making of pestilence, drought, and 
 famine, 
 
 62. passed their lives. Umman-igas king of Elam, 
 
 63. appointed by my hand, who the bribe received 
 and came to his aid ; 
 
 64. Tammaritu against him revolted, and him 
 
 65. and part of his family he destroyed with the 
 sword. 
 
 66. Afterwards Tammaritu, who after Umman- 
 igas 
 
 67. sat on the throne of Elam, 
 
 68. did not seek alliance with my kingdom. To 
 the help of 
 
 69. Saulmugina my rebellious brother he went, 
 and 
 
 70. to fight my army he prepared his soldiers. 
 
 71. In prayer to Assur and Ishtar I prayed ; 
 
 72. my supplications they received, and heard the 
 words of my lips. 
 
 73. Inda-bigas his servant against him revolted, 
 and 
 
 74. in the battle-field accomplished his overthrow. 
 Tammaritu king of Elam, 
 
A SS TIB B A NIP A L. 
 
 311 
 
 75. who over the decapitated head of Te-umman 
 untruth had spoken ; 
 
 7t>. which he had cut off in the sight of my army> 
 
 77. thus; "I have not cat off the head of the 
 king of Elam 
 
 78 in the assembly of his army." Again 
 
 he said : 
 
 79. " And Umman-igas only kissed the ground, 
 
 80. in the presence of the envoys of Assurbanipal 
 king of Assyria." 
 
 81. For these matters which he had mocked, 
 
 82. Assur and Ishtar turned from him ; and Tam- 
 maritu 
 
 83. his brothers, his kin, the seed of his father's 
 house, with 85 princes 
 
 84. going before him, from the face of Inda-bigas 
 
 85. fled, and their bitterness within their hearts 
 
 86. raged, and they came to Nineveh. 
 
 87. Tammaritu my royal feet kissed, and 
 
 88. earth he threw on his hair, standing at my 
 footstool. 
 
 89. He to do my service himself set, 
 
 90. for the giving of his sentence, and going to 
 his help. 
 
 91. By the command of Assur and Ishtar, he sub- 
 mitted to my dominion, 
 
 92. in my presence he stood up and glorified 
 
 93. the might of my powerful gods, who went to . 
 my help. 
 
 94. I Assurbanipal of generous heart, 
 
312 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 95. of defection the remover, the forgiver of sin ; 
 
 96. to Tammaritu favour I granted him, and 
 
 97. himself and part of the seed of his father's 
 house, within my palace 
 
 98. I placed them. In those days the people of 
 Akkad 
 
 99. who with Saulmugina were placed and 
 
 100. devised evil, famine took them ; 
 
 101. for their food the flesh of their sons and their 
 daughters 
 
 102. they did eat, and divided the .... 
 
 103. Assur, Sin, Shamas, Yul, Bel, Nebo 
 
 104. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 105. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 106. who in my presence marched and destroyed 
 my enemies ; 
 
 107. Saulmugina my rebellious brother, 
 
 108. who made war with me ; in the fierce burn- 
 ing fire 
 
 109. they threw him, and destroyed his life. 
 
 110. And the people who to Saulmugina 
 
 111. my rebellious brother, he had caused to join, 
 
 112. and these evil things did, 
 
 1 1 13. who death deserved ; their lives 
 
 1 14. before them being precious : 
 
 115. with Saulmugina their lord 
 
 116. they did not burn in the fire. Before the 
 edge of the sword, 
 
 117. dearth, famine, and the burning fire, they 
 had fled, and 
 
ASSUEJ3AJVIPAL. 
 
 343 
 
 118. taken refuge. The stroke of the great gods 
 
 119. my lords, which was not removed, 
 
 120. overwhelmed them. One did not flee, 
 
 121. a sinner did not escape from my hands, 
 
 122. my hand held them. Powerful war chariots, 
 
 123. covered chariots, his concubines, and 
 
 Column V. 
 
 1. the goods of his palace, they brought to my 
 presence. 
 
 2. Those men who the curses of their mouth, 
 
 3. against Assur my god curses uttered ; 
 
 4. and against me the prince his worshipper, had 
 devised evil : 
 
 5. their tongues I pulled out, their overthrow I 
 accomplished. 
 
 » 6. The rest of the people alive among the stone 
 lions and bulls, 
 
 7. which Sennacherib the grandfather my begetter, 
 in the midst had thrown ; 
 
 8. again I in that pit, those men 
 
 9. in the midst threw. Their limbs cut off 
 
 10. I caused to be eaten by dogs, bears, eagles, 
 
 11. vultures, birds of heaven, and fishes of the 
 deep. 
 
 12. By these things which were done, 
 
 13. I satisfied the hearts of the great gods my 
 lords. 
 
 14. The bodies of the men whom the pestilence 
 had destroyed, 
 
344 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 15. and who in drought, and famine, had passed 
 their lives ; 
 
 16 dogs, bears, 
 
 17. saturi, burnt, .... grew fat. 
 
 18. Their attendants from the midst of Babylon, 
 
 19. Cutha, and Sippara, I brought out 
 
 20. and placed in slavery. 
 
 21. In splendour, the seats of their sanctuaries I 
 built, 
 
 22. I raised their glorious towers. 
 
 23. Their gods dishonoured, their goddesses dese- 
 crated, 
 
 24. I rested in purple and hangings. 
 
 25. Their institutions which they had removed, 
 like in days of old, 
 
 26. in peace I restored and settled. 
 
 27. The rest of the sons of Babylon, Cutha, 
 
 28 . and Sippara, who un der chastisement, suffering, 
 
 29. and privation had fled ; 
 
 30. favour I granted them, the saving of their 
 lives 1 commanded, 
 
 31. in Babylon I seated them. 
 
 32. The people of Akkad, and some of Chaldea, 
 Aram, 
 
 33. and the sea coast, w T hom Saulmugina had 
 gathered, 
 
 34 returned to their own districts. 
 
 35. They revolted against me, and by command 
 of Assur and Beltis 
 
 36. and the great gods my protectors, on the 
 whole of them I trampled, 
 
ASS TIB B A NIP A L. 
 
 845 
 
 37. the yoke of Assur which they had thrown off, 
 I fixed on them ; 
 
 38. governors and rulers appointed by my hand, 
 
 39. I established over them ; 
 
 40. The institutions and high ordinances of Assur 
 and Beltis, 
 
 41. and the gods of Assyria, I fixed upon them ; 
 
 42. taxes and tribute to my dominion, 
 
 43. a yearly sum undiminished I fixed on them. 
 
 44. In my seventh expedition in the month Sivan 
 the month of Sin lord of might, 
 
 45. eldest son and first of Bel : I gathered my 
 army, 
 
 46. against Umman-aldas king of Elam I directed 
 
 47. the march. I brought with me Tammaritu 
 king of Elam, 
 
 48. who from the face of Inda-bigas his servant 
 had fled, and 
 
 49. taken my yoke. The people of Hilmi, Bil- 
 lati, 
 
 50. Dummuqu, Sulai, Lahira, and Dibirina, 
 
 51. the force of my fierce attack heard of, as I 
 went to Elam. 
 
 52. The terror of Assur and Ishtar my lords, and 
 the fear of my kingdom 
 
 53. overwhelmed them. They, their people, their 
 oxen, and their sheep, 
 
 54. to do my service to Assyria they struck, and 
 
316 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 55. took the yoke of my kingdom. Bitimbi tlie 
 former 
 
 56. royal city, the fortress of Elam ; 
 
 57. which like a wall the boundary of Elam 
 divided, 
 
 58. which Sennacherib king of Assyria the grand- 
 father my begetter, 
 
 59. my predecessor, had captured ; and he the 
 Elamite, 
 
 60. a city in front of Bitimbi, 
 
 61. another had built, and its wall he had 
 strengthened, and 
 
 62. had raised its outer wall, Bitimbi 
 
 63. he had proclaimed its name : in the course of 
 my expedition I took. 
 
 64. The people dwelling in it, who did not come 
 out and did not pray 
 
 65. for alliance with my kingdom, I felled. Their 
 heads I cut off, their lips 
 
 66. I tore out, and for the inspection of the people 
 of my country, I brought to Assyria. 
 
 67. Imba-appi governor of Bitimbi, 
 
 68. the relative of Umman-aldas king of Elam; 
 
 69. alive from the midst of that city 
 
 70. I brought out, and hand and foot in bonds of 
 iron I placed him, and 
 
 71. sent to Assyria. The women of the palace, 
 and sons 
 
 72. of Te-umman king of Elam ; whom by com- 
 mand of Assur, 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 317 
 
 73. in my former expedition I had cut off his head ; 
 
 74. with the rest of the people dwelling in Bitimbi, 
 
 75. I brought out and as spoil I counted. Umman- 
 aldas king of Elam 
 
 76. of the progress of my army which into Elam 
 entered, heard and 
 
 77. Madaktu his royal city he abandoned, and 
 fled, and his mountains ascended. 
 
 78. Umbagua who from Elam from a revolt, 
 
 79. to Bubilu had fled, and against Umman-aldas 
 
 80. had sat on the throne of Elam : like him also 
 heard, and 
 
 81. Bubilu the city of his dominion he abandoned, 
 and 
 
 82. like the fishes took to the depths of the remote 
 waters. 
 
 83. Tammaritu who fled and took my yoke, 
 
 84. into Shushan I caused to enter, I appointed 
 him to the kingdom. 
 
 85. The good I had done to him and sent to his 
 aid, he rejected and 
 
 86. devised evil to capture my army. 
 
 87. Even he said in his heart thus : " The people 
 of Elam 
 
 88. for a spoil have turned in the face of Assyria. 
 
 89. Their . . . has been entered and they have 
 carried away 
 
 90. the plunder of Elam." Assur and Ishtar who 
 before me march, 
 
 91. and exalt me over my enemies; 
 
34S 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 92. the heart of Tammaritu, hard and perverse, 
 they broke, and 
 
 93. took hold of his hand, from the throne of his 
 kingdom 
 
 94. they hurled him, a second time 
 
 95. they subdued him to my yoke. 
 
 96. Concerning these matters, in vexation was 
 my heart ; 
 
 97. which Tammaritu the younger offended. 
 
 98. In the glory and power of the great gods my 
 lords, 
 
 99. within Elam, through its extent I marched 
 victoriously. 
 
 100. On my return, peace and submission 
 
 101. to my yoke, I restored to Assyria. 
 
 102. Gatadu, Gataduma, Daeba, 
 
 103. Nadiha, Duramnani, Duramnanima, 
 
 104. Hamanu, Taraqu, Haiusi, 
 
 105. Bittagilbitsu, Bitarrabi, 
 
 106. Bitimbi, Madaktu, Shushan, 
 
 107. Bube, Temaruduksaranni, 
 
 108. Urdalika, Algariga, 
 
 109. Tubu, Tultubu, 
 
 110. Dunsar, Durundasi, Durundasima, 
 
 111. Bubilu, Samunu, Bunaki, 
 
 112. Qabrina, Qabrinama, and Haraba, 
 
 113. their cities I captured, pulled down, destroyed, 
 
 114. in the fire I burned ; their gods, their people, 
 
 115. their oxen, their sheep, their furniture, their 
 goods, 
 
ASSUEBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 349 
 
 116. carriages, horses, mules, 
 
 117. and weapons instruments of war, I carried off 
 to Assyria. 
 
 118. In my eighth expedition, by command of 
 Assur and Ishtar, 
 
 119. I gathered my army, against Umman-aldas 
 
 120. king of Elam I directed the march. 
 
 121. Bitimbi, which in my former expedition 
 
 1 22. I had captured, again Rasi, Hamanu, 
 
 123. and that district I captured. And he Umman- 
 aldas 
 
 124. king of Elam, of the capture of Rasi and 
 Hamanu 
 
 125. heard, and fear of Assur and Ishtar going 
 before me 
 
 Column VI. 
 
 1. overwhelmed him, and Madaktu his royal city 
 
 2. he abandoned, and fled to Durundasi. 
 
 3. The river Itite he crossed, and that river 
 
 4. for his stronghold he fixed, and 
 
 5. arranged in ranks to fight me. 
 
 6. Naditu the royal city, and its district I cap- 
 tured, 
 
 7. Bitbunaki the royal city ditto 
 
 8. Hardapanu the royal city ditto 
 
 9. Tubu the royal city ditto. 
 
 10. Beside all the river, Madaktu the royal city 
 ditto, 
 
350 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 11. Haltemas his royal city I captured, 
 
 12. Shushan his royal city I captured, 
 
 13. Dinsar, Sumuntunas ditto, 
 
 14. Pidilma his royal city, Bubilu ditto, 
 
 15. Kabinak his royal city ditto. 
 
 16. In the service of Assur and Ishtar, I marched 
 and went 
 
 17. after Umman-aldas king of Elam, 
 
 18. who did not submit to my yoke. In the course 
 of my expedition, 
 
 19. Durundasi his royal city I captured. 
 
 20. My army the Itite in high flood 
 
 21. saw, and feared the crossing. 
 
 22. Ishtar dwelling inArbela, in the middle of the 
 night to my army 
 
 23. a dream sent, and even told them, 
 
 24. thus: "I march in front of Assurbanipal, the 
 king 
 
 25. whom my hands made." Over that vision 
 
 26. my army rejoiced, and the Itite crossed peace- 
 fully. 
 
 27. Fourteen cities royal seats, and smaller cities 
 
 28. the numbers unknown, and twelve districts 
 
 29. which are in Elam, all of them I took, 
 
 30. I pulled down, destroyed, in the fire I burned, 
 and to mounds and heaps I reduced. 
 
 31. Without number I slew their warriors, 
 
 32. with the sword I destroyed his powerful fight- 
 ing men. 
 
 33. Umman-aldas king of Elam 
 
ASST7RBANIPAL. 
 
 351 
 
 34. in his bitterness fled, and took to the moun- 
 tains. 
 
 35. Banunu, and the districts of Tasara 
 
 36. all, twenty cities in the districts 
 
 37. of Hunnir, and the boundary of Hidalu, I 
 captured. 
 
 38. Balimmu and the cities round it 
 
 39. I pulled down and destroyed. Of the people 
 dwelling within them, 
 
 40. their misfortune I caused, I broke up their gods, 
 
 41. I set at liberty the great goddess of the lord 
 of lords, 
 
 42. his gods,his goddesses, his furniture,his goods, 
 people small and great, 
 
 43. I carried off to Assyria. Sixty kaspu of 
 ground, 
 
 44. by the will of Assur and Ishtar, who sent me, 
 
 45. within Elam I entered and marched vic- 
 toriously. 
 
 46. On my return, when Assur and Ishtar exalted 
 me 
 
 47. over my enemies, Shushan the great city, 
 
 48. the seat of their gods, the place of their oracle, 
 I captured. 
 
 49. By the will of Assur and Ishtar, into its 
 palaces I entered 
 
 50. and sat with rejoicing. I opened also their 
 treasure houses 
 
 51. of silver, gold, furniture, and goods, treasured 
 within them ; 
 
352 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 52. which the kings of Elam the former, 
 
 53. and the kings who were to these days, 
 
 54. had gathered and made; which any other 
 
 enemy 
 
 55. beside me, his hands had not put into them, 
 
 56. I brought out and as spoil I counted. 
 
 57. Silver, gold, furniture, and goods, of Sumir, 
 Akkad, 
 
 58. and Ganduniyas, all that the kings of 
 
 59. Elam the former and latter, had carried off 
 
 60. and brought within Elam ; bronze hammered, 
 
 61. hard, and pure, precious stones beautiful and 
 valuable, 
 
 62. belonging to royalty; which former kings of 
 Akkad 
 
 63. and Saulmugina, for their aid had paid 
 
 64. to Elam : garments beautiful belonging to 
 royalty, 
 
 65. weapons of war, prepared for one to make 
 battle, 
 
 66. suited to his hand, instruments furnishing his 
 palaces, 
 
 67. all that within it was placed, with the food 
 
 68. in the midst which he ate and drank, and the 
 couch he reclined on, 
 
 69. powerful war chariots, 
 
 70. of which their ornaments were bronze and 
 paint, 
 
 71. horses and great mules, 
 
 72. of which their trappings were gold and silver, 
 I carried off to Assyria. 
 
A SS UBBAXIPA L. 
 
 353 
 
 73. The tower of Shushan, which in the lower part 
 in marble was laid, 
 
 74. I destroyed. I broke through its top which 
 was covered with shining bronze. 
 
 75. Susinaq the god of their oracle, who dwelt in 
 the groves ; 
 
 76. of whom, any one had not seen the image of 
 his divinity, 
 
 77. Sumudu, Lagomer, Partikira, 
 
 78. Ammankasibar, Uduran, and Sapak ; 
 
 79. of whom, the kings of Elam worship their 
 divinity. 
 
 80. Eagiba, Sumugursara, Karsa, 
 
 81. Kirsamas, Suclunu, Aipaksina, 
 
 82. Bilala, Panintimri, Silagara, 
 
 83. Napsa, Nabirtu, and Kindakarbu, 
 
 84. these gods and goddesses, with their valuables, 
 
 85. their goods, their furniture, and priests and 
 
 86. worshippers, I carried off to Assyria. 
 
 87. Thirty-two statues of kings, fashioned of silver, 
 gold, bronze, 
 
 88. and alabaster, from out of Shushan, 
 
 89. Madaktu, and Huradi, 
 
 90. and a stattie of Umman-igas son of Umbadara, 
 
 91. a statue of Istar-nanhundi, a statue of Halludus 
 
 92. and a statue of Tammaritu the later, 
 
 93. who by command of Assur and Ishtar made 
 submission to me, 
 
 94. I brought to Assyria. I broke the winged 
 lions 
 
 A a 
 
354 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 95. and bulls watching over the temple, all there 
 were. 
 
 96. I removed the winged bulls attached to the 
 gates 
 
 97. of the temples of Elam, until they were not, I 
 overturned. 
 
 98. His gods and his goddesses I sent into cap- 
 tivity, 
 
 99. their forest groves, 
 
 100. which any other had not penetrated into the 
 midst of, 
 
 101. had not trodden their outskirts ; 
 
 102. my men of war into them entered, 
 
 103. saw their groves, and burned them in the fire. 
 
 104. The high places of their kings, former and 
 latter, 
 
 105. not fearing Assur and Ishtar my lords, 
 
 106. opposers of the kings my fathers, 
 
 107. I pulled down, destroyed and burned in the 
 sun. 
 
 108. Their servants I brought to Assyria, 
 
 109. their leaders without shelter I placed. 
 
 110. The wells of drinking water I dried them up, 
 
 111. for a journey of a month and twenty-five 
 days the districts of Elam I laid waste, 
 
 112. destruction, servitude, and drought, I poured 
 over them. 
 
 113. The daughters of kings, consorts of kings, 
 
 114. and families former and latter 
 
 115. of the kings of Elam, the governors and 
 
ASSURE A NIP AL. 
 
 355 
 
 116. citizens of those cities, 
 
 117. all I had captured; the commanders of 
 archers, governors, 
 
 318. the directors of . . . three horse charioteers, 
 
 119. chariot drivers, archers, officers, 
 
 120. camp followers and the whole of the people 
 all there were, 
 
 121. people male and female, small and great, h orses, 
 
 122. mules, asses, oxen, and sheep, 
 
 123. beside much spoil, I carried off to Assyria. 
 
 Column VII. 
 
 1. The dust of Shushan, Madaktu, 
 
 2. Haltemas, and the rest of their cities, 
 
 3. entirely I brought to Assyria. 
 
 4. For a month and a day Elam to its utmost 
 extent, I swept. 
 
 5. The passage of men, the treading of oxen and 
 sheep, 
 
 6. and the springing up of good trees, I burned off 
 the fields. 
 
 7. Wild asses, serpents, beasts of the desert, 
 Ugallu, 
 
 8. safely I caused to lay down in them. 
 
 9. The goddess Nana who these 1635 years 
 
 10. had been desecrated, had gone, and dwelt 
 
 11. in Elam, a place not suited to her. 
 
 12. And in these days, she and the gods her fathers, 
 
 13. proclaimed my name to the dominion of the 
 earth. 
 
 a a 2 
 
356 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 14. The return of her divinity she entrusted to me, 
 
 15. thus : " Assurbanipal from the midst of Elam 
 (wicked) 
 
 16. bring me out, and. cause me to enter into the 
 temple of Anna " 
 
 17. The will commanded by their divinity, which 
 from days remote 
 
 18. they had uttered ; again they spoke to later 
 people. 
 
 19. The hands of her great divinity I took hold of, 
 and 
 
 20. the straight road rejoicing in heart, 
 
 21. she took to the temple of Anna. 
 
 22. In the month Kislev, the first day, into Erech 
 I caused her to enter, and 
 
 23. in the temple of Hilianni which she had de- 
 lighted in, 
 
 24. I set her up an eduring sanctuary. 
 
 25. Feople and spoil of Elam, 
 
 26. which by command of Assur, Sin, Shamas, 
 Vul, Bel, Nebo 
 
 27. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 28. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal and Nusku, I 
 had carried away ; 
 
 29. the first part to my gods I devoted. 
 
 30. The archers, footmen, 
 
 31. soldiers, and camp followers, 
 
 32. whom I carried off from the midst of Elam ; 
 
 33. over the body of my kingdom I spread. 
 
 34. The rest to the cities, seats of my gods, 
 
ASSURE AN IP AL. 
 
 357 
 
 35. my prefects, my great men, and all my camp, 
 
 36. like sheep 1 caused to overflow. 
 
 37. Umman-aldas, king of Elam, 
 
 38. who the vigour of the powerful soldiers of 
 Assur and Ishtar had seen ; 
 
 39. from the mountains, the place of his refuge, he 
 returned and 
 
 40. into Madaktu, the city which by command of 
 Assur and Ishtar 
 
 41. I had pulled down, destroyed and carried off 
 its spoil ; 
 
 42. he entered and sat in sorrow, in a place dis- 
 honoured. - 
 
 43. Concerning NaLu-bel-zikri the grandson of 
 Merodach Baladan ; 
 
 44. who against my agreement had sinned, and 
 thrown off the yoke of my dominion ; 
 
 45. who on the kings of Elam to strengthen him 
 had relied, 
 
 46. had trusted to Umman-igas, Tammaritu, 
 
 47. Inda-bigas, and TJmman-aldas, 
 
 48. kings who had ruled the dominion of Elam. 
 
 49. My envoy about the surrender of Nabu-bel-zikri, 
 
 50. with determination of purpose I sent, 
 
 51. to Umman-aldas. Nabu-bel-zikri grandson 
 of Merodach Baladan 
 
 52. of the journey of my envoy, who into Elam 
 had entered, 
 
 53. heard, and his heart was afflicted. He in- 
 clined to despair, 
 
358 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 54. his life before liim he did not regard, and 
 
 55. longed for death. 
 
 56. To his own armour-bearer he said also 
 
 57. thus : " Slay me with the sword." 
 
 58. He and his armour-bearer with the steel 
 swords of their girdles pierced through 
 
 59. each other. Umman-aldas feared and 
 
 60. the corpse of that Nabu-bel-zikri who benefits 
 trampled on, 
 
 61. with the head of his armour-bearer who de- 
 stroyed him with the sword ; 
 
 62. to my envoy he gave, and he sent it to my 
 presence. 
 
 63. His corpse I would not give to burial, 
 
 64. more than before his death I returned, and 
 
 65. his head I cut off ; round the neck of Nabu 
 qati-zabat 
 
 66. the munmaJcir of Saulmugina 
 
 67. my rebellious brother, who with him to pass 
 into 
 
 68. Elam had gone ; I hung it. 
 
 69. Pahe who against Umman-aldas 
 
 70. had ruled the dominion of Elam, 
 
 71. the terror of the powerful soldiers of Assui 
 and Ishtar, 
 
 72. who the first, second, and third time, had 
 trampled over Elam ; 
 
 73. covered him, and he trusted to the goodness 
 of my heart. 
 
 74. From the midst of Elam he fled and 
 
ASSUEBANIPAL. 
 
 359 
 
 75. took the yoke of my kingdom. 
 
 76. The people sinners of Bitimbi, 
 
 77. Kuzurtein, Dursar, 
 
 78. Masutu, Bube, 
 
 79. Bitunzai, Bitarrabi 
 
 80. Iprat, Zagar of Tapapa, 
 
 81. Akbarina, Gurukirra, 
 
 82. Dunnu-samas, Hamanu, 
 
 83. Kanizu, Aranzese, 
 
 84. Nakidati, Timinut of Simami, 
 
 85. Bit-qatatti, Sakisai, 
 
 86. Zubahe, and Tulhunba, 
 
 87. who in my former expedition, from the face of 
 the powerful soldiers 
 
 88. of Assur and Ishtar fled, and 
 
 89. took to Saladri a rugged mountain ; 
 
 90. those people who on Saladri 
 
 91 the mountain fixed their stronghold, 
 
 92. the terror of Assur and Ishtar my lords over- 
 whelmed them, 
 
 93. from the mountain the place of their refuge 
 they fled and 
 
 94. took my yoke. To the bow I appointed them, 
 
 95. over the body of my kingdom 
 
 96. which filled my hand, I spread. 
 
 97. In my ninth expedition I gathered my army, 
 
 98. against Vaiteh king of Arabia 
 
 99. I directed the march ; who against my agree- 
 ment 
 
860 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 100. had sinned, the benefits done to him he did 
 not regard, and 
 
 101. threw off the yoke of my dominion. 
 
 102. When Assur had set him up to perform my 
 pleasure, 
 
 103. to seek my alliance his feet broke off, and 
 
 104. he ended his presents and great tribute. 
 
 105. Whem Elam was speaking sedition with 
 Akkad, he heard and 
 
 106. disregarded my agreement. Of me Assur- 
 banipal 
 
 107. the king, the noble priest, the powerful leader, 
 
 108. the work of the hands of Assur, he left me, and 
 
 109. to Abiyateh and Aimu sons of Tehari, 
 
 110. his forces with them to the help of 
 
 111. Saulmugina my rebellious brother he sent, and 
 
 112. set his face. The people of Arabia 
 
 113. with him he caused to revolt, and carried 
 away the 
 
 114. plunder of the people, whom Assur, Ishtar, 
 and the great gods, 
 
 115. had given me, their government I had ruled, 
 
 116. and they were in my hand. 
 
 117. By command of Assur and Ishtar my army 
 in the regions 
 
 118. of Azaran, Hirataqaza 
 
 119. in Edom, in the neighbourhood of Yabrud, 
 
 120. in Beth-ammon, in the district of Hauran, 
 
 121. in Moab, in Saharri, 
 
 122. in Harze, and in the district of Zobah, 
 
ASSUBBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 3G1 
 
 Column VIII. 
 
 1. Lis numerous fighting men I slew without 
 number, I accomplished 
 
 2. his overthrow. The people of Arabia, all who 
 with him came, 
 
 3. I destroyed with the sword; and he from the 
 face 
 
 4. of the powerful soldiers of Assur fled and got 
 away 
 
 5. to a distance. The tent3, the pavilions, 
 
 6. their dwellings, a fire they raised and burned 
 in the flames. 
 
 7. Vaiteh misfortune happened to him, and 
 
 8. alone he fled to Nabatea. 
 
 9. Vaiteh son of Hazael was brother of the father 
 
 10. of Vaiteh son of Bir-daddi, whom the people 
 of his country 
 
 11. appointed to the kingdom of Arabia. 
 
 12. Assur king of the gods the strong mountain, a 
 decree 
 
 13. repeated, and he came to my presence. 
 
 14. To satisfy the law of Assur and the great gods 
 
 15. my lords, a heavy judgment took him, and 
 
 16. in chains I placed him, and with asi and dogs 
 
 17. I bound him, and caused him to be kept 
 
 18. in the great gate in the midst of Nineveh, 
 Nirib-barnakti-adnati. 
 
 19. And he Ammuladi king of Kedar 
 
 20. brought to fight the kings of Syria ; 
 
363 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 21. whom Assur and Ishtar the great gods had 
 entrusted to me. 
 
 22. In the service of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, 
 Bel, Nebo, 
 
 23. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 24. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 25. his overthrow I accomplished. Himself alive 
 with Adiya 
 
 26. the wife of Vaiteh king of Arabia, 
 
 27. they captured and brought to my presence. 
 
 28. By command of the great gods my lords, with 
 the dogs 
 
 29. I placed him, and I caused him to be kept 
 chained. 
 
 30. By command of Assur, Ishtar, and the great 
 gods my lords, 
 
 31. of Abiyateh and Aimu sons of Tehari, 
 
 32. who to the help of Saulmugina my rebellious 
 brother 
 
 33. to enter Babylon went ; 
 
 34. his helpers I slew, his overthrow I accom T 
 plished. The remainder 
 
 35. who into Babylon entered, in want and 
 
 36. hunger ate the flesh of each other. 
 
 37. To save their lives, from the midst of Babylon 
 
 38. they came out, and my forces which around 
 Saulmugina 
 
 39. were placed, a second time his overthrow 
 accomplished ; and 
 
 40. he alone fled, and to save his life 
 
ASSUBBAXIPAL. 
 
 3G3 
 
 41. took my yoke. Favour I granted him and 
 
 42. an agreement to worship the great gods I 
 caused him to swear, and 
 
 43. instead of Vaiteh or any one 
 
 44. to the kingdom of Arabia I appointed. 
 
 45. And he with the Nabateans 
 
 46. his face set, and the worship of the great gods 
 did not fear, and 
 
 47. carried away the plunder of the border of my 
 country. 
 
 48. In the service of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, 
 Bel, Nebo, 
 
 49. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat- kitmuri, 
 
 50. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 51. Nathan king of Nabatea whose place was 
 remote, 
 
 52. of whom, Vaiteh to his presence had fled ; 
 
 53. heard also of the power of Assur who pro- 
 tected me. 
 
 54. In the time past to the kings my fathers 
 
 55. his envoy he did not send, and did not seek 
 
 56. alliance with their kingdom ; in fear of the* 
 soldiers of Assur 
 
 57. capturing him ... he tore and sought alli- 
 ance 
 
 58. with my kingdom. Abiyateh 
 
 59. son of Tehari did not . . . benefits, disregard- 
 ing the 
 
 60. oath of the great gods, seditious words against 
 me 
 
361 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 61. lie spoke, and his face with Nathan 
 
 62. king of Nabatea he set, and their forces 
 
 63. they gathered to commit evil against my 
 border. 
 
 64. By command of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Yul, 
 Bel, Nebo, 
 
 65. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 66. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 67. my army I gathered, against Abiyateh 
 
 68. I directed the march. The Tigris 
 
 69. and the Euphrates in their strong flood, 
 peacefully they crossed, 
 
 70. they marched, a distant path they took, they 
 ascended 
 
 71. the lofty country, they passed through the 
 forests, 
 
 72. of which their shadow was vast, bounded by 
 trees great and strong, 
 
 73. and vines, a road of mighty woods. 
 
 74. They went to the rebels of Vas, a place arid and 
 
 75. very difficult, where the birds of heaven had 
 not . . . 
 
 76. wild asses they found not in it. 
 
 77. 100 kaspu of ground from Nineveh 
 
 78. the city the delight of Ishtar wife of Bel ; 
 
 79. against Vaiteh king of Arabia 
 
 80. and Abi} r ateh with the forces 
 
 81. of the Nabateans, they went. 
 
 82. They marched and went in the month Sivan, 
 che month of Sin 
 
ASSUBBANIPAL. 
 
 3G5 
 
 83. the eldest son and first of Bel, 
 
 84. the 27th day, on the festival of the lady of 
 Babylon, 
 
 85. the mighty one of the great gods. 
 
 86. From Hadatta I departed, 
 
 87. In Laribda a tower of stones, 
 
 88. over against lakes of water; I pitched my 
 camp. 
 
 89. Lly army the waters for their drink desired, 
 
 and 
 
 90. they marched and went over arid ground, a 
 place very difficult 
 
 91. to Hurarina near Yarki, 
 
 92. and Aialla in Vas a place remote, 
 
 93. a place the beast of the desert was not in, 
 
 94. and a bird of heaven had not fixed a nest. 
 
 95. The overthrow of the Isammih, the servant? 
 
 96. of Adar-samain, and the Nabateans, 
 
 97. I accomplished. People, asses, camels, 
 
 98. and sheep, their plunder innumerable; I 
 carried away. 
 
 99. 8 kaspu of ground my army 
 
 100. marched victoriously, peacefully they re- 
 turned, and 
 
 101. in Aialli they drank abundant waters. 
 
 102. From the midst of Aialli to Quraziti, 
 
 103. 6 kaspu of ground, a place arid and very 
 difficult, 
 
 104. they marched and went. The worshippers 
 of Adar-samain, 
 
3GG 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 105. and the Kldri of Vaiteh 
 
 106. son of Bir-dadda king of Arabia, I besieged. 
 
 107. His gods, his mother, his sister, his wife, his kin, 
 
 108. the people in the midst all, the asses, 
 
 109. camels, and sheep ; 
 
 110. all in the service of Assur and Ishtar my lords 
 
 111. my hands took. The road to Damascus 
 
 112. I caused their feet to take. In the month 
 Ab the month of Sagittarius 
 
 113. daughter of Sin the archer, the third day, 
 the festival 
 
 114. of the king of the gods Merodach, from Da- 
 mascus 
 
 115. I departed. 6 kaspu of ground in their 
 country all of it, 
 
 116. I marched and went to Hulhuliti. 
 
 117. In Hukkuruna the rugged mountain, 
 
 118. the servants of Abiyateh son of Tehari 
 
 119. of Kedar, I captured, his overthrow I accom- 
 plished, 
 
 1 20. I carried off his spoil. Abiyateh and Aimu 
 
 121. sons of Tehari, by command of Assur and 
 Ishtar my lords, 
 
 122. in the midst of battle alive I captured in hand. 
 
 123. Hand and foot in bonds of iron I placed them, 
 and 
 
 Column IX. 
 
 1. with the spoil of their country I brought them 
 
 2. to Assyria. The fugitives, who from the 
 face of my soldiers 
 
ASSUJRBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 3C7 
 
 3. fled, ascended and took to 
 . . 4. Hukkuruna the rugged mountain. 
 5. In Laanhabbi .... gathered 
 6 * . . • . an . . • • 
 
 [Lines 7 to 25 are lost, only a few doubtful 
 characters remaining.] 
 
 26. oxen, sheep, asses, camels 
 
 27. and men, they carried off without number. 
 
 28. The sweeping of all the country through its 
 extent, 
 
 29. they collected through the whole of it. 
 
 30. Camels like sheep I distributed, and 
 
 31. caused to overflow to the people of Assyria 
 
 32. dwelling in my country. .A camel 
 
 33. for half a shekel, in half shekels of silver, thev 
 valued in front of the gate. 
 
 34. The spoil in the sale of captives among the 
 strong 
 
 35 which were gathered in droves, 
 
 36. they bartered camels and men. 
 
 37. Vaiteh and the Arabians, 
 
 38. who my agreement .... 
 
 39. who from the face of the soldiers of Assur my 
 lord, 
 
 40. fled and got away ; 
 
 41. Ninip the warrior destroyed, 
 
 42. in want and famine their lives were spent, 
 and 
 
 43. for their food they ate the flesh of their 
 children. 
 
3G8 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 44. with a curse . . . ^ mud of the earth 
 
 45. in the house of Assur father of the gods .... 
 them. 
 
 46. Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, 
 
 47. Ish tar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 48. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 49. camels strong, oxen and sheep, 
 
 50. more than seven the sacrificers sacrificed, and 
 
 51. for eating they did not eat their carcases. 
 
 52. The people of Arabia one to another, addressed 
 each other 
 
 53. thus : " Concerning the number of these 
 
 54. evil things which happened to Arabia, 
 
 55. because the great agreements with Assur we 
 have not regarded, 
 
 56. and we have sinned against the benefits of 
 Assurbanipal 
 
 57. the king, the delight of the heart of Bel." 
 
 58. Beltis the consort of Bel, 
 
 59. the guardian of divinity ; 
 
 60. who with Anu and Bel in dominion 
 
 61. is established: pierced my enemies with horns 
 of iron. 
 
 62. Ishtar dwelling in Arbela, with fire clothed ; 
 
 63 drought upon Arabia poured down. 
 
 64. Dabara the warrior, mourning caused and 
 , 65. destroyed mine enemies. 
 
 66. Ninip fierce, the great warrior, 
 
 67. the son of Bel ; with his mighty arrows 
 
 68. destroved the life of my enemies. 
 
ASS TIB B A NIB A L. 
 
 309 
 
 G9. Nusku the glorious attendant, sitting in do- 
 minion ; 
 
 70. who by command of Assur and Beltis .... 
 
 71. the archer, the goddess of ... . 
 
 72. my forces preceded, and .... place of my 
 kingdom, 
 
 73. the front of my army took and 
 
 74. destroyed my enemies. 
 
 75. The stroke .... Assur, Ishtar, 
 
 76. and the great gods my lords, . 
 
 77. who in making war, went to the help 
 
 78. of my army : Vaiteh heard of, and 
 
 79. over these things feared, and 
 
 80. from Nabatea I brought him out, and 
 
 81. in the service of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, 
 Nebo, 
 
 82. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 83. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 84 him and sent him to Assyria. 
 
 85 who to capture my enemies 
 
 86 fought. By command of Assur and 
 
 Beltis 
 
 87. with a mace which was grasped by my hand, 
 
 88. the flesh corning out of him, his son, 
 
 89. in the sight of his eyes I struck down. 
 
 90. With the dogs I did not place him, 
 
 91. in the gate of the rising sun, in the midst of 
 Nineveh, 
 
 92. which, Nirib-parnakti-adnati its name is called ; 
 
 93. I caused to keep him chained, 
 
 b b 
 
370 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 94. to exalt the will of Assur, Ishtar, and the great 
 gods 
 
 95. my lords. Favour I granted him and saved 
 his life. 
 
 96. On my return Hosah, 
 
 97. which by the side of the sea has its place, I 
 captured. 
 
 98. The people of Hosah who to their governors 
 
 99. were not reverent, and did not give the tribute, 
 
 100. the gift of their country, I slew. Amongst 
 the people 
 
 101. unsubmissive, chastisement I inflicted. 
 
 102. Their gods and their people I carried off to 
 Assyria. 
 
 103. The people of Accho unsubmissive, I de- 
 stroyed. 
 
 104. Their bodies in the dust I threw down, the 
 whole of the city 
 
 105. I quieted. The rest of them I brought 
 
 106. to Assyria, in rank I arranged, and 
 
 107. over my numerous army, 
 
 108. which Assur strengthened, I spread. 
 
 109. Aimu son of Tehari, with Abiyateh 
 
 110. his brother had risen, and with my army had 
 made war. 
 
 111. In the midst of battle, alive in hand I cap- 
 tured him ; 
 
 112. and in Nineveh the city of my dominion, his 
 skin I tore off. 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 371 
 
 113. Umman-aldas king of Elam, 
 
 114. whom from of old Assur and Ishtar my lords 
 
 115. had commanded to make submission to me; 
 
 116. by command of their great divinities who 
 were unchanged, 
 
 117. afterwards his country against him revolted, 
 and 
 
 118. from the face of the tumult of his servants, 
 which they made against him, 
 
 119. alone he fled, and took to the mountains. 
 
 120. From the mountains the house of his refuge, 
 
 121. the place he fled to; 
 
 122. like a raven I caught him, and 
 
 Column X. 
 
 1. alive I brought him to Assyria. 
 
 2. Tammaritu, Pahe, and Umman-aldas, 
 
 3. who after each other ruled the dominion of 
 Elam; 
 
 4. whom, by the power of Assur and Ishtar my 
 lords, 
 
 5. I subjugated to my yoke. Vaiteh 
 
 6. king of Arabia, of whom, by command of 
 Assur and Ishtar his overthrow 
 
 7. I had accomplished ; from his country I brought 
 him to Assyria. 
 
 8. When to ... . sacrifices and libations I had 
 offered up 
 
 9. in Masmasu, the seat of their power, 
 10. before Beltis, mother of the great gods, 
 
 B b 2 
 
372 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 1 1 . beloved wife of Assur, I had made to the gods of 
 
 12. Idkid* To the yoke of my war chariot 
 13.1 caused to fasten them, and to the gate of the 
 
 temple 
 
 14. they drew it. On my feet I made invocation, 
 
 15. I glorified their divinity, I praised 
 
 16. their power in the assembly of my army; of 
 Assur, Sin, 
 
 17. Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, Ishtar of Nineveh, 
 
 18. Sarrat-kitmuri, Ishtar of Arbela, 
 
 19. Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, who the unsub- 
 missive to me 
 
 20. subjugated to my yoke, and in glory 
 
 21. and power, established me over my enemies. 
 
 22. Saduri king of Ararat ; of whom the kings his 
 fathers 
 
 23. to my fathers had sent in fellowship. 
 
 24. Again Saduri, the mighty things 
 
 25. for which the groat gods had caused renown 
 to me, heard, and 
 
 26. like a son to a father, he sent to my dominion ; 
 
 27. and he in these words sent 
 
 28. thus : " Salutation to the king my lord." 
 
 29. Reverently and submissively, his numerous 
 presents 
 
 30. he sent to my presence 
 
 31. Now Riduti the private palace of Nineveh, 
 
 32. the grand city, the delight of Ishtar; 
 
ASSURBANIPAL, 
 
 373 
 
 33. wliicli Sennacherib king of Assyria, the grand- 
 father my begetter, 
 
 34. built for his royal seat ; 
 
 35. that Riduti in my days 
 
 36. became old, and its chamber walls decayed. 
 
 37. I Assurbanipal the great king, the powerful 
 king, 
 
 38. king of nations, king of Assyria, king of the 
 four regions, 
 
 39. within that Riduti grew up. 
 
 40. Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, Ishtar 
 of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri. 
 
 41. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 42. my royal sonship .... 
 
 43 their good protection, 
 
 44 over me 
 
 45. fixed, when on the throne of the father my 
 begetter I sat. 
 
 46. They were made .... and many people 
 
 47 my hands 
 
 48 me within it. 
 
 49. On my couch at night .... my 
 
 50. in ... . 
 
 5 1 . that mastaku .... 
 
 52. the great gods its renown have heard .... 
 good 
 
 53. its decay .... to enlarge it 
 
 54 the whole of it I destroyed. 
 
 55 fifty tipki the building of its sculpture 
 
 56. .... the work of the mound I completed. 
 
371 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 57. Before the temples of the great gods my lords 
 
 58. I worshipped .... of that mound 
 
 59. its sculpture, I did not cut down its top. 
 
 GO. In a good month and a prosperous day upon 
 that mound, 
 
 61. its foundation I placed, I fixed its brickwork. 
 
 62. In hiris and Icamis its face I . . . . 
 
 63. I divided in three .... 
 
 64. In carriages of Elam, 
 
 65. which l>y command of the great gods my lords, 
 
 66. I had carried off ; to make that Riduti, 
 
 67. the people of my country, in the midst of them 
 carried its bricks. 
 
 68. The kings of Arabia who against my agree- 
 ment sinned, 
 
 69. whom in the midst of battle alive I had cap- 
 tured in hand, 
 
 70. to build that Riduti, 
 
 71. heavy burdens I caused them to carry, and 
 
 72. I caused them to take .... 
 
 73. building its brickwork .... 
 
 74. with dancing and music .... 
 
 75. with joy and shouting, from its foundation to 
 its roof, 
 
 76. I built. More than before .... 
 
 77. I extended .... 
 
 78. Beams and great planks from Sirara, 
 
 79. and Lebanon, I fixed over it. 
 
 80. Doors of forest trees, their wood excellent, 
 
 81. a covering of copper I spread over and hung 
 in its gates. 
 
ASSURBAJSTIPAL. 
 
 375 
 
 82. Great columns of bronze .... 
 
 83. at the sides of tlie gates .... 
 
 84. That Riduti, my royal seat, 
 
 85. the whole of it I finished, entirely 
 
 86. I completed. Plantations choice, 
 
 87 for the glory of 
 
 88. my kingdom I planted like walls. 
 
 89. Sacrifices and libations precious I poured out 
 to the gods my lords, 
 
 90. with joy and shouting I completed it, 
 
 91. I entered into it in a state palanquin. 
 
 92. In after days, among the kings my sons, 
 
 93. whomever Assur and Ishtar to the dominion 
 of the country and people 
 
 94. shall proclaim his name ; 
 
 95. when this Riduti becomes old and 
 
 96. decays, its decay he shall repair, 
 
 97. the inscription written of my name my father's 
 and my grandfather's, 
 
 98. the remote descendant who .... may he 
 see, and 
 
 99. a box may he make, sacrifice and libations 
 may he pour out, 
 
 100. and with the inscription written of his name 
 may he place them. 
 
 101. May the great gods, all who in this inscription 
 are named, 
 
 102. like me also, establish to him 
 
 103. power and glory. 
 
 104. Whoever the inscription written of my name, 
 
376 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 105. my father's and my grandfather's, shall 
 destroy, 
 
 106. and with his inscription shall not place; 
 
 107. Assur, Sin, Shamas, Vul, Bel, Nebo, 
 
 108. Ishtar of Nineveh, Sarrat-kitmuri, 
 
 109. Ishtar of Arbela, JNmip, Nergal, and Nusku, 
 
 110. a judgment equal to the renown of my name, * 
 may they pass on him. 
 
 Date of document. 
 
 111. Month Msan, 1st day, 
 
 112. in theeponymy of Shamas-dain-ani governor 
 of Akkad. 
 
 Variant passages from other copies of the cylinder. 
 
 Column II., line 50, " Afterwards Undamane son 
 of his sister " 
 
 Column II., line 55, " Thebes his fortified city he 
 made " 
 
 Column V., line 67, " Imbaappa commander of 
 the archers 99 
 
 Column V., line 78, " Ambagua who from Elam, 
 from a revolt," 
 
 Column VII., lines 9 to 24, see page 224. 
 
 Variant for data of documents. 
 
 1. Month Elul, 28th day, 
 
 2. in the eponymy of Shamas-dain-ani governor 
 of Babylon. 
 
ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 377 
 
 This document is one of the finest Assyrian texts 
 we possess, and it gives the official history of Assyria, 
 from the accession of Assurbanipal, B.C. 671, down to 
 about B.C. 645. The cylinder opens with the account 
 of Assurbanipal being proclaimed King of Assyria 
 by his father, Esarhaddon, and then relates his 
 various campaigns against surrounding nations. 
 The first two of these campaigns were against Egypt, 
 the third against Tyre, the fourth against Minni in 
 the mountains east of Assyria, the fifth, seventh, and 
 eighth against Elam or Susiana, the sixth against 
 Babylon, and the ninth against Arabia. 
 
 The other document of Assurbanipal noticed here 
 is the opening portion of a cylinder which I have 
 named cylinder C, a text I have nearly completed 
 from my excavations. This text refers to the re- 
 storation and adorning of the various temples ; it 
 runs : — 
 
 Assurbanipal the great king, the powerful king, 
 king of nations, king of Assyria, king of the four 
 regions, king of Babylon, king of Sumir and Akkad, 
 son of Esarhaddon, king of nations, king of Assyria, 
 grandson of Sennacherib, king of nations, king of 
 Assyria. 
 
 The great gods in their assembly my glorious re- 
 nown have heard, and over the kings who dwell in 
 palaces, the glory of my name they have raised, and 
 have exalted my kingdom. 
 
 The temples of Assyria and Babylonia which Esar- 
 haddon, king of Assyria, had begun,, their foundations 
 
373 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 he had built, but had not finished their tops ; anew I 
 built them : I finished their tops. 
 
 Sadi-rabu-matati (the great mountain of the earth), 
 the temple of the god Assur my lord, completely I 
 finished. Its chamber walls I adorned with gold and 
 silver, great columns in it I fixed, and in its gate the 
 productions of land and sea I placed. The god Assur 
 into Sadi-rabu-matati I brought, and I raised him an 
 everlasting sanctuary. 
 
 Saggal, the temple of Merodach, lord of the gods, 
 I built, I completed its decorations ; Bel and Beltis, 
 the divinities of Babylon and Hea, the divine judge, 
 from the temple of ... . I brought out, and placed 
 them in the city of Babylon. Its noble sanctuary a 
 great .... with fifty talents of ... . its brick- 
 work I finished, and raised over it. I caused to 
 make a ceiling (?) of sycamore durable wood, beau- 
 tiful as the stars of heaven, adorned with beaten 
 gold. Over Merodach the great lord I rejoiced in 
 heart, I did his will. A noble chariot, the carriage 
 of Merodach, ruler of the gods, lord of lords, in gold, 
 silver, and precious stones, I finished its workman- 
 ship. To Merodach, king of the whole of heaven and 
 earth, destroyer of my enemies, as a gift I gave it. 
 
 A couch of sycamore durable wood, for the sanc- 
 tuary, covered with precious stones as ornaments, as 
 the resting couch of Bel and Beltis, givers of favour, 
 makers of friendship, skilfully I constructed. In the 
 gate .... the seat of Zirat-banit, which adorned 
 the wall, I placed. 
 
A SS URBA NIP A L. 
 
 879 
 
 Four bulls of silver, powerful, guarding my royal 
 threshold, in the gate of the rising sun, in the greatest 
 gate, in the gate of the temple Sidda which is in the 
 midst of Borsippa, I set up. 
 
 Masmasu, the temple of the mistress of the world, 
 beautifully I adorned, entirely .... the divine 
 queen of Kitmuri, who .... her temple had left 
 . ... in my time .... which Assur had esta- 
 blished ... to satisfy her divinity. . . . 
 
 The dwelling of the gods Sin and Nusku, which a 
 former king, my predecessor, had built : from the 
 beginning had been left, and that dwelling had be- 
 come old. The dwelling of the gods Sin and Nusku, 
 its damages I repaired, beyond what it was before, I 
 enlarged its site, from its foundation to its roof I 
 rebuilt, and finished it. 
 
 The temple of Melammi-sami (the worship of 
 heaven) belonging to the god Nusku the great mes- 
 senger, which a former king before me had built, and 
 placed within it, great beams and planks I placed 
 over it, and doors of Leari wood covered with plates 
 of silver I hung in the gates. 
 
 Two bulls of silver, destroyers of my enemies, in 
 the dwelling of Sin my lord I raised, two eagle- 
 headed attendant figures placed together, protectors 
 of my royal threshold > I set up. I caused to enter 
 into it the productions of land and sea, and in the 
 gate of the temple Hiduti I set them up. The hands 
 of the gods Sin and Nusku I took, I brought them 
 in, and seated them in everlasting sanctuaries. The 
 
380 INSCRIPTIONS OF ASSURBANIPAL. 
 
 temples of Assyria and Babylonia, the whole of them 
 I finished, and the furniture of the temples all of it, 
 of silver and gold I made. 
 
 Many of these grand works were executed at 
 Babylon, and from the temple of Bel at that city I 
 procured a brick bearing an inscription of Assur- 
 banipal as follows : — , 
 
 1. To the god Merodach his lord, 
 
 2. Assurbanipal 
 
 3. king of nations king of Assyria, 
 
 4. son of Esarh addon 
 
 5. king of nations king of Assyria 
 
 6. king of Babylon, 
 
 7. the brickwork 
 
 8. of the temple of Te-an-ki 
 
 9. anew I caused to build. 
 
 From Babylon I procured inscriptions showing that 
 Assurbanipal established a library there as well as in 
 Assyria. 
 
Chapter XIX. 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF BEL-Z AKIR-ISKUN, KING OF 
 ASSYRIA, AND HIS SUCCESSORS. 
 
 Want of Monuments. — Obscurity of history. — Bel-zakir-islum. 
 — Cylinder. — Fall of Assyria. — Rise of Babylon. — Nebuchad- 
 nezzar. — Evil Merodach. — Nergalsharezer. — Method of dating. 
 — Nabonidus. — Belshazzar. — Cyrus. — Cambyses. — Darius. — 
 Trilingual text. — Artaxerxes. — Parthian date. — Important 
 evidence. 
 
 ~HB present chapter is not a natural 
 division of the history, as it includes 
 texts of various ages and of distinct 
 races of Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, 
 and Parthian kings, stretching from the date of the 
 death of Assurbanipal, B.C. G2G, clown to the end of 
 the second century before the Christian era. The 
 new inscriptions of this long period were, however, 
 not numerous enough to justify me in dividing it into 
 chapters according to the empires that successively 
 ruled in the country, and I w r as therefore obliged 
 to class the inscriptions of all the successors of Assur- 
 banipal under one head. 
 
 In the death of Assurbanipal the Assyrian power 
 
382 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 declined, and it is not even certain who was his suc- 
 cessor. It is probable, however, that the next 
 monarch was a king named Bel-zakir-iskun, of whom 
 I discovered part of a barrel cylinder near the centre 
 of the mound of Kouyunjik. This fragment belongs 
 to the text printed in " Cuneiform Inscriptions," 
 vol. i. p. 8, No. 6. The text in question would not 
 attract notice but for the fact that so few inscrip- 
 tions of this period have been discovered, and that 
 this is the longest one yet found. The translation 
 of this text, so far as it can be restored, is : — 
 
 1. Bel-zakir-iskun the great king the powerful 
 king, king of nations, king of Assyria, 
 
 2 of Assur and Belat, the delight of Mero- 
 
 dach and Ziratbanit, joy of the heart of the lady of 
 the temple, 
 
 3. the king who satisfies the heart of Nebo and 
 Merodach, the follower .... of Nebo and Urmitu, 
 
 4. Whom Assur, Belat, Bel, Nebo, Sin, Ningal, 
 Ishtar of Nineveh, Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, Nergal, 
 and Nusku, 
 
 5 him gladly perceived him, and proclaimed 
 
 his name to the kingdom. 
 
 6. In all the holy cities the emblems of rule . . . 
 his name they called, 
 
 7 they exalted him and destroyed his 
 
 enemies, and struck down my enemies 
 
 8. who .... to supremacy and dominion they 
 made him, and in all ... . made me 
 
 9. to establish .... people a crown of dominion 
 placed on him .... my birth 
 
JBEL-ZAEIR- ISKUN. 
 
 353 
 
 10. a sceptre of righteousness for the government 
 of all people, Nebo my worship committed to my arm 
 
 11 destruction .... my officers 
 
 12 carrying the shrines of Bel and Nebo 
 
 promoter of good 
 
 13 possessing knowledge and wisdom, re- 
 warder of any one with good 
 
 14 judging upright judgment to his people, 
 
 over .... his blessing 
 
 15 not choosing the broken .... their 
 
 might 
 
 16 they were divided, guarding .... his 
 
 officers 
 
 17. son of ... . the great king, the powerful 
 king, king of nations, king of Assyria, king of tho 
 four regions, 
 
 18. son of ... . king of Sumir and Akkad. 
 [Lines 19 to 46 very mutilated ; they appear to 
 
 describe the rebuilding of the temple of Nebo.] 
 47 I sent .... within it 
 
 48 unsubmissive to me they subdued to 
 
 my feet. 
 
 49. In after days in the time of the kings my sons, 
 whom Assur and Shamas shall call, and to the do- 
 minion of countries and peoples shall proclaim 
 
 50. his name. When this house decays and be- 
 comes old, who repairs its ruin and restores its decay; 
 
 51. the inscription written of my name may he 
 see, may he in a receptacle enclose it, pour out a 
 libation, and my name with his own name write. 
 
3S4 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 52. may Nebo and Urmitu his prayer hear and 
 bless liim. 
 
 53. Whoever the writing of my name defaces, and 
 with his name does not place it, 
 
 54. may they not establish him, and not hear his 
 prayer, and 
 
 55. may they curse him, and his name and his seed 
 from the country wipe out. . . 
 
 .... lines the written inscription, month . . . . 
 3rd day, in the eponymy of Daddi the great officer. 
 
 Such are the fragments of the last royal inscription 
 of any length written in Assyria. .The curious 
 mixture of the first and third persons in the earlier 
 lines, suggests that the king is speaking of another 
 monarch as well as himself. I suspect that there was 
 civil war in Assyria about this time, and Bel-zakir- 
 iskun was succeeded after a short reign by Assur- 
 ebil-ili-kain, the son of Assurbanipal. This prince, in 
 a broken record which I recently discovered, tells us 
 that when Assurbanipal died he himself was not called 
 to the throne, but he ascended it at a later period. 
 Of Assur-ebil-ili-kain 1 found several inscriptions at 
 Nimroud, but these were only duplicates of the texts 
 already known, recording his restoration of the temple 
 of Nebo at that city. 
 
 The Assyrian empire was overthrown and suc- 
 ceeded by the Babylonian power under Nabopolassar, 
 whose son and successor, Nebuchadnezzar, was one 
 of the most famous monarchs in history. He reigned 
 from B.C. 605 to 5G2, and left many memorials of his 
 
BEL- ZA KIR - ISK UJST. 
 
 385 
 
 power. Some small texts of this king are in the new 
 collection. One, of which I only obtained a cast, is 
 the pupil of the eye of a statue of the god Nebo, in- 
 scribed with the following dedication : 
 
 1. To the god Nebo his lord, 
 
 2. Nebuchadnezzar 
 
 3. king of Babylon, 
 
 4. son of Nabopolassar 
 
 5. king of Babylon, 
 
 6. for his preservation he made. 
 
 The three other texts of the reign of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar are on dated contract tablets, and although the 
 subject-matter of these inscriptions is not of much 
 interest, the dates attached to the documents are 
 always valuable for confirming and proving the chro- 
 nology of the reigns of the various monarchs. One 
 of these has the following date in the reign of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar : — ■ 
 
 City of Babylon, month Tammuz, 15th day, 20th 
 year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 
 
 The date of this document would be B.C. 585. 
 
 The two following texts are in the 37th year of 
 the same monarch : — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Iyyar, 21st day, 37th year 
 of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 
 
 City of Babylon, month Kislev, 8th day, 37th year 
 of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 
 
 These tablets belong to the year B.C. 568. 
 
 I saw one text of Evil-merodach, the son of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar, the king who released Jehoiachim of 
 
 c c 
 
38G 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 Judah from prison (2 Kings xxv. 27) : this is 
 dated, — 
 
 City of Dunrinu, month Tammuz, 22nd day, 1st 
 year of Evil-merodach king of Babylon. 
 
 The date of this document is B.C. 561. 
 
 Another of these tablets presented to the British 
 Museum belongs to the reign of Neriglissar, or 
 Nergal-sharezer (Jeremiah xxxix. 3), who was 
 a prince of Babylon in the time of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, and ascended the throne on the death of Evil- 
 merodach in B.C. 560. It is a curious fact that the 
 kings of Assyria and Babylonia did not in general 
 begin to count the years of their reign until the com- 
 mencement of the new year following their accession. 
 During the remainder of the year in which they 
 ascended the throne, documents were dated, " In the 
 year of the accession to the kingdom of so and so," 
 and the first year of the reign commenced with the 
 next new year's day, the first day of the month Nisan. 
 The present document in the reign of Nergal-sharezer 
 is dated in the accession year of that monarch, and 
 will serve as a specimen of this style. 
 
 City of Babylon, month Elul, 16th day, in the year 
 of the accession to the kingdom, of Nergal-sharezer 
 king of Babylon. 
 
 This date was B.C. 560. 
 
 Another Babylonian date in an accession year is 
 given in 2 Kings xxv. 27. " Evil-merodach king of 
 Babylon in the year w r hen he began to reign." 
 
 After the short reign of nine months of the son of 
 
BEL-ZAKIRISKUN. 
 
 Nergal-sharezer, the throne of Babylon was occnpied 
 in B.C. 556 by Nabonidus the father of the Belshazzar 
 of the Book of Daniel. The following dates are of 
 his reicm : — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Kislev 23rd day, 9th year 
 of Nabonidus king of Babylon. 
 
 This document was written B.C. 547. 
 Another is dated, — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Iyyar, 13th day, 11th year 
 of Nabonidus king of Babylon. 
 
 This corresponds to B.C. 545. 
 
 A third document has the date — * 
 
 City of Babylon, month Elul, 10th day, 16th year 
 of Nabonidus king of Babylon. 
 
 This belongs to the year B.C. 540. 
 
 Another text is dated, — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Nisan, 14th day, 17th 
 year of Nabonidus king of Babylon. 
 
 This was the last year of Nabonidus, B.C. 539. 
 
 In the year B.C. 540 the Babylonians were attacked 
 by the combined forces of the Medes and Persians 
 under the leadership of Cyrus, and in B.C. 539 the 
 city of Babylon was captured and the country added 
 to the Persian empire. 
 
 There are no new inscriptions of the time of 
 Cyrus, but there are two of the reign of his son and 
 successor Cambyses, who ruled from B.C. 530 to 522. 
 The first is dated, — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Elul, 6th day, 2nd year 
 of Cambyses king of Babylon, king of countries. 
 
 c c 2 
 
38S 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS OF 
 
 Corresponding with the year B.C. 528. 
 The other tablet is dated, — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Tebet, 6th day 5th year 
 of Cambyses. 
 
 Agreeing with B.C. 525. 
 
 The reign of Cambyses ended in B.C. 522 ; and after 
 the usurpation of the Magi, Darius Hystaspes as- 
 cended the Persian throne the same year. The three 
 following dates belong to the reign of Darius :— 
 
 City of Babylon, month Tebet, 9th day, 6th year 
 of Darius king of Babylon, king of countries. 
 
 This tablet belongs to B.C. 516. 
 
 Another is dated,—*- 
 
 City of Kisu, month Ab, 7th day, 30th year of 
 Darius king of Babylon, king of countries. 
 
 The date of this tablet is B.C. 492. 
 
 The third of these texts has the date,- — 
 
 City of Babylon, month Elul, 24th day, 31st year 
 of Darius king of Babylon and the countries. 
 
 This date is B.C. 491. 
 
 I saw at Baghdad a small conical stone of a 
 black colour, in appearance like a weight, having 
 a worn inscription of Darius in three languages, 
 Persian, Medo-Scythic, and Babylonian. 
 
 The last inscription of the Persian period which I 
 have to notice is dated in the " month Kislev, 2nd 
 day, 39th year of Artaxerxes king of countries," 
 which corresponds to B.C. 427. 
 
 The Persian empire was overthrown by Alexander 
 the Great, and after his death his empire was divided 
 
BEL-ZAKIB-ISKTJK 
 
 339 
 
 among his generals. One of these, named Seleucus, 
 obtained possession of Babylon, and from him an era 
 was named which commenced B.C. 312. Some sixty 
 years after this a chief named Arsaces revolted against 
 the Seleucidaa and founded the Parthian monarchy 
 and the dynasty of the Arsacidae. The Parthians 
 afterwards defeated the Greeks, and wrested Baby- 
 lonia from them. From the time of the Parthian 
 conquest it appears that the tablets were dated 
 according to the Parthian style. There has always 
 been a doubt as to the date of this revolt, and con- 
 sequently of the Parthian monarchy, as the classical 
 authorities have left no evidence as to the exact date 
 of the rise of the Parthian power. I however obtained 
 three Parthian tablets from Babylon, two of them 
 contained double dates, one of which being found 
 perfect supplied the required evidence, as it was 
 dated according to the Seleucian era, and according 
 also to the Parthian era, the 141th year of the Par- 
 thians being equal to the 208th year of the Seleu- 
 cidse, thus making the Parthian era to have com- 
 menced B.C. 248. This date is written : 
 
 Month .... 23rd day, 144th year, which is called 
 the 208th year, Arsaces king of kings. 
 
 This tablet was inscribed B.C. 105, and is of consi- 
 dei able importance for the chronology of the period. 
 Clinton, in his great work, has given the dates at 
 which several authorities have stated that the Par- 
 thian monarchy arose. See Clinton's " Fasti Romani," 
 vol. ii. appendix, p. 243. Justin, whom Clinton here 
 
390 INSCRIPTIONS OF BEL ZAKIR-ISKUN. 
 
 follows, fixed on the year B.C. 250, and Eusebius 
 gives the same date. Moses Chorenensis fixes on two 
 dates, B.C. 251 and 252, and Suidas gives the year 
 B.C. 240. On comparing the dates here given with 
 that in the inscription, it appears that three of them, 
 B.C. 252, 251, and 250, are too high, and one, B.C. 
 246, is too low, the true date being B.C. 248. 
 
 Many other dates in Parthian history are still un- 
 decided, but it is probable that evidence could be 
 obtained by researches at Babylon, to settle these 
 points of difficulty. 
 
Chapter XX. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 Hymn to light. — Translation. — Invocation to Izdubar. — His 
 worship. — Babylonian text. — Prayer to Bel. — Inundation. — 
 Seven evil spirits. — Their work. — Bel. — Sin, Shamas, and Ishtar. 
 — Attack on the moon. — War in heaven. — Message to Ilea. — 
 Mission of Merodach. — Comparison of legends. — Character of 
 deities. — Astronomy. — Four seasons. — Intercalary month. — 
 Astrolabe. — Observation of eclipse. — Respect for laws. — Epi- 
 graphs. — Letter. — Deed of sale. — Date of Assurbanipal. — Sale of 
 slave. — Syllabaries. — Bilingual lists. 
 
 N the previous chapters I have pointed 
 out some of the principal historical in- 
 srciptions in the new collection. These, 
 however, form only a small part of the 
 discovered texts. There are besides inscriptions and 
 parts of inscriptions of all classes on mythology, 
 astronomy, astrology, geography, natural history, 
 witchcraft, evil spirits, laws, contracts, letters, de- 
 spatches, &c. I purpose noticing some of these texts 
 as illustrations of the contents of the collection, but 
 it would take a far larger work to exhaust or do 
 justice to them. The first tablet I have chosen is 
 
302 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 the one photographed here, which I may describe as 
 a hymn to the light of heaven. . . . This name, how- 
 ever, hardly describes the tablet, which abounds in 
 abrupt transitions, and consists alternately of pas- 
 sages of praise of light and passages in which light 
 personified as a goddess is speaking. The obverse 
 of the tablet commences with the words, " Light of 
 heaven, like a fire on the earth thou art kindled." 
 The reverse, which is photographed, reads — 
 
 1. That which in the storehouse of heaven is 
 kindled, and to the cities of men flies, my glory. 
 
 2. Queen of heaven above and below, may they 
 call my glory. 
 
 3. Countries at once, I sweep in my glory. 
 
 4. Of countries their walls am I, their great de- 
 fence am I in my glory. 
 
 5. May thy heart rejoice; may thy liver be 
 satisfied ; 
 
 6. lord great Anu, may thy heart rejoice ; 
 
 7. lord great mountain Bel, may thy liver be 
 satisfied ; 
 
 8. goddess lady of heaven, may thy heart re- 
 joice ; 
 
 9. mistress lady of heaven, may thy liver be 
 satisfied ; 
 
 10. mistress lady of the temple of Anna, may 
 thy heart rejoice ; 
 
 11. mistress lady of Erech, may thy liver be 
 satisfied ; 
 
i 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 393 
 
 12. mistress lady of Zasuh-erech, may thy heart 
 rejoice. 
 
 13. mistress lady of Harris-kalama (mount of 
 the world) may thy liver be satisfied ; 
 
 14. mistress lady of Silim-kalama, may thy 
 heart rejoice ; 
 
 15. mistress lady of Babylon, may thy liver be 
 satisfied ; 
 
 16. mistress lady named Nana, may thy heart 
 rejoice ; 
 
 17. lady of the temple, lady of the gods, may 
 thy liver be satisfied. 
 
 18. The lament for the goddess 
 
 19. Like the old copy written and explained. 
 
 20. Palace of Assurbanipal king of Assyria, 
 
 21. son of Esarhaddon king of nations, king of 
 Assyria, pontiff of Babylon, 
 
 22. king of Sumir and Akkad, king of the kings of 
 Kush and Muzur, 
 
 23. king of the four regions, son of Sennacherib 
 
 24. king of nations, king of Assyria ; 
 
 25. who to Assur and Beltis, Nebo and Urmit 
 trusts. 
 
 26. Thy kingdom, light of the gods. 
 
 Here the first few lines are double, being one in 
 the Turanian language, the other in the Assyrian. 
 In the later lines the verb at the end is omitted, 
 being indicated by a slight line across, to show that 
 it is the same as those above. Line 18 contains the 
 
39i 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 copy of the opening line of the next tablet in the 
 series, and lines 19 to 26 contain the colophon, with 
 the statement that the tablet is a true copy of the 
 original, the genealogy of Assurbanipal, &c. 
 
 There is another curious tablet of this class in the 
 new collection — an invocation to Izdubar, the hero of 
 the flood legends, who was deified after his death. 
 The idea of the power of this hero is forcibly shown 
 in this tablet. 
 
 Invocation to Izdubar (Nimrod ?). 
 
 1. Izdubar the giant king, judge of angels ; 
 
 2. Noble prince great among men, 
 
 3. Conqueror of the world, ruler of the earth, lord 
 of the lower regions ; 
 
 4. Judge speaking like god. Thou dividest, 
 
 5. thou establishest in the earth, thou finishest 
 judgment, 
 
 G. thy judgment is not changed, another exists 
 not. 
 
 7. Thou spoilest, thou rejoicest, thou judgest, 
 thou dividest, thou arrangest. 
 
 8. Shamas wisdom and power to thy hand has 
 given, 
 
 9. kings, pontiffs, and princes before thee are sub- 
 ject. 
 
 10. Thou dividest their ways, their power thou 
 breakest. 
 
 11. I so and so son of such an one, whom his god 
 so and so and his goddess so and so, 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 395 
 
 12. with disease have covered, and have visited 
 him with a judgment ; 
 
 13. my strength to weakness before me turns, 
 
 14. Give judgment for me, &c, &c 
 
 The remainder of 'the tablet is mutilated, and I 
 have not yet had time to complete it, but I expect 
 the rest of the inscription is in the collection. This 
 portion, however, will show the popular idea of 
 Izdubar, whom I think to be the giant hunter of 
 Genesis. We must always remember that Izdubar 
 is only a provisional name, which I proposed for this 
 hero when I first discovered the account of his ad- 
 ventures ; his real name we do not yet know, as we 
 cannot read the characters of which it is composed ; 
 I believe when they are read they will turn out to 
 be Mmrod. Beside this monarch, two other Baby- 
 lonian kings were also deified, Suqamunu and Amar- 
 agu. 
 
 From Babylon I procured several tablets forming 
 the first instalment of a Babylonian library attached 
 to the temple of Bel ; among these tablets were some 
 curious records as to the rites in the Babylonian 
 temples. The following translation is made from one 
 written in the Turanian and Semitic Babylonian 
 languages : — - 
 
 Tablet from the Tew^le of Bel. 
 
 1. In the month Nisan, on the second day, one 
 kaspu (2 hours) in the night, 
 
396 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 2. the amil-urgal draws near and the water of the 
 river he observes 
 
 3. to the presence of Bel he enters and measures, 
 and in the presence of Bel 
 
 4. he marks it, and to Bel this prayer he prays : 
 
 5. "0 lord, who in his might has no equal ; 
 
 6. lord, good sovereign, lord of the world; 
 
 7. Executor of the judgment of the great gods ; 
 
 8. Lord who in his might is clothed with strength ; 
 
 9. Lord king of mankind, establisher of glory ; 
 
 10. Lord thy throne is Babylon, Borsippa is thy 
 crown ; 
 
 11. the wide heaven is the expanse of thy liver. 
 
 [12 and 13 of doubtful meaning.] 
 14. thy might thou .... 
 15 lord powerful, 
 
 16. returning reward .... 
 
 17. to those cast down, do thou give to them 
 favour, 
 
 18. answer to the man who praises thy might. 
 
 19. lord of the earth, of mankind, and spirits, 
 speak good. 
 
 20. "Who is there, whose mouth does not praise thy 
 might, 
 
 21. and speak of thy law, and glorify thy do- 
 minion ? 
 
 22. lord of the earth dwelling in the temple of 
 the sun, take hold of the hands which are lifted to 
 thee, 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 397 
 
 23. to thy city Babylon grant favours, 
 
 24. to the temple of Saggal thy temple, incline thy 
 face, 
 
 25. for the sons of Babylon and Borsippa grant 
 blessings." 
 
 There are several of these tablets in the new col- 
 lection giving directions for similar ceremonies on 
 different days in the first month Msan. From the 
 wording of the tablets it appears that these rites were 
 connected with the rise of the inundation, a matter 
 of the utmost importance to the Babylonians. The 
 officer called amiUurgal had to watch the stream and 
 record in the temple the measure of the waters, praying 
 at the same time to Bel, the great god of Babylon, to 
 be propitious to the country. 
 
 Of the curious myths connected with the Baby- 
 lonian religion there are several examples. I have 
 already mentioned one, unfortunately too mutilated 
 for translation, the account of the Creation. It appears 
 to record that when the gods in their assembly made 
 the universe there was confusion, and the gods sent 
 out the spirit of life. They then create the beast of 
 the field, the animal of the field, and the reptile or 
 creeping thing of the field, and fix in them the spirit 
 of life ; next comes the creation of domestic animals 
 and the creeping things of the city. There are in all 
 fourteen mutilated lines remaining of the inscription. 
 
 The new collection has yielded another fine frag- 
 ment of this class, which joins some others and helps 
 
308 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 to complete a curious myth relating to seven evil 
 spirits. This tablet belongs to a series which appears 
 to me likely to represent the tablets which Berosus 
 states were buried by Xisithrus before the deluge, and 
 recovered by the Babylonians after the waters had 
 subsided. It is possible that these tablets were 
 written by some Chaldean priest during the early 
 Babylonian monarchy, and that their author endea- 
 voured to increase their importance by representing 
 them as works written before the flood. Among the 
 known inscriptions there are no others likely to re- 
 present these supposed records. The tablet with the 
 history of the seven evil gods or spirits is written in 
 six columns, inscribed on both sides of a large clay 
 tablet. Only the first three columns refer to the le- 
 gend, the others being, however, on a similar subject. 
 
 Tablet ivith the story of the Seven Wiclced Gods or 
 
 Spirits. 
 
 Column I. 
 
 1. In the first days the evil gods 
 
 2. the angels who were in rebellion, who in the 
 lower part of heaven 
 
 3. had been created, 
 
 4. they caused their evil work 
 
 5. devising with wicked heads . . . 
 
 6. ruling to the river .... 
 
 7. There were seven of them. The first was . . . . 
 
 8. the second was a great animal .... 
 
 9. which any one .... 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 300 
 
 10. the third was a leopard .... 
 
 11. the fourth was a serpent .... 
 
 12. the fifth was a terrible .... which to ... . 
 
 13. the sixth was a striker which to god and king 
 did not submit, 
 
 14. the seventh was the messenger of the evil wind 
 which .... made. 
 
 15. The seven of them messengers of the god Ami 
 their king 
 
 16. from city to city went round 
 
 17. the tempest of heaven was strongly bound to 
 them, 
 
 18. the flying clouds of heaven surrounded them, 
 
 19. the downpour of the skies which in the bright 
 day 
 
 20. makes darkness, was attached to them 
 
 21. with a violent wind, an evil wind, they began, 
 
 22. the tempest of Vul was their might, 
 
 23. at the right hand of Vul they came, 
 
 24. from the surface of heaven like lightning they 
 darted, 
 
 25. descending to the abyss of waters, at first they 
 came. 
 
 26. In the wide heavens of the god Anu the king 
 
 27. evil they set up, and an opponent they had not. 
 
 28. At this time Bel of this matter heard and 
 
 29. the account sank into his heart. 
 
 30. With Hea the noble sage of the gods he took 
 counsel, and 
 
 31. Sin (the moon), Shamas (the sun), and Ishtar 
 
400 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 (Venus) in tlie lower part of heaven to control it lie 
 appointed. 
 
 32. With Anu to the government of the whole of 
 heaven he set them up. 
 
 33. To the three of them the gods his children, 
 
 34. day and night to be united and not to break 
 apart, 
 
 35. he urged them. 
 
 36. In those days those seven evil spirits 
 
 37. in the lower part of heaven commencing, 
 
 38. before the light of Sin fiercely they came, 
 
 39. the noble Shamas and Vul (the god of the 
 atmosphere) the warrior to their side they turned 
 and 
 
 40. Ishtar with Anu the king into a noble seat 
 
 41. they raised and in the government of heaven 
 they fixed. 
 
 Column II 
 
 1. The god 
 
 2 
 
 3. The god 
 
 4. which 
 
 5. In those days the seven of them 
 
 6. at the head in the control to 
 
 7. evil 
 
 8. for the drinking of his noble mouth 
 
 9. The god Sin the ruler .... mankind 
 10 of the earth 
 
 11 troubled and on high he sat, 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 401 
 
 12. niglit and day fearing, in the seat of his do- 
 minion he did not sit. 
 
 13. Those evil gods the messengers of Anu their king 
 
 14. deviled with wicked heads to assist one 
 another, and 
 
 15. evil they spake together, and 
 
 16. from the midst of heaven like a wind to the 
 earth they came down. 
 
 17. The god Bel of the noble Sin, his trouble 
 
 18. in heaven, he saw and 
 
 19. Bel to his attendant the god Nusku said : 
 
 20. " Attendant Nusku this account to the ocean 
 carry, and 
 
 21. the news of my child Sin who in heaven is 
 greatly troubled ; 
 
 22. to the god Hea in the ocean repeat." 
 
 23. Nusku the will of his lord obeyed, and 
 
 24. to Hea in the ocean descended and went. 
 
 25. To the prince, the noble sage, the lord, the 
 god unfailing, 
 
 26. Nusku the message of his lord at once re- 
 peated. 
 
 27. Hea in the ocean that message heard, and 
 
 28. his lips spake, and with wisdom his mouth was 
 filled. 
 
 29. Hea his son the godMerodach called, and this 
 word he spake : 
 
 30. " Go my son Merodach 
 
 31. enter into the shining Sin who in heaven is 
 greatly troubled ; 
 
 d d 
 
402 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 32. his trouble from heaven expel." 
 
 33. Seven of them the evil gods, spirits of death, 
 having no fear, 
 
 34. seven of them the evil gods, who like a flood 
 
 35. descend and sweep over the earth. 
 
 36. To the earth like a storm they come down. 
 
 37. Before the light of Sin fiercely they came 
 
 38. The noble Shamas and Vul the warrior, to 
 their side they turned and .... 
 
 The next thirty lines of this curious legend are 
 still lost : they probably contained the remainder of 
 the speech of Hea, describing the events in heaven, 
 and the mission of Merodach to his assistance. Of 
 the following portion of the legend there remain six 
 fragments, but these are not sufficient for the restora- 
 tion of the text. This inscription gives us a curious 
 picture of the myths prevalent in the Euphrates 
 valley. They appeared to believe that in the early 
 days of the world there was a chaos or confusion in 
 heaven, and monstrous forms of animals ran riot as 
 evil spirits in the universe, while the sun, moon, and 
 stars had not been set in their places. In the upper 
 regions of heaven ruled the god Anu, who corre- 
 sponded in some senses to the Ouranos of the Greeks. 
 He was god of heaven and king of the seven evil 
 gods, and he had a son named Vul, who was god of 
 the atmosphere and all its phenomena. On the earth 
 ruled Bel, god of the middle region, and the principal 
 object of Babylonian worship. Anu in heaven rather 
 represented a passive divinity, overlooking all things, 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 403 
 
 but seldom interfering, Bel on the other hand re- 
 presents the acting principle moving in all matters, 
 controlling and creating. The deep, or ocean, and 
 region under the earth were ruled by Hea, who re- 
 presents the mind or wisdom of the gods. Thus 
 these three leading deities of the Babylonian pantheon 
 represent in some sort a trinity, and exhibit the god- 
 head under a threefold aspect. The seven wicked 
 gods or spirits, with their monstrous forms, are pro- 
 bably the originals of the Titans of the Greeks, who 
 were at war with Jupiter. Bel, seeing the confusion 
 in heaven, resolves to place there the sun, the moon, 
 and Venus, who typifies the stars, that these heavenly 
 orbs might rule and direct the heavens. The evil 
 spirits, emblems of chaos, resist this change, and 
 make war on the Moon, the eldest son of Bel, draw- 
 ing over to their side the Sun, Venus, and the atmo- 
 spheric god, Vul. Bel hears of this, and then follows 
 the mission to Hea for his advice. It is most pro- 
 bable that the legend closes with the destruction or 
 punishment of the seven evil spirits, and the triumph 
 of the Moon, who is considered the type of the good 
 kings of the country ; one later passage mentions : 
 " The king the son of his god (i. e. the pious king) 
 who like the glorious moon the life of the country 
 sustains." 
 
 This legend of Bel ending the rule of the monsters, 
 and setting the sun, moon, and stars in the heavens, 
 forms a curious commentary on the description of the 
 creation by Berosus, the Chaldean priest, who repre- 
 
 d d 2 
 
404 
 
 IIISCULLAJSrUOUS TEXTS. 
 
 sents monsters as existing on the earth before Bel 
 created light and the heavenly bodies. The details 
 of the legend are> however, so different to those of 
 the Greek translation of Berosus, that they suggest 
 the idea that these myths had assumed various forms 
 in Chaldea at an early period. Other fragments of 
 similar legends are in the new collection, and when 
 joined together and completed, will probably supply 
 new and curious matter in the same direction. 
 
 In the division of tablets relating ' to astronomy 
 and astrology there are many new and curious tab- 
 lets. Some of these give us our first insight into the 
 divisions of the heavens and positions of the fixed 
 stars. One shows that the sky was divided into four 
 regions, the passage of the sun through which marked 
 the four seasons of the year. This fragment is the 
 niost valuable astronomical text that has yet been 
 discovered, as it shows also the method of arranging 
 the year. The following is a translation of the in- 
 scription, with some slight restorations, which are 
 easily supplied by the regular character of the 
 text ; — 
 
 1. From the first day of the month Adar to the 
 30th day of the month Iyyar, the sun in the division 
 (or season) of the great goddess, 
 
 2. is fixed and the time of showers and warmth. 
 
 3. From the first day of the month Sivan to the 
 30 th day of the month Ab> the sun 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 405 
 
 4. in the division (or season) of Bel is fixed and 
 the time of the crops and heat 
 
 5. From the 1st day of the month Elul to the 
 30th day of the month Marchesvan, the sun 
 
 6. in the division (or season) of Arm is fixed and 
 the time of showers and warmth. 
 
 7. From the 1st day of the month Kislev to the 
 30th day of the month Sebat, the sun in the divi- 
 sion (or season) of Hea is fixed and the time of 
 cold. 
 
 8. When on the 1st day of the month Nisan the 
 star of stars and the moon are parallel, that year is 
 right (or normal). 
 
 9. When on the 3rd day of the month Nisan the 
 star of stars and the moon are parallel, that year is 
 full (i. e. has 13 months). 
 
 It appears by this that at the time this tablet was 
 written the spring quarter was counted as extending 
 through the months Adar (the last month of the 
 year), Nisan (the first month), and Iyyar, that is, 
 commencing in February and ending in May. 
 
 The summer quarter extended through the months 
 Sivan, Tammuz, and Ab, commencing in May and 
 ending in August. The autumn quarter extended 
 through the months Elul, Tisri, and Marchesvan, 
 commencing in August and ending in November. 
 
40G 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 The winter quarter extended through the months 
 Kislev, Tebet, and Sebat, commencing in November 
 and ending in February. To agree with and pre- 
 cisely mark these periods, the heavens were divided 
 into four regions, and the passage of the sun from 
 one of these to another served to mark the change 
 of season. In this tablet I have according to usual 
 custom translated the signs for " month " and " day/* 
 but I believe in this case the word " day" means a 
 degree of the heavens, and the word " month " a 
 sign of the zodiac, so that instead of " From the 1st 
 day of the month Addar to the 30th day of the 
 month Iyyar," I should propose, " From the 1st 
 degree of the sign Pisces to the 30th degree of the 
 sign Taurus," and so on through the translation. 
 The Assyrian year consisted, like the Jewish, of 
 twelve lunar months, and in order to keep it in 
 proper relation to the solar year, an intercalary 
 month was sometimes added. In order to know 
 when to add the extra month, they watched a star 
 called the " star of stars, 5 '* which was just in advance 
 of the sun when it crossed the vernal equinox. If 
 the moon was parallel with that on the first day of 
 the month, they made no intercalation ; but if it did 
 not reach the star until the third day, it showed that 
 the year (from the fact that twelve lunar months 
 were short of the solar year) began too far in advance 
 of the equinox, and therefore an intercalary month 
 was added to bring it round again. The information 
 with respect to the divisions of the heavens and the 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 407 
 
 names of some of the stars in the different divisions, 
 will enable us in time to give something like precision 
 to our knowledge of the Babylonian astronomy. I 
 have been able already with these aids to fix approxi- 
 mately, and in some cases to identify, about thirty of 
 the principal stars. Four of these are given on the 
 fragment of the astrolabe, the stars Urbat and 
 Addil, which were in the sign Scorpio, and the stars 
 Nibat-anu and Udka-gaba, which were in the sign 
 Sagittarius. The star Nibat anu has hitherto been 
 erroneously supposed to be a planet. 
 
 The fact that in this record the four quarters of 
 the heavens do not commence with the new year, 
 suggests the inquiry whether from the precession of 
 the equinoxes the seasons had shifted since the first 
 settlement of Babylonian astronomy. Another curious 
 document of this class is an astrolabe, part of which 
 I discovered in the palace of Sennacherib. In this 
 the heavens and the year are represented by the 
 circular form of the object, and round the circum- 
 ference it was originally divided into twelve parts 
 corresponding to the twelve signs of the zodiac and 
 the twelve months of the year, the number of degrees 
 in each being marked. Inside these there were 
 twelve other divisions nearer the pole, forming a 
 second and inner circle, and in each of the twenty- 
 four divisions, the principal prominent star is inserted. 
 The following diagram will give an idea of this work, 
 remembering that the Assyrian copy is round a 
 circle :— - 
 
403 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS, 
 
 Outer circle. 
 
 Arah-uru-gab-a 
 Month Marchesvan 
 (October) 
 Star Ur-bat 
 
 140 
 
 degrees 
 
 # 
 
 Arah-gan- gari-na 
 Month Kislev 
 (JNovember) 
 Star Nibat-anu 
 
 120 
 
 degrees 
 
 # 
 
 Star Addil 
 
 70 
 
 degrees 
 
 # 
 
 Star Ud-ka-gab-a 
 
 60 
 
 degrees 
 
 Pole. 
 
 I am of opinion that the numbers under the month 
 of Marchesvan, 140 and 70 degrees, are errors in the 
 Assyrian copy, and should be 150 and 75 degrees. 
 
 These and some other similar documents will be of 
 great value towards arranging the Babylonian names 
 of stars* and ascertaining their divisions of the 
 heavens. All investigations into the astronomy of 
 the Assyrians and Babylonians are of little use until 
 the positions of the stars according to their system 
 are fixed. 
 
 In the valley of the Euphrates there were in those 
 days observatories in most of the large cities, and 
 professional astronomers regularly took observations 
 of the heavens, copies of which were sent to the king, 
 as each movement or appearance in the heaven was 
 supposed to portend some good or evil to the kingdom. 
 The following report was found in the palace of Sen- 
 nacherib at Kouyunjik : — 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 409 
 
 1. To the king my lord, thy servant Abil-istar, 
 
 2. May there be peace to the king my lord. May 
 Nebo and Merodach 
 
 3. to the king my lord be favourable. Length of 
 days, 
 
 4. health of body, and joy of heart, may the great 
 gods 
 
 5. to the king my lord grant. Concerning the 
 eclipse of the moon 
 
 6. of which the king my lord sent to me ; in the 
 cities of Akkad, 
 
 7. Borsippa, and Nipur, observations 
 
 8. they made and then in the city of Akkad 
 
 9. we saw part .... 
 
 10. the observation was made and the eclipse took 
 place 
 
 11 
 
 12 the eclipse over .... 
 
 13 saw ? . . . . 
 
 14. which on the tablet was written .... 
 
 15. I made the observation .... 
 
 16. This to the king my lord I send. 
 
 17. And when for the eclipse of the sun we made 
 
 18. an observation, the observation was made and 
 it did not take place. 
 
 19. That which I saw with my eyes to the king 
 my lord 
 
 20. I send. This eclipse of the moon 
 
 21. which did happen, concerns the countries 
 
 22. with their god all. Over Syria 
 
410 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 23. it closes, the country of Phoenicia, 
 
 24. of the Hittites, of the people of Chaldea, 
 
 25. but to the king my lord it sends peace, and 
 according to 
 
 26. the observation, not the extending 
 
 27. of misfortune to the king my lord 
 
 28. may there be. 
 
 The care of these people about the laws and justice 
 may be seen by the following inscription found in the 
 north palace, Kouyunjik. 
 
 1. When the king according to judgment does 
 not speak ; his people decay, his country is depressed. 
 
 2. When according to the laws of his country he 
 does not speak ; the god Hea, lord of destiny, 
 
 3. his fate shall utter and he shall be set aside. 
 
 4. When according to good government he does 
 not speak ; his days shall be shortened. 
 
 5. When according to the good tablets he does 
 not speak ; his country shall know invasion. 
 
 6. When according to destruction he speaks ; his 
 country shall be broken up. 
 
 7. When according to the writings of the god 
 Hea he speaks ; the great gods 
 
 8. in glory and just praise shall seat him. 
 
 9. If the son of the city of Sip para, he beats and 
 turns aside justice ; Sharnas the judge of heaven and 
 earth, 
 
 10. anothpr judge in his country shall place, 
 and a just prince and just judge instead of unjust 
 judges. 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 411 
 
 11. When the sons of the city of Nipur for judg- 
 ment shall come to him, and he shall take gifts and 
 beat them ; 
 
 12. The god Bel, lord of countries, another enemy 
 
 13. shall strengthen against him, and his army 
 shall destroy. 
 
 14. The prince and his general in fetters like 
 criminals shall be bound. 
 
 15. If silver the sons of Babylon bring and send 
 presents, and 
 
 16. the judge of the Babylonians listens and turns 
 to injustice ; 
 
 17. Merodach lord of heaven and earth his enemy 
 over him shall establish, 
 
 18. and his goods and furniture to his adversary 
 shall give. 
 
 19. The sons of Nipur, Sippara, and Babylon, who 
 shall do this ; 
 
 20. to prison shall be sent. 
 
 There are several other lines to the same effect, 
 and it appears that this is. like most of the tablets, a 
 copy from a much older Babylonian original. The 
 Assyrians had really little original literature of their 
 own, almost all their writings being copies from early 
 Babylonian texts. 
 
 Another curious class of tablets consists of small 
 texts, apparently directions to the workmen as to 
 what inscriptions are to be carved over the various 
 sculptures in the palace. I have translaied one 
 which I found in the south-west palace, Kouyunjik. 
 
412 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 Tablet containing copies of Epigraphs over Sculptures. 
 
 1. In front of the decapitated head of Te-umman 
 king of Elam, 
 
 2. whom Ishtar my lady had delivered into my 
 hands, 
 
 3. my entry into the city of Arbela I made with 
 rejoicing. 
 
 4. Dunanu, Samgunu, and Paliya 
 
 5. in the regions of the rising sun and the setting 
 sun, 
 
 6. to the astonishment of the people with me, I 
 fettered them. 
 
 7. With the decapitated head of Te-umman king 
 of Elam, 
 
 8. the road to Arbela I took with rejoicing 
 
 9. I am Assurbanipal king of Assyria. The great 
 men of Ursa 
 
 10. king of Armenia, to ask for my alliance he sent. 
 
 11. Nabu-damiq andUmbadara great men of Elam 
 
 12. in bonds for the defiance I placed in their 
 presence. 
 
 13. Before them Mannu-ki-ahi the second man 
 
 attazabni 
 
 14. and Ninip-uzalli the prefect before the city 
 their tongues I pulled out, 
 
 15. I tore off their skins 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 413 
 
 16. Line of battle of Assurbanipal king of Assyria, 
 who accomplished the overthrow of Elam 
 
 17. Line of battle of Te-umman king of Elam. 
 
 18. Head of Te-umman king of Elam. 
 
 19. I am Assurbanipal king of nations king of 
 Assyria 
 
 20. conqueror of his enemies. The head of Te- 
 umman into the city of Nineveh 
 
 21. of Assur, Sin, Shamas, Bel, Nebo, Ishtar of 
 Nineveh, 
 
 22. Ishtar of Arbela, Ninip, and Nergal, into the 
 city the men of my arms joyfully 
 
 23. carried, in front of the great gate and before 
 the viceroy of Assur placed it, 
 
 24. in front of my footstool. 
 
 25. I am Assurbanipal king of nations, king of 
 Assyria, 
 
 26. Nabu-damiq and Umbadara the great men 
 27 
 
 Each space between the black lines contained an 
 epigraph to go over the particular sculptured scene 
 which it explained. All the epigraphs on this tablet 
 belonged to the great war against Te-umman, which 
 in the great cylinder is called the fifth campaign of 
 the king. Similar epigraphs are found on the sculp- 
 tures, and several of them are in the British Museum. 
 
414 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 The following tablet is a request or petition found 
 in the palace of Sennacherib. It is from an officer 
 named Bel-basa connected with the palace of Kalzi, 
 an Assyrian city on the site of the modern Shema- 
 mak. It appears that the palace there was assigned 
 as a residence to the wives of the king and had 
 become dangerous from want of repair. 
 
 Letter to the Icing of Assyria. 
 
 1 . To the king my lord 
 
 2. from thy servant Bel-basa. 
 
 3. May there be peace to the king my lord, 
 
 4. Nebo and Merodach 
 
 5. the king my lord very 
 
 6. greatly bless. 
 
 7. Concerning the palace of the queen, 
 
 8. which is in the city of Kalzi 
 
 9. which the king my lord has appointed us; 
 
 10. the house is decaying, 
 
 11. the house the foundation is openings 
 
 12. the foundations to bulge, 
 
 13. its bricks are bulging. 
 
 14. When will the king our lord command 
 
 15. the master of works ? 
 
 16. An order let him make, 
 
 17. that he may come, and the foundation 
 
 18. that he may strengthen. 
 
 In connexion with this tablet it maybe noticed as 
 a curious fact that Sennacherib mentions executing 
 some works at the palace of Kalzi in ?>.c. 704. 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS 
 
 415 
 
 The following inscription, which dates in the year 
 B.C. 670, late in the reign of Esarhaddon, records the 
 sale of a plantation or enclosure near the city of 
 Lahiru, in the south-east of Assyria, and close to the 
 Elamite frontier : — ■ 
 
 Assyrian Deed of Sale. 
 
 1. Seal of Nergal-ilai the governor 
 
 2. of the city of Lahiru ; 
 
 3. Seal of Sin-sar-uzurthe second man in the same; 
 
 4. ditto of Musasu the third man in the same ; 
 
 5. ditto of Zabinu the director of the 
 
 6. making four men owners of the enclosure sold. 
 
 [Here follow impressions of seals.] 
 
 i 
 
 7. The enclosure of Bahai, the whole of it ; 
 
 8. measuring 500 of ground reckoned in sehul 
 (acres), 
 
 9. bounded by the enclosure of Tabhari, 
 
 10. bounded by the ground of the enclosure of 
 Zilli-bel the ruler of Sakullat, 
 
 11. bounded by the ground of the city of Paqut 
 and of the city of Dur-mannai, 
 
 12. bounded by the ground of the enclosure of 
 Ahiya-amnu and the enclosure of Zilli-bel ; 
 
 13. they sold ; and Adar-ili the officer 
 
 14. of the son of the king of Babylon 
 
 15. from before these men, 
 
410 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 16. for the sum of fourteen manas (15 lbs.) of 
 silver 
 
 17. bought. • . . of the king 
 
 18. . ... to be eaten 
 
 19 sekul (acres) 
 
 20 har abhi 
 
 121 this year the silver on account of 
 
 22 placed, his ground 
 
 23 went out of that ground, the seed for 
 
 its sowing 
 
 24. they had not sown ; and its grain 
 
 25. he will not gather 
 
 26. Witness Sin-bel-uzur the great collector, 
 
 27. witness Salimha the third man 
 
 28. of the palace* 
 
 29. witness Bel-nahid minister of the son of the 
 king, 
 
 30. witness Mannu-ki-assur the scribe, 
 
 31. witness Maruduk-sarani .... 
 
 32. witness Ginai the Elamite 
 
 33. witness Nabu-musa the scribe 
 
 34. Month Iyyar, 1st day, 
 
 35. in the eponymy of Salmu-bel-lasmi 
 
 36. governor of the city of Diri. 
 
 [On edge of tablet.] 
 
 37. Bounded by the ground of the enclosure 
 
 38. of La ... . 
 
 In this inscription Esarhaddon is spoken of simply 
 as the king of Babylon, which makes it probable that 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 417 
 
 lie had already associated his eldest son, Assurbanipal, 
 with himself on the throne, and had resigned Assyria 
 to him, retaining Babylon for himself. The accession 
 of Assurbanipal will thus be some years earlier than 
 I have formerly supposed, and probably took place in 
 B.C. G71. Adar-ili, who purchased this field, was 
 governor of Lahiru three years earlier ; he was now 
 promoted to be an officer of Assurbanipal, while 
 JNergahilai replaced him at Lahiru. Bel-nahid, the 
 third of the witnesses, was a few years later made 
 tartan or commander-in-chief. 
 
 Another of these deeds of sale in the new collec- 
 tion is an illustration of the slavery which then as 
 now existed in the Euphrates valley. This tablet 
 records the sale of a girl to one of the women of the 
 palace of Sennacherib, and it is dated in the monarch's 
 one eponymy in the year B.C. 687. This girl was 
 probably intended for the harem of the king. 
 
 Tablet with record of the sale of a female slave from 
 the Palace of Sennacherib, Kouyunjik 
 
 1. Seal of the woman Daliya 
 
 2. mistress of the girl who was sold. 
 
 Space for seals. 
 
 3. The girl Anadalati 
 
 4. daughter of Sayaradu 
 
 5. she sold, and Ahitilli 
 
 C. female of the palace, from the hand 
 
 E e 
 
418 MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 7. of the woman Daliya for the price 
 
 8. of one half mana of silver bought. 
 
 9. The sale was complete and she gave 
 
 10. that girl 
 
 11. for the price she was bought, 
 
 12. and judgment was given 
 
 13. not to alter 5 which in 
 
 [Several lines lost here containing the names of 
 the witnesses.] 
 [Date.] 
 
 a. Month Sebat, 22nd day 
 
 b. eponymy of Sennacherib king of Assyria. 
 Some of the syllabaries and bilingual lists in the 
 
 new collection are of great value to students, but it 
 is impossible to exhibit them properly in a work like 
 the present without the cuneiform characters. Two 
 of these include explanations of the ancient names 
 of some of the capitals of Assyria and Babylonia . 
 another explains the names of the various guards 
 and watches, and the signs for classes of men. 
 Another is the syllabary in four columns which I 
 have before mentioned, p. 101. Among numerous 
 other signs, it gives the following values of one 
 which is usually read im : — 
 
 1. Pu-luh-tu, fear. 
 
 2. Ra-ma-nu, self. 
 
 3. E-mu-qu, power. 
 
 4. Zu-um-ru, back or skin. 
 
 5. Sa-mu, heaven. 
 
 6. Ir-zi-tu, earth. 
 
MISCELLANEOUS TEXTS. 
 
 419 
 
 7. A-lm-u 5 brother. 
 
 8. Di-du, friend. 
 
 9. Sa-a-ru, wind. 
 
 10. Zu-un-nu, rain. 
 
 11. Dup-pu, tablet. 
 
 Many inscriptions of this class, and others similar 
 to those in this chapter, are not yet copied or trans- 
 lated, and further work on this part of the collection 
 will, without doubt, reveal new and important texts. 
 
 E e 2 
 
Chapter XXI. 
 
 FOEEIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 Baghdad Hon. — Egyptian monarch. — Ra-set-nub, or Saites. — 
 Founder of Shepherd power. — Tablet of Barneses. — Date of 
 monument. — Hjksos.— Expelled by Amosis. — Worship of Set. 
 — Type of Lion. — Haraath inscription. — Seals at Nineveh. — 
 Cypriote inscription. — Phoenician texts. — Contract tablets. — 
 Pehlevi inscriptions. — Later texts. — Nisibin. — Destruction of 
 monuments. 
 
 ~^ESIDE the cuneiform inscriptions found 
 in the Euphrates valley, I found or saw 
 several inscriptions in other characters. 
 One of these is an hieroglyphic inscrip- 
 tion on a stone lion. This lion was discovered some 
 years ago in an excavation at Baghdad, and a copy of 
 the inscription upon it was published in " La Reli- 
 gion des Pre-Israelites, Recherches sur le Dieu Seth," 
 by W. Pleyte, plate i. figs. 9 and 10. 
 
 I saw this antiquity when I was at Baghdad and 
 purchased it for the British Museum. The lion is 
 sitting down with the front legs stretched out, and 
 
FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 421 
 
 the inscription containing the name and title of one 
 of the Egyptian monarchs is carved on the breast. 
 The royal name is read by Dr. Birch, Ra-set-nub. 
 Ra-set-nub is the monarch called Saites by Manetho, 
 who relates that he was the leader of the Hyksos, a 
 foreign shepherd race who invaded Egypt and con- 
 quered all the lower part of the country. Ra-set-nub, 
 or Saites, is mentioned on a tablet of Rameses II. 
 king of Egypt, about B.C. 1300. Rameses relates 
 that it was then 400 years after the era of Ra-set-nub, 
 which would give about B.C. 1700 for the conquest of 
 Egypt by the shepherd race, and this will, conse- 
 quently, be the date of the lion. 
 
 The Hyksos are supposed to have been a Phoeni- 
 cian or Arabian race ; they held the country until 
 they were expelled by Amosis, an Egyptian prince 
 who restored the native rule about B.C. 1500. The 
 Hyksos worshipped Sut or Set, who is identified 
 with Baal, instead of the supreme gods of the Egyp- 
 tians, and the name of Set forms one of the elements 
 in the cartouch of the monarch in whose reign the 
 lion was carved. The feelings of the Egyptians 
 against the foreigners on religious grounds were 
 very strong, and few of their monuments have 
 escaped to this day, but those that have been dis- 
 covered show a peculiar type and style of art dif- 
 ferent to those of the native Egyptian periods. In 
 style this lion resembles the other known works of 
 the shepherd period, the character of the sculpture 
 closely according with the inscription. It is pro- 
 
422 
 
 FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 bable that this lion was removed from one of the 
 Egyptian temples during the period of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar's conquest of that country B.C. 572, as it was 
 the custom at that time to carry away monuments as 
 trophies of victory. 
 
 Another hieroglyphic inscription which I saw at 
 Aleppo is a new text in the so-called Hamath cha- 
 racter. As yet very few texts have been found in 
 this strange form of writing, and nothing whatever is 
 known of the meaning of the inscriptions. Almost 
 all the previous inscriptions of this class have been 
 found at Hamath, and from this cause they have been 
 provisionally called " Hamath inscriptions," but it is 
 evident from the other specimens found that these 
 characters were by no means confined to that locality. 
 The characters are evidently hieroglyphic, but totally 
 different to the hieroglyphics of Egypt. They con- 
 tain representations of human figures, hands, boots, 
 heads, fishes, trees, and various other signs. The 
 race which used these hieroglyphics must have been 
 spread over a large area in Syria, but which of the 
 peoples who inhabited these regions were the authors 
 of the inscriptions we are at present quite unable to 
 say. The text which I found at Aleppo is on a black 
 oblong stone, built into the wall of an old mosque 
 now in ruins. The inscription is in two lines, the 
 character in relief, closely resembling the specimens 
 from Hamath. 
 
 It is a curious fact that among the seals found by 
 Mr. Layard in the palace of Sennacherib were some 
 
FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 423 
 
 inscribed with Hamath characters (see " Early Sas- 
 sanian Inscriptions," by Edward Thomas, pp. 7 and 8), 
 showing the use of these hieroglyphics during the 
 Assyrian period, but the larger stone inscriptions 
 appear older in style than the seals. Some scholars 
 have supposed that this writing is connected with 
 the Arabic kingdom, which was contemporary with 
 the Assyrian empire, and attempts have been made to 
 identify the names on the seals, but it is evident that 
 the localities where the stone inscriptions are found 
 are not within the limits of the Arabic kingdom ; 
 Hamath, Antioch, and Aleppo are all in Syria. 
 
 Among the antiquities which I discovered in the 
 north palace at Kouyunjik, the residence of Assur- 
 banipal, were several objects which appeared to have 
 come from Cyprus, and one of these had three 
 Cypriote characters upon it. 
 This object is in the shape of 
 a truncated cone with four 
 sides, the characters being 
 
 Scratched On One of the faces. Object with Cypriote 
 There is a hole for Suspension, Characters. 
 
 and the object appears to have been a curtain weight 
 or something of that sort. Such objects are very 
 common, but seldom marked with any characters. 
 The principal of the foreign texts found in the 
 Assyrian and Babylonian mounds are Phoenician, 
 and are contemporary with the cuneiform inscrip- 
 tions, and often found as dockets to the contract 
 tablets of that period. 
 
424 FOBEIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 The oldest Phoenician inscriptions I found belonged 
 to the period of the dynasty of S argon, who reigned 
 from B.C. 722 to 609, and they came from the library 
 of the south-west palace at Kouyunjik, the building 
 raised by Sennacherib. The first of these is on an 
 oblong tablet of dark clay inscribed on the front and 
 back with cuneiform characters. It forms a contract 
 between some persons of the poorer class, the parties 
 not even possessing seals, but, after the custom of the 
 country among the lower ranks of the population, 
 impressing their finger nails on the document instead. 
 The contract is with respect to a field the owner of 
 which bore the name Ilu-malek. Ilu-malek sold this 
 field, which measured 30 oraers in extent, to a man 
 named Mannu-ki- .... the price being 11 shekels of 
 silver (about 6 oz.) The date is unfortunately 
 wanting, but it probably belongs to the seventh cen- 
 tury B.C. The Phoenician legend is beautifully incised 
 along the edge of the tablet, and is very sharp and 
 clear. Transcribed into Hebrew letters it reads 
 yraio • p^-in • *\ ' • nn 
 
 The words are divided by dots and the meaning 
 of the inscription is clear, 
 ran is the word for 6 S sale." 
 
 -pra^N, Almalak, is the proper name of the owner, 
 answering to the Ilu-malak of the cuneiform text. 
 
 is a particle meaning " this " or " the," here to 
 be rendered " of the." 
 
 p-m, a " field," this word is used for " earth " in 
 J or. x. 10. 
 
FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 425 
 
 yEO means "cultivated." Castelli translates this root 
 " demersus." The meaning of the inscription will thus 
 be : " The sale by Almalak of the cultivated field " — 
 exactly agreeing with the statement of the cunei- 
 form inscription on the tablet. The second of these 
 inscriptions is obscure. It is on a beautiful conical 
 shaped tablet, perfect, and inscribed with a cuneiform 
 legend recording the sale of thirty omers of barley. 
 There is a hole in the base of the tablet through 
 which a cord appears to have been passed to fasten 
 round the mouth of the sack containing the grain. On 
 one side are impressions of a seal, and also along the 
 edge and at the base, with a Phoenician legend. The 
 date of the document is " Month Marchesvan, 17th 
 day, in the eponymy of Mannu-ki-sari, officer of the 
 king," about B.C. 605. 
 
 The Phoenician legend on the base in Hebrew 
 letters reads : 
 
 KntttHTOp. Here the first part ymp is obscure. The 
 second Nnyitf is the name of barley. 
 
 On the side of the tablet the legend is 
 
 mnby 10 + 20 : here are two numbers which to- 
 gether make 30, the number of the omers of barley ; 
 but the meaning of the following letters is altogether 
 uncertain, the V may be the initial letter of the word 
 " omers " and may possibly be used as a contraction 
 for that word, and the last letters m look like the end 
 of the name Nabu-duri, which belongs to one of the 
 contracting parties. Perhaps ma Naduri is used for 
 Nabu-duri, and omitting the opening characters per- 
 
420 
 
 FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 haps we may read the barley 30o(mers) of 
 
 Na(bu)duri." 
 
 From the same locality I procured part of a longer 
 text in Phoenician, a small part only of which is 
 legible, in Hebrew letters it is 
 
 1. . . . byi 2 . . . . HDy ... 3 .... to 
 
 From the ruins of Babylon I brought copies of two 
 Phoenician inscriptions on bricks probably belonging 
 to the sixth century B.C. the first of which is : 
 
 OW'i? apparently a proper name and the second in 
 the same style reads : by\. Beside these I saw at 
 Aleppo a Phoenician inscription on a seal. There is 
 a figure of a boar in the centre and a line of inscrip- 
 tion above and below. The characters are not very 
 certain, but appear to be, — 
 
 1. "IJIPD/D 2. TpDftX 
 
 Here the first line may be the proper name of the 
 owner of the seal, Melek-satur, and the second the 
 title of the individual. npD is used in the Bibb for 
 an officer, overseer, or judge. This seal is the pro- 
 perty of the Russian consul at Aleppo, who kindly 
 allowed me to take an impression of it. 
 
 In the various alphabets current in the East after 
 the fall of the Persian empire, I found several in- 
 scriptions. Most of these were in Pehlevi, a mode 
 of writing derived from the Phoenician, and used in 
 the East during the period of the Roman empire. 
 
 The principal Pehlevi inscriptions which I copied, 
 or brought from Asiatic Turkey, are : — 
 
 I. An inscription in four lines on a circular pillar 
 
FOREIGN INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 427 
 
 now standing in the courtyard of the fort erected by 
 the Turks on the north mound of Kalah Shergat. 
 
 II. An inscription on a column in the citadel at 
 Orfa. 
 
 III. An inscription on a circular ornament with 
 figures round it, like the signs of the zodiac. 
 
 IY. An inscription painted on a flat fragment of 
 bone discovered in the palace of Sennacherib at 
 Kouyunjik. 
 
 V. An inscription scratched on flat fragments of 
 baked clay from the same locality. 
 
 The two last are in the new collection. 
 
 Greek, Roman, and Arabic inscriptions were also 
 found in various places, but these were out of the 
 limits of my researches, and I copied very few of 
 them. I may, however, notice that there appears to 
 be a rich store of inscriptions of all ages at Nisibin, 
 and the natives were digging into the mounds there 
 for stones when I passed. Large blocks, broken 
 into fragments, covered with fine Latin inscriptions, 
 were turned up ; but as there was no one to look 
 after them, I believe they will all be destroyed. 
 
 The Turkish officials, while always ready to oppose 
 researches and prevent the discovery or removal of 
 monuments, never hinder the natives from destroying 
 antiquities. 
 
Chapter XXII. 
 
 OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING ARTS AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 Larger sculptures already discovered. — Hand in wall. — Lin- 
 tel.— Head of Ishtar.— Shoulder of statue. — Winged bull.— 
 Assysian columns. — Crystal throne.— Crystal vase. — Name of 
 Sennacherib. — Lamps. — Lamp feeder. — Assyrian fork. — Glass. 
 — Roman bottle. — Glass seal. — Pottery. — Cypriote style. — 
 Chariot group. — Commerce. — Personal ornaments. — Rings. — 
 Beads. — Seals. — Later occupation of mound — Destruction of' 
 antiquities. 
 
 i;MONG the things now brought from the 
 Assyrian mounds there is a fair collec- 
 tion of new objects and types, throwing 
 new light on the customs of Assyria 
 and the advancement of the country in arts and 
 sciences. 
 
 Daring the former excavations, most of the sculp- 
 tured halls at Kouyunjik and Nimroud had been 
 discovered, and my excavations were undertaken in 
 the centres of the rooms and the minor portions of 
 the buildings, so that I had no opportunity of dis- 
 covering large sculptures or portals, and the rooms T 
 
OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING ABTS. 429 
 
 discovered in the domestic parts of the palaces were 
 bare of sculpture and inferior in ornamentation. At 
 Nimroud I found the position of those curious rude 
 models of hands which were placed 
 in the walls fist upwards, their object 
 w^as probably to preserve the place 
 against evil spirits. The inscription 
 on one I found reads — 
 
 1. Palace of Assur-nazir-pal, king 
 of nations, king of Assyria. 
 
 2. Son of Tugulti-ninip, king of 
 nations, king of Assyria. 
 
 no r\r i ' i» i.« Model of Hand 
 
 3. oon ot Vul-nirari, king ot nations, VO vnd in Wall. 
 king of Assyria. 
 
 Assur-nazir-pal, B.C. 885, built the north-west 
 palace at Nimroud. In the southern hall of the 
 south-west palace, Kouyunjik, which is of the 
 age of Sennacherib, B.C. 705, I discovered the 
 lintel of a door which appeared to have covered 
 one of the passages out of the hall. It was pro- 
 bably the custom of the Assyrians to construct the 
 lintels and roofs of wood, and they have all been 
 destroyed, but this one, spanning a narrow passage, 
 w^as made of stone, and to this fact we probably 
 owe its preservation. It had fallen from its original 
 position, and lay broken into two on the floor of 
 the hall. This lintel gives us our first satisfactory 
 evidence as to the ornamentation of the tops of 
 entrances in the palace. The stone is 6 ft. long and 
 10 inches deep ; the principal ornament consists of two 
 
430 
 
 OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING 
 
 dragons lengthened out to suit the positions ; they 
 have wings over the back, and long curved necks, 
 Each animal looks towards the centre of the lintel, 
 where there stands a vase with two handles. All 
 along the top over the vase and dragons is an orna- 
 ment of honeysuckles, and above this a plain pro- 
 jecting ledge. The lintel is somewhat worn by the 
 weather, but was originally roughly and boldly 
 carved to suit its height from the ground. Of 
 statues I only found fragments, but two of these are 
 curious. One is the head of a female divinity, 
 probably the Venus of Nineveh. The cheeks are 
 plump, there is a band or fillet round the forehead, 
 the hair is thrown back behind the ears, and 
 falls in masses of curls on the shoulders. The 
 statue to which this has belonged has been broken 
 up, and the nose and lips injured. The height of 
 the head is 9 inches, and the breadth of the face 5£ 
 inches. The second specimen is a fragment of a 
 colossal statue belonging to the period of Assur- 
 banipal. It is the left shoulder of a figure, made of 
 a black stone full of fossils. There is an inscription 
 on the back of the statue, giving the descent of 
 Assurbanipal from Esarhaddon, Sennacherib, and 
 SaroT>n. I discovered some remains of two black 
 obelisks carved with bands of sculpture and cunei- 
 form writing, but unfortunately, like the statues, 
 broken into fragments. I conjecture that one of the 
 obelisks belonged to Samsi-vul, king of Assyria, B.C. 
 825. A very curious and beautiful little specimen, 
 
AUTS AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 431 
 
 discovered at Kouyunjik, is a small model in fine 
 yellow stone of a winged cow or bull, with a 
 human head, the neck adorned with a necklace, the 
 head surmounted by a cylindrical cap adorned with 
 horns and rosette ornaments, and wings over the 
 back. On the top of the wings stands the base of a 
 column, having the uniform pattern found on 
 Assyrian bases. The dimensions of this figure are, 
 length 3 inches, breadth inches, present height 
 (feet broken off) 3 inches, probable original height 
 3 J inches, height of base of column § inch, diameter 
 of base of column 1^ inches. This figure, although 
 not precisely like them, reminds one strongly of 
 the colossal winged man-headed bulls at the sides 
 of Assyrian portals ; it has probably formed part 
 of an ornamental chair or couch, the pillars and 
 legs of such furniture sometimes resting on the 
 backs of animals. The disposition of columns over 
 the backs of animals is in accordance with the known 
 features of Assyrian architecture, as represented on 
 the sculptures. At the ruined entrance of the north 
 palace, Kouyunjik, I found two bases of columns. The 
 pedestals were 14 inches by 10 inches and 3 inches 
 high. Over these the circular work was 8 J inches in 
 diameter, with a flat circle to receive the column, the 
 total height of base and pedestal being 8 inches. The 
 furniture of the royal palace appears to have been 
 very magnificent, skilful in execution, and often of 
 valuable or beautiful material. Thrones and frag- 
 ments of thrones have been found in bronze and 
 
432 
 
 OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING 
 
 ivory, and during my excavations in Sennacherib's 
 palace I discovered several portions of a throne of 
 rock crystal. This, so far as preserved, was similar 
 in shape to the bronze throne, and beautifully turned 
 and polished. As the crystal throne is too frag- 
 mentary to copy, I here give an engraving of the 
 bronze throne found by Layard at Nimroud, to show 
 
 Bronze Tjtrone, 
 Discovered by Mr. Layard at Nimroud. 
 
 the shape of these objects. Accompanying this were 
 fragments of vases and cups in the same material, one of 
 them bearing the name of Sennacherib in cuneiform 
 characters. In my collection there are several lamps ; 
 but I have no satisfactory evidence that they are 
 Assyrian. Some of them are Roman, but one or 
 two appear Assyrian in style, and I believe belong 
 
ABTS AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 433 
 
 to the time of that empire. There is one curious 
 Assyrian object of this class, a lamp-feeder in the 
 shape of a sitting bird. There is a curious neck over 
 the back, through which it was filled with oil, and a 
 
 Terra cotta Lamp. Terra-cotta Lamp-Feeder. 
 
 beak in front of the breast, through which it dis- 
 charged it into the lamp. I found two of these 
 objects in the palace of Assurbanipal, one I brought 
 to England, the other I gave to the Imperial 
 Museum at Constantinople. One curious and unique 
 specimen in the new collection is a bronze fork to 
 which I have already called attention (p. 147) ; it is 
 entirely Assyrian in style and ornament, and of very 
 fine work. The end of the handle is terminated by 
 the head of an ass, the ears stretched out and lying 
 one on each side of the handle. This termination 
 in the head of an animal is a feature seen in the 
 Assyrian representations of ornamental implements. 
 The handle of the fork is ornamented with a spiral 
 cable ornament, and it expands and becomes flat- 
 tened out at its junction with the prongs, forming a 
 
 F f 
 
434 OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING 
 
 shoulder which is ornamented by small incised 
 circles, and a fringe of lines. The length of the fork 
 is 8 in., the breadth of the should in. , and the length 
 of the prongs 2 Jin. This fork was found in the long 
 
 gallery of the palace of Sennacherib, 
 among the clay tablets on the floor. 
 There are several other bronze orna- 
 ments and implements, including a 
 bronze bracket, bronze dishes and 
 ladles, and a specimen of the styles 
 with which the cuneiform characters 
 were inscribed. The glass in the 
 collection belongs mostly to the post- 
 Assyrian period, but there is one re- 
 markable exception. This is a paste 
 seal in shape of a scarab, with hole 
 
 Bronze Bracket, pierced through it longitudinally ; the 
 back is oval and the front has the device of the 
 royal Assyrian seal, the king killing a rampant 
 lion. Most of the figure of the king is, however, 
 
 Bronze Style. 
 
 lost by a fracture. There are several beautiful 
 specimens of iridescent glass bottles, including a fine 
 blue glass Roman bottle with two faces, one on each 
 side of the body. The pottery found in the course 
 of the excavation is, as might be expected, very 
 
ARTS AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 435 
 
 miscellaneous in character: Phoenician, Assyrian, 
 Egyptian, Parthian, Persian, and early Arabic are 
 all represented in the collection, and some of the 
 specimens resemble the Lydian and Cypriote vases. 
 From the temple area I obtained part of a chariot 
 group in terra-cotta similar to the early Cypriote spe- 
 cimens, the height of the charioteer being 5 in. with- 
 out the legs, which are lost, and the diameter of the 
 wheel 4 in. The extensive commerce of the As- 
 syrians, and the influence of the empire on distant 
 countries, accounts for the mixture of styles in these 
 things, many of which may have come by way of 
 barter or tribute. 
 
 The number of personal ornaments in the collection 
 is small, consisting of beads in gold, silver, and stones, 
 bracelets and rings in glass and carnelian, and a 
 massive silver ring with an iron die set in it instead 
 of a stone. Most of these ornaments are late, belong- 
 ing to the Greek and some of them to the Arabic 
 period ; buttwo carnelian rings, one with an engraving 
 of a scorpion, are Assyrian. Clay impressions of 
 Assyrian seals are numerous and very fine. They 
 include several royal seals, the royal seal of Sargon, 
 B.C. 722, the royal seal of Assurbanipal, B.C. 668, 
 beside many other specimens. Of other seals there 
 are good specimens, among which are impressions of 
 the king walking, with attendant behind holding 
 umbrella. The miscellaneous objects from the mound 
 of Kouyunjik serve evidently to show that Nineveh 
 was not abandoned when the Assyrian monarchy was 
 
 F f 2 
 
436 OBJECTS ILLUSTRATING ARTS. 
 
 destroyed, but that the site continued to be inhabited 
 for centuries afterwards, and the later inhabitants 
 have in a great measure gradually destroyed the great 
 works which their predecessors had raised. 
 
Chapter XXIII. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Difficulty of work. — Short time. — Good results. — Babylonian 
 kings. — Assyrian kings. — New inscriptions. — Uncertainty of 
 chronology. — Assyrian history. — Jewish history. — Pul. — New 
 light on the Bible. — Origin of Babylonian civilization. — Turanian 
 race. — Semitic conquest. — Flood legends. — Mythology. — Con- 
 nexion with Grecian mythology. — Astronomy. — Architecture.— 
 Importance of future excavations. 
 
 "^NT the previous chapters I have described 
 my travels and researches, and have given 
 some account of the more prominent 
 results of the expeditions. So far as 
 my two visits to the East are concerned, they were 
 both of such short duration that they could not yield 
 such complete or satisfactory results as I could have 
 wished ; but the great number of interesting inscrip- 
 tions I discovered under such difficulties, and in so 
 limited a space of time, ought to speak strongly in 
 favour of completer and systematic excavations on 
 these ancient sites. My excavations at the two sites 
 of Kouyunjik and Mmroud, taking out the period I 
 was stopped by the Turkish officials, altogether did 
 
438 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 not last four months, but so ricli were these mines of 
 antiquities that I obtained over 3000 inscriptions and 
 fragments of inscriptions, beside many other objects. 
 These inscriptions and objects were not of slight 
 interest, but included some texts and antiquities of 
 first-class importance. In one great and valuable 
 direction the expeditions have been quite successful, 
 the majority of the fragments of inscriptions found 
 form parts of texts the other portions of which were 
 already in the British Museum, and the new fragments 
 enable us either to complete or greatly enlarge several 
 of these inscriptions. 
 
 Perhaps in no part of cuneiform inquiry have the 
 late researches added more to our knowledge than in 
 early Babylonian history. The list of monarchs in 
 the second edition of Rawlinson's " .Ancient Mon- 
 archies," published in 1871, after I had commenced 
 my researches, only then contained twenty-eight kings 
 from the inscriptions in the period before B.C. 747. 1 
 From B.C. 747 downwards the kings were well known 
 from the canon of Ptolemy and other sources. As I 
 have not yet published any complete list of the 
 Babylonian and Assyrian monarchs, I will here give 
 them so far as they are discovered, to show the 
 advance made in the history and chronology of these 
 early kingdoms. 
 
 List of Babylonian m marchs : — - 
 
 1 See Kawlinson's " Ancient Monarchies," second edition, 
 vol. i. p. 171, and vol. iii. p. 43. 
 
CONCLUSION. 
 
 430 
 
 Mythical Kings before the Flood. 
 
 From the Inscriptions. From Berosus. 
 
 Adi-ur Alorus 
 
 Alaparus 
 
 Almelon 
 
 Ammenon 
 
 Amegalarus 
 
 Daonus 
 
 Aedoraclms 
 
 Amempsin 
 
 Ubara-tutu Otiartes 
 
 Hasis-adra Xisithrus 
 In whose time the deluge happened. 
 
 Mythical Kings after the Deluge. 
 From Berosus. 
 
 Evechus. 
 Chomosbelus. 
 
 From the Inscriptions. 
 
 ili. 
 
 Ilu-kassat his son. 
 
 Bel-agu-nunna. 
 
 Abil-kisu. 
 
 Historical Period. 
 Izdubar (probably the Nimrod of the Bible.) 
 
 Kings of Babylon. 
 
 Suqumuna. 
 
440 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Ummih-zirritu. 
 Agu-rabi 
 
 Abi 
 
 Tassi-gurubar. 
 
 Agu-kak-rimi (restored the temple of Bel). 
 Sumu 
 
 Zabu (built tlie temples of Venus and the sun at 
 Sippara). 
 
 Abil 
 
 Sin 
 
 Viceroys. 
 
 Be-lmk | . _ ■ 
 
 , r . .... i i . r viceroys ot Lndu. 
 Mi-sa-dimira-kalammi -> 
 
 Idadu viceroy of Eridu, 
 
 Adi-anu viceroy of Zergliul, 
 
 Gudea viceroy of Zergliul, 
 
 Ilu-mutabil viceroy of Diri. 
 
 Kings of TJr {modern Mugheir). 
 Urukh (founded many temples). 
 Dimgi his son (continued his works). 
 
 Gunguna son of Ismi-dagan king of Karak, 
 
CONCLUSION . 
 
 441 
 
 Su-agu. 
 
 Amar-agu (built the city of Abu-Shahrein). 
 Ibil-agu. 
 
 Kings of Karrah. 
 Gamil-ninip built a temple at Nipur. 
 Isbi-barra. 
 Libit-anunit. 
 
 Ismi-dagan built a palace at Ur. 
 Ilu-. . . zat. 
 
 Kings of Erech (modern Warha). 
 Belat-sunat (a queen). 
 Sin-gasit rebuilt the temple of Anna. 
 
 Kings of Larsa (modem Seulcereh). 
 
 Nur-vul. 
 
 Gasin 
 
 Sin-idina. 
 
 Eim-agu son of Kudur-mabuk. 
 
 Kings of AJcJcad. 
 
 Ai 
 
 Amat-nim 
 
 Sargon (the Babylonian Moses, reigned 45 years). 
 Naram-sin his son. 
 Ellat-gula (a female). 
 
 Elamite Kings. 
 Kudur-nanhundi (reigned B.C. 2280). 
 
 Chedorlaomer (Genesis ch. xiv.) 
 
 Simti-silhak. 
 
 Kudur-mabuk his son conquered Syria. 
 
442 
 
 CONCL US ION. 
 
 Native Kings Contemporary ivith the Elamites. 
 .... zakir-idin ) T . 
 
 t> i i • t In time or Kudur-nanhundi. 
 
 Bel-zakir-uzur J 
 
 Amraphel king of Shinar^ In time of 
 Arioch king of Elassar SChedorlaomer 
 Tidal king of Goim J (Genesis). 
 
 Kings of Babylon. 
 Hammu-rabi (conquered Kudur-mabuk and Ms son) 
 Samsu-itibna rebuilt temple of Babylon. 
 Ammi-dikaga. 
 
 ' 16tla century B.C. ? 
 
 Kuri-galzu I. 
 Simmas-sihu I. 
 Ulam-buriyas. 
 Nazi-murudas I. 
 Mili-sihu I. 
 Burna-buriyas I. 
 Kara-bel. 
 
 Saga-saltiyas (rebuilt the temples of Sippara). 
 Harbi-sihu. 
 
 Kari-indas, B.C. 1450 (made a treaty with Assyria). 
 Burna-buriyas II., B.C. 1430 (married daughter of 
 
 king of Assyria). 
 Kara-hardas, B.C. 1410 (murdered). 
 Nazi-bugas, B.C. 1400 (an usurper). 
 Kuri-galzu II., B.C. 1380, son of Burna-buriyas. 
 
CONCL USION. 
 
 Mili-siliu II. his son, B.C. 1350. 
 Merodach Baladan I. his son, B.C. 1325. 
 Nazi-murudas II., B.C. 1300. 
 
 Assyrian Dynasty. 
 Tugulti-ninip; B.C. 1271 (conquered Babylonia). 
 Vul . . . bi, B.C. 1230. 
 Zamama-zakir-idin, B.C. 1200. 
 
 Chaldean Kings. 
 Nebuchadnezzar I., B.C. 1150. 
 Kara-buriyas, B.C. 1120. 
 Maruduk-nadin-ahi, B.C. 1100. 
 Maruduk-sapik-zirrat, B.C. 1090. 
 .... sadua, B.C. 1080. 
 Simmas-sihu, reigned 17 years. 7\ 
 Hea-raukin-ziri (an usurper), reigned 3 months. 
 Kassu-nadin-ahu, reigned 6 years. 
 Ulbar-surki-idina, reigned 15 years. 
 Nebu ?-chadnezzar II., reigned 2 years. / #'3& ' 
 .... suqamuna, reigned 3 months. 
 (After these an Elamite, reigned 6 years.) & * 
 
 Vul-pal-idina (built the wall of Nipur). 
 
 Nabu-zakir-iskun at war with Assyria. 
 
 Iriba-maruduk. 
 
 Merodach Baladan II. his son. 
 
 Vul-zakir-uzur. 
 
CONCLUSION. 
 
 Sibir invaded South Assyria. 
 
 Nabu-bal-idina, B.C. 880 to 853. 
 Maruduk-zakir-izkur, B.C. 853. 
 Maruduk-balasu-ikbu, B.C. 820. 
 
 Nabu-nazir (Nabonassur), B.C. 747. * t f tc^ rt^Sr 
 
 Nabu-usabsi (Nabius), B.C. 734. 
 
 Kin-ziru (Ckinzirus), B.C. 732.1 
 
 Ilulasus (not in the inscriptions), B.C. 727. 
 
 Merodach Baladan III., (Mardokembad), B.C. 722. 
 
 S argon (Arceanus), B.C. 710. 
 
 Hagisa (not in the inscriptions), B.C. 705. 
 
 Merodach Baladan III. (restored), B.C. 705. 
 
 Bel-ibni (Belibus), B.C. 703. 
 
 Assur-nadin-sum (Apronadissus), B.C. 700. 
 
 Irregibelus (not in the inscriptions), B.C. 694. 
 
 Suzub (Messesimordachus ?), B.C. 693. 
 
 (Babylon destroyed, B.C. 689.) 
 
 Esarhaddon, restores Babylon B.C. 681. 
 
 Saul-mugina (Saosduchinus), B.C. 668. 
 
 Assurbanipal (Chiniladanus ?), B.C. 648. 
 
 Bel-zakir-iskun, B.C. 626. 
 
 Nabu-pal-iizur (Nabopolassar), B.C. 626. 
 
 Nabu-kudur-uzur (Nebuchadnezzar III.), B.C. 605. 
 
 Amil-maruduk (Evil-merodach), B.C. 562. 
 
 Nergal-sar-uzur (Neriglissar), B.C. 560. 
 
 Ulbar-surki-idina (Labarosoarkodus ?), B.C. 556. 
 
 Nabu-nahid (Nabonidus), B.C. 556. 
 
CONCL TTSI01T. 
 
 445 
 
 Bel-sar-ufciir (Belshazzar) son of Nabonidus, asso- 
 ciated with his father on the throne. 
 
 Cyrus conquers Babylon, B.C. 539. 
 
 In the period before Hammurabi there were several 
 different kingdoms in the country, and it was only 
 occasionally that Babylonia was united under one 
 sceptre. 
 
 'List of the Assyrian Kings with their Approximate 
 
 Dates. 
 
 Ismi-dagan 
 Samsi-vul I. 
 Igur-kap-kapu 
 Samsi-vul II. 
 Ilu-ba 
 Iritak 
 
 Bel-kap-kapu 
 
 Adasi 
 
 Bel-bani 
 
 Assur-zakir-esir 
 
 Ninip-tugul-assuri 
 
 Irabi-vul 
 
 Assur-nadin-ahi 
 
 Assur-nirari I. 
 
 Nabu-dan 
 
 Assur-bel-nisisu 
 
 Buzur-assur 
 
 Assur-ubalid 
 
 Bel-nirari 
 
 Budil 
 
 B.C. 1450 to 1420. 
 „ 1420 5 , 1400. 
 „ 1400 „ 1370. 
 „ 1370 „ 1350. 
 „ 1350 „ 1330. 
 
 B.C. 1850 to 1820. 
 „ 1820 „ 1800. 
 
 about B.C. 1550. 
 
 about B.C. 1500. 
 
 about B.C. 1750. 
 
 about B.C. 1G00. 
 
 about b.c 1700. 
 
 about b.c. 1800. 
 
 about B.C. 1050. 
 
CONCL USION. 
 
 Vul-nirari I. 
 Shalmaneser I. 
 Tugulti-ninip I. 
 Bel-kudur-uzur 
 Ninip-pal-esar 
 Assur-dan I. 
 Mugtagil-nusku 
 Assur-risilim 
 Tiglath-Pileser I. 
 Assur-bel-kala 
 Samsi-vul III. 
 
 Assur-rab-amar 
 or 
 
 Assur-rabbur 
 -nimati 
 Assur-dan II. 
 Vul-nirari II. 
 Tugulti-ninip II. 
 Assur-nazir-pal 
 Shalmaneser II. 
 
 B.C. 1330 to 1300. 
 
 1300 
 1271 
 1240 
 1220 
 1200 
 1170 
 1150 
 1120 
 1100 
 1080 
 
 1271. 
 1240. 
 1220. 
 1200. 
 1170. 
 1150. 
 1120. 
 1100. 
 1080. 
 1060. 
 
 about B.C. 1050. 
 
 about b.c. 1000. 
 b.c. 930 to 913. 
 
 „ 913 „ 891. 
 
 „ 891 „ 885. 
 
 „ 885 
 
 „ 860 
 
 860. 
 825. 
 827. 
 
 b.c. 825 to 812. 
 
 Assur-dain-pal (rebel king) B.C. 
 Samsi-vul IV. 
 
 Vul-nirari III. „ 81 2 
 
 Shalmaneser III. „ 783 
 
 Assur-dan III. „ 773 
 
 Assur-nirari II. „ 755 
 
 Tiglath-Pileser II. „ 745 
 
 Shalmaneser IV. „ 727 
 
 Sargon „ 722 
 
 Sennacherib 705 
 
 783. 
 773. 
 755. 
 745. 
 727. 
 722. 
 705. 
 681. 
 
CONCL USIOJST. 
 
 447 
 
 Esarhaddon B.C. 681 to 668. 
 
 Assur-bani-pal „ 668 „ 626. 
 
 Bel-zakir-iskun „ 626 „ 620. 
 
 Assur-ebil-ili „ 620 „ 607. 
 
 In the period of early Babylonian history the new 
 inscriptions of Agu, Merodach Baladan I., and other 
 monarchs, enable us to extend our knowledge in this 
 direction, but an inspection of the list of kings given 
 above shows how defective our information still re- 
 mains on this subject. It is quite uncertain how far 
 back the records of Babylonia reach, and the lists of 
 kings are too imperfect to construct any satisfactory 
 scheme from them ; but it is certain that they reach 
 up to the twenty-fourth century B.C., and some scholars 
 are of opinion that they stretch nearly two thousand 
 3^ears beyond that time. Certainly a civilization, 
 literature, and government like that which we find in 
 Babylonia 2000 years before the Christian era could 
 not have arisen in a day, and it will probably require 
 many expeditions to the country before we ascertain 
 its primitive history. 
 
 The early history of Assyria is in little better con- 
 dition than that of Babylonia, but the succession of 
 the kings is clearer and the information fuller. The 
 Assyrian power was a single monarchy from the 
 beginning, and gradually grew by conquering the 
 smaller states around it, and there is consequently a 
 uniformity in its records and traditions which makes 
 them easier to follow than those of the sister kingdom. 
 The new inscriptions, particularly that of Vul-nirari I., 
 
443 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 give us new and welcome material for estimating tlie 
 progress of Assyria in early times, and it appears that 
 the country gained a prominent place in the world 
 much earlier than some have supposed. 
 
 The period of Assyrian history contemporary with 
 the kings of J adah and Israel is the most interesting 
 and important epoch in their annals, and new and 
 valuable material has been added to this part of the 
 subject, the additions and corrections to the history 
 of Tiglath-Pileser, the new portions of the annals of 
 Sargon, giving his campaign against Ashdod and 
 Palestine, the Sennacherib fragments, Esarhaddon's 
 Egyptian and Syrian wars, the new texts of Assur- 
 banipal mentioning Sabako, and the fragments of his 
 successors, all help in this interesting but still in part 
 obscure portion of Assyrian history. 
 
 On one much debated point, the comparative chro- 
 nology of the Assyrian and Jewish kingdoms, the 
 recent expeditions have added nothing to what w^e 
 already know. The most remarkable circumstance in 
 the whole matter is the fact that the Assyrian king 
 Pul who first reduced the kingdom of Israel under 
 regular taxation has never been discovered ; this is 
 the more curious as despatches have been found 
 written by an officer who bore that name. One of 
 the letters from the Assyrian officer Pul is in the 
 new collection. The light already thrown by the 
 Assyrian inscriptions on Biblical history forms one 
 of the most interesting features in cuneiform inquiry, 
 and there can be no question that further researches 
 
CONCLUSION. 
 
 440 
 
 will settle many of the questions still in doubt, and 
 give us new information in this field, of an important 
 character* 
 
 Of the later Babylonian period, the time of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar and his successors, there are a few new 
 dated documents and some useful inscriptions of the 
 same sort belonging to the succeeding Persian empire; 
 but the most valuable of the later inscriptions is the 
 one w 7 hich fixes the date of the rise of the Parthian 
 empire, so long a point of doubt among chronologists* 
 
 Intimately connected with these historical studies 
 is the question of the origin and history of the great 
 Turanian race which first established civilization in 
 the Euphrates valley. It is the opinion of the ma- 
 jority of Assyrian scholars that the civilization, 
 literature, mythology, and science of Babylonia and 
 Assyria, were not the work of a Semitic race, but of a 
 totally different people, speaking a language quite 
 distinct from that of all the Semitic tribes. There is, 
 however, a more remarkable point than this ; it is 
 supposed that at a very early period the Akkad or 
 Turanian population, with its high cultivation and 
 remarkable civilization, was conquered by the Semitic 
 race, and that the conquerors imposed only their 
 language on the conquered, adopting from the sub- 
 jugated people its mythology, laws, literature, and 
 almost every art of civilization. Such a curious 
 revolution would be without parallel in the history of 
 the world, and the most singular point in connexion 
 with the subject is the entire silence of the inscriptions 
 
 G g 
 
450 
 
 CONCLUSION, 
 
 as to any such conquest. There does not appear any 
 break in their traditions or change in the character of 
 the country to mark this great revolution, and the 
 question of how the change was effected or when it 
 took place is at present quite obscure. The new 
 syllabaries and bilingual- tablets will assist in the 
 discussion of these obscure and intricate questions, 
 but we cannot hope that they will be settled until the 
 study of the inscriptions is much farther advanced. 
 
 On the subject of the myths and traditions current 
 in the Euphrates valley, there is valuable new matter 
 from the recent excavations. The most interesting of 
 these legends, that of the flood, is now much more 
 complete. A comparison of my first translation of 
 the deluge tablet, made before I started for the East, 
 with the new translation published in this volume, 
 will show the additions and corrections gained 
 through the new matter ; and all the other legends 
 connected with this tablet have benefited in an equal 
 proportion. There is one point which I did not 
 allude to in my account of the Izdubar legends, 
 namely, the great antiquity claimed in it for the 
 principal cities in Babylonia. In a fragment of this 
 series of legends which I recently discovered, Izdubar, 
 when lamenting the loss of Hea-bani, calls upon the 
 principal cities in his dominion to join him in his 
 mourning. Among the cities mentioned are Baby- 
 lon, Cutha, Kisu, Harriskalamma, Erech, Nipur, and 
 the list, when complete, evidently contained several 
 other names. In the division of mythology there are 
 
CONCL US ION. 
 
 451 
 
 new tablets of various classes, lists of gods, myths, 
 prayers, hymns, and litanies, some that I have trans- 
 lated here being fair specimens of this class. 
 
 The value of the Assyrian and Babylonian mytho- 
 logy rests not only on its curiosity as the religious 
 system of a great people, but on the fact that here 
 we must look, if anywhere, for the origin and expla- 
 nation of many of the obscure points in the mythology 
 of Greece and Rome. It is evident that in every way 
 the classical nations of antiquity borrowed far more 
 from the valley of the Euphrates than that of the 
 Nile, and Chaldea rather than Egypt, is the home 
 even of the civilization of Europe. 
 
 In one line of science is the pre-eminence of 
 Babylonia universally acknowledged, and that is 
 astronomy. 
 
 The climate of the country, and the clearness of 
 the atmosphere, with the vast unbroken plain of 
 Chaldea, give every facility for the observation of the 
 heavens, and here accordingly we find astronomy was 
 early cultivated and reached a high state of perfection. 
 The Chaldeans mapped out the heavens and arranged 
 the stars, they traced the motions of the planets, and 
 observed the appearance of comets, they fixed the 
 signs of the zodiac and the constellations of the stars, 
 and they studied the sun and moon and the periods 
 of eclipses. 
 
 Among the new tablets on these points the one re- 
 cording the division of the heavens according to the 
 four seasons, and the rule for regulating the inter- 
 
 G g 2 
 
452 
 
 CONCL USION. 
 
 .calary month of the year, and the fragment of the 
 Assyrian astrolabe, are especially valuable. 
 
 In the other classes of tablets — the fables, the omen 
 and witchcraft texts, those on the laws, geography, 
 natural history, and the foreign texts — there are many 
 additions which will hereafter engage the attention of 
 scholars and throw new light on the manners and 
 customs of the country. 
 
 Compared with former expeditions the last excava- 
 tions have given little on the subjects of art and archi- 
 tecture ; but there are some unique objects, particu- 
 larly the lintel found in Sennacherib's palace, which 
 show us a new and unexpected style of ornamenting 
 the upper part of doorways. 
 
 Such are some of the results realized in the recent 
 attempt to reopen excavations in the East. Much 
 more remains to be accomplished, and I wish that any 
 interest which may be taken in my labours may take 
 the form of encouraging further and systematic ex- 
 ploration of this important field. My desire is that 
 whatever has been accomplished may be taken as 
 evidence of the greater and more important results 
 which will inevitably follow complete excavations. 
 How much there is to be done may be judged from the 
 extent of the excavations on the site of the library of 
 the palace of Sennacherib at Kouyunjik. I have cal- 
 culated that there remain at least 20,000 fragments 
 of this valuable collection, buried in the unexcavated 
 portions of the palace, and it would require £5000, 
 and three years' work, to fairly recover this treasure. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 BDI EFFENDI, 40, Amida, 308. 
 
 136, 150, 151, 155. Araram mound, 58. 
 
 Abdul Kareem, 40. Amudia, 127, 128. 
 
 Abiyateh, 3G0, 3G2, Aneiza, tribe, 95. 
 
 3(33, 3G4, 366, 370. 
 
 Anna, temple of, 356. 
 
 Aburumeha, 39. 
 
 Antioch, plain of, 28, 116. 
 
 Accho, 302, 370. 
 
 Anu, 173, 230, 399, 400,401, 402. 
 
 Acbtareen, 122. 
 
 Anunit, 173, 230. 
 
 Achzib, 302. 
 
 Arabia, 313, 359, 361, 368, 371. 
 
 Adana, 36, 112, 123. 
 
 Arabian kings, 250. 
 
 Afrin, 30, 115, 120. 
 
 Aram, 338. 
 
 Agu, 225, 232. 
 
 Arameans, 308. 
 
 Agurabi, 226. 
 
 Ararat, 217. 
 
 Aimu, 360, 362, 366, 370. 
 
 Arbat, 132. 
 
 Ain Bada, 29, 115, 120. 
 
 Arbela, 67, 334, 350. 
 
 Akbsera of Minni, 333. 
 
 Argisti, 309. 
 
 Akkad, 225, 227, 315, 352. 
 
 Ark, 185. 
 
 Aleppo, 31, 114, 120, 162. 
 
 building of, 186. 
 
 Alexander, 388. 
 
 filling of, 187. 
 
 Alexandretta, 25, 117, 120, 164. 
 
 size of, 213. 
 
 Ali Kahal, 135, 150. 
 
 of Sargon, 224. 
 
 Altar, building of, 191. 
 
 Armenia, 211, 309. 
 
 Altun, Kupri, 67. 
 
 Army, Turkish, 125. 
 
 Amaragu, 391. 
 
 Arnold, Edwin, 16. 
 
454 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Arsaces, 389. 
 Artaxerxes, 388. 
 Arvad, 330. 
 
 Asbdod, 288, 289, 290, 292, 293, 
 
 306. 
 Assi, 44. 
 Assur, 291. 
 
 Assurbanipal, 11, 90, 93, 98, 141, 
 317. 
 
 cylinder of, 319-377. 
 Assur-bel-kala, 247. 
 Assur-dain-pal, 92. 
 Assur-dan, 91, 251. 
 Assur-ebil-ili-kain, 73, 384. 
 Assur-nazir-pal, 72, 91, 103, 141, 
 252. 
 
 Assur risilim, 247. 
 Assur-ubalid, 91, 241. 
 Assyrianmonarchs,listof,415-447. 
 
 power, 417. 
 Astrolabe, 407, 408. 
 Astronomy, 404, 407, 451. 
 Athribis, 327. 
 Azariah, 12, 275, 286. 
 Azibahal, 330, 331. 
 Aznowa, 157. 
 
 Babil, 55, 56. 
 
 Babylon, 55, 59, 60, 61, 62, 166, 
 339, 310, 341, 376, 396, 410, 
 411. 
 
 Babylonian chronology, 120. 
 
 monarchs, list of, 439-145. 
 
 monarchy, antiquity of, 447. 
 Backsheesh, 153. 
 Baghdad, 53, 54, 64. 
 
 Baghdad lion, 420. 
 Bahal of Tyre, 312, 329. 
 Barimeh, 99. 
 Beglabeg, 32. 
 Behistun inscription, 5. 
 Beilan, 26, 116, 120. 
 Bel, 192, 201, 230, 339, 399, 
 401, 402, 403. 
 
 temple of, 56, 229, 380. 
 Belat or Beltis, 230. 
 Belbasa, 336. 
 Belesu, 167. 
 Bel-kudur-uzur, 250. 
 Bellino cylinder, 296. 
 BeUnirari, 236, 244. 
 Belshazzar, 387. 
 Bel-zazir-iskun, 103, 382, 384. 
 Berosus, 209, 211, 403. 
 Beth Ammon, 360. 
 Biblical account of flood, 208. 
 Bilingual list, 418. 
 
 tablet, 143. 
 
 text, 233. 
 Biradjik, 33, 114, 122, 161. 
 Birds from ark, 217. 
 Birs Nimrud, 58, 59. 
 Bitani, 172. 
 Bit-imbi, 345, 359. 
 Black obelisk, 10. 
 Borsippa, 338, 340, 396. 
 Botta, excavations of, 2, 3. 
 
 works of, 6, 100, 288. 
 Brandis, 8. 
 Bronze bracket, 434. 
 
 lamp, 140. 
 
 style, 434. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 455 
 
 Burial of warrior, 204. 
 Burial places, 206. 
 Burna-buriyas, 236. 
 
 Calah, 70. 
 
 Calendar, 404, 406. 
 
 Cambyses, 387, 388. 
 
 Canon, Assyrian, 5, 120. 
 
 Cbaldea, 338, 344. 
 
 Cbaldean account of deluge, 165. 
 
 Chaldeans, 308. 
 
 Chamber, 140. 
 
 Chariot group, 435. 
 
 Chief of Durnak, 155, 156. 
 
 Cilicia, 308, 330. 
 
 Cimmerians, 332, 333. 
 
 Circassian soldiers, 128, 157, 160. 
 
 City of ark, 168. 
 
 Cliuton, 389. 
 
 Conquest of Erech, 168. 
 
 Conscription, 125. 
 
 Country of Noah, 214. 
 
 Creation, 397. 
 
 Cronos, 211. 
 
 Crystal throne, 432. 
 
 Cure of Izdubar, 194. 
 
 Curse of Ishtar, 174. 
 
 Cutha, 338, 340, 344. 
 
 Cyaxares, 93. 
 
 Cylinder of Sargon, 288. 
 
 Cypriote inscription, 423. 
 
 Cyrus, 387. 
 
 Dabun, 161. 
 
 "Daily Telegraph," 14, 15, 97, 
 100. 
 
 Dancing boy, 129. 
 Darius, 388. 
 Dashlook, 37, 112. 
 Davkina, a goddess, 231. 
 Deception, 137. 
 Deed of sale, 415, 416. 
 Delebekir, 28, 116, 120. 
 Delli Abas, 65. 
 
 Deluge, Chaldean account of, 13, 
 97, 100, 102. 
 end of, 190. 
 
 Demands, Turkish, 138. 
 
 Deruneh, 109, 132. 
 
 Descent into Hades, 220. 
 
 Description of Creation, 222. 
 
 Destruction of North gate, Nine- 
 veh, 151. 
 
 Dinasar, 110, 124. 
 
 Discontent of soldiers, 155. 
 
 Divine bull, 167, 174. 
 
 Djezireh, 42, 43, 107, 133, 157. 
 
 Dove, 191. 
 
 Dragon, 170. 
 
 Dream of Heabani, 175. 
 
 Dunanu, 336, 412? 
 
 Dungi, 232. 
 
 Durnak, 155. 
 
 Dyke of Nimrod, 49. 
 
 Early Elamite conquest, 12, 102, 
 224. 
 
 Eclipses, 12, 408, 409. 
 Edom, 291, 360. 
 
 Egypt, 292, 304, 312, 322, 325. 
 328, 329. 
 
 revolt of, 325. 
 
456 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Ekron, 304, 306. 
 
 Elam, 335, 338, 340, 354, 355, 
 
 356, 357, 374. 
 Elkod, 115, 
 Eltekeh, 304. 
 
 Engineers, Turkish, 116, 120. 
 Entertainment, Arabic, 83, 84. 
 Epigraphs, 412. 
 Erech, 166, 171, 356. 
 Ervil, 67. 
 
 Esarhaddon, 73, 93, 98, 311, 319, 
 
 321, 376, 416. 
 Ethiopia, 292, 312, 322, 325, 328, 
 
 329, 338. 
 Etna, 19. 
 
 Euphrates, 33, 114, 291, 312. 
 Evil-merodach, 386. 
 Exorbitant demands, 149. 
 
 Flood, the, 188. 
 
 legend, 450. 
 
 ravages of, 189. 
 Floods, 154, 157. 
 Fork, Assyrian, 147, 433. 
 Franck, M., British Consul, 25, 
 
 117, 120, 164. 
 Furniture, 431. 
 
 Gambuli, 336, 337. 
 Gaza, 306. 
 Gededa, 65. 
 
 Geography, absence of, 207. 
 
 Gershene, 10<5. 
 
 Ghost of Heabani, 220. 
 
 Goim, 338. 
 
 Grotefend, 5, 6. 
 
 Guides, abandoned by, 160. 
 
 Gulres, 155. 
 
 Gyges of Lydia, 331. 
 
 Hades, 201, 202. 
 Hagub, pastor, 35, 112. 
 Hamath inscriptions, 164, 422. 
 Hammum Ali, 94, 95. 
 Hammurabi, 233, 234. 
 Hani, Land of, 228. 
 Harimtu, 170, 174. 
 Hasisadra, 167, 179, 182. 
 Hazel river, 134, 155, 156. 
 Hea, the god, 185, 192, 201, 212, 
 
 230, 231, 399, 401, 402, 403. 
 Heabani, 167, 170, 175. 
 death of, 183. 
 resurrection of, 202. 
 Head of statue of goddess, 142, 
 
 430. 
 
 Heaven, 203, 205. 
 Hell, 205. 
 Herbert, Col., 54. 
 Hezekiah, 89, 292, 305. 
 Hieroglyphics, 422. 
 Hillah, 58, 62. 
 Hincks, 5, 7. 
 Hirom, 274, 278, 287. 
 Hosah, 370. 
 Hoshea, 12, 285, 287. 
 lTouse-building, 81, 82. 
 Humbaba, 166, 171. 
 Hyksos, 421. 
 Hymer, 62. 
 
 Hymn to light, 391, 392. 
 Ibrahim, 157. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 457 
 
 Imperial Museum, Constanti- 
 nople, 143, 151. 
 Inda-bigas, 340, 341, 345, 357. 
 Irregular soldiers, 127, 128. 
 Ishtar, 91, 171, 172, 334, 350, 
 399, 400. 
 
 amours of, 173. 
 Istar-nanhundi, 353. 
 Izdubar, 14, 167, 394. 
 
 antiquity of legends of, 1GG. 
 
 founded Babylonian mo- 
 narchy, 222. 
 
 illness of, 176. 
 
 journey of, 178, 180, 181. 
 
 lament of, 177, 199, 200. 
 
 legends of, 14, 165. 
 
 makeshift name, 166. 
 
 probably historical, 222. 
 
 probably Nimrod, 166. 
 
 return of, 196, 197. 
 
 third dream of, 176. 
 Izirtu, capital of Minni, 334. 
 
 Jebel Abjad, 44, 105, 106. 
 Jebel Djudi, 41, 106, 217. 
 Jehu, date of, 11. 
 Jerusalem, 305. 
 Jewish synchronisms, 448. 
 Judah, 291. 
 Justice, care of, 410. 
 
 Kalah Shergat, 50, 51, 242. 
 Kalata, 99. 
 Kalzi, 414. 
 
 Kanun musical instrument, 130. 
 Karajah Dagh Mountains, 37. 
 
 Karatapa, 65. 
 Karbanit, 323. 
 Kasr, 57. 
 
 Kassi, 227, 246, 299. 
 
 Kazekoi, 154. 
 
 Kedar, 361. 
 
 Kerkook, 66. 
 
 Kerook, 157. 
 
 Khabour, 43, 106, 155. 
 
 Khan Baleos, 153. 
 
 Khazil, 159. 
 
 Khorsabad, 98, 99. 
 
 Khosr river, 68. 
 
 Kobuk, 39, 41. 
 
 Korban, Bairam festival, 32. 
 
 Kouyunjik, 86-103, 382. 
 
 Kudur-nanhundi, 206. 
 
 Kufre, 65. 
 
 Kufru, 151. 
 
 Kuri-galzu, 235, 237. 
 
 Lagomer, Elamite god, 353. 
 
 Lamech, 212. 
 
 Lamp feeder, 433. 
 
 Lamps, 432, 433. 
 
 Later occupation of Nineveh, 139. 
 
 Layard, discoveries of, 4, 6, 70, 
 
 71, 88, 89. 
 Lenormant, M., 5, 8. 
 Library chamber, 144. 
 
 of Nineveh, 452. 
 Lintel, 146, 429. 
 Loftus, 4, 6, 13. 
 Louvre collection, 16. 
 Lydia, 331. 
 
 Madaktu, 347, 349, 355. 
 
458 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Magan, or Makan, 312, 313. 
 Magician Arab, 123. 
 Mahomedan tomb, 149. 
 Manitu, 184. 
 Mannians, 308. 
 Mannu-ki-ahi, 412. 
 Marseilles, 17. 
 Median chiefs, 288. 
 Memphis, 323, 327. 
 Menahem, 278, 286. 
 Menant, 5, 8. 
 Mendes, 326. 
 
 Merodach, 228,231,291,401,402. 
 Merodach Baladan, 236, 237,256, 
 
 260, 297, 307. 
 Meroe, 291, 304. 
 Mersina, 25. 
 Mili-sihu, 237. 
 Minni, 333. 
 Mizir, 111. 
 Moab, 291, 360. 
 Model of hand, 429. 
 Modern objects, 146. 
 Mosnl, 46, 68, 134, 153. 
 Mount of ark, 216. 
 Mua, 182. 
 
 Mugallu of Tubal, 330. 
 Mujelliba, 55. 
 Music, Arabic, 129, 130. 
 Mutaggil-nusku, 91, 251. 
 Muzar, 33. 
 Mythology, 451. 
 
 Nabateans, 363, 365, 367. 
 Nabonidus, 387. 
 Nabopolassar, 93, 3S4. 
 
 Nabu-bel-zikri, 358. 
 Nabu-damiq, 412. 
 Naharwan, 43, 133. 
 Nana goddess, 206, 223, 355. 
 National poem, Babylonian, 205. 
 Navarino, 20. 
 Nazi-bugas, 236. If lft 
 Nazi-murudas, 250. ' '■ [ : 
 Nebbi Tunas, 68, 89. 
 Nebuchadnezzar, 57, 384, 385. 
 Necho, 93, 323, 326. 
 Neriglisar, 386. 
 
 New fragments delugetablets,166. 
 Nimrod, 49. 
 Nimroud, 48, 70-85. 
 Nineveh, 46, 48, 86, 93, 134, 308, 
 
 337. 
 Ninip, 192, 339. 
 Ninip-uzalli, 412. 
 Ninip-pal-esar, 251. 
 Nipur, 410, 411. 
 Nisibin, 39, 109, 129, 157. 
 Nizir, mountains of, 190, 216. 
 Norris, Dr., 5, 7. 
 Nusku, 401. 
 
 Obelisks, 141, 328. 
 Obstructions, Turkish, 47, 115, 
 117, 131, 136, 149, 162, 163. 
 Officer, Turkish, 125. 
 Okusolderan, 114. 
 Oppert, Professor, 5, 7. 
 Orfa, 35, 112, 113, 123, 160. 
 Otiartes, or Ar dates, 212. 
 
 Pacha of Orfa, 160. 
 
INDEX, 
 
 459 
 
 Pahe, Elamite king, 358, 371. 
 Palermo, 18. 
 Paliya, 412. 
 
 Parthian era, 388, 389, 390. 
 Pedestal of column, 431. 
 Pehlevi inscriptions,! 13,426,427. 
 Pekah, 12, 285, 286. 
 Pelusium, 324. 
 Pharaoh, 291. 
 Philistia, 289, 291. 
 Philistines, 308. 
 
 Phoenician inscriptions, 423, 424, 
 
 425, 426. 
 Place, M., 3, 6. 
 Pleyte, W., 420. 
 Pool of Abraham, 113. 
 Pottery, 141. 
 Prayer to Bel, 395, 396. 
 Primitive state of Babylonia, 166. 
 Procession of warriors, 142. 
 Proposed canal, 161. 
 Psammitichus, 332. 
 Pudil, 244. 
 Pul, 448. 
 
 Que, 308. 
 
 Eaft, 48, 156. 
 Railway, 116. 
 
 Ea-set-nub, Egyptian king, 421. 
 Eassam, Mr. H., 4, 13. 
 Eaven, 191. 
 Eawlinson, G., 8, 438. 
 Bawlinson, Sir H., 4, 5, 7, 59, 63. 
 Eedif Pacha, 136. 
 "Restoration of Nineveh, 308. 
 
 Eesults of excavations, 437. 
 Eesurrection of Heabani, 202. 
 Eezon, 274, 278, 283, 287. 
 Ehodes, 24. 
 
 Eiduti, palace of, 372, 373, 375. 
 Eimagu, 235. 
 Eings, 435. 
 
 Eobber, Syrian, 30. 121. 
 Eobbery attempted, 158. 
 Eock tombs at Orla, 113. 
 Eoyal seal, 293. 
 Eussian consul at Aleppo, 164. 
 
 Sabako, 318, 327. 
 Sabbath, Assyrian, 12. 
 Sabitu, 180. 
 Sadimatati temple, 245. 
 Saduri of Ararat, 372. 
 Saggal, temple of, 228. 
 Saites, 421. 
 Sais, 323, 326, 327. 
 Sale of Slave, 417. 
 Saragunu, 412. 
 Samhati, 174. 
 Sam si-vul, 91. 
 Sargon, 73, 92, 98, 293. 
 
 the Babylonian Moses, 224. 
 Sarturda, 175. 
 Sassanian vase, 143. 
 Saulmugina, 316, 337, 338, 339, 
 
 342, 344. 
 Saulcy, De, 8. 
 Sayce, 5, 8. 
 Schrader, 5, 8. 
 Seal of Sargon, 148. 
 Seals, 435. 
 
460 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Seasons, 401, '405. 
 Second expedition, 119. 
 Secul, a Babylonian measure,241. 
 Seleucus, 389. 
 Semil, 105, 134, 155. 
 Semitic conquest, 419. 
 Sending out birds, 191. 
 Sennacherib, 90, 92, 98, 295, 320, 
 
 34:3, 346, 376, 414. 
 palace of, 144. 
 Seven wicked spirits, 398-403. 
 Severe weather, 149. 
 Shalmaneser I., 72, 91, 140. 
 Shalmaneser II., 73, 74, 79, 91, 
 
 141, 252. 
 Shamas, 231, 339, 399, 400, 402. 
 Shammer revolt, 39, 40. 
 Sharabarazi, 157. 
 Shepherd kings, 421. 
 Shoulder of statue, 430. 
 Shushan, 336, 350, 351, 353, 355. 
 Siduri, 180. 
 
 Sin, 201, 231, 339, 345, 399, 400, 
 
 401, 402. 
 Sippara, 338, 340, 344, 410, 411. 
 Skene, Mr., Consul, 31, 162, 163. 
 Smyrna, 22, 23. 
 Soldiers, Turkish, 30. 
 Spoon, 147. 
 
 Stories of Nimrod, 108, 
 Storm, 154. 
 Style, 147. 
 Sumir, 315, 352. 
 Superstition, 161. 
 Suqamuna, 225, 395. 
 Surippak, 185, 212. 
 
 Suzub, 307, 314, 315. 
 Syllabaries, 101, 147, 41 S. 
 Synchronous history, 250. 
 Syra, 20, 21. 
 Syria, 338. 
 Swallow, 191. 
 
 Talbot, Mr. F., 5, 7. 
 Tammaritu the Eiamite, 336, 340, 
 
 341, 342, 345, 347, 348, 353, 
 
 371. 
 Tammuz, 173. 
 Tanis, 324. 
 Tartar post, 133. 
 Taylor, Mr. 4. 
 Taylor cylinder, 296. 
 Tcharmelek, 34, 114, 122. 
 Tekrit, 52. 
 
 Tel Adas, 45, 105, 154, 155. 
 
 Tel Gauran, 37, 111. 
 
 Tel Ibrahim, 63. 
 
 Tel Karamel, 32, 114. 
 
 Tellibel, 41, 109. 
 
 Temple of Assur, 244. 
 
 of Ishtar, 214. 
 Temples, building, 377, 378, 379. 
 Termanin, 31. 
 Terra-cotta tablets, 147. 
 Te umman the Eiamite, 336, 412, 
 413. 
 
 Thebes, 324, 328, 329, 376. 
 Thomas, E., 423. 
 Tiglath Pileser, 9, 73, 74, 92, 139, 
 253. 
 
 annals of, 254-286. 
 Tigris, 42, 107, 153, 291, 312. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 4G1 
 
 Tiha, 81. 
 Timnah, 304. 
 
 Tirhakah, 311, 312, 318, 321, 
 
 322, 323, 324, 325. 
 Tomah, 60, 84, 85. 
 Tomazini, Dr., 164. 
 Tower of INimroud, 75, 76, 77. 
 Trial by birds, 209. 
 Tubal, 330. 
 
 Tugulti-ninip, 91, 140, 249. 
 
 Turanian writing, 233. 
 
 Turanians in Babylonia, 449. 
 
 Turkish policy, 136. 
 
 Turuspa, capital of Armenia, 309. 
 
 Tyre, 312, 329. 
 
 Tyrians, 308. 
 
 Ubaratutu, 177. 
 Udder, Arab chief, 81. 
 Umbadara, an Elamite, 412. 
 Umman-aldas, king of Elam, 347, 
 
 349, 350, 357, 358, 371. 
 Umman-igas, 336, 338, 340, 357. 
 Umman-minan, 314. 
 Ummih-zirriti, 226. 
 Undamane, 318, 327, 376. 
 Ur, 232. 
 
 Ur of Chaldees, 233. . 
 Urhamsi, 181, 195. 
 Urukb, 232. 
 
 Vaalli king of Minni, 334. 
 Yaiteh king of Arabia, 359, 361, 
 
 3G3, 366, 369, 371. 
 Van, 309. 
 
 Yarenshaber, 37, 110, 124. 
 
 Varenshaber, sack of, 159. 
 Vul, 399, 402. 
 Vul-nirari I. 242, 243. 
 Yul-nirari III., 73, 74, 89, 139. 
 
 Wall of Nineveh, 87. 
 
 Warka, 206. 
 
 AYaters of death, 1S1. 
 
 Winged bull, 431. 
 
 Work to be accomplished, 452. 
 
 Works on Cuneiform, 6, 7, 8. 
 
 Xisithrus, 167, 177, 212. 
 translated, 210. 
 
 Yahimilki, Tyrian prince, 329. 
 
 Yahuhazi (Ahaz), 263, 286. 
 
 Yakinlu king of Arvad, 330. 
 
 Yakub's hotel, 26. 
 
 Yavan king of Ashdod, 290, 291. 
 
 Year, 405. 
 
 Yedok, 112. 
 
 Zab, 49, 67. 
 Z.iccho, 44, 134. 
 Zaccho pass, 155. 
 Zaidu, 170. 
 Zambour, 122. 
 Zamama-zakir-idin, 251. 
 Zarephath, 302. 
 Zibini, 123. 
 Zidon, 302. 
 Zirat-banit, 228. 
 Ziru, 231. 
 Zoan, 326. 
 Zodiac, 407. 
 
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