initial commit of ebook 10887HEADmain

1 files changed, 14901 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/old/10887.txt b/old/10887.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f7f05f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/10887.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,14901 @@
+Project Gutenberg's Babylonian and Assyrian Literature, by Anonymous
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Babylonian and Assyrian Literature
+
+Author: Anonymous
+
+Release Date: January 31, 2004 [EBook #10887]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN LITERATURE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Andy Schmitt and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+
+
+BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN LITERATURE
+
+COMPRISING THE EPIC OF IZDUBAR, HYMNS, TABLETS, AND CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS
+
+WITH A SPECIAL INTRODUCTION BY EPIPHANIUS WILSON, A.M.
+
+REVISED EDITION
+
+
+1901
+
+
+
+
+SPECIAL INTRODUCTION
+
+
+The great nation which dwelt in the seventh century before our era on the
+banks of Tigris and Euphrates flourished in literature as well as in the
+plastic arts, and had an alphabet of its own. The Assyrians sometimes
+wrote with a sharp reed, for a pen, upon skins, wooden tablets, or papyrus
+brought from Egypt. In this case they used cursive letters of a Phoenician
+character. But when they wished to preserve their written documents, they
+employed clay tablets, and a stylus whose bevelled point made an
+impression like a narrow elongated wedge, or arrow-head. By a combination
+of these wedges, letters and words were formed by the skilled and
+practised scribe, who would thus rapidly turn off a vast amount of "copy."
+All works of history, poetry, and law were thus written in the cuneiform
+or old Chaldean characters, and on a substance which could withstand the
+ravages of time, fire, or water. Hence we have authentic monuments of
+Assyrian literature in their original form, unglossed, unaltered, and
+ungarbled, and in this respect Chaldean records are actually superior to
+those of the Greeks, the Hebrews, or the Romans.
+
+The literature of the Chaldeans is very varied in its forms. The hymns to
+the gods form an important department, and were doubtless employed in
+public worship. They are by no means lacking in sublimity of expression,
+and while quite unmetrical they are proportioned and emphasized, like
+Hebrew poetry, by means of parallelism. In other respects they resemble
+the productions of Jewish psalmists, and yet they date as far back as the
+third millennium before Christ. They seem to have been transcribed in the
+shape in which we at present have them in the reign of Assurbanipal, who
+was a great patron of letters, and in whose reign libraries were formed in
+the principal cities. The Assyrian renaissance of the seventeenth century
+B.C. witnessed great activity among scribes and book collectors: modern
+scholars are deeply indebted to this golden age of letters in Babylonia
+for many precious and imperishable monuments. It is, however, only within
+recent years that these works of hoar antiquity have passed from the
+secluded cell of the specialist and have come within reach of the general
+reader, or even of the student of literature. For many centuries the
+cuneiform writing was literally a dead letter to the learned world. The
+clue to the understanding of this alphabet was originally discovered in
+1850 by Colonel Rawlinson, and described by him in a paper read before the
+Royal Society. Hence the knowledge of Assyrian literature is, so far as
+Europe is concerned, scarcely more than half a century old.
+
+Among the most valuable of historic records to be found among the
+monuments of any nation are inscriptions, set up on public buildings, in
+palaces, and in temples. The Greek and Latin inscriptions discovered at
+various points on the shores of the Mediterranean have been of priceless
+value in determining certain questions of philology, as well as in
+throwing new light on the events of history. Many secrets of language have
+been revealed, many perplexities of history disentangled, by the words
+engraven on stone or metal, which the scholar discovers amid the dust of
+ruined temples, or on the _cippus_ of a tomb. The form of one Greek
+letter, perhaps even its existence, would never have been guessed but for
+its discovery in an inscription. If inscriptions are of the highest
+critical importance and historic interest, in languages which are
+represented by a voluminous and familiar literature, how much more
+precious must they be when they record what happened in the remotest dawn
+of history, surviving among the ruins of a vast empire whose people have
+vanished from the face of the earth?
+
+Hence the cuneiform inscriptions are of the utmost interest and value, and
+present the greatest possible attractions to the curious and intelligent
+reader. They record the deeds and conquests of mighty kings, the Napoleons
+and Hannibals of primeval time. They throw a vivid light on the splendid
+sculptures of Nineveh; they give a new interest to the pictures and
+carvings that describe the building of cities, the marching to war, the
+battle, by sea and land, of great monarchs whose horse and foot were as
+multitudinous as the locusts that in Eastern literature are compared to
+them. Lovers of the Bible will find in the Assyrian inscriptions many
+confirmations of Scripture history, as well as many parallels to the
+account of the primitive world in Genesis, and none can give even a
+cursory glance at these famous remains without feeling his mental horizon
+widened. We are carried by this writing on the walls of Assyrian towns far
+beyond the little world of the recent centuries; we pass, as almost
+modern, the day when Julius Caesar struggled in the surf of Kent against
+the painted savages of Britain. Nay, the birth of Romulus and Remus is a
+recent event in comparison with records of incidents in Assyrian national
+life, which occurred not only before Moses lay cradled on the waters of an
+Egyptian canal, but before Egypt had a single temple or pyramid, three
+millenniums before the very dawn of history in the valley of the Nile.
+
+But the interest of Assyrian Literature is not confined to hymns, or even
+to inscriptions. A nameless poet has left in the imperishable tablets of a
+Babylonian library an epic poem of great power and beauty. This is the
+Epic of Izdubar.
+
+At Dur-Sargina, the city where stood the palace of Assyrian monarchs three
+thousand years ago, were two gigantic human figures, standing between the
+winged bulls, carved in high relief, at the entrance of the royal
+residence. These human figures are exactly alike, and represent the same
+personage--a Colossus with swelling thews, and dressed in a robe of
+dignity. He strangles a lion by pressing it with brawny arm against his
+side, as if it were no more than a cat. This figure is that of Izdubar, or
+Gisdubar, the great central character of Assyrian poetry and sculpture,
+the theme of minstrels, the typical hero of his land, the favored of the
+gods. What is called the Epic of Izdubar relates the exploits of this
+hero, who was born the son of a king in Ourouk of Chaldea. His father was
+dethroned by the Elamites, and Izdubar was driven into the wilderness and
+became a mighty hunter. In the half-peopled earth, so lately created, wild
+beasts had multiplied and threatened the extermination of mankind. The
+hunter found himself at war with monsters more formidable than even the
+lion or the wild bull. There were half-human scorpions, bulls with the
+head of man, fierce satyrs and winged griffins. Deadly war did Izdubar
+wage with them, till as his period of exile drew near to a close he said
+to his mother, "I have dreamed a dream; the stars rained from heaven upon
+me; then a creature, fierce-faced and taloned like a lion, rose up against
+me, and I smote and slew him."
+
+The dream was long in being fulfilled, but at last Izdubar was told of a
+monstrous jinn, whose name was Heabani; his head was human but horned; and
+he had the legs and tail of a bull, yet was he wisest of all upon earth.
+Enticing him from his cave by sending two fair women to the entrance,
+Izdubar took him captive and led him to Ourouk, where the jinn married one
+of the women whose charms had allured him, and became henceforth the
+well-loved servant of Izdubar. Then Izdubar slew the Elamite who had
+dethroned his father, and put the royal diadem on his own head. And behold
+the goddess Ishtar (Ashtaroth) cast her eyes upon the hero and wished to
+be his wife, but he rejected her with scorn, reminding her of the fate of
+Tammuz, and of Alala the Eagle, and of the shepherd Taboulon--all her
+husbands, and all dead before their time. Thus, as the wrath of Juno
+pursued Paris, so the hatred of this slighted goddess attends Izdubar
+through many adventures. The last plague that torments him is leprosy, of
+which he is to be cured by Khasisadra, son of Oubaratonton, last of the
+ten primeval kings of Chaldea. Khasisadra, while still living, had been
+transported to Paradise, where he yet abides. Here he is found by Izdubar,
+who listens to his account of the Deluge, and learns from him the remedy
+for his disease. The afflicted hero is destined, after being cured, to
+pass, without death, into the company of the gods, and there to enjoy
+immortality. With this promise the work concludes.
+
+The great poem of Izdubar has but recently been known to European
+scholars, having been discovered in 1871 by the eminent Assyriologist, Mr.
+George Smith. It was probably written about 2000 B.C., though the extant
+edition, which came from the library of King Assurbanipal in the palace at
+Dur-Sargina, must bear the date of 600 B.C. The hero is supposed to be a
+solar personification, and the epic is interesting to modern writers not
+only on account of its description of the Deluge, but also for the pomp
+and dignity of its style, and for its noble delineation of heroic
+character.
+
+
+[Signature: Epiphanius Wilson]
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+THE EPIC OF ISHTAR AND IZDUBAR:
+
+The Invocation.
+
+The Fall of Erech.
+
+The Rescue of Erech.
+
+Coronation of Izdubar.
+
+Ishtar and Her Maids.
+
+Izdubar Falls in Love with Ishtar.
+
+Ishtar's Midnight Courtship.
+
+The King's Second Dream.
+
+Izdubar Relates His Second Dream.
+
+Heabani, the Hermit Seer.
+
+Expedition of Zaidu.
+
+Heabani Resolves to Return.
+
+Heabani's Wisdom.
+
+In Praise of Izdubar and Heabani.
+
+Zaidu's Return.
+
+The Two Maidens Entice the Seer.
+
+Festival in Honor of Heabani.
+
+Izdubar Slays the Midannu.
+
+Annual Sale of the Maidens of Babylon.
+
+Council in the Palace.
+
+The King at the Shrine of Ishtar.
+
+The King at the Temple of Samas.
+
+Expedition against Khumbaba.
+
+Conflict of the Rival Giants.
+
+Coronation of Izdubar.
+
+The King's Answer and Ishtar's Rage.
+
+Ishtar Complains to Anu.
+
+Fight with the Winged Bull of Anu.
+
+The Curse of Ishtar.
+
+Ishtar Weaves a Spell Over Izdubar.
+
+Ishtar's Descent to Hades.
+
+Effect of Ishtar's Imprisonment in Hades.
+
+Papsukul Intercedes for Ishtar.
+
+Release of Ishtar.
+
+Tammuz Restored to Life.
+
+Escape of Tammuz from Hades.
+
+The King and the Seer Converse.
+
+Contest with the Dragons.
+
+Heabani Reveals Visions to the King.
+
+Grief of the King Over Heabani.
+
+Burial of the Seer.
+
+Izdubar Enters Hades.
+
+The King's Adventure.
+
+The King Meets Ur-hea.
+
+Mua Welcomes Izdubar.
+
+The King Becomes Immortal.
+
+Izdubar Falls in Love with Mua.
+
+Mua's Answer.
+
+
+TABLETS AND CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS:
+
+Babylonian Exorcisms.
+
+Accadian Hymn to Istar.
+
+Annals of Assur-Nasi-Pal.
+
+Assyrian Sacred Poetry.
+
+Assyrian Talismans and Exorcisms.
+
+Ancient Babylonian Charms.
+
+Inscription of Tiglath Pileser I.
+
+The Revolt in Heaven.
+
+The Legend of the Tower of Babel.
+
+An Accadian Penitential Psalm.
+
+The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser II.
+
+Inscription of Nebuchadnezzar.
+
+Accadian Poem on the Seven Evil Spirits.
+
+Chaldean Hymns to the Sun.
+
+Two Accadian Hymns.
+
+Accadian Proverbs and Songs.
+
+Babylonian Public Documents.
+
+Babylonian Private Contracts.
+
+Great Inscription of Khorsabad.
+
+
+
+
+ISHTAR AND IZDUBAR
+
+[_Translated by Leonidas Le Cenci Hamilton, M.A._]
+
+
+
+
+ALCOVE I
+
+
+
+TABLET I: COLUMN I
+
+INVOCATION
+
+
+O love, my queen and goddess, come to me;
+My soul shall never cease to worship thee;
+Come pillow here thy head upon my breast,
+And whisper in my lyre thy softest, best.
+And sweetest melodies of bright _Sami_,[1]
+Our Happy Fields[2] above dear _Subartu_;[3]
+Come nestle closely with those lips of love
+And balmy breath, and I with thee shall rove
+Through _Sari_[4] past ere life on earth was known,
+And Time unconscious sped not, nor had flown.
+Thou art our all in this impassioned life:
+How sweetly comes thy presence ending strife,
+Thou god of peace and Heaven's undying joy,
+Oh, hast thou ever left one pain or cloy
+Upon this beauteous world to us so dear?
+To all mankind thou art their goddess here.
+To thee we sing, our holiest, fairest god,
+The One who in that awful chaos trod
+And woke the Elements by Law of Love
+To teeming worlds in harmony to move.
+From chaos thou hast led us by thy hand,
+[5]Thus spoke to man upon that budding land:
+"The Queen of Heaven, of the dawn am I,
+The goddess of all wide immensity,
+For thee I open wide the golden gate
+Of happiness, and for thee love create
+To glorify the heavens and fill with joy
+The earth, its children with sweet love employ."
+Thou gavest then the noblest melody
+And highest bliss--grand nature's harmony.
+With love the finest particle is rife,
+And deftly woven in the woof of life,
+In throbbing dust or clasping grains of sand,
+In globes of glistening dew that shining stand
+On each pure petal, Love's own legacies
+Of flowering verdure, Earth's sweet panoplies;
+By love those atoms sip their sweets and pass
+To other atoms, join and keep the mass
+With mighty forces moving through all space,
+Tis thus on earth all life has found its place.
+Through Kisar,[6] Love came formless through the air
+In countless forms behold her everywhere!
+Oh, could we hear those whispering roses sweet,
+Three beauties bending till their petals meet,
+And blushing, mingling their sweet fragrance there
+In language yet unknown to mortal ear.
+Their whisperings of love from morn till night
+Would teach us tenderly to love the right.
+O Love, here stay! Let chaos not return!
+With hate each atom would its lover spurn
+In air above, on land, or in the sea,
+O World, undone and lost that loseth thee!
+For love we briefly come, and pass away
+For other men and maids; thus bring the day
+Of love continuous through this glorious life.
+Oh, hurl away those weapons fierce of strife!
+We here a moment, point of time but live,
+Too short is life for throbbing hearts to grieve.
+Thrice holy is that form that love hath kissed,
+And happy is that man with heart thus blessed.
+Oh, let not curses fall upon that head
+Whom love hath cradled on the welcome bed
+Of bliss, the bosom of our fairest god,
+Or hand of love e'er grasp the venging rod.
+
+Oh, come, dear Zir-ri,[7] tune your lyres and lutes,
+And sing of love with chastest, sweetest notes,
+Of Accad's goddess Ishtar, Queen of Love,
+And Izdubar, with softest measure move;
+Great Samas'[8] son, of him dear Zir-ri sing!
+Of him whom goddess Ishtar warmly wooed,
+Of him whose breast with virtue was imbued.
+He as a giant towered, lofty grown,
+As Babil's[9] great _pa-te-si_[10] was he known,
+His armed fleet commanded on the seas
+And erstwhile travelled on the foreign leas;
+His mother Ellat-gula[11] on the throne
+From Erech all Kardunia[12] ruled alone.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Samu," heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Happy Fields," celestial gardens, heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Subartu," Syria.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Sari," plural form of "saros," a cycle or measurement of
+time used by the Babylonians, 3,600 years.]
+
+[Footnote 5: From the "Accadian Hymn to Ishtar," terra-cotta tablet
+numbered "S, 954," one of the oldest hymns of a very remote date,
+deposited in the British Museum by Mr. Smith. It comes from Erech, one of
+the oldest, if not the oldest, city of Babylonia. We have inserted a
+portion of it in its most appropriate place in the epic. See translation
+in "Records of the Past," vol. v. p. 157.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Kisar," the consort or queen of Sar, father of all the
+gods.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Zir-ri" (pronounced "zeer-ree"), short form of "Zi-aria,"
+spirits of the running rivers--naiads or water-nymphs.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Samas," the sun-god.]
+
+[Footnote 9: Babil, Babylon; the Accadian name was "Diu-tir," or "Duran."]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Pa-te-si," prince.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Ellat-gula," one of the queens or sovereigns of Erech,
+supposed to have preceded Nammurabi or Nimrod on the throne. We have
+identified Izdubar herein with Nimrod.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Kardunia," the ancient name of Babylonia.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+THE FALL OF ERECH
+
+
+O Moon-god,[1] hear my cry! With thy pure light
+Oh, take my spirit through that awful night
+That hovers o'er the long-forgotten years,
+To sing Accadia's songs and weep her tears!
+'Twas thus I prayed, when lo! my spirit rose
+On fleecy clouds, enwrapt in soft repose;
+And I beheld beneath me nations glide
+In swift succession by, in all their pride:
+The earth was filled with cities of mankind,
+And empires fell beneath a summer wind.
+The soil and clay walked forth upon the plains
+In forms of life, and every atom gains
+A place in man or breathes in animals;
+And flesh and blood and bones become the walls
+Of palaces and cities, which soon fall
+To unknown dust beneath some ancient wall.
+All this I saw while guided by the stroke
+Of unseen pinions:
+
+                      Then amid the smoke
+That rose o'er burning cities, I beheld
+White Khar-sak-kur-ra's[2] brow arise that held
+The secrets of the gods--that felt the prore
+Of Khasisadra's ark; I heard the roar
+Of battling elements, and saw the waves
+That tossed above mankind's commingled graves.
+The mighty mountain as some sentinel
+Stood on the plains alone; and o'er it fell
+A halo, bright, divine; its summit crowned
+With sunbeams, shining on the earth around
+And o'er the wide expanse of plains;--below
+Lay Khar-sak-kal-ama[3] with light aglow,
+And nestling far away within my view
+Stood Erech, Nipur, Marad, Eridu,
+And Babylon, the tower-city old,
+In her own splendor shone like burnished gold.
+And lo! grand Erech in her glorious days
+Lies at my feet. I see a wondrous maze
+Of vistas, groups, and clustering columns round,
+Within, without the palace;--from the ground
+Of outer staircases, massive, grand,
+Stretch to the portals where the pillars stand.
+A thousand carved columns reaching high
+To silver rafters in an azure sky,
+And palaces and temples round it rise
+With lofty turrets glowing to the skies,
+And massive walls far spreading o'er the plains,
+Here live and move Accadia's courtly trains,
+And see! the _pit-u-dal-ti_[4] at the gates,
+And _masari_[5] patrol and guard the streets!
+And yonder comes a _kis-ib_, nobleman,
+With a young prince; and see! a caravan
+Winds through the gates! With men the streets are filled!
+And chariots, a people wise and skilled
+In things terrestrial, what science, art,
+Here reign! With laden ships from every mart
+The docks are filled, and foreign fabrics bring
+From peoples, lands, where many an empire, king,
+Have lived and passed away, and naught have left
+In history or song. Dread Time hath cleft
+Us far apart; their kings and kingdoms, priests
+And bards are gone, and o'er them sweep the mists
+Of darkness backward spreading through all time,
+Their records swept away in every clime.
+Those alabaster stairs let us ascend,
+And through this lofty portal we will wend.
+See! richest Sumir rugs amassed, subdue
+The tiled pavement with its varied hue,
+Upon the turquoise ceiling sprinkled stars
+Of gold and silver crescents in bright pairs!
+And gold-fringed scarlet curtains grace each door,
+And from the inlaid columns reach the floor:
+From golden rods extending round the halls,
+Bright silken hangings drape the sculptured walls.
+
+But part those scarlet hangings at the door
+Of yon grand chamber! tread the antique floor!
+Behold the sovereign on her throne of bronze,
+While crouching at her feet a lion fawns;
+The glittering court with gold and gems ablaze
+With ancient splendor of the glorious days
+Of Accad's sovereignty. Behold the ring
+Of dancing beauties circling while they sing
+With amorous forms in moving melody,
+The measure keep to music's harmony.
+Hear! how the music swells from silver lute
+And golden-stringed lyres and softest flute
+And harps and tinkling cymbals, measured drums,
+While a soft echo from the chamber comes.
+
+But see! the sovereign lifts her jewelled hand,
+The music ceases at the Queen's command;
+And lo! two chiefs in warrior's array,
+With golden helmets plumed with colors gay,
+And golden shields, and silver coats of mail,
+Obeisance make to her with faces pale,
+Prostrate themselves before their sovereign's throne
+In silence brief remain with faces prone,
+Till Ellat-gula[6] speaks: "My chiefs, arise!
+What word have ye for me? what new surprise?"
+Tur-tau-u,[7] rising, says, "O Dannat[8] Queen!
+Thine enemy, Khum-baba[9] with Rim-siu[10]
+With clanging shields, appears upon the hills,
+And Elam's host the land of Sumir fills."
+"Away, ye chiefs! sound loud the _nappa-khu_![11]
+Send to their post each warrior _bar-ru_!"[12]
+The gray embattlements rose in the light
+That lingered yet from Samas'[13] rays, ere Night
+Her sable folds had spread across the sky.
+Thus Erech stood, where in her infancy
+The huts of wandering Accads had been built
+Of soil, and rudely roofed by woolly pelt
+O'erlaid upon the shepherd's worn-out staves,
+And yonder lay their fathers' unmarked graves.
+Their chieftains in those early days oft meet
+Upon the mountains where they Samas greet,
+With their rude sacrifice upon a tree
+High-raised that their sun-god may shining see
+Their offering divine; invoking pray
+For aid, protection, blessing through the day.
+Beneath these walls and palaces abode
+The spirit of their country--each man trod
+As if his soul to Erech's weal belonged,
+And heeded not the enemy which thronged
+Before the gates, that now were closed with bars
+Of bronze thrice fastened.
+
+                  See the thousand cars
+And chariots arrayed across the plains!
+The marching hosts of Elam's armed trains,
+The archers, slingers in advance amassed,
+With black battalions in the centre placed,
+With chariots before them drawn in line,
+Bedecked with brightest trappings iridine,
+While gorgeous plumes of Elam's horses nod
+Beneath the awful sign of Elam's god.
+On either side the mounted spearsmen far
+Extend; and all the enginery of war
+Are brought around the walls with fiercest shouts,
+And from behind their shields each archer shoots.
+
+Thus Erech is besieged by her dread foes,
+And she at last must feel Accadia's woes,
+And feed the vanity of conquerors,
+Who boast o'er victories in all their wars.
+Great Subartu[14] has fallen by Sutu[15]
+And Kassi,[16] Goim[17] fell with Lul-lu-bu,[18]
+Thus Khar-sak-kal-a-ma[19] all Eridu[20]
+O'erran with Larsa's allies; Subartu
+With Duran[21] thus was conquered by these sons
+Of mighty Shem and strewn was Accad's bones
+Throughout her plains, and mountains, valleys fair,
+Unburied lay in many a wolf's lair.
+Oh, where is Accad's chieftain Izdubar,
+Her mightiest unrivalled prince of war?
+
+The turrets on the battlemented walls
+Swarm with skilled bowmen, archers--from them falls
+A cloud of winged missiles on their foes,
+Who swift reply with shouts and twanging bows;
+And now amidst the raining death appears
+The scaling ladder, lined with glistening spears,
+But see! the ponderous catapults now crush
+The ladder, spearsmen, with their mighty rush
+Of rocks and beams, nor in their fury slacked
+As if a toppling wall came down intact
+Upon the maddened mass of men below.
+But other ladders rise, and up them flow
+The tides of armed spearsmen with their shields;
+From others bowmen shoot, and each man wields
+A weapon, never yielding to his foe,
+For death alone he aims with furious blow.
+At last upon the wall two soldiers spring,
+A score of spears their corses backward fling.
+But others take their place, and man to man,
+And spear to spear, and sword to sword, till ran
+The walls with slippery gore; but Erech's men
+Are brave and hurl them from their walls again.
+And now the battering-rams with swinging power
+Commence their thunders, shaking every tower;
+And miners work beneath the crumbling walls,
+Alas! before her foemen Erech falls.
+Vain are suspended chains against the blows
+Of dire assaulting engines.
+
+                            Ho! there goes
+The eastern wall with Erech's strongest tower!
+And through the breach her furious foemen pour:
+A wall of steel withstands the onset fierce,
+But thronging Elam's spears the lines soon pierce,
+A band of chosen men there fight to die,
+Before their enemies disdain to fly;
+The _masari_[22] within the breach thus died,
+And with their dying shout the foe defied.
+The foes swarm through the breach and o'er the walls,
+And Erech in extremity loud calls
+Upon the gods for aid, but prays for naught,
+While Elam's soldiers, to a frenzy wrought,
+Pursue and slay, and sack the city old
+With fiendish shouts for blood and yellow gold.
+Each man that falls the foe decapitates,
+And bears the reeking death to Erech's gates.
+The gates are hidden 'neath the pile of heads
+That climbs above the walls, and outward spreads
+A heap of ghastly plunder bathed in blood.
+Beside them calm scribes of the victors stood,
+And careful note the butcher's name, and check
+The list; and for each head a price they make.
+Thus pitiless the sword of Elam gleams
+And the best blood of Erech flows in streams.
+From Erech's walls some fugitives escape,
+And others in Euphrates wildly leap,
+And hide beneath its rushes on the bank
+And many 'neath the yellow waters sank.
+
+The harper of the Queen, an aged man,
+Stands lone upon the bank, while he doth scan
+The horizon with anxious, careworn face,
+Lest ears profane of Elam's hated race
+Should hear his strains of mournful melody:
+Now leaning on his harp in memory
+Enwrapt, while fitful breezes lift his locks
+Of snow, he sadly kneels upon the rocks
+And sighing deeply clasps his hands in woe,
+While the dread past before his mind doth flow.
+A score and eight of years have slowly passed
+Since Rim-a-gu, with Elam's host amassed,
+Kardunia's ancient capital had stormed.
+The glorious walls and turrets are transformed
+To a vast heap of ruins, weird, forlorn,
+And Elam's spears gleam through the coming morn.
+From the sad sight his eyes he turns away,
+His soul breathes through his harp while he doth play
+With bended head his aged hands thus woke
+The woes of Erech with a measured stroke:
+
+    O Erech! dear Erech, my beautiful home,
+      Accadia's pride, O bright land of the bard,
+    Come back to my vision, dear Erech, oh, come!
+      Fair land of my birth, how thy beauty is marred!
+    The horsemen of Elam, her spearsmen and bows,
+       Thy treasures have ravished, thy towers thrown down,
+    And Accad is fallen, trod down by her foes.
+      Oh, where are thy temples of ancient renown?
+
+    Gone are her brave heroes beneath the red tide,
+      Gone are her white vessels that rode o'er the main,
+    No more on the river her pennon shall ride,
+      Gargan-na is fallen, her people are slain.
+    Wild asses[23] shall gallop across thy grand floors,
+      And wild bulls shall paw them and hurl the dust high
+    Upon the wild cattle that flee through her doors,
+      And doves shall continue her mournful slave's cry.
+
+    Oh, where are the gods of our Erech so proud,
+      As flies they are swarming away from her halls,
+    The Sedu[24] of Erech are gone as a cloud,
+      As wild fowl are flying away from her walls.
+    Three years did she suffer, besieged by her foes,
+      Her gates were thrown down and defiled by the feet
+    Who brought to poor Erech her tears and her woes,
+      In vain to our Ishtar with prayers we entreat.
+
+    To Ishtar bowed down doth our Bel thus reply,
+      "Come, Ishtar, my queenly one, hide all thy tears,
+    Our hero, Tar-u-man-i izzu Sar-ri,[25]
+      In Kipur is fortified with his strong spears.
+    The hope of Kardunia,[26] land of my delight,
+      Shall come to thy rescue, upheld by my hands,
+    Deliverer of peoples, whose heart is aright,
+      Protector of temples, shall lead his brave bands."
+
+    Awake then, brave Accad, to welcome the day!
+      Behold thy bright banners yet flaming on high,
+    Triumphant are streaming on land and the sea!
+      Arise, then, O Accad! behold the Sami![27]
+    Arranged in their glory the mighty gods come
+      In purple and gold the grand Tam-u[8] doth shine
+    Over Erech, mine Erech, my beautiful home,
+      Above thy dear ashes, behold thy god's sign!
+
+[Footnote 1: "O Moon-god, hear my cry!" ("Siu lici unnini!") the name of
+the author of the Izdubar epic upon which our poem is based.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Khar-sak-kur-ra," the Deluge mountain on which the ark of
+Khasisadra (the Accadian Noah) rested.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Khar-sak-kal-ama" is a city mentioned in the Izdubar epic,
+and was probably situated at the base of Khar-sak-kur-ra, now called Mount
+Elwend. The same mountain is sometimes called the "Mountain of the World"
+in the inscriptions, where the gods were supposed to sometimes reside.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Pit-u-dal-ti," openers of the gates.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Masari," guards of the great gates of the city, etc.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Ellat-gula," the queen of Erech, the capital of Babylonia.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Tur-tan-u" was the army officer or general who in the
+absence of the sovereign took the supreme command of the army, and held
+the highest rank next to the queen or king.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Dannat" (the "Powerful Lady") was a title applied to the
+Queen, the mother of Izdubar (Sayce's ed. Smith's "Chal. Acc. of Gen.," p.
+184). We have here identified her with Ellat-gula, the Queen of Babylon,
+who preceded Ham-murabi or Nammurabi, whom the inscriptions indicate was
+an Accadian. The latter we have identified with Nimrod, following the
+suggestion of Mr. George Smith.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Khumbaba" was the giant Elamitic king whom Izdubar
+overthrew. We identify him with the King of the Elamites who, allied with
+Rimsin or Rimagu, was overthrown by Nammurabi or Izdubar.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Rim-siu," above referred to, who overthrew Uruk, or Karrak,
+or Erech. He was King of Larsa, immediately south of Erech.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Nap-pa-khu," war-trumpet.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Bar-ru," army officer.]
+
+[Footnote 13: "Samas," the sun-god.]
+
+[Footnote 14: "Subartu" is derived from the Accadian "subar" ("high"),
+applied by the Accadians to the highlands of Aram or Syria. It is probable
+that all these countries, viz., Subartu, Goim, Lullubu, Kharsak-kalama,
+Eridu, and Duran, were at one time inhabited by the Accadians, until
+driven out by the Semites.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Sutu" is supposed to refer to the Arabians.]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Kassi," the Kassites or Elamites. The Kassi inhabited the
+northern part of Elam.]
+
+[Footnote 17: "Goim," or "Gutium," supposed by Sir Henry Rawlinson to be
+the Goyim of Gen. xiv, ruled by Tidal or Turgal ("the Great Son").]
+
+[Footnote 18: "Lul-lu-bu," a country northward of Mesopotamia and Nizir.]
+
+[Footnote 19: "Kharsak-kala-ma," the city supposed to lie at the base of
+Kharsak-kurra, or Mount Nizir, or Mount Elwend. The same city was
+afterward called Echatana.]
+
+[Footnote 20: "Eridu," the land of Ur, or Erech.]
+
+[Footnote 21: "Duran," Babylonia.]
+
+[Footnote 22: "Masari," guards of the palace, etc.]
+
+[Footnote 23: See Sayce's translation in the "Chal. Acc. of Gen.," by
+Smith, p. 193.]
+
+[Footnote 24: "Sedu," spirits of prosperity.]
+
+[Footnote 25: "Tar-u-mani izzu Sarri," son of the faith, the fire of
+kings, or fire-king.]
+
+[Footnote 26: "Kardunia," the ancient name of Babylon.]
+
+[Footnote 27: "Sami," heavens (plural).]
+
+[Footnote 28: "Tamu," dawn or sunrise, day.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+THE RESCUE OF ERECH BY IZDUBAR
+
+
+Heabani, weary, eyes his native land,
+And on his harp now lays his trembling hand;
+The song has ended in a joyous lay,
+And yet, alas! his hands but sadly play:
+Unused to hope, the strings refuse their aid
+To tune in sympathy, and heartless played.
+Again the minstrel bows his head in woe,
+And the hot tear-drops from his eyelids flow,
+And chanting now a mournful melody,
+O'er Erech's fall, thus sang an elegy:
+
+[1] "How long, O Ishtar, will thy face be turned,
+      While Erech desolate doth cry to thee?
+    Thy towers magnificent, oh, hast thou spurned?
+      Her blood like water in Ul-bar,[2] oh, see!
+    The seat of thine own oracle behold!
+      The fire hath ravaged all thy cities grand,
+    And like the showers of Heaven them all doth fold.
+      O Ishtar! broken-hearted do I stand!
+    Oh, crush our enemies as yonder reed!
+      For hopeless, lifeless, kneels thy bard to thee,
+    And, oh! I would exalt thee in my need,
+      From thy resentment, anger, oh, us free!"
+
+With eyes bedimmed with tears, he careful scans
+The plain, "Perhaps the dust of caravans
+It is! But no!! I see long lines of spears!
+A warrior from the lifting cloud appears,
+And chariots arrayed upon the plain!
+And is the glorious omen not in vain?
+What! no?" He rubs his eyes in wild surprise,
+And drinks the vision while he loudly cries:
+"Oh, joy! our standards flashing from afar!
+He comes! he comes! our hero Izdubar!"
+He grasps his harp inspired, again to wake
+In song--the cry of battle now doth break.
+
+   "Nin-a-rad,[3] servant of our great Nin,[4]
+      Shall lead our hosts to victory!
+    God of the chase and war, o'er him, oh, shine!
+      Tar-u-ma-ni iz-zu sar-ri![5]
+
+   "Let Elam fall! the cause of Accad's woes,
+      Revenge of Erech, be the cry!
+    This land our father's blessed, our king they chose,
+      Tar-u-ma-ni iz-zu sar-ri!
+    Our holy fathers sleep upon this plain,
+      We conquer, or we here will die;
+    For victory, then raise the cry, ye men!
+      Tar-u-ma-ni iz-zu sar-ri!"
+
+The minstrel ceases, lifts his hands on high,
+And still we hear his joyful waning cry:
+Now echoed by yon hosts along the sky,
+"He comes! Tar-u-ma-ni iz-zu sar-ri!
+Great Accad's hosts arrayed with spears and shields
+Are coming! see them flashing o'er the fields!
+And he! bright flashing as the god's attire,
+Doth lead in burnished gold, our king of fire.
+His armor shines through yonder wood and fen,
+That tremble 'neath the tread of armed men.
+See! from his jewelled breastplate, helmet, fly
+The rays like Samas from the cloudless sky!
+How martially he rides his sable steed,
+That proudly treads and lifts his noble head,
+While eagerly he gallops down the line,
+And bears his princely load with porte divine;
+And now, along the plains there sounds afar
+The piercing bugle-note of Izdubar;
+For Erech's walls and turrets are in view,
+And high the standards rise of varied hue.
+The army halts; the twanging bows are strung;
+And from their chariots the chieftains sprung.
+The wheeling lines move at each chief's command,
+With chariots in front;
+
+                        On either hand
+Extend the lines of spears and cavalry,
+A winged storm-cloud waiting for its prey:
+And see! while Accad's army ready waits,
+The enemy are swarming from the gates.
+The charge, from either host, the trumpets sound,
+And bristling chariots from each army bound:
+A cloud of arrows flies from Accad's bows
+That hides the sun, and falls among their foes.
+Now roars the thunder of great Accad's cars,
+Their brazen chariots as blazing stars
+Through Nuk-khu's[6] depths with streams of blazing fire,
+Thus fall upon the foe with vengeful ire.
+The smoking earth shakes underneath their wheels,
+And from each cloud their thunder loudly peals.
+Thus Accad on their foes have fiercely hurled
+Their solid ranks with Nin-rad's flag unfurled,
+The charging lines meet with a fearful sound,
+As tempests' waves from rocks in rage rebound;
+The foe thus meet the men of Izdubar,
+While o'er the field fly the fierce gods of war.
+Dark Nin-a-zu[7] her torch holds in her hand.
+With her fierce screams directs the gory brand;
+And Mam-mit[8] urges her with furious hand,
+And coiling dragons[9] poison all the land
+With their black folds and pestilential breath,
+In fierce delight thus ride the gods of death.
+
+The shouts of Accad mingle with the cries
+Of wounded men and fiery steeds, which rise
+From all the fields with shrieks of carnage, war,
+Till victory crowns the host of Izdubar.
+The chariots are covered with the slain,
+And crushed beneath lie dead and dying men,
+And horses in their harness wounded fall,
+With dreadful screams, and wildly view the wall
+Of dying warriors piling o'er their heads,
+And wonder why each man some fury leads;
+And others break across the gory plain
+In mad career till they the mountain gain;
+And snorting on the hills in wild dismay,
+One moment glance below, then fly away;
+Away from sounds that prove their masters, fiends,
+Away to freedom snuffing purer winds,
+Within some cool retreat by mountain streams,
+Where peacefully for them, the sun-light gleams.
+At last the foe is scattered o'er the plain,
+And Accad fiercely slays the flying men;
+When Izdubar beholds the victory won
+By Accad's grand battalions of the sun,
+His bugle-call the awful carnage stays,
+Then loud the cry of victory they raise.
+
+[Footnote 1: The above elegy is an Assyrian fragment remarkably similar to
+one of the psalms of the Jewish bible, and I believe it belongs to the
+Irdubar epic (W.A. I. IV. 19, No. 3; also see "Records of the Past," vol.
+xi. p. 160).]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Ul-bar," Bel's temple.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Nin-a-rad," literally "servant of Nin," or "Nin-mar-ad,"
+"Lord of the city of Marad."]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Nin," the god of the chase and war, or lord.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Tar-u-ma-ni izzu sar-ri," "son of the faith, the
+fire-king."]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Nuk-khu," darkness (god of darkness).]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Nin-a-zu," god of fate and death.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Mam-mit," or "Mam-mi-tu," goddess of fate.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Dragons," gods of chaos and death.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+CORONATION OF IZDUBAR
+
+
+A crowd of maidens led a glorious van;
+With roses laden the fair heralds ran,
+With silver-throated music chant the throng,
+And sweetly sang the coronation song:
+And now we see the gorgeous cavalcade,
+Within the walls in Accad's grand parade
+They pass, led by the maidens crowned with flowers,
+Who strew the path with fragrance;--to the towers
+And walls and pillars of each door bright cling
+The garlands. Hear the maidens joyful sing!
+
+"Oh, shout the cry! Accadians, joyful sing
+For our Deliverer! Oh, crown him King!
+Then strew his path with garlands, tulips, rose,
+And wave his banners as he onward goes;
+Our mighty Nin-rad comes, oh, raise the cry!
+We crown Tar-u-ma-ni iz-zu sar-ri!
+
+    Away to Samas' temple grand, away!
+      For Accad crowns him, crowns him there!
+    He is our chosen Sar[1] this glorious day,
+      Oh, send the Khanga[2] through the air!
+
+Then chant the chorus, all ye hosts above!
+O daughters, mothers, sing for him we love!
+His glory who can sing, who brings us joy?
+For hope and gladness all our hearts employ.
+He comes, our hope and strength in every war:
+We crown him as our king, our Izdubar!
+
+    Away to Samas' temple grand, away!
+      For Accad crowns him, crowns him there!
+    He is our chosen Sar this glorious day,
+      Oh, send the Khanga through the air!"
+
+Toward the temple filed the long parade,
+The nobles led while Accad's music played;
+The harps and timbrels, barsoms, drums and flutes
+Unite with trumpets and the silver lutes.
+Surrounded by his chieftains rides the Sar
+In purple robes upon his brazen car.
+Bedecked with garlands, steeds of whitest snow
+The chariot draw in state with movement slow,
+Each steed led by a _kisib_, nobleman,
+A score of beauteous horses linked in span.
+The army follows with their nodding plumes,
+And burnished armor, trumpets, rolling drums,
+And glistening spears enwreathed with fragrant flowers,
+While scarfs are waving from the crowded towers,
+And shouts of joy their welcome loud proclaim,
+And from each lip resounds their monarch's name.
+
+And now before the holy temple stands
+The chariot, in silence cease the bands.
+Around an altar stand the waiting priests,
+And held by them, the sacrificial beasts.
+The hero from his chair descends,
+And bowing to the priests, he lowly bends
+Before the sacred altar of the Sun,
+And prays to Samas, Accad's Holy One.
+
+[3] "O Samas, I invoke thee, throned on high!
+      Within the cedars' shadow bright thou art,
+    Thy footing rests upon immensity;
+      All nations eagerly would seek thy heart.
+    Their eyes have turned toward thee; O our Friend!
+      Whose brilliant light illuminates all lands,
+    Before thy coming all the nations bend,
+      Oh, gather every people with thy hands!
+    For thou, O Samas, knowest boundaries
+      Of every kingdom, falsehood dost destroy,
+    And every evil thought from sorceries
+      Of wonders, omens, dreams that do annoy,
+    And evil apparitions, thou dost turn
+      To happy issue; malice, dark designs;
+    And men and countries in thy might o'erturn,
+      And sorcery that every soul maligns.
+    Oh, in thy presence refuge let me find!
+      From those who spells invoke against thy King,
+    Protect one! and my heart within thine, oh, bind!
+      [4]Thy breath within mine inmost soul, oh, bring!
+    That I with thee, O Samas, may rejoice.
+      And may the gods who me created, take
+    Thy hands and lead me, make thy will my choice,
+      [5]Direct my breath, my hands, and of me make
+    They servant, Lord of light of legions vast,
+      O Judge, thy glory hath all things surpassed!"
+
+The King then rises, takes the sacred glass,[6]
+And holds it in the sun before the mass
+Of waiting fuel on the altar piled.
+The centring rays--the fuel glowing gild
+With a round spot of fire and quickly, spring
+Above the altar curling, while they sing!
+
+[7] "Oh, to the desert places may it fly,
+      This incantation holy!
+    O spirit of the heavens, us this day
+      Remember, oh, remember!
+    O spirit of the earth, to thee we pray,
+      Remember! Us remember!
+
+   "O God of Fire! a lofty prince doth stand,
+      A warrior, and son of the blue sea,
+    Before the God of Fire in thine own land,
+      Before thy holy fires that from us free
+    Dread Darkness, where dark Nuk-khu reigns.
+      Our prince, as monarch we proclaim,
+    His destiny thy power maintains,
+      Oh, crown his glory with wide fame!
+
+   "With bronze and metal thou dost bless
+      All men, and givest silver, gold.
+    The goddess with the horned face
+      Did bless us with thee from of old.
+    From dross thy fires change gold to purity;
+      Oh, bless our fire-king, round him shine
+    With Heaven's vast sublimity!
+      And like the earth with rays divine,
+      As the bright walls of Heaven's shrine."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Sar," king.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Khanga," chorus.]
+
+[Footnote 3: One of the Accadian psalms is here quoted from "Chaldean
+Magic," by Lenormant, pp. 185, 186. See also "Records of the Past," vol.
+xi. pl. 17, col. 2.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Literally, "Right into my marrow, O Lords of breath."]
+
+[Footnote 5: Literally, "Direct the breath of my mouth!"]
+
+[Footnote 6: Sacred glass, sun-glass used to light the sacred fire.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Incantation to Fire ("Records of the Past," vol. xi. p. 137).
+The Accadian and Assyrian text is found in "C.I.W.A.," vol. iv. pl. 14,
+and on tablet K. 49,002, in the British Museum.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+ISHTAR AND HER MAIDS IN THE FAVORITE HAUNT OF IZDUBAR
+
+
+The king while hunting where a forest grows,
+Around sweet hyacinths and budding rose,
+Where a soft zephyr o'er them gently flows
+From the dark _sik-ka-ti_[1] where Kharsak[2] glows;
+And Sedu[3] softly dances on the leaves,
+And a rich odorous breath from them receives;
+Where tulips peep with heliotrope and pink,
+With violets upon a gleaming brink
+Of silver gliding o'er a water-fall
+That sings its purling treasures o'er a wall
+Of rugged onyx sparkling to the sea:
+A spot where Zir-ri[4] sport oft merrily,
+Where Hea's[5] arm outstretched doth form a bay,
+Wild, sheltered, where his sea-daughters play;
+A jasper rock here peeps above the waves
+Of emerald hue; with them its summit laves.
+
+Around, above, this cool enchanting cove
+Bend amorous, spicy branches; here the dove
+Oft coos its sweetest notes to its own mate,
+And fragrance pure, divine, the air doth freight,
+To sport with gods no lovelier place is found,
+With love alone the mystic woods resound.
+
+Here witching Zi-na-ki[6] oft drag within
+The waves unwilling Zi-si;[7] here the din
+Of roars of sullen storms is never known
+When tempests make the mighty waters groan;
+Nor sound of strife is heard, but rippling rills,
+Or softest note of love, the breezes fills.
+
+And here the king in blissful dreams oft lies
+'Mid pure ambrosial odors, and light flies
+The tune in bliss; away from kingly care,
+And hollow splendor of the courtly glare;
+Away from triumphs, battle-fields afar,
+The favorite haunt of huntsman Izdubar.
+
+The Queen of Love the glowing spot surveys,
+And sees the monarch where he blissful lays;
+And watching till he takes his bow and spear
+To chase the wild gazelles now browsing near,
+She, ere the king returns, near by arrives
+With her two maids; with them for love connives,
+Joy and seduction thus voluptuous fly
+Her Samkhatu,[8] Kharimtu[9] from the sky,
+As gently, lightly as a spirit's wing
+Oft carries gods to earth while Sedu sing.
+Thus, they, with lightest step, expectant stood
+Within this lovely spot beneath the wood.
+
+Their snowy limbs they bare, undraped now stand
+Upon the rock at Ishtar's soft command.
+Like marble forms endued with life they move,
+And thrill the air with welcome notes of love.
+The _its-tu-ri Same mut-tab-ri_[10] sang
+Their sweetest notes, and the _Khar-san-u_[11] rang
+With songs of thrushes, turtle-doves and jays,
+And linnets, with the nightingale's sweet lays,
+Goldfinches, magpies and the wild hoopoes;
+With cries of green-plumed parrots and cuckoos,
+Pee-wits and sparrows join the piercing cries
+Of gorgeous herons, while now upward flies
+The eagle screaming, joyful spreads his wings
+Above the forest; and the woodchuck rings
+A wild tattoo upon the trees around;
+And humming-birds whirr o'er the flowering ground
+In flocks, and beat the luscious laden air
+With emerald and gold, and scarlet, where
+These perfect forms with godly grace divine,
+In loveliness upon the rock recline.
+Sweet joy is slender formed, with bright black eyes
+That sparkle oft and dance with joy's surprise;
+Seduction, with her rare voluptuous form,
+Enchanteth all till wildest passions warm
+The blood and fire the eye beneath her charm;
+All hearts in heaven and earth she doth disarm.
+The Queen with every perfect charm displayed
+Delights the eye, and fills the heart, dismayed
+With fear, lest the bright phantom may dissolve
+To airy nothingness, till fierce resolve
+Fills each who her beholds, while love doth dart
+From liquid eyes and captivates the heart.
+She is the queen who fills the earth with love
+And reigns unrivalled in her realms above.
+
+Beware, ye hearts! beware! who feel the snare
+Of Ishtar, lest ye tread upon the air;
+When ye her rosy chain of fragrance wear,
+When blindness strikes the eye, and deaf the ear
+Becomes, and heartstrings only lead you then,
+Till ye return to common sense again;
+Enthralled mayhap and captive led in chains,
+Ye then will leisure have to bear your pains;
+Or if perchance a joy hath come to thee,
+Through all thy joyous life, then happy be!
+
+[Footnote 1: "Sik-ka-ti," narrow mountain gorges.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Khar-sak," the Deluge mountain, where the ark rested.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Se-du," a spirit of the earth, and rivers.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Zir-ri," the spirits of the rivers, water-nymphs.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Hea," the god of the ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Zi-na-ki," pronounced "zee-na-kee," spirits of purity.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Zi-si," corn-gods, or spirits of the corn.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Sam-kha-tu," one of the maids of Ishtar, "Joy."]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Kha-rima-tu," one of the maids of Ishtar, "Seduction."]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Its-tu-ri Same mut-tab ri," "the winged birds of heaven."]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Khar-san-u," forest.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+IZDUBAR FALLS IN LOVE WITH ISHTAR, THE QUEEN OF LOVE
+
+
+The hour has come when Izdubar will seek
+The cool enchantment of the cove, and slake
+His thirst with its sweet waters bubbling pure,
+Where Love has spread for him her sweetest lure,
+The maids expectant listening, watch and wait
+His coming; oft in ecstacies they prate
+O'er his surprise, and softly sport and splash
+The limpid waves around, that glowing flash
+Like heaps of snowy pearls lung to the light
+By Hea's[1] hands, his Zir-ri[2] to delight.
+And now upon the rock each maid reclines,
+While Ishtar's form beneath them brightly shines;
+Beside the fountain stands the lovely god,
+The graceful sovereign of Love's sweet abode.
+
+"He comes; the shrubs of yonder jasmine near
+Are rustling, oh, he comes! my Izdubar!"
+And thus her love she greets: "Why art thou here?
+Thou lovely mortal! king art thou, or seer?
+We reck not which, and welcome give to thee;
+Wouldst thou here sport with us within the sea?"
+And then, as if her loveliness forgot,
+She quickly grasped her golden locks and wrought
+Them round her form of symmetry with grace
+That well became a god, while o'er her face
+Of sweetest beauty blushes were o'erspread;
+"Thou see-est only Nature's robe," she said.
+"'Tis all I wish while sporting with my maids,
+And all alone no care have we for jades;
+And if with thee we can in truth confide,
+We here from all the world may cosey hide."
+She hurls a glance toward him, smiling naive,
+Then bounding from the rock, peeps from a wave;
+The waters fondling her surround, embrace
+Her charms; and now emerging with rare grace,
+She turning says:
+
+                  "Make haste, my hearts!
+Come forth! attend your queen!" and then she parts
+The azure waves, to where, in dumb surprise,
+The King enchanted stands, and fondly eyes
+The Queen divine, while fascinating thrills
+Sweep wildly through his breast; as fragrance fills
+The rose-tree groves, or gardens of the gods,
+Or breezes odorous from the Blest Abodes.
+A longing, rising, fills his inmost soul
+For this sweet queen who offers him a goal
+His stormy life has never known, since he,
+His loved one lost beneath the raging sea;
+And all his calm resolves to seek no more
+A joy which passed and left his heart forlore,
+Are breaking, vanishing beneath her charms,
+Dissolving as the mists, when sunlight warms
+The earth, then scorching drinks the rising dews;
+Till he at last no longer can refuse,
+And love directs while he the goddess greets:
+"Such wondrous beauty here no mortal meets;
+But come, thou Zir-ru,[3] with me sweetly rest;
+Primroses, gentians, with their charms invest
+My mossy couch, with odorous citron-trees
+And feathery palms above; and I will please
+Thee with a mortal's love thou hast not known;
+In pure love mingling let our spirits run,
+For earthly joys are sweeter than above,
+That rarest gift, the honeyed kiss of love
+On earth, is sweeter bliss than gods enjoy;
+Their shadowy forms with love cannot employ
+Such pleasure as a mortal's sweet caress.
+Come, Zi-ru, and thy spirit I will bless;
+The Mandrake[4] ripened golden, glows around;
+The fruit of Love is fragrant on the ground."
+
+Amid the Dud'im[5] plants he now reclines,
+And to his welcome fate himself resigns;
+The lovely queen beside him now doth lay,
+And leads his soul along the blissful way
+That comes to every heart that longs for love,
+When purest joy doth bless us from above;
+From her soft liquid eyes the love-light speaks,
+And her warm hands she lays in his, and wakes
+Beneath her touch a thrill of wild desire,
+Until his blood now seems like molten fire.
+Her eyes half closed begat a passion wild,
+With her warm breast, her loves hath beguiled;
+She nearer creeps with hot and balmy breath,
+And trembling form aglow, and to him saith:
+"My lips are burning for a kiss, my love!"
+A prize like this, a heart of stone would move,
+And he his arms around her fondly placed
+Till she reclined upon his breast, embraced,
+Their lips in one long thrilling rapture meet.
+But hark! what are these strains above so sweet
+That float around, above, their love surround?
+An-nu-na-ci[6] from forests, mounts around,
+And from the streams and lakes, and ocean, trees,
+And all that haunt the godly place, to please
+The lovers, softly chant and dance around
+To cymbals, lyres until the rocks resound,
+Of goddess Ishtar chant, and Izdubar,
+The Queen of Love wed to the King of War.
+And he alarmed starts up and springs away,
+And furious cries, to Ishtar's wild dismay:
+
+"What meanest thou, thou wanton brazen thing?
+Wouldst thou on me the direst curses bring?"
+And lo! the goddess is transformed! the crown
+Of her own silver skies shines like the sun,
+And o'er her dazzling robes a halo falls;
+Her stately form with glory him appals,
+For Heaven's dazzling splendor o'er her flows,
+With rays celestial; o'er her brow there glows
+A single star.
+
+             "Have I embraced a god?"
+He horrified now cries; and she doth nod
+Assent.
+
+        "But, oh! wilt thou thy queen forgive?
+I love thee! stay! oh, stay! my heart you grieve!"
+
+He springs beyond the mystic circling ring,
+And from their sight thus glides the angry King,
+Beneath the wood himself he doth disguise
+In tattered garments, on his steed he flies;
+And when he comes in sight of Erech's gate,
+His beggar's mantle throws aside; in state
+Again enrobed, composed his anxious face,
+Through Erech's gates he rides with kingly grace;
+O'er his adventure thus the King reflects:
+"Alas my folly leads, my life directs!
+'Tis true, the goddess hath seductive charms,
+E'en yet I feel her warm embracing arms.
+Enough! her love from me I'll drive away;
+Alas! for me, is this unfruitful day!"
+
+[Footnote 1: "Hea," god of the ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Zir-ri," spirits of the river, the sea-daughters of Hea.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Zir-ru," water-nymph.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Mandrake," the "love-plant."]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Dud'im" or "dudaim," [Hebrew: dud'im] or Chald. [Hebrew:
+ibduchin] and Syr. [Hebrew: ibduch'] the "love-plant" or mandrake; perhaps
+also originally from "du-du" ("love") or ex. [Hebrew: du] ("particula"),
+Arab. "possessorem designante," et ex rad. Arab. [Hebrew: ddy]
+("aegrotavit"), or [Hebrew: dud] or "amare." See Simoni's Lex. Man. Heb. et
+Chald. et Lat., pp. 204-206, and Park's Heb. Lex., p. 113, note +.]
+
+[Transcriber's Note: The above "+" is my rendering of a footnote "cross"
+common in older books.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "An-nu-na-ci," spirits of the earth.]
+
+
+
+TABLET II--COLUMN I
+
+ISHTAR'S MIDNIGHT COURTSHIP IN THE PALACE OF IZDUBAR.
+
+
+As Samas' car sank in the glowing west,
+And Sin the moon-god forth had come full drest
+For starry dance across the glistening skies,
+The sound of work for man on earth now dies,
+And all betake themselves to sweet repose.
+The silver light of Sin above bright flows,
+And floods the figures on the painted walls,
+O'er sculptured lions, softly, lightly falls;
+Like grim and silent watch-dogs at the door
+They stand; in marble check their leaping roar.
+The King within his chamber went his way,
+Upon his golden jewelled couch he lay.
+The silken scarlet canopy was hung
+In graceful drapery and loosely clung
+Around his couch, and purple damask cloths
+Embroidered with rare skill, preserved from moths
+By rich perfumes, to the carved lintel clung
+In graceful folds; thus o'er the entrance hung.
+
+Queen Ishtar softly comes, and o'er his dreams
+A mystic spell she draws, until it seems
+While half awake he lies, that she is yet
+Close nestling in his arms, as he had met
+Her in the wood, and with her there reclined,
+While her soft arms around him were entwined.
+Thus while he sleeps she hovers o'er his bed
+With throbbing heart, and close inclines her head
+Until her lips near touch the sleeping King's,
+But daring not to kiss.
+
+                        She love thus brings,
+All through his dreams; until one misty night,
+While he yet restless tossed, the lovely sprite
+Sunk him to deeper sleep with her soft lyre
+While hanging o'er his couch consumed with fire
+That nestling around her heart-strings fiercely burned
+Until at last lulled by the strain he turned
+Upon his couch at rest, and she now lay
+Beside him closely, when she heard him say:
+"My love thou art, but canst not be!" No more
+He murmurs, then inflamed she sought the door.
+"Perchance the _su-khu-li_[1] sleep not!" she said;
+And satisfied, turned where her lover laid;
+And to his royal couch she crept again;
+Her bliss will have despite of gods and men.
+Her hot and burning lips cannot resist
+The tempting treasure lying there, nor missed
+Shall be the dearest joys of love from her
+Who rules all hearts in Heaven, earth, and air.
+Her right divine that blessing sweet to take,
+She will assert, her burning thirst to slake.
+
+His couch the Heavenly Queen of Love now graces,
+And on his breast her glorious head she places;
+Embracing him, she softly through her lips
+And his, the sweetest earthly nectar sips,
+While he in sleep lies murmuring of love,
+And she in blissful ecstasy doth move.
+Her lips to his, she wildly places there,
+Until to him it seems a fond nightmare.
+
+And thus, against his will, she fondly takes
+What he her shall deny when he awakes,
+The stolen kisses both the lovers thrill:
+Unquenched her warm desire would kiss him still,
+But his hot blood now warms him in his dream
+Which is much more to him than it doth seem;
+And clasping her within convulsing arms,
+Receives a thrill that all his nerves alarms,
+And wakes him from the dreams she had instilled.
+"What means this fantasy that hath me filled,
+And spirit form that o'er my pillow leans;
+I wonder what this fragrant incense means?
+Oh, tush! 'tis but an idle, wildering dream,
+But how delightful, joyous it did seem!
+Her beauteous form it had, its breath perfume;
+Do spirit forms such loveliness assume?"
+
+The goddess yet dares not her form reveal,
+And quickly she herself doth now conceal
+Behind the damask curtains at the door.
+When he awoke, sprang to the chamber floor,
+As his own maid the queen herself transforms,
+Says entering in haste:
+
+                        "What wild alarms
+Thee, Sar?" and then demure awaits reply,
+In doubt to hear or to his bosom fly.
+"My maid art thou? 'Tis well, for I have dreamed
+Of spirits, as a Zi-ru fair it seemed."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Su-khu-li," guards of the palace.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+THE KING'S SECOND DREAM AND EARLY RIDE UPON SUMIR'S PLAIN, AND
+HAND-TO-HAND CONFLICT ON THE BANKS OF THE EUPHRATES
+
+
+The night is fleeing from the light of dawn,
+Which dimly falls upon the palace lawn;
+The King upon his royal _dum-khi_[1] sleeps,
+And to his couch again Queen Ishtar creeps.
+In spite his dream to dismal thoughts she turns,
+Her victim tosses, now with fever burns:
+He wildly starts, and from his _dum-khi_ springs,
+While loud his voice throughout the palace rings:
+"Ho! vassals! haste to me! your King!" he cries,
+And stamping fiercely while his passions rise.
+The _sukhu-li_[2] and _masari_[3] rush in:
+"What trouble, Sar? have foes here come within?"
+Then searching around they in his chamber rush,
+And eagerly aside the curtains push.
+The King yet paces on the floor with strides
+That show the trouble of his mind, and chides
+Them all as laggards; "Soon the sun will rise:
+My steed prepared bring hence!" he turning cries.
+He mounts and gallops through the swinging gates,
+Nor for attendance of his vassals waits.
+Nor turns his face toward the _nam-za-khi_,[4]
+Who quickly opened for the King to fly
+Without the gates; across the plains he rides
+Away unmindful where his steed he guides.
+The horse's hoofs resound upon the plain
+As the lone horseman with bewildered brain,
+To leave behind the phantoms of the night,
+Rides fiercely through the early morning light,
+Beyond the orange orchards, citron groves,
+'Mid feathery date-palms he reckless roves.
+The fields of yellow grain mid fig-trees flash
+Unseen, and prickly pears, pomegranates, dash
+In quick succession by, till the white foam
+From his steed's mouth and quiv'ring flanks doth come;
+Nor heeds the whitened flowing mane, but flies,
+While clouds of dust him follow, and arise
+Behind him o'er the road like black storm clouds,
+While Zu[5] the storm-bird onward fiercely goads
+The seven[6] raven spirits of the air,
+And Nus-ku[7] opens wide the fiery glare
+Of pent-up lightnings for fierce Gibil's[8] hand,
+Who hurls them forth at Nergal's[9] stern command,
+And Rimmon[10] rides triumphant on the air,
+And Ninazu[11] for victims doth prepare,
+The King rides from the road into the wild,
+Nor thought of danger, his stern features smiled
+As the worn steed from a huge lion shied,
+Which turning glanced at them and sprang aside;
+Now Zi-pis-au-ni[12] fly before the King.
+And yellow leopards through the rushes spring.
+Upon Euphrates' banks his steed he reins,
+And views the rosy wilds of Sumir's plains.
+
+He looked toward the east across the plain
+That stretched afar o'er brake and marshy fen,
+And clustering trees that marked the Tigris' course;
+And now beyond the plain o'er fields and moors,
+The mountain range of Zu[13] o'er Susa's land.
+Is glowing 'neath the touch of Samas' hand;
+For his bright face is rising in the east,
+And shifting clouds from sea and rising mist,
+The robes of purple, violet and gold,
+With rosy tints the form of Samas fold.
+The tamarisk and scarlet mistletoe,
+With green acacias' golden summits glow,
+And citron, olives, myrtle, climbing vine,
+Arbutus, cypress, plane-tree rise divine;
+The emerald verdure, clad with brilliant hues,
+With rose-tree forests quaffs the morning dews.
+The King delighted bares his troubled brow,
+In Samas' golden rays doth holy bow.
+But see! a shadow steals along the ground!
+And trampling footsteps through the copses sound,
+And Izdubar, his hand placed on his sword,
+Loud cries:
+            "Who cometh o'er mine Erech's sward?"
+An armed warrior before him springs;
+The King, dismounted, his bright weapon swings.
+"'Tis I, Prince Dib-bara,[14] Lord Izdubar,
+And now at last alone we meet in war;
+My soldiers you o'erthrew upon the field,
+But here to Nuk-khu's[15] son thine arm shall yield!"
+The monarch eyes the warrior evil-born,
+And thus replies to him with bitter scorn:
+"And dost thou think that Samas' son shall die
+By a vile foe who from my host did fly?
+Or canst thou hope that sons of darkness may
+The Heaven-born of Light and glory slay?
+As well mayst hope to quench the god of fire,
+But thou shalt die if death from me desire."
+The giant forms a moment fiercely glared,
+And carefully advanced with weapons bared,
+Which flash in the bright rays like blades of fire,
+And now in parry meet with blazing ire.
+Each firmly stood and rained their ringing blows,
+And caught each stroke upon their blades, till glows
+The forest round with sparks of fire that flew
+Like blazing meteors from their weapons true;
+And towering in their rage they cautious sprung
+Upon each, foiled, while the deep Suk-ha[16] rung.
+At last the monarch struck a mighty blow,
+His foeman's shield of gold, his blade cleft through;
+And as the lightning swung again his sword,
+And struck the chieftain's blade upon the sward,
+A Sedu springs from out the tangled copse,
+And at his feet the sword still ringing drops.
+The King his sword placed at his foeman's throat
+And shouted:
+
+             "Hal-ca[17] to yon waiting boat!
+Or I will send thy body down this stream!
+_Ca is-kab-bu! va kal-bu!_[18] whence you came!"
+The chief disarmed now slunk away surprised,
+And o'er the strength of Sar-dan-nu[19] surmised.
+The King returns, and rides within the gate
+Of Erech, and the council entered late.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Dum-khi," couch.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Su-khu-li rabi," attendants of the King.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Masari," guards of the palace.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Nam-za-ki," openers of the gates.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Zu," the divine bird of the storm-cloud, the god worshipped
+by Izdubar, the god who stole the tablets of heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 6: The seven wicked spirits in the form of men with faces of
+ravens.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Nus-ku," the gate-keeper of thunder.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Gibil," the god of fire and spells and witchcraft.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Ner-gal," director of the storms, the giant King of War, the
+strong begetter.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Rimmon," the god of storms and hurricanes.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Nin-a-zu," the goddess of fate and death.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Zi-pis-au-ni," spirits of the papyri, or reeds.]
+
+[Footnote 13: Mountain range of Zu. The ancient name is unknown, but as
+Susa takes its name from Zu, the divine bird of the storm-cloud, we have
+given the mountains of Susiana their probable ancient name.]
+
+[Footnote 14: "Dib-bara" ("the darkening one"), the son of Nuk-khu. He is
+supposed to have been the viceroy of Khumbaba, and led the attack upon
+Erech.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Nuk-hu," or "Nuk-khu," the god of darkness and sleep. He is
+sometimes called "Cus-u."]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Suk-ha," wood or grove, or a forest.]
+
+[Footnote 17: "Hal-ca!" "Go!"]
+
+[Footnote 18: "Ca is-kab-bu! va kal-bu!" "Thou fool and dog!" "Ca"
+("thou") is the short form of "cat-ta" or "ca'a"; generally it appears as
+"at-ta."]
+
+[Footnote 19: "Sar-dan-nu," the great King.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+IZDUBAR RELATES HIS SECOND DREAM TO HIS SEERS, WHO CANNOT INTERPRET IT
+
+
+The counsellors assembled round the throne
+Within the council halls of _zam-at_[1] stone,
+Now greet their monarch, and behold his face
+With trouble written on his brow, and trace
+Uneasiness within that eagle eye,
+While he with stately tread, yet wearily
+His throne approached; he turned to the mu-di,[2]
+And swept a glance upon his khas-iz-i.[3]
+Uneasy they all eyed his troubled face,
+For he had ridden at a furious pace.
+The _abuli_[4] had told them on that morn,
+How he across the plains had wildly torn
+To drive away some vision of the night.
+One asked, "Hath our Sardan-nu's dreams been light?
+Or hath dread phantoms o'er thy pillow hung?
+For trouble on thy countenance hath clung."
+The monarch startled at the question eyes
+The councillor, and to him thus replies:
+"'Tis true, my counsellors and wisest men,
+I dreamed a fearful dream Sat mu-si;[5] when
+I have disclosed it, if one clear reveals
+Its meaning all and naught from me conceals,
+On him will I the greatest wealth bestow:
+I will ennoble him, and the _sib-zu_[6]
+A _ku-bar-ra_[7] for him shall rich prepare;
+As my _tur-tan-u_[8] he shall be, and seer,
+Decked with a golden chain shall next preside
+At every feast, and break his bread beside
+The King, and highest rank he shall attain
+'Mong counsellors, and mine own favor gain;
+And seven wives to him I will allow,
+And a grand palace. This as King I vow,
+The scribe it shall enroll above my seal
+As Erech's Sar's decree beyond repeal.
+
+"I dreamed upon my _dum-khi_[9] fast asleep,
+The stars from heaven fell from yonder deep
+To earth; and one, with fierceful heat my back
+Did pierce as molten fire, and left its track
+Of flames like some huge ball along my spine;
+And then transformed, it turned its face to mine;
+As some fierce god it glowed before my sight
+Till agony was lost in dread affright.
+I rooted stood, in terror, for its face
+Was horrible; I saw in its feet's place
+A lion's claws. It sprang, my strength it broke,
+And slew me, gloating over me! Awoke,
+I sprang, methought I was a corpse _ka-ra
+Va tal-ka mat sar, talka bu-la sha
+Ra-pas-ti sat-ti, ar-id-da! ka-rat
+Va hal-li-ka! lik-ru-bu ki-mi-ta!_[10]"
+The seers in silence stand, perplexed and think;
+But from the task at once the wisest shrink.
+
+The King each face soon read:
+
+                              "Ye tell me no?"
+And nodding all, concealed from him their woe,
+For they beheld within the dream some fate
+Impending o'er him born of godly hate,
+And durst not to their monarch prate their fears,
+For flatterers of kings are all his seers.
+The King impatient eyed them all with scorn,
+And hid his thoughts by wildest passions born;
+And then at last contemptuous to them said,
+"So all my seers of trouble are afraid?
+Or else in ignorance you turn away;
+'Tis well! I sorely need a seer this day."
+And they now prostrate fall before his throne,
+"Forgive thy seers!" one cries, "O mighty One!
+For we this dreadful dream do fear portends
+Thy harm! a god some message to thee sends!
+We know not what, but fear for thee, our Sar,
+And none but one can augur it; afar
+He lives, Heabani should before the King
+Be brought from Za-Ga-bri[11] the _na-bu_[12] bring!"
+"'Tis well! Prince Zaidu for the hermit send,
+And soon this mystery your Sar will end."
+The King distressed now to the temple goes
+To lay before the mighty gods his woes;
+This prayer recites to drive away bad dreams,
+While Samas' holy altar brightly gleams:
+[13] "O Samas! may my prayer bring me sweet rest,
+And may my Lord his favor grant to me:
+Annihilate the things that me invest!
+This day, O God! distressed, I cry to thee!
+O goddess! be thou gracious unto me,
+Receive my prayer, my sins forgive I pray:
+My wickedness and will arrayed 'gainst thee.
+Oh, pardon me! O God, be kind this day,
+My groaning may the seven winds destroy,
+Clothe me with deep humility! receive
+My prayers, as winged birds, oh, may they fly
+And fishes carry them, and rivers weave
+Them in the waters on to thee, O God!
+As creeping things of the vast desert, cry
+I unto thee outstretched on Erech's sod;
+And from the river's lowest depths I pray;
+My heart cause thou to shine like polished gold,
+Though food and drink of Nin-a-zu[14] this day
+Be mine, while worms and death thy servant fold.
+Oh, from thine altar me support, protect,
+In low humility I pray, forgive!
+Feed me with joy, my dreams with grace direct;
+The dream I dreamed, oh favorable give
+To me its omen filled with happiness!
+May Mak-hir,[15] god of dreams, my couch invest!
+With visions of Bit-sag-gal my heart bless,
+The temple of the gods, of Nin, with rest
+Unbroken, and to Merodach I pray!
+The favoring one, to prosper me and mine:
+[16]Oh, may thy entering exalted be!
+And thy divinity with glory shine,
+And may our city shine with glowing meads,
+And all my people praise thy glorious deeds."
+Now to Euphrates' banks the Sar and seers
+Their footsteps turn to pray into the ears
+Of Hea,[17] where, in white, a band of priests
+Drawn in a crescent, Izdubar invests.
+Now at the water's edge he leans, his hands
+Dips in the waves, and pours upon the sands
+The sparkling drops, while all a hymn descant
+To Hea, thus the incantation chant:
+
+   "O chant our incantation to the waters pure,
+      Euphrates' waters flowing to the sea!
+    Where Hea's holy face shines bright on every shore,
+      O Sabit[18] of Timatu[19] to ye
+    We pray! may your bright waters glowing shine
+    As Hea's face, and heaving breast divine!
+
+   "O Sabit, to your father Hea take our prayer!
+    And may Dao-ki-na,[20] your bright mother, hear!
+    With joy, oh shine, as peaceful as the sleeping light,
+    O ever may your throbbing waves be bright.
+        O spirit of the Heaven, hear!
+          Remember us, Remember!
+        O spirit of the earth, come near!
+          Remember us, Remember!
+    O hear us, Hea! hear us, dear Dao-ki-na!
+    _Ca-ca-ma u ca-ca-ma u ca-ca-ma!_"[21]
+
+[Footnote 1: "Zam-at" stone, diamond, crystal or lapis lazuli.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Mu-di," seers.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Khas-i-zi," counsellors.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Ab-u-li," guard of the great gates of the city.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Sat mu-si," in the night-time, or last night.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Sib-zu," embroiderer.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Ku-bar-ra," robe of a prince.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Tur-tan-u," next in rank to the King.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Dum-khi" or "dun-khi," couch.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Ka-ra! va," etc., "Speak out! and if thou augurest the
+death of the King, or if thou augurest life of extended years, I have
+spoken! Speak out! and cast the lots! may they be propitious with us!"]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Za-Ga-bri," the mountains of Zu, "Ga-bri" ("mountains"),
+and "Za," another form of "zu," the divine bird of the storm-cloud. They
+were at one time called the mountains of Susa, now the Kurdistan range of
+mountains. The name we have given we believe to be the probable ancient
+one.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Na-bu," prophet, seer.]
+
+[Footnote 13: We have here quoted a prayer after a bad dream, the text of
+which is lithographed in "C.I.W.A.," vol. iv. 66, 2, and is supposed to be
+an ancient Accadian prayer. See "Records of the Past," vol. ix. p. 151.]
+
+[Footnote 14: "Nin-a-zu," the goddess of darkness and death.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Mak-hir," the daughter of the sun, and goddess of dreams.]
+
+[Footnote 16: Literally, "he that shows favor." The above prayer was
+translated for the first time by Rev. A.H. Sayce, M.A., in the "Records of
+the Past," vol. ix. p. 151. We have followed as literally as possible the
+original, and have given it its probable place in the epic.]
+
+[Footnote 17: Hea, god of the ocean, the earth's surface, brightness,
+etc., and chief protector of men.]
+
+[Footnote 18: "Sab-it," or "Sabitu" ("seven"), the seven winds, gods of
+the abyss or ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 19: "Tiamatu," the abyss or ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 20: "Dao-ki-na" or "Dao-ci-na," the wife of Hea, and goddess of
+the ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 21: "Amen and Amen and Amen!" The Assyrian word is "Amanu." The
+original "ca-ca-ma" ("Amen") concludes the incantation; Heb. [Hebrew:
+amen] See "C.I.W.A.," vol. iv. pl. 14; also "Records of the Past," vol.
+xi. p. 135.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+HEABANI, THE HERMIT SEER
+
+
+Before a cave within the Gab-ri[1] wild,
+A seer is resting on a rock; exiled
+By his own will from all the haunts of men,
+Beside a pool within a rocky glen
+He sits; a turban rests upon his brow,
+And meets the lengthened beard of whitest snow.
+This morn an omen comes before his eyes,
+And him disturbs with a wild eagle's cries
+That fierce attacks a fox before his cave;
+For he of beasts is the most cunning knave;
+In wait upon the ground the fox hath lain
+To lure the bird, which flying deems him slain.
+He fiercely seizes it, as swooping down,
+The bird with its sly quarry would have flown;
+But the _a-si_[2] quick seized it by the throat,
+While the wide wings with frantic fury smote
+The beast, and the sharp talons deeply tore
+Its foe--both greedy for the other's gore.
+
+And lo! a voice from yonder sky resounds;
+Heabani to his feet now quickly bounds,
+And bowing, listens to the voice that comes
+In gentleness; upon the winds it roams
+From yon blue heights like sighing of the trees;
+The seer in reverence upon his knees
+Now holy bares his head in Samas' rays,
+While the soft voice to him thus gently says:
+"A messenger, Heabani, soon shall come
+With offers rich, to leave thy lonely home.
+This eagle sought its food and found a snare,
+The messenger will come from Izdubar,
+To learn from thee the meaning of his dream
+Which goddess Ishtar sent,--a snare for him.
+Then to the messenger prove not a snare,
+As yonder _a-si_ doth the eagle tear."
+
+The seer in fury tore his beard of snow
+And cried--
+
+             "Alas! my days shall end in woe
+Within these wilds my happiness is mine,
+No other joys I seek, my god divine;
+I would upon these rocks lie down to die,
+Upon my back here sleep eternally."
+And Samas urging, to him thus replied:
+"Heabani, hast thou not some manly pride?
+And thinkest thou no joy thou here wilt lose?
+The lovely Sam-kha-tu[3] the seer may choose.
+Arrayed in trappings of divinity
+And the insignia of royalty,
+Heabani then in Erech shall be great,
+And live in happiness and royal state;
+And Izdubar shall hearken, and incline
+His heart in warmest friendship, and recline
+With thee upon a couch of luxury.
+And seat thee on a throne of royalty,
+On his left hand, a crown shall grace thy brow.
+Kings of the earth shall to thee subject bow
+And kiss thy feet, and Izdubar shall give
+Thee wealth, and thou in luxury shalt live.
+In silence Erech's men shall bow to thee,
+In royal raiment thou shalt happy be."
+Heabani listened to the words that came
+From Samas, and his brow was lit with shame
+To hear the god of war urge him to go
+To earthly happiness--mayhap to woe;
+But he within his cave now listless turns
+When Samas ceased; then to his rock returns,
+And seats himself with calmness on his brow;
+His thoughts in happy memories now flow,
+And he recalls the blissful days of yore
+When he as seer lived on Euphrates' shore,
+As the queen's bard oft tuned a festive lay,
+While soft-eyed maidens dance and cymbals play.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Gab-ri," mountains.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "A-si," fox.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Sam-kha-tu" ("Joy"), one of the maids of Ishtar.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+EXPEDITION OF ZAIDU IN SEARCH OF THE SEER
+
+
+Prince Zaidu on his steed now hastes away,
+Upon the plains he travelled all that day;
+Next morn the Za-Gabri he slow ascends,
+Along the mountain sides the horseman wends
+Beneath the Eri-ni,[1] and cliffs, and sees
+The plains and mountains o'er the misty trees
+From the wild summit, and old Khar-sak glow
+Above them all with its twin crests of snow.
+He plunges in the wild to seek the cave;
+Three days unceasing sought young Zaidu brave,
+And now at last within the glen he rode,
+And near approached Heabani's wild abode.
+At last he sees the seer before his home,
+And with his monster[2] now toward him come,
+That walked subdued beside the hermit seer,
+Thus they upon the rocks above appear.
+
+"Why art thou here in warrior's array?"
+The hermit cries. "I know thee not! away!"
+
+"O holy seer, 'tis Zaidu, from our Sar!
+The king of Erech, chieftain Izdubar."
+
+"What seekest thou within my mountain lair?"
+Heabani angry cried. "What brings thee here?"
+
+"For thee! if true Heabani is thy name;
+I seek the hermit seer of wondrous fame.
+My king doth offer thee rich gifts of state,
+And sent me to thee here to make thee great."
+"No empty honors do I seek, which void
+Of all true happiness, all men have cloyed.
+Return then to thy haunts of pleasure, pain,
+For thy king's embassy is all in vain."
+The seer returns within his lonely cave
+And leaves the prince alone the beast to brave.
+At last it slinks away within the gloom;
+No more from their wild home doth either come,
+Three days Prince Zaidu watches the dark lair,
+But now his courage turns to blank despair:
+The seer hath changed his mind since Samas sought
+To urge him forth to leave his lonely lot.
+The prince the mountain precipice now climbs,
+And peers within while clinging to the limbs
+Of stunted oaks, and views the mountain lair;
+But all in vain his calls ring on the air.
+Then mounting wearily his steed he turns
+Away, and unsuccessful thus returns.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Eri-ni," cedar-trees.]
+
+[Footnote 2: A carnivorous animal supposed to have been either a lion or a
+tiger, more probably a lion.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+HEABANI RESOLVES TO RETURN TO ERECH
+
+
+As Zaidu sadly turns and rides away,
+The hermit from his cave comes forth to pray:
+"Alas! hath all these wilds their charms here lost?
+And is my breast with wild ambition tost?
+My lonely cot I look upon with shame;
+Again I long to seek the fields of fame,
+Where luxury my remaining years
+May crown, and happiness may find--or tears;
+'Tis true! I should have welcomed the _bar-ru;_[1]
+But he hath since returned to Subartu."[2]
+His harp he took from its dust-covered case,
+And kissed its carved and well-remembered face;
+And tuning it, he glanced toward the wood,
+And sang his farewell ode to solitude:
+
+    Farewell, ye mountains, woods and trees--
+      My heart doth long again for joy;
+    I love your wilds and mossy leas,
+      But oh, your solitude doth cloy!
+
+    I love to see the _bur-khi-is_[3]
+      Sweep stately o'er the mossy rocks;
+    And _tsabi_[4] in a wild like this,
+      Hear the tattoo of red woodchucks.
+
+    I love the cries of _lig-bar-ri_[5]
+      The _nes-i_[6] calling for their prey;
+    And leaping of the _na-a-li_[7]
+      That fly in wildest fear away.
+
+    I love the _bu-hir-tser-i_[8] all,
+      _Khar-sa-a-nii sa-qu-u-tu;_[9]
+    Hear _cu-uts-tsi_[10] with thunder roll
+      Across the skies within my view.
+
+    I love to see the _ca-ca-bi_[11]
+      Peep through the pine-trees o'er my home,
+    And watch the wild _tu-ra-a-khi_[12]
+      And _arme_[13] welcome, to me come.
+
+    Farewell! ye solitudes, farewell!
+      I will not moulder rotting lie
+    With no one's lips to wish me well;
+      O give me immortality!
+
+    But what is fame? A bubble blown
+      Upon the breeze, that bursts its shell,
+    And all our brightest hopes are flown,
+      And leaves our solitude a hell.
+
+The holy minstrel bows his head in woe,
+And sweeps the harpstrings with a movement slow;
+Then lifts his eyes toward the setting sun,
+His evening invocation thus begun:
+
+    [14]O Samas! to the lifting of my hands
+      Show favor! unto me thy servant turn!
+    What man before thy blessed Light withstands?
+      O thou! what mortal thine own words can learn?
+    And who can rival them inviolate?
+      [15]Among the gods no equal thou hast found.
+    In Heaven who of all the gods is great?
+      O thou alone! art great through Heaven's bound!
+
+    On earth what man is great? alas! no one,
+      For thou alone art great! through earth's vast bounds.
+    When wide thy awful voice in Heaven resounds,
+      The gods fall prostrate to our Holy One;
+    When on the earth thy voice afar resounds,
+      The genii[16] bow to thee and kiss the dust.
+    In thee, O Samas! do I put my trust,
+      For thy great love and mercy wide abounds!
+
+    O my Creator, God, thy watchfulness
+      O'er me, oh may it never cease!
+    Keep thou the opening of my lips! the fleece
+      Of purest snow be my soul's daily dress.
+    Guard thou my hands! O Samas, Lord of Light!
+      And ever keep my life and heart aright!
+
+[Footnote 1: "Bar-ru," an army officer]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Su-bar-tu," Syria]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Bur-khi-is," antelopes]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Tsabi," gazelles]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Lig-bar-ri," hyenas]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Nes-i," lions]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Na-a-li," spotted stags]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Bu-hir-tser-i," beasts of the field]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Khar-sa-a-nu sa-qu-u-tu," forests thick]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Cu-uts-tsi," storms.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Ca-ca-bi," stars.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Tu-ra-a-khi," deer.]
+
+[Footnote 13: "Arme," wild goats.]
+
+[Footnote 14: This prayer is made up from Assyrian fragments now in the
+British Museum.]
+
+[Footnote 15: See "Records of the Past," vol. iii. p. 136.]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Genii," spirits.]
+
+
+
+TABLET III--COLUMN I
+
+HEABANI'S WISDOM--SONG OF THE KHAU-IK-I
+
+
+The dark-eyed maids are dancing in the halls
+Of Erech's palace: music fills the walls
+Of splendor where the Sar-dan-nu[1] enthroned,
+His hours is whiling by the maidens zoned;
+A whirling garland chanting forth a song.
+Accompanied with harps thus sang the throng:
+
+    "Heabani's wisdom chant and sing
+      To Erech's king our mighty Sar.[2]
+    When Hea did Heabani bring,
+      Who now to Erech comes afar,
+    He taught him then all hidden things
+      Of Ki[3] or bright Samu[4] above,
+    That to the Mu-di[5] mystery brings.
+      Oh, how Heabani we shall love!"
+
+        _Chorus_
+
+    "Then sing with joy ye Khau-ik-i![6]
+      The Khau-ga[7] chant with waving arms,
+    The Nin-uit[8] sing Au-un-na-ci[9]
+      Give to our Sar your sweetest charms.
+
+    "All knowledge that is visible
+      Heabani holds it in his glance,
+    Sees visions inconceivable,
+      The Zi[10] his wizard eyes entrance.
+    Sweet peace he brings from troubled dreams,
+      He comes to El-li-tar-du-si,[11]
+    From a far road by mountain streams;
+      Then sing with joy ye Khau-ik-i!
+
+        _Chorus_
+
+    "Then sing with joy ye Khau-ik-i!
+      The Khau-ga chant with waving arms,
+    The Nin-uit sing An-un-na-ci!
+      Give to our Sar your sweetest charms.
+
+    "E'en all that on the tablet rests,
+      In Erech's tower, the Su-bu-ri,[12]
+    The beautiful, with glorious crests,
+      He wrote for far posterity.
+    We plead with him to leave us not,
+      But Zi-Gab-ri[13] him led away,
+    When our great Shal-man[14] joy us brought,
+      And Elam fled to the blue sea.
+
+        _Chorus_
+
+    "Then sing with joy ye Khau-ik-i!
+      Il-gi-sa-kis-sat[15] from above,
+    The Nin-uit sing An-un-na-ci!
+      Oh, how Heabani we shall love!"
+
+The maidens note their monarch's moody face,
+And turn their songs to him with easy grace,
+Of their great ruler tune a joyous lay,
+And oft into his eyes hurl glances gay;
+And trumpets join the chorus, rolling drums,
+And wild applause from all the chieftains comes,
+Till the grave seers and councillors now cry
+In praise of him they love so tenderly:
+With arms upraised the mighty chorus join,
+Until his heart is filled with joy divine;
+And thus they sing with more than royal praise,
+Their love for him in every face doth blaze.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Sar-dan-nu," the great King.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Sar," king.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Ki," earth.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Samu," heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Mu-di," seers or wise men.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Khau-ik-i," the choral band.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Khau-ga," chorus.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Nin-uit," song.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "An-un-na-ci," spirits of the earth.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Zi," spirits of the earth, air, water, etc.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "El-li-tar-du-si," one of the temples of Erech.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Su-bu-ri," the lofty.]
+
+[Footnote 13: "Zi-Gab-ri," spirits of the mountains.]
+
+[Footnote 14: "Shal-man," deliverer.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Il-gi-sa-kis-sat," spirits of the hosts.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+SONGS IN PRAISE OF IZDUBAR AND HEABANI AS SUNG BY THE KHAU-IK-I
+
+
+    Our Izdubar dear Erech raised
+      From her distress, when she did mourn;
+    With joy his glorious name be praised!
+      Of a great warrior's daughter born,
+    And Bel in his own might, him arms,
+      To Erech's sons and daughters save;
+    What other Sar hath glorious charms
+      Like his, who saved proud Elam's slave?
+
+        _Chorus_
+
+    No rival hath our mighty Sar,
+      Thy cymbals strike and raise the cry!
+    All hail! All hail! great Izdubar!
+      His deeds immortal glorify!
+
+    Our Izdubar our sons preserves
+      To all our fathers day and night,
+    And Erech's ruler well deserves
+      Our highest praise, whose matchless might
+    Delights the gods! All hail our Sar!
+      Whose firmness, wisdom need no praise!
+    Queen Daunat's son, our Izdubar,
+      His glory to the Sami[1] raise!
+
+        _Chorus_
+
+    Of a great warrior's daughter born,
+      The gods clothe him with matchless might;
+    His glory greets the coming morn,
+      Oh, how in him we all delight!
+
+And thus of Seer Heabani they now chant
+His birth and history and hyemal haunt.
+
+    Who can compare with thee, O Nin![2]
+      The son of Bel; thy hands didst lay
+    Upon Ar-ur-u, thine own queen,
+      With glory crowned her on that day.
+
+    To her thy strength did give, and blessed
+      Her with thy love and a dear son;
+    With Ami's strength within his breast,
+      And Ninip sped then to his throne.
+
+    When Queen Ar-u-ru hears her lord
+      From Erech's city far has gone,
+    She bows her head upon the sward,
+      With pleading hands in woe doth moan.
+
+    And to Heabani she gave birth,
+      The warrior, great Ninip's son,
+    Whose fame is spread through all the earth.
+      The queen with her own maids alone
+    Retired within her palace walls
+      For purity in Erech's halls.
+
+    Like the corn-god his face concealed,
+      Of men and countries he possessed,
+    Great wisdom by the gods revealed:
+      As Ner[3] the god, his limbs were dressed.
+    With wild gazelles he ate his food
+      While roaming with them in the night;
+    For days he wandered in the wood,
+      And bu-hir-tser-i[4] him delight.
+
+    The Zi-ar-ri[5] Heabani loves,
+      That play within the running streams;
+    With Zi-ti-am-a-ti[6] he roves
+      Upon the sands in warm sunbeams.
+
+"The prince returns, O Sar!" the herald said,
+And low before the throne he bowed his head;
+"Our Zaidu, the bewitcher of all men,
+Doth unsuccessful to us come again.
+Before the cave the seer confronted him
+Three days where Khar-sak's snowy brow doth gleam.
+Heabani with his beast in his cave went,
+And Zaidu waited, but his courage spent
+When he beheld the seer and beast remain
+Within the cave, and all his words were vain.
+The prince remains without with downcast face,
+And beg of thee, his Sar, thy sovereign grace."
+The king to all the maidens waves his hand,
+Then vanishes from sight the choral band.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Sami," heavens.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Nin" or "Nin-ip," the god of the chase and war.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Ner" or "Nergal," the giant king of war, the strong
+begetter.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Bu-hir-tser-i," beasts of the field.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Zi-ar-ri," spirits of the rivers, water-nymphs.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Zi-ti-am-a-ti," spirits of the sea, naiads or water-nymphs.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+ZAIDU'S RETURN, AND HIS INSTRUCTION TO TAKE TWO MAIDS WITH HIM TO ENTICE
+THE SEER FROM HIS CAVE
+
+
+Prince Zaidu prostrate bows before the Sar,
+Arises, thus narrates to Izdubar:
+"Thy sovereign, Zaidu hath his king obeyed,
+The royal mission I have thus essayed
+As Amu's[1] soldier; I undaunted tried
+To urge my mission which the seer denied.
+I firmly met the beast that with him came:
+Unmanly fear, confess I to my shame,
+Came o'er me when I first beheld the beast,
+In vain I plead, and in despair I ceased
+When he refused, and angry from me passed
+Within his cave, where cliffs and rocks are massed;
+I climbed, but the wild entrance did not gain,
+And for advice have I returned again."
+
+"'Tis well, my son," the Sar to Zaidu said,
+"Thy wisdom I commend for thy young head,
+Again upon thy mission thou must go.
+His might, and strength of purpose, thou dost know,
+Before a maiden's charms will flee away;
+For he doth love the Zi-Ga-bri[2] that play
+Within the mountain gorges. Turn thy face
+Again with manly portance; for I'll grace
+Thine embassy with two of our sweet maids,
+Who oft shall cheer thee through the mountain glades,
+Whom thou shalt lead before Heabani's den
+With their bright charms exposed within the glen.
+Take Sam-kha-tu and sweet Khar-imatu:
+They will entice the seer when he shall view
+Their charms displayed before his wondering eyes.
+With Sam-kha, Joy, the seer you will surprise;
+Khar-im-tu will thy plans successful end,
+To her seductive glance his pride will bend.
+Sweet Sam-kha's charms are known, she is our Joy,
+As Ishtar's aid her charms ne'er cloy;
+Kharun-tu with her perfect face and form,
+The hearts of all our court doth take by storm:
+When joys by our sweet Sam-kha are distilled,
+Kharun-tu's love overcomes us till we yield.
+Thus, armed with Love's Seduction and her Joy,
+The greatest powers of earth thou dost employ;
+No flesh can face them but a heart of stone.
+And all the world doth lie before them prone."
+
+Three days Prince Zaidu sat with Kharun-tu
+Before the cave within Heabani's view;
+Beside the pool they waited for the seer:
+From Erech three days' journey brought them here,
+But where hath Joy, sweet Sam-kha, roving gone?
+When they arrived at setting of the sun
+She disappeared within with waving arms;
+With bright locks flowing she displayed her charms.
+As some sweet _zir-ru_ did young Sam-kha seem,
+A thing of beauty of some mystic dream.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Anu," the King of Heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Zi-Gab-ri," spirits of the mountains.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+THE TWO MAIDENS ENTICE THE SEER
+
+
+Thus in Heabani's cave the maiden went,
+And o'er the sleeping seer her form she bent;
+O'er him who with gazelles oft eats his food;
+O'er him who drinks with _bhu-ri_[1] in the wood;
+O'er him who loves the _zir-ri,_--of them dreams,
+And sports with them within the mountain streams.
+And when the gay enticer saw the seer
+Unconscious sleeping with sweet Joy so near,
+She clasped him to her breast and kissed his brow.
+The seer awakes, with wonder eyes her now:
+"Thy glory thou hast brought to me!" he saith,
+"Sweet Zir-ru comes to me with fragrant breath!"
+And with delight he eyes her beauteous form,
+His breast warm moved by the enticer's charm.
+He springs upon his feet and her pursues:
+She laughing flees; to sport with him doth choose.
+
+And now he eyes his hairy body, arms
+Compared to Sam-kha's snowy god-like charms,
+She give to him her freshness, blooming youth?
+She laughing comes again to him,--Forsooth!
+Her glorious arms she opens, flees away,
+While he doth follow the enticer gay.
+He seizes, kisses, takes away her breath,
+And she falls to the ground--perhaps in death
+He thinks, and o'er her leans where she now lay;
+At last she breathes, and springs, and flees away.
+But he the sport enjoys, and her pursues;
+But glancing back his arms she doth refuse.
+And thus three days and four of nights she played;
+For of Heabani's love she was afraid.
+Her joyous company doth him inspire
+For Sam-kha, joy, and love, and wild desire.
+He was not satisfied unless her form
+Remained before him with her endless charm.
+But when his _bhu-ri_ of the field the sight
+Beheld, the wild gazelles fled in affright.
+And now without the cave they came in view
+Of Zaidu waiting with sweet Kharim-tu,
+
+And when Heabani saw the rounded form
+Of bright Kharim-tu, her voluptuous charm
+Drew him to her, and at her feet he sate
+With wistful face, resigned to any fate.
+Kharim-tu, smiling sweetly, bent her head,
+Enticing him the tempter coyly said,
+"Heabani, like a famous god thou art,
+Why with these creeping things doth sleep thy heart?
+Come thou with me to Erech Su-bu-ri[2]
+To Anu's temple Elli-tar-du-si,
+And Ishtar's city where great Izdubar
+Doth reign, the glorious giant king of war;
+Whose mighty strength above his chiefs doth tower,
+Come see our giant king of matchless power."
+Her flashing eyes half languid pierce the seer,
+Until his first resolves all disappear.
+And rising to his feet his eyes he turned
+Toward sweet Joy,[3] whose love for him yet burned;
+And eyeing both with beaming face he saith,
+"With Sam-kha's love the seer hath pledged his faith;
+And I will go to Elli-tar-du-si,
+Great Anu's seat and Ishtar's where with thee,
+I will behold the giant Izdubar,
+Whose fame is known to me as king of war;
+And I will meet him there, and test the power
+Of him whose fame above all men doth tower.
+A _mid-dan-nu_[4] to Erech I will take,
+To see if he its mighty strength can break.
+In these wild caves its strength has mighty grown;
+If he the beast destroys, I will make known
+His dream to him--e'en all the seer doth know;
+And now with thee to Erech I will go.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Bhu-ri," wild-beasts, pets of the hermit seer.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Su-bu-ri," the lofty.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Sam-kha-tu" or "Samkha."]
+
+[Transcriber's Note: Footnote 3 looks like it should be two lines down
+from where it is; this is probably an error.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Mid-dan-nu," a carnivorous animal, supposed to be a tiger;
+the Khorsabad sculpture, however, portrays it as a lion.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+FESTIVAL IN HONOR OF HEABANI, WHO ARRIVES AT ERECH--INTERPRETATION OF THE
+DREAM
+
+
+The sounds of wild rejoicing now arise;
+"Heabani comes!" resound the joyful cries,
+And through the gates of Erech Suburi
+Now file the chieftains, Su-khu-li rubi.[1]
+A festival in honor of their guest
+The Sar proclaims, and Erech gaily drest,
+Her welcome warm extends to the famed seer.
+The maidens, Erech's daughters, now appear,
+With richest kirtles gaily decked with flowers,
+And on his head they rain their rosy showers.
+Rejoicing sing, while harps and cymbals play,
+And laud him to the skies in their sweet way;
+And mingling with their joy, their monarch rode
+Before the seer, who stately after strode
+Beside his beast, and next the men of fame.
+The maids thus chant high honors to his name:
+
+    "A prince we make thee, mighty seer!
+    Be filled with joy and royal cheer!
+            All hail to Erech's seer!
+
+    Whom day and night our Sar hath sought,
+    O banish fear! for Hea taught
+            The seer, his glory wrought.
+
+    He comes! whom Samas loves as gold,
+    To Erech grace, our city old;
+            All wisdom he doth hold.
+
+    Great Hea doth to him unfold
+    All that remains to man untold;
+            Give him the chain of gold!
+
+    He cometh from the Za-Gab-ri
+    To our dear Erech Su-bu-ri.
+            Heabani glorify!
+
+    Thy dream he will reveal, O Sar!
+    Its meaning show to Izdubar,
+            Victorious king of war."
+
+Within the council halls now lead the seers
+With trepidation and with many fears,
+To hear the seer explain their monarch's dream.
+Beside the royal throne he sits supreme
+Among the seers, the Sar, his scribe commands
+To read his dream recorded as it stands
+In Erech's Gi;[2] who reads it to the seer,
+Who answers thus:
+                  "In this there doth appear
+A god, whose ardent love will lead to deeds
+Of hate against thee, Sar; thy present needs
+Are great, O king! as fire this love will burn
+Until the wicked seven[3] on thee turn;
+And blood, alone, will not their fury sate:
+The gods will hurl upon thee some dread fate."
+In silence, Izdubar the warning heard;
+His blood with terror froze, and then was stirred
+By passions wild, when he recalled the scene
+Of Ishtar's love for him by man unseen;
+When she so wildly then proclaimed her love;
+And now with hate his inmost soul doth move,
+And her bright form to a black dal-khu[4] turned
+And furious passions on his features burned.
+And then of the first dream he thought, and light
+Across his vision broke:
+                         "'Tis true! aright
+Thy seer hath read! for Ishtar came to me
+In the first dream, her face e'en yet I see!
+Aye, more! her lips to mine again then fell!
+Her arms I felt around me,--breath too well
+I know! of fragrance, while perfume arose
+Around my dream and fled not at the close;
+As frankincense and myrrh it lingered, when
+I woke. Ah yes! the queen will come again!"
+Then to his counsellor who wondering stood,
+Nor heard his murmuring, but saw subdued
+His features were, at first, and then, they grand
+Became with settled hate; he raised his hand;
+"'Tis true!" he said, "Reward on him bestow!
+Then to the waiting feast we all shall go."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Su-khu-li ru-bi," attendants of the King.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Gi," literally a written tablet, a record.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The seven wicked spirits of the earth, air, and ocean.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Dal-khu," an evil spirit, a demon.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+IZDUBAR SLAYS THE MIDANNU IN THE FESTIVE HALL, AND HEABANI DECLARES HIM TO
+BE A GOD
+
+
+The guests are seated round the festal board;
+Heabani takes his seat beside his lord.
+The choicest viands of the wealthy plain
+Before them placed and fishes of the main,
+With wines and cordials, juices rich and rare
+The chieftains all enjoy--the royal fare.
+This day, with Izdubar they laugh and joke
+'Mid courtesies and mirth, and oft provoke
+The ringing merry laughter through the halls.
+When all are satisfied within the walls,
+Their fill have eaten of the royal fare,
+With wine they banish from them every care.
+
+The Su-khu-li[1] with tinkling bells proclaim,
+"Our Sar would speak! Our king of mighty fame,"
+Who says: "My chieftains, lords, our seer requests
+A test of strength before assembled guests;
+Unarmed requires your Sar-dan-nu to slay
+The Mid-an-nu[2] which he hath brought to-day.
+So stand aside, my friends, behold the test!
+Your Sar will satisfy his seer and guest."
+The monster now is brought before the king,
+Heabani him unchains to let him spring
+Upon the giant king. His chieftains stand
+In terror looking at their monarch grand,
+Who smiling stands, his eyes on the beast fixed;
+While they in wildest terror are transfixed.
+
+Heabani claps his hands towards the king,
+And the wild beast upon his form doth spring.
+The giant grasps its throat in high mid-air,
+[3]And holds it 'neath his arm without a fear.
+With sullen choking roars it struggling dies,
+While shouts of joy from all the guests arise.
+The mighty deed of strength the seer appals,
+And at the feet of Izdubar he falls:
+"Immortal king! illustrious of men!
+Thy glorious strength reveals the gods again
+On earth. To thee I bow in reverent fear,
+A god returned thou art! O Erech, hear!
+Of kingdoms thou art blessed with grandest fame,
+That thou among thy kings a god can name."
+Again they gathered round the festal board,
+And joy and revelry they soon restored.
+The revels high are raised o'er sparkling wine;
+Through all the night they praise their king divine.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Su-khu-li," the attendants.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Mid-an-nu," carnivorous animal, supposed to be a lion, the
+pet of the seer.]
+
+[Footnote 3: This feat of Izdubar is portrayed on the bas-relief in the
+Louvre Museum, Paris, from the Khorsabad sculpture, and is also copied in
+Sayce's edition of Smith's "Chaldean Account of Genesis." opposite p.
+175.]
+
+
+
+TABLET IV[1]--COLUMN I
+
+THE ANNUAL SALE OF THE MAIDENS OF BABYLON
+
+
+Hail holy union! wedded love on earth!
+The highest bliss which crowns us from our birth,
+Our joy! the mainspring of our life and aims,
+Our great incentive when sweet love inflames
+Our hearts to glorious deeds and ever wreathes
+Around our brows, the happy smile that breathes
+Sweet fragrance from the home of holy love,
+And arms us with a courage from above.
+
+O Woman! Woman! weave thy love around
+Thy chosen lover, who in thee hath found
+A loveliness and purity so sweet,
+That he doth watch for coming of the feet
+That brings him happiness and thrill his heart--
+For one, of all thy kind who can impart
+To him the holiest bliss, the sweetest joy,
+That e'er can crown his life so tenderly;
+He worships thee within a holy fane,
+Let not his hope and joy be all in vain!
+
+O thou, sweet Queen! we crown thee in our homes,
+And give to thee our love that holy comes
+From Heaven to inspire and bless our lives.
+For this mankind all hope to take pure wives
+To sacredest of all our temples, shrines,
+And keep thee pure within sweet love's confines
+That we may worship thee, and daily bring
+Devotions to our altar,--to thee sing
+Our orisons of praise, and sacred keep
+Our homes till we shall softly drop asleep
+Within the arms we love so tenderly,
+And carry with us a sweet memory
+Of purity and bliss that blessed our lives,
+And children gave from sweetest of pure wives.
+
+Thou art our all! O holy woman, pure
+Forever may thy charms on earth endure!
+Oh, trample not upon thy husband's love!
+For true devotion he doth daily prove.
+Oh, shackle not his feet in life's fierce strife,
+His weary shoulders burden,--blast his life!
+Or palsy those dear hands that work for thee,
+And fill his eyes with tears of agony,
+Till love shall turn as acid to his teeth,
+And thorns shall tear his side with hellish wreath,
+And daggers pierce his heart, and ice his soul,
+And thou become to him a hated ghoul!
+
+[2]What married woman is untainted, pure?
+She, who when married spreads for men no lure,
+Bestows caresses on no man but him
+Who is her husband; she who doth not trim
+Her form to catch the vulgar gaze, nor paints
+Herself, or in her husband's absence taunts
+Not her sweet purity; exposes not
+Her form undraped, whose veil no freeman aught
+Has raised;[3] or shows her face to others than
+Her slaves; and loves alone her husbandman;
+She who has never moistened her pure lips
+With liquors that intoxicate;[4] nor sips
+With others joys that sacred are alone
+To him, her strength; who claims her as his own.
+
+O Beauty, Purity, my theme inspire!
+To woman's love of old, my muse aspire!
+When her sweet charms were equally bestowed,
+And fairest of the sex with hopes imbued
+Of capturing men of wealth and lives of ease,
+When loveliness at public sale[5] doth please
+The nobles of the land to wealth bestow
+Upon ill-favored sisters, maids of woe,
+Who claimed no beauty, nor had lovely charms;
+When crones and hags, and maids with uncouth forms,
+Secured a husbandman despite of fate,
+And love redeemed them from the arms of hate.
+
+The proclamation Izdubar had made
+To bring to the great plaza every maid,
+For Beltis' feast and Hergal's now arrives,
+When maidens are selected as the wives
+Of noblemen or burghers of the towns
+And cities of the kingdom; when wealth crowns
+The nobles richest, ever as of old,
+With beauty they have purchased with their gold.
+The festival, the Sabat-tu[6] hath come!
+The Sabat-tu of Elul! hear the hum
+Of voices filling Erech's streets!
+The maids are coming, how each gaily prates!
+The day and hour has come for them to stand
+And meet the bidders from all Sumir's land;
+The day that ends their maidenhood, and brings
+Them joy or not. Oh, how the poor young things
+With throbbing hearts approach yon gathering throng
+To hear their fate pronounced; but is it wrong?
+The custom old, Accadia thinks is good,
+They all are young and fresh with maidenhood;
+The ugly ones as well, shall husbands have,
+And their young lives from shame thus they will save.
+No aged maids shall pass from yonder throng
+With bitterness,--their heart's unuttered song
+For some dear love to end their joyless woe,
+And longings unallayed that e'er may flow.
+
+But Love! O where art thou? art thou a thing
+That gold may buy? Doth lucre thy bright wing
+Unfold to hover over human hearts?
+Oh, no! Thy presence to our soul imparts
+A sweeter joy than selfishness can give,
+Thou givest love that thou mayst love receive;
+Nor asking aught of wealth, of rank, or fame.
+True love in palace, hovel, is the same
+Sweet joy, the holiest of sacred things.
+For this we worship Ishtar, for she brings
+Us happiness, when we ourselves forget
+In the dear arms we love; no coronet
+Of power, or countless gold, or rank, or fame,
+Or aught that life can give, or tongue can name,
+Can reach the heart that loyally doth love,
+Nor hopes of heaven, nor fears of hell can move.
+
+Mayhap, this Sabattu, some lover may
+All wealth he claims abandon on this day,
+For the dear heart that seeming pleads to him,
+While her fond glistening eyes shall on him gleam.
+A look, a glance; when mingling souls speak love,
+Will in his breast undying longings move;
+And let us hope that when the youths have lain[7]
+Their all before the herald, that no men
+Who see their sacrifice will rob their hearts
+Of all that gives them joy or bliss imparts;
+Or that this day alone will maidens see
+Who have not loved, and they will happy be
+With him who purchases her as his wife;
+Or proud young beauties will enjoy the strife
+Of bidders to secure their lovely charms,
+And love may bring their husbands to their arms.
+
+The day is sacred, dedicated old
+To Love and Strength, when loving arms shall fold
+A vigorous husband to a maiden's breast,
+Where she may ever stay and safely rest.
+The day of Ishtar, Queen of Love! the day
+Of Nergal, the strong god, to whom they pray
+For strength to bless with vigor Accad's sons.
+For many anxious years this day atones.
+
+[8]This day their Sar the flesh of birds eats not,
+Nor food profaned by fire this day, nor aught
+Of labor may perform nor _zubat_[9] change,
+Nor snowy _ku-bar-ra_[10] anew arrange.
+A sacrifice he offers not, nor rides
+Upon his chariot this day, nor guides
+His realm's affairs, and his Tur-tan-nu rests.
+Of soldiers, and of orders, he divests
+His mind; and even though disease may fall
+Upon him, remedies he may not call.
+The temple he shall enter in the night,
+And pray that Ishtar's favor may delight
+His heart; and lift his voice in holy prayer,
+In Nergal's temple rest from every care,
+Where he before the holy altar bends
+With lifted hands, his soul's petition sends.
+
+Around the square the palms and cedars shine,
+And bowers of roses cluster round divine.
+Beneath an arch of myrtles, climbing vines,
+And canopy,--with wreathing flowers it shines,
+There stands a wondrous garland-wreathed throne,
+Where maids are gathered;--each unmarried one.
+The timid maids and bold of Babylon
+Are each in turn led to the rosy throne;
+The crowd of bidders round the herald stand,
+The richest and the poorest of the land.
+
+The queen of Accad's maids doth now appear,
+We see the burnished chariot coming near,
+Ten beauteous bays with proud steps, nodding plumes
+Come first; behind, a train of nobles comes;
+And now we see the close-drawn canopy
+Thrown back by slaves, who step aside, that she
+The queen of beauty crowned with lilies, rose,
+May here alight.  And see! she queenly goes
+With dainty steps between the noblemen,
+Who stand on either side the queen
+Of beauty of the plains, who first this day
+Shall reign upon the throne, and lead the way
+For all the maids who shall be bought for gold,
+And thus the first upon the throne is sold.
+
+She takes her seat beneath the canopy,
+Upon the throne high raised, that all may see;
+As she her veil of fine spun gold flings back
+From her sweet face and o'er her ringlets black,
+Her large dark eyes, soft as a wild gazelle's,
+Upon the richest nobles dart appeals.
+Her bosom throbs 'neath gems and snowy lace,
+And robes of broidered satin, velvets, grace
+Her beauty with their pearly folds that fall
+Around her form.
+
+                  Hark! hear the herald's call!
+"Behold this pearl! my lords and noblemen,
+And who will bid for her as wife, my men?"
+"Ana-bilti khurassi ash at ka!"[11]
+"Akhadu khurassi ana sa-sa!"[12]
+"U sinu bilti khurassi!"[11] two cried.
+"Sal-sutu bilti!"[12] nobles three replied;
+And four, and five, and six, till one bid ten,
+A vast amount of gold for noblemen:
+
+But see! the bidders in excitement stand
+Around a youth who cries with lifted hand
+And features pale and stern, who now began
+To bid against a wealthy nobleman,
+Whose countless herds graze far upon the plain,
+His laden ships that ride upon the main
+He counts by scores. He turns his evil eyes
+And wolfish face upon the youth and cries,
+"Khamisserit!"[13] The lover answering says:
+"Esra'a!"[14] "U selasa'a!"[15] then brays
+The gray-haired lover. "U irbaha!"[16] cries
+The youth, and still the nobleman defies;
+Who answers cooly, "Khausa'a;"[17] and eyes
+The anxious youth, who wildly "Miha!"[18] cries.
+"Mine! mine! she is! though you _alapu_[19] bid!"
+"A fool thou art!" the noble, leaving, said.
+"One hundred talents for a maid!" he sneered,
+And in the crowd he growling disappeared.
+The measures filled with shining gold are brought,
+And thus the loveliest of all is bought.
+
+The next in beauty on the throne is sold,
+And thus the beautiful are sold for gold.
+The richest thus select the beautiful,
+The poor must take alone the dutiful
+And homely with a dower which beauty bought,
+And ugliness with gold becomes his lot.
+The ugliest, unsightly, and deformed,
+Is now brought forth; with many wriggles squirmed
+She to the throne, where beauty late had sat:
+Her ugliness distorted thus; whereat
+The herald cries:
+                  "Who will this woman take
+With smallest dowry? She can cook and bake,
+And many household duties well perform,
+Although she does not claim a beauty's charm.
+Who wants a wife?"
+                   The ugly crone with blinks
+Doth hideous look, till every bidder shrinks.
+A sorry spectacle, mis-shapen, gross,
+She is, and bidders now are at a loss
+How much to ask to take the hag to wife.
+At last one cries:
+                   "Five _bilti,_[20] for relief
+Of herald I will take, to start the bid!"
+"And four of _bilti_, I'll take, with the maid!"
+"Three and a half!" one cries with shaking head,
+"And she is yours, my man!" the herald said,
+And thus she bought a husband and a home.
+
+And so the scare-crows, scraggy ones, now come
+In turn; the lean, ill-favored, gawky, bald,
+Long-nosed, uncouth, raw-boned, and those with scald
+And freckled, frowsy, ricketty and squat,
+The stumpy, bandy-legged, gaunt, each bought
+A man; though ugly as a toad, they sold,
+For every man with her received his gold.
+The heaped-up gold which beauteous maids had brought
+Is thus proportioned to the bidder's lot;
+The grisly, blear-eyed, every one is sold,
+And husbands purchased for a pile of gold,
+And happiness diffused throughout the land;
+For when the maid refused her husband's hand
+She might return by paying back the gold.
+And every maid who thus for wife was sold
+Received a bond from him who purchased her,
+To wed her as his wife, or else incur
+The forfeit of his bond, and thus no maids
+In all the land were found as grumbling jades,
+Whose fate it was to have no husbandman,
+For every woman had a husband then.
+
+[Footnote 1: We have included in Tablet IV Tablets V and VI of the
+original, as classified by Mr. Sayce.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The above is taken from an Assyrian fragment ("W.A.I.," ii.
+35, No. 4) translated in "Records of the Past," vol. xi., pp. 159, 160,
+and presents the Assyrian view of purity and the customs of their people.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Literally, "whose veil no freeman of pure race has raised."
+Before slaves and men of mean rank, women of the East are not obliged to
+veil the face.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Literally, "who has never moistened her teeth with an
+intoxicating liquor." "Rec. of the Past," p. 160, l. 6.]
+
+[Footnote 5: The public sale herein described is taken from the statement
+of Herodotus (see Herodotus, vol. i., p. 196. Compare "Nic. Dam. Fr.,"
+131, and AElian. "Var. Hist.," iv. 1), who says all the marriageable
+virgins in all the towns of the empire or kingdom were sold at public
+auction. The beautiful maidens were sold to the highest bidder, and the
+proceeds were deposited before the herald. The ugly maidens in turn were
+then put up, and the bidders were called upon to take them as wives with
+the smallest dowry to be paid from the proceeds of the sales of the
+beautiful maids, and they were in turn awarded to those who would accept
+them with the smallest amount as dowry. The numerous contracts for the
+sales of women now in the British Museum may possibly be records of these
+transactions.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Sab-at-tu," a day of rest for the heart ("W.A.I.," ii. 32),
+the Sabbath day, which was dedicated to the worship of the sun, moon, and
+stars, and their gods, which were known by different names.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Lain," to lay, v.a. (pretr. "laid," part, passive "lain,"
+from "liggan," Sax.), "to place along the ground."--Fenning's Royal Eng.
+Dic., London, MDCLXXV.]
+
+[Footnote 8: From the Babylonian Festival Calendar ("C.I.W.A.," vol. iv.,
+pls. 32, 33); also translated in "Records of the Past," vol. vii., pp.
+162, 163.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Zubat," robes.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Ku-bar-ra," linen robes.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "And two golden talents!"]
+
+[Footnote 12: "Three talents!"]
+
+[Footnote 13: "Fifteen!"]
+
+[Footnote 14: "Twenty!"]
+
+[Footnote 15: "And thirty!"]
+
+[Footnote 16: "And forty!"]
+
+[Footnote 17: "Fifty!"]
+
+[Footnote 18: "One hundred!"]
+
+[Footnote 19: "One thousand!"]
+
+[Footnote 20: "Five bilti," about L3,165 sterling, or $15,825.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+COUNCIL IN THE PALACE
+
+
+The seers on silver couches round the throne;
+The hangings of the carved lintel thrown
+Aside; the heralds cried: "The Sar! The Sar!
+The council opens our King Izdubar!"
+The Sar walked o'er the velvets to his throne
+Of gold inlaid with gems. A vassal prone
+Before the Sar now placed the stool of gold,
+Arranged his royal robes with glittering fold
+Of laces, fringes rich inwove with pearls,
+Embroidered with quaint figures, curious twirls.
+Behind the throne a prince of royal blood
+Arrayed in courtly splendor, waiting stood,
+And gently waved a jewelled fan aloft
+Above the Sar's tiara; carpets soft
+From Accad's looms the varied tilings bright,
+In tasteful order, part conceal from sight.
+
+The glittering pillars stand with gold o'erlaid
+In rows throughout the room to the arcade,
+Within the entrance from a columned hall.
+The ivory-graven panels on the wall
+On every side are set in solid gold.
+The canopy chased golden pillars hold
+Above the throne, and emeralds and gems
+Flash from the counsellor's rich diadems.
+In silence all await the monarch's sign:
+"This council hath been called, the hour is thine
+To counsel with thy King upon a plan
+Of conquest of our foes, who ride this plain,
+Unchecked around; these Suti should be driven
+From Sumir's plain. Have ye our wrongs forgiven?
+Khumbaba hath enjoyed great Accad's spoils
+Too long; with him we end these long turmoils.
+What sayest thou, Heabani?--all my seers?
+Hath Accad not her chariots and spears?"
+
+Then one among the wisest seers arose
+"To save our precious tune which hourly flows,
+He should our seer, Rab-sak-i[1] first invite
+To lay his plans before the Sar, and light
+May break across our vision. I confess
+Great obstacles I see, but acquiesce
+In any plan you deem may bring success.
+The gods, I feel our cause will gladly bless."
+Another spoke, and all agree at last
+To hear the seer whose wisdom all surpassed.
+
+Heabani modestly arose and said,
+And gracefully to all inclined his head:
+"O Sar! thy seer will gladly counsel give
+To thee, and all our seers; my thanks receive
+For thy great confidence in my poor skill
+To crush our foes who every country fill.
+I with the Sar agree that we should strike
+A blow against the rival king, who like
+Our Sar, is a great giant king, and lives
+Within a mountain castle, whence he grieves
+All nations by his tyranny, and reigns
+With haughty power from Kharsak to these plains.
+I'll lead the way, my Sar, to his wild home;
+'Tis twenty _kas-pu_[2] hence, if you will come.
+A wall surrounds his castle in a wood,
+With brazen gates strong fastened. I have stood
+Beneath the lofty pines which dwindle these
+To shrubs that grow in parks as ornate trees.
+The mighty walls will reach six _gars_[3] in height,
+And two in breadth, like Nipur's[4] to the sight.
+And when you go, take with you many mules;
+With men to bring the spoils, and needed tools
+To break the gates, his castle overthrow:
+To lose no time, to-morrow we should go.
+To Erech, pines and cedars we can bring
+With all the wealth of Elam's giant king,
+And Erech fill with glorious parks and halls,
+Remove these _man-u-bani,_[5] ruined walls.
+Take to your hearts, ye seers, poor Erech's wrongs!
+Her fall, the bards of Elam sing in songs.
+I love dear Erech, may her towers shine!"
+He seized his harp, thus sung the seer divine:
+
+    "O Erech! thy bright plains I love;
+    Although from thee thy seer did rove,
+          My heart remained with thee!
+    The foe destroyed thy beauteous towers,
+    Sa-mu forgot to rain her showers,
+          And could I happy be?
+
+    Mine eyes beheld thy fallen gates,
+    Thy blood warm flowing in thy streets,
+          My heart was broken then.
+    I raised mine eyes and saw thy Sar
+    In glory on his steed of war,
+          And joy returned again!
+
+    I saw the foe in wild dismay
+    Before him flee that glorious day.
+          With joy I heard the cry
+    Of victory resound afar,
+    Saw Elam crushed 'neath Accad's car:
+          I shouted, Victory!
+
+    Away! till birds of prey shall rend
+    His flesh and haughty Elam bend
+          Before our mighty Sar!
+    Beneath his forest of pine-trees
+    The battle-cry then loudly raise,
+          We follow Izdubar!
+
+    And may the birds of prey surround
+    Khumbaba stretched upon the ground,
+          Destroy his body there!
+    And Izdubar alone be king,
+    And all his people joyful sing,
+          With glory crown him here!
+
+    All hail! All hail! our giant King,
+    The _amaranti_[6] for him bring,
+          To crown him, crown him here,
+    As King of Accad and Sutu,
+    And all the land of Subar-tu!
+          So sayeth Hea's seer!"
+
+The counsellors and chieftains wildly cry
+Around the throne, "All hail _izzu sar-ri_
+Of Su-bar-tu!" and shouting leave the halls
+To summon Accad's soldiers from the walls
+To hear the war proclaimed against their foes,
+And Accad's war-cry from them loud arose.
+King Izdubar Heabani warmly prest
+Within his arms upon his throbbing breast,
+And said, "Let us to the war temple go,
+That all the gods their favor may bestow."
+The seer replied, "Tis well! then let us wend
+Our way, and at the altar we will bend,--
+To Ishtar's temple, where our goddess queen
+Doth reign, seek her propitious favor, then
+In Samas' holy temple pray for aid
+To crush our foe;--with glory on each blade,
+Our hands will carry victory in war."
+The chiefs, without the temple, join their Sar.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Rab-sak-i," chief of the high ones, chief of the seers and
+counsellors; prime minister.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Twenty kaspu," 140 miles; each kaspu was seven miles, or two
+hours' journey.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Six gars," 120 feet; each gar was a twenty-foot measure.
+Khumbaba's walls were thus 120 feet high and forty feet thick--much like
+the walls of Babylon.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Nipur" was one of the cities of Izdubar's kingdom, from
+whence he came to the rescue of Erech.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Man-u-ban-i," a tree or shrub of unpleasant odor mentioned
+by Heabani. See Sayce's revised edition Smith's "Chald. Acc. of Genesis,"
+p. 254. The fragment translated by Mr. Sayce should be placed in another
+position in the epic.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Amaranti," amaranth. "Immortal amaranth."--"Par. Lost."]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+THE KING WORSHIPS AT THE SHRINE OF ISHTAR
+
+
+[1]The richest and the poorest here must stay,
+Each proud or humble maid must take her way;
+To Ishtar's temple grand, a lofty shrine,
+With youth and beauty seek her aid divine.
+Some drive in covered chariots of gold,
+With courtly trains come to the temple old.
+With ribbons on their brows all take their seats,
+The richer maid of nobles, princes, waits
+Within grand chambers for the nobler maids;
+The rest all sit within the shrine's arcades.
+Thus fill the temple with sweet beauties, crones;
+The latest maids are the most timid ones.
+
+In rows the maidens sat along the halls
+And vestibules, on couches, where the walls
+Were carved with mystic signs of Ishtar's feast;
+Till at the inner shrine the carvings ceased.
+Amid the crowd long silken cords were strung
+To mark the paths, and to the pillows clung.
+The King through the great crowd now pressed his way
+Toward the inner shrine, where he may pray.
+The jewelled maidens on the cushioned seats,
+Now babbling hailed the King, and each entreats
+For sacred service, silver or of gold,
+And to him, all, their sweetest charms unfold.
+Some lovely were, in tears besought and cried,
+And many would a blooming bride provide;
+While others were deformed and homely, old,
+As spinsters still remained, till now grown bold,
+They raised their bony arms aloft and bawled.
+Some hideous were with harshest voices squalled,
+And hags like _dal-khi_ from the Under-World,
+Their curses deep, growled forth from where they curled.
+But these were few and silent soon became,
+And hid their ugliness away in shame.
+For years some maids had waited day and night,
+But beauty hides the ugly ones from sight.
+
+The King astounded, eyed them seated round;
+Beneath their gaze his eyes fell to the ground.
+"And hath great Accad lost so many sons,
+And left so many maids unmarried ones?"
+He eyed the image where the goddess stood
+Upon a pedestal of cedar wood
+O'erlaid with gold and pearls and _uk-ni_ stones,
+And near it stands the altar with its cones
+Of gold adorned with gems and solid pearls,--
+And from the golden censer incense curls.
+Beside the altar stands a table grand
+Of solid metal carved with skilful hand;
+Upon it stands a mass of golden ware,
+With wines and fruits which pious hands prepare.
+The walls are glistening with gold and gems,
+The priestesses all wear rich diadems.
+The Sar now eyes the maidens, while they gaze;
+Thus they expectant wait, while he surveys.
+And see! he takes from them a charming girl
+With Ishtar's eyes and perfect form, the pearl
+Of beauty of them all; turns to the shrine,
+When in her lap he drops a golden coin,
+And says, "The goddess Ishtar, prosper thee!"[2]
+She springs, for she from Ishtar's halls is free,
+And kneels and weeps before the monarch's feet,
+"O great and mighty Sar I thee entreat,
+My will is thine, but all my sisters free:
+Behold my sisters here imploring thee!"
+The King gazed at the beauteous pleading face,
+Which roused within his breast the noble race
+Before her heavenly charms transfixed he stood.
+Before her heavenly charms transfixed he stood.
+
+"'Tis well! my daughter, I the favor grant!"
+And to the priestess said, "Let here be sent
+Great coffers filled with gold! for I release
+These maids. Let all their weary waiting cease,
+The price I'll send by messengers to thee."
+And all rejoicing sing a psalmody.
+A ring of maidens round the image forms;
+With flashing eyes they sing, with waving arms,
+A wilderness of snowy arms and feet,
+To song and dance the holy measure beat;
+A mass of waving ringlets, sparkling eyes.
+In wildest transport round each maiden flies,
+The measure keeps to sacred psalmody,
+With music ravishing,--sweet melody.
+The priestess leads for them the holy hymn,
+Thus sing they, measure keep with body, limb:
+
+  [3]"Let length of days, long lasting years,
+    With sword of power, extend his holy life!
+      With years extended full of glory, shine,
+    Pre-eminent above all kings in strife.
+      Oh, clothe our king, our lord, with strength divine,
+  Who with such gifts to gods appears!
+
+  "Let his great empire's limits be,
+    Now vast and wide, enlarged, and may he reign
+      (Till it shall spread before his eyes complete)
+    Supreme above all kings! May he attain
+      To silver hairs, old age, and nations greet
+  Our sovereign in his royalty!
+
+  "When gifts are ended of Life's days,
+    The feasts of the Land of the Silver Sky,
+      With bliss, the Blest Abode Refulgent Courts,
+    May he enjoy through all eternity,
+      Where Light of Happy Fields with joy transports
+    And dwell in life eternal, holy there
+    In presence of the gods with sacred cheer,
+  With Assur's gods walk blessed ways!"
+
+When they have ended all their joyful song,
+They gratefully around their monarch throng;
+And kneeling at his feet, they bathe his hands
+With tears of joy, and kiss the 'broidered bands
+Of his bright robes, then joyous haste away;
+And Erech's shame was ended on that day.
+
+And now the Sar as his libation pours
+The sparkling sacred wine before the doors
+That lead to Ishtar's glorious inner shrine.
+He bows before her golden form divine,
+Thus prays:
+
+            [4]"In thy fair shrine I bow to thee,
+O Light of Heaven! bright thy majesty
+As glowing flames upon the world doth dawn,
+Bright goddess of the earth, thy fixed abode!
+Who dawned upon the earth a glorious god!
+With thee prosperity hath ever gone.
+To gild the towers of cities of mankind!
+Thou warrior's god, who rideth on the wind!
+As a hyena fierce thou sendest war,
+And as a lion comes thy raging car.
+Each day thou rulest from thy canopy
+That spreads above in glory,--shines for thee;
+O come, exalted goddess of the Sun!"
+
+[5]Against the tyrant King I go to war,
+Attend mine arms, O Queen! with radiant car
+Of battles! ride upon the giant King
+With thy bright, fiery chargers! valor bring
+To me at rising of the glistening car
+Of Samas, send attendants fierce of war!
+But goddess Mam-nutu of Fate and Death;
+Oh, keep away from me her blasting breath;
+Let Samas fix the hour with favor thine,
+And o'er mine unknown path, Oh ride divine!
+Thy servant strengthen with thy godly power
+That he invincible in war may tower,
+Against thy chosen city's greatest foe,
+Who brought on Erech all her deepest woe."
+And from the inner shrine with curtains hung,
+The Oracle of Ishtar sweetly sung:
+
+    "O King of vast unnumbered countries, hear!
+    Thine enemy Khum-baba do not fear,
+    My hands will waft the winds for thee.
+          Thus I reveal!
+    Khum-baba falls! thine enemy!
+          Nor aught conceal.
+
+    "The harvest month[6] propitious shines,
+    Array great Accad's battle lines!
+    Before thy feet thy Queen descends,
+    Before thy will thine Ishtar bends,
+          To fight thine enemy,
+          To war I go with thee!
+    My word is spoken, thou hast heard,
+    For thee, my favor thou hast stirred.
+    As I am Ishtar of mine Or divine,
+    Thine enemy shall fall! Be glory thine!
+
+    "Before mine Izdubar I go,
+    And at thy side direct thy blow.
+    I go with thee, fear not, my King,
+    For every doubt and fear, I bring
+          Relief, to thy heart rest!
+          Of Sars, I love thee best!"
+
+[Footnote 1: The account given by Herodotus of the worship of Beltis or
+Ishtar, if true (see Herodotus, i. 199), was one of the darkest features
+of Babylonian religion. It is probable that the first intention was only
+to represent love as heaven-born, and that it afterward became sensual in
+the time of Herodotus. (See Sayce's edition Smith's "C.A. of Gen.," p.
+50.) The presence of the women may have been intended at first to present
+an innocent attraction. See also Rawlinson's "Ancient Monarchies," vol.
+iii. p. 21.]
+
+[Footnote 2: See Herodotus, vol. i. p. 199. Ishtar was called Mylitta or
+Beltis in the time of Herodotus. We have taken the above description from
+Herodotus, whose work is mostly confirmed by the cuneiform inscriptions.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The above psalm is found in vol. iii. of Rawlinson's "British
+Museum Inscriptions," pl. 66, and was translated by H.F. Talbot, F.R.S.,
+in vol. i. of the "Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology," p.
+108, and also by M. Lenormant in his "Premieres Civilisations," p. 177. We
+have used Mr. Talbot's transcription.]
+
+[Footnote 4: See terra-cotta tablet numbered "S. 954" in the British
+Museum; also translation by Rev. A.H. Sayce, M.A., in the "Records of the
+Past," vol. v. p. 157.]
+
+[Footnote 5: See fragment in Sayce's edition Smith's "Chald. Acc. of
+Gen.," p. 220, col. iii.]
+
+[Footnote 6: The harvest month was the month of Sivan, which is mentioned
+by the Oracle of Ishtar of Arbela. See "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western
+Asia," vol. iv. pl. 68; also "Records of the Past," vol. xi. pp. 61-62.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+THE KING GOES FROM ISHTAR'S TEMPLE TO THE TEMPLE OF SAMAS
+
+
+He rose and raised the pendant mystic charms
+And kissed them, and the jewels of her arms
+And ornaments upon her breast divine,
+And then her crown with jewels iridine
+He placed upon his brow, and it returned;
+And from the shrine in reverence he turned;
+To Samas' temple all the chiefs of war
+And seers, _pa-te-si,_ go with Izdubar.
+
+Before the fire he stands where holy burns
+The flames of Samas. In a vase he turns
+The crimson wine, to Samas, God, he pours
+Libation, and his favor thus implores:
+
+"O Samas, why hast thou established, raised
+Me in thy heart?--protected? Men have praised
+Thee, Holy One! my expedition bless
+In thine own will, O God, I acquiesce.
+I go, O Samas, on a path afar,
+Against Khumbaba I declare this war;
+The battle's issue thou alone dost know,
+Or if success attends me where I go.
+The way is long, O may thy son return
+From the vast pine-tree forest, I would earn
+For Erech glory and renown! Destroy
+Khumbaba and his towers! he doth annoy
+All nations, and is evil to thy sight.
+To-morrow I will go, O send thy Light
+Upon my standards, and dark Nina-zu
+Keep thou away, that I may wary view
+Mine enemies, and fix for me the hour
+When I shall strike and crush Khumbaba's power.
+
+            To all the gods I humbly pray
+            To Izdubar propitious be!
+            [1]_Assur Samas u Marduk-u,
+            Ana Sar bel-ni-ya lik-ru-bu!"_
+
+And thus the Oracle with sweetest voice
+To him replied, and made his heart rejoice:
+
+          "Fear not, O Izdubar,
+      For I am Bel, thy strength in war.[2]
+      A heart of strength give I to thee!
+      To trust, we can but faithful be!
+          As thou hast shown to me.
+      The sixty gods, our strongest ones,
+      Will guide thy path where'er it runs;
+      The moon-god on thy right shall ride,
+      And Samas on thy left shall guide.
+      The sixty gods thy will commands
+          To crush Khumbaba's bands.
+      In man alone, do not confide,
+      Thine eyes turn to the gods,
+      Who rule from their abodes,
+      And trust in Heaven where powers abide!"
+
+With joyous heart the Sar comes from the shrine
+To bathe his brow in Samas' rays divine;
+Upon the pyramid he stands and views
+The scene below with its bright varied hues.
+A peerless pile the temple grandly shone
+With marble, gold, and silver in the sun;
+In seven stages rose above the walls,
+With archways vast and polished pillared halls.
+A marble portico surrounds the mass
+With sculptured columns, banisters of brass,
+And winding stairways round the stages' side,
+Grand temples piled on temples upward glide,
+A mass of colors like the rainbow hues,
+Thus proudly rise from breezy avenues.
+The brazen gates lead to the temple's side,
+The stairs ascend and up the stages glide.
+The basement painted of the darkest blue
+Is passed by steps ascending till we view
+From them the second stage of orange hue
+And crimson third! from thence a glorious view--
+A thousand turrets far beneath, is spread
+O'er lofty walls, and fields, and grassy mead;
+The golden harvests sweep away in sight
+And orchards, vineyards, on the left and right;
+Euphrates' stream as a broad silver band
+Sweeps grandly through the glowing golden land,
+Till like a thread of silver still in sight
+It meets the Tigris gleaming in the light
+That spreads along the glorious bending skies,
+The brightest vault of all the emperies.
+
+Now rested from the cushioned seats we rise
+And to the stairway turn again our eyes;
+The fourth stage plated o'er with beaten gold
+We pass, and topaz fifth till we behold
+The sixth of azure blue; to seventh glide,
+That glows with silvery summit where reside
+The gods, within a shrine of silvery sheen
+Which brightly glows, and from afar is seen.
+Without the temple, burnished silver shines;
+Within, pure gold and gems in rare designs.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Assur Samas and Merodac" ("Unto the king, my lord, may they
+be propitious!"), the response of the priest to the prayer.]
+
+[Footnote 2: See "Records of the Past," vol. xi. p. 63. These oracles seem
+to be formulas which are filled in with the monarch's name, and may apply
+to any king.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+EXPEDITION AGAINST KHUMBABA, AND BATTLE IN THE BLACK FOREST
+
+
+At early dawn the shining ranks are massed,
+And Erech echoes with the trumpet's blast;
+The chosen men of Erech are in line,
+And Ishtar in her car above doth shine.
+The blazing standards high with shouts are raised,
+As Samas' car above grand Sumir blazed.
+The march they sound at Izdubar's command,
+And thus they start for King Khumbaba's land;
+The gods in bright array above them shine,
+By Ishtar led, with Samas, moon-god Sin,
+On either side with Merodac and Bel,
+And Ninip, Nergal, Nusku with his spell,
+The sixty gods on chargers of the skies,
+And Ishtar's chariot before them flies.
+
+Across Cazina's desert far have come,
+The armies now have neared Khumbaba's home;
+Beneath grand forests of tall cedar, pine,
+And the dark shades near Khar-sak's brow divine.
+A brazen gate before them high appeared,
+And massive walls which their great foe had reared;
+The mighty gates on heavy pivots hung,
+They broke, and on their brazen hinges swung
+With clanging roars against the solid wall,
+And sent through all the wilds a clarion call.
+Within his halls Khumbaba is enthroned,
+In grand Tul-Khumba's walls by forests zoned
+With her bright palaces and templed shrines,
+The sanctuaries of the gods, where pines
+Sigh on the wafting winds their rich perfumes;
+Where Elam's god with sullen thunder dooms
+From Kharsak's brow the wailing nation's round,
+And Elam's hosts obey the awful sound.
+The giant here his castled city old
+Had strengthened, wrung his tributes, silver, gold;
+His palace ceiling with pure silver shines,
+And on his throne of gold from Magan's[1] mines
+In all his pride the conqueror exults,
+With wealth has filled his massive iron vaults.
+Oft from his marble towers the plains surveys,
+And sees his foes' most ancient cities blaze;
+While his _pa-te-si_ lead his allied hosts,
+And o'er his famous victories he boasts.
+
+With Rimsin he allied when Erech fell,
+The King of Sarsa, whose great citadel
+Was stormed by Nammurabi the great Sar,
+Ninrad of Erech, our King Izdubar.
+Khumbaba's ally was by him o'erthrown,
+And thus appeared to take Khumbaba's throne.
+And now within his palace came a sound
+That roared through all the forest, shook the ground:
+"Our foes! our foes! the gate! hear how it rings!"
+And from his throne the giant furious springs:
+"Ho! vassals! sound the trump! 'tis Izdubar,
+To arms! our foes are on us from afar!"
+His weapons seizes, drives his men in fear
+Before him with his massive sword and spear,
+And as a tempest from his lips he pours
+His orders, while his warrior steed he spurs
+Along his serried lines of bristling spears;
+Among the pines the army disappears.
+
+The men of Accad now in squadrons form,
+Arrayed to take Khumbaba's towers by storm;
+While Izdubar the forest black surveyed
+Of pines and cedars thickly grown, and made
+A reconnoitre of his hidden foe.
+The road was straight; afar the turrets glow
+With Samas' light, and all the gods arrayed,
+Ride o'er the pines and flash through their dark shade.
+The glorious blaze of Accad's glistening spears
+One _kaspu_ pass, and now the foe appears;
+Beneath the deepest shadows of the pines
+Khumbaba stands with solid battle lines
+Before the marching host of Izdubar.
+The forest echoes with the shouts of war,
+As they sweep on with ringing battle cries,
+Now loudly echoed from the woods and skies:
+"_Kar-ro! kar-ra!_[2] we follow Izdubar!"
+And through the forests fly the bolts of war.
+
+The foe beheld the gods in wrath above,
+And Accad's charging lines toward them move,
+But bravely stand to meet the onset fierce,
+Their mailed armor, shields, no arrows pierce.
+And now in direst conflict meet the mass,
+And furious still meets ringing bronze and brass,
+Khumbaba on his mighty steed of war,
+Above the ranks towers high a giant Sar,
+And sweeps the men of Accad with his blade,
+Till to his breast a heap of corpses made,
+And fiercely urged his men to fight, to die;
+And Izdubar, with helmet towering high,
+His men has led with fury on the foe,
+And massacres each man with one fell blow,
+Who dares to stand in front with sword or spear,
+And fighting by him stands his valiant seer.
+The gods now rushing from the gleaming sky,
+With blazing weapons carry victory;
+The foe no longer stand before the sight,
+And shouting fly away in wild affright.
+Their monarch turned and slowly rode away;
+And Accad's hosts his men pursue and slay,
+Until the forest deep resounds with cries.
+To save himself each man in terror flies.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Mag-an" or "Mizir," Egypt, or the famous mines of Africa.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Karra! kar-ra!" (cry out) "Hurrah! hurrah!"]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+HAND-TO-HAND CONFLICT OF THE RIVAL GIANTS--DEATH OF KHUMBABA
+
+
+Now the black forest through, the Sar and seer
+Sought for their foe, Khumbaba, far and near;
+But he had fled when he beheld the gods
+In fury rushing from their bright abodes.
+Now from the battle-field the King and seer
+The farthest limit of the forest near,
+And passing on, the Sar thus to his seer:
+"The gods have filled our foeman's heart with fear;
+He comes not forth to meet us 'neath his walls."
+But lo! within their sight, far from his halls,
+Khumbaba stands beside his steed of snow
+Held by his queen, and eyes his coming foe.
+Heabani cries: "Behold the enemy!
+And with his queen from us disdains to fly!"
+And Izdubar turned to Heabani, said:
+"My seer, methought this King from us had fled;
+His army slain or scattered from us fly;
+But by our hands this monarch here must die."
+Heabani eyed Khumbaba, nor replied
+Before the Queen, who wrung her hands and cried;
+And Izdubar continued:
+                       "He, of war,
+It seems, doth lack in skill, and from afar
+He scents the battle, while his fighting men
+Their raids oft make, and here return again;
+His castle we may enter without fear,
+And thou his queen mayst have who standeth here,
+And now we end the reign of Elam's throne;
+So lend thy hand to strike this monarch prone.
+My friend, if I mistake thee not, for war
+Thou art prepared, since thou upon the car
+Wast wont to ride in former years now gone;
+And if he falls, a feast day of the Sun
+[1]We will appoint, and may the birds of prey
+Surround his carcass on this glorious day:
+But stay! this giant I will slay alone,
+Although his weight is many _gur-ri_[2] stone;
+This giant's form the gods have surely made
+An enemy well worthy of my blade."
+
+And Izdubar upon his foe advanced,
+Who waiting stood, and at him fiercely glanced,
+And naught replied; but raised his glory blade.
+Their furious glance, the giant's queen dismayed.
+She wildly eyed the rivals towering high,
+And breathless stood, then quickly turned to fly,
+As Izdubar upon his heavy shield
+Received Khumbaba's stroke, and then doth wield
+His massive blade as lightning o'er his head,
+He strikes the giant's helmet on the mead.
+Khumbaba, furious, strikes a mighty blow,
+Which staggers Izdubar, who on his foe
+Now springs and rains upon him faster blows,
+Until his blade with fire continuous glows.
+Khumbaba caught his blows on sword and shield
+With parries; thrusts returned, and naught would yield;
+And thus they fought, the peerless kings of war.
+Now Ishtar downward drove his raging car,
+And in Khumbaba's eyes her rays she cast,
+The giant turned his glance--it was his last;
+Unwary caught, his foe has swung his sword,
+Khumbaba's gory head rolls o'er the sward.
+
+[Footnote 1: Smith's "Chald. Acc. of Gen.," Sayce's edition, p. 223, ls.
+35 and 41.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Gur-ri," a measurement of weight corresponding to "ton"(?).
+It [Transcriber's note: missing, probably "was"] also used as a
+measurement of ships.]
+
+
+
+ALCOVE II
+
+TABLET V--COLUMN I
+
+CORONATION OF IZDUBAR AS KING OF THE FOUR RACES, AND APPEARANCE OF ISHTAR
+IN HIS ROYAL PRESENCE, WHO SUES FOR HIS HAND
+
+
+To Erech's palaces returns the Sar,
+Rich laden with Khumbaba's spoils of war.
+The land of Ur with grandest glories shines--
+And gleams with palaces and towers and shrines.
+The plain with temples, cities, walls is filled,
+And wide canals, and yellow harvests tilled.
+Grand Erech to the sight presents no walls
+In ruins laid, but glows with turrets, halls;
+With splendor proudly shines across the plain.
+And now with joy he meets his courtly train;
+Their shouts of welcome rend the gleaming skies,
+And happiness beams from his people's eyes.
+Within the walls he rides with kingly pride,
+And all his chiefs and seers beside him ride;
+To his grand palace they now lead the way,
+To crown him king of Subartu this day.
+
+Arrayed in splendor on his throne, the Sar
+Before him eyes the Kassite spoils of war,
+Khumbaba's crown of gold, and blazing gems,
+The richest of the Kassite diadems,
+The royal sceptre of all Subartu,
+Of Larsa, Ur, Kardunia and Sutu
+The Sar upon his brow the crown now bound,
+Receives the sceptre while his courts resound
+With shouts for Sar-dan-nu of Subartu,
+The Sar of Kip-rat arba[1] and Sutu,
+Of Sumir, Accad, Nipur, Bar-ili,[2]
+And Erech, Larsa, Mairu, and Kus-si,
+Of Mal-al-nak, Kitu;--the sky resounds--
+For Iz-zu-bar-ili,[3] from earth rebounds;
+For Nam-mu-rabi, Bar-bels king of fire.
+What king to his great glory can aspire?
+
+The Zig-gur-at-u to the skies
+His hands have built, where holy fires
+To Samas burn; its flame ne'er dies,
+To holiness lead man's desires.
+He opens wide the fiery gates
+Of all the gods at Dintir old,
+Ka-ding-ir-a.[4] This day completes
+His grandeur--may it far be told
+Of our great Sar whose godly gate
+Wide opens Heaven's joy for man,
+Of Iz-zu-bar-ili the great,
+Who rules from Khar-sak to the main.
+Within the entrance to the royal rooms,
+Queen Ishtar with her train in splendor comes,
+Her radiant form with glistening gems ablaze,
+And shining crescent with its glorious rays,
+Glow with bright Heaven's unremitting flame;
+Thus came the Queen of Love of godly fame.
+The richest robe of gods her form enshrines,
+With every charm of Heaven and earth she shines;
+Of their wide splendors robs the farthest skies,
+That she with love her hero may surprise.
+Her train she robes with liveries of Heaven,
+To her are all the dazzling splendors given.
+
+The glittering court is filled with chiefs and seers,
+When Ishtar at the entrance now appears,
+The Ner-kalli,[5] her heralds at the door,
+As some grand sovereign from a foreign shore.
+The goddess proudly enters with her train,
+The spirits of the earth, and tossing main,
+From mountains, rivers, woods, and running streams;
+And every spirit where the sunlight gleams,
+Now fill the courts and palaces and halls,
+And thousands glowing bright surround the walls;
+Each wafting wind brings I-gi-gi[6] that soar
+Above An-un-na-ci from every shore,
+And herald Ishtar's presence, Queen of Love,
+With music through the halls, around, above.
+From lyres and lutes their softest wooings bring,
+As Ishtar bows before her lover king.
+A halo from the goddess fills the halls,
+And shines upon the dazzling jewelled walls.
+The Sar and seers in wonder were amazed
+At the sweet strains, and glorious light that blazed;
+Transfixed in silence stood, as she now spoke,
+And sweeter music through the palace woke.
+Like fragrant zephyrs, warbling from retreats
+Of gardens of the gods, she thus entreats
+From Izdubar her welcome, or a glance
+Of love; and she the Sar would thus entrance:
+
+"Thy wisdom, Sar, surpasses all mankind,
+In thee, O king! no blemish do I find.
+The Queen of Heaven favor seeks from thee,
+I come with love, and prostrate bend the knee.
+My follies past, I hope thou wilt forgive,
+Alone I love thee, with thee move and live;
+My heart's affections to thee, me have led,
+To woo thee to thine Ishtar's marriage bed.
+O kiss me, my beloved! I adore
+Thee! Hear me! I renounce the godly shore
+With all its hollow splendor where as queen
+I o'er the heavenly hosts, unrivaled reign
+In grandest glory on my shining throne;
+And yet for thee my heart here pines alone,
+I cannot live without my Izdubar!
+My husband's love and simple word shall far
+Surpass the godly bond. O let me, king,
+Rest on thy breast, and happiness will cling
+To all the blissful days which shall be thine.
+With glory of the skies, my love shall shine.
+O Izdubar, my king! this love below
+Is grander here than mortals e'er can know,
+For this I leave my throne in yonder skies,
+And at the feet of love thy queen now lies.
+Oh, let me taste with thee the sweets of love,
+And I my love for thee will grandly prove,
+And thou shalt ride upon a diamond car,
+Lined with pure gold; and jeweled horns of war
+Shall stud it round like rays of Samas' fire.
+Rich gifts whate'er my lover shall desire,
+Thy word shall bring to thee, my Sar-dan-nu!
+Lo! all the wealth that gods above can view,
+I bring to thee with its exhaustless store.
+Oh, come my love! within the halls, where more
+Than I have named is found, all, all is thine;
+Oh, come with me within our halls divine!
+Amid the fragrant odors of the pines,
+And all shrubs and flowers, vines,
+Euphrates' _zir-ri_ there shall sing for thee,
+And dance around thy feet with zi-mu-ri[7]
+And kings and lords and princes I will bring
+To bow to thee, beloved, glorious king!
+With tribute from the mountains and the plains,
+As offerings to thee. Thy flocks shall twins
+Bring forth; and herds of fattened, lowing kine
+Shall fast increase upon the plains divine.
+Thy warrior steeds shall prance with flowing manes,
+Resistless with thy chariot on the plain.
+Vast spoils, thy beasts of burden far shall bear,
+Unrivaled then shall be my king of war;
+And victory o'er all, thine eyes shall view,
+And loud acclaims shall rend the bright Samu."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Kip-rat arba," the four races or regions.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Bar-ili," from "bar," gate, and "ili," of the gods--Babel,
+Bab--originates from the Accadian word "bar," Semitic "bab;" thus Babel
+was originally called "bar-ili." See Taylor and Furst. The latter renders
+it "Bar-(Bir-)Bel," "town of Belus."]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Izzu-bar-ili" we believe to be the original name of Izdubar,
+afterward shortened to Izdubar, and means literally the fire-king of
+"bar-ili," or the "fire-king of the gate of the gods." This identifies him
+with Nimrod, the founder of Bar-bet or Babylon.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Ka-ding-ir-a (Acc.), "gate of God"--Pinches.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Ner-kalli," or "Ner-ekalli," chief of the palace.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "I-gi-gi," pronounced "e-gee-gee," spirits of heaven.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Zi-mu-ri," spirits of the light.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+THE KING'S ANSWER AND ISHTAR'S RAGE
+
+
+Amazed the sovereign sat upon his throne;
+And while she wooed, his heart was turned to stone;
+In scorn replied:
+
+            "Rise Ishtar, Heaven's high queen,
+Though all thy wealth, possessions I had seen
+Now piled before me, all in gems and gold,
+Of all the wealth of Heaven there heaped of old,
+I nakedness and famine would prefer
+To all the wealth divine thou canst confer.
+What carest thou for earthly royalty?
+The cup of poison shall thy lovers see.
+Thou sawest me within a haunt away
+From men. I lingered on that direful day,
+And took thee for a beauteous _zi-re-mu_[1]
+Or _zi-ar-i-a_ or a _zi-lit-tu_[2]
+And thou didst cause to enter love divine.
+As _zi-cur-un-i,_ spirit of the wine,
+Thou didst deceive me with thine arts refined,
+And love escaped upon the passing wind.
+Then to my palace come, and me there seek;
+Didst place thy mouth upon my lips, and wake
+Within my breast a dream of love and fire,
+Till I awoke and checked thy wild desire;
+Thou camest with the form of spirits fair,
+Didst hover o'er me in my chamber there.
+Thy godly fragrance from the skies above,
+A sign did carry of the Queen of Love:
+I woke, and thou didst vanish, then didst stand
+As mine own servant in my palace grand.
+Then as a skulking foe, a mystic spell
+Didst weave, and scorch me with the fires of hell
+While I was wrapped in sleep. Again I woke,
+I saw around me _dal-khi_, sulphurous smoke,
+Which thou didst send around my royal bed;
+And I believed that I was with the dead,
+With _dal-khi_ gloating over me in hell.
+My _su-khu-li_ then sought thy presence fell.
+Forever may thy wooing cease! for love
+Hath fled, may godly praises never move
+Upon the lips of holy gods, or men,--
+Of thee, the god of Love ne'er speak again!
+I loved thee once; with love my heart inflamed
+Once sought thee, but my troubles I have blamed
+Upon thee, for the dreams which thou didst send.
+Go! rest thy heart; and to thy pleasures wend!
+
+"For Tammuz of thy youth thy heart once wailed,
+For years his weary form thy love assailed;
+Allala next, the eagle, lovest, tore
+His wings. No longer could he joyful soar
+And float above the forest to the sky.
+Thou leavest him with fluttering wings to die.
+A lusty lion thou didst love, his might
+Destroyed, and plucked his claws in fierce delight,
+By sevens plucked, nor heard his piteous cry.
+A glorious war-steed next thy love didst try,
+Who yielded to thee, till his strength was gone:
+For seven _kaspu_[3] thou didst ride upon
+Him without ceasing, gave no food nor drink,
+Till he beneath thee to the earth did sink,
+And to his mistress, Sil-i-li, the steed
+Returned with broken spirit, drooping head.
+Thou lovest Tabulu, the shepherd king,
+And from his love continuous didst wring
+_Sem-uk-ki_[4], till he to appease thy love,
+The mighty gods of heaven then sought to move
+To pity with his daily offerings.
+Beneath thy wand upon the ground he springs,
+Transformed to a hyena; then was driven
+From his own city--by his dogs was riven.
+Next Is-ul-lan-u lov'st, uncouth, and rude,
+Thy father's laborer, who subject stood
+To thee, and daily scoured thy vessels bright:
+His eyes from him were torn, before thy sight.
+And chained before thee, there thy lover stood,
+With deadly poison placed within his food.
+Thou sayst:
+      'O Isullanu, stretch thy hand!
+The food partake, that doth before thee stand!'
+Then with thy hand didst offer him the food.
+He said: 'What askest thou? It is not good!
+I will not eat the poison thus prepared.'
+Thy godly wand him from thy presence cleared,
+Transformed him to a pillar far away.
+And for my love Queen Ishtar comes this day?
+As thou hast done with others, would thy love
+Return to me, thine actions all doth prove."
+
+The queen in fury from his presence turned,
+In speechless rage the palace halls she spurned;
+And proudly from the earth swept to the skies;
+Her godly train in terror quickly flies.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Zi-re-mu," spirit of mercy or grace.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Zi-lit-tu," spirit of the mist.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Seven kaspu," fourteen hours; each kaspu was two hours.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Sem-uk-ki," translated by Sayce "stibium," antimony; by
+Talbot, "luetarish semukki," "thou who didst make evil with thy drugs."--
+"Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.", vol. v. p. 110. Sayce's edition Smith's
+"C.A.G.," p. 229.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+ISHTAR COMPLAINS TO ANU, KING OF HEAVEN, WHO CREATES A WINGED BULL TO
+DESTROY ISHTAR
+
+
+Before the throne of Anu, Ishtar cries,
+And Anatu, the sovereigns of the skies:
+"O Sar, this king my beauty doth despise,
+My sweetest charms beholds not with his eyes."
+And Anu to his daughter thus replied:
+"My daughter, thou must crush his vaunting pride,
+And he will claim thy beauty and thy charms,
+And gladly lie within thy glorious arms."
+
+"I hate him now, O Sar, as I did love!
+Against the strength of Anu let him prove
+His right divine to rule without our aid,
+Before the strength of Anu let him bleed.
+Upon this giant Sar so filled with pride,
+Let Anu's winged bull[1] in fury ride,
+And I will aid the beast to strike him prone,
+Till he in death shall breathe his dying groan."
+And Anu said: "If thou to it shall join
+Thy strength, which all thy noble names define
+Thy glories[2] and thy power thus magnified,
+Will humble him, who has thy power defied,"
+And Ishtar thus: "By all my might as queen
+Of war and battles, where I proudly reign,
+This Sar my hands shall strike upon the plain,
+And end his strength and all his boastings vain.
+By all the noble names with gods I hold
+As queen of war, this giant monarch bold,
+Who o'er mine ancient city thinks to reign,
+Shall lie for birds of prey upon the plain.
+For answering my love for thee with scorn,
+Proud monarch! from thy throne thou shalt be torn!"
+
+For Ishtar, Anu from the clouds creates
+A shining monster with thick brazen plates
+And horns of adamant;[3] and now it flies
+Toward the palace, roaring from the skies.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Anu's winged bull," Taurus, constellation of the heavens.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Glories" ("maskhi"). This word is not translated by Mr.
+Sayce.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Horns of adamant." Sayce translates in I. 22, col. v., horns
+of crystal--"thirty manehs of crystal," etc. The meaning probably of
+"zamat stone," as given by Smith, was a hard substance, such as the
+diamond or adamant. By some translators it has been rendered onyx, and
+others lazuli.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+THE FIGHT WITH THE WINGED BULL OF ANU
+
+
+The gods appear above to watch the fight,
+And Erech's _masari_ rush in affright
+To Izdubar, who sits upon his throne,
+Before him fall in speechless terror prone.
+A louder roar now echoes from the skies,
+And Erech's Sar without the palace flies.
+He sees the monster light upon the plain,
+And calls Heabani with the choicest men
+Of Erech's spearsmen armed, who fall in line
+Without the gates, led by their Sar divine.
+
+And now the monster rushed on Izdubar,
+Who meets it as the god of chase and war.
+With whirling sword before the monster's face,
+He rains his blows upon its front of brass
+And horns, and drives it from him o'er the plain,
+And now with spreading wings it comes again,
+With maddened fury; fierce its eyeballs glare.
+It rides upon the monarch's pointed spear;
+The scales the point have turned, and broke the haft.
+Then as a pouncing hawk when sailing daft,
+In swiftest flight o'er him drops from the skies,
+But from the gleaming sword it quickly flies.
+Three hundred warriors now nearer drew
+To the fierce monster, which toward them flew;
+Into their midst the monster furious rushed,
+And through their solid ranks resistless pushed
+To slay Heabani, onward fought and broke
+Two lines and through the third, which met the shock
+With ringing swords upon his horns and scales.
+At last the seer it reaches, him impales
+With its sharp horns: but valiant is the seer--
+He grasps its crest and fights without a fear.
+The monster from his sword now turns to fly;
+Heabani grasps its tail, and turns his eye
+Towards his king, while scudding o'er the plain.
+So quickly has it rushed and fled amain,
+That Izdubar its fury could not meet,
+But after it he sprang with nimble feet.
+
+Heabani loosed his grasp and stumbling falls,
+And to his king approaching, thus he calls:
+"My friend, our strongest men are overthrown:
+But see! he comes! such strength was never known.
+With all my might I held him, but he fled!
+We both it can destroy! Strike at its head!"
+Like Rimmon now he flies upon the air,
+As sceptred Nebo,[1] he his horns doth bear,
+That flash with fire along the roaring skies,
+[2]Around the Sar and seer he furious flies.
+Heabani grasps the plunging horns, nor breaks
+His grasp; in vain the monster plunging shakes
+His head, and roaring, upward furious rears.
+Heabani's strength the mighty monster fears;
+He holds it in his iron grasp, and cries:
+"Quick! strike!" Beneath the blows the monster dies;
+And Izdubar now turned his furious face
+Toward the gods, and on the beast doth place
+His foot; he raised his gory sword on high,
+And sent his shout defiant to the sky:
+"'Tis thus, ye foes divine! the Sar proclaims
+His war against your power, and highest names!
+Hurl! hurl! your darts of fire, ye vile _kal-bi!_[3]
+My challenge hear! ye cravens of the sky!"
+
+[Footnote 1: "Nebo," the holder of the sceptre of power; also the god of
+prophecy.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Around" ("tarka"), or it may mean "between."]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Kal-bi," dogs.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+THE CURSE OF ISHTAR, AND REJOICING OF ERECH OVER THE VICTORY
+
+
+The monarch and his seer have cleft the head
+From Anu's bull prone lying on the mead.
+They now command to bring it from the plain
+Within the city where they view the slain.
+The heart they brought to Samas' holy shrine,
+Before him laid the offering divine.
+Without the temple's doors the monster lays,
+And Ishtar o'er the towers the bulk surveys;
+She spurns the carcass, cursing thus, she cries:
+"Woe! woe to Izdubar, who me defies!
+My power has overthrown, my champion slain;
+Accursed Sar! most impious of men!"
+
+Heabani heard the cursing of the Queen,
+And from the carcass cleft the tail in twain,
+Before her laid it; to the goddess said:
+"And wherefore comest thou with naught to dread?
+Since I with Izdubar have conquered thee,
+Thou hearest me! Before thee also see
+Thine armored champion's scales! thy beast is dead,"
+And Ishtar from his presence furious fled,
+And to her maids the goddess loudly calls
+Joy and Seduction from the palace halls;
+And o'er her champion's death she mourning cries,
+And flying with her maids, sped to the skies.
+
+King Izdubar his summons sends afar
+To view the monster slain by Erech's Sar.
+The young and old the carcass far surround,
+And view its mighty bulk upon the ground.
+The young men eye its horns with wild delight,
+And weigh them on the public scales in sight
+Of Erech. "Thirty _manehs_ weighs!" they cry;
+"Of purest _zamat_ stone, seems to the eye
+In substance, with extremities defaced."
+Six _gurri_ weighed the monster's bulk undressed.
+As food for Lugul-turda, their Sar's god,
+The beast is severed, placed upon the wood.
+Piled high upon the altar o'er the fires.
+Then to Euphrates' waters each retires
+To cleanse themselves for Erech's grand parade,
+As Izdubar by proclamation bade.
+Upon their steeds of war with Izdubar
+The chiefs and warriors extend afar
+With chariots, and waving banners, spears,
+And Erech rings with their triumphant cheers.
+Before the chariot of their great Sar,
+Who with his seer rides in his brazen car,
+The seers a proclamation loud proclaim
+And cheer their Sar and seer; and laud the name
+Of their great monarch, chanting thus his praise,
+While Erech's band their liveliest marches play:
+
+"If anyone to glory can lay claim
+Among all chiefs and warriors of fame,
+We Izdubar above them all proclaim
+Our Izzu-Ul-bar[1] of undying fame.
+    _Sar gabri la isu,
+    Sar-dannu bu-mas-lu!_[2]
+
+"He wears the diadem of Subartu,
+From Bar-ili[3] he came to Eridu;
+Our giant monarch, who of all _barri_[4]
+Can rival him, our Nin-arad _rabi?_[5]
+    _Sar-dannu ina mati basi,
+    Sar bu-mas-la e-mu-ki, nesi._"[6]
+
+Through the grand halls of Erech far resounds
+The feast their Sar proclaimed through all the grounds
+Of Erech's palaces; where he now meets
+His heroes, seers and counsellors, and greets
+Them in his crowded festal halls.
+Grand banquets far are spread within the walls,
+And sparkling rarest wines each freely drank,
+And revels ruled the hour till Samas sank,
+And shadows sweep across the joyous plain,
+And Samas sleeps with Hea 'neath the main.
+The jewelled lamps are lit within the halls,
+And dazzling glory on the feasters falls.
+The rays o'er gems and richest garments shone
+Upon the lords and ladies round the throne;
+While troops of dancing girls around them move
+With cymbals, harps and lutes, with songs of love.
+Again the board glows with rich food and wines,
+Now spread before them till each man reclines
+Upon his couch at rest in the far night,
+And swimming halls and wines pass from their sight.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Izzu-Ul-bar," the fire of Bel's temple.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "The King who has no rival. The powerful giant King." The
+royal titles of Izdubar.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Bar-ili," temple, or country of the gods.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Barri," chieftains, army, soldiers.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Nin-arad rabi," "the servant of Nin, the King."]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Who is the great king (in the land) of all countries, the
+powerful giant king, the lion!" The royal titles of Izdubar.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+ISHTAR WEAVES A MYSTIC SPELL OVER THE KING AND SEER, AND VANISHES--THE
+SEER ADVISES THE KING TO SEEK THE AID OF THE IMMORTAL SEER WHO ESCAPES
+FROM THE FLOOD.
+
+
+The goddess Ishtar wrapped in darkness waits
+Until the goddess Tsil-at-tu[1] the gates
+Of sleep has closed upon the darkened plain;
+Then lightly to the palace flies the Queen.
+O'er the King's couch she weaves an awful dream,
+While her bright eyes upon him furious gleam.
+Then o'er Heabani's couch a moment stands,
+And Heaven's curtains pulls aside with hands
+Of mystic power, and he a vision sees--
+The gods in council;--vanishing, she flees
+Without the palace like a gleam of light,
+And wakes the guard around in wild affright.
+
+Next day the seer reveals to Izdubar
+How all the gods a council held of war,
+And gave to Anu power to punish them
+For thus defying Ishtar's godly claim;
+And thus the seer gave him his counsel, well
+Considered, how to meet their plottings fell:
+
+"To Khasisadra go, who from the flood
+Escaped when o'er the earth the waters stood
+Above mankind, and covered all the ground;
+He at the river's mouth may yet be found.
+For his great aid, we now the seer must seek,
+For Anu's fury will upon us break.
+Immortal lives the seer beside the sea;
+Through Hades pass, and soon the seer mayst see."
+
+Thus Izdubar replied, and him embraced:
+"With thee, Heabani, I my throne have graced;
+With thee I go, mine own companion dear,
+And on the road each other we may cheer,"
+"The way is long, my King, and if I live,
+With thee I go, but oh, thou must not grieve,
+For perils great attend the way, and old
+Am I: the suppleness of youth to hold
+My strength I need, but it alas! is gone.
+My heart is ready, but I fear, my son,
+These crippled limbs which Anu's bull hath left
+Of my strong vigor, have thy seer bereft.
+Too weak am I, for that long journey hard
+To undertake; my presence would retard
+Thee,--with these wounds; nor strength have I to last
+To guard my body in the mountain fast.
+But if thou wilt, my strength is thine, my King!
+To do thy will my aged form shall spring
+With gladness, and all perils I'll defy;
+If need be, for thee will thy servant die."
+
+"Heabani, noble one! my chosen seer!
+I love thee, bid thy loyal heart good cheer.
+He steeds may take to ride through all the way,
+With easy journeys on the road each day;
+From perils I will guard thee, and defend;
+To-morrow then we on our way will wend."
+
+Equipped for the long journey they appear
+Next morn and leave, while Erech's people cheer
+Them on their way across the glowing plain,
+To perils dire they go--distress and pain.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Tsil-at-tu," goddess of darkness, or shades of night.]
+
+
+
+TABLET VI--COLUMN I
+
+ISHTAR'S DESCENT TO HADES--HER FEARFUL RECEPTION
+
+
+To Hades' darkened land, whence none return,
+Queen Ishtar, Sin's great daughter, now doth turn;
+Inclined her ear and listened through the void
+That lay beneath of every path devoid,
+The home of darkness, of the Under-World,
+Where god Ir-kal-la[1] from the heights was hurled.
+The land and road from whence is no return,
+Where light no entrance hath to that dark bourne;
+Where dust to dust returns, devouring clods;
+Where light dwells not in Tsil-lat-tus abodes;
+Where sable ravens hovering rule the air;
+O'er doors and bolts dust reigneth with despair.
+Before the gates of gloom the Queen now stands,
+And to the keeper Ishtar thus commands:
+"O keeper of the waters! open wide
+Thy gate, that I through these dark walls may glide;
+But if thou open'st not the gate for me,
+That I may enter, shattered thou shalt see
+The doors and bolts before thee lying prone,
+And from the dust shall rise each skeleton,
+With fleshless jaws devour all men with thee,
+Till death shall triumph o'er mortality."
+The keeper to the Princess Ishtar said:
+"Withhold thy speech! or Allat's fury dread!
+To her I go to bid thee welcome here."
+To Allat then the keeper doth appear:
+"Thy sister Ishtar the dark waters seeks--
+The Queen of Heaven," thus Allat's fury breaks.
+"So like an herb uprooted comes this Queen,
+To sting me as an asp doth Ishtar mean?
+What can her presence bring to me but hate?
+Doth Heaven's Queen thus come infuriate?"
+And Ishtar thus replies: "The fount I seek,
+Where I with Tammuz, my first love, may speak;
+And drink its waters, as sweet nectar-wines,
+Weep o'er my husband, who in death reclines;
+My loss as wife with handmaids I deplore,
+O'er my dear Tammuz let my teardrops pour."
+And Allat said, "Go! keeper, open wide
+The gates to her! she hath me once defied;
+Bewitch her as commanded by our laws."
+To her thus Hades opened wide its jaws.
+
+"Within, O goddess! Cutha thee receives!
+Thus Hades' palace its first greeting gives."
+He seized her, and her crown aside was thrown.
+"O why, thou keeper, dost thou seize my crown?"
+"Within, O goddess! Allat thee receives!
+'Tis thus to thee our Queen her welcome gives."
+Within the next gate he her earrings takes,
+And goddess Ishtar now with fury shakes.
+"Then why, thou slave, mine earrings take away?"
+"Thus entrance, goddess, Allat bids this day."
+At the third gate her necklace next he takes,
+And now in fear before him Ishtar quakes.
+"And wilt thou take from me my gems away?"
+"Thus entrance, goddess, Allat bids this day."
+And thus he strips the goddess at each gate,
+Of ornaments upon her breast and feet
+And arms; her bracelets, girdle from her waist,
+Her robe next took, and flung the Queen undrest
+Within a cell of that dark solitude.
+At last, before Queen Ishtar Allat stood,
+When she had long remained within the walls,
+And Allat mocked her till Queen Ishtar falls
+Humiliated on the floor in woe;
+Then turning wildly, cursed her ancient foe.
+Queen Allat furious to her servant cries:
+"Go! Naintar! with disease strike blind her eyes!
+And strike her side! her breast and head and feet;
+With foul disease her strike, within the gate!"
+
+[Footnote 1: "Ir-kal-la," the King of Hades, who was hurled from the
+heights of heaven with the evil gods who rebelled with Tiamatu, the
+goddess of chaos, against the reign of the gods of heaven.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+EFFECT OF ISHTAR'S IMPRISONMENT IN HADES--LOVE DEPARTS FROM THE EARTH--THE
+EARTH'S SOLEMN DIRGE OF WOE.
+
+
+When Ishtar, Queen of Love, from Earth had flown,
+With her love fled, and left all nature prone;
+From Earth all peace with love then fled amain.
+In loneliness the bull stalked o'er the plain,
+And tossed his drooping crest toward the sky,
+In sadness lay upon the green to die;
+On the far kine looked weary and bereaved,
+And turned toward the gods, and wondering grieved.
+The troubled kine then gravely chewed their cud,
+And hungerless in the rich pastures stood.
+The ass his mate abandoned, fled away,
+And loveless wives then cursed the direful day;
+And loving husbands kiss their wives no more,
+And doves their cooing ceased, and separate soar;
+And love then died in all the breasts of men,
+And strife supreme on earth was reveling then.
+
+The sexes of mankind their wars divide,
+And women hate all men, and them deride;
+And some demented hurl aside their gowns,
+And queens their robes discard and jewelled crowns,
+And rush upon the streets bereft of shame,
+Their forms expose, and all the gods defame.
+Alas! from earth the Queen of Love has gone,
+And lovers 'void their haunts with faces wan
+And spurn from them the hateful thought of love,
+For love no longer reigns, all life to move.
+An awful thrill now speeds through Hades' doors,
+And shakes with horror all the dismal floors;
+A wail upon the breeze through space doth fly,
+And howling gales sweep madly through the sky;
+Through all the universe there speeds a pang
+Of travail. Mam-nu-tu[1] appalled doth hang
+Upon her blackened pinions in the air,
+And piteous from her path leads Black Despair,
+"The queen in chains in Hades dying lies,
+And life with her," they cry, "forever dies!"
+Through misty glades and darkened depths of space,
+Tornadoes roar her fate to Earth's sweet face;
+The direful tidings from far Hades pour
+Upon her bosom with their saddest roar;
+Like moans of mighty powers in misery,
+They bring the tale with awful minstrelsy.
+And Earth her mists wrapped round her face in woe,
+While icy pangs through all her breast deep flow.
+Her bosom sobbing wails a mighty moan,
+"Alas! forever my sweet queen hath flown!"
+With shrieks of hurricane, and ocean's groan,
+And sobbing of the winds through heights unknown,
+Through mountain gorges sweep her wails of woe,
+Through every land and seas, her sorrows flow:
+Oh, moan! oh, moan! dear mountains, lakes, and seas!
+Oh, weep with me dear plants, and flowers, and trees!
+Alas! my beauty fading now will die!
+Oh, weep, ye stars, for me in every sky!
+Oh, Samas, hide thy face! I am undone!
+Oh, weep with me Ur-ru,[2] my precious son.
+Let all your notes of joy, my birds, be stilled;
+Your mother's heart with dread despair is filled:
+
+"Come back, my flowerets, with your fragrant dews;
+Come, all my beauties, with your brightest hues;
+Come back, my plants and buds and youngling shoots!
+Within your mother's bosom hide your roots.
+Oh, children, children! Love hath fled away,
+Alas! that life I gave should see this day!
+Your queen lies dying in her awful woe,
+Oh, why should she from us to Hades go?"
+
+Wide Nature felt her woe, and ceased to spring,
+And withered buds their vigor lost, and fling
+No more their fragrance to the lifeless air;
+The fruit-trees died, or barren ceased to bear;
+The male plants kiss their female plants no more;
+And pollen on the winds no longer soar
+To carry their caresses to the seed
+Of waiting hearts that unavailing bleed,
+Until they fold their petals in despair,
+And dying, drop to earth, and wither there.
+The growing grain no longer fills its head,
+The fairest fields of corn lie blasted, dead.
+All Nature mourning dons her sad attire,
+And plants and trees with falling leaves expire.
+And Samas' light and moon-god's soothing rays
+Earth's love no more attracts; recurring days
+Are shortened by a blackness deep profound
+That rises higher as the days come round.
+At last their light flees from the darkened skies,
+The last faint gleam now passes, slowly dies.
+Upon a blasted world, dread darkness falls,
+O'er dying nature, crumbling cities' walls.
+Volcanoes' fires are now the only light,
+Where pale-faced men collect around in fright;
+With fearful cries the lurid air they rend,
+To all the gods their wild petitions send.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Mam-nu-tu," goddess of fate.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Ur-ru," the moon-god.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+PAPSUKUL, THE GOD OF HOPE, AND HERALD OF THE GODS, FLIES FROM THE EARTH
+AND INTERCEDES FOR THE RELEASE OF ISHTAR, AND HEA GRANTS HIS PRAYER
+
+
+O Hope! thou fleeting pleasure of the mind,
+Forever with us stay, our hearts to bind!
+We cling to thee till life has fled away;
+Our dearest phantom, ever with us stay!
+Without thee, we have naught but dread despair,
+The worst of all our torments with us here;
+Oh, come with thy soft pinions, o'er us shine!
+And we will worship thee, a god divine:
+The _ignis fatuus_ of all our skies
+That grandly leads us, vanishes and dies,
+And we are left to grope in darkness here,
+Without a ray of light our lives to cheer.
+Oh, stay! sweet Love's companion, ever stay!
+And let us hope with love upon our way!
+We reck not if a phantom thou hast been,
+And we repent that we have ever seen
+Thy light on earth to lead us far astray;
+Forever stay! or ever keep away!
+
+When Papsukul beheld in man's abodes
+The change that spread o'er blasted, lifeless clods,
+And heard earth's wailing through the waning light,
+With vegetation passing out of sight,
+From the doomed world to Heaven he quickly flies,
+While from the earth are rising fearful cries.
+To Samas' throne he speeds with flowing tears,
+And of the future dark he pours his fears.
+To Sin, the moon-god, Pap-su-kul now cries
+O'er Ishtar's fate, who in black Hades lies;
+O'er Earth's dire end, which with Queen Ishtar dies;
+To Hea he appeals with mournful cries:
+
+    "O Hea, our Creator, God and King!
+      Queen Ishtar now is lying prone.
+    To Earth, our godly queen again, oh, bring!
+      I trust thy love, O Holy One!
+    To all the gods who reign o'er us on high
+      I pray! thus Hope thine aid implores,
+    Release our queen! To Hades quickly fly!
+      Thy Pap-su-kul with faith adores.
+
+    "The bull hath left the lowing kine bereaved,
+      And sulking dies in solitude;
+    The ass hath fled away, his mates hath grieved,
+      And women are no more imbued
+    With love, and drive their husbands far away,
+      And wives enjoy not their caress;
+    All peace and love have gone from earth this day,
+      And love on earth knows not its bliss.
+
+    "The females die through all the living world,
+      Among all beasts, and men, and plants;
+    All love from them on earth have madly hurled,
+      For blissful love no more each pants;
+    And Samas' light is turned away from Earth,
+      And left alone volcanoes' fire;
+    The land is filled with pestilence and dearth,
+      All life on earth will soon expire."
+
+When Hea heard the solemn chant of Hope,
+From his high throne he let his sceptre drop,
+And cried: "And thus, I rule o'er all mankind!
+For this, I gave them life, immortal mind;
+To earth's relief, my herald shall quick go,
+I hear thy prayer, and song of Ishtar's woe."
+
+"Go! At-su-su-namir, with thy bright head!
+With all thy light spring forth! and quickly speed;
+Towards the gates of Hades, turn thy face!
+And quickly fly for me through yonder space.
+Before thy presence may the seven gates
+Of Hades open with their gloomy grates;
+May Allat's face rejoice before thy sight,
+Her rage be soothed, her heart filled with delight;
+But conjure her by all the godly names,
+And fearless be,--towards the roaring streams
+Incline thine ear, and seek the path there spread.
+Release Queen Ishtar! raise her godly head!
+And sprinkle her with water from the stream;
+Her purify! a cup filled to the brim
+Place to her lips that she may drink it all.
+The herald as a meteor doth fall,
+With blazing fire disparts the hanging gloom
+Around the gates of that dark world of doom."
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+RELEASE OF ISHTAR--HER ATTEMPTS TO BRING TO LIFE TAMMUZ, HER FIRST LOVER
+
+
+When Allat saw the flaming herald come,
+And his bright light dispelling all her gloom,
+She beat her breast; and at him furious foams
+In rage, and stamping shakes all Hades' domes,
+Thus cursed the herald, At-su-su-namir:
+"Away! thou herald! or I'll chain thee here
+In my dark vaults, and throw thee for thy food
+The city's garbage, which has stagnant stood,
+With impure waters for thy daily drink,
+And lodge thee in my prison till you sink
+From life impaled in yonder dismal room
+Of torture; to thy fate so thou hast come?
+Thine offspring with starvation I will strike!"
+
+At last obedient doth Allat speak:
+"Go, Namtar! and the iron palace strike!
+O'er Asherim[1] adorned let the dawn break!
+And seat the spirits on their thrones of gold!
+Let Ishtar Life's bright waters then behold,
+And drink her fill, and bring her then to me;
+From her imprisonment, I send her free."
+And Namtar then goes through the palace walls,
+And flings the light through all the darkened halls,
+And places all the spirits on their thrones,
+Leads Ishtar to the waters near the cones.
+She drinks the sparkling water now with joy,
+Which all her form doth cleanse and purify.
+And he at the first gate her robe returns,
+And leads her through the second; where he turns,
+And gives her bracelets back;--thus at each door
+Returns to her her girdle, gems; then o'er
+Her queenly brow he placed her shining crown.
+With all her ornaments that were her own,
+She stands with pride before the seventh gate,
+And Namtar bows to her in solemn state:
+
+"Thou hast no ransom to our queen here paid
+For thy deliverance, yet thou hast said
+Thy Tammuz thou didst seek within our walls,
+Turn back! and thou wilt find him in these halls.
+To bring him back to life the waters pour
+Upon him; they thy Tammuz will restore;
+With robes thou mayst adorn him and a crown
+Of jewels, and thy maid with thee alone
+Shall give thee comfort and appease thy grief.
+Kharimtu, Samkha come to thy relief!"
+
+Now Ishtar lifts her eyes within a room
+Prepared for her, and sees her maidens come,
+Before a weird procession wrapped in palls,
+That soundless glide within and fills the halls.
+Before her now they place a sable bier
+Beside the fount; and Ishtar, drawing near,
+Raised the white pall from Tammuz's perfect form.
+The clay unconscious, had that mystic charm
+Of Beauty sleeping sweetly on his face,--
+Of agony or sorrow left no trace:
+But, oh! that awful wound of death was there
+With its deep mark;--the wound, and not the scar.
+
+When Ishtar's eyes beheld it, all her grief
+Broke forth afresh, refusing all relief;
+She smote her breast in woe, and moaning cried,
+Nor the bright waters to his wound applied:
+"O Tammuz! Tammuz! turn thine eyes on me!
+Thy queen thou didst adorn, before thee see!
+Behold the emeralds and diamond crown
+Thou gavest me when I became thine own!
+Alas! he answers not: and must I mourn
+Forever o'er my love within this bourne?
+But, oh! the waters from this glowing stream!
+Perhaps those eyes on me with love will beam,
+And I shall hear again his song of love.
+Oh, quickly let these waters to me prove
+Their claim to banish death with magic power!"
+
+Then with her maids, she o'er his form doth pour
+The sparkling drops of life--
+    "He moves! he lives!
+What happiness is this my heart receives?
+O come, my Tammuz! to my loving arms!"
+
+And on breast his breathing form she warms;
+With wondering eyes he stares upon his queen,
+And nestling closed his eyes in bliss again.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Asherim," literally "stone stakes" or "cones," the symbols
+of the goddess Asherah or Ishtar (Sayce), but Calmet says that the god
+Ashima is a deity of very uncertain origin, and that the name "Ashima" may
+be very well compared with the Persian "asuman" ("heaven"); in "Zend,"
+"acmano," so Gesenius in his Man. Lex., 1832. This also, according to the
+magi, is the name of the angel of death, who separates the souls of men
+from their bodies, Cal. Dic., p. 106. Cones are to be seen in the British
+Museum which are probably of the character which represented Elah-Gabalah,
+the sun-god, adored in Rome during the reign of Heliogabalus. The symbol
+and worship came from Hamath in Syria.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+TAMMUZ IS RESTORED TO LIFE BY THE WATERS OF LIFE--HIS SONG OF LOVE
+
+
+The nectared cup the queen placed to his lips,
+And o'er his heaving breast the nectar drips,
+And now his arms are folded round his queen,
+And her fond kisses he returns again;
+And see! they bring to him his harp of gold,
+And from its strings, sweet music as of old
+His skilful hands wake through the sounding domes;
+Oh, how his Song of Love wakes those dark rooms!
+
+    "My Queen of Love comes to my arms!
+      Her faithful eyes have sought for me,
+    My Love comes to me with her charms;
+      Let all the world now happy be!
+          My queen has come again!
+
+    Forever, dearest, let me rest
+      Upon the bosom of my queen!
+    Thy lips of love are honeyed best;
+      Come! let us fly to bowering green!
+          To our sweet bower again.
+
+    O Love on Earth! O Love in Heaven!
+      That dearest gift which gods have given,
+    Through all my soul let it be driven,
+      And make my heart its dearest haven,
+          For Love returns the kiss!
+
+    Oh! let me pillow there within
+      Thy breast, and, oh, so sweetly rest,
+    My life anew shall there begin;
+      On thy sweet charms, oh, let me feast!
+          Life knows no sweeter bliss.
+
+    Oh, let me feast upon thy lips,
+      As honey-bird the nectar sips,
+    And drink new rapture through my lips,
+      As honey-bee its head thus drips
+          In nectarine abyss!
+
+    O Love, sweet queen! my heart is thine!
+      My Life I clasp within mine arms!
+    My fondest charmer, queen divine!
+      My soul surrenders to thy charms,
+          In bliss would fly away.
+
+    No dearer joy than this I want;
+      If love is banished from that life
+    There bodyless, my soul would pant,
+      And pine away in hopeless grief,
+          If love be fled away.
+
+    If Love should hide and fold her wings
+      In bowers of yonder gleaming skies,
+    Unmeaning then each bard oft sings
+      Of bliss that lives on earth and dies,--
+          I want such love as this.
+
+    I want thy form, thy loving breast,
+      Mine arms of love surrounding thee,
+    And on thy bosom sweetly rest,
+      Or else that world were dead to me.
+          No other life is bliss.
+
+    If it is thus, my queen, I go
+      With joy to yonder blissful clime;
+    But if not so, then let me flow
+      To soil and streams through changing time,
+          To me would be more bliss.
+
+    For then, in blooming flowerets, I
+      Could earth adorn, my soul delight,
+    And never thus on earth could die;
+      For though I should be hid from sight,
+          Would spring again with joy!
+
+    And sing as some sweet warbling bird,
+      Or in the breezes wave as grain,
+    As yellow sun-birds there have whirred
+      On earth, could I thus live again,
+          That beauteous world enjoy!
+
+    'Mid safflower-fields or waving cane,
+      Or in the honeysuckles lie,
+    In forms of life would breathe again,
+      Enjoy Earth's sweetest revelry,
+          And ever spring again!
+
+    Each life to me new joys would bring,
+      In breast of beast or bird or flower,
+    In each new form new joys would spring,
+      And happy, ever, Love would soar!
+          Triumphant filled with joy!
+
+    In jujube or tamarisk
+      Perhaps would come to life again,
+    Or in the form of fawns would frisk
+      'Mid violets upon the plain;
+          But I should live again!
+
+    And throb beneath the glistening dew,
+      In bamboo tufts, or mango-trees,
+    In lotus bloom, and spring anew,
+      In rose-tree bud, or such as these
+          On Earth return again!
+
+    And I should learn to love my mate,
+      In beast or singing bird or flower,
+    For kiss of love in hope could wait;
+      Perhaps I then would come that hour,
+          In form I have again!
+
+    And love you say, my queen, is there,
+      Where I can breathe with life anew?
+    But is it so? My Love, beware!
+      For some things oft are false, some true,
+          But I thee trust again!
+
+    We fly away! from gates away!
+      Oh, life of bliss! Oh, breath of balm!
+    With wings we tread the Silver Way,
+      To trailing vines and feathery palm,
+          To bower of love again."
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+ESCAPE OF TAMMUZ FROM HADES--HIS DEATH IN THE CLOUDS--FUNERAL PROCESSION
+OF THE GODS--ISHTAR'S ELEGY OVER THE DEATH OF TAMMUZ--HIS REVIVAL IN
+HADES, WHERE HE IS CROWNED AS THE LORD OF HADES--ISHTAR'S RETURN BRINGS
+LIGHT AND LOVE BACK TO EARTH.
+
+
+But see! they pass from those dark gates and walls,
+And fly upon the breeze from Hades' halls,
+Hark! hark! the sounding harp is stilled! it falls
+From Tammuz's hands! Oh, how its wailing calls
+To you bright _zi-ni_[1] flying through the skies,
+See! one sweet spirit of the wind swift flies
+And grasps the wailing harp before it ends
+Its wail of woe, and now beneath it bends,
+With silent pinions listening to its strings,
+Wild sobbing on the winds;--with wailing rings
+The conscious harp, and trembles in her hands.
+A rush of pinions comes from myriad lands,
+With moanings sends afar the awful tale,
+And mourners brings with every whispering gale.
+And see! the queen's companion fainting sinks!
+She lays him on that cloud with fleecy brinks!
+And oh! his life is ebbing fast away!
+She wildly falls upon his breast, and gray
+Her face becomes with bitter agony.
+She tearless kneels, wrapt in her misery
+And now upon his breast she lays her head,
+With tears that gods, alas! with men must shed;
+She turning, sobs to her sweet waiting maids,
+Who weeping o'er her stand with bended heads:
+"Assemble, oh, my maids, in mourning here,
+The gods! and spirits of the earth bring near!"
+
+They come! they come! three hundred spirits high,
+The heavenly spirits come! the I-gi-gi!
+From Heaven's streams and mouths and plains and vales,
+And gods by thousands on the wings of gales.
+The spirits of the earth, An-un-na-ci,
+Now join around their sisters of the sky.
+Hark! hear her weeping to the heavenly throng,
+Imploring them to chant their mournful song:
+
+"With your gold lyres, the dirge, oh, sing with me!
+And moan with me, with your sweet melody;
+With swelling notes, as zephyrs softly wail,
+And cry with me as sobbing of the gale.
+O Earth! dear Earth! oh, wail with thy dead trees!
+With sounds of mountain torrents, moaning seas!
+And spirits of the lakes, and streams, and vales,
+And Zi-ku-ri of mountains' trackless trail,
+Join our bright legions with your queen! Oh, weep
+With your sad tears, dear spirits of the deep!
+Let all the mournful sounds of earth be heard,
+The breeze hath carried stored from beast and bird;
+Join the sweet notes of doves for their lost love
+To the wild moans of hours,--wailing move;
+Let choirs of Heaven and of the earth then peal,
+All living beings my dread sorrow feel!
+Oh, come with saddest, weirdest melody,
+Join earth and sky in one sweet threnody!"
+
+Ten thousand times ten thousand now in line,
+In all the panoplies of gods divine;
+A million crowns are shining in the light,
+A million sceptres, robes of purest white!
+Ten thousand harps and lutes and golden lyres
+Are waiting now to start the Heavenly choirs.
+
+And lo! a chariot from Heaven comes,
+While halves rise from yonder sapphire domes;
+A chariot incrusted with bright gems,
+A blaze of glory shines from diadems.
+See! in the car the queen o'er Tammuz bends,
+And nearer the procession slowly wends,
+Her regal diadem with tears is dimmed;
+And her bright form by sorrow is redeemed
+To sweeter, holier beauty in her woe;
+Her tears a halo form and brighter flow.
+
+Caparisoned with pearls, ten milk-white steeds
+Are harnessed to her chariot that leads;
+On snow-white swans beside her ride her maids,
+They come! through yonder silver cloudy glades!
+Behind her chariot ten sovereigns ride;
+Behind them comes all Heaven's lofty pride,
+On pale white steeds, the chargers of the skies.
+The clouds of snowy pinions rustling rise!
+But hark! what is that strain of melody
+That fills our souls with grandest euphony?
+Hear how it swells and dies upon the breeze!
+To softest whisper of the leaves of trees;
+Then sweeter, grander, nobler, sweeping comes,
+Like myriad lyres that peal through Heaven's domes.
+But, oh! how sad and sweet the notes now come!
+Like music of the spheres that softly hum;
+It rises, falls, with measured melody,
+With saddest notes and mournful symphony.
+From all the universe sad notes repeat
+With doleful strains of woe transcendent, sweet;
+Hush! hear the song! my throbbing heart be still!
+The songs of gods above the heavens fill!
+
+   "Oh, weep with your sweet tears, and mourning chant,
+      O'er this dread loss of Heaven's queen.
+    With her, O sisters, join your sweetest plaint
+      O'er our dear Tammuz, Tammuz slain.
+    Come, all ye spirits, with your drooping wings,
+    No more to us sweet joy he brings;
+        Ah, me, my brother![2]
+
+    Oh, weep! oh, weep! ye spirits of the air,
+      Oh, weep! oh, weep! An-un-na-ci!
+    Our own dear queen is filled with dread despair.
+      Oh, pour your tears, dear earth and sky,
+    Oh, weep with bitter tears, O dear Sedu,
+    O'er fearful deeds of Nin-azu;
+        Ah, me, my brother!
+
+    Let joy be stilled! and every hope be dead!
+      And tears alone our hearts distil.
+    My love has gone!--to darkness he has fled;
+      Dread sorrow's cup for us, oh, fill!
+    And weep for Tammuz we have held so dear,
+    Sweet sisters of the earth and air;
+        Ah, me, my sister!
+
+    Oh, come ye, dearest, dearest Zi-re-nu,
+      With grace and mercy help us bear
+    Our loss and hers; our weeping queen, oh, see!
+      And drop with us a sister's tear.
+    Before your eyes our brother slain! oh, view;
+    Oh, weep with us o'er him so true;
+        Ah, me, his sister!
+
+    The sky is dead; its beauty all is gone,
+      Oh, weep, ye clouds, for my dead love!
+    Your queen in her dread sorrow now is prone.
+      O rocks and hills in tears, oh, move!
+    And all my heavenly flowerets for me weep,
+    O'er him who now in death doth sleep;
+        Ah, me, my Tammuz!
+
+    Oh, drop o'er him your fragrant dewy tears,
+      For your own queen who brings you joy,
+    For Love, the Queen of Love, no longer cheers,
+      Upon my heart it all doth cloy.
+    Alas! I give you love, nor can receive,
+    O all my children for me grieve;
+        Ah, me, my Tammuz!
+
+    Alas! alas! my heart is dying--dead!
+      With all these bitter pangs of grief
+    Despair hath fallen on my queenly head,
+      Oh, is there, sisters, no relief?
+    Hath Tammuz from me ever, ever, gone?
+    My heart is dead, and turned to stone;
+        Ah, me, his queen!
+
+    My sister spirits, O my brothers dear,
+      My sorrow strikes me to the earth;
+    Oh, let me die! I now no fate can fear,
+      My heart is left a fearful dearth.
+    Alas, from me all joy! all joy! hath gone;
+    Oh, Ninazu, what hast thou done?
+        Ah, me, his queen!"
+
+To Hades' world beyond our sight they go,
+And leave upon the skies Mar-gid-da's[3] glow,
+That shines eternally along the sky,
+The road where souls redeemed shall ever fly.
+Prince Tammuz now again to life restored,
+Is crowned in Hades as its King and Lord,[4]
+And Ishtar's sorrow thus appeased, she flies
+To earth, and fills with light and love the skies.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Zi-ni," pronounced "Zee-nee," spirits of the wind.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Ah, me, my brother, and, ah, me, my sister! Ah, me, Adonis
+(or Tammuz), and ah, me, his lady (or queen)!" is the wailing cry uttered
+by the worshippers of Tammuz or Adonis when celebrating his untimely
+death. It is referred to in Jer. xxii. 18, and in Ezek. viii. 14, and Amos
+viii. 10, and Zech. xii. 10, 11. See Smith's revised edition of "Chal.
+Acc. of Genesis," by Sayce, pp. 247, 248.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Mar-gid-da," "the Long Road." We have also given the
+Accadian name for "The Milky Way." It was also called by them the "River
+of Night."]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Lord of Hades" is one of the titles given to Tammuz in an
+Accadian hymn found in "C.I.W.A.," vol. iv. 27, 1, 2. See also translation
+in "Records of the Past," vol. xi. p. 131.]
+
+
+
+TABLET VII--COLUMN I
+
+THE KING AND SEER CONVERSING ON THEIR WAY TO KHASI-SADRA--INTERPRETATION
+OF THE KING'S DREAM IN THE PALACE ON THE NIGHT OF THE FESTIVAL
+
+
+"The dream, my seer, which I beheld last night
+Within our tent, may bring to us delight.
+I saw a mountain summit flash with fire,
+That like a royal robe or god's attire
+Illumined all its sides. The omen might
+Some joy us bring, for it was shining bright."
+And thus the Sar revealed to him his dream.
+
+Heabani said, "My friend, though it did seem
+Propitious, yet, deceptive was it all,
+And came in memory of Elam's fall.
+The mountain burning was Khumbaba's halls
+We fired, when all his soldiers from the walls
+Had fled;--the _ni-takh-garri_,[1]--on that morn,
+Of such deceptive dreams, I would thee warn!"
+
+Some twenty _kaspu_ they have passed this day,
+At thirty _kaspu_ they dismount to pray
+And raise an altar, Samas to beseech
+That they their journey's end may safely reach.
+The tent now raised, their evening meal prepare
+Beneath the forest in the open air;
+And Izdubar brought from the tent the dream
+He dreamed the festal night when Ishtar came
+To him;--he reads it from a written scroll:
+"Upon my sight a vision thus did fall:
+I saw two men that night beside a god;
+One man a turban wore, and fearless trod.
+The god reached forth his hand and struck him down
+Like mountains hurled on fields of corn, thus prone
+He lay; and Izdubar then saw the god
+Was Anatu,[2] who struck him to the sod.
+The troubler of all men, Samu's fierce queen,
+Thus struck the turbaned man upon the plain.
+He ceased his struggling, to his friend thus said:
+'My friend, thou askest not why I am laid
+Here naked, nor my low condition heed.
+Accursed thus I lie upon the mead;
+The god has crushed me, burned my limbs with fire.'
+
+"The vision from mine eyes did then expire.
+A third dream came to me, which I yet fear,
+The first beyond my sight doth disappear.
+A fire-god thundering o'er the earth doth ride;
+The door of darkness burning flew aside;
+Like a fierce stream of lightning, blazing fire,
+Beside me roared the god with fury dire,
+And hurled wide death on earth on every side;
+And quickly from my sight it thus did glide,
+And in its track I saw a palm-tree green
+Upon a waste, naught else by me was seen."
+
+Heabani pondering, thus explained the dream:
+"My friend, the god was Samas, who doth gleam
+With his bright glory, power, our God and Lord,
+Our great Creator King, whose thunders roared
+By thee, as through yon sky he takes his way;
+For his great favor we should ever pray.
+The man thou sawest lying on the plain
+Was thee, O King,--to fight such power is vain.
+Thus Anatu will strike thee with disease,
+Unless thou soon her anger shalt appease;
+And if thou warrest with such foes divine,
+The fires of death shall o'er thy kingdom shine.
+The palm-tree green upon the desert left
+Doth show that we of hope are not bereft;
+The gods for us their snares have surely weft,[3]
+One shall be taken, and the other left."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Ni-takh-garri," "the helpers," or soldiers of Khumbaba.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Anatu," the consort of Anu.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Weft," weaved.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+CONTEST WITH THE DRAGONS IN THE MOUNTAINS--THE SEER IS MORTALLY WOUNDED--
+HIS CALM VIEW OF THE HEREAFTER
+
+
+[1]"O Mam-mitu, thou god of fate and death!
+Thou spirit of fierce hate and parting breath,
+Thou banisher of joy! O ghastly Law,
+That gathers countless forces in thy maw!
+A phantom! curse! and oft a blessing, joy!
+All Heaven and earth thy hands shall e'er employ.
+With blessings come, or curses to us bring,
+The god who fails not with her hovering wing;
+Nor god, nor man thy coming e'er may ken,
+O mystery! thy ways none can explain."
+
+If thou must come in earthquakes, fire, and flood,
+Or pestilence and eftsoons cry for blood,
+Thou comest oft with voice of sweetest love,
+Our dearest, fondest passions, hopes, to move;
+And men have worshipped thee in every form,
+In fear have praised thee, sought thy feet to charm.
+We reck not if you blessings, curses bring,
+For men oft change thy noiseless, ghoulish wing.
+And yet, thou comest, goddess Mam-mitu,
+To bring with thee the feet of Nin-a-zu,
+Two sister ghouls, remorseless, tearless, wan,
+We fear ye not; ye _bu'i-du_,[2] begone!
+
+Sweet life renews itself in holy love,
+Your victory is naught! Ye vainly rove
+Across our pathway with yours forms inane,
+For somewhere, though we die, we live again.
+[3]The soul departed shall in glory shine,
+As burnished gold its form shall glow divine,
+And Samas there shall grant to us new life;
+And Merodac, the eldest son, all strife
+Shall end in peace in yonder Blest Abode,
+Where happiness doth crown our glorious God.
+
+[4]The sacred waters there shall ever flow,
+To Anat's arms shall all the righteous go;
+The queen of Anu, Heaven's king, our hands
+Outstretched will clasp, and through the glorious lands
+Will lead us to the place of sweet delights;
+The land that glows on yonder blessed heights
+Where milk and honey from bright fountains flow.
+And nectar to our lips, all sorrows, woe,
+Shall end in happiness beside the Stream
+Of Life, and Joy for us shall ever gleam;
+Our hearts with thankfulness shall sweetly sing
+And grander blissfulness each day will bring.
+
+And if we do not reach that spirit realm,
+Where bodyless each soul may ages whelm
+With joy unutterable; still we live,
+With bodies knew upon dear Earth, and give
+Our newer life to children with our blood.
+Or if these blessings we should miss; in wood,
+Or glen, or garden, field, or emerald seas,
+Our forms shall spring again; in such as these
+We see around us throbbing with sweet life,
+In trees or flowerets.
+
+                  This needs no belief
+On which to base the fabric of a dream,
+For Earth her children from death doth redeem,
+And each contributes to continuous bloom;
+So go your way! ye sisters, to your gloom!
+
+Far on their road have come the king of fame
+And seer, within the land of Mas[5] they came,
+Nor knew that Fate was hovering o'er their way,
+In gentle converse they have passed the day.
+Some twenty _kaspu_ o'er the hills and plain,
+They a wild forest in the mountain gain,
+In a deep gorge they rode through thickets wild,
+Beneath the pines; now to a pass they filed,
+And lo! two dragons[6] near a cave contend
+Their path! with backs upreared their coils unbend,
+Extend their ravenous jaws with a loud roar
+That harshly comes from mouths of clotted gore.
+
+The sky overhead with lowering clouds is cast,
+Which Anu in his rage above them massed.
+Dark tempests fly above from Rimmon's breath,
+Who hovers o'er them with the gods of death;
+The wicked seven winds howl wildly round,
+And crashing cedars falling shake the ground.
+Now Tsil-lattu her black wings spreads o'er all,
+Dark shrouding all the forest with her pall,
+And from his steed for safety each dismounts,
+And o'er their heads now break the ebon founts.
+But hark! what is that dreadful roaring noise?
+The dragons come! Their flaming crests they poise
+Above, and nearer blaze their eyes of fire,
+And see! upon them rush the monsters dire.
+
+The largest springs upon the giant Sar,
+Who parrying with the sword he used in war,
+With many wounds it pierces, drives it back;
+Again it comes, renews its fierce attack,
+With fangs outspread its victims to devour,
+High o'er the monarch's head its crest doth tower,
+Its fiery breath upon his helm doth glow.
+
+Exposed its breast! he strikes! his blade drives through
+Its vitals! Dying now it shakes the ground,
+And furious lashes all the forest round.
+But hark! what is that awful lingering shriek
+And cries of woe, that on his ears wild break?
+A blinding flash, see! all the land reveals,
+With dreadful roars, and darkness quick conceals
+The fearful sight, to ever after come
+Before his eyes, wherever he may roam.
+The King, alas! too late Heabani drags
+From the beast's fangs, that dies beneath the crags
+Overhanging near the cave. And now a din
+Loud comes from _dalkhi_ that around them spin
+In fierce delight, while hellish voices rise
+In harsh and awful mockery; the cries
+Of agony return with taunting groans,
+And mock with their fell hate those piteous moans.
+
+Amazed stands Izdubar above his seer,
+Nor hears the screams, nor the fierce _dalkhi's_ jeer;
+Beneath the flashing lightnings he soon found
+The cave, and lays the seer upon the ground.
+His breaking heart now cries in agony,
+"Heabani! O my seer, thou must not die!
+Alas! dread Mam-mitu hath led us here,
+Awake for me! arouse! my noble seer!
+I would to gods of Erech I had died
+For thee! my seer! my strength! my kingdom's pride!"
+
+The seer at last revives and turns his face
+With love that death touched not, his hand doth place
+With friendly clasp in that of his dear king,
+And says:
+          "Grieve not, beloved friend, this thing
+Called death at last must come, why should we fear?
+'Tis Hades' mist that opens for thy seer!
+
+"The gods us brought, nor asked consent, and life
+They give and take away from all this strife
+That must be here, my life I end on earth;
+Both joy and sorrow I have seen from birth;
+To Hades' awful land, whence none return,
+Heabani's face in sorrow now must turn.
+My love for thee, mine only pang reveals,
+For this alone I grieve."
+
+                            A teardrop steals
+Across his features, shining 'neath the light
+The King has lit to make the cavern bright.
+"But oh, friend Izdubar, my King, when I
+From this dear earth to waiting Hades fly,
+Grieve not; and when to Erech you return,
+Thou shalt in glory reign, and Zaidu learn
+As thy companion all that thine own heart
+Desires, thy throne thou wilt to him impart.
+The female, Samkha, whom he brought to me
+Is false, in league with thine own enemy.
+And she will cause thee mischief, seek to drive
+Thee from thy throne; but do not let her live
+Within the walls of Erech, for the gods
+Have not been worshipped in their high abodes.
+When thou returnest, to the temple go,
+And pray the gods to turn from thee the blow
+Of Anu's fury, the strong god, who reigns
+Above, and sent these woes upon the plains.
+His anger raised against thee, even thee,
+Must be allayed, or thy goods thou shalt see,
+And kingdom, all destroyed by his dread power.
+But Khasisadra will to thee give more
+Advice when thou shalt meet the ancient seer,
+For from thy side must I soon disappear."
+The seer now ceased, and on his couch asleep
+Spoke not, and Izdubar alone doth weep.
+
+And thus twelve days were past, and now the seer
+Of the great change he saw was drawing near
+Informed his King, who read to him the prayers,
+And for the end each friendly act prepares,
+Then said: "O my Heabani, dearest friend,
+I would that I thy body could defend
+From thy fierce foe that brings the end to thee.
+My friend in battle I may never see
+Again, when thou didst nobly stand beside
+Me; with my seer and friend I then defied
+All foes; and must thou leave thy friend, my seer?"
+"Alas! my King, I soon shall leave thee here."
+
+[Footnote 1: We have here quoted an Accadian hymn to the goddess of fate.
+("Trans. Soc. of Bib. Arch.," vol. ii. p. 39.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Bu'i-du," ghosts.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Accadian hymn on the future of the just. ("Trans. Soc. of
+Bib. Arch.," vol. ii. p. 32.)]
+
+[Footnote 4: Assyrian fragmentary hymn ("W.A.I.," iv. 25, col. v.),
+translated in "Records of the Past," vol. xi. pp. 161, 162.]
+
+[Footnote 5: The land of Mas, Mr. Sayce supposes, was situated west of the
+Euphrates Valley.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Dragons." The word for this animal is "tammabuk-ku." It was
+probably one of the monsters portrayed on the Babylonian cylinders now in
+the British Museum.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+HEABANI REVEALS TWO WONDERFUL VISIONS TO THE KING, ONE OF DEATH AND
+OBLIVION, AND THE OTHER OF HEAVEN, AND DIES IN THE ARMS OF THE KING
+
+
+"But, oh, my King! to thee I now reveal
+A secret that my heart would yet conceal,
+To thee, my friend, two visions I reveal:
+The first I oft have dreamed beneath some spell
+Of night, when I enwrapped from all the world,
+With Self alone communed.
+                       Unconscious hurled
+By winged thought beyond this present life,
+I seeming woke in a Dark World where rife
+Was Nothingness,--a darksome mist it seemed,
+All eke was naught;--no light for me there gleamed;
+And floating 'lone, which way I turned, saw naught;
+Nor felt of substance 'neath my feet, nor fraught
+With light was Space around; nor cheerful ray
+Of single star. The sun was quenched; or day
+Or night, knew not. No hands had I, nor feet,
+Nor head, nor body, all was void. No heat
+Or cold I felt, no form could feel or see;
+And naught I knew but conscious entity.
+No boundary my being felt, or had;
+And speechless, deaf, and blind, and formless, sad,
+I floated through dark space,--a conscious blank!
+No breath of air my spirit moved; I sank
+I knew not where, till motionless I ceased
+At last to move, and yet I could not rest,
+Around me spread the Limitless, and Vast.
+My cheerless, conscious spirit,--fixed and fast
+In some lone spot in space was moveless, stark!
+An atom chained by forces stern and dark,
+With naught around me. Comfortless I lived
+In my dread loneliness! Oh, how I grieved!
+And thus, man's fate in Life and Death is solved
+With naught but consciousness, and thus involved
+All men in hopes that no fruition have?
+And this alone was all that death me gave?
+That all had vanished, gone from me that life
+Could give, and left me but a blank, with strife
+Of rising thoughts, and vain regrets, to float;--
+Away from life and light, be chained remote!
+
+"Oh, how my spirit longed for some lone crag
+To part the gloom beneath, and rudely drag
+My senses back! or with its shock to end
+My dire existence;--to oblivion send
+Me quickly! How I strove to curse, and break
+That soundless Void, with shrieks or cries, to wake
+That awful silence which around me spread!
+In vain! in vain! all but my soul was dead.
+And then my spirit soundless cried within:
+'Oh, take me! take me back to Earth again!'
+For tortures of the flesh were bliss and joy
+To such existence! Pain can never cloy
+The smallest thrill of earthly happiness!
+'Twas joy to live on earth in pain! I'll bless
+Thee, gods, if I may see its fields I've trod
+To kiss its fragrant flowers, and clasp the sod
+Of mother Earth, that grand and beauteous world!
+From all its happiness, alas! was hurled
+My spirit,--then in frenzy--I awoke!
+Great Bel! a dream it was! as vanished smoke
+It sped! and I sprang from my couch and prayed
+To all the gods, and thus my soul allayed.
+And then with blessings on my lips, I sought
+My couch, and dropped away in blissful thought
+In dream the second:
+
+                      "Then the Silver Sky
+Came to me. Near the Stream of Life I lie:
+My couch the rarest flowers; and music thrills
+My soul! How soft and sweet it sounds from rills
+And streams, and feathered songsters in the trees
+Of Heaven's fruits!--e'en all that here doth please
+The heart of man was there. In a dear spot
+I lay, 'mid olives, spices, where was wrought
+A beauteous grotto; and beside me near,
+Were friends I loved; and one both near and dear
+With me reclined, in blissful converse, sweet
+With tender thoughts.
+                      Our joy was full, complete!
+The ministering spirits there had spread
+Before us all a banquet on the mead,
+With Heaven's food and nectar for our feast;
+And oh, so happy! How our joy increased
+As moments flew, to years without an end!
+To Courts Refulgent there we oft did wend.
+
+"Beside a silver lake, a holy fane
+There stood within the centre of the plain,
+High built on terraces, with walls of gold,
+Where palaces and mansions there enfold
+A temple of the gods, that stands within
+'Mid feathery palms and _gesdin_[1] bowers green,
+The city rises to a dizzy height,
+With jewelled turrets flashing in the light,
+Grand mansions piled on mansions rising high
+Until the glowing summits reach the sky.
+A cloud of myriad wings, e'er fills the sky,
+As doves around their nests on earth here fly;
+The countless millions of the souls on earth,
+The gods have brought to light from mortal birth,
+Are carried there from the dark world of doom;
+For countless numbers more there still is room.
+Through trailing vines my Love and I oft wind,
+With arms of love around each other twined.
+This day, we passed along the Stream of Life,
+Through blooming gardens, with sweet odors rife;
+Beneath the ever-ripening fruits we walk,
+Along dear paths, and sweetly sing, or talk,
+While warbling birds around us fly in view,
+From bloom to bloom with wings of every hue;
+And large-eyed deer, no longer wild, us pass,
+With young gazelles, and kiss each other's face.
+
+"We now have reached the stately stairs of gold,
+The city of the gods, here built of old.
+The pearled pillars rise inlaid divine,
+With lotus delicately traced with vine
+In gold and diamonds, pearls, and unknown gems,
+That wind to capital with blooming stems
+Of lilies, honeysuckles, and the rose.
+An avenue of columns in long rows
+Of varied splendor, leads to shining courts
+Where skilful spirit hands with perfect arts
+Have chiselled glorious forms magnificent,
+With ornate skill and sweet embellishment.
+Their golden sculpture view on every hand,
+Or carved images in pearl that stand
+In clusters on the floor, or in long rows;
+And on the walls of purest pearl there glows
+The painting of each act of kindest deed
+Each soul performs on earth;--is there portrayed.
+
+"The scenes of tenderness and holy love,
+There stand and never end, but onward move,
+And fill the galleries of Heaven with joy,
+And ever spirit artist hands employ.
+The holiest deeds are carved in purest gold,
+Or richest gems, and there are stored of old;
+Within the inner court a fountain stood,
+Of purest diamond moulded, whence there flowed
+Into a golden chalice,--trickling cool,
+The nectar of the gods,--a sparkling pool,
+That murmuring sank beneath an emerald vase
+That rested underneath;--the fountain's base.
+
+"We entered then an arcade arching long
+Through saph'rine galleries, and heard the song
+That swelling came from temples hyaline;
+And passed through lazite courts and halls divine,
+While dazzling glories brighter round us shone.
+How sweet then came the strains! with grander tone!
+And, oh, my King! I reached the gates of pearl
+That stood ajar, and heard the joyous whirl
+That thrilled the sounding domes and lofty halls,
+And echoed from the shining jasper walls.
+I stood within the gate, and, oh, my friend,
+Before that holy sight I prone did bend,
+And hid my face upon the jacinth stairs.
+A shining god raised me, and bade my fears
+Be flown, and I beheld the glorious throne
+Of crystaled light; with rays by man unknown.
+The awful god there sat with brows sublime,
+With robes of woven gold, and diadem
+That beamed with blazing splendor o'er his head.
+I thus beheld the god with presence dread,
+The King of Kings, the Ancient of the Days,
+While music rose around with joyous praise.
+With awful thunders how they all rejoice!
+And sing aloud with one commingled voice!
+
+"What happiness it was to me, my King!
+From bower to temple I went oft to sing,
+Or spread my wings above the mount divine,
+And viewed the fields from heights cerulean.
+Those songs still linger on dear memory's ear,
+And tireless rest upon me, ever cheer.
+But from the Happy Fields, alas! I woke,
+And from my sight the Heavenly vision broke;
+But, oh, my King, it all was but a dream!
+I hope the truth is such, as it did seem;
+If it is true that such a Heavenly Land
+Exists with happiness so glorious, grand,
+Within that haven I would happy be!
+But it, alas! is now denied to me.
+For, oh, my King, to Hades I must go,
+My wings unfold to fly to Realms of Woe;
+In darkness to that other world unknown,
+Alas! from joyous earth my life has flown.
+
+"Farewell, my King, my love thou knowest well;
+I go the road; in Hades soon shall dwell;
+To dwelling of the god Irkalla fierce,
+To walls where light for me can never pierce,
+The road from which no soul may e'er return,
+Where dust shall wrap me round, my body urn,
+Where sateless ravens float upon the air,
+Where light is never seen, or enters there,
+Where I in darkness shall be crowned with gloom;
+With crowned heads of earth who there shall come
+To reign with Anu's favor or great Bel's,
+Then sceptreless are chained in their dark cells
+With naught to drink but Hades' waters there,
+And dream of all the past with blank despair.
+Within that world, I too shall ceaseless moan,
+Where dwell the lord and the unconquered one,
+And seers and great men dwell within that deep,
+With dragons of those realms we all shall sleep;
+Where King Etana[2] and god Ner doth reign
+With Allat, the dark Under-World's great queen,
+Who reigns o'er all within her regions lone,
+The Mistress of the Fields, her mother, prone
+Before her falls, and none her face withstands;
+But I will her approach, and take her hands,
+And she will comfort me in my dread woe.
+Alas! through yonder void I now must go!
+My hands I spread! as birds with wings I fly!
+Descend! descend! beneath that awful sky!"
+The seer falls in the arms of Izdubar,
+And he is gone;--'tis clay remaineth here.
+
+[Footnote 1:"Gesdin," the Tree of Life and Immortality.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Etana," Lord or King of Hades. He is mentioned in the
+Creation series of Legends as having reigned before the flood.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+THE GRIEF OF THE KING OVER THE LOSS OF HIS SEER, AND HIS PRAYER TO THE
+MOON-GOD, WHO ANSWERS HIS PRAYER WITH A VISION
+
+
+The King weeps bitterly with flowing tears
+Above his seer when from him disappears
+The last faint breath; and then in deepest woe
+He cries: "And through that desert must I go?
+Heabani, thou to me wast like the gods;
+Oh, how I loved thee! must thou turn to clods?
+Through that dread desert must I ride alone;
+And leave thee here, Heabani, lying prone?
+Alas, I leave thee in this awful place,
+To find our Khasisadra, seek his face,
+The son of Ubara-tutu, the seer;
+Oh, how can I, my friend, thus leave thee here?
+This night through those dark mountains I must go,
+I can no longer bear this awful woe:
+If I shall tarry here, I cannot sleep.
+O Sin, bright moon-god, of yon awful deep!
+I pray to thee upon my face, oh, hear
+My prayer! my supplications bring thou near
+To all the gods! grant thou to me,--e'en me,
+A heart of strength and will to worship thee.
+
+"Oh, is this death like that the seer hath dreamed?
+Perhaps the truth then on his spirit gleamed!
+If Land of Silver Sky is but a myth,
+The other dream is true! e'en all he saith!
+Oh, tell me, all ye sparkling stars,
+That wing above thy glorious flight,
+  And feel not Nature's jars;
+But grandly, sweetly fling thy light
+To our bright world beneath serene,
+  Hath mortals on thee known
+Or viewed beyond,--that great Unseen,
+Their future fate by gods been shown?
+
+"Oh, hear me, all ye gods on high!
+To gods who love mankind I pray,
+  Despairing, oh, I cry!
+Oh, drive these doubts and fears away!
+And yet--and yet, what truths have we?
+O wondrous mortal, must thou die?
+Beyond this end thou canst not see,
+O Life! O Death! O mystery!
+
+"The body still is here, with feeling dead!
+And sight is gone!--and hearing from his head,
+Nor taste, nor smell, nor warmth, nor breath of life!
+Where is my seer? Perhaps, his spirit rife
+E'en now in nothingness doth wander lone!
+In agony his thoughts! with spirit prone!
+In dread despair!--If conscious then, O gods!
+He spake the truth!--His body to the clods
+Hath turned! By this we feel, or hear, or see,
+And when 'tis gone,--exist?--in agony!
+To Hades hath he gone? as he hath thought!
+Alas, the thought is torture, where have wrought
+The gods their fearful curse! Ah, let me think!
+The Silver Sky? Alas, its shining brink
+He hath not crossed. The wrathful gods deny
+Him entrance! Where, oh, where do spirits fly
+Whom gods have cursed? Alas, he is condemned
+To wander lone in that dark world, contemned
+And from the Light of Happy Fields is barred!
+Oh, why do gods thus send a fate so hard,
+And cruel? O dear moon-god, moon-god Sin!
+My seer hath erred. Receive his soul within
+To joys prepared for gods and men! Though seer
+He was, he immortality did fear,
+As some unknown awakening in space.
+Oh, turn upon him thy bright blessed face!
+He was my friend! O moon-god, hear my prayer!
+Imploring thee, doth pray thine Izdubar!"
+
+And lo! a vision breaks before his eyes!
+The moon-god hides the shadows of the skies,
+And sweeps above with his soft, soothing light
+That streams around his face; he drives the night
+Before his rays, and with his hands sweet peace
+He spreads through all the skies; and Strife doth cease!
+A girdle spans the Heavens with pure light
+That shines around the River of the Night,
+Within the circling rays a host appears!
+The singers of the skies, as blazing spheres!
+Hark! Hear their harps and lyres that sweetly sound!
+They sing! Oh, how the glowing skies resound!
+
+  "O King of Light and Joy and Peace,
+    Supreme thy love shall ever reign;
+   Oh, can our songs of bliss here cease?
+    Our souls for joy cannot restrain,
+    Sweep! Sweep thy lyres again!
+
+   The former things[1] are passed away,
+    Which we on earth once knew below;
+   And in this bright eternal day
+    We happiness alone can know
+    Where bliss doth ever flow."
+
+[Footnote 1: Literally, "the former names," which appears on a fragment of
+the epic translated by Mr. Sayce. See Smith's "C.A. of Gen.," p. 259,
+which he has rendered "the former name, the new name."]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+THE KING BURIES HIS SEER IN THE CAVE, AND CONTINUING HIS JOURNEY, HE MEETS
+TWO FIERY GIANTS WHO GUIDE THE SUN IN THE HEAVENS--THEY MAKE MERRY OVER
+THE KING, AND DIRECT HIM ON HIS WAY
+
+
+The King within the cave his seer entombs,
+And mourning sadly from the cavern comes;
+The entrance closes with the rocks around,
+Again upon his journey he is bound.
+But soon within the mountains he is lost
+Within the darkness,--as some vessel tost
+Upon the trackless waves of unknown seas,
+But further from the awful cavern flees.
+The morning breaks o'er crags and lonely glens,
+And he dismayed, the awful wild now scans.
+He reins his steed and wondering looks around,
+And sees of every side a mystic ground.
+Before him stands the peak of Mount Masu,[1]
+The cliffs and crags forlorn his eyes swift view,
+And cedars, pines, among the rocks amassed,
+That weirdly rise within the mountain fast.
+Hark! hear that dreadful roaring all around!
+What nameless horror thrills the shaking ground?
+
+The King in terror stares! and see! his steed
+Springs back! wild snorting,--trembling in his dread.
+Behold! behold those forms there blazing bright!
+Fierce flying by the earth with lurid light;
+Two awful spirits, demons, or fierce gods,
+With roaring thunders spring from their abodes!
+From depths beneath the earth the monsters fly,
+And upward lift their awful bodies high,
+Yet higher!--higher! till their crests are crowned
+By Heaven's gates; thus reaching from the ground
+To heights empyrean, while downward falls
+Each form, extending far 'neath Hades' walls.
+And see! each god as molten metal gleams,
+While sulphurous flame from hell each monster climbs!
+Two fiery horrors reaching to the skies,
+While wrathful lightning from each monster flies!
+
+Hell's gate they guard with Death's remorseless face,
+And hurl the sun around the realms of space
+E'en swifter than the lightning, while it goes
+Along its orbit, guided by their blows.
+Dire tempests rise above from their dread blows,
+And ever round a starry whirlwind glows;
+The countless stars thus driven whirl around,
+With all the circling planets circling round.
+
+The King astounded lifts his staring eyes,
+Into his face gray fear, with terror flies;
+As they approach, his thoughts the King collects,
+Thus over him one of the gods reflects.
+"Who cometh yonder with the form of gods?"
+The second says: "He comes from man's abodes,
+But with a mortal's feebleness he walks;
+Behold upon the ground alone he stalks."
+
+One lifts his mighty arm across the sky,
+And strikes the sun as it goes roaring by;
+The fiery world with whiter heat now glows,
+While a vast flood of flame behind it flows,
+That curling, forms bright comets, meteors,
+And planets multiplies, and blazing stars;
+The robe of flames spreads vast across the sky,
+Adorned with starry gems that sparkling fly
+Upon the ambient ether forming suns
+That through new orbits sing their orisons;
+Their pealing thunders rend the trembling sky,
+The endless anthem of eternity.
+
+The monster turning to the King then says,
+When nearer now his awful form doth blaze:
+"So thus you see, my son, the gods are strong,
+And to provoke great power, is foolish, wrong;
+But whither goest thou, thou sad-eyed King,
+What message hast thou;--to us here would bring?"
+
+The King now prostrate to the monsters prayed:
+"Ye gods or demons, I within your glade
+Of horrors, have unwilling come to seek
+Our Khasisadra, who a spell can make
+To turn the anger of the gods away.
+Immortal lives the seer beside the sea,
+He knoweth death and life, all secret things;
+And this alone your servant to you brings.
+The goddess sought my hand, which I denied,
+And Anu's fury thus I have defied;
+This all my troubles caused, show me the way
+To Khasisadra, this I ask and pray."
+
+The god's vast face broke out with wondrous smiles,
+And laughing, ripples rolled along for miles;
+His mouth wide opened its abyss and yawned,
+As earthquake gulf, far spreading through the ground.
+His roaring laughter shakes the earth around,
+"Ho! ho! my son! so you at last have found
+The Queen can hate, as well as love her friends,
+And on thy journey Ishtar's love thee sends?
+A mortal wise thou wast, to her refuse,
+For she can do with man what she may choose.
+A mortal's love, in truth, is wondrous strong,
+A glorious thing it is, Life's ceaseless song!
+Within a cave upon the mountain side,
+Thou there thy footsteps must to Hades guide,
+Twelve _kaspu_ go to yonder mountain gates,
+A heart like thine may well defy the fates.
+A darkness deep profound doth ever spread
+Within those regions black,--Home of the Dead.
+Go, Izdubar! within this land of Mas,
+Thy road doth lead, and to the west[2] doth pass,
+And may the maidens sitting by the walls
+Refresh thee, lead thee to the Happy Halls."
+
+The path they take behind the rising sun
+The setting sun they pass,--with wings have flown
+The scorpion men,[3] within wide space have gone,
+Thus from his sight the monsters far have flown.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Mount Masu," the Mountains of Masius, or "Mons Masius" of
+Strabo (vi. 12, Sec.Sec. 4, 14, 2, etc.), may be referred to by the author of
+the epic. These mountains are now known to the Turks as Jebel Tur and
+Karaiah Dag.--Rawlinson's "Ancient Monarchies," vol. ii. pp. 9 and 25.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Mr. Sayce translates thus: "the path of the sun."]
+
+[Footnote 3: He also names the monsters "the scorpion men," and refers to
+an Assyrian cylinder on which two composite winged monsters are carved,
+with the winged emblem of the supreme god in the centre above them. The
+monsters have the feet of lions and the tails of scorpions. See
+illustration in Smith's revised edition, by Sayce, "Chald. Acc. of Gen.,"
+p. 276. The monsters were supposed to fly ahead of the sun, and as it
+passed guide it along its orbit.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+IZDUBAR ENTERS HADES--THE SONG OF THE DALKHI IN THE CAVERN OF HORRORS--THE
+KING PASSES THROUGH HADES TO THE GARDEN OF THE GODS, AND SEES THE
+WONDERFUL FOUNTAIN OF LIFE'S WATERS
+
+
+In a weird passage to the Under-World,
+Where demon shades sit with their pinions furled
+Along the cavern's walls with poisonous breath,
+In rows here mark the labyrinths of Death.
+The King with torch upraised, the pathway finds,
+Along the way of mortal souls he winds,
+Where shades sepulchral, soundless rise amid
+Dark gulfs that yawn, and in the blackness hide
+Their depths beneath the waves of gloomy lakes
+And streams that sleep beneath the sulphurous flakes
+That drift o'er waters bottomless, and chasms;
+Where moveless depths receive Life's dying spasms.
+Here Silence sits supreme on a drear throne
+Of ebon hue, and joyless reigns alone
+O'er a wide waste of blackness,--solitude
+Black, at her feet, there sleeps the awful flood
+Of mystery which grasps all mortal souls,
+Where grisly horrors sit with crests of ghouls,
+And hateless welcome with their eyes of fire
+Each soul;--remorseless lead to terrors dire;
+And ever, ever crown the god of Fate;
+And there, upon her ebon throne she sate
+The awful fiend, dark goddess Mam-mitu,
+Who reigns through all these realms of La-Atzu.[1]
+
+But hark! what are these sounds within the gloom?
+And see! long lines of torches nearer come!
+And now within a recess they have gone;
+The King must pass their door! perhaps some one
+Of them may see him! turn the hags of gloom
+Upon him, as he goes by yonder room!
+He nearer comes, and peers within; and see!
+A greenish glare fills all the cave! and he
+Beholds a blaze beneath a cauldron there;
+Coiled, yonder lie the Dragons of Despair;
+And lo! from every recess springs a form
+Of shapeless horror! now with dread alarm
+He sees the flitting forms wild whirling there,
+And awful wailings come of wild despair:
+But hark! the _dal-khis'_ song rings on the air!
+With groans and cries they shriek their mad despair:
+
+    Oh, fling on earth, ye demons dark,
+      Your madness, hate, and fell despair,
+    And fling your darts at each we mark,
+      That we may welcome victims here.
+
+    Then sing your song of hate, ye fiends,
+      And hurl your pestilential breath,
+    Till every soul before us bends,
+      And worship here the god of Death.
+
+    In error still for e'er and aye,
+      They see not, hear not many things;
+    The unseen forces do not weigh,
+      And each an unknown mystery brings.
+
+    In error still for e'er and aye,
+      They delve for phantom shapes that ride
+    Across their minds alone,--and they
+      But mock the folly of man's pride.
+
+    In error still for e'er and aye!
+      They learn but little all their lives,
+    And Wisdom ever wings her way,
+      Evading ever,--while man strives!
+
+    But hark! another song rings through the gloom,
+      And, oh, how sweet the music far doth come!
+    Oh, hear it, all ye souls in your despair,
+      For joy it brings to sorrowing ones e'en here!
+
+    "There is a Deep Unknown beyond,
+      That all things hidden well doth weigh!
+    On man's blind vision rests the bond
+      Of error still for e'er and aye!
+
+    "But to the mighty gods, oh, turn
+      For truth to lead you on your way,
+    And wisdom from their tablets learn,
+      And ever hope for e'er and aye!"
+
+And see! the hags disperse within the gloom,
+As those sweet sounds resound within the room;
+And now a glorious light doth shine around,
+Their rays of peace glide o'er the gloomy ground.
+And lo! 'tis Papsukul, our god of Hope,--
+With cheerful face comes down the fearful slope
+Of rugged crags, and blithely strides to where
+Our hero stands, amid the poisonous air,
+And says:
+          "Behold, my King, that glorious Light
+That shines beyond! and eye no more this sight
+Of dreariness, that only brings despair,
+For phantasy of madness reigneth here!"
+The King in wonder carefully now eyes
+The messenger divine with great surprise,
+And says:
+          "But why, thou god of Hope, do I
+Thus find thee in these realms of agony?
+This World around me banishes thy feet
+From paths that welcome here the god of Fate
+And blank despair, and loss irreparable.
+Why comest thou to woe immeasurable?"
+
+"You err, my King, for hope oft rules despair;
+I ofttimes come to reign with darkness here;
+When I am gone, the god of Fate doth reign;
+When I return, I soothe these souls again."
+"So thus you visit all these realms of woe,
+To torture them with hopes they ne'er can know?
+Avaunt! If this thy mission is on Earth
+Or Hell, thou leavest after thee but dearth!"
+"Not so, my King! behold yon glorious sphere,
+Where gods at last take all these souls from here!
+Adieu! thou soon shalt see the World of Light,
+Where joy alone these souls will e'er delight."
+
+The god now vanishes away from sight,
+The hero turns his face toward the light;
+Nine _kaspu_ walks, till weird the rays now gleam,
+As _zi-mu-ri_ behind the shadows stream.
+He sees beyond, umbrageous grots and caves,
+Where odorous plants entwine their glistening leaves.
+And lo! the trees bright flashing gems here bear!
+And trailing vines and flowers do now appear,
+That spread before his eyes a welcome sight,
+Like a sweet dream of some mild summer night.
+But, oh! his path leads o'er that awful stream,
+Across a dizzy arch 'mid sulphurous steam
+That covers all the grimy bridge with slime.
+He stands perplexed beside the waters grime,
+Which sluggish move adown the limbo black,
+With murky waves that writhe demoniac,--
+As ebon serpents curling through the gloom
+And hurl their inky crests, that silent come
+Toward the yawning gulf, a tide of hate;
+And sweep their dingy waters to Realms of Fate.
+
+He cautious climbs the slippery walls of gloom,
+And dares not look beneath, lest Fate should come;
+He enters now the stifling clouds that creep
+Around the causeway, while its shadows sleep
+Upon the stream that sullen moves below,--
+
+He slips!--and drops his torch! it far doth glow
+Beneath him on the rocks! Alas, in vain
+He seeks a path to bring it back again.
+It moves! snatched by a _dal-khu's_ hand it flies
+Away within the gloom, then falling dies
+Within those waters black with a loud hiss
+That breaks the silence of that dread abyss.
+
+He turns again, amid the darkness gropes,
+And careful climbs the cragged, slimy slopes,
+And now he sees, oh, joy! the light beyond!
+He springs! he flies along the glowing ground,
+And joyous dashes through the waving green
+That lustrous meets his sight with rays serene,
+Where trees pure amber from their trunks distil,
+Where sweet perfumes the groves and arbors fill,
+Where zephyrs murmur odors from the trees,
+And sweep across the flowers, carrying bees
+With honey laden for their nectar store;
+Where humming sun-birds upward flitting soar
+O'er groves that bear rich jewels as their fruit,
+That sparkling tingle from each youngling shoot,
+And fill the garden with a glorious blaze
+Of chastened light and tender thrilling rays.
+He glides through that enchanted mystic world,
+O'er streams with beds of gold that sweetly twirled
+With woven splendor 'neath the blaze of gems
+That crown each tree with glistening diadems.
+The sounds of streams are weft with breezes, chant
+Their arias with trembling leaves,--the haunt
+Of gods! O how the tinkling chorus rings!--
+With rhythms of the unseen rustling wings
+Of souls that hover here where joy redeems
+Them with a happiness that ever gleams.
+
+The hero stands upon a damasked bed
+Of flowers that glow beneath his welcome tread,
+And softly sink with 'luring odors round,
+And beckon him to them upon the ground.
+Amid rare pinks and violets he lies,
+And one sweet pink low bending near, he eyes.
+With tender petals thrilling on its stem,
+It lifts its fragrant face and says to him,
+"Dear King, wilt thou love me as I do thee?
+We love mankind, and when a mortal see
+We give our fragrance to them with our love,
+Their love for us our inmost heart doth move."
+The King leans down his head, it kissing, says,
+"Sweet beauty, I love thee? with thy sweet face?
+My heart is filled with love for all thy kind.
+I would that every heart thy love should find."
+The fragrant floweret thrills with tenderness,
+With richer fragrance answers his caress.
+He kisses it again and lifts his eyes,
+And rises from the ground with glad surprise.
+
+And see! the glorious spirits clustering round!
+They welcome him with sweet melodious sound.
+We hear their golden instruments of praise,
+As they around him whirl a threading maze;
+In great delight he views their beckoning arms,
+And lustrous eyes, and perfect, moving forms.
+And see! he seizes one bright, charming girl,
+As the enchanting ring doth nearer whirl;
+He grasps her in his arms, and she doth yield
+The treasure of her lips, where sweets distilled
+Give him a joy without a taint of guilt.
+It thrills his heart-strings till his soul doth melt,
+A kiss of chastity, and love, and fire,
+A joy that few can dare to here aspire.
+The beauteous spirit has her joy, and flees
+With all her sister spirits 'neath the trees.
+And lo! the _gesdin_[2] shining stands,
+With crystal branches in the golden sands,
+In this immortal garden stands the tree,
+With trunk of gold, and beautiful to see.
+Beside a sacred fount the tree is placed,
+With emeralds and unknown gems is graced,
+Thus stands, the prince of emeralds,[3] Elam's tree,
+As once it stood, gave Immortality
+To man, and bearing fruit, there sacred grew,
+Till Heaven claimed again Fair Eridu.[4]
+
+The hero now the wondrous fountain eyes;
+Its beryl base to ruby stem doth rise,
+To emerald and sapphire bands that glow,
+Where the bright curvings graceful outward flow;
+Around the fountain to its widest part,
+The wondrous lazite bands now curling start
+And mingle with bright amethyst that glows,
+To a broad diamond band,--contracting grows
+To _uk-ni_ stone, turquoise, and clustering pearls,
+Inlaid with gold in many curious curls
+Of twining vines and tendrils bearing birds,
+Among the leaves and blooming flowers, that words
+May not reveal, such loveliness in art,
+With fancies spirit hands can only start
+From plastic elements before the eye,
+And mingle there the charms of empery.
+Beneath two diamond doves that shining glow
+Upon the summit, the bright waters flow,
+With aromatic splendors to the skies,
+While glistening colors of the rainbow rise.
+
+Here ends the tablet,[5] "When the hero viewed
+The fountain which within the garden stood."
+
+[Footnote 1: "La-Atzu," Hades, hell, the spirit-world.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Gesdin," the Tree of Life and Immortality.]
+
+[Footnote 3: See Sayce's edition Smith's "Chald. Acc. of Gen.," p. 264.]
+
+[Footntoe 4: "Eridu," the Garden of Eden. Idem, pp. 84-86.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Tablet of the series; when the hero Izdubar saw the
+fountain."--Sayce's edition Smith's "Chald. Acc. of Gen.," p. 264, l. 14.]
+
+
+
+TABLET VIII--COLUMN I
+
+THE KING'S ADVENTURE AT THE GATE OF THE GARDEN OF THE GODS WITH THE TWO
+MAIDENS--ONE OF THEM LEADS HIM INTO THE HAPPY HALLS--SONGS OF THE SABITU
+AND ZI-SI.
+
+
+A gate half opened shows the silvery sea
+Yet distant shining lambent on his way.
+And now he sees young Siduri,[1] whose breast
+Infuses life; all nature she hath blest,
+Whose lips are flames, her arms are walls of fire,
+Whose love yields pleasures that can never tire,
+She to the souls who joy on earth here miss,
+Grants them above a holier, purer bliss.
+The maiden sits within a holy shrine
+Beside the gate with lustrous eyes divine,
+And beckons to the King, who nearer comes,
+And near her glows the Happy Palace domes.
+
+And lo! 'tis she his lips have fondly kissed
+Within the garden, when like fleeing mist
+She disappeared with the bright spirit Seven,[2]
+The Sabit, who oft glide from earth to Heaven.
+And lo! one of the Seven, Sabitu,
+Emerging from the gate doth jealous view
+The coming hero who hath kissed her mate,
+She angry springs within to close the gate,
+And bars it, enters then the inner halls,
+And Izdubar to her now loudly calls,
+"O Sabitu! what see-est thou, my maid?
+Of Izdubar is Sabitu afraid?
+Thy gate thou barrest thus before my face.
+Quick, open for me! or I'll force the brass!"
+The maid now frightened opens wide the door.
+The Sar and Siduri now tread the floor
+Of the bright palace where sweet joy doth reign.
+Through crystal halls 'neath golden roofs the twain
+Next go within a lofty ceilinged hall,
+With shining pearled columns, golden wall,
+And purple silken hangings at each door,
+With precious gems inlaid upon the floor;
+Where couches grand are spread for one to rest
+Beneath the softened rays that sweet invest
+The senses with a thrill of happiness;
+Where Siduri with joy all souls doth bless.
+The maid sits on a couch and turns her face
+Toward the King with that immortal grace
+That love to gods and men will e'er bestow.
+Their eyes now mingling with a happy glow,
+The maiden sweetly says: "Where wouldst thou go?
+Within these Happy Halls we joy but know,
+And if thou wilt, my King, my heart is thine!
+Our love will ever bring us bliss divine."
+
+"Alas, my maid, thy love to me is dear,
+And sad am I that I must go from here.
+I came from Erech by advice from one
+I loved more than thou canst e'er know, but gone
+From me is my Heabani, faithful seer.
+Across a desert waste have I come here,
+And he has there to dust returned,--to dust--
+O how the love of my friend I did trust!
+I would that we had never started here,
+I now must find the great immortal seer."
+
+The maiden turns her glowing eyes on him,
+Replies: "My King, thou knowest joy may gleam,
+Take courage, weary heart, and sing a song!
+The hour of sorrow can never be long;
+The day will break, and flood thy soul with joy,
+And happiness thy heart will then employ!
+Each day must end with all its sorrow, woe,
+Oh, sing with me, dear heart! I love thee so!"
+And lo! the curtains flung aside, now comes
+The joyous Sabitu from yonder rooms,
+And gathering round, a song they gayly sing,
+Oh, how with music the bright walls now ring!
+If evil thou hast done, my King,
+
+        Oh, pray! oh, pray!
+    And to the gods thy offerings bring,
+        And pray! and pray!
+    The sea is roaring at thy feet,
+    The storms are coming, rain and sleet;
+        To all the gods,
+    Oh, pray to them! oh, pray!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        To all the gods,
+    Oh, pray to them! oh, pray!
+
+    Thy city we will bless, O Sar!
+        With joy, with joy!
+    And prosper thee in peace and war
+        With joy, with joy!
+    And bless thee every day and night,
+    Thy kingly robes keep pure and bright;
+        Give thee bright dreams,
+    O glorious king of war!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        Give thee bright dreams,
+    O glorious king of war!
+
+    And if thy hand would slay thy foes
+        In war, in war!
+    With thee returning victory goes
+        In war, in war!
+    We grant thee victory, my King;
+    Like marshes swept by storms, we bring
+        Our power to thee
+    With victory in war!
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        Our power to thee
+    With victory in war!
+
+    And if thou wouldst the waters pass,
+        The sea, the sea!
+    We'll go with thee in every place,
+        With thee, with thee!
+    To Hea's halls and glorious throne,
+    Where he unrivalled reigns alone,
+        To Hea go
+    Upon his throne of snow.
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        To Hea go
+    Upon his throne of snow.
+
+    And if thine anger rules thy heart
+        As fire, as fire!
+    And thou against thy foes would start
+        With ire, with ire!
+    Against thy foes thy heart be hard,
+    And all their land with fire be scarred,
+        Destroy thy foes!
+    Destroy them in thine ire!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        Destroy thy foes!
+    Destroy them in thine ire!
+
+And lo! young Siduri hath disappeared,
+And with the Zisi crowned she now appeared;
+The corn-gods in a crescent round their queen,
+She waves before the king her Nusku[3] green,
+And sings with her sweet voice a joyful lay,
+And all the Zisi join the chorus gay:
+
+    [4]A heifer of the corn am I,
+        Kara! Kara![5]
+    Yoked with the kine we gayly fly,
+        Kara! Kara!
+    The ploughman's hand is strong and drives
+    The glowing soil, the meadow thrives!
+        Before the oxen
+    Sa-lum-mat-u na-si.[6]
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        Before the oxen
+    Sa-lum-mat-u na-si.
+
+    The harvesters are in the corn!
+        Kara! Kara!
+    Our feet are flying with the morn,
+        Kara! Kara!
+    We bring thee wealth! it is thine own!
+    The grain is ripe! oh, cut it down!
+        The yellow grain
+    Sa-lum-mat-u na-si.
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        The yellow grain
+    Sa-lum-mat-u na-si.
+
+    The fruit of death, oh, King, taste it not!
+        Taste not! taste not!
+    With fruit of Life the land is fraught
+        Around! around!
+    The fruit of Life we give to thee
+    And happiness, oh, ever see.
+        All joy is thine
+    Through Earth and Heaven's bound.
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        All joy is thine
+    Through Earth and Heaven's bound.
+
+    Our corn immortal there is high
+        And ripe! and ripe!
+    And ever ripens 'neath that sky
+        As gold! as gold!
+    Our corn is bearded,[7] thus 'tis known,
+    And ripens quickly when 'tis grown.
+        Be joy with thee,
+    Our love around thee fold!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        Be joy with thee,
+    Our love around thee fold!
+
+    Our King from us now goes, now goes!
+        Away! away!
+    His royal robe behind him glows
+        Afar! afar!
+    Across the waves where Hea reigns
+    The waters swollen he soon gains!
+        To our great seer,
+    He sails to him afar!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        To our great seer,
+    He sails to him afar!
+
+    And he will reach that glorious land
+        Away! away!
+    Amid our fruit-trees he will stand
+        That day! that day!
+    Our fruit so sweet the King will eat,
+    Nor bitter mingle with the sweet.
+        In our seer's land
+    That glows afar away!
+
+
+    _Chorus_
+
+        In our seer's land
+    That glows afar away!
+
+The singing spirits from them fled, and he
+Alone stood thinking by young Siduri.
+
+The King leaned on his bow, and eyed the maid,
+A happy look came in his eyes,--and fled,
+For lo! the curtain quick aside is pushed,
+And Sabitu within upon them rushed.
+She stately glides across the shining floor,
+And eyes them both, then turns toward the door.
+But Izdubar is equal to the task,
+With grace now smiling, of the maid doth ask:
+"O Sabitu! wouldst thou tell me the way
+To Khasisadra? for I go this day.
+If I the sea may cross, how shall I go?
+Or through the desert? thou the path mayst know."
+The maiden startled looks upon his face,
+And thus she answers him with queenly grace:
+"So soon must go? Thou canst not cross the sea,
+For thou wilt perish in the waves that way.
+Great Samas once the way of me did ask,
+And I forbade him, but the mighty task
+He undertook, and crossed the mighty deep,
+Where Death's dark waters lie in wait asleep:
+His mighty car of gold swept through the skies,
+With fiery chargers now he daily flies.
+When I approach thee, thou from me wouldst flee?
+But if thou must so soon thus go, the sea
+Perhaps thou too canst cross, if thou wilt 'void
+Death's waters, which relentless ever glide.
+But Izdubar, Ur-Hea, here hath come!
+The boatman of the seer, who to his home
+Returns. He with an axe in yonder woods
+A vessel builds to cross the raging floods.
+If thou desirest not to cross with him,
+We here will welcome thee through endless time;
+But if thou goest, may they see thy face
+Thou seekest,--welcome thee, and thy heart bless."
+
+[Footnote 1: "Siduri," the "pourer" or "shedder forth," the
+"all-bountiful," the goddess who brings the rain, and mists, and running
+streams to fill the vegetable world with its productions; the goddess who
+presides over productive nature. She was also called "the Goddess of
+Wisdom."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Seven spirits of the earth and heaven, the daughters of Hea.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Nusku," a budding or blooming shrub or branch, the wand of
+the Queen, used in magical incantations, which was called the plant of
+Nusku, the divining-rod.]
+
+[Footnote 4: See Accadian songs, "C.I.W.A.," vol. ii. 15, 16, and
+translated by Mr. Sayce in "Records of the Past, vol. xi. pp. 154, 155.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Kara!" cry out, sing, shout.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Sa-lum-mat-u na-si," lift up the shadows, or be joyful.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Our corn is bearded." This refers to the heads of wheat
+which are bearded. See translation by Mr. Sayce, "the corn is bearded."
+("Records of the Past," vol. xi. p. 156.)]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+THE KING ON LEAVING THE HAPPY HALLS MEETS UR-HEA, THE BOATMAN OF THE SEER
+KHASISADRA--THEY BUILD A SHIP AND EMBARK ON AN UNKNOWN SEA, AND ON THEIR
+VOYAGE PASS THROUGH THE WATERS OF DEATH
+
+
+And Izdubar turned from the Halls and goes
+Toward a fountain in the park, whence flows
+A merry stream toward the wood. He finds
+An axe beside the fount, and thoughtful winds,
+Through groves of sandal-wood and mastic-trees
+And algum, umritgana. Now he sees
+The sig-a-ri and ummakana, pines,
+With babuaku; and ri-wood brightly shines
+Among the azuhu; all precious woods
+That man esteems are grown around, each buds
+Continuous in the softened, balmy air.
+He stops beneath a musrilkanna where
+The pine-trees spread toward the glowing sea,
+Wild mingled with the surman, sa-u-ri.
+
+The King, now seated, with himself communes,
+Heeds not the warbling of the birds, and tunes
+Of gorgeous songsters in the trees around,
+But sadly sighing gazes on the ground:
+"And I a ship must build; alas! I know
+Not how I shall return, if I thus go.
+The awful Flood of Death awaits me there,
+Wide-stretching from this shore--I know not where."
+He rests his chin upon his hand in thought,
+Full weary of a life that woe had brought;
+He says: "When I remember Siduri,
+Whose heart with fondest love would comfort me
+Within these Happy Halls, why should I go
+To pain and anguish, death, mayhap, and woe?
+But will I thus desert my kingdom, throne?
+For one I know not! What! my fame alone!
+Mine honor should preserve! and royal state!
+Alas! this Fame is but a dream of--Fate!
+
+"A longing after that which does not cheer
+The heart. Applause of men, or thoughtless sneer,
+Is naught to me, I am alone! alone!
+This Immortality cannot atone
+For my hard fate that wrings mine aching heart.
+I long for peace and rest, and I must start
+And find it, leave these luring bright abodes,--
+I seek the immortality of gods.
+This Fame of man is not what it doth seem,
+It sleeps with all the past, a vanished dream.
+My duty calls me to my kingdom, throne!
+To Khasisadra go, whose aid alone
+Can save my people from an awful fate
+That hangs above them, born of Fiends of hate.
+And I shall there return without my seer!
+I live; and he is dead. Why did I hear
+His words advising me to come? Alas!
+I sadly all my weary days shall pass;
+No one shall love me as my seer, my friend.
+
+"But what said Siduri?--There comes an end
+At last to sorrow, joy will hopeful spring
+On wings of Light! Oh, how my heart will sing!
+I bless ye all, ye holy spirits here!
+Your songs will linger with me, my heart cheer;
+Upon my way I turn with joy again!
+How true your joyful song! your memory then
+Will keep me hopeful through yon darkened way;
+How bright this land doth look beside the sea!"
+
+He looks across the fields; the river glows
+And winds beside taprani-trees, and flows
+By teberinth and groves of tarpikhi
+And ku-trees; curving round green mez-kha-i,
+Through beds of flowers, that kiss its waves and spring
+Luxuriant,--with songs the groves far ring.
+Now thinking of the ship, he turns his eyes,
+Toward the fountain,--springs up with surprise!
+"'Tis he! the boatman comes! Ur-Hea comes!
+And, oh! at last, I'll reach the glistening domes
+Of Khasisadra's palaces,--at last
+My feet shall rest,--upon that land be placed."
+
+And now Ur-Hea nearer makes his way,
+And Izdubar addressing him, doth say:
+"Ur-Hea is thy name? from yonder sea
+Thou comest, from the seer across the way?"
+
+"Thou speakest truth, great Sar, what wouldst thou have?"
+"How shall I Khasisadra reach? The grave
+He hath escaped, Immortal lives beyond,
+For I to him upon my way am bound;
+Shall I the waters cross or take my way
+Through yon wide desert, for I start this day?"
+
+"Across the sea we go, for I with thee
+Return to him,--I know the winding way.
+Thine axe of bronze with precious stones inlaid
+With mine, we'll use beneath the pine-trees' shade."
+
+And now, within the grove a ship they made,
+Complete and strong as wise Ur-Hea bade.
+They fell the pines five _gar_ in length, and hew
+The timbers square, and soon construct a new
+And buoyant vessel, firmly fixed the mast,
+And tackling, sails, and oars make taut and fast.
+Thus built, toward the sea they push its prow,
+Equipped complete, provisioned, launch it now.
+An altar next they raise and thus invoke
+The gods, their evil-workings to revoke:
+
+"[1]O Lord of Charms, Illustrious! who gives
+Life to the Dead, the Merciful who lives,
+And grants to hostile gods of Heaven return,
+To homage render, worship thee, and learn
+Obedience! Thou who didst create mankind
+In tenderness, thy love round us, oh, wind!
+The Merciful, the God with whom is Life,
+Establish us, O Lord, in darkest strife.
+O never may thy truth forgotten be,
+May Accad's race forever worship thee."
+
+One month and fifteen days upon the sea,
+Thus far the voyagers are on their way;
+Now black before them lies a barren shore,
+O'ertopped with frowning cliffs, whence comes a roar
+Of some dread fury of the elements
+That shakes the air and sweeping wrath foments
+O'er winds and seas.
+  And see! a yawning cave,
+There opens vast into a void dislave,
+Where fremed shadows ride the hueless waves.
+Dread Ninazu whose deathless fury craves
+For hapless victims lashes with a roar
+The mighty seas upon that awful shore.
+The Fiends of Darkness gathered lie in wait,
+With Mammitu, the goddess of fierce hate,
+And Gibil[2] with his spells, and Nibiru[3]
+The twin-god of black Fate, and grim Nusku[4]
+The keeper of red thunders, and Urbat[5]
+The dog of Death, and fiend of Queen Belat;[6]
+And Nuk-khu, and the black-browed Ed-hutu[7]
+The gods of darkness here with Tsi-lat-tu.[8]
+
+And see! Dark Rimmon[9] o'er a crag alone!
+And Gibil with his blasting malisoun,
+Above with his dark face maleficent,
+Who wields a power o'er men omnipotent
+Forlore! forlore! the souls who feel that blast
+Which sweeps around that black forbidding coast!
+Fierce whirling storms and hurricanes here leap,
+With blasting lightnings maltalent and sweep
+The furious waves that lash around that shore,
+As the fierce whirl of some dread maelstrom's power!
+Above the cavern's arch! see! Ninip[10] stands!
+He points within the cave with beckoning hands!
+Ur-Hea cries: "My lord! the tablets[11] say,
+That we should not attempt that furious way!
+Those waters of black death will smite us down!
+Within that cavern's depths we will but drown."
+"We cannot go but once, my friend, that road,"
+The hero said, "'Tis only ghosts' abode!"
+"We go, then, Izdubar, its depths will sound,
+But we within that gloom will whirl around,
+Around, within that awful whirlpool black,--
+And once within, we dare not then turn back,--
+How many times, my friend, I dare not say,
+'Tis written, we within shall make our way."
+
+The foaming tide now grasped them with its power,
+And billowed round them with continuous roar;
+Away! they whirl! with growing speed, till now
+They fly on lightnings' wings and ride the brow
+Of maddened tempests o'er the dizzy deep.
+So swift they move,--the waves in seeming sleep
+Beneath them, whirling there with force unseen.
+
+But see! Updarting with a sulphurous gleen,
+The hag of Death leaps on the trembling prow!
+Her eyes, of fire and hate, turns on them now!
+With famine gaunt, and haggard face of doom,
+She sits there soundless in the awful gloom.
+
+"O gods!" shrieked Izdubar in his despair,
+"Have I the god of Fate at last met here?
+Avaunt, thou Fiend! hence to thy pit of Hell!
+Hence! hence! and rid me of thy presence fell!"
+
+And see! she nearer comes with deathless ire,
+With those fierce, moveless, glaring eyes of fire!
+Her wand is raised! she strikes!
+
+  "O gods!" he screams;
+He falls beneath that bolt that on them gleams,
+And she is gone within the awful gloom.
+Hark! hear those screams!
+  "Accurst! Accurst thy doom!"
+And lo! he springs upon his feet in pain,
+And cries:
+  "Thy curses, fiend! I hurl again!"
+And now a blinding flash disparts the black
+And heavy air, a moment light doth break;
+And see! the King leans fainting 'gainst the mast,
+With glaring eyeballs, clenched hands,--aghast!
+Behold! that pallid face and scaly hands!
+A leper white, accurst of gods, he stands!
+A living death, a life of awful woe,
+Incurable by man, his way shall go.
+But oh! the seer in all enchantments wise
+Will cure him on that shore, or else he dies.
+
+And see! the vessel's prow with shivering turns,
+Adown the roaring flood that gapes and churns
+Beneath like some huge boiling cauldron black,
+Thus whirl they in the slimy cavern's track.
+And spirit ravens round them fill the air,
+And see! they fly! the cavern sweeps behind!
+Away the ship doth ride before the wind!
+The darkness deep from them has fled away,
+The fiends are gone!--the vessel in the spray
+With spreading sails has caught the glorious breeze,
+And dances in the light o'er shining seas;
+The blissful haven shines upon their way,
+The waters of the Dawn sweep o'er the sea!
+They proudly ride up to the glowing sand,
+And joyfully the King springs to the land.
+
+[Footnote 1: This remarkable prayer is to be found among a collection of
+prayers which are numbered and addressed to separate deities. It seems
+that the prayers were originally Accadian, and were afterward adopted by
+the Assyrians, and made to apply to one god (Hea). Professor Oppert and
+Professor Sayce think, however, that they are connected in one hymn to
+Hea. This may have been so after the Assyrians adopted them, but they are
+distinct, and addressed to separate gods. The one we have selected is
+addressed to Hea, the Creator of Mankind, Sayce edition Smith's "C.A.G.,"
+pp. 75 to 80. The one we have selected is found at the top of page 77,
+idem.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Gibil," the god of fire, of spells and witchcraft.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Nibiru," the god of fate, and ruler of the stars.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Nusku," the gatekeeper of thunders.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Urbat," the dog of Death.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Belat" or "Allat," the Queen of Hades.]
+
+[Footnote 7: "Ed-hutu," god of darkness.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Tsi-lat-tu," shades of night.]
+
+[Footnote 9: "Rimmon," god of storms.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Ninip," god of bravery and war.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Tablets." This may mean charts or scrolls similar to the
+charts used by modern navigators. Babylon communicated with all nations in
+commerce.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+KHASISADRA ON THE SHORE SEES THE VESSEL COMING, AND RETURNING TO HIS
+PALACE, SENDS HIS DAUGHTER MUA TO WELCOME IZDUBAR--MEETING OF THE KING AND
+SAGE
+
+
+Beneath a ku-tree Khasisadra eyes
+The spreading sea beneath the azure skies,
+An aged youth with features grave, serene,
+Matured with godly wisdom; ne'er was seen
+Such majesty, nor young, nor old,--a seer
+In purpose high. The countenance no fear
+Of death has marred, but on his face sublime
+The perfect soul has left its seal through time.
+
+"Ah, yes! the dream was clear, the vision true,
+I saw him on the ship! Is it in view?
+A speck! Ah, yes! He comes! he comes to me
+My son from Erech comes across the sea!"
+Back to his palace goes the holy seer,
+And Mua[1] sends, who now the shore doth near;
+As beautiful as Waters of the Dawn,
+Comes Mua here, as graceful as a fawn.
+
+The King now standing on the glistening sand,
+Beholds the beauteous Mua where she stands,
+With hands outstretched in welcome to the King,
+"O thou sweet spirit, with thy snowy wing,
+Oh, where is Khasisadra in this land?
+I seek the aid of his immortal hand."
+"Great Sar," said Mua, "hadst thou not a seer,
+That thou shouldst come to seek my father here?"
+
+"'Tis true, my daughter dear, a seer had I,
+Whom I have lost,--a dire calamity;
+By his advice and love I undertake
+This journey. But alas! for mine own sake
+He fell by perils on this lengthened way;
+He was not strong, and feared that he should lay
+Himself to rest amid the mountains wild.
+He was a warrior, with him I killed
+Khumbaba, Elam's king who safely dwelt
+Within a forest vast of pines, and dealt
+Destruction o'er the plains. We razed his walls--
+My friend at last before me dying falls.
+
+"Alas! why did my seer attempt to slay
+The dragons that we met upon the way,
+He slew his foe, and like a lion died.
+Ah, me! the cause, when I the gods defied,
+And brought upon us all this awful woe;
+In sorrow o'er his death, my life must flow!
+For this I came to find the ancient seer,
+Lead me to him, I pray, if he lives here."
+
+Then Mua leads him through the glorious land
+Of matchless splendor, on the border grand
+Of those wide Happy Fields that spread afar
+O'er beaming hills and vales, where ambient air
+With sweetest zephyrs sweeps a grand estrade,
+Where softest odors from each flowering glade
+Lull every sense aswoon that breathes not bliss
+And harmony with World of Blessedness.
+'Neath trees of luring fruits she leads the way,
+Through paths of flowers where night hath fled away,
+A wilderness of varied crystal flowers,
+Where fragrance rests o'er clustering, shining bowers.
+Each gleaming cup its nectared wine distils,
+For spirit lips each chalice ever fills.
+
+Beyond the groves a lucent palace shone
+In grandest splendor near an inner zone;
+In amethyst and gold divinely rose,
+With glories scintillant the palace glows.
+A dazzling halo crowns its lofty domes,
+And spreading from its summit softly comes
+With grateful rays, and floods the balustrades
+And golden statues 'neath the high arcades;
+A holy palace built by magic hand
+With wondrous architecture, portals grand,
+And aurine turrets piled to dizzy heights,
+Oh, how its glory Izdubar delights!
+
+Beneath majestic arcades carved, they pass,
+Up golden steps that shine like polished glass,
+Through noble corridors with sculptured walls,
+By lofty columns, archways to the halls
+Of glories, the bright harbinger of fanes
+Of greater splendor of the Heavenly plains.
+Beneath an arch of gems the King espies
+A form immortal, he who death defies.
+Advancing forth the sage his welcome gives,
+"'Tis Izdubar who comes to me and lives!"
+Embracing him he leads him in a room,
+Where many a curious graven tablet, tome,
+And scrolls of quaint and old forgotten lore
+Have slept within for centuries of yore.
+The tablets high are heaped, the alcoves full,
+Where truth at last has found a welcome goal.
+In wisdom's room, the sage his guest has led,
+And seats him till the banquet high is spread;
+Of Izdubar he learns his journeys great,
+How he for aid has left his throne of state.
+
+The maid now comes, him welcomes to the hall
+Of banquets, where are viands liberal,
+And fruits, immortal bread, celestial wines
+Of vintage old; and when the hero dines,
+They lead him to his private chamber room
+That overlooks the wondrous garden's bloom
+Across the plain and jasper sea divine,
+To Heaven's mountains rising sapphirine.
+Four beauteous streams of liquid silver lead
+Across the plain; the shining sea they feed;
+The King reclines upon his couch at rest,
+With dreams of happiness alone is blest.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Mua," the waters of the dawn, the daughter of Khasisadra.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+THE KING IS CURED BY THE INCANTATIONS OF KHASISADRA AND HE BECOMES
+IMMORTAL
+
+
+When Izdubar awakes, they lead the way
+To the bright fount beside the jasper sea.
+The seer, with Mua and Ur-Hea, stands
+Beside the King, who holily lifts his hands
+Above an altar where the glowing rays
+Of sacred flames are curling; thus he prays:
+
+"Ye glorious stars that shine on high,
+Remember me! Oh, hear my cry,
+Su-ku-nu,[1] bright Star of the West!
+Dil-gan, my patron star, oh, shine!
+O Mar-bu-du, whose rays invest
+Dear Nipur[2] with thy light divine,
+The flames that shines, upon the Waste!
+O Papsukul, thou Star of Hope,
+Sweet god of bliss, to me, oh, haste,
+Before I faint and lifeless drop!
+O Adar,[3] Star of Ninazu,
+Be kind! O Ra-di-tar-tu-khu.
+Sweet U-tu-ca-ga-bu,[4] dear Star
+With thy pure face that shines afar!
+
+"Oh, pardon me! each glorious Star!
+Za-ma-ma,[5] hear me! O Za-ma-ma!
+Ca-ca-ma u Ca-ca-ma."[6]
+
+"[7]Remember him! O dear Za-ma-ma!
+Ca-ca-ma u Ca-ca-ma."
+
+As Izdubar doth end his holy prayer
+He kneels, and they now bear his body where
+A snowy couch doth rest beneath a shrine
+That stands near by the glowing fount divine,
+And Khasisadra lifts his holy hands,
+His incantation chants, and o'er him stands.
+
+"O Bel, Lord of An-nu-na-ci,
+O Nina, Hea's daughter! Zi![8]
+This Incantation aid,
+Remember us, Remember!
+
+"[9]Ye tempests of High Heaven, be still!
+Ye raging lightnings, oh, be calm!
+From this brave man his strength is gone,
+Before thee see him lying ill!
+Oh, fill with strength his feeble frame,
+O Ishtar, shine from thy bright throne!
+From him thine anger turn away,
+Come from thy glowing mountains, come!
+From paths untrod by man, oh, haste!
+And bid this man arise this day.
+With strength divine as Heaven's dome,
+His form make pure and bright and chaste!
+The evil curse, oh, drive away!
+
+"Go! A-sac-cu-kab-bi-lu,[10] go!
+O Nam-ta-ru-lim-nu,[11] oh, fly!
+U-tuc-cu-lim-nu[12] from him flow!
+A-lu-u-lim-nu,[13] hence! away!
+E-ci-mu-lim-nu,[14] go! thou fiend!
+Fly, Gal-lu-u-lim-nu,[15] afar!
+Fly from his head! his life! I send
+Thee, fiend! depart from Izdubar!
+Go from his forehead, breast, and heart,
+And feet! Avaunt! thou fiend! depart!
+Oh, from the Curse, Thou Spirit High!
+And Spirit of the Earth, come nigh!
+Protect him, may his spirit fly!
+O Spirit of the Lord of Lands,
+And Goddess of the Earthly Lands,
+Protect him! raise with strength his hands!
+
+"Oh, make him as the Holy Gods,
+His body, limbs, like thine Abodes,
+And like the Heavens may he shine!
+And like the Earth with rays divine!
+Quick! with the khis-ib-ta[16] to bring
+High Heaven's Charm--bind round his brow!
+The sis-bu[17] place around his hands!
+And let the sab-u-sat[18] bright cling!
+The mus-u-kat[19] lay round him now,
+And wrap his feet with rad-bat-bands,[20]
+And open now his zik-a-man[21]
+The sis-bu cover, and his hands
+The bas-sat[22] place around his form!
+From baldness and disease, this man
+Cleanse, make him whole, head, feet, and hands!
+
+"O Purity, breathe thy sweet charm!
+
+"Restore his health and make his skin
+Shine beautifully, beard and hair
+Restore! make strong with might his loins!
+And may his body glorious shine
+As the bright gods!--
+
+                         Ye winds him bear!
+Immortal flesh to his soul joins!
+Thou Spirit of this man! arise!
+Come forth with joy! Come to the skies!"
+
+And lo! his leprosy has fled away!
+He stands immortal,--purged! released from clay!
+
+[Footnote 1: "Su-ku-nu" or "Kak-si-di," the star of the West.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Nipur," the city from which Izdubar came.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Adar," the star of Ninazu, the goddess of death, who cursed
+him with leprosy in the cavern. This star was also called
+"Ra-di-tar-tu-khu."]
+
+[Footnote 4: "U-tu-ca-ga-bu," the star with the white or pure face.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Za-ma-ma," another name for Adar. This is the deity for whom
+Izdubar or Nammurabi built the great temple whose top, in the language of
+the Babylonians, reached the skies. It was afterward called the "Tower of
+the Country" or "Tower of Babylon." This was perhaps the Tower of Babel.
+He also restored another temple called "Bite-muris," which was dedicated
+to the same goddess.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Amen and amen!" The word "amen" is usually repeated three
+times.]
+
+[Footnote 7: The response of the priest Khasi-sadra.]
+
+[Footnote 8: "Zi," spirits.]
+
+[Footnote 9: See "T.S.B.A.," vol. ii. p. 31.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "A-sac-cu-kab-bi-lu," evil spirit of the head.]
+
+[Footnote 11: "Nam-ta-ru-lim-nu," evil spirit of the life or heart.]
+
+[Footnote 12: "U-tuc-cu-lim-nu," evil spirit of the forehead.]
+
+[Footnote 13: "A-lu-u-lim-nu," evil spirit of the breast.]
+
+[Footnote 14: "E-ci-mu-lim-nu," evil spirit of the stomach.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Gal-lu-u-lim-nu," evil spirit of the hands.]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Khis-ib-ta," a strip of parchment or linen on which was
+inscribed a holy text, a charm like that used by the Jews, a philactery.]
+
+[Footnote 17: "Sis-bu," the same as the preceding.]
+
+[Footnote 18: "Sab-u-sat," was perhaps a holy cloth, also inscribed in the
+same manner.]
+
+[Footnote 19: "Mus-u-kat," was also of the same character as the
+preceding.]
+
+[Footnote 20: "Rad-bat-bands," similar bands to the khis-ib-ta.]
+
+[Footnote 21: "Zik-a-man," this is unknown, it perhaps was the inner
+garment.]
+
+[Footnote 22: "Bas-sat," supposed to be the outside or last covering
+placed over the person so treated. That some such ceremony was performed
+in the case of Izdubar seems to be undoubted. See "Trans. Soc. Bib.
+Arch.," vol. ii. p. 31; also Sayce's edition Smith's "C.A. of G.," p.
+290.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+IZDUBAR FALLS IN LOVE WITH MUA, AND OFFERS HER HIS HAND
+
+
+"O Mua! thou bright Waters of the Dawn!
+Oh, where art thou?" one cries as he doth run
+Through the bright garden. See! 'tis Izdubar!
+Immortal! glorious! our King of War!
+And now in love is seeking Mua here.
+He scarcely treads the ground as he comes near;
+A glow of youth immortal on his cheek,
+A form that sorrow, death, will never seek
+Within these Happy Fields, his eyes with light
+That Love alone may give, show his delight.
+
+A dazzling pillared vista round him shines,
+Where golden columns bear the bowering shrines,
+With gemmed domes that clustering round him rise,
+'Mid fruit-trees, flashing splendors to the skies.
+He goes through silver grots along a zone,
+And now he passes yonder blazing throne,
+O'er diamond pavements, passes shining seats
+Whereon the high and holy conclave meets
+To rule the empires vast that spread away
+To utmost bounds in all their vast array.
+Around the whole expanse grand cestes spread
+O'er paths sidereal unending lead.
+As circling wheels within a wheel they shine,
+Enveloping the Fields with light divine.
+A noontide glorious of shining stars,
+Where humming music rings from myriad cars,
+Where pinioned multitudes their harps may tune,
+And in their holy sanctity commune.
+
+And see! here Mua comes! she stops and waits
+Within a _gesdin_ bower beside its gates.
+Around, above her spreads a flowering vine,
+And o'er a ruby fountain almandine.
+And on a graven garnet table grand,
+Carved cups of solid pearl and tilpe[1] stand.
+A Zadu[2] reservoir stands near, which rounds
+The fount wherein the fragrant nectar bounds.
+The ground is strewn with pari[3] gems and pearls,
+Wherefrom the light now softly backward hurls
+Its rays o'er couches of paruti[4] stone,
+Soft cushioned, circling in the inner zone
+Beside the shining kami-sadi way,[5]
+Where nectar fountains in their splendor play.
+The path leads far along Life's beauteous stream,
+That ever through this World of Joy doth gleam.
+
+And see! the hero comes! and now doth near
+The maiden, where with Love she waits him here.
+She flings a flowering garland, weaves it round
+His form as he comes by! He turns around,
+And she enwraps his breast and arms, and says:
+
+"Dear Izdubar! and thus my lover strays!
+I'll bind thee with this fragrant chain to keep
+Thee ever by my side! thy pleasant sleep
+Hath kept my lover from my side too long!"
+
+"O thou sweet spirit, like a warbling song
+Thy words are to my heart! I sought for thee,
+And thy bright face and presence did not see;
+I come to tell thee that I must return,
+When from thy father all the past shall learn."
+
+"And wilt thou go from me to earth again?
+No! no! dear Izdubar, I thee enchain!"
+
+"'Tis true, my love, I must return to men;
+My duty calls me to my throne again."
+
+"Dear Izdubar! my friend! my love! my heart!
+I cannot let thee from my soul depart!
+Thou shinest in my breast as some bright star!
+And shall I let thee from me go afar?"
+
+"But Mua, we immortal are, and we
+There might return; and thou on earth shalt see
+The glories of my kingdom,--be my queen!
+Upon a couch I'll seat thee, there to reign
+With me, my beauteous queen,--beside me sit;
+And kings will come to us and kiss thy feet.
+With all my wealth I'll clothe thee, ever love
+Thee, fairest of these glorious souls that move
+Within this Happy World. My people there
+Shall love us,--ever drive away all care!"
+
+When Mua heard him offer thus his hand,
+She then unbinds him,--thoughtful now doth stand.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Tilpe," a precious gem known only to the Babylonians.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Zadu," a precious gem known only to the Babylonians.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Pari," an unknown gem.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Paruti," an unknown gem.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Kami-sadi" way, a path paved with unknown gems. These
+precious stones are mentioned on the various inscriptions in the list of
+precious jewels with gold, diamonds, pearls, etc., taken as spoils from
+their enemies.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+MUA'S ANSWER
+
+
+Sweet Mua lifts her eyes toward the heights
+That glow afar beneath the softened lights
+That rest upon the mountain's crystalline.
+And see! they change their hues incarnadine
+To gold, and emerald, and opaline;
+Swift changing to a softened festucine
+Before the eye. And thus they change their hues
+To please the sight of every soul that views
+Them in that Land; but she heeds not the skies,
+Or glorious splendor of her home; her eyes
+Have that far look of spirits viewing men
+On earth, from the invisible mane,
+That erstwhile rests upon the mortal eye,--
+A longing for that home beyond the sky;
+A yearning for that bliss that love imparts,
+Where pain and sorrow reach no mortal hearts.
+
+A light now breaks across her beauteous face;
+She, turning, says to him with Heavenly grace:
+
+"Dear Izdubar, thou knowest how I love
+Thee, how my heart my love doth daily prove;
+And, oh, I cannot let thee go alone.
+I know not what awaits each soul there gone.
+Our spirits often leave this glorious land,
+Invisible return on earth, and stand
+Amidst its flowerets, 'neath its glorious skies.
+Thou knowest every spirit here oft flies
+From earth, but none its secrets to us tell,
+Lest some dark sorrow might here work its spell.
+And, oh, I could not see dark suffering, woe
+There spread, with power none to stop its flow!
+
+"I saw thee coming to us struck with fire,
+Oh, how to aid thee did my heart desire!
+Our tablets tell us how dread sorrow spreads
+Upon that world and mars its glowing meads.
+But, oh, so happy am I, here to know
+That they with us here end all sorrow, woe.
+O precious Izdubar! its sights would strike
+Me there with sadness, and my heart would break!
+And yet I learn that it is glorious, sweet!
+To there enjoy its happiness,--so fleet
+It speeds to sorrowing hearts to turn their tears
+To joy! How sweet to them when it appears,
+And sends a gleam of Heaven through their lives!
+
+"No! no! dear heart! I cannot go! It grieves
+Thee! come, my dear one! quick to us return;
+We here again will pair our love, and learn
+How sweet it is to meet with joy again;
+How happy will sweet love come to us then!"
+
+She rests her head upon his breast, and lifts
+Her face for Love's sweet kiss, and from them drifts
+A halo o'er the shining gesdin-trees
+And spreads around them Heaven's holy rays.
+He kisses her sweet lips, and brow, and eyes,
+Then turns his gaze toward the glowing skies:
+
+"I bless thee, for thy sweetest spirit here!
+I bless this glorious land, that brings me near
+To one that wafts sweet Heaven in my heart;
+From thy dear plains how can my soul depart?
+O Mua, Mua! how my heart now sings!
+Thy love is sweeter than all earthly things!
+I would I were not crowned a king!--away
+From this bright land--here would I ever stay!
+As thou hast said, I soon will here return;
+The earth cannot withhold me from this bourne,
+And soon my time allotted there will end,
+And hitherward how happy I will wend!"
+
+"And when thou goest, how my love shall there
+Guard thee, and keep thy heart with Mua here.
+Another kiss!"
+
+Her form doth disappear
+Within the garden, gliding through the air.
+He seats himself upon a couch and rests
+His head upon his hand, and thought invests
+Him round. His memory returns again
+To Erech's throne, and all the haunts of men.
+He rises, turns his footsteps to the halls,
+And thoughtful disappears within its walls.
+
+
+
+
+CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS
+
+[_Translated by various Babylonian and Assyrian Scholars_]
+
+
+
+
+CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS
+
+BABYLONIAN EXORCISMS
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The charms translated below will illustrate the superstition of the
+Assyrians and Babylonians. Like the Jews of the Talmud, they believed that
+the world was swarming with noxious spirits who produced the various
+diseases to which man is liable, and might be swallowed with the food and
+the drink that support life. They counted no less than 300 spirits of
+heaven and 600 spirits of earth. All this, with the rest of their
+mythology, was borrowed by the Assyrians from the primitive population of
+Babylonia, who spoke an agglutinative language akin to the dialects of the
+Finnic or Tatar tribes. The charms are written in this ancient language,
+but Assyrian translations are appended in a column to the right of the
+tablet. The legends are lithographed in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of
+Western Asia," Vol. II, plates 17 and 18. They have been translated by M.
+Oppert in the "_Journal Asiatique_" of January, 1873, and an analytical
+rendering of them is given by M. Fr. Lenormant in his "_Etudes
+Accadiennes_" II, I (1874).
+
+
+
+TRANSLATION OF THE EXORCISMS
+
+TABLET I
+
+
+The noxious god, the noxious spirit of the neck, the neck-spirit of the
+desert, the neck-spirit of the mountains, the neck-spirit of the sea, the
+neck-spirit of the morass, the noxious cherub of the city, this noxious
+wind which seizes the body (and) the health of the body. Spirit of heaven
+remember, spirit of earth remember.
+
+
+
+TABLET II
+
+
+The burning spirit of the neck which seizes the man, the burning spirit of
+the neck which seizes the man, the spirit of the neck which works evil,
+the creation of an evil spirit. Spirit of heaven remember, spirit of earth
+remember.
+
+
+
+TABLET III
+
+
+Wasting, want of health, the evil spirit of the ulcer, spreading quinsy of
+the gullet, the violent ulcer, the noxious ulcer. Spirit of heaven
+remember, spirit of earth remember.
+
+
+
+TABLET IV
+
+
+Sickness of the entrails, sickness of the heart, the palpitation of a sick
+heart, sickness of bile, sickness of the head, noxious colic, the
+_agitation_ of terror, flatulency[1] of the entrails, noxious illness,
+lingering sickness, nightmare. Spirit of heaven remember, spirit of earth
+remember.
+
+[Footnote 1: Literally, "opposition."]
+
+
+
+TABLET V
+
+
+He who makes an image (which) injures the man,[1] an evil face, an evil
+eye, an evil mouth, an evil tongue, evil lips, an evil poison. Spirit of
+heaven remember, spirit of earth remember.
+
+[Footnote 1: Here we have a reference to a custom well known in the Middle
+Ages. A waxen figure was made, and as it melted before the fire the person
+represented by it was supposed, similarly to waste away. It will be
+remembered that Horace ("Sat." i, 8, 30 sq.) speaks of the waxen figure
+made by the witch Canidia in order that the lover might consume away in
+the fires of love. Roman and mediaeval sorcery had its origin in that of
+ancient Accad.]
+
+
+
+TABLET VI
+
+
+The cruel spirit, the strong spirit of the head, the head-spirit that
+departs not, the head-spirit that goes not forth, the head-spirit that
+will not go, the noxious head-spirit. Spirit of heaven remember, spirit of
+earth remember.
+
+
+
+TABLET VII
+
+
+The poisonous spittle of the mouth[1] which is noxious to the voice, the
+phlegm which is destructive to the ..., the pustules of the _lungs_, the
+pustule of the body, the loss of the nails, the removal (and) dissolving
+of old _excrement_, the _skin_ which is _stripped off_, the recurrent ague
+of the body, the food which hardens in a man's body, the food which
+returns after being eaten, the drink which distends after drinking, death
+by poison, from the swallowing of the mouth which distends, the
+unreturning wind from the desert. Spirit of heaven remember, spirit of
+earth remember.
+
+[Footnote 1: That would be consumption.]
+
+
+
+TABLET VIII
+
+
+May Nin-cigal,[1] the wife of Nin-a'su, turn her face toward another place;
+may the noxious spirit go forth and seize another; may the propitious
+cherub and the propitious genie settle upon his body. Spirit of heaven
+remember, spirit of earth remember.
+
+[Footnote 1: "Nin-cigal" ("The Lady of the Mighty Earth") was Queen of
+Hades and a form of "Allat" or "Istar." She is also identified with Gula
+or Bahu (the Bohu or "Chaos" of Gen. i. 2), "The Lady of the House of
+Death," and wife of Hea or Nin-a'su.]
+
+
+
+TABLET IX
+
+
+May Nebo, the great steward, the recliner (or _incubus_) supreme among the
+gods, like the god who has begotten him, seize upon his head; against his
+life may he not break forth. Spirit of heaven remember, spirit of earth
+remember.
+
+
+
+TABLET X
+
+
+(On) the sick man by the sacrifice of mercy may perfect health shine like
+bronze; may the Sun-god give this man life; may Merodach, the eldest son
+of the deep (give him) strength, prosperity, (and) health. Spirit of
+heaven remember, spirit of earth remember.
+
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN HYMN TO ISTAR
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The following is one of the many early Chaldean hymns that were
+incorporated into a collection which M. Lenormant has aptly compared with
+the Rig-Veda of India. The concluding lines show that it originally
+belonged to the city of Erech (now Warka). The date of its composition
+must be exceedingly remote, and this increases the interest of the
+astronomical allusions contained in it. The original Accadian text is
+given, with an interlinear Assyrian translation, as is usually the case
+with hymns of this kind. The terra-cotta tablet on which it is found is
+numbered S, 954, being one of those that have been recently brought back
+from Assyria by Mr. George Smith, who has translated the Reverse in his
+"Assyrian Discoveries," pp. 392, 393. I owe a copy of the text to the
+kindness of Mr. Boscawen. It is of considerable importance for the study
+of Assyrian grammar.
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN HYMN TO ISTAR
+
+OBVERSE
+
+
+1    Light of heaven, who like the fire dawnest on the world,
+     (art) thou.
+2    Goddess in the earth, in thy fixed abode,
+3    who dawnest[1] like the earth, (art) thou.
+4    (As for) thee, prosperity approaches thee.
+5    To the house of men in thy descending (thou goest).
+6    A hyena, which as they go in warlike strength are made to
+     march, (art) thou.
+7    A lion, which into the midst is wont to march, (art) thou.
+8    Day (is thy) servant, heaven (thy) canopy.
+9    The servant of Istar;[2] heaven (is thy) canopy.
+10   Princess of the four cities, head of the sea,[3] heaven (is thy)
+     canopy.
+11   The exalted of the Sun-god, heaven (is thy) canopy.
+12   For the revolver of the seasons sanctuaries I build, a temple I
+     build.
+13   For my father the Moon-god, the revolver of the seasons,
+     sanctuaries I build, a temple I build.
+14   For my brother the Sun-god, the revolver of the seasons,
+     sanctuaries I build, a temple I build.
+15   (As for) me, for Nannaru[4] I build the precinct, for the
+     revolver of seasons sanctuaries I build, a temple I build.
+16   In heaven _he laid the hand_; for the revolver of seasons
+     sanctuaries I build, a temple I build.
+17   In the beginning (thou art) my begetter; in the beginning
+     (thou art) my begetter.
+18   In the beginning the goddess _spoke thus to men_:
+19   The Lady of heaven,[5] the divinity of the zenith, (am) I.
+20   The Lady of heaven, the divinity of the dawn, (am) I.
+21   The Queen of heaven, the opener of the locks of the high
+     heaven, my begetter.
+22   Heaven she benefits, earth she enlightens;[6] my begetter.
+23   The benefiter of heaven, the enlightener[7] of earth; my
+     begetter.
+
+[Footnote 1: The Assyrian rendering has, "art caused to journey."]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Assyrian mistranslates, "A servant (is) Istar."]
+
+[Footnote 3: The translation given in the text is extremely doubtful.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Literally, "the brilliant one," a title of the moon-god,
+which gave rise to the classical legend of Nannarus.]
+
+[Footnote 5: The Assyrian renders this by "Istar."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Or perhaps "smites."]
+
+[Footnote 7: Or perhaps "smiter."]
+
+
+
+REVERSE
+
+
+1    Thou who on the axis of heaven dawnest, in the dwellings of the
+     earth her name revolves; my begetter.
+2    (As) Queen of heaven above and below may she be invoked; my
+     begetter.
+3    The mountains fiercely she hurls-into-the-deep;[1] my begetter.
+4    As to the mountains, their goodly stronghold (art) thou, their
+     mighty lock (art) thou;[2] my begetter.
+5    May thy heart rest; may thy liver be magnified.
+6    O Lord Anu, the mighty, may thy heart rest.
+7    O Lord, the mighty Prince[3] Bel, may thy liver be magnified.
+8    O Istar, the Lady of heaven, may thy heart rest.
+9    O Lady, Queen of heaven, may thy liver (be magnified).
+10   O Lady, Queen of the House of heaven, may thy heart
+     (rest).
+11   O Lady, Queen of the land of Erech, may thy liver (be
+     magnified).
+12   O Lady, Queen of the land of the four rivers of Erech,[4] may
+     thy heart (rest).
+13   O Lady, Queen of the Mountain of the World,[5] may thy
+     liver (be magnified).
+14   O Lady, Queen of the Temple of the Resting-place of the
+     world, may thy heart (rest).
+15   O Lady, Queen of Babylon, may thy liver (be magnified).
+16   O Lady, Queen of the Memorial of Nan'a, may thy heart
+     (rest).
+17   O Queen of the Temple, Queen of the gods, may thy liver
+     (be magnified).
+
+18   Prayer of the heart to Istar.
+
+19   Like its original[6] written and translated.
+20   Palace of Assur-bani-pal, King of Assyria;
+21   Son of Esar-haddon, King of multitudes, King of Assyria,
+     high-priest of Babylon,
+22   King of Sumer and Accad, King of the Kings of Cush and
+     Egypt,
+23   King of the four zones; Son of Sennacherib,
+24   King of multitudes, King of Assyria;
+25   who to Assur and Beltis, Nebo and Tasmit trusts.
+26   Thy kingdom, O light of the gods.
+
+[Footnote 1: The Assyrian mistranslates, "I hurl into the deep."]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Assyrian mistranslates "I" for "thou."]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Sadi" in Assyrian, literally "mountain" or "rock," and
+apparently connected with the Hebrew "Shaddai," as in the phrase "El
+Shad-dai," "God Almighty."]
+
+[Footnote 4: Possibly the four rivers of Paradise.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Also called the "Mountain of the East," Mount Elwand on which
+the ark rested.]
+
+[Footnote 6: That is the text from which the Assyrian copy was made for
+the library of Assurbanipal.]
+
+
+
+ANNALS OF ASSUR-NASIR-PAL (SOMETIMES CALLED SARDANAPALUS)
+
+TRANSLATED, WITH NOTES, BY REV. J.M. RODWELL, M.A.
+
+
+Concerning Assur-nasir-habal or Assur-nasir-pal (_i.e._, "Assur preserves
+the son") we possess fuller historical records than of any other of the
+Assyrian monarchs, and among these the following inscription is the most
+important. From it, and from the inscription upon his statue discovered by
+Mr. Layard [Footnote: Now in the British Museum.] in the ruins of one of
+the Nimroud temples, we learn that he was the son of Tuklat-Adar or
+Tuklat-Ninip, that he reigned over a territory extending from the "Tigris
+to the Lebanon, and that he brought the great sea and all countries from
+the sunrise to the sunset under his sway." These inscriptions are
+published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. I, plates
+17 to 27, and were partially translated by Professor Oppert, "_Histoire
+des Empires de Chaldee et d'Assyrie,_," page 73 and following "_Extrait
+des Annales de philosophie chretienne_" tom. IX, 1865.
+
+There is considerable difficulty and a consequent divergence of opinion as
+to the precise date when Assur-nasir-pal ascended the throne. But he most
+probably reigned from 883 to 858 B.C.
+
+It need scarcely be remarked that Assur-nasir-pal is a different person
+from the well-known Sardanapalus of classic writers, or Assur-bani-pal,
+the son of Esar-haddon, who reigned from about B.C. 668 to 625.
+
+It will be seen from the inscription that the campaigns of Assur-nasir-pal
+took place in the mountains of Armenia, in Commagene and the provinces of
+the Pontus, inhabited by the Moschi [Footnote: The Mesek of Psalm cxx. 5.]
+and other tribes. He probably advanced into Media and a portion of western
+Persia. The countries on the banks of the Euphrates submitted to his arms,
+and in one of his expeditions he vanquished Nabu-bal-iddin, King of
+Babylon. Westward, he reduced the southern part of Syria, and advanced to
+the mountain chains of the Amanus and Lebanon, but though he penetrated as
+far as to Tyre and Sidon and exacted tribute from both as well as from
+Byblus and Aradus, he did not subdue Phoenicia. The kingdoms of Israel and
+Judah, under the sway of Ahab and Jehosaphat, were no doubt too powerful,
+as is evinced by the armies which they must have maintained for their
+struggle with the Syrians, [Footnote: See 2 Chron. xvii. and following
+chapters.] for Assur-nasir-pal to have ventured upon attacking them. This
+feat was reserved for his successors on the throne of Assyria.
+
+The inscription was found in the ruins of the Temple at the foot of the
+Pyramid at Nimroud (Calach).
+
+
+
+ANNALS OF ASSUR-NASIR-PAL
+
+
+1    To Ninip[1] most powerful hero, great, chief of the gods,
+     warrior, powerful Lord, whose onset in battle has not been
+     opposed, eldest son,
+2    crusher of opponents, first-born son of Nukimmut,[2] supporter
+     of the seven,[3]
+     noble ruler, King of the gods the producers, governor, he who
+     rolls along the mass
+3    of heaven and earth, opener of canals, treader of the wide earth,
+     the god who in
+     his divinity nourishes heaven and earth, the beneficent,
+4    the exalted, the powerful, who has not lessened the glory of his
+     face,[4] head of
+     nations, bestower of sceptres, glorious, over all cities a
+     ruler,[5]
+5    valiant, the renown of whose sceptre is not approached, chief of
+     widespread influence, great among the gods, shading from the
+     southern sun, Lord of Lords, whose hand the vault of heaven
+6    (and) earth has controlled, a King in battle mighty[6] who has
+     vanquished opposition, victorious, powerful, Lord of
+     water-courses and seas,[7]
+7    strong, not yielding, whose onset brings down the green corn,
+     smiting the land of the enemy, like the cutting of reeds, the
+     deity who changes not his purposes,
+8    the light of heaven and earth, a bold leader on the waters,
+     destroyer of them that hate (him), a spoiler (and) Lord
+     of the disobedient, dividing enemies, whose name in the
+     speech of the gods
+9    no god has ever disregarded, the gatherer of life, the god(?)
+     whose prayers are good, whose abode is in the city of Calah,
+     a great Lord, my Lord--(who am) Assur-nasir-pal, the
+     mighty King,
+10   King of multitudes, a Prince unequalled, Lord of all the
+     four countries, powerful over hosts of men, the possession
+     of Bel and Ninip the exalted and Anu
+11   and of Dakan,[8] a servant of the great gods in the lofty shrine
+     for great (O Ninip) is thy heart; a worshipper of Bel whose
+     might upon
+12   thy great deity is founded, and thou makest righteous his
+     life, valiant, warrior, who in the service of Assur his Lord
+     hath proceeded, and among the Kings
+13   of the four regions who has not his fellow, a Prince for
+     admiration, not sparing opponents, mighty leader, who an
+     equal
+14   has not, a Prince reducing to order his disobedient ones,
+     who has subdued whole multitudes of men, a strong worker,
+     treading down
+15   the heads of his enemies, trampling on all foes, crushing
+     assemblages of rebels, who in the service of the great gods
+     his Lords
+16   marched vigorously and the lands of all of them his hand
+     captured, caused the forests of all of them to fall,[9] and
+     received their tribute, taking
+17   securities, establishing laws over all lands, when Assur the
+     Lord who proclaims my name and augments my Royalty
+18   laid hold upon his invincible power for the forces of my
+     Lordship, for Assur-nasir-pal, glorious Prince, worshipper
+     of the great gods
+19   the generous, the great, the powerful, acquirer of cities and
+     forests and the territory of all of them, King of Lords,
+     destroying the wicked, strengthening
+20   the peaceful, not sparing opponents, a Prince of firm will(?)
+     one who combats oppression, Lord of all Kings,
+21   Lord of Lords, the acknowledged, King of Kings, seated
+     gloriously, the renown of Ninip the warrior, worshipper of
+     the great gods, prolonging the benefits (conferred by) his
+     fathers:
+22   a Prince who in the service of Assur and the Sun-god, the
+     gods in whom he trusted, royally marched to turbulent lands,
+     and Kings who had rebelled against him
+23   he cut off like grass, all their lands to his feet he subjected,
+     restorer of the worship of the goddesses and that of the
+     great gods,
+24   Chief unwavering, who for the guidance of the heads (and)
+     elders of his land is a steadfast guardian, the work of whose
+     hands and
+25   the gift of whose finger the great gods of heaven and earth
+     have exalted, and his steps[10] over rulers have they established
+     forever;
+26   their power for the preservation of my Royalty have they
+     exercised; the retribution of his power, (and) the approach
+     of His Majesty over Princes
+27   of the four regions they have extended: the enemies of Assur
+     in all their country, the upper and the lower I chastised, and
+     tribute and impost
+28   upon them I established, capturing the enemies of Assur--mighty
+     King, King of Assyria, son of Tuklat-Adar who all
+     his enemies
+29   has scattered; (who) in the dust threw down the corpses of
+     his enemies, the grandson of Bin-nirari, the servant of the
+     great gods,
+30   who crucified alive and routed his enemies and subdued
+     them to his yoke, descendant of Assur-dan-il, who the
+     fortresses
+31   established (and) the fanes made good. In those days by
+     the decree[11] of the great gods to royalty power supremacy
+     I rose up:
+32   I am a King, I am a Lord, I am glorious, I am great, I am
+     mighty, I have arisen, I am Chief, I am a Prince, I am a
+     warrior
+33   I am great and I am glorious, Assur-nasir-habal, a mighty
+     King of Assyria, proclaimer of the Moon-god, worshipper
+     of Anu, exalter of Yav,[12] suppliant of the gods
+34   am I, servant unyielding, subduing the land of his foeman,
+     a King mighty in battle, destroyer of cities and forests,
+35   Chief over opponents, King of the four regions, expeller of
+     his foes, prostrating all his enemies, Prince of a multitude
+     of lands of all Kings
+36   Even of all, a Prince subduing those disobedient to him,
+     who is ruling all the multitudes of men. These aspirations
+     to the face of the great gods
+37   have gone up; on my destiny steadfastly have they determined;
+     at the wishes of my heart and the uplifting of my
+     hand, Istar, exalted Lady,
+38   hath favored me in my intentions, and to the conduct of
+     (my) battles and warfare hath applied her heart. In those
+     days I Assur-nasir-pal, glorious Prince, worshipper of the
+     great gods
+39   the wishes of whose heart Bel will cause him to attain, and
+     who has conquered all Kings who disobey him, and by his
+     hand capturing
+40   his enemies, who in difficult places has beaten down assemblages
+     of rebels; when Assur, mighty Lord, proclaimer of my name
+41   aggrandizer of my royalty over the Kings of the four
+     regions, bountifully hath added his invincible power to the
+     forces of my government,
+42   putting me in possession of lands, and mighty forests for
+     exploration hath he given and urgently impelled me--by the
+     might of Assur my Lord,
+43   perplexed paths, difficult mountains by the impetuosity of
+     my hosts I traversed, and an equal there was not. In the
+     beginning of my reign
+44   (and) in my first campaign when the Sun-god guider of
+     the lands threw over me his beneficent protection[13] on the
+     throne of my dominion I firmly seated myself; a sceptre
+45   the dread of man into my hands I took; my chariots (and)
+     armies I collected; rugged paths, difficult mountains, which
+     for the passage
+46   of chariots and armies was not suited I passed, and to the
+     land of Nairi[14] I went: Libie, their capital city, the cities
+     Zurra and Abuqu
+47   Arura Arubie, situated within the limits of the land of
+     Aruni and Etini, fortified cities, I took, their fighting-men
+48   in numbers I slew; their spoil, their wealth, their cattle I
+     spoiled; their soldiers were discouraged; they took possession
+     of a difficult mountain, a mountain exceedingly difficult;
+     after them
+49   I did not proceed, for it was a mountain ascending up like
+     lofty points of iron, and the beautiful birds of heaven had
+     not reached up into it: like nests
+50   of the young birds in the midst of the mountain their defence
+     they placed, into which none of the Kings my fathers had
+     ever penetrated: in three days
+51   successfully on one large mountain, his courage vanquished
+     opposition: along the feet of that mountain I crept and hid:
+     their nests, their tents,
+52   I broke up; 200 of their warriors with weapons I destroyed;
+     their spoil in abundance like the young of sheep I carried off;
+53   their corpses like rubbish on the mountains I heaped up;
+     their relics in tangled hollows of the mountains I consumed;
+     their cities
+54   I overthrew, I demolished, in fire I burned: from the land
+     of Nummi to the land of Kirruri I came down; the tribute
+     of Kirruri
+55   of the territory of Zimizi, Zimira, Ulmanya, Adavas, Kargai,
+     Harmasai, horses,[15] (fish (?),
+56   oxen, horned sheep in numbers, copper, as their tribute I
+     received: an officer to guard boundaries[16] over them I placed.
+     While in the land of Kirruri
+57   they detained me, the fear of Assur my Lord overwhelmed
+     the lands of Gilzanai and Khubuskai; horses, silver
+58   gold, tin, copper, _kams_ of copper as their tribute they brought
+     to me. From the land of Kirruri I withdrew;
+59   to a territory close by the town Khulun in Gilhi[17] Bitani
+     I passed: the cities of Khatu, Khalaru, Nistun, Irbidi,
+60   Mitkie, Arzanie, Zila, Khalue, cities of Gilhi situated in the
+     environs of Uzie and Arue
+61   and Arardi powerful lands, I occupied: their soldiers in
+     numbers I slew; their spoil, their riches I carried off;
+62   their soldiers were discouraged; the summits projecting over
+     against the city of Nistun which were menacing like the
+     storms of heaven, I captured;
+63   into which no one among the Princes my sires had ever penetrated;
+     my soldiers like birds (of prey) rushed upon them;
+64   260 of their warriors by the sword I smote down; their
+     heads cut off in heaps I arranged; the rest of them like birds
+65   in a nest, in the rocks of the mountains nestled; their spoil,
+     their riches from the midst of the mountains I brought
+     down; cities which were in the midst
+66   of vast forests situated I overthrew, destroyed, burned in
+     fire; the rebellious soldiers fled from before my arms; they
+     came down; my yoke
+67   they received; impost tribute and a Viceroy I set over them.
+     Bubu son of Bubua son of the Prefect of Nistun
+68   in the city of Arbela I flayed; his skin I stretched in contempt
+     upon the wall. At that time an image of my person
+     I made; a history of my supremacy
+69   upon it I wrote, and (on) a mountain of the land of Ikin(?)
+     in the city of Assur-nasir-pal at the foot I erected (it). In
+     my own eponym in the month of July[18] and the 24th day
+     (probably B.C. 882).
+70   in honor of Assur and Istar the great gods my Lords, I
+     quitted the city of Nineveh: to cities situated below Nipur
+     and Pazate powerful countries
+71   I proceeded; Atkun, Nithu, Pilazi and 20 other cities in
+     their environs I captured; many of their soldiers I slew;
+72   their spoil, their riches I carried off; the cities I burned with
+     fire; the rebel soldiers fled from before my arms, submitted,
+73   and took my yoke; I left them in possession of their land.
+     From the cities below Nipur and Pazate I withdrew; the
+     Tigris I passed;
+74   to the land of Commagene I approached; the tribute of Commagene
+     and of the Moschi[19] in _kams_ of copper, sheep and
+     goats I received; while in Commagene
+75   I was stationed, they brought me intelligence that the city
+     Suri in Bit-Khalupe had revolted. The people of Hamath
+     had slain their governor
+76   Ahiyababa the son of Lamamana[20] they brought from Bit-Adini
+     and made him their King. By help of Assur and
+     Yav
+77   the great gods who aggrandize my royalty, chariots, (and)
+     an army, I collected: the banks of the Chaboras[21] I occupied;
+     in my passage tribute
+78   in abundance from Salman-haman-ilin of the city of Sadi-kannai
+     and of Il-yav of the city of Sunai,[22] silver, gold,
+79   tin, _kam_ of copper, vestments of wool, vestments of linen
+     I received. To Suri which is in Bit-Halupe I drew near;
+80   the fear of the approach of Assur my Lord overwhelmed
+     them; the great men and the multitudes of the city, for the
+     saving of their lives, coming up after me,[23]
+81   submitted to my yoke; some slain, some living, some tongueless
+     I made: Ahiyababa son of Lamamana
+82   whom from Bit-Adini they had fetched, I captured; in the
+     valor of my heart and the steadfastness of my soldiers I besieged
+     the city; the soldiers, rebels all,
+83   were taken prisoners; the nobles to the principal palace of
+     his land I caused to send; his silver, his gold, his treasure,
+     his riches, copper
+84   (?)tin, _kams, tabhani, hariati_ of copper, choice copper in
+     abundance, alabaster and iron-stone of large size
+85   the treasures of his harem, his daughters and the wives of
+     the rebels with their treasures, and the gods with their
+     treasures,
+86   precious stones of the land of ..., his swift chariot,
+     his horses, the harness, his chariot-yoke, trappings for
+     horses, coverings for men,
+87   vestments of wool, vestments of linen, handsome altars of
+     cedar, handsome ..., bowls of cedar-wood
+88   beautiful black coverings, beautiful purple coverings, carpets,
+     his oxen, his sheep, his abundant spoil, which like the
+     stars of heaven could not be reckoned,
+89   I carried off; Aziel as my lieutenant over them I placed; a
+     trophy along the length of the great gate I erected: the
+     rebellious nobles
+90   who had revolted against me and whose skins I had stripped
+     off, I made into a trophy: some in the middle of the pile
+     I left to decay; some on the top
+91   of the pile on stakes I impaled; some by the side of the pile
+     I placed in order on stakes; many within view of my land
+92   I flayed; their skins on the walls I arranged; of the officers
+     of the King's officer, rebels, the limbs I cut off;
+93   I brought Ahiyababa to Nineveh; I flayed[24] him and fastened
+     his skin to the wall; laws and edicts
+94   over Lakie I established. While I was staying in Suri the
+     tribute of the Princes of Lakie throughout the whole of
+     them,
+95   silver, gold, tin, copper, _kam_ of copper, oxen, sheep,
+     vestments
+     of wool and linen, as tribute
+96   and gift, I defined and imposed upon them. In those days,
+     the tribute of Khayani of the city of Hindanai, silver,
+97   gold, tin, copper, amu-stone, alabaster blocks, beautiful
+     black (and) lustrous coverings I received as tribute from
+     him. In those days an enlarged image
+98   of my Royalty I made; edicts and decrees upon it I wrote;
+     in the midst of his palace I put it up; of stone my tablets
+     I made;
+99   the decrees of my throne upon it I wrote; in the great gate
+     I fixed them, in the date of this year which takes its name
+     from me, in honor of Assur my Lord and Ninip who uplifts
+     my feet.[25]
+100  Whereas in the times of the Kings my fathers no man
+     of Suhi to Assyria had ever come, Il-bani Prince of Suhi
+     together with his soldiers
+101  (and) his son, silver, gold as his tribute to Nineveh in
+     abundance brought: in my own eponym[26] at the city of Nineveh
+     I stayed: news
+102  they brought me that men of the land of Assyria, (and)
+     Hulai the governor of their city which Shalmaneser King
+     of Assyria my predecessor
+103  to the city of Hasiluha had united, had revolted: Dandamusa[27]
+     a city of my dominion marched out to subdue
+     (them);
+104  in honor of Assur, the Sun-god and Yav, the gods in whom
+     I trust, my chariots and army I collected at the head of the
+     river Zupnat, the place of an image
+105  which Tiglath-Pileser and Tiglath-Adar, Kings of Assyria
+     my fathers had raised; an image of My Majesty I constructed
+     and put up with theirs.
+106  In those days I renewed the tribute of the land of Izala,
+     oxen, sheep, goats: to the land of Kasyari[28] I proceeded,
+     and to Kinabu
+107  the fortified city of the province of Hulai. I drew near;
+     with the impetuosity of my formidable attack I besieged and
+     took the town; 600 of their fighting men
+108  with (my) arms I destroyed; 3,000 of their captives I consigned
+     to the flames; as hostages I left not one of them alive;
+     Hulai
+109  the governor of their town I captured by (my) hand alive;
+     their corpses into piles I built; their boys and maidens I
+     dishonored;
+110  Hulai the governor of their city I flayed: his skin on the
+     walls of Damdamusa I placed in contempt; the city I overthrew
+     demolished, burned with fire;
+     in the city of Mariru within their territory I took; 50 warrior
+     fighting men by (my) weapons I destroyed; 200 of their captives
+     in the flame I burned;
+112  the soldiers of the land of Nirbi I slew in fight in the
+     desert; their spoil, their oxen, their sheep, I brought away;
+     Nirbu which is at the foot of mount Ukhira
+113  I boldly took; I then passed over to Tila their fortified city;
+     from Kinabu I withdrew; to Tila I drew near;
+114  a strong city with three forts facing each other: the soldiers
+     to their strong forts and numerous army trusted and
+     would not submit;
+115  my yoke they would not accept; (then,) with onset and
+     attack I besieged the city; their fighting men with my
+     weapons I destroyed; of their spoil,
+116  their riches, oxen and sheep, I made plunder; much booty
+     I burned with fire; many soldiers I captured alive;
+117  of some I chopped off the hands and feet; of others the
+     noses and ears I cut off; of many soldiers I destroyed the
+     eyes;[29]
+118  one pile of bodies while yet alive, and one of heads I reared
+     up on the heights within their town; their heads in the midst
+     I hoisted; their boys
+
+(_Continued on Column II._)
+
+[Footnote 1: Ninip was one of the great gods of the Assyrian Pantheon,
+often joined with Assur as one of the special deities invoked by the
+Assyrian kings at the opening of their inscriptions. His name is also
+written under the symbol used for iron ("parzii"). Thus in later times the
+planets were connected with special metals.]
+
+[Footnote 2: A goddess, called also Nuha, and the mother of Nebo as well
+as of Ninip. Fox Talbot (Gloss. 158) compares "nu (= 'al') kimmut" with
+the "al-gum" of Prov. xxx. 31, i.e., "irresistible."]
+
+[Footnote 3: Planets. Or, "warrior among spirits." I mention this
+rendering as the suggestion of Mr. G. Smith, though I prefer that given
+above.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Literally, "horn." Cf. Job xvi. 15.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Tigallu. Menant renders this sentence "La massue pour regner
+sur les villes."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Cf. Ps. xxiv. 8.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Cf. Ps. xcv. 4; civ. 6; cvii. 35.]
+
+[Footnote 8: Probably the Dagon of Scripture.]
+
+[Footnote 9: Compare the boast in Isaiah xxxvii. 24, "I cut down the tall
+cedars."]
+
+[Footnote 10: Goings. Cf. Ps. xl. 2, "He hath established my goings."]
+
+[Footnote 11: Mouth.]
+
+[Footnote 12: The god Yav may be the Yaveh of the Moabite stone.]
+
+[Footnote 13: Or, shade. This may refer to the eclipse of July 13, 885
+B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 14: A federation of States north and northeast of Assyria at the
+head of the Euphrates. In Tig. iv. 7, 33 of their kings are mentioned.]
+
+[Footnote 15: Literally, "animals of the East." This looks as if the
+Assyrians obtained the horse from some Eastern land.]
+
+[Footnote 16: Or, a viceroy.]
+
+[Footnote 17: A mountainous country near the upper Tigris, possibly
+Kurdistan.]
+
+[Footnote 18: The Hebrew month Ab.]
+
+[Footnote 19: In the text, "Kummuhi" and "Muski."]
+
+[Footnote 20: Dr. Hincks was of opinion that Lamaman meant "nobody"; and
+that "Son of Lamaman" was a delicate way of indicating a man was of low
+origin.  Norr. Dict., p. 690.]
+
+[Footnote 21: Assyrian, "Khabur." This may be the Chebar mentioned in the
+Prophet Ezekiel. Schultens, however (in his Geogr.), mentions another
+Chaboras which flows into the Tigris.]
+
+[Footnote 22: In the north of Mesopotamia.]
+
+[Footnote 23: Literally, to my back.]
+
+[Footnote 24: Compare 2 Mace. vii. 7 for a somewhat similar proceeding.
+The custom may also be alluded to in Mic. iii. 3.]
+
+[Footnote 25: Compare Ps. lxxiv. 3, "Lift up thy feet," etc.]
+
+[Footnote 26: About 882 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 27: Near the modern Diarbekir, on the road to the sources of the
+Supnat.]
+
+[Footnote 28: In Armenia near the sources of the Tigris.]
+
+[Footnote 29: Thus in 2 Kings xxv. 7 we read that the Chaldees "put out
+the eyes of Zedekiah." Samson (Judges xvi. 21) was similarly treated. And
+the custom may be alluded to in Num. xvi. 14. It may be well to compare
+the treatment of children as recorded in Joshua xi. 14 with what we read
+in line 118. Horrible and ferocious as was the treatment of the conquered
+by the Israelites, they at least on that occasion were content with
+enslaving the children.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+1    and their maidens I dishonored, the city I overthrew, razed
+     and burned with fire,
+     In those days the cities of the land of Nirbi
+2    (and) their strong fortresses, I overthrew, demolished,
+     burned with fire: from Nirbi I withdrew and to the city
+     Tuskha
+3    I approached; the city of Tuskha I again occupied; its
+     old fort I threw down: its place I prepared, its dimensions
+     I took; a new castle
+4    from its foundation to its roof I built, I completed, I reared:
+     a palace for the residence of My Royalty with doors of _iki_
+     wood I made;
+5    a palace of brick from its foundations to its roof I made, I
+     completed: a complete image of my person of polished
+     stone I made; the history
+6    of my surpassing nation and an account of my conquests
+     which in the country of Nairi I had accomplished I wrote
+     upon it; in the city of Tuskha
+7    I raised it; on suitable stone I wrote and upon the wall I
+     fixed it; (then) the men of Assyria, those who from the privation
+     of food to various countries
+8    And to Rurie had gone up, to Tuskha I brought back and
+     settled there: that city to myself
+9    I took; the wheats and barleys of Nirbi I accumulated in
+     it; the populace of Nirbi who before my arms had fled,
+10   returned and accepted my yoke; of their towns, their Viceroys,
+     their many convenient houses I took possession; impost
+     and tribute, horses,
+11   horses for the yoke, fish, oxen, sheep, goats in addition to
+     what I had before settled, I imposed upon them; their
+     youths as hostages
+12   I took. While I was staying in Tuskha, I received the
+     tribute of Ammibaal son of Zamani, of Anhiti of the land
+     of Rurie
+13   of Labduri son of Dubuzi of the land of Nirdun and the
+     tribute of the land of Urumi-sa Bitani, of the Princes of
+     the land of Nairi,
+14   chariots, horses, horses for the yoke, tin, silver, gold, _kam_
+     of copper, oxen, sheep, goats.
+15   Over the land of Nairi I established a viceroy: (but) on
+     my return the land of Nairi, and Nirbu which is in
+16   the land of Kasyari, revolted; nine of their cities leagued
+     themselves with Ispilipri one of their fortified towns and
+     to a mountain difficult of access
+17   they trusted; but the heights of the hill I besieged and
+     took; in the midst of the strong mountain their fighting
+     men I slew; their corpses like rubbish on the hills
+18   I piled up; their common people in the tangled hollows of
+     the mountains I consumed; their spoil, their property I
+     carried off; the heads of their soldiers
+19   I cut off; a pile (of them) in the highest part of the city I
+     built; their boys and maidens I dishonored; to the environs
+     of the city Buliyani
+20   I passed; the banks of the river Lukia[1] I took possession
+     of; in my passage I occupied the towns of the land of
+     Kirhi hard by; many of their warriors
+21   I slew; their spoil I spoiled; their cities with fire I burned:
+     to the city of Ardupati I went. In those days the tribute
+22   of Ahiramu son of Yahiru of the land of Nilaai son of Bahiani
+     of the land of the Hittites[2] and of the Princes of the
+     land of Hanirabi, silver, gold,
+23   tin, _kam_ of copper, oxen, sheep, horses, as their tribute I
+     received; in the eponym of Assuridin[3] they brought me
+     intelligence that
+24   Zab-yav Prince of the land of Dagara had revolted. The
+     land of Zamua throughout its whole extent he boldly
+     seized; near the city of Babite
+25   they constructed a fort; for combat and battle they
+     marched forth: in the service of Assur, the great god my
+     Lord and the great Merodach
+26   going before me,[4] by the powerful aid which the Lord
+     Assur extended to my people, my servants and my soldiers
+     I called together; to the vicinity
+27   of Babite I marched: the soldiers to the valor of their army
+     trusted and gave battle: but in the mighty force of the
+     great Merodach going before me
+28   I engaged in battle with them; I effected their overthrow:
+     I broke them down; 1,460 of their warriors in the environs
+29   I slew; Uzie, Birata, and Lagalaga, their strong towns,
+     with 100 towns within their territory I captured;
+30   their spoil, their youths, their oxen, and sheep I carried
+     off; Zab-yav for the preservation of his life, a rugged
+     mountain
+31   ascended; 1,200 of their soldiers I carried off; from the
+     land of Dagara I withdrew; to the city of Bara I approached;
+     the city of Bara
+32   I captured; 320 of their soldiers by my weapons I destroyed;
+     their oxen, sheep, and spoil in abundance I removed;
+33   300 of their soldiers I took off; on Tasritu[5] 15th from the
+     town Kalzi I withdrew, and came to the environs of Babite;
+34   from Babite I withdrew; to the land of Nizir which they
+     call Lulu-Kinaba I drew near; the city Bunasi one of their
+     fortified cities
+35   belonging to Musazina and 20 cities of their environs I
+     captured; the soldiers were discouraged; they took possession
+     of a mountain difficult of access; I, Assur-nasir-pal
+     impetuously after them
+36   like birds swooped down; their corpses lay thick on the
+     hills of Nizir; 326 of their warriors I smote down; his
+     horses I exacted of him,
+37   their common people in the tangled hollows I consumed;
+     seven cities in Nizir, which were of their duly appointed
+     fortresses I captured; their soldiers
+38   I slew; their spoil, their riches, their oxen, their sheep I
+     carried off; the cities themselves I burned; to these my
+     tents I returned to halt;
+39   from those same tents I departed; to cities of the land of
+     Nizir whose place no one had ever seen I marched; the city
+     of Larbusa
+40   the fortified city of Kirtiara and 8 cities of their territory
+     I captured; the soldiers lost heart and took to a steep
+     mountain, a mountain (which) like sharp iron stakes
+41   rose high upward; as for his soldiers, I ascended after them;
+     in the midst of the mountain I scattered their corpses; 172
+     of their men I slew; soldiers
+42   in numbers in the hollows of the mountain I hunted down;
+     their spoil, their cattle, their sheep, I took away; their
+     cities with fire
+43   I burned; their heads on the high places of the mountain
+     I lifted up;[6] their boys and maidens I dishonored; to the
+     tents aforesaid I returned to halt;
+44   from those same tents I withdrew; 150 cities of the territory
+     of Larbusai, Durlulumai, Bunisai and Barai I captured;
+45   their fighting men I slew; their spoil I spoiled; the city of
+     Hasabtal I razed (and) burned with fire; 50 soldiers of
+     Barai I slew in battle on the plain.
+46   In those days the Princes of the entire land of Zamua were
+     overwhelmed by the dread of the advance of Assur my
+     Lord and submitted to my yoke; horses, silver, gold,
+47   I received; the entire land under a Prefect I placed; horses,
+     silver, gold, wheat, barley, submission, I imposed upon
+     them
+48   from the city of Tuklat-assur-azbat I withdrew; the land
+     of Nispi accepted my yoke; I went down all night; to cities
+     of remote site in the midst of Nispi
+49   which Zab-yav had established as his stronghold I went,
+     took the city of Birutu and consigned it to the flames.
+     In the eponym of Damiktiya-tuklat, when I was stationed
+     at Nineveh, they brough me news[7]
+50   that Amaka, and Arastua withheld the tribute and vassalage
+     due to Assur my Lord. In honor of Assur mighty
+     Lord and Merodach the great going before me,
+51   on the first of May[8] I prepared for the third time an
+     expedition against Zamua: my fighting men[9] before the
+     many chariots I did not consider: from Kalzi I withdrew;
+     the lower Zab
+52   I passed; to the vicinity of Babite I proceeded; the river
+     Radanu at the foot of the mountains of Zima, my birthplace,
+     I approached; oxen,
+53   sheep, goats, as the tribute of Dagara I received: near
+     Zimaki I added my strong chariots and battering rams as
+     chief of warlike implements to my magazines; by night
+54   and daybreak I went down; the Turnat in rafts I crossed;
+     to Amali the strong city of Arastu I approached;
+55   with vigorous assault the city I besieged and took; 800
+     of their fighting men I destroyed by my weapons; I filled
+     the streets of their city with their corpses;
+56   their many houses I burned; many soldiers I took alive;
+     their spoil in abundance I carried off; the city I overthrew
+     razed and burnt with fire; the city Khudun
+57   and 20 cities in its environs I took; their soldiers I slew;
+     their booty in cattle and sheep I carried off; their cities I
+     overthrew razed and burned; their boys
+58   their maidens I dishonored; the city of Kisirtu a fortified
+     city of Zabini with 10 neighboring cities I took; their soldiers
+     I slew; their spoil
+59   I carried off; the cities of Barai and Kirtiara, Bunisai together
+     with the province of Khasmar I overthrew razed and
+     burned with fire;
+60   I reduced the boundaries to a heap, and then from the
+     cities of Arastua I withdrew: to the neighborhood of the
+     territory of Laara and Bidirgi, rugged land, which for the
+     passage
+61   of chariots and an army was not adapted, I passed; to the
+     royal city Zamri of Amika of Zamua I drew near; Amika
+     from before the mighty prowess of my formidable attack
+62   fled in fear and took refuge on a hill difficult of access: I
+     brought forth the treasures of his palace and his chariot;
+     from Zamri I withdrew and passed the river Lallu and to
+     the mountains of Etini,
+63   difficult ground, unfit for the passage of chariots and
+     armies, whither none of the Princes my sires had ever penetrated;
+     I marched in pursuit of his army on the mountains
+     of Etini:
+64   the hill I ascended: his treasure, his riches, vessels of copper,
+     abundance of copper, _kam_ of copper, bowls of copper,
+     pitchers of copper, the treasures of his palace and of his
+     storehouses,
+65   from within the mountains I took away to my camp and
+     made a halt: by the aid of Assur and the Sun-god, the gods
+     in whom I trust, from that camp I withdrew and proceeded
+     on my march;
+66   the river Edir I passed on the confines of Soua and Elaniu,
+     powerful lands; their soldiers I slew in numbers; their
+     treasure, their riches, _am_[10] of copper,
+67   _kam_ of copper, _sapli_ and _namziete_ of copper,
+     vessels of copper
+     in abundance, _pasur_ wood, gold and _ahzi_, their oxen,
+     sheep, riches,
+68   his abundant spoil, from below the mountains of Elani, his
+     horses, I exacted from him: Amika for the saving of his
+     life to the land of Sabue went up;
+69   the cities Zamru, Arazitku, Amaru, Parsindu, Eritu, Zuritu
+     his fortified city, with 150 cities
+70   of his territory I overthrew, razed, burned; the boundary
+     I reduced to a heap.
+     While in the vicinity of Parsindi I was stationed, the warlike
+     engines of the tribe of Kallabu
+71   came forth against the place; 150 of the fighting men of
+     Amika I slew in the plain; their heads I cut off and put
+     them up on the heights of his palace;
+72   200 of his soldiers taken by (my) hands alive I left to rot
+     on the wall of his palace:[11] from Zamri the battering-rams
+     and ... my banners I made ready;
+73   to the fortress Ata, of Arzizai, whither none of the Kings
+     my sires had ever penetrated I marched: the cities of Arzizu,
+     and Arzindu
+74   his fortified city, with ten cities situated in their environs
+     in the midst of Nispi a rugged country, I captured; their
+     soldiers I slew the cities I overthrew razed and burned with
+     fire:
+75   to those my tents I returned. In those days I received copper,
+     _tabbili_ of copper, _kanmate_ of copper, and _sariete_
+     as the tribute of the land of Siparmina, such as women
+76   collect: from the city of Zamri I withdrew; to Lara, (the
+     rugged hill-country, unfitted for the passage of chariots and
+     armies, with instruments [axes] of iron I cut through and
+77   with rollers of metal I beat down) with the chariots and
+     troops I brought over to the city of Tiglath-assur-azbat in
+     the land of Lulu--the city of Arakdi they call it--I went
+     down;
+78   the Kings of Zamue, the whole of them, from before the
+     impetuosity of my servants and the greatness of my power
+     drew back and accepted my yoke; tribute of silver, gold,
+     tin,
+79   copper, _kam_ of copper, vestments of wool, horses, oxen,
+     sheep, goats, in addition to what I had before settled, I imposed
+     upon them; a Viceroy
+80   in Kalach I created. While in the land of Zamue I was
+     stationed the cities Khudunai, Khartisai, Khutiskai Kirzanai
+81   were overwhelmed by fear of the advance of Assur my
+     Lord; impost, tribute, silver, gold, horses, vestments of
+     wool, oxen, sheep, goats, they brought to me; the rebel
+     soldiers
+82   fled from before my arms; they fled to the mountains; I
+     marched after them; within confines of the land of Aziru
+     they settled and got ready the city of Mizu as their strong
+     place;
+83   the land of Aziru I overthrew and destroyed; from Zimaki
+     as far as the Turnat I scattered their corpses; 500 of their
+     fighting men I destroyed;
+84   their spoil in abundance I carried off.
+     In those days in the land of Samua, (in which is) the
+     city of Atlila which Zibir King of Kardunias had taken,
+     devastated,
+85   and reduced to a heap of ruins, I Assur-nasir-pal King of
+     Assyria took, after laying siege to its castle a second time;
+     the palace as a residence for My Majesty I therein strengthened,
+     made princely and enlarged beyond what of old was
+     planned;
+86   the wheat and barleys of the land of Kalibi I accumulated
+     therein; I gave it the name of Dur-Assur.
+     On the first of May in the eponym of Sanmapakid[12] I
+     collected my chariots and soldiers
+87   the Tigris I crossed; to the land of Commagene I passed
+     on; I inaugurated a palace in the city of Tiluli; the tribute
+     due from Commagene I received; from Commagene I
+     withdrew;
+88   I passed on to the land of the Istarat;[13] in the city of Kibaki
+     I halted; from Kibaki I received oxen, sheep, goats,
+     and copper; from Kibaki I withdrew;
+89   to the city of Mattyati I drew nigh; I took possession of
+     the land of Yatu with the town Kapranisa; 2,800 of their
+     fighting men I smote down with my weapons; their spoil
+     in abundance I carried off;
+90   the rebels who had fled from before my arms now accepted
+     my yoke; of their cities I left them in possession; tribute
+     impost and an officer[14] over them I set;
+91   an image of my person I made; collected laws I wrote upon
+     it and in the city of Mattiyati I placed it; from Mattiyati I
+     withdrew; at the city of Zazabuka
+92   I halted; the tribute of Calach in oxen, sheep, goats and
+     various copper articles I received; from Zazabuka I withdrew;
+93   at the city of Irzia I made a halt; that city I burned; but
+     received there the tributes due from Zura in oxen, sheep,
+     goats and _kam_ copper:
+94   from Izria I withdrew; in the land of Kasyari I halted;
+     Madara (and) Anzi two cities of the territory I captured
+     and slew their soldiers;
+95   their spoil I carried off; the cities I burned with fire; six
+     lakes I crossed over in Kasyari, a rugged highland for the
+     passage of chariots and an army
+96   unsuited; (the hills with instruments of iron I cut through
+     [and] with rollers of metal I beat down;) the chariots and
+     army I brought over. In a city of Assur[15] on the sandy
+     side which is in Kasyari,
+97   oxen, sheep, goats _kam_ and _gurpisi_ of copper I received;
+     by the land of Kasyari I proceeded; a second time to the
+     land of Nairi I went down; at the city of Sigisa
+98   I made a halt; from Sigisa I withdrew; to Madara the
+     fortified city of Labduri the son of Dubisi I drew near, a
+     city extremely strong with four impregnable castles;
+99   the city I besieged; they quailed before my mighty
+     prowess; I received, for the preservation of their lives,
+     their treasures, their riches, their sons, by tale; I imposed
+     upon them
+100  tribute and duties; an officer[16] I appointed over them; the
+     city I demolished, razed, and reduced to a heap of ruins;
+     from Madara I withdrew; to Tuskha
+101  I passed over; a palace in Tuskha I dedicated; the tribute
+     of the land of Nirdun, horses, yoke-horses, fish, _kam_ of
+     copper, _gurpisi_ of copper, oxen, sheep,
+102  goats, in Tuskha I received; 60 cities and strong castles
+     below Kasyari, belonging to Labduri son of Dubuzi
+     I overthrew razed and converted to a heap of ruins.
+103  In the service of Assur my Lord from Tuskha I withdrew.
+     The powerful chariots and battering-rams I put
+     up in my stores; on rafts
+104  I passed the Tigris; all night I descended; to Pitura a
+     strong town of Dirrai I drew near--a very strong city--
+105  two forts facing each other, whose castle like the
+     summit of a mountain stood up: by the mighty hands of
+     Assur my Lord and the impetuosity of my army and my
+     formidable attack
+106  I gave them battle; on two days before sunrise like Yav
+     the inundator I rushed upon them; destruction upon them
+     I rained with the might[17]
+107  and prowess of my warriors; like the rush of birds coming
+     upon them, the city I captured; 800 of their soldiers by
+     my arms I destroyed; their heads
+108  I cut off; many soldiers I captured in hand alive; their
+     populace in the flames I burned; their spoil I carried off
+     in abundance; a trophy of the living and of heads
+109  about his great gate I built;[18] 700 soldiers I there impaled
+     on stakes;[19] the city I overthrew, razed, and reduced to
+     a heap of ruins all round; their boys,
+110  their maidens, I dishonored; the city of Kukunu[20] facing
+     the mountains of Matni I captured; 700 of their fighting
+     men I smote down with my weapons;
+111  their spoil in abundance I carried off; 50 cities of Dira I
+     occupied; their soldiers I slew; I plundered them; 50 soldiers
+     I took alive; the cities I overthrew
+112  razed and burned; the approach of my Royalty overcame
+     them; from Pitura I withdrew, and went down to Arbaki
+     in Gilhi-Bitani;
+113  they quailed before the approach of my Majesty, and deserted
+     their towns and strong places: for the saving of
+     their lives they went up to Matni a land of strength
+114  I went after them in pursuit; 1,000 of their warriors I left
+     in the rugged hills; their corpses on a hill I piled up;
+     with their bodies the tangled hollows
+115  of the mountains I filled; I captured 200 soldiers and cut
+     off their hands; their spoil I carried away; their oxen,
+     their sheep
+116  without number, I took away; Iyaya, Salaniba, strong
+     cities of Arbaki I occupied; the soldiers I slew; their spoil
+     I carried off
+117  250 towns surrounded with strong walls in the land of
+     Nairi I overthrew demolished and reduced to heaps and
+     ruins; the trees of their land I cut down; the wheat
+118  and barley in Tuskha I kept. Ammiba'al the son of
+     Zamani had been betrayed and slain by his nobles.[21] To
+     revenge Ammiba'al
+119  I marched; from before the vehemence of my arms and
+     the greatness of my Royalty
+120  they drew back: his swift chariots, trappings for men and
+     horses one hundred in number,
+121  horses, harness, his yokes, tribute of silver and gold with
+     100 talents
+122  in tin, 100 talents in copper, 300 talents in _annui_, 100 _kam_
+     of copper, 3,000 _kappi_ of copper, bowls of copper, vessels
+     of copper,
+123  1,000 vestments of wool, _nui_ wood, _eru_ wood, _zalmalli_
+     wood, horns, choice gold,
+124  the treasures of his palace, 2,000 oxen, 5,000 sheep, his
+     wife, with large donations from her; the daughters
+125  of his chiefs with large donations from them I received.
+     I, Assur-nasir-pal, great King, mighty King, King of legions,
+     King of Assyria,
+126  son of Tuklat-Adar great and mighty King, King of
+     legions, King of Assyria, noble warrior, in the strength of
+     Assur his Lord walked, and whose equal among the
+     Kings
+127  of the four regions exists not;[22] a King who from beyond
+     the Tigris up to Lebanon and the Great Sea
+128  hath subjugated the land of Laki in its entirety, the land
+     of Zuhi with the city of Ripaki: from the sources of
+     the Ani
+129  (and) the Zupnat to the land bordering on Sabitan has he
+     held in hand: the territory of Kirrouri with Kilzani on the
+     other side the Lower Zab
+130  to Tul-Bari which is beyond the country of the Zab; beyond
+     the city of Tul-sa-Zabdani, Hirimu, Harute, the land
+     of Birate
+131  and of Kardunias I annexed to the borders of my realm
+     and on the broad territory of Nairi I laid fresh tribute.
+     The city of Calach I took anew; the old mound
+132  I threw down; to the top of the water I brought it; 120
+     hand-breadths in depth I made it good; a temple to Ninip
+     my Lord I therein founded; when
+133  an image of Ninip himself which had not been made before,
+     in the reverence of my heart for his great mighty god-ship,
+     of mountain stone and brilliant gold I caused to make
+     in its completeness;
+134  for my great divinity in the city of Calach I accounted
+     him: his festivals in the months of January and September[23]
+     I established: Bit-kursi which was unoccupied I
+     closed:
+135  an altar to Ninip my Lord I therein consecrated: a temple
+     for Beltis, Sin, and Gulanu, Hea-Manna[24] and Yav
+     great ruler of heaven and earth I founded.
+
+[Footnote 1: Probably the Lycus or upper Zab.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The term "Hittites" is used in a large sense, as the
+equivalent of "Syrians," including the northern parts of Palestine.]
+
+[Footnote 3: About 881 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 4: A scriptural phrase of frequent occurrence.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Corresponding to the Jewish month Tisri, and to part of our
+September, called in Accadian "the Holy Altar."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Cf. Gen. xi. 19, "Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up
+thy head from off thee."]
+
+[Footnote 7: About 880 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 8: The Hebrew Sivan.]
+
+[Footnote 9: I.e., in comparison with.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Am" may be the name of some weight, or figure; v. Norr.
+Assyr. Dict., pp. 127 and 720.]
+
+[Footnote 11: Menant renders, "j'ai fait etouffer _dans_ le mur."]
+
+[Footnote 12: About 879 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 13: Goddesses.]
+
+[Footnote 14: Urasi.]
+
+[Footnote 15: Or, "Assur-sidi-huli" may be taken as the name of the town.]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Urasi"(?).]
+
+[Footnote 17: Compare a similar expression, Job xx. 23, "God shall rain
+(his fury) upon him while he is eating."]
+
+[Footnote 18: Cf. 2 Kings x. 8, "Lay ye them (the heads) in two heaps in
+the entering in of the gate."]
+
+[Footnote 19: Or, crosses.]
+
+[Footnote 20: On the upper Tigris.]
+
+[Footnote 21: I follow Dr. Oppert in the rendering of this obscure
+passage. Compare with Ammiba'al the name of the father of Bathsheba, which
+like many other proper names is indicative of the close relations between
+Assyria, Phoenicia, Syria, and Judea.]
+
+[Footnote 22: This frequently recurring expression refers to the four
+races of Syria.]
+
+[Footnote 23: "Tabita" (Heb. "Tebeth") and "Tasritu" (Heb. "Tisri"). It
+should be remarked that after the captivity the names of the months were
+exchanged for the Chaldean; and the old Hebrew names, such as "Abib"
+(Exod. xiii. 4), "Zif" (1 Kings vi. 37), "Ethanim" (ib. viii. 2), "Bul"
+(ib. vi. 38), and the titles first, second, third month, etc., were
+dropped.]
+
+[Footnote 24: This name has also been read as "Nisroch-Salmon."]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+
+l    On the 22d day of the third month, May,[1] in the eponym
+     of Dagan-bel-ussur,[2] withdrew from Calach; I passed the
+     Tigris at its nearer bank
+2    and received a large tribute; at Tabite I made a halt; on the
+     6th day of the fourth month, June,[3] I withdrew from
+     Tabite and skirted the banks of Kharmis;
+3    at the town of Magarizi I made a halt; withdrew from it
+     and passed along by the banks of the Chaboras and halted
+     at Sadikanni;
+4    the tribute due from Sadikanni, silver, gold, tin, _kam_ of
+     copper, oxen, sheep, I received and quitted the place.
+5    At the city of Katni I made a halt; the tribute of Sunaya
+     I received, and from Katni withdrew;
+6    at Dar-Kumlimi[4] halted; withdrew from it and halted at
+     Bit-Halupe, whose tribute
+7    of silver, gold, tin, _kam_ of copper, vestments of wool and
+     linen, oxen and sheep I received, and withdrew from it;
+8    at the city of Zirki I made a halt; the tribute of Zirki,
+     silver, gold, tin, oxen,
+9    sheep, I received; withdrew from Zirki; halted at Zupri,
+     whose tribute
+10   of silver, gold, tin, _kami_, oxen, sheep, I received; withdrew
+     from Zupri and halted at Nagarabani,
+11   whose tribute in silver, gold, tin, _kami_, oxen, sheep, I
+     received and withdrew from it;
+12   near Khindani, situated on the nearer banks of the Euphrates
+     I halted;
+13   the tribute of Khindani, silver, gold, tin, _kami_, oxen, sheep,
+     I received. From Khindani
+14   I withdrew; at the mountains over against the Euphrates[5]
+     I halted; I withdrew from those mountains and halted at
+     Bit-Sabaya near the town of Haridi
+15   situate on the nearer bank of the Euphrates. From Bit-Sabaya
+     I withdrew; at the commencement of the town of
+     Anat[6]
+16   I made a halt. Anat is situated in the midst of the Euphrates.
+     From Anat I withdrew. The city of Zuru the
+     fortified city of
+17   Sadudu of the land of Zuhi I besieged: to the numerous
+     warriors of the spacious land of the Kassi he trusted and
+     to make war and battle to my presence advanced;
+l8   the city I besieged; two days I was engaged in fighting; I
+     made good an entrance: (then) through fear[7] of my
+     mighty arms Sadudu and his soldiers
+19   for the preservation of his life, into the Euphrates threw
+     himself: I took the city; 50 _bit-hallu_[8] and their soldiers
+     in the service of Nabu-bal-idin King of Kardunias;
+20   Zabdanu his brother with 300 of his soldiers and Bel-bal-idin
+     who marched at the head of their armies I captured,
+     together with them
+21   many soldiers I smote down with my weapons; silver, gold,
+     tin, precious stone of the mountains,[9] the treasure of his
+     palace,
+22   chariots, horses trained to the yoke, trappings for men and
+     horses, the women of his palace, his spoil,
+23   in abundance I carried off; the city I pulled down and razed;
+     ordinances and edicts I imposed on Zuhi; the fear of my
+     dominion to Kardunias reached;
+24   the greatness of my arms overwhelmed Chaldaea;[10] on the
+     countries of the banks of the Euphrates my impetuous
+     soldiers I sent forth; an image
+25   of my person I made; decrees and edicts upon it I inscribed;
+     in Zuri I put it up, I Assur-nasir-pal, a King who
+     has enforced his laws
+26   (and) decrees and who to the sword hath directed his face
+     to conquests and alliances hath raised his heart. While
+     I was stationed at Calach
+27   they brought me news that the population of Laqai and
+     Khindanu of the whole land of Zukhi had revolted and
+     crossed the Euphrates
+28   on the eighteenth of May[11] I withdrew from Calach; passed
+     the Tigris, took the desert to Zuri
+29   by Bit-Halupi I approached in ships belonging to me which
+     I had taken at Zuri: I took my way to the sources of the
+     Euphrates;
+30   the narrows of the Euphrates I descended, the cities of
+     Khintiel and Aziel in the land of Laqai I took; their soldiers
+     I slew; their spoil
+31   I carried off; the cities I overthrew, razed, burned with
+     fire. In my expedition marching westward of the banks of
+     the Chaboras to
+32   the city Zibate of Zuhi, cities on the other side of the
+     Euphrates in the land of Laqai I overthrew, devastated and
+     burned with fire; their crops I seized 460 soldiers
+33   their fighting men by (my) weapons I destroyed; I took
+     20 alive and impaled them on stakes;[12] on ships which I
+     had built--
+34   in 20 ships which were drawn up on the sand at Haridi
+     I crossed the Euphrates. The land of Zuhaya and Laqai
+35   and the city of Khindanai[13] to the power of their chariots
+     armies and hands trusted and summoned 6,000 of their
+     soldiers to engage in fight and battle.
+36   They came to close quarters; I fought with them; I
+     effected their overthrow; I destroyed their chariots 6,500
+     of their warriors I smote down by my weapons; the remainder
+37   in starvation in the desert of the Euphrates I shut up.
+     From Haridi in Zukhi to Kipina and the cities of Khin-danai[13]
+38   in Laqai on the other side I occupied; their fighting men
+     I slew; the city I overthrew razed and burned. Aziel of
+     Laqai
+39   trusted to his forces and took possession of the heights
+     of Kipina; I gave them battle; at the city of Kipina I
+     effected his overthrow; 1,000 of his warriors I slew;
+40   his chariots I destroyed; spoil I carried off in plenty;
+     their gods I took away; for the preservation of his life he
+     took refuge on a rugged hill of Bizuru at the sources of
+     the Euphrates;
+41   for two days I descended the river in pursuit: the relics
+     of his army with my weapons I destroyed; their hiding
+     place by the hills on the Euphrates I broke up;
+42   to the cities of Dumite and Azmu belonging to the son of
+     Adini[14] I went down after him; his spoil, his oxen, his
+     sheep,
+43   which like the stars of heaven were without number I
+     carried off.
+     In those days Ila of Laqai, his swift chariots and 500
+     soldiers
+44   to my land of Assyria I transported; Dumutu and Azmu
+     I captured, overthrew, razed and burned; in the narrows of
+     the Euphrates I turned aside in my course and
+45   I outflanked Aziel, who fled before my mighty power to
+     save his life. Ila; the Prince of Laqai, his army his chariots,
+     his harness,
+46   I carried off and took to my city of Assur: Khimtiel of
+     Laqai I made prisoner in his own city. Through the might
+     of Assur my Lord, (and) in the presence of my mighty
+     arms and the formidable attack
+47   of my powerful forces he was afraid, and I received the
+     treasures of his palaces, silver, gold, tin, copper, _kam_ of
+     copper, vestments of wool, his abundant spoil; and tribute
+48   and impost in addition to what I had previously fixed I laid
+     upon them; in those days I slew 50 buffaloes in the neighborhood
+     of the nearer side of the Euphrates: eight buffaloes
+     I caught alive;
+49   I killed 20 eagles, and captured others alive: I founded two
+     cities on the Euphrates; one on the farther bank
+50   of the Euphrates which I named Dur-Assur-nasir-pal; one
+     on the nearer bank which I named Nibarti-Assur. On the
+     20th of May[16] I withdrew from Calach;
+51   I crossed the Tigris; to the land of Bit-Adini I went; to
+     their strong city of Katrabi I approached, a city exceedingly
+     strong, like a storm rushing from heaven,[17]
+52   the soldiers confided to their numerous troops, and would
+     not submit and accept my yoke: in honor of Assur the great
+     Lord, my Lord, and the god the great protector going before
+     me, I besieged the city
+53   by the warlike engines[18] on foot and strong, the city I
+     captured; many of their soldiers I slew; 800 of their fighting
+     men I dispersed; their spoil and property I carried off,
+     2,400 of their warriors
+54   I transported away and detained them at Calach; the city
+     I overthrew razed and burnt; the fear of the approach of
+     Assur my Lord over Bit-Adini I made good.
+55   In those days the tribute of Ahuni son of Adini of Habini,
+     of the city of Tul-Abnai,[19] silver, gold, tin,[20] copper,
+     vestments of wool and linen, wood for bridges,
+56   cedar wood, the treasures of his palace I received; their
+     hostages I took, _rimutu_[21] I imposed upon them.
+     In the month April[22] and on the eighth day I quitted
+     Calach; the Tigris
+57   I passed; to Carchemish[23] in Syria I directed my steps; to
+     Bit-Bakhiani I approached; the tribute due from the son[24]
+     of Bakhiani, swift chariots, horses, silver,
+58   gold, tin, copper, _kami_ of copper, I received; the chariots
+     and warlike engines of the officer of the son of Bakhiani I
+     added to my magazines;
+59   I menaced the land of Anili: the tribute of Hu-immi of
+     Nilaya, swift war chariots, horses, silver, gold, tin,[25]
+     copper,
+60   _kami_ of copper, oxen, sheep, horses, I received; the
+     chariots and warlike instruments of the officer I added to my
+     magazines. From Anili I withdrew; to Bit-Adini I approached;
+61   the tribute of Ahuni son of Adini, silver, gold, tin,[5] copper,
+     wood of _ereru_ and _rabaz_, horns, _sai_-wood, horns[26]
+62   of thrones horns of silver, and gold, _sari_, bracelets of gold,
+     _sahri_ fastenings for covers of gold, scabbards of gold, oxen,
+     sheep, goats as his tribute I received;
+63   the chariots and warlike engines of the officer of Ahuni I
+     added to my magazines. In those days I received the tribute
+     of Habini of Tul-Abnai, four maneh of silver and 400
+     sheep;
+64   ten maneh of silver for his first year as tribute I imposed
+     upon him: from Bit-Adini I withdrew; the Euphrates, in a
+     difficult part of it, I crossed in ships of hardened skins:
+65   I approached the land of Carchemish: the tribute of Sangara
+     King of Syria, twenty talents of silver, _sahri_ gold, bracelets
+     of gold, scabbards of gold, 100 talents
+66   of copper, 250 talents of annui _kami, harlate, nirmakate
+     kibil_[27] of copper, the extensive furniture of his palace,
+67   of incomprehensible perfection[28] different kinds of woods,[29]
+     _ka_ and _sara_, 200 female slaves, vestments of wool,
+68   and linen; beautiful black coverings, beautiful purple coverings,
+     precious stones, horns of buffaloes, white[30] chariots,
+     images of gold, their coverings, the treasures of his
+     Royalty, I received of him;
+69   the chariots and warlike engines of the General of Carchemish
+     I laid up in my magazines; the Kings of all those
+     lands who had come out against me received my yoke; their
+     hostages I received;
+70   they did homage in my presence; to the land of Lebanon[31]
+     I proceeded. From Carchemish I withdrew and marched
+     to the territory of Munzigani and Harmurga:
+71   the land of Ahanu I reduced; to Gaza[32] the town of Lubarna[33]
+     of the Khatti I advanced; gold and vestments of
+     linen I received:
+72   crossing the river Abrie I halted and then leaving that
+     river approached the town of Kanulua a royal city belonging
+     to Lubarna of the Khatti:
+73   from before my mighty arms and my formidable onset he
+     fled in fear, and for the saving of his life submitted to my
+     yoke; twenty talents of silver, one talent of gold,
+74   100 talents in tin, 100 talents in _annui_, 1,000 oxen, 10,000
+     sheep, 1,000 vestments of wool, linen, _nimati_ and _ki_
+     woods coverings,
+75   _ahuzate_ thrones, _kui_ wood, wood for seats, their
+     coverings, _sarai, zueri_-wood, horns of _kui_ in abundance,
+     the numerous utensils of his palace, whose beauty
+76   could not be comprehended:[34] ... _pagatu_(?)[35] from
+     the wealth of great Lords as his tribute
+77   I imposed upon him; the chariots and warlike engines of
+     the land of the Khatti I laid up in my magazines; their
+     hostages I took.
+     In those days (I received) the tribute of Guzi
+78   of the land of Yahanai, silver, gold, tin,[36] ... oxen,
+     sheep, vestments of wool and linen I received: from Kunalua
+     the capital of Lubarna I withdrew,
+79   of the land of the Khatti, crossed the Orontes,[37] and after
+     a halt left it, and to the borders
+80   of the land of Yaraki and of Yahturi I went round: the
+     land[38] ... had rebelled: from the Sangura after a
+     halt I withdrew;
+81   I made a detour to the lands of Saratini and Girpani[39]
+     ... I halted and advanced to Aribue a fortified city
+     belonging to Lubarna of the land of the Khatti:
+82   the city I took to myself; the wheats and barleys of Luhuti
+     I collected; I allowed his palace to be sacked and settled
+     Assyrians there.[40]
+83   While I was stationed at Aribua, I captured the cities of the
+     land of Luhiti and slew many of their soldiers; overthrew
+     razed and burned them with fire;
+84   the soldiers whom I took alive I impaled on stakes close
+     by their cities.
+     In those days I occupied the environs of Lebanon; to the
+     great sea
+85   of Phoenicia[41] I went up: up to the great sea my arms I
+     carried: to the gods I sacrificed; I took tribute of the
+     Princes of the environs of the sea-coast,
+86   of the lands of Tyre, Sidon, Gebal, Maacah[42] Maizai Kaizai,
+     of Phoenicia and Arvad
+87   on the sea-coast--silver, gold, tin, copper, _kam_ of copper,
+     vestments of wool and linen, _pagutu_[43] great and small,
+88   strong timber, wood of _ki_[44] teeth of dolphins, the produce
+     of the sea, I received as their tribute: my yoke they accepted;
+     the mountains of Amanus[45] I ascended; wood for
+     bridges,
+89   pines, box, cypress, _li_-wood, I cut down; I offered sacrifices
+     for my gods; a trophy[46] of victory I made, and in a
+     central place I erected it;
+90   _gusuri_-wood, cedar wood from Amanus I destined for
+     Bit-Hira,
+     and my pleasure house called Azmaku, for the temple
+     of the Moon and Sun the exalted gods.
+91   I proceeded to the land of Iz-mehri, and took possession
+     of it throughout: I cut down beams for bridges of _mehri_
+     trees, and carried them to Nineveh; (and)
+92   to Istar Lady of Nineveh (on) my knees I knelt.[47] In the
+     eponym of Samas-nuri[48] in the honor of the great Lord
+     Assur my Lord on the 20th of April[49]
+93   from Calach I withdrew--crossed the Tigris--descended
+     to the land of Kipani, and there, in the city of Huzirina,
+     received the tribute of the governors of its cities.
+94   While stationed at Huzirana I received the tribute of
+     Ittiel of Nilaya, Giridadi of Assaya, in silver
+95   gold, oxen, sheep. In those days I received the tribute in
+     beams for bridges, cedar wood, silver, gold of Qatuzili
+96   of Commagene[50]--withdrew from Huzirina and took my
+     way upward along the banks of the Euphrates; to Kubbu.[51]
+97   I crossed over into the midst of the towns of Assa in
+     Kirkhi over against Syria. The cities of Umalie and
+     Khiranu
+98   powerful cities centrally situated in Adani I captured; numbers
+     of their soldiers I slew; spoil beyond reckoning
+99   I carried off; the towns I overthrew and demolished; 150
+     cities of their territory I burned with fire; then from Khiranu
+100  I withdrew; I passed over to the environs of the land of
+     Amadani; I went down among the cities of Dirrie, and
+     the cities within the lands of
+101  Amadani and Arquanie I burned with fire: Mallanu which
+     is in the middle of Arquanie I took as my own possession;
+     I withdrew from Mallanu
+102  to the cities of Zamba on the sandy outskirt, which I
+     burned with fire: I passed the river Sua, proceeding up
+     to the Tigris whose cities
+103  on those banks and on these banks of the Tigris in Arkanie
+     to a heap I reduced: its waters overflowed all Kirkhi: my
+     yoke they took;
+104  their hostages I exacted; a Viceroy of my own I appointed
+     over them: in the environs of the land of Amadani I
+     arrived: at Barza-Nistun
+105  To Dandamusa the fortified city of Ilani son of Zamani
+     I drew near and laid siege to it: my warriors like birds
+     of prey rushed upon them;
+106  600 of their warriors I put to the sword and decapitated;
+     400 I took alive;
+107  3,000 captives I brought forth; I took possession of the
+     city for myself: the living soldiers, and heads to the city
+     of Amidi[52] the royal city, I sent;
+108  heaps of the heads close by his great gate I piled; the
+     living soldiers I crucified on crosses[53] at the gates of the
+     town;
+109  inside the gates I made carnage; their forests I cut down;[54]
+     from Amidi I withdrew toward the environs of Kasyari;
+     the city of Allabzie
+110  to whose rocks and stones no one among the Kings my
+     fathers had ever made approach, I penetrated; to the town
+     of Uda the fortress of Labduri son of Dubuzi
+111  I approached and besieged the city with _bilsi_(?) strengthened
+     and marching; the city I captured;[55] ... soldiers[56] ... with my
+     weapons I destroyed; 570 soldiers
+112  I captured; 3,000 captives I took forth; soldiers alive I
+     caught; some I impaled on stakes;[57] of others
+113  the eyes I put out: the remainder I carried off to Assur
+     and took the city as my own possession--I who am Assur-nasir-pal
+     mighty King, King of Assyria son of Tuklat-Adar, (Tuklat-Ninip)
+114  great King, powerful King, King of legions, King of
+     Assyria son of Vul-nirari[58] great King, mighty King,
+     King of legions, King of Assyria, noble warrior, who in
+     the service of Assur his Lord proceeded, and among the
+     Kings of the four regions,
+115  has no equal, a Prince[59] (giving) ordinances, not fearing
+     opponents, mighty unrivalled leader, a Prince subduer of
+     the disobedient, who all
+116  the thrones of mankind has subdued; powerful King
+     treading over the heads of his enemies, trampling on the
+     lands of enemies, breaking down the assemblages of the
+     wicked; who in the service of the great gods
+117  his Lords marched along; whose hand hath taken possession
+     of all their lands, laid low the forests of all of them,
+     and received their tributes, taking hostages (and) imposing
+     laws
+118  upon all those lands; when Assur the Lord proclaimer
+     of my name, aggrandizer of my Royalty, who added his
+     unequivocal service to the forces of my government
+119  I destroyed the armies of the spacious land of Lulumi.
+     In battle by weapons I smote them down. With the help
+     of the Sun-god
+120  and Yav, the gods in whom I trust, I rushed upon the
+     armies of Nairi, Kirkhi Subariya and Nirbi like Yav the
+     inundator;[60]
+121  a King who from the other side the Tigris to the land of
+     Lebanon and the great sea has subjugated to his yoke the
+     entire land of Lakie and the land of Zukhi as far as the
+     city Rapik;
+122  to whose yoke is subjected (all) from the sources of the
+     Zupnat to the frontiers of Bitani; from the borders of
+     Kirruri to Kirzani;
+123  from beyond the Lower Zab to the town of Tulsa-Zabdani
+     and the town of Tul-Bari beyond the land of Zaban as far
+     as the towns of Tul-sa-Zabdani and
+124  Tul-sa-Abtani; Harimu, Harutu in Birate of Kardunias[61]
+     to the borders of my land I added; (the inhabitants) of
+     the territory of Babite
+125  with Khasmar among the people of my own country I
+     accounted: in the countries which I held I established a
+     deputy: they performed homage: submission
+126  I imposed upon them; I, Assur-nasir-pal, great, noble, worshipper
+     of the great gods, generous, great, mighty
+     possessors of cities and the forests of all their domains,
+     King of Lords, consumer of
+127  the wicked _taskaru_ invincible, who combats injustice,
+     Lord of all Kings, King of Kings, glorious, upholder of
+     Bar (Ninip) the warlike, worshipper
+128  of the great gods, a King who, in the service of Assur
+     and Ninip, gods in whom he trusted, hath marched royally,
+     and wavering lands and Kings his enemies in all their
+     lands
+129  to his yoke hath subdued, and the rebels against Assur,
+     high and low, hath opposed and imposed on them impost
+     and tribute--Assur-nasir-pal
+130  mighty King, glory of the Moon-god[62] worshipper of Anu,
+     related[63] to Yav, suppliant of the gods, an unyielding
+     servant, destroyer of the land of his foes; I, a King vehement
+     in war,
+131  destroyer of forests and cities, chief over opponents, Lord
+     of four regions, router of his enemies in strong lands and
+     forests, and who Kings mighty and fearless from the rising
+132  to the setting of the sun to my yoke subjugated.
+
+     The former city of Calach which Shalmaneser King of
+     Assyria going before me, had built--
+133  that city was decayed and reduced to a heap of ruins: that
+     city I built anew; the people captured by my hand of the
+     countries which I had subdued, Zukhi and Lakie,
+134  throughout their entirety, the town of Sirku on the other
+     side of the Euphrates, all Zamua, Bit-Adini, the Khatti,
+     and the subjects of Liburna I collected within, I made
+     them occupy.[64]
+135  A water-course from the Upper Zab I dug and called it
+     Pati-kanik: timber upon its shores I erected: a choice of
+     animals to Assur my Lord and (for) the Chiefs of my
+     realm I sacrificed;
+136  the ancient mound I threw down: to the level of the water
+     I brought it: 120 courses on the low level I caused it
+     to go: its wall I built; from the ground to the summit I
+     built (and) completed.
+
+
+[Additional clauses are found on the monolith inscription in the British
+Museum. They are not, however, of any great importance and amount to
+little more than directions for the preservation and reparation of the
+palace, with imprecations upon those who should at any time injure the
+buildings. On this same monolith is found an invocation to the great gods
+of the Assyrian Pantheon: namely, to Assur, Anu, Hea, Sin [the Moon],
+Merodach, Yav Jahve, Jah[?], Ninip, Nebo, Beltis, Nergal, Bel-Dagon, Samas
+[the Sun], Istar.]
+
+[Footnote 1: Sivan.]
+
+[Footnote 2: 878 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Heb. "Tammuz," Assyr. "Duwazu."]
+
+[Footnote 4: A city in Mesopotamia.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Burattu." In Hebrew (Gen. ii. 14). "Phrat."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Dr. Oppert renders this "Anatho."]
+
+[Footnote 7: Literally, "from the face of."]
+
+[Footnote 8: Probably military engines used in sieges.]
+
+[Footnote 9: Or, sadi-stone shining.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Kaldu." There are fragments existing in the British Museum
+of a treaty made between this Nabu-bal-idin, King of Kardunias
+(Babylonia), and Shalmaneser, son of Assur-nasir-pal. v. "Trans. Soc. Bib.
+Archaeol.," i. 77.]
+
+[Footnote 11: The Hebrew Sivan.]
+
+[Footnote 12: Literally, "impaled on stakes." But Dr. Oppert and Mr.
+Norris generally adopt the rendering given in the text, I. 108, p. 194.]
+
+[Footnote 13: It will be observed that this city is differently spelled in
+line 27. Irregularities of this kind are very frequent, especially in the
+termination of proper names.]
+
+[Footnote 14: See note 3, p. 188.]
+
+[Footnote 15: "Ahuni." See l. 61, p. 191.]
+
+[Footnote 16: The Hebrew Sivan.]
+
+[Footnote 17: Or, "as it were situated among the storm-clouds of heaven."]
+
+[Footnote 18: The nature of these engines ("bilsi") is uncertain.]
+
+[Footnote 19: I.e., stony-hill.]
+
+[Footnote 20: Or, lead.]
+
+[Footnote 21: Possibly "humiliation," from the Chaldee "rama."]
+
+[Footnote 22: Airu.]
+
+[Footnote 23: Carchemish. Cf. Jeremiah xlvi. 2.]
+
+[Footnote 24: Tribe(?).]
+
+[Footnote 25: Or, lead.]
+
+[Footnote 26: Some projecting ornament, like "horns of an altar." Cf. Ps.
+cxviii. 27; Exod. xxx. 2.]
+
+[Footnote 27: Probably some utensils, as explained by the Hebrew word
+"unutu" ("anioth").]
+
+[Footnote 28: Or, with Mr. Norris, "the whole of it was not taken." Dict.,
+p. 558.]
+
+[Footnote 29: The words specified are "sa" or "issa," "passur," and
+probably "ebony"; the others have not been identified.]
+
+[Footnote 30: Probably "in ivory."]
+
+[Footnote 31: Labnana.]
+
+[Footnote 32: Hazazi.]
+
+[Footnote 33: Prince.]
+
+[Footnote 34: The Inscription is here defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 35: May this be the Hebrew word for garments, "beged"?]
+
+[Footnote 36: Defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 37: Arunte.]
+
+[Footnote 38: Defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 39: Defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 40: Precisely thus: "The King of Assyria brought men from
+Babylon ... and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the
+children of Israel."--2 Kings xvii. 24.]
+
+[Footnote 41: "Akhari." Heb. [Hebrew: achari].]
+
+[Footnote 42: Literally, Zurai, Sidunai, Gubalai, Makullat.]
+
+[Footnote 43: See p. 192, note 5.]
+
+[Footnote 44: Ebony.]
+
+[Footnote 45: The mountain chain which divides Syria from Cilicia.]
+
+[Footnote 46: Or, proof.]
+
+[Footnote 47: Literally, sat.]
+
+[Footnote 48: I.e., "the sun is my light."]
+
+[Footnote 49: Assyr. "Airu," Heb. "Iyar." 866 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 50: Literally, Kumukhaya.]
+
+[Footnote 51: Between Carchemish and the Orontes.]
+
+[Footnote 52: Diarbekr, still known by the name of "Kar-Amid." Rawlinson's
+"Herodotus," l. 466. The name is of frequent occurrence in early Christian
+writers.]
+
+[Footnote 53: See p. 188, note 2.]
+
+[Footnote 54: Cf. Is. x. 34, "He shall cut down the thickets of the forest
+with iron"; also Ezek. xxxix. 10.]
+
+[Footnote 55: The inscription is here defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 56: Defaced.]
+
+[Footnote 57: See p. 188, note 2.]
+
+[Footnote 58: The grandfather of Assur-nasir-pal. His reign probably
+terminated at 889 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 59: Literally, shepherd. Thus, Isa. xliv. 28, "Cyrus is my
+shepherd."]
+
+[Footnote 60: Cf. Ps. xxix. 10, "The Lord (Jhvh) sitteth upon the flood;
+yea the Lord sitteth King forever."]
+
+[Footnote 61: This reads like an annexation of a portion of Babylonian
+territory.]
+
+[Footnote 62: Or upholder, proclaimer of Sin, the moon; of. I. 127.]
+
+[Footnote 63: Assyr. "Nalad." Cf. the Heb. yalad "born of."]
+
+[Footnote 64: Precisely thus were the Israelites carried away to Babylon.]
+
+
+
+
+ASSYRIAN SACRED POETRY
+
+TRANSLATED BY H.F. TALBOT, F.R.S.
+
+
+The following translations are some of those which I published in the
+"Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology" in order to show that
+the Assyrians had a firm belief in the immortality of the soul: a fact
+which was previously unknown.
+
+I have added specimens of their penitential psalms, and some notices of
+their numerous superstitions, such as the exorcism of evil spirits, the
+use of magic knots and talismans, the belief in inherited or imputed sins,
+and in the great degree of holiness which they attributed to the number
+_Seven_. In some of these respects we may evidently see how great an
+influence was exercised on the mind and belief of the Jews by their long
+residence at Babylon.
+
+
+
+ASSYRIAN SACRED POETRY
+
+
+A PRAYER FOR THE KING
+
+1   "Length of days
+2   long lasting years
+3   a strong sword
+4   a long life
+5   extended years of glory
+6   pre-eminence among Kings
+7   grant ye to the King my Lord,
+8   who has given such gifts
+9   to his gods!
+10  The bounds vast and wide
+11  of his Empire
+12  and of his Rule,
+13  may he enlarge and may he complete!
+14  Holding over all Kings supremacy
+15  and royalty and empire
+16  may he attain to gray hairs
+17  and old age!
+18  And after the life of these days,
+19  in the feasts of the silver mountain,[2] the heavenly Courts
+20  the abodes of blessedness:
+21  and in the Light
+22  of the _Happy Fields,_
+23  may he dwell a life
+24  eternal, holy
+25  in the presence
+26  of the gods
+27  who inhabit Assyria!"
+
+[Footnote 1: From the "Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.," vol. i. p. 107. The
+original is in "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," vol. iii. pl.
+66.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Assyrian Olympus. The epithet "silver" was doubtless
+suggested by some snowy inaccessible peak, the supposed dwelling-place of
+the gods.]
+
+
+
+SHORT PRAYER FOR THE SOUL OF A DYING MAN [Footnote: "Trans. Soc. Bib.
+Arch.," vol. ii. p. 20.]
+
+
+1 Like a bird may it fly to a lofty place!
+2 To the holy hands of its god, may it ascend!
+
+
+
+THE DEATH OF A RIGHTEOUS MAN [Footnote: Ibid., vol. ii. p. 31.]
+
+
+1   Bind the sick man to Heaven, for from the Earth he is
+    being torn away!
+2   Of the brave man who was so strong, his strength has departed.
+3   Of the righteous servant, the force does not return.
+4   In his bodily frame he lies dangerously ill.
+5   But Ishtar, who in her dwelling is grieved concerning him
+6   descends from her mountain, unvisited of men.
+7   To the door of the sick man she comes.
+8   The sick man listens!
+9   Who is there? Who comes?
+10  It is Ishtar daughter of the Moon-god Sin:
+11  It is the god (...) Son of Bel:
+12  It is Marduk, Son of the god (...).
+13  They approach the body of the sick man.
+    (The next line, 14, is nearly destroyed.)
+15  They bring a _khisibta_[1] from the heavenly treasury.
+16  They bring a _sisbu_ from their lofty storehouse:
+17  into the precious _khisibta_ they pour bright liquor.
+18  That righteous man, may he now rise on high!
+19  May he shine like that _khisibta_!
+20  May he be bright as that _sisbu_!
+21  Like pure silver may his garment be shining white!
+22  Like brass may he be radiant!
+23  To the Sun, greatest of the gods, may he ascend!
+24  And may the Sun, greatest of the gods, receive his soul
+    into his holy hands![2]
+
+[Footnote 1: Probably a cup or drinking-vessel.]
+
+[Footnote 2: There is a fine inscription not yet fully translated,
+describing the soul in heaven, clothed in a white radiant garment, seated
+in the company of the blessed, and fed by the gods themselves with
+celestial food.]
+
+
+
+PENITENTIAL PSALMS
+
+
+(These lamentations seem frequently to be incoherent. A few specimens are
+taken from the same work as the preceding. [Footnote: "Trans. Soc. Bib.
+Arch.," vol. ii. p. 60.])
+
+O my Lord! my sins are many, my trespasses are great; and the wrath of the
+gods has plagued me with disease and with sickness and sorrow.
+
+I fainted: but no one stretched forth his hand!
+
+I groaned: but no one drew nigh!
+
+I cried aloud: but no one heard!
+
+O Lord! do not abandon thy servant!
+
+In the waters of the great storm, seize his hand!
+
+The sins which he has committed, turn thou to righteousness!
+
+
+
+ELSEWHERE WE FIND
+
+
+1 O my god! my sins are seven times seven!
+2 O my goddess! my sins are seven times seven!
+
+(And then a prayer follows, that those sins may be pardoned as a father
+and mother would pardon them!)
+
+
+
+AN ADDRESS TO SOME DEITY
+
+
+  In heaven who is great? Thou alone art great!
+  On earth who is great? Thou alone art great!
+  When thy voice resounds in heaven, the gods fall prostrate!
+  When thy voice resounds on earth, the genii kiss the dust!
+
+
+
+ELSEWHERE [Footnote: Ibid., vol. ii. p. 51.]
+
+
+  O Thou; thy words who can resist? who can rival them?
+  Among the gods thy brothers, thou hast no equal!
+
+
+
+A PRAYER [Footnote: Idem.]
+
+
+  The god my creator, may he stand by my side!
+  Keep thou the door of my lips! guard thou my hands, O Lord of light!
+
+
+
+ODE TO FIRE
+
+
+(The original text of this will be found in 4 R 14 l. 6 which is a
+lithographic copy of the tablet K, 44. A part of it was translated some
+years ago from a photograph of that tablet; see No. 430 of my Glossary.
+
+Very few Assyrian odes are so simple and intelligible as this is:
+unfortunately most of them are mystical and hard of interpretation.)
+
+1   O Fire, great Lord, who art the most exalted in the world,
+2   noble Son of heaven, who art the most exalted in the world,
+3   O Fire, with thy bright flame
+4   in the dark house thou dost cause light.
+5   Of all things that can be named, Thou dost form the fabric!
+6   Of bronze and of lead, Thou art the melter!
+7   Of silver and of gold, Thou art the refiner!
+8   Of ... Thou art the purifier!
+9   Of the wicked man in the night time Thou dost repel the
+    assault!
+10  But the man who serves his god, Thou wilt give him light
+    for his actions!
+
+
+
+
+ASSYRIAN TALISMANS AND EXORCISMS TRANSLATED BY H.F. TALBOT, F.R.S.
+
+
+
+DEMONIACAL POSSESSION AND EXORCISM
+
+
+Diseases were attributed to the influence of Evil Spirits. Exorcisms were
+used to drive away those tormentors: and this seems to have been the sole
+remedy employed, for I believe that no mention has been found of medicine.
+
+This is a very frequent subject of the tablets. [Footnote: Taken from 2 R
+pl. 18.] One of them says of a sick man:
+
+1  "May the goddess ...
+2  wife of the god ...
+3  turn his face in another direction;
+4  that the evil spirit may come out of him
+5  and be thrust aside, and that Good Spirits and Good Powers
+6  may dwell in his body!"
+
+Sometimes divine images were brought into the chamber, and written texts
+taken from holy books were placed on the walls and bound around the sick
+man's brows. If these failed recourse was had to the influence of the
+_mamit_, which the evil powers were unable to resist. On a tablet 2 R p.
+17 the following is found, written in the Accadian language only, the
+Assyrian version being broken off:
+
+1  Take a white cloth: In it place the _mamit_,
+2  in the sick man's right hand.
+3  And take a black cloth:
+4  wrap it round his left hand.
+5  Then all the evil spirits.[1]
+6  and the sins which he has committed
+7  shall quit their hold of him,
+8  and shall never return.[2]
+
+[Footnote 1: A long list of them is given.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.," vol. ii. p. 56.]
+
+The symbolism of the black cloth in the left hand seems evident. The dying
+man repudiates all his former evil deeds. And he puts his trust in
+holiness, symbolized by the white cloth in his right hand. Then follow
+some obscure lines about the spirits--
+
+  Their heads shall remove from his head:
+  their hands shall let go his hands:
+  their feet shall depart from his feet:
+
+which perhaps may be explained thus--we learn, from another tablet, that
+the various classes of evil spirits troubled different parts of the body.
+Some injured the head, some the hands and feet, etc., etc. Therefore the
+passage before us may mean: "The spirits whose power is over the hand,
+shall loose their hands from his," etc. But I can offer no decided opinion
+on such obscure points of their superstition.
+
+
+
+INHERITED OR IMPUTED SINS
+
+
+These were supposed to pursue a sick man and torment him. [Footnote: See
+"Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," vol. iv. p. 7.]
+
+1  The _mamit_ for him reveal! The _mamit_ for him unfold![1]
+2  Against the evil spirit, disturber of his body!
+3  Whether it be the sin of his father:
+4  or whether it be the sin of his mother:
+5  or whether it be the sin of his elder brother:
+6  or whether it be the sin of someone who is unknown![2]
+
+[Footnote 1: A holy object, the nature of which has not been ascertained.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.," vol. ii, p. 58.]
+
+
+
+MAGIC KNOTS
+
+
+Justin Martyr, speaking of the Jewish exorcists, says "They use magic ties
+or knots." A similar usage prevailed among the Babylonians. [Footnote 7:
+Ibid., p. 54.] The god Marduk wishes to soothe the last moments of a dying
+man. His father Hea says: Go my son!
+
+1   Take a woman's linen kerchief
+2   bind it round thy right hand! loose it from the left hand!
+3   Knot it with seven knots: do so twice:
+4   Sprinkle it with bright _wine_:
+5   bind it round the head of the sick man:
+6   bind it round his hands and feet, like manacles and fetters.
+7   Sit down on his bed:
+8   sprinkle holy water over him.
+9   He shall hear the voice of Hea,
+10  Davkina[1] shall protect him!
+11  And Marduk, Eldest Son of heaven, shall find him a happy
+    habitation![2]
+
+[Footnote 1: One of the principal goddesses, the wife of the god Hea.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.," vol. ii. p. 84.]
+
+
+
+TALISMANS
+
+
+To cure diseases they seem to have relied wholly on charms and
+incantations.
+
+The first step was to guard the entrance to the sick man's chamber.
+
+A tablet says:
+
+"That nothing evil may enter, place at the door the god (...) and the god
+(...)."
+
+That is to say, their images. I believe these were little figures of the
+gods, brought by the priests, perhaps a sort of Teraphim.
+
+The following line is more explicit: "Place the guardian statues of Hea
+and Marduk at the door, on the right hand and on the left." But they added
+to this another kind of protection:
+
+1  Right and left of the threshold of the door, spread out holy
+   texts and sentences.
+2  Place on the statues texts bound around them.
+
+These must have been long strips like ribbons of parchment or papyrus. The
+following line is still clearer:
+
+"In the night-time bind around the sick man's head a sentence taken from a
+good book."[10]
+
+[Footnote 10: Similar to these were the phylacteries of the Jews, which
+were considered to be protections from all evil. Schleusner in his Lexicon
+of the New Testament says that they were "Strips of parchment on which
+were written various portions of the Mosaic law, for the Jews believed
+that these ligaments had power to avert every kind of evil, but especially
+to drive away demons. as appears from the Targum on the Canticles," etc.
+We see that the Babylonian precept was to bind holy sentences "around the
+head" and others "right and left of the threshold of the door."
+
+Cf. Deut. xi. 18: "Ye shall lay up these my words in your heart, and in
+your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, and as frontlets
+between your eyes.
+
+"And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of thine house, and upon
+thy gates."]
+
+
+
+HOLINESS OF THE NUMBER SEVEN
+
+
+Innumerable are the evidences of this opinion which are found on the
+tablets. Two or three instances may suffice here:
+
+
+THE SONG OF THE SEVEN SPIRITS [Footnote: "Trans. Soc. Bib. Arch.," vol.
+ii. 2 p. 58.]
+
+1  They are seven! they are seven!
+2  In the depths of ocean they are seven!
+3  In the heights of heaven they are seven!
+4  In the ocean stream in a Palace they were born.
+5  Male they are not: female they are not!
+6  Wives they have not! Children are not born to them!
+7  Rule they have not! Government they know not!
+8  Prayers they hear not!
+9  They are seven, and they are seven! Twice over they are
+   seven!
+
+This wild chant touches one of the deepest chords of their religious
+feeling. They held that seven evil spirits at once might enter into a man:
+there are frequent allusions to them, and to their expulsion, on the
+tablets. One runs thus:
+
+1  The god (...) shall stand by his bedside:
+2  Those seven evil spirits he shall root out, and shall expel
+   them from his body.
+3  And those seven shall never return to the sick man again!
+
+But sometimes this belief attained the grandeur of epic poetry. There is a
+fine tale on one of the tablets [Footnote 2: "Cuneiform Inscriptions of
+Western Asia," vol. iv. pl. 5.] of the seven evil spirits assaulting
+heaven, and the gods alarmed standing upon the defensive, no doubt
+successfully, but unluckily the conclusion of the story is broken off.
+
+
+
+
+ANCIENT BABYLONIAN CHARMS
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The following are specimens of the imprecatory charms with which the
+ancient Babylonian literature abounded, and which were supposed to be the
+most potent means in the world for producing mischief. Some examples are
+given in the first volume of the "Records of the Past," pp. 131-135 of the
+exorcisms used to avert the consequences of such enchantments. The
+original Accadian text is preserved in the first column with an
+interlinear Assyrian translation: the short paragraphs in Column III also
+give the Accadian original; but elsewhere the Assyrian scribe has
+contented himself with the Assyrian rendering alone. The charms are
+rhythmic, and illustrate the rude parallelism of Accadian poetry. The
+Assyrian translations were probably made for the library of Sargon of
+Agane, an ancient Babylonian monarch who reigned not later than the
+sixteenth century B.C.; but the copy we possess was made from the old
+tablets by the scribes of Assur-bani-pal. The larger part of the first
+column has already been translated by M. Francois Lenormant in "_La Magie
+chez les Chaldeens_" p. 59. The tablet on which the inscription occurs is
+marked K 65 in the British Museum Collection and will be published in the
+"Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. IV, plates 7, 8.
+
+
+
+ANCIENT BABYLONIAN CHARMS
+
+
+COLUMN I
+
+1   The beginning[1]--The baneful charm[2] like an evil demon
+    acts against[3] the man.
+2   The voice _that defiles_ acts upon him.
+3   The maleficent voice acts upon him.
+4   The baneful charm is a spell that originates sickness.[4]
+5   This man the baneful charm strangles like a lamb.
+6   His god in his flesh makes the wound.
+7   His goddess mutual enmity brings down.
+8   The voice _that defiles_ like a hyena covers him and subjugates
+    him.
+9   Merodach[5] favors him; and
+10  to his father Hea into the house he enters and cries:
+11  "O my father, the baneful charm like an evil demon acts
+    against the man."
+12  To the injured (man) he (Hea) speaks thus:
+13  "(A number) make: this man is unwitting: by means of
+    the number he enslaves thee."
+14  (To) his son Merodach he replies[6]
+15  "My son, the number thou knowest not; the number let
+    me fix for thee.
+16  Merodach, the number thou knowest not; the number let
+    me fix for thee.
+17  What I know thou knowest.
+18  Go, my son Merodach.
+19  ... with noble hand seize him, and
+20  his enchantment explain and his enchantment make known.
+21  Evil (is to) the substance of his body,[7]
+22  whether (it be) the curse of his father,
+23  or the curse of his mother,
+24  or the curse of his elder brother,
+25  or the bewitching curse of an unknown man."
+26  Spoken (is) the enchantment by the lips of Hea.
+27  Like a signet may he[8] be brought near.
+28  Like garden-herbs may he be destroyed.
+29  Like a weed may he be gathered-for-sale.
+30  (This) enchantment may the spirit of heaven remember,
+    may the spirit of earth remember.
+
+31  Like this signet he[9] shall be cut, and the sorcerer
+32  the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+33  By written-spells he shall not be _delivered_.
+34  By curses and poisons he shall not be _moved_.
+35  His property (and) ground he shall not take.
+36  His corn shall not be high and the sun shall not remember (him).
+
+[Footnote 1: The Accadian word is translated by the Assyrian "siptu"
+("lip"), and may be translated "beginning" or "fresh paragraph."]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Assyrian version, "curse."]
+
+[Footnote 3: In the Assyrian, "goes against."]
+
+[Footnote 4: In the Assyrian, "(is) the cause of sickness."]
+
+[Footnote 5: The Accadian god identified with Merodach by the Assyrian
+translator was "Silik-mulu-khi" ("the protector of the city who benefits
+mankind"). He was regarded as the son of Hea.]
+
+[Footnote 6: The verbs throughout are in the aorist, but the sense of the
+original is better expressed in English by the present than the past
+tense.]
+
+[Footnote 7: That is, the sorcerer's.]
+
+[Footnote 8: The sorcerer.]
+
+[Footnote 9: The sorcerer.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+1   On the festival of the god, the king unconquerable,
+2   may the man (by) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son (and)
+    wife,
+3   (by) sickness, the loss of the bliss of prosperity, of joy (and)
+    of gladness,
+4   (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's flesh
+    (and) a man's entrails,
+5   like this signet be brought near and
+6   on that day may the consuming fire-god consume;
+7   may the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place betake
+    itself.
+
+8   Like this vineyard he shall be cut off, and the sorcerer
+9   the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+10  Despite the _holidays_ of a _plague_ that returns not,
+11  despite the shrine of the god, the king unconquerable,
+12  may the man, (by) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son (and) wife,
+13  (by) sickness, the loss of the bliss of prosperity, of joy (and)
+    of gladness,
+14  (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's flesh, a
+    man's _entrails_,
+15  like this garden-stuff be rooted out, and
+16  on that day may the consuming fire-god consume.
+17  May the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place betake
+    itself.
+
+18  Like this weed he shall be gathered for sale, and the sorcerer
+19  the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+20  Before him, despite his blessedness that is not,
+21  despite the canopy of a covering that departs not,
+22  may the man (by) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son (and) wife,
+23  (by) sickness, the loss of the bliss of prosperity, of joy (and)
+    of gladness,
+24  (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's flesh,
+    a man's _entrails_,
+25  like this weed be plucked, and
+26  on that day may the consuming fire-god consume.
+27  May the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place
+    betake itself.
+
+28  Like this thread he shall be stretched, and the sorcerer
+29  the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+30  Despite his adoration that is not,
+31  despite the clothing of the god, the King unconquerable,
+32  may the man, (through) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son
+    (and) wife,
+33  (by) sickness, the loss of the bliss of prosperity, of joy (and)
+    of gladness,
+34  (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's
+    flesh, a man's _entrails_,
+35  like this thread be stretched, and
+36  on that day may the consuming fire-god consume.
+37  May the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place
+    betake itself.
+
+38  Like this goat's-hair cloth he shall be stretched, and the
+    sorcerer
+39  the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+40  Despite the goat's-hair that is not,
+41  despite the canopy of the covering (that departs not),
+42  may the man (through) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son
+    (and) wife,
+43  (by) sickness, the loss of the bliss of prosperity, of joy (and)
+    of gladness,
+44  (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's flesh,
+    a man's _entrails_,
+45  like this goat's-hair cloth be stretched, and
+46  on that day the man may the consuming fire-god consume.
+47  May the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place
+    betake itself.
+
+48  Like these _boards_ he shall be stretched, and the sorcerer
+49  the consuming fire-god shall consume.
+50  O son of the macebearer, despite produce unproduced,
+51  despite the clothing of the god, the King unconquerable,
+52  may the man (by) the enchantment, (with) _eldest_ son and
+    wife,
+53  (by) sickness, the loss of prosperity, of joy (and) of gladness,
+54  (by) the sickness which exists in a man's skin, a man's flesh,
+    a man's _entrails_,
+55  like these _boards_ be stretched, and
+56  on that day may the consuming fire-god consume.
+57  May the enchantment go forth and to (its) dwelling-place
+    betake itself.
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+
+(The first part of Column III is mutilated. It becomes legible in the
+middle of a list of magical _formulae_.)
+
+30  The chiefest talisman, the mighty talisman, the engraved
+    talisman, the talisman is the binder, with enchantment.
+31  The repetition of the enchantment (is) baneful to man.
+32  The curses of the gods.
+33  ... the binder with enchantment.
+34  (With enchantment) his hands (and) his feet he binds.
+35  Merodach, the son of Hea, the prince, with his holy hands
+    cuts the knots.
+36  May the enchantment cause this talisman to the desert
+    among the wild beasts to go forth.
+37  May the baneful enchantment seize upon others.
+38  May this man rest (and) open (his eyes).
+39  To the blessed hand of his god may he be committed.
+40  Conclusion of the _formulae_ for averting sorcery.
+
+41  For the raising of the mighty foundation thus have I
+    burned up straight,
+42  like fire have I burned up (and) have delivered the oracle.[10]
+
+[Footnote 10: Or, "have laid the witchcraft."]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+
+1   The noble _cupbearer_ of Hea, the scribe of Merodach (am) I.
+2   Like fire have I blazed (and) I rejoice;[1]
+3   (like) fire have I burned (and) I grow;
+4   the corn I purify and make heavy.
+5   Like fire have I blazed (and) will rejoice;
+6   (like) fire have I burned (and) will grow;
+7   the corn will I purify and make heavy.
+8   O nadir (and) zenith, the light of god and man,
+9   may the store he collected be delivered.
+10  May the store of (his) heart whoever he be, ye his god
+    and his goddess, be delivered.
+11  May his gate be _kept fast_. On that day
+12  may they enrich him, may they deliver him.
+
+13  May the rejoicing[2] of the warrior fire-god
+14  rejoice with thee. May lands and rivers
+15  rejoice with thee. May Tigris and (Euphrates)
+16  rejoice with thee. May the seas and (the ocean)
+17  rejoice with thee. May the forest, the daughter of the
+    gods,
+18  rejoice with thee. May all the production (of the earth)
+19  rejoice with thee. May the hearts of my god and my goddess,
+    well-feasted,
+20  rejoice with thee. May the hearts of the god and the
+    goddess of the city, well-feasted, (rejoice with thee).
+21  On that day from the curse may my heart, O my god and
+my  goddess, be delivered,
+22  and may the enchantment go forth from my body.
+23  When the doom _comes upon_ thee,
+24  and from the fulfilment thou protectest thyself,
+25  the doom when fulfilled cut thou off.
+
+26 (The tablet) beginning: ...
+_Colophon_.
+  Tablet (copied from)
+  the old (tablets of Chaldea).
+  Country of (Assur-bani-pal)
+  King of (Assyria).
+
+[Footnote 1: Or, "rest."]
+
+[Footnote 2: The words translated "rejoicing" and "rejoice" properly
+signify "rest" and that may be their meaning here.]
+
+
+
+
+INSCRIPTION OF TIGLATH PILESER I, KING OF ASSYRIA
+
+TRANSLATED BY SIR H. RAWLINSON, K.C.B., D.C.L., ETC.
+
+
+This inscription of Tiglath Pileser I is found on an octagonal prism and
+on some other clay fragments discovered at Kalah-Shergat and at present in
+the British Museum. The text is published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions
+of Western Asia," Vol. I, pp. ix-xvi. Four translations of this
+inscription, made simultaneously in 1857 by Sir H. Rawlinson, Mr. Fox
+Talbot, Dr. Hincks, and Dr. Oppert, were published in that year under the
+title of "Inscription of Tiglath Pileser I, King of Assyria, B.C. 1150."
+Dr. Oppert has also given a revised translation in his "_Histoire de
+l'Empire de Chaldee et d'Assyrie,_" 8vo, Versailles, 1865, extracted from
+the "_Annales de la Philosophie chretienne_" of the same year, 5e Series,
+p. 44 and foll. The translations simultaneously published were submitted
+to the Asiatic Society in that year as a test of the advance made in
+Assyrian interpretations and the close approximation made by scholars in
+their interpretation of Assyrian texts. The notes contain some of the
+different readings of the other Assyrian scholars at that time and give a
+few of the principal varieties of reading some of the words. It was
+generally considered a very triumphant demonstration of the sound basis on
+which the then comparatively recent Assyrian researches were placed and a
+confutation of certain opinions then prevalent, that no certain or
+accurate advance had been made in the decipherment of Assyrian
+inscriptions. On the whole for its extent and historical information
+relating to the early history of Assyria this inscription is one of the
+most important of the series showing the gradual advance and rise of
+Assyria, while as one of the first interpreted it presents considerable
+literary interest in respect to the details of the progress of Assyrian
+interpretation. It is also nearly the oldest Assyrian text of any length
+which has been hitherto discovered and is very interesting from its
+account of the construction of the temples and palaces made by the King in
+the early part of his reign.  S.B.
+
+
+
+
+INSCRIPTION OF TIGLATH PILESER I
+
+
+
+THE BEGINNING
+
+
+_Ashur,_ the great Lord, ruling supreme over the gods; the giver of
+sceptres and crowns; the appointer of sovereignty. Bel, the Lord; _King of
+the circle of constellations_;[1] Father of the gods; Lord of the world.
+Sin;[2] the leader the _Lord of Empire_ the _powerful_ the _auspicious_
+god; _Shamas_;[3] the establisher of the heavens and the earth; ...;[4]
+the vanquisher of enemies; the dissolver of cold. _Vul_;[5] he who causes
+the tempest to rage over hostile lands and _wicked_ countries. _Abnil_[6]
+Hercules; the champion who subdues _heretics_ and enemies, and who
+strengthens the heart. _Ishtar_, the eldest[7] of the gods; the Queen of
+_Victory_; she who arranges battles.
+
+[Footnote 1: Aratnaki. (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: The moon.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The sun.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Ninev. (Fox Talbot.) Ao. (Dr. Oppert.)]
+
+[Footnote 6: Ninip-Sumdan. Dr. Oppert.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Or source.]
+
+
+
+II
+
+
+The great gods, ruling over the heavens and the earth, whose attributes I
+have recorded and whom I have _named_; the guardians of the kingdom of
+Tiglath Pileser, the Prince inspiring your hearts with _joy_; the proud
+Chief whom in the strength of your hearts ye have made firm, (to whom) ye
+have confided the supreme crown, (whom) ye have appointed in might to the
+sovereignty of the country of Bel, to whom ye have granted pre-eminence,
+exaltation, and warlike power. May the duration of his empire continue
+forever to his royal posterity, lasting as the great temple of Bel!
+
+
+
+III
+
+
+Tiglath Pileser the powerful king; supreme King of Lash-anan;[1] King of
+the four regions; King of all Kings; Lord of Lords; the _supreme_; Monarch
+of Monarchs; the illustrious Chief who under the auspices of the Sun god,
+being armed with the sceptre and girt with the girdle of power over
+mankind, rules over all the people of Bel; the mighty Prince whose praise
+is blazoned forth among the Kings: the exalted sovereign, whose servants
+Ashur has appointed to the government of the country of the four regions
+(and) has made his name celebrated to posterity; the conqueror of many
+plains and mountains of the Upper and Lower Country; the conquering hero,
+the terror of whose name has overwhelmed all regions; the bright
+constellation who, according to his power[2] has warred against foreign
+countries (and) under the auspices of Bel, there being no equal to him,
+has subdued the enemies of Ashur.[3]
+
+[Footnote 1: "Various tongues." Talbot.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or, "as he wished."]
+
+[Footnote 3: Or, "has made them obedient to Ashur."]
+
+
+
+IV
+
+
+Ashur (and) the great gods, the guardians of my kingdom, who gave
+government and laws to my dominions, and ordered an enlarged frontier to
+their territory, having committed to (my) hand their valiant and warlike
+servants, I have subdued the lands and the peoples and the strong places,
+and the Kings who were hostile to Ashur; and I have reduced all that was
+contained in them. With a host[1] of kings I have fought ...[2] and have
+imposed on them the bond of _servitude_. There is not to me a second in
+war, nor an equal in battle. I have added territory to Assyria and peoples
+to her people. I have enlarged the frontier of my territories, and subdued
+all the lands contained in them.[3]
+
+[Footnote 1: The preamble concludes here.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Literally, "a sixty."]
+
+
+
+V
+
+
+In the beginning of my reign 20,000 of the _Muskayans_[1] and their 5
+kings, who for 50 years had held the countries of Alza and Perukhuz,
+without paying tribute and offerings to Ashur my Lord, and whom a King of
+Assyria had never ventured to meet in battle betook themselves to their
+strength, and went and seized the country of Comukha. In the service of
+Ashur my Lord my chariots and warriors I assembled after me ...[2] the
+country of _Kasiyaia_[3] a difficult country, I passed through. With their
+20,000 fighting men and their 5 kings in the country of Comukha I engaged.
+I defeated them. The ranks of their warriors in fighting the battle were
+beaten down as if by the tempest. Their carcasses covered the valleys and
+the tops of the mountains. I cut off their heads. The battlements of their
+cities I made heaps of, like mounds of _earth_, their movables, their
+wealth, and their valuables I plundered to a countless amount. 6,000 of
+their common soldiers who fled before my servants and accepted my yoke, I
+took them, and gave them over to the men of my own territory.[4]
+
+[Footnote 1: Sirki citizens. (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Mount Kasiyaia. (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 4: As slaves.]
+
+
+
+VI
+
+
+Then I went into the country of _Comukha,_[1] which was disobedient and
+withheld the tribute and offerings due to Ashur my Lord: I conquered the
+whole country of Comukha. I plundered their movables, their wealth, and
+their valuables. Their cities I burnt with fire, I destroyed and ruined.
+The common people of Comukha, who fled before the face of my servants,
+crossed over to the city of _Sherisha_[2] which was on the further banks
+of the Tigris, and made this city into their stronghold. I assembled my
+chariots and warriors. I betook myself to _carts of iron_[3] in order to
+overcome the rough mountains and their difficult marches. I made the
+wilderness (thus) practicable for the passage of my chariots and warriors.
+I crossed the Tigris and took the city of Sherisha their stronghold. Their
+fighting men, in the middle of the forests, like wild beasts, I smote.
+Their carcasses filled the Tigris, and the tops of the mountains. At this
+time the troops of the _Akhe_,[4] who came to the deliverance and
+assistance of Comukha, together with the troops of Comukha, like chaff I
+scattered. The carcasses of their fighting men I piled up like heaps on
+the tops of the mountains. The bodies of their warriors, the _roaring_[5]
+waters carried down to the Tigris. Kili Teru son of Kali Teru, son of
+Zarupin Zihusun, their King,[6] in the course of their fighting fell into
+my power. His wives and his children, the delight of his heart I
+dispossessed him of. One hundred and eighty[7] iron vessels and 5 trays of
+copper, together with the gods of the people in gold and silver, and their
+beds and furniture I brought away. Their movables and their wealth I
+plundered. This city and its palace I burnt with fire, I destroyed and
+ruined.
+
+[Footnote 1: Dummuk. (Dr. Oppert.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: Sharisha. (Fox Talbot.) Siris. (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 3: Bridge. (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+[Footnote 4: Aliens. (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 5: Nami River. (Fox Talbot.) Blood River. (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 6: Tirikali fil Tirikali. (Fox Talbot.) Kiliantiru eldest son of
+Campineiyusan, (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 7: Literally, "three sixties."]
+
+
+
+VII
+
+
+The city of _Urrakluiras_ their stronghold which was in the country of
+Panari, I went toward. The exceeding fear of the power of Ashur, my Lord,
+overwhelmed them. To save their lives they took their gods, and fled like
+birds to the tops of the lofty mountains. I collected my chariots and
+warriors, and crossed the Tigris. _Shedi Teru_[1] the son of _Khasutkh_[2]
+King of _Urrakluiras_ on my arriving in his country submitted to my yoke.
+His sons, the delight of his heart, and his favorites, I condemned to the
+service of the gods: 60 vessels of iron; _trays_[3] and _bars_ of copper
+...[4] with 120 cattle, and flocks he brought as tribute and offerings. I
+accepted (them) and spared him. I gave him his life, but imposed upon him
+the yoke of my empire heavily forever. The wide spreading country of
+Comukha I entirely conquered, and subjected to my yoke. At this time one
+tray of copper and one bar of copper from among the service offerings and
+tribute of Comukha I dedicated to Ashur my Lord, and 60 iron vessels with
+their gods I offered to my guardian god, _Vul_.[5]
+
+[Footnote 1: Sadiyantim. (Dr. Hincks.) Tiri-dates. (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: Kuthakin. (Fox Talbot.) Kha-thukhi. (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Nirmah mamkhar." (Dr. Hincks.)]
+
+[Footnote 4: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Yem." (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+
+
+VIII
+
+
+From among my valiant servants, to whom Ashur the Lord gave strength and
+power, in 30 of my chariots, select companies of my troops and bands of my
+warriors who were expert in battle, I gathered together. I proceeded to
+the extensive country of _Miltis_,[1] which did not obey me; it consisted
+of strong mountains and a difficult land. Where it was easy I traversed it
+in my chariots: where it was difficult I went on foot. In the country of
+Aruma, which was a difficult land, and impracticable to the passage of my
+chariots, I left the chariots and marched in front of my troops. Like
+...[2] on the peak of the rugged mountains, I marched victoriously. The
+country of _Miltis_,[1] like heaps of stubble, I swept. Their fighting men
+in the course of the battle like chaff I scattered. Their movables, their
+wealth and their valuables I plundered. Many of their cities I burned with
+fire. I imposed on them _religious service_[1], and offerings and tribute.
+
+[Footnote 1: Eshtish. (Fox Talbot.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Hostages. Fox Talbot. For further and subsequent various
+readings see the edition of 1857.]
+
+
+
+IX
+
+
+Tiglath Pileser, the illustrious warrior, the opener of the roads of the
+countries, the subjugator of the rebellious ...[1] he who has overrun the
+whole Magian world.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+X
+
+
+I subdued the extensive country of Subair, which was in rebellion. The
+countries of Alza and Purukhuz, which deferred their tribute and
+offerings, the yoke of my empire heavily upon them I imposed, decreeing
+that they should bring their tribute and offerings into my presence in the
+city of Ashur. While I was on this expedition, which the Lord Ashur,
+committing to my hand a powerful rebel subduing army, ordered for the
+enlargement of the frontiers of his territory, there were 4,000 of the
+_Kaskaya_ and _Hurunaya_ rebellious tribes of the Kheti[1] who had brought
+under their power the cities of Subarta, attached to the worship of Ashur,
+my Lord (so that) they did not acknowledge dependence on Subarta. The
+terror of my warlike expedition overwhelmed them. They would not fight,
+but submitted to my yoke. Then I took their valuables, and 120[2] of their
+chariots fitted to the yoke, and I gave them to the men of my own country.
+
+[Footnote 1: Hittites.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Two "soss."]
+
+
+
+XI
+
+
+In the course of this my expedition, a second time I proceeded to the
+country of Comukha. I took many of their cities. Their movables, their
+wealth, and their valuables I plundered. Their cities I burnt with fire, I
+destroyed and overthrew. The soldiers of their armies, who from before the
+face of my valiant servants fled away, they would not engage with me in
+the fierce battle: to save their lives they took to the stony heights of
+the mountains, an inaccessible region: to the recesses of the deep forests
+and the peaks of the difficult mountains which had never been trodden by
+the feet of men, I ascended after them: they fought with me; I defeated
+them: the ranks of their warriors on the tops of the mountains fell like
+rain: their carcasses filled the ravines and the high places of the
+mountains: their movables, their wealth, and their valuables I carried off
+from the stony heights of the mountains. I subdued the country of Comukha
+throughout its whole extent, and I attached it to the frontiers of my own
+territory.
+
+
+
+XII
+
+
+Tiglath Pileser, the powerful king, the vanquisher of the disobedient, he
+who has swept the face of the earth.
+
+
+
+XIII
+
+
+In profound reverence to Ashur my Lord, to the country of Kharia, and the
+far-spreading tribes of the Akhe, deep forests, which no former King (of
+Assyria) had ever reached, the Lord Ashur invited me to proceed. My
+chariots and forces I assembled, and I went to an inaccessible region
+beyond the countries of Itni and Aya. As the steep mountains stood up like
+metal posts, and were impracticable to the passage of my chariots, I
+placed my chariots in wagons, and (thus) I traversed the difficult ranges
+of hills. All the lands of the Akhe and their wide-spreading tribes having
+assembled, arose to do battle in the country of _Azutapis_. In an
+inaccessible region I fought with them and defeated them. The ranks of
+their (slain) warriors on the peaks of the mountains were piled up in
+heaps; the carcasses of their warriors filled the ravines and high places
+of the mountains. To the cities which were placed on the tops of the
+mountains I _penetrated_ victoriously: 27 cities of Kharia, which were
+situated in the districts of Aya, Suira, Itni, Shetzu, Shelgu, Arzanibru,
+Varutsu, and Anitku, I took; their movables, their wealth, and their
+valuables I plundered; their cities I burnt with fire, I destroyed and
+overthrew.
+
+
+
+XIV
+
+
+The people of Adavas feared to engage in battle with me; they left their
+habitations, and fled like birds to the peaks of the lofty mountains. The
+terror of Ashur my Lord overwhelmed them; they came and submitted to my
+yoke; I imposed on them tribute and offerings.
+
+
+
+XV
+
+
+The countries of Tsaravas and Ammavas, which from the olden time had never
+submitted, I swept like heaps of stubble; with their forces in the country
+of Aruma I fought, and I defeated them. The ranks of their fighting men I
+levelled like grass. I bore away their gods; their movables, their wealth,
+and their valuables I carried off. Their cities I burnt with fire, I
+destroyed and overthrew, and converted into heaps and mounds. The heavy
+yoke of my empire I imposed on them. I attached them to the worship of
+Ashur my Lord.
+
+
+
+XVI
+
+
+I took the countries of Itsua and Daria, which were turbulent and
+disobedient. Tribute and offerings I imposed on them. I attached them to
+the worship of Ashur.
+
+
+
+XVII
+
+
+In my triumphant progress over my enemies, my chariots and troops I
+assembled; I crossed the lower Zab. The countries of Muraddan and
+Tsaradavas, which were near Atsaniu and Atuva, difficult regions, I
+captured; their warriors I cut down _like weeds_. The city of Muraddan,
+their capital city, and the regions toward the rising sun, I took
+possession of. Their gods, their wealth, and their valuables, one _soss_
+bars of iron, 30 talents of iron, the abundant wealth of the Lords, of
+their palaces, and their movables, I carried off. This city I burnt with
+fire, I destroyed and overthrew. At this time this iron to the god Vul, my
+great Lord and guardian, I dedicated.
+
+
+
+XVIII
+
+
+In the might and power of Ashur my Lord, I went to the country of Tsugi,
+belonging to Gilkhi, which did not acknowledge Ashur my Lord. With 4,000
+of their troops, belonging to the countries Khimi, Lukhi, Arirgi, Alamun,
+Nuni, and all the far-spread land of the _Akhi_, in the country of
+Khirikhi, a difficult region, which rose up like metal posts, with all
+their people I fought _on foot_. I defeated them; the bodies of their
+fighting men on the tops of the mountains I heaped in masses. The
+carcasses of their warriors I strewed over the country of Khirikhi like
+chaff. I took the entire country of Tsugi. Twenty-five of their gods,
+their movables, their wealth, and their valuables I carried off. Many of
+their cities I burnt with fire, I destroyed and overthrew. The men of
+their armies submitted to my yoke. I had mercy on them. I imposed on them
+tribute and offerings. With attachment to the worship of Ashur, my Lord, I
+intrusted them.[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: That is, "I caused them to worship Ashur."]
+
+
+
+XIX
+
+
+At this time 25 of the gods belonging to those countries, subject to my
+government, which I had taken, I dedicated for the honor of the temple of
+the Queen of glory, the great ancestress of Ashur my Lord, of Anu, and of
+Vul, the goddess who is the guardian of all the public temples of my city
+of Ashur, and of all the goddesses of my country.
+
+
+
+XX
+
+
+Tiglath-Pileser, the powerful King; the subduer of hostile races; the
+conqueror of the whole circle of kings.
+
+
+
+XXI
+
+
+At this time, in exalted reverence to Ashur, my Lord, by the godlike
+support of the heroic "Sun," having in the service of the great gods,
+ruled over the four regions imperially; there being found (to me) no equal
+in war, and no second in battle, to the countries of the powerful Kings
+who dwelt upon the upper ocean and had never made their submission, the
+Lord Ashur having urged me, I went. Difficult mountain chains, and distant
+(or inaccessible) hills, which none of our Kings had ever previously
+reached, tedious paths and unopened roads I traversed. The countries of
+Elama, of Amadana, of Eltis, of Sherabili, of _Likhuna_, of Tirkakhuli, of
+Kisra, of Likhanubi, of Elula, of Khastare, of Sakhisara, of Hubira, of
+Miliatruni, of _Sulianzi_, of Nubanashe, and of Sheshe, 16 strong
+countries, the easy parts in my chariots, and the difficult parts in
+wagons of iron, I passed through; the thickets of the mountains I cut down;
+bridges for the passage of my troops I prepared; I crossed over the
+Euphrates; the King of Elammi, the King of Tunubi, the King of Tuhali, the
+King of Kindari, the King of Huzula, the King of Vanzamuni, the King of
+Andiabi, the King of Pilakinna, the King of Aturgina, the King of
+Kulibartzini, the King of Pinibirni, the King of Khimua, the King of
+Paeiteri, the King of Vairam, the King of Sururia, the King of Abaeeni, the
+King of Adaeeni, the King of Kirini, the King of Albaya, the King of
+Vagina, the King of Nazabia, the King of _Amalziu_, the King of Dayeni, in
+all 23 Kings of the countries of Nairi, in their own provinces having
+assembled their chariots and troops, they came to fight with me.[1] By
+means of my powerful servants I straitened them.[2] I caused the
+destruction of their far-spreading troops, as if with the destroying
+tempest of Vul. I levelled the ranks of their warriors, both on the tops
+of the mountains and on the battlements of the cities, like _grass_. Two
+soss [3] of their chariots I held as a trophy from the midst of the fight;
+one soss [4] of the kings of the countries of Nairi, and of those who had
+come to their assistance, in my victory as far as the upper ocean I
+pursued them; I took their great castles; I plundered their movables,
+their wealth and their valuables; their cities I burnt with fire, I
+destroyed and overthrew, and converted into heaps and mounds. Droves of
+many horses and mules, of calves and of lambs, their property, in
+countless numbers I carried off. Many of the kings of the countries of
+Nairi fell alive into my hands; to these kings I granted pardon; their
+lives I spared; their abundance and wealth I poured out before my Lord,
+the sun-god. In reverence to my great gods, to after-times, to the last
+day, I condemned them to do homage. The young men, the pride of their
+royalty, I gave over to the service of the gods; 1,200 horses and 2,000
+cattle I imposed on them as tribute, and I allowed them to remain in their
+own countries.
+
+[Footnote 1: Literally, to make war and do battle.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or, brought them into difficulties.]
+
+[Footnote 3: One hundred and twenty.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Sixty.]
+
+
+
+XXII
+
+
+Tseni, the King of Dayani, who was not submissive to Ashur my Lord, his
+abundance and wealth I brought it to my city of Ashur. I had mercy on him.
+I left him in life to learn the worship of the great gods from my city of
+Ashur. I reduced the far-spreading countries of Nairi throughout their
+whole extent, and many of their kings I subjected to my yoke.
+
+
+
+XXIII
+
+
+In the course of this expedition, I went to the city of Milidia, belonging
+to the country of Khanni-rabbi, which was independent and did not obey me.
+They abstained from engaging in the rude fight with me; they submitted to
+my yoke, and I had mercy on them. This city I did not occupy, but I gave
+the people over to religious service, and I imposed on them as a token of
+their allegiance a fixed tribute of ...[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+XXIV
+
+
+Tiglath-Pileser, the ruling constellation; the powerful; the lover of
+battle.
+
+
+
+XXV
+
+
+In the service of my Lord Ashur, my chariots and warriors I assembled; I
+set out on my march. In front of my strong men I went to the country of
+the Aramaeans, the enemies of my Lord Ashur. From before Tsukha, as far as
+the city of Qarqamis[1] belonging to the country of Khatte,[2] I smote
+with _one blow_. Their fighting men I slew; their movables, their wealth,
+and their valuables in countless numbers I carried off. The men of their
+armies who fled from before the face of the valiant servants of my Lord
+Ashur, crossed over the Euphrates; in boats covered with bitumen skins I
+crossed the Euphrates after them; I took six of their cities which were
+below the country of Bisri; I burnt them with fire, and I destroyed and
+overthrew; and I brought their movables, their wealth, and their valuables
+to my city of Ashur.
+
+[Footnote 1: Carchemish.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Hittites.]
+
+
+
+XXVI
+
+
+Tiglath-Pileser, he who tramples upon the Magian world; he who subdues the
+disobedient; he who has overrun the whole earth.
+
+
+
+XXVII
+
+
+My Lord Ashur having urged me on, I took my way to the vast country of
+Muzri, lying beyond Elammi, Tala, and Kharutsa; I took the country of
+Muzri throughout its whole extent; I subdued their warriors; I burnt their
+cities with fire, I destroyed and overthrew; the troops of the country of
+Comani hastened to the assistance of the country of Muzri: in the
+mountains I fought with them and defeated them. In the metropolis, the
+city of Arin, which was under the country of Ayatsa, I besieged them; they
+submitted to my yoke; I spared this city; but I imposed on them religious
+service and tribute and offerings.
+
+
+
+XXVIII
+
+
+At this time the whole country of Comani which was in alliance with the
+country of Muzri, all their people assembled and arose to do battle and
+make war. By means of my valiant servants I fought with 20,000 of their
+numerous troops in the country of Tala, and I defeated them; their mighty
+mass broke in pieces; as far as the country of Kharutsa, belonging to
+Muzri, I smote them and pursued; the ranks of their troops on the heights
+of the mountains I cut down _like grass_; their carcasses covered the
+valleys and the tops of the mountains; their great castles I took, I burnt
+with fire, I destroyed, and overthrew into heaps and mounds.
+
+
+
+XXIX
+
+
+The city of Khunutsa, their stronghold, I overthrew like a heap of
+stubble. With their mighty troops in the city and on the hills I fought
+_fiercely_. I defeated them; their fighting men in the middle of the
+forests I scattered like _chaff_. I cut off their heads as if they were
+_carrion_; their carcasses filled the valleys and (covered) the heights of
+the mountains. I captured this city; their gods, their wealth, and their
+valuables I carried off, and burnt with fire. Three of their great
+castles, which were built of brick, and the entire city I destroyed and
+overthrew, and converted into heaps and mounds, and upon the site I laid
+down large stones; and I made tablets of copper, and I wrote on them an
+account of the countries which I had taken by the help of my Lord Ashur,
+and about the taking of this city, and the building of its castle; and
+upon it[1] I built a house of brick, and I set up within it these copper
+tablets.
+
+[Footnote 1: "The stone foundation."]
+
+
+
+XXX
+
+
+In the service of Ashur my Lord, my chariots and warriors I assembled, and
+I approached Kapshuna, their capital city; the tribes of Comani would not
+engage in battle with me; they submitted to my yoke, and I spared their
+lives. The great castle of the city and its brick buildings I trampled
+under foot; from its foundations to its roofs I destroyed it and converted
+it into heaps and mounds, and a band of 300 fugitive heretics who did not
+acknowledge my Lord Ashur, and who were expelled from inside this
+_castle_, I took this band and condemned to the service of the gods, and I
+imposed upon the people tribute and offerings in excess of their former
+tribute; and the far-spreading country of Comani throughout its whole
+extent I reduced under my yoke.
+
+
+
+XXXI
+
+
+There fell into my hands altogether between the commencement of my reign
+and my fifth year 42 countries, with their kings, from beyond the river
+Zab, plain, forest, and mountain, to beyond the river Euphrates, the
+country of the Khatte[1] and the upper ocean of the setting sun. I brought
+them under one government; I placed them under the Magian religion, and I
+imposed on them tribute and offerings.
+
+[Footnote 1: Hittites.]
+
+
+
+XXXII
+
+
+I have omitted many hunting expeditions which were not connected with my
+warlike achievements. In pursuing after the game I traversed the easy
+tracts in my chariots, and the difficult tracts on foot. I demolished the
+wild animals throughout my territories.[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: A very difficult paragraph.]
+
+
+
+XXXIII
+
+
+Tiglath-Pileser, the illustrious warrior, he who holds the sceptre of
+Lashanan; he who has extirpated all wild animals.
+
+
+
+XXXIV
+
+
+The gods Hercules and Nergal gave their valiant servants and their
+_arrows_ as a glory to support my empire. Under the auspices of Hercules,
+my guardian deity, four wild bulls, strong and fierce, in the desert, in
+the country of Mitan, and in the city Arazik, belonging to the country of
+the Khatte,[1] with my long _arrows_ tipped with iron, and with heavy
+blows I took their lives. Their skins and their horns I brought to my city
+of Ashur.
+
+[Footnote 1: Hittites.]
+
+
+
+XXXV
+
+
+Ten large wild buffaloes in the country of Kharran, and the plains of the
+river Khabur, I slew. Four buffaloes I took alive; their skins and their
+horns, with the live buffaloes, I brought to my city of Ashur.
+
+
+
+XXXVI
+
+
+Under the auspices of my guardian deity Hercules, two _soss_ of lions fell
+before me. In the course of my progress on foot I slew them, and 800 lions
+in my chariots in my exploratory journeys I laid low. All the beasts of
+the field and the flying birds of heaven I made the victims of my
+shafts.[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: A very doubtful sentence.]
+
+
+
+XXXVII
+
+
+From all the enemies of Ashur, the whole of them, I exacted _labor_. I
+made, and finished the repairs of, the temple of the goddess Astarte, my
+lady, and of the temple of Martu, and of Bel, and Il, and of the sacred
+buildings and _shrines_ of the gods belonging to my city of Ashur. I
+_purified_ their shrines, and set up inside the images of the great gods,
+my Lords. The royal palaces of all the great fortified cities throughout
+my dominions, which from the olden time our kings had neglected through
+long years, had become ruined. I repaired and finished them. The castles
+of my country, I filled up their _breaches_. I founded many new buildings
+throughout Assyria, and I opened out irrigation for corn in excess of what
+my fathers had done. I carried off the droves of the horses, cattle, and
+asses that I obtained, in the service of my Lord Ashur, from the
+subjugated countries which I rendered tributary, and the droves of the
+wild goats and ibexes, the wild sheep and the wild cattle which Ashur and
+Hercules, my guardian gods, incited me to chase in the depths of the
+forests, having taken them I drove them off, and I led away their young
+ones like the tame young goats. These little _wild animals_, the delight
+of their parents' hearts, in the fulness of my own heart, together with my
+own victims, I sacrificed to my Lord Ashur.
+
+
+
+XXXVIII
+
+
+The pine, the ...,[1] and the _algum tree_, these trees which under the
+former kings my ancestors, they had never planted, I took them from the
+countries which I had rendered tributary, and I planted them in the groves
+of my own territories, and I _bought_ fruit trees; whatever I did not find
+in my own country, I took and placed in the groves[2] of Assyria.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or "orchards."]
+
+
+
+XXXIX
+
+
+I built chariots fitted to the yoke for the use of my people[1] in excess
+of those which had existed before. I added territories to Assyria, and I
+added populations to her population. I improved the condition of the
+people, and I obtained for them abundance and security.
+
+[Footnote 1: Or "throughout my territories."]
+
+
+
+XL
+
+
+Tiglath-Pileser, the illustrious prince, whom Ashur and Hercules have
+exalted to the utmost wishes of his heart; who has pursued after the
+enemies of Ashur, and has subjugated all the earth.
+
+
+
+XLI
+
+
+The son of Ashur-ris-ili, the powerful King, the subduer of foreign
+countries, he who has reduced all the lands of the Magian world.
+
+
+
+XLII
+
+
+The grandson of Mutaggil-Nabu, whom Ashur, the great Lord, aided according
+to the wishes of his _heart_ and established in strength in the government
+of Assyria.
+
+
+
+XLIII
+
+
+The glorious offspring of Ashur-dapur-Il, who held the sceptre of
+dominion, and ruled over the people of Bel; who in all the works of his
+hand and the deeds of his life placed his reliance on the great gods, and
+thus obtained a prosperous and _long life_.
+
+
+
+XLIV
+
+
+The beloved child[1] of Barzan-pala-kura, the king who first organized the
+country of Assyria, who purged his territories of the wicked as if they
+had been ...,[2] and established the troops of Assyria in authority.
+
+[Footnote 1: Or, "heart of hearts."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+XLV
+
+
+At this time the temple of Anu and Vul, the great gods, my Lords, which,
+in former times, Shansi-Vul, High-priest of Ashur, son of Ismi Dagan,
+High-priest of Ashur, had founded, having lasted for 641 years, it fell
+into ruin. Ashur-dapur-Il, King of Assyria, son of Barzan-pala-kura, King
+of Assyria, took down this temple and did not rebuild it. For 60 years the
+foundations of it were not laid.
+
+
+
+XLVI
+
+
+In the beginning of my reign, Anu and Vul, the great gods, my Lords,
+guardians of my steps, they invited me to repair this their shrine. So I
+made bricks; I levelled the earth, I took its _dimensions_; I laid down
+its foundations upon a mass of strong rock. This place throughout its
+whole extent I paved with bricks in _set order_, 50 feet deep I prepared
+the ground, and upon this substructure I laid the lower foundations of the
+temple of Anu and Vul. From its foundations to its roofs I built it up,
+better than it was before. I also built two lofty cupolas in honor of
+their noble godships, and the holy place, a spacious hall, I consecrated
+for the convenience of their worshippers, and to accommodate their
+votaries, who were numerous as the stars of heaven, and in quantity poured
+forth like flights of arrows.[1] I repaired, and built, and completed my
+work. Outside the temple I fashioned (everything with the same care) as
+inside. The mound of earth (on which it was built) I enlarged like the
+firmament of the rising stars, and I beautified the entire building. Its
+cupolas I raised up to heaven, and its roofs I built entirely of brick. An
+inviolable shrine for their noble godships I laid down near at hand. Anu
+and Vul, the great gods, I glorified inside,[2] I set them up on their
+honored purity, and the hearts of their noble godships I delighted.
+
+[Footnote 1: Very doubtful.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The shrine.]
+
+
+
+XLVII
+
+
+Bit-Khamri, the temple of my Lord Vul, which Shansi-Vul, High-priest of
+Ashur, son of Ismi-Dagan, High-priest of Ashur, had founded, became
+ruined. I levelled its site, and from its foundation to its roofs I built
+it up of brick, I enlarged it beyond its former state, and I adorned it.
+Inside of it I sacrificed precious victims to my Lord Vul.
+
+
+
+XLVIII
+
+
+At this time I found various sorts of stone[1] in the countries of Nairi
+which I had taken by the help of Ashur, my Lord, and I placed them in the
+temple of Bit-Khamri, belonging to my Lord, Vul, to remain there forever.
+
+[Footnote 1: The particular sorts cannot be identified.]
+
+
+
+XLIX
+
+
+Since a holy place, a noble hall, I have thus consecrated for the use of
+the great gods, my Lords Anu and Vul, and have laid down an adytum for
+their special worship, and have finished it successfully, and have
+delighted the hearts of their noble godships, may Anu and Vul preserve me
+in power. May they support the men of my Government. May they establish
+the authority of my officers. May they bring the rain, the joy of the
+year, on the cultivated land and the desert during my time. In war and in
+battle may they preserve me victorious. Many foreign countries, turbulent
+nations, and hostile Kings I have reduced under my yoke; to my children
+and descendants may they keep them in firm allegiance. I will lead my
+steps, firm as the mountains, to the last days before Ashur and their
+noble godships.
+
+
+
+L
+
+
+The list of my victories and the catalogue of my triumphs over foreigners
+hostile to Ashur, which Anu and Vul have granted to my arms, I have
+inscribed on my tablets and cylinders, and I have placed them to the last
+days in the temple of my Lords Anu and Vul, and the tablets of Shamsi-Vul,
+my ancestor, I have raised altars and sacrificed victims (before them),
+and set them up in their places.
+
+
+
+LI
+
+
+In after-times, and in the latter days ...,[1] if the temple of the great
+gods, my Lords Anu and Vul, and these shrines should become old and fall
+into decay, may the prince who comes after me repair the ruins. May he
+raise altars and sacrifice victims before my tablets and cylinders, and
+may he set them up again in their places, and may he inscribe his name on
+them together with my name. As Anu and Vul, the great gods, have ordained,
+may he worship honestly with a good heart and full trust.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+LII
+
+
+Whoever shall abrade or injure my tablets and cylinders, or shall moisten
+them with water, or scorch them with fire, or expose them to the air, or
+in the holy place of god shall assign them a position where they cannot be
+seen or understood, or who shall erase the writing and inscribe his own
+name, or who shall divide the sculptures, and break them off from my
+tablets,
+
+
+
+LIII
+
+
+Anu and Vul, the great gods, my Lords, let them consign his name to
+perdition; let them curse him with an irrevocable curse; let them cause
+his sovereignty to perish; let them pluck out the stability of the throne
+of his empire; let not offspring survive him in the kingdom;[1] let his
+servants be broken; let his troops be defeated; let him fly vanquished
+before his enemies. May Vul in his fury tear up the produce of his land.
+May a scarcity of food and of the necessaries of life afflict his country.
+For one day may he not be called happy. May his name and his race perish
+in the land.
+
+In the month of _Kuzallu_[2] on the 29th day, in the High-Priesthood of
+_Ina-iliya-hallik,_ (entitled) _Rabbi-turi._
+
+[Footnote 1: Doubtful and faulty in text.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Chisleu.]
+
+
+
+
+THE REVOLT IN HEAVEN
+
+TRANSLATED BY H. FOX TALBOT, F.R.S.
+
+
+This curious narrative is found on a cuneiform tablet in the British
+Museum. The original text is published in Plate 42 of Delitzsch's work,
+"_Assyrische Lesestucke_." I gave a translation of it in the "Transactions
+of the Society of Biblical Archaeology," Vol. IV, pp. 349-362.
+
+This tablet describes the revolt of the gods or angels against their
+Creator. It seems to have been preceded by an account of the perfect
+harmony which existed in heaven previously. And here I would call to mind
+a noble passage in Job, chap, xxxviii, which deserves particular
+attention, since it is not derived from the Mosaic narrative but from some
+independent source, namely, that when God laid the foundations of the
+world, "the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted
+for joy." By "the sons of God" in this passage are to be understood the
+angels. In the beginning, therefore, according to this sacred author, all
+was joy and harmony and loyalty to God. But this state of union and
+happiness was not to last. At some unknown time, but before the creation
+of man, some of the angels ceased to worship their Creator: thoughts of
+pride and ingratitude arose in their hearts, they revolted from God, and
+were by his just decree expelled from heaven. These were the angels of
+whom it is said in the book of Jude that "they kept not their first
+estate, but left their own habitation." [Footnote: Jude 6.] The opinions
+of the fathers and of other religious writers on this mysterious subject
+it were useless to examine, since they admit that nothing can be certainly
+known about it. The opinion that one-third of the heavenly host revolted
+from their Creator is founded on Rev. xii. 3, where it is said: "And there
+appeared a dragon in heaven, having seven heads ... and his tail drew the
+third part of the stars of heaven and did cast them to the earth. And
+there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon,
+and the dragon fought and his angels. And prevailed not: neither was their
+place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out--he was
+cast out into the earth and his angels were cast out with him,"
+
+The Revelation of St. John was written in the first century, but some of
+the imagery employed may have been far more ancient, and for that reason
+more impressive to the religious mind of the age.
+
+The war between Michael and the dragon bears much resemblance to the
+combat of Bel and the dragon recounted on a Chaldean tablet. [Footnote:
+See G. Smith, p. 100 of his Chaldean Genesis.] And it is not unworthy of
+remark that the Chaldean dragon had seven heads, like that spoken of in
+the Revelation. [Footnote: See 2 R 19, col. ii. 14, and my Assyrian
+Glossary, No. 108.]
+
+At the creation harmony had prevailed in heaven. All the sons of God, says
+Job, shouted for joy. What caused the termination of this blissful state?
+We are not informed, and it would be in vain to conjecture. But the
+Babylonians have preserved to us a remarkable tradition, which is found in
+the tablet of page 42, and has not, I believe, been hitherto understood.
+It is unlike anything in the Bible or in the sacred histories of other
+countries. While the host of heaven were assembled and were all engaged in
+singing hymns of praise to the Creator, suddenly some evil spirit gave the
+signal of revolt. The hymns ceased in one part of the assembly, which
+burst forth into loud curses and imprecations on their Creator. In his
+wrath he sounded a loud blast of the trumpet and drove them from his
+presence never to return.
+
+
+
+THE REVOLT IN HEAVEN
+
+(The first four lines are broken. They related, no doubt, that a festival
+of praise and thanksgiving was being held in heaven, when this rebellion
+took place.)
+
+5   The Divine Being spoke three times, the commencement
+    of a psalm.
+6   The god of holy songs, Lord of religion and worship
+7   seated a thousand singers and musicians: and established
+    a choral band
+8   who to his hymn were to respond in multitudes ...
+9   With a loud cry of contempt they broke up his holy song
+10  spoiling, confusing, confounding, his hymn of praise.
+11  The god of the bright crown [1] with a wish to summon his
+    adherents
+12  sounded a trumpet blast which would wake the dead,
+13  which to those rebel angels prohibited return,
+14  he stopped their service, and sent them to the gods who
+    were his enemies.[2]
+15  In their room he created mankind.[3]
+16  The first who received life dwelt along with him.
+17  May he give them strength, never to neglect his word,
+18  following the serpent's voice, whom his hands had made.
+19  And may the god of divine speech [4] expel from his five
+    thousand [5] that wicked thousand
+20  who in the midst of his heavenly son, had shouted evil
+    blasphemies!
+21  The god Ashur, who had seen the malice of those gods who
+    deserted their allegiance
+22  to raise a rebellion, refused to go forth with them.
+
+(The remainder of the tablet, nine or ten lines more, is too much broken
+for translation.)
+
+[Footnote 1: The Assyrian scribe annotates in the margin that the same god
+is meant throughout, under all these different epithets.]
+
+[Footnote 2: They were in future to serve the powers of evil.]
+
+[Footnote 3: It will be observed that line 15 says that mankind were
+created to fill up the void in creation which the ungrateful rebellion of
+the angels had caused. A friend has supplied me with some striking
+evidence that the mediaeval church also held that opinion, though it was
+never elevated to the rank of an authorized doctrine.]
+
+[Footnote 4: See note 4. This is another epithet.]
+
+[Footnote 5: The total number of the gods is, I believe, elsewhere given
+as 5,000.]
+
+
+
+
+THE LEGEND OF THE TOWER OF BABEL
+
+TRANSLATED BY W. ST. CHAD BOSCAWEN
+
+
+This legend is found on a tablet marked K, 3,657, in the British Museum.
+The story which the tablet contains appears to be the building of some
+great temple tower, apparently by command of a king. The gods are angry at
+the work, and so to put an end to it they confuse the speech of the
+builders. The tablet is in a very broken condition, only a few lines being
+in any way complete.
+
+The late Mr. George Smith has given a translation of the legend in his
+work on Chaldean Genesis, and I have published the text and translation in
+the fifth volume of "Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology."
+
+
+
+LEGEND OF THE TOWER OF BABEL
+
+
+COLUMN I
+
+
+1  ...[1] them the father.
+2  (The thoughts) of his heart were evil
+3  ...[1] the father of all the gods[2] he turned from.
+4  (The thoughts) of his heart were evil[3]
+5  ...[1] Babylon corruptly to sin went and
+6  small and great mingled on the mound.[4]
+7  ...[1] Babylon corruptly to sin went and
+8  small and great mingled on the mound.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 2: A title of Anu.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Refers to the king who caused the people to sin.]
+
+[Footnote 4: The verb used here is the same as in Gen. xi. 7, [Hebrew:
+bll].]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+1   The King of the holy mound[1] ...[2]
+2   In front and Anu lifted up ...[2]
+3   to the good god his father..,[2]
+4   Then his heart also ...[2]
+5   which carried a command ...[2]
+6   At that time also ...[2]
+7   he lifted it up ...[3]
+8   Davkina.
+9   Their (work) all day they founded
+10  to their stronghold[4] in the night
+11  entirely an end he made.
+12  In his anger also the secret counsel he poured out
+13  to scatter (abroad) his face he set
+14  he gave a command to make strange their speech[5]
+15  ...[6] their progress he impeded
+16  ...[6]the altar
+
+(Column III is so broken only a few words remain, so I have omitted it.)
+
+[Footnote 1: A title of Anu.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 3: All these broken lines relate to council of gods?]
+
+[Footnote 4: The tower.]
+
+[Footnote 5: "Uttaccira--melic-su-nu," "make hostile their council."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Lacunae.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV [Footnote: Relates to the destruction of the tower by a storm.]
+
+
+1   In (that day)
+2   he blew and ...[1]
+3   For future time the mountain ...[1]
+4   Nu-nam-nir[2] went ...[1]
+5   Like heaven and earth he spake ...[1]
+6   His ways they went ...[1]
+7   Violently they fronted against him [3]
+8   He saw them and to the earth (descended)
+9   When a stop he did not make
+10  of the gods ...[1]
+11  Against the gods they revolted
+12  ...[1] violence ...[1]
+13  Violently they wept for Babylon[4]
+14  very much they wept.
+15  And in the midst
+
+(The rest is wanting.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The god of "no rule," or lawlessness.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The builders continued to build.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Lamentations of the gods for the Babylonians.]
+
+
+
+
+AN ACCADIAN PENITENTIAL PSALM
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The following psalm for remission of sins is remarkable alike for its
+deeply spiritual tone and for its antiquity. As it is written in Accadian,
+its composition must be referred to a date anterior to the seventeenth
+century B.C., when that language became extinct. An Assyrian interlinear
+translation is attached to most of the lines; some, however, are left
+untranslated. The tablet is unfortunately broken in the middle, causing a
+lacuna in the text. Similarities will be noticed between the language of
+the psalm and that of the Psalms of the Old Testament, and one passage
+reminds us strongly of the words of Christ in St. Matthew xviii. 22.
+Seven, it must be remembered, was a sacred number among the Accadians.
+Accadian poetry was characterized by a parallelism of ideas and clauses;
+and as this was imitated, both by the Assyrians and by the Jews, the
+striking resemblance between the form of Accadian and Hebrew poetry can be
+accounted for.
+
+Some of the lines in the middle of the psalm have been previously
+translated by Mr. Fox Talbot, in the "Transactions of the Society of
+Biblical Archaeology," Vol. II, p. 60, and Prof. Schrader in his
+"_Hollenfahrt der Istar_," pp. 90-95.
+
+A copy of the text is given in the fourth volume of the "Cuneiform
+Inscriptions of Western Asia," plate 10.
+
+
+
+AN ACCADIAN PENITENTIAL PSALM
+
+
+OBVERSE OF TABLET
+
+
+1   The heart of my Lord[1] was wroth: to his place may he
+    return.
+2   From the man that (sinned) unknowingly to his place may
+    (my) god return.
+3   From him that (sinned) unknowingly to her place may
+    (the) goddess return.
+4   May God who knoweth (that) he knew not to his place
+    return.
+5   May the goddess[2] who knoweth (that) he knew not to
+    her place return.
+6   May the heart of my god to his place return.
+7   May the heart of my goddess to his place return.
+8   May my god and my goddess (unto their place) return.
+9   May god (unto his place) return.
+10  May the goddess (unto her place return).
+11  The transgression (that I committed my god) knew it.
+12  The transgression (that I committed my goddess knew it).
+13  The holy name (of my god I profaned?).
+14  The holy name (of my goddess I profaned?).
+
+(The next three lines are obliterated.)
+
+18  The waters of the sea (the waters of my tears) do I drink.
+19  That which was forbidden by my god with my mouth I ate.
+20  That which was forbidden by my goddess in my ignorance
+    I trampled upon.
+21  O my Lord, my transgression (is) great, many (are) my
+    sins.
+22  O my god, my transgression (is) great, my sins (are
+    many).
+23  O my goddess, my transgression (is) great, my sins (are
+    many).
+24  O my god that knowest (that) I knew not, my transgression
+    (is) great, my sins (are many).
+25  O my goddess, that knowest (that) I knew not, my transgression
+    (is) great, my sins (are many).
+26  The transgression (that) I committed I knew not.
+27  The sin (that) I sinned I knew not.
+28  The forbidden thing did I eat.
+29  The forbidden thing did I trample upon.
+30  My Lord in the wrath of his heart has punished me.
+31  God in the strength of his heart has overpowered me.
+32  The goddess upon me has laid affliction and in pain has set
+    me.
+33  God who knew, (though) I knew not, hath pierced me.
+34  The goddess who knew (though) I knew not hath caused
+    darkness.
+35  I lay on the ground and no man seized me by the hand.[3]
+36  I wept,[4] and my palms none took.
+
+[Footnote 1: Literally, "of my lord his heart."]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Accadian throughout has the word "mother" before
+"goddess."]
+
+[Footnote 3: Accadian, "extended the hand."]
+
+[Footnote 4: Accadian, "in tears [water of the eye] I dissolved myself."]
+
+
+
+REVERSE OF TABLET
+
+
+1   I cried aloud; there was none that would hear me.
+2   I am in darkness (and) trouble:[1] I lifted not myself up.
+3   To my god my (distress) I referred; my prayer I addressed.
+4   The feet of my goddess I embraced.
+5   To (my) god, who knew (though) I knew not, (my prayer)
+    I addressed.
+6   To (my) goddess, who knew (though I knew not, my
+    prayer) I addressed.
+
+(The next four lines are lost.)
+
+11  How long O my god (shall I suffer?).
+12  How long O my goddess (shall I suffer?).
+13  How long O my god, who knewest (though) I knew not,
+    shall (thy) strength (oppress me?).
+14  How long O my goddess, who knewest (though) I knew
+    not, shall thy heart (be wroth?).
+15  Of mankind thou writest the number and there is none that
+    knoweth.
+16  Of mankind the name (that) is fully proclaimed how can I
+    know?
+17  Whether it be afflicted or whether it be blessed there is
+    none that knoweth.
+18  O Lord, thy servant thou dost not restore.[2]
+19  In the waters of the raging flood seize his hand.
+20  The sin (that) he has sinned to blessedness bring back.
+21  The transgression he has committed let the wind carry
+    away.
+22  My manifold affliction like a garment destroy.
+23  O my god, seven times seven (are my) transgressions, my
+    transgressions are before (me).
+24  (To be repeated) 10 times.[3] O my goddess, seven times
+    seven (are my) transgressions.
+25  O god who knowest (that) I knew not, seven times seven
+    (are my) transgressions.
+26  O goddess who knowest (that) I knew not, seven times
+    seven (are my) transgressions.
+27  My transgressions are before (me): may thy judgment
+    give (me) life.
+28  May thy heart like the heart of the mother of the setting
+    day to its place return.
+29  (To be repeated) 5 times.[4] Like the mother of the setting
+    day (and) the father of the setting day to its place (may it
+    return).
+30  For the tearful supplication of my heart 65 times let the
+    name be invoked of every god.[4]
+31  Peace afterward.
+32  _(Colophon)_ Like its old (copy) engraved and written.
+33  Country of Assur-bani-pal King of multitudes, King of
+    Assyria.
+
+[Footnote 1: Or more literally, "hiding." The verb that follows means "to
+lift self up so as to face another."]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Assyrian "quiet."]
+
+[Footnote 3: A rubrical direction.]
+
+[Footnote 4: A rubrical direction.]
+
+
+
+
+THE BLACK OBELISK INSCRIPTION OF SHALMANESER II
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+This inscription is engraved on an obelisk of black marble, five feet in
+height, found by Mr. Layard in the centre of the Mound at Nimroud, and now
+in the British Museum. Each of its four sides is divided into five
+compartments of sculpture representing the tribute brought to the Assyrian
+King by vassal princes, Jehu of Israel being among the number.
+Shalmaneser, whose annals and conquests are recorded upon it, was the son
+of Assur-natsir-pal, and died in 823 B.C., after a reign of thirty-five
+years. A translation of the inscription was one of the first achievements
+of Assyrian decipherment, and was made by Sir. H. Rawlinson; and Dr.
+Hincks shortly afterward (in 1851) succeeded in reading the name of Jehu
+in it. M. Oppert translated the inscription in his "_Histoire des Empires
+de Chaldee et d'Assyrie_," and M. Menant has given another rendering of it
+in his "_Annales des Rois d'Assyrie_" (1874). A copy of the text will be
+found in Layard's "Inscriptions in the Cuneiform Character" (1851).
+
+
+
+BLACK OBELISK OF SHALMANESER
+
+
+FACE A
+
+
+1    Assur, the great Lord, the King of all
+2    the great gods; Anu, King of the spirits of heaven
+3    and the spirits of earth, the god, Lord of the world; Bel,
+4    the Supreme, Father of the gods, the Creator;
+5    Hea, King of the deep, determiner of destinies,
+6    the King of crowns, drinking in brilliance;
+7    Rimmon, the _crowned_ hero, Lord of canals;[1] the Sun-god
+8    the Judge of heaven and earth, the urger on of all;
+9    (Merodach), Prince of the gods, Lord of battles; Adar,
+     the terrible,
+10   (Lord) of the spirits of heaven and the spirits of earth,
+     the exceeding strong god; Nergal,
+11   the powerful (god), King of the battle; Nebo, the bearer
+     of the high sceptre,
+12   the god, the Father above; Beltis, the wife of Bel, mother
+     of the (great) gods;
+13   Istar, sovereign of heaven and earth, who the face of heroism
+     perfectest;
+14   the great (gods), determining destinies, making great my
+     kingdom.
+15   (I am) Shalmaneser, King of multitudes of men, prince
+     (and) hero of Assur, the strong King,
+16   King of all the four zones of the Sun (and) of multitudes
+     of men, the marcher over
+17   the whole world; Son of Assur-natsir-pal, the supreme
+     hero, who his heroism over the gods
+18   has made good and has caused all the world[2] to kiss
+     his feet;
+
+[Footnote 1: Or, "fertility."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or, "the countries the whole of them."]
+
+
+
+FACE B
+
+
+19   the noble offspring of Tiglath-Adar
+20   who has laid his yoke upon all lands hostile to him, and
+21   has swept (them) like a whirlwind.
+22   At the beginning of my reign; when on the throne
+23   of royalty mightily I had seated myself, the chariots
+24   of my host I collected. Into the lowlands[1] of the country
+     of 'Sime'si
+25   I descended. The city of Aridu, the strong city
+26   of Ninni, I took. In my first year
+27   the Euphrates in its flood I crossed. To the sea of the
+     setting sun[2]
+28   I went. My weapons on the sea I rested. Victims
+29   for my gods I took.[3] To mount Amanus [4] I went up.
+30   Logs of cedar-wood and pine-wood I cut. To
+31   the country of Lallar I ascended. An image of my Royalty
+     in the midst (of it) I erected.
+32   In my second year to the city of Tel-Barsip I approached.
+     The cities
+33   of Akhuni the son of Adin I captured. In his city I shut
+     him up. The Euphrates
+34   in its flood I crossed. The city of Dahigu, a choice city
+     of the Hittites
+35   together with the cities which (were) dependent upon it I
+     captured. In my third year Akhuni
+36   the son of Adin, from the face of my mighty weapons fled,
+     and the city of Tel-Barsip,
+
+[Footnote 1: Or, "the descendings."]
+
+[Footnote 2: That is, the Mediterranean.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Namely, in sacrifice.]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Khamanu" in Assyrian.]
+
+
+
+FACE C
+
+
+37   his royal city, he fortified. The Euphrates I crossed.
+38   The city unto Assyria I restored. I took it. (The town)
+     which (is) on the further side
+39   of the Euphrates which (is) upon the river 'Sagurri, which
+     the Kings
+40   of the Hittites call the city of Pitru,[1]
+41   for myself I took. At my return
+42   into the lowlands of the country of Alzi I descended. The
+     country of Alzi I conquered.
+43   The countries of Dayaeni (and) Elam, (and) the city of
+     Arzascunu, the royal city
+44   of Arame of the country of the Armenians, the country
+     of Gozan (and) the country of Khupuscia.
+45   During the eponymy of Dayan-Assur from the city of
+     Nineveh I departed. The Euphrates
+46   in its upper part I crossed. After Akhuni the son of Adin
+     I went.
+47   The heights on the banks of the Euphrates as his stronghold
+     he made.
+48   The mountains I attacked, I captured. Akhuni with his
+     gods, his chariots,
+49   his horses, his sons (and) his daughters I carried away. To
+     my city Assur
+50   I brought (them). In that same year the country of Kullar
+     I crossed. To the country of Zamua
+51   of Bit-Ani I went down. The cities of Nigdiara of the
+     city of the Idians
+52   (and) Nigdima I captured. In my fifth year to the country
+     of Kasyari I ascended.
+53   The strongholds I captured. Elkhitti of the Serurians (in)
+     his city I shut up. His tribute
+54   to a large amount I received. In my sixth year to the cities
+     on the banks of the river Balikhi
+
+[Footnote 1: Pethor in the Old Testament.]
+
+
+
+FACE D
+
+
+55   I approached. Gi'ammu, their Governor, I smote.
+56   To the city of Tel-abil-akhi I descended.
+57   The Euphrates in its upper part I crossed.
+58   The tribute of the Kings of the Hittites
+59   all of them I received. In those days Rimmon-idri[1]
+60   of Damascus, Irkhulina of Hamath, and the Kings
+61   of the Hittites and of the sea-coasts to the forces of each
+     other
+62   trusted, and to make war and battle
+63   against me came. By the command of Assur, the great
+     Lord, my Lord,
+64   with them I fought. A destruction of them I made.
+65   Their chariots, their war-carriages, their war-material[2] I
+     took from them.
+66   20,500 of their fighting men with arrows I slew.
+67   In my seventh year to the cities of Khabini of the city of
+     Tel-Abni I went.
+68   The city of Tel-Abni, his stronghold, together with the
+     cities which (were) dependent on it I captured.
+69   To the head of the river, the springs of the Tigris, the
+     place where the waters rise,[3] I went.
+70   The weapons of Assur in the midst (of it) I rested. Sacrifices
+     for my gods I took. Feasts and rejoicing
+71   I made. An image of my Royalty of large size I constructed.
+     The laws of Assur my Lord, the records
+72   of my victories, whatsoever in the world I had done, in the
+     midst of it I wrote. In the middle (of the country) I set
+     (it) up.
+
+[Footnote 1: This is the Ben-hadad of Scripture whose personal name seems
+to have been Rimmon-idri.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or, "furniture of battle."]
+
+[Footnote 3: Or, "the place of the exit of the waters situated." The
+tablet is still to be seen near the town of Egil.]
+
+
+
+FACE A, _base_
+
+
+73   In my eighth year, Merodach-suma-iddin King of Gan-Dunias[1]
+74   did Merodach-bila-yu'sate his _foster_-brother against him
+     rebel;
+75   strongly had he fortified (the land). To exact punishment[2]
+76   against Merodach-suma-iddin I went. The city of the
+     waters of the Dhurnat[3] I took.
+77   In my ninth campaign a second time to the land of Accad
+     I went.
+78   The city of Gana-nate I besieged. Merodach-bila-yu'sate
+     exceeding fear
+79   of Assur (and) Merodach overwhelmed, and to save his life
+     to
+80   the mountains he ascended. After him I rode.
+     Merodach-bila-yu'sate
+     (and) the officers
+81   the rebels[4] who (were) with him (with) arrows I slew.
+     To the great fortresses
+82   I went. Sacrifices in Babylon, Borsippa, (and) Cuthah I
+     made.
+83   Thanksgivings to the great gods I offered up. To the
+     country of Kaldu [5] I descended. Their cities I captured.
+84   The tribute of the Kings of the country of Kaldu I received.
+     The greatness of my arms as far as the sea overwhelmed.
+85   In my tenth year for the eighth time the Euphrates I
+     crossed. The cities of 'Sangara of the city of the Carchemishians
+     I captured.
+86   To the cities of Arame I approached. Arne his royal city
+     with 100 of his (other) towns I captured.
+87   In my eleventh year for the ninth time the Euphrates I
+     crossed. Cities to a countless number I captured. To the
+     cities of the Hittites
+88   of the land of the Hamathites I went down. Eighty-nine
+     cities I took. Rimmon-idri of Damascus (and) twelve of
+     the Kings of the Hittites
+89   with one another's forces strengthened themselves. A destruction
+     of them I made. In my twelfth campaign for the
+     tenth time the Euphrates I crossed.
+90   To the land of Pagar-khubuna I went. Their spoil I carried
+     away. In my thirteenth year to the country of Yaeti I
+     ascended.
+91   Their spoil I carried away. In my fourteenth year the
+     country I assembled; the Euphrates I crossed. Twelve
+     Kings against me had come.
+92   I fought. A destruction of them I made. In my fifteenth
+     year among the sources of the Tigris (and) the Euphrates
+     I went. An image
+93   of my Majesty in their hollows I erected. In my sixteenth
+     year the waters of the Zab I crossed. To the country of
+     Zimri
+94   I went. Merodach-mudammik King of the land of Zimru
+     to save his life (the mountains) ascended. His treasure
+95   his army (and) his gods to Assyria I brought. Yan'su
+     son of Khanban to the kingdom over them I raised.[6]
+
+[Footnote 1: That is, Chaldea.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Or, "to return benefits."]
+
+[Footnote 3: The Tornadotus of classical geographers.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Or, "the Lord of sin."]
+
+[Footnote 5: This is the primitive Chaldea. The Caldai or Chaldeans
+afterward overran Babylonia and gave their name to it among classical
+writers.]
+
+[Footnote 6: Or, "I made."]
+
+
+
+FACE B, _base_
+
+
+96   In my seventeenth year the Euphrates I crossed. To the
+     land of Amanus I ascended. Logs
+97   of _cedar_ I cut. In my eighteenth year for the sixteenth
+     time the Euphrates I crossed. Hazael
+98   of Damascus to battle came. 1,221 of his chariots, 470 of
+     his war-carriages with
+99   his camp I took from him. In my nineteenth campaign for
+     the eighteenth[1] time the Euphrates I crossed. To the land
+     of Amanus
+100  I ascended. Logs of cedar I cut. In my 20th year for
+     the 20th time the Euphrates
+101  I crossed. To the land of Kahue I went down. Their
+     cities I captured. Their spoil
+102  I carried off. In my 21st campaign, for the 21st time the
+     Euphrates I crossed. To the cities
+103  of Hazael of Damascus I went. Four of his fortresses
+     I took. The tribute of the Tyrians,
+104  the Zidonians (and) the Gebalites I received. In my 22d
+     campaign for the 22d time the Euphrates
+105  I crossed. To the country of Tabalu[2] I went down. In
+     those days (as regards) the 24
+106  Kings of the country of Tabalu their wealth I received.
+     To conquer
+107  the mines of silver, of salt and of stone for sculpture I
+     went. In my 23d year
+108  the Euphrates I crossed. The city of Uetas, his strong
+     city,
+109  (which belonged) to Lalla of the land of the Milidians
+     I captured. The Kings of the country of Tabalu
+110  had set out. Their tribute I received. In my 24th year,
+     the lower Zab
+111  I crossed. The land of Khalimmur I passed through. To
+     the land of Zimru
+112  I went down. Yan'su King of the Zimri from the face
+113  of my mighty weapons fled and to save his life
+114  ascended (the mountains). The cities of 'Sikhisatakh,
+     Bit-Tamul, Bit-Sacci
+115  (and) Bit-Sedi, his strong cities, I captured. His fighting
+     men I slew.
+116  His spoil I carried away. The cities I threw down, dug
+     up, (and) with fire burned.
+117  The rest of them to the mountains ascended. The peaks
+     of the mountains
+118  I attacked, I captured. Their fighting men I slew. Their
+     spoil (and) their goods
+119  I caused to be brought down. From the country of Zimru
+     I departed. The tribute of 27 Kings
+120  of the country of Par'sua[3] I received. From the country
+     of Par'sua I departed. To
+121  the strongholds of the country of the Amadai,[4] (and)
+     the countries of Arazias (and) Kharkhar I went down.
+122  The cities of Cua-cinda, Khazzanabi, Ermul,
+123  (and) Cin-ablila with the cities which were dependent
+     on them I captured. Their fighting men
+
+[Footnote 1: The King counts his passage of the river on his return from
+Syria the seventeenth time of his crossing the Euphrates.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Tubal of the Old Testament, and Tibareni of classical
+geographers.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The Parthia of classical authors.]
+
+[Footnote 4: These seem to be the Madai or Medes of later inscriptions.
+This is the first notice that we have of them. It will be observed that
+they have not yet penetrated into Media but are still eastward of the
+Parthians.]
+
+
+
+FACE C, _base_
+
+
+124  I slew. Their spoil I carried away. The cities I threw
+     down, dug up (and) burned with fire. An image of my
+     Majesty
+125  in the country of Kharkhara I set up. Yan'su son of
+     Khaban with his abundant treasures
+126  his gods, his sons, his daughters, his soldiers in large numbers
+     I carried off. To Assyria I brought (them). In my
+     25th campaign
+127  the Euphrates at its flood I crossed. The tribute of the
+     Kings of the Hittites, all of them, I received. The country
+     of Amanus
+128  I traversed. To the cities of Cati of the country of the
+     Kahuians I descended. The city of Timur, his strong
+     city
+129  I besieged, I captured. Their fighting men I slew. Its
+     spoil I carried away. The cities to a countless number I
+     threw down, dug up,
+130  (and) burned with fire. On my return, the city of Muru,
+     the strong city of Arame the son of Agu'si,
+131  (as) a possession for myself I took. Its entrance-space
+     I marked out. A palace, the seat of my Majesty, in the
+     middle (of it) I founded.
+132  In my 26th year for the seventh time the country of the
+     Amanus I traversed. For the fourth time to the cities
+     of Cati
+133  of the country of the Kahuians I went. The city of Tanacun,
+     the strong city of Tulca I approached. Exceeding
+     fear
+134  of Assur my Lord overwhelmed him and (when) he had
+     come out my feet he took. His hostages I took. Silver,
+     gold,
+135  iron, oxen, (and) sheep, (as) his tribute I received. From
+     the city of Tanacun I departed. To the country of
+     Lamena
+136  I went. The men collected themselves. An inaccessible
+     mountain they occupied. The peak of the mountain I
+     assailed,
+137  I took. Their fighting men I slew. Their spoil, their
+     oxen, their sheep, from the midst of the mountain I
+     brought down.
+138  Their cities I threw down, dug up (and) burned with
+     fire. To the city of Khazzi I went. My feet they took.
+     Silver (and) gold,
+139  their tribute, I received. Cirri, the brother of Cati to the
+     sovereignty over them
+140  I set. On my return to the country of Amanus I ascended.
+     Beams of cedar I cut,
+141  I removed, to my city Assur[1] I brought. In my 27th
+     year the chariots of my armies I mustered. Dayan-Assur
+142  the Tartan,[2] the Commander of the wide-spreading army,
+     at the head of my army to the country of Armenia I
+     urged,
+143  I sent. To Bit-Zamani he descended. Into the low
+     ground to the city of Ammas he went down. The river
+     Arzane he crossed.
+144  'Seduri of the country of the Armenians heard, and to
+     the strength of his numerous host
+145  he trusted; and to make conflict (and) battle against me
+     he came. With him I fought.
+146  A destruction of him I made. With the flower of his
+     youth [3] his broad fields I filled. In my 28th year
+147  when in the city of Calah I was stopping news had been
+     brought (me, that) men of the Patinians
+148  Lubarni their Lord had slain (and) 'Surri (who was) not
+     heir to the throne to the kingdom had raised.
+149  Dayan-Assur the Tartan, the Commander of the wide-spreading
+     army at the head of my host (and) my camp[4]
+150  I urged, I sent. The Euphrates in its flood he crossed.
+     In the city of Cinalua his royal city
+151  a slaughter he made. (As for) 'Surri the usurper, exceeding
+     fear of Assur my Lord
+152  overwhelmed him, and the death of his destiny he went.[5]
+     The men of the country of the Patinians from before the
+     sight of my mighty weapons
+
+[Footnote 1: The Ellasar of Genesis, now Kalah Shergat.]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Turtanu" ("chief prince") in Assyrian.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Or, "the chiefs of his young warriors."]
+
+[Footnote 4: The word properly means "baggage." and sometimes signifies
+"standard," which may be the translation here.]
+
+[Footnote 5: That is, he died as was fated.]
+
+
+
+FACE D, _base_
+
+
+153  fled, and the children of 'Surri together with the soldiers,
+     the rebels, (whom) they had taken they delivered to me.
+154  Those soldiers on stakes I fixed. 'Sa'situr of the country
+     of Uzza my feet took. To the kingdom
+155  over them I placed (him). Silver, gold, lead, bronze,
+     iron, (and) the horns of wild bulls to a countless number
+     I received.
+156  An image of my Majesty of great size I made. In the
+     city of Cinalua his royal city in the temple of his gods I
+     set it up. In
+157  my 29th year (my) army (and) camp I urged, I sent.
+     To the country of Cirkhi[1] I ascended. Their cities I
+     threw down,
+158  dug up, (and) burned with fire. Their country like a
+     thunderstorm I swept. Exceeding
+159  fear over them I cast. In my 30th year when in the city
+     of Calah I was stopping, Dayan-Assur
+160  the Tartan, the Commander of the wide-spreading army
+     at the head of my army I urged, I sent. The river Zab
+161  he crossed. To the midst of the cities of the city of
+     Khupusca he approached. The tribute of Datana
+162  of the city of the Khupuscians I received. From the midst
+     of the cities of the Khupuscians
+163  I departed.[2] To the midst of the cities of Maggubbi of
+     the country of the Madakhirians he approached. The
+     tribute
+164  I received. From the midst of the cities of the country
+     of the Madakhirians he departed. To the midst of the
+     cities of Udaci
+165  of the country of the Mannians he approached. Udaci of
+     the country of the Mannians from before the sight of my
+     mighty weapons
+166  fled, and the city of Zirta, his royal city, he abandoned.
+     To save his life he ascended (the mountains).
+167  After him I pursued. His oxen, his sheep, his spoil, to
+     a countless amount I brought back. His cities
+168  I threw down, dug up, (and) burned with fire. From the
+     country of the Mannians[3] he departed. To the cities of
+     Sulu'sunu of the country of Kharru
+169  he approached. The city of Mairsuru, his royal city, together
+     with the cities which depended on it he captured.
+     (To) Sulu'sunu
+170  together with his sons mercy I granted. To his country
+     I restored him. A payment (and) tribute of horses I imposed.
+171  My yoke upon him I placed. To the city of Surdira he
+     approached. The tribute of Arta-irri
+172  of the city of the Surdirians I received. To the country
+     of Par'sua[4] I went down. The tribute of the Kings
+173  of the country of Par'sua I received. (As for) the rest
+     of the country of Par'sua which did not reverence Assur,
+     its cities
+174  I captured. Their spoil, their plunder to Assyria I
+     brought. In my 31st year, the second time, the cyclical-feast
+175  of Assur and Rimmon I had inaugurated.[5] At the time
+     while I was stopping in the city of Calah, Dayan-Assur
+176  the Tartan, the Commander of my wide-spreading army,
+     at the head of my army (and) my camp I urged, I sent.
+177  To the cities of Data of the country of Khupuscae he approached.
+     The tribute I received.
+178  To the city of Zapparia, a stronghold of the country of
+     Muzatsira, I went. The city of Zapparia together with
+179  forty-six cities of the city of the Muzatsirians I captured.
+     Up to the borders of the country of the Armenians
+180  I went. Fifty of their cities I threw down, dug up (and)
+     burned with fire. To the country of Guzani[6] I went down.
+     The tribute
+181  of Upu of the country of the Guzanians, of the country
+     of the Mannians, of the country of the Buririans, of the
+     country of the Kharranians,[7]
+182  of the country of the Sasganians, of the country of the
+     Andians,[8] (and) of the country of the Kharkhanians,
+     oxen, sheep, (and) horses
+183  trained to the yoke I received. To the cities of the country
+     of ... I went down. The city of Perria
+184  (and) the city of Sitivarya, its strongholds, together with
+     22 cities which depended upon it, I threw down, dug up
+185  (and) burned with fire. Exceeding fear over them I cast.
+     To the cities of the Parthians he went.
+186  The cities of Bustu, Sala-khamanu (and) Cini-khamanu,
+     fortified towns, together with 23 cities
+187  which depended upon them I captured. Their fighting-men
+     I slew. Their spoil I carried off. To the country of
+     Zimri I went down.
+188  Exceeding fear of Assur (and) Merodach overwhelmed
+     them. Their cities they abandoned. To
+189  inaccessible mountains they ascended. Two hundred and
+     fifty of their cities I threw down, dug up (and) burned
+     with fire.
+190  Into the lowground of Sime'si at the head of the country
+    of Khalman I went down.
+
+[Footnote 1: The mountainous country near the sources of the Tigris.]
+
+[Footnote 2: That is in the person of his commander-in-chief,
+Dayan-Assur.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The modern Van.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Parthia.]
+
+[Footnote 5: This refers to his assuming the eponymy a second time after
+completing a reign of thirty years. At this period the Assyrian kings
+assumed the eponymy on first ascending the throne, and the fact that
+Shalmaneser took the same office again in his thirty-first year shows that
+a cycle of thirty years was in existence.]
+
+[Footnote 6: The Gozan of the Old Testament.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Haran or Harran in the Old Testament; called Carrhae by the
+classical geographers.]
+
+[Footnote 8: Andia was afterward incorporated into Assyria by Sargon.]
+
+
+
+THE EPIGRAPHS ACCOMPANYING THE SCULPTURES
+
+
+  I  The tribute of 'Su'a of the country of the Guzanians:
+     silver, gold, lead, articles of bronze, sceptres for the King's
+     hand, horses (and) camels with double backs: I received.
+ II  The tribute of Yahua[1] son of Khumri[2]: silver, gold,
+     bowls of gold, vessels of gold, goblets of gold, pitchers
+     of gold, lead, sceptres for the King's hand, (and) staves:
+     I received.
+III  The tribute of the country of Muzri[3]: camels with double
+     backs, an ox of the river 'Saceya,[4] horses, _wild asses,
+     elephants_, (and) apes: I received.
+ IV  The tribute of Merodach-pal-itstsar of the country of the
+     'Sukhians[5]: silver, gold, pitchers of gold, tusks of the
+     wild bull, staves, antimony, garments of many colors,
+     (and) linen: I received.
+  V  The tribute of Garparunda of the country of the Patinians:
+     silver, gold, lead, bronze, gums, articles of bronze, tusks
+     of wild bulls, (and) _ebony_[6]: I received.
+
+[Footnote 1: Jehu.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Omri.]
+
+[Footnote 3: This is the Armenian Muzri, not Egypt.]
+
+[Footnote 4: This would seem from the sculpture to mean a rhinoceros.
+Lenormant, however, identifies it with the Yak.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Nomadic tribes in the southwest of Babylonia.]
+
+[Footnote 6: The word means literally "pieces of strong wood."]
+
+
+
+
+INSCRIPTION OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. J.M. RODWELL, M.A.
+
+
+Babylonian inscriptions are by no means so replete with interest as the
+Assyrian. The latter embrace the various expeditions in which the Assyrian
+monarchs were engaged, and bring us into contact with the names and
+locality of rivers, cities, and mountain-ranges, with contemporary princes
+in Judea and elsewhere, and abound in details as to domestic habits, civil
+usages, and the implements and modes of warfare. But the Babylonian
+inscriptions refer mainly to the construction of temples, palaces, and
+other public buildings, and at the same time present especial difficulties
+in their numerous architectural terms which it is often impossible to
+translate with any certainty. They are, however, interesting as records of
+the piety and religious feelings of the sovereigns of Babylon, and as
+affording numerous topographical notices of that famous city; while the
+boastful language of the inscription will often remind the reader of
+Nebuchadnezzar's words in Dan. iv. 30: "Is not this great Babylon, that I
+have built for the house of the kingdom, by the might of my power, and for
+the honor of my majesty?" Compare column vii, line 32.
+
+The reign of Nebuchadnezzar extended from B.C. 604 to 561. In B.C. 598 he
+laid siege to Jerusalem (2 Kings xxiv.) and made Jehoiachin prisoner, and
+in 588 again captured the city, and carried Zedekiah, who had rebelled
+against him, captive to Babylon (2 Kings xxv.). Josephus gives an account
+of his expeditions against Tyre and Egypt, which are also mentioned with
+many details in Ezek. xxvii.-xxix.
+
+The name Nebuchadnezzar, or more accurately Nebuchadrezzar (Jer. xxi. 2,
+7, etc.), is derived from the Jewish Scriptures. But in the inscriptions
+it reads Nebo-kudurri-ussur, _i.e.,_ "may Nebo protect the crown"; a name
+analogous to that of his father Nebo(Nabu)-habal-ussur. ("Nebo protect the
+son") and to that of Belshazzar, _i.e.,_ "Bel protect the prince." The
+phonetic writing of Nebuchadnezzar is _"An-pa-sa-du-sis,"_ each of which
+syllables has been identified through the syllabaries. The word
+"_kudurri_" is probably the [Hebrew: kether] of Esther vi. 8, and the
+[Greek: kidaris] of the Greeks. The inscriptions of which a translation
+follows was found at Babylon by Sir Harford Jones Bridges, and now forms
+part of the India House Collection. It is engraved on a short column of
+black basalt, and is divided into ten columns, containing 619 lines.
+
+It may be worth while to remark that in the name given to the prophet
+Daniel, Belteshazzar, _i.e.,_ Balat-su-ussur ("preserve thou his life"),
+and in Abednego ("servant of Nebo"), we have two of the component parts of
+the name of Nebuchadnezzar himself.
+
+
+
+INSCRIPTION OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR
+
+
+COLUMN I
+
+
+1   Nebuchadnezzar
+2   King of Babylon,
+3   glorious Prince,
+4   worshipper of Marduk,
+5   adorer of the lofty one,
+6   glorifier of Nabu,
+7   the exalted, the possessor of intelligence,
+8   who the processions of their divinities
+9   hath increased;
+10  a worshipper of their Lordships,
+11  firm, not to be destroyed;
+12  who for the embellishment
+13  of Bit-Saggatu and Bit-Zida[1]
+14  appointed days hath set apart, and
+15  the shrines of Babylon
+16  and of Borsippa
+17  hath steadily increased;
+18  exalted Chief, Lord of peace,
+19  embellisher of Bit-Saggatu and Bit-Zida,
+20  the valiant son
+21  of Nabopolassar
+22  King of Babylon am I.
+
+23  When he, the Lord god my maker made me,
+24  the god Merodach, he deposited
+25  my germ in my mother's (womb):
+26  then being conceived
+27  I was made.
+28  Under the inspection of Assur my judge
+29  the processions of the god I enlarged,
+30  (namely) of Merodach great Lord, the god my maker.
+31  His skilful works
+32  highly have I glorified;
+33  and of Nebo his eldest son
+34  exalter of My Royalty
+35  the processions (in honor of)[2] his exalted deity
+36  I firmly established.
+37  With all my heart firmly
+38  (in) worship of their deities I uprose
+39  in reverence for Nebo their Lord.
+
+40  Whereas Merodach, great Lord,
+41  the head of My ancient Royalty,
+42  hath empowered me over multitudes of men,
+43  and (whereas) Nebo bestower of thrones in heaven and
+    earth,
+44  for the sustentation of men,
+45  a sceptre of righteousness
+46  hath caused my hand to hold;
+47  now I, that sacred way
+48  for the resting-place of their divinities,
+49  for a memorial of all their names,
+50  as a worshipper of Nebo, Yav and Istar,
+51  for Merodach my Lord I strengthened.
+52  Its threshold I firmly laid, and
+53  my devotion of heart he accepted, and
+54  him did I proclaim
+55  ... Lord of all beings, and[3]
+56  as Prince of the lofty house, and
+57  thou, (O Nebuchadnezzar) hast proclaimed the name of
+    him
+58  who has been beneficent unto thee.
+59  His name, (O god,) thou wilt preserve,
+60  the path of righteousness thou hast prescribed to him.
+61  I, a Prince, and thy worshipper
+62  am the work of thy hand;
+63  thou hast created me, and[4]
+64  the empire over multitudes of men
+65  thou hast assigned me,
+66  according to thy favor, O Lord,
+67  which thou hast accorded
+68  to them all.[5]
+69  May thy lofty Lordship be exalted!
+70  in the worship of thy divinity
+71  may it subsist! in my heart
+72  may it continue, and my life which to thee is devoted
+
+_(Continued on Column II_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Two of the principal temples of Babylon. The former occurs
+below, Col. ii. 40, where it is followed by the epithet, "Temple of his
+power." Dr. Oppert always renders it "la Pyramide et la Tour."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Literally, "the goings." Compare Ps. lxviii. 24: "They have
+seen thy goings, O God," i.e., processions.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Of this line Mr. Norris (Dict., p. 166) states "that he
+cannot suggest any rendering."]
+
+[Footnote 4: It seems as if the hand were addressed.]
+
+[Footnote 5: I.e., "in making me their ruler."]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+1   mayest thou bless!
+
+2   He, the Chief, the honorable,
+3   the Prince of the gods, the great Merodach,
+4   my gracious Lord, heard
+5   and received my prayer;
+6   he favored it, and by his exalted power,
+7   reverence for his deity
+8   placed he in my heart:
+9   to bear his tabernacle
+10  he hath made my heart firm,
+11  with reverence for thy power,
+12  for exalted service,
+13  greatly and eternally.
+
+14  The foundation of his temple it was
+15  which from the upper waters
+16  to the lower waters
+17  in a remote way,
+18  in a spot exposed to winds,
+19  in a place whose pavements had been broken,
+20  low, dried up,
+21  a rugged way,
+22  a difficult path,
+23  I extended.
+24  The disobedient I stirred up,
+25  and I collected the poor and
+26  gave full directions (for the work) and
+27  in numbers I supported them.
+28  Wares and ornaments
+29  for the women I brought forth,
+30  silver, molten gold, precious stones,
+31  metal, _umritgana_ and cedar woods,
+32  (however their names be written)
+33  a splendid abundance,
+34  the produce of mountains,
+35  sea clay,[1]
+36  beautiful things in abundance,
+37  riches and sources of joy,
+38  for my city Babylon,
+39  into his presence have I brought
+40  for Bit-Saggatu
+41  the temple of his power,
+42  ornaments for Dakan[2]
+43  Bit-Kua, the shrine
+44  of Merodach, Lord of the house of the gods,
+45  I have made conspicuous with fine linen[3]
+46  and its seats
+47  with splendid gold,
+48  as for royalty and deity,
+49  with lapis lazuli and alabaster blocks[4]
+50  I carefully covered them over;
+51  a gate of passage, the gate Beautiful,[5]
+52  and the gate of Bit-Zida and Bit-Saggatu
+53  I caused to be made brilliant as the sun.
+54  A fulness of the treasures of countries I accumulated;[6]
+55  around the city it was placed as an ornament,
+56  when at the festival of Lilmuku at the beginning of the
+    year,
+57  on the eighth day (and) eleventh day,
+58  the divine Prince, Deity of heaven and earth, the Lord
+    god,
+59  they raised within it.
+60  (The statue) of the god El, the beauty of the sphere,
+61  reverently they bring;
+62  treasure have they displayed before it,
+63  a monument to lasting days,
+64  a monument of my life.
+
+65  They also placed within it
+
+_(Continued on Column III_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Mr. Norris conjectures "amber."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Dagon.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Sassanis." The root is probably identical with the Hebrew
+"shesh," "fine linen"; thus in Ex. xxvi. I: "Thou shalt make the
+tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen."]
+
+[Footnote 4: These are found still in the ruins of Babylon.]
+
+[Footntoe 5: Compare the Beautiful Gate of the Jewish Temple.]
+
+[Footnote 6: Mr. Norris in his Dictionary professes his inability to
+master the first words of this line, p. 580. The same remark applies to
+line 58. The above rendering is suggested to me by Mr. G. Smith.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN III
+
+
+1   his altar, an altar of Royalty;
+2   an altar of Lordship,
+3   (for) the Chief of the gods, the Prince Merodach,
+4   whose fashion the former Prince
+5   had fashioned in silver,
+6   with bright gold accurately weighed out
+7   I overlaid.
+8   Beautiful things for the temple Bit-Saggatu
+9   seen at its very summit,
+10  the shrine of Merodach, with statues and marbles
+11  I embellished
+12  as the stars of heaven.
+13  The fanes of Babylon
+14  I built, I adorned.
+15  Of the house, the foundation of the heaven and earth,
+16  I reared the summit
+17  with blocks of noble lapis lazuli:
+18  to the construction of Bit-Saggatu
+19  my heart uplifted me;
+20  in abundance I wrought
+21  the best of my pine trees
+22  which from Lebanon
+23  together with tall _Babil-_wood I brought,
+24  for the portico of the temple of Merodach:
+25  the shrine of his Lordship
+26  I made good, and interior walls
+27  with pine and tall cedar woods:
+28  the portico of the temple of Merodach,
+29  with brilliant gold I caused to cover,
+30  the lower thresholds, the cedar awnings,
+31  with gold and precious stones
+32  I embellished:
+33  in the erection of Bit-Saggatu
+34  I proceeded: I supplicated
+35  the King of gods, the Lord of Lords:
+36  in Borsippa, the city of his loftiness,
+37,38  I raised Bit-Zida: a durable house
+39  in the midst thereof I caused to be made.
+40  With silver, gold, precious stones,
+41  bronze, _ummakana_ and pine woods,
+42  those thresholds I completed:
+43  the pine wood portico
+44  of the shrine of Nebo
+45  with gold I caused to cover,
+46  the pine wood portico of the gate of the temple of
+    Merodach
+47  I caused to overlay with bright silver.
+48  The bulls and columns of the gate of the shrine
+49  the thresholds, the _sigari_ of _ri-_wood, conduits
+50  of _Babnaku_ wood and their statues
+51  with cedar wood awnings
+52  of lofty building,
+53  and silver, I adorned.
+54  The avenues of the shrine
+55  and the approach to the house,
+56  of conspicuous brick
+57  sanctuaries in its midst
+58  with perforated silver work.
+59  Bulls, columns, doorways,
+60,61  in marble beautifully I built;
+62,63  I erected a shrine and with rows
+64  of wreathed work I filled it:
+65  the fanes of Borsippa
+66  I made and embellished;
+67  the temple of the seven spheres
+68  ...[1]
+69  with bricks of noble lapis lazuli
+70  I reared its summit:
+71  the tabernacle of Nahr-kanul
+72  the chariot of his greatness
+
+_(Continued on Column IV_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN IV
+
+
+1   the tabernacle, the shrine Lilmuku,
+2   the festival of Babylon,
+3,4  his pageant of dignity
+5   within it, I caused to decorate
+6   with beryls and stones.
+
+7   A temple for sacrifices, the lofty citadel
+8   of Bel and Merodach, god of gods,
+9   a threshold of joy and supremacy
+10  among angels and spirits,
+11  with the stores of Babylon,
+12  with cement and brick,
+13  like a mountain I erected.
+
+14  A great temple of Ninharissi[1]
+15  in the centre of Babylon
+16  to the great goddess the mother who created me,
+17  in Babylon I made.
+18  To Nebo of lofty intelligence
+19  who hath bestowed (on me) the sceptre of justice,
+20  to preside over all peoples,
+21  a temple of rule over men, and a site for this his temple
+22,23  in Babylon, of cement and brick
+24  the fashion I fashioned.
+
+25,26  To the Moon-god, the strengthener of my hands
+27  a large house of alabaster as his temple
+28  in Babylon I made.
+29  To the sun, the judge supreme
+30  who perfects good in my body,
+31  a house for that guide of men, even his house'
+32,33  in Babylon, of cement and brick,
+34  skilfully did I make.
+
+35  To the god Yav, establisher of fertility
+36  in my land, Bit-Numkan as his temple
+37  in Babylon I built.
+
+38  To the goddess Gula, the regulator
+39  and benefactress of my life,
+40  Bit-Samit, and Bit-haris the lofty,
+41,42  as fanes in Babylon, in cement and brick
+43  strongly did I build.
+
+44  To the divine Lady of Bit Anna,
+45  my gracious mistress,
+46  Bit-Kiku in front of her house
+47  so as to strengthen the wall of Babylon
+48  I skilfully constructed.
+
+49,50  To Ninip the breaker of the sword of my foes
+51  a temple in Borsippa I made;
+52  and to the Lady Gula[2]
+53  the beautifier of my person[3]
+54  Bit-Gula, Bit-Tila, Bit-Ziba-Tila,
+55  her three temples
+56  in Borsippa I erected:
+57  to the god Yav who confers
+58  the fertilizing rain upon my land,
+59,60  his house (also) in Borsippa I strongly built:
+61  to the Moon-god who upholds
+62  the fulness of my prosperity
+63  Bit-ti-Anna[4] as his temple,
+64  on the mound near Bit-Ziba
+65  I beautifully constructed:
+66,67  Imgur-Bel and Nimetti-Belkit
+68  the great walls of Babylon,
+69  ...[5] I built,
+70  which Nabopolassar
+71  King, King of Babylon, the father who begat me,
+72  had commenced but not completed their beauty
+
+_(Continued on Column V_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Wife of the sun.]
+
+[Footnote 2: In I Mich. iv. 5. Gula is said to be the wife of the southern
+sun.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Or, "the favorer of my praises."]
+
+[Footnote 4: The goddess Anna is identical with the Nana whose image was
+by her own command restored by Assurbanipal to the temple of Bit-Anna
+after an absence in Elam of 1,635 years. See Smith's "Assurb.," pp. 234,
+235.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN V
+
+
+1   Its fosse he dug
+2   and of two high embankments
+3   in cement and brick
+4   he finished the mass:
+5,6  an embankment for pathways he made,
+7,8  Buttresses of brick beyond the Euphrates
+9,10  he constructed, but did not complete:
+11,12  the rest from ...[1]
+13  the best of their lands I accumulated:
+14  a place for sacrifice, as ornament,
+15,16  as far as Aibur-sabu[2] near Babylon
+17  opposite the principal gate
+18  with brick and _durmina-turda_ stone
+19  as a shrine of the great Lord, the god Merodach
+20  I built as a house for processions.
+21,22  I his eldest son, the chosen of his heart,
+23,24  Imgur-Bel and Nimetti-Bel
+25,26  the great walls of Babylon, completed:
+27  buttresses for the embankment of its fosse,
+28  and two long embankments
+29  with cement and brick I built, and
+30  with the embankment my father had made
+31,32  I joined them; and to the city for protection
+33,34  I brought near an embankment of enclosure
+35  beyond the river, westward.
+36  The wall of Babylon
+37,38  I carried round Aibur-sabu
+39  in the vicinity of Babylon:
+40  for a shrine of the great Lord Merodach
+41,42  the whole enclosure I filled (with buildings)
+43  with brick made of _kamina-turda_ stone
+44  and brick of stone cut out of mountains.
+45,46  Aibur-sabu from the High gate,
+47,48  as far as Istar-Sakipat I made,
+49,50  for a shrine for his divinity I made good,
+51  and with what my father had made
+52,53  I joined, and built it;
+54,55,56  and the access to Istar-Sakipat I made,
+57,58  which is Imgur-Bel and Nimetti-Bel,
+59  the great gates, the whole temple of the gods,
+60,61  in completeness near to Babylon
+62  I brought down;
+63,64  the materials of those great gates
+65  I put together and
+
+_(Continued on Column VI_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 2: An ornamental piece of water near Babylon.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VI
+
+
+1   their foundations opposite to the waters
+2,3  in cement and brick I founded,
+4   and of strong stone of _zamat-hati,_
+5   bulls and images,
+6   the building of its interior
+7   skilfully I constructed:
+8,9,10  tall cedars for their porticos I arranged,
+11  _ikki_ wood, cedar wood,
+12  with coverings of copper,
+13  on domes and arches:
+14,15  work in bronze I overlaid substantially on its gates,
+16,17  bulls of strong bronze and molten images
+18  for their thresholds, strongly.
+19  Those large gates
+20  for the admiration of multitudes of men
+21  with wreathed work I filled:
+22  the abode of Imzu-Bel
+23  the invincible castle of Babylon,
+24  which no previous King had effected,
+25  4,000 cubits complete,
+26  the walls of Babylon
+27  whose banner is invincible,
+28  as a high fortress by the ford of the rising sun,
+29  I carried round Babylon.
+30  Its fosse I dug and its mass
+31  with cement and brick
+32,33  I reared up and a tall tower at its side
+34  like a mountain I built.
+35,36  The great gates whose walls I constructed
+37  with _ikki_ and pine woods and coverings of copper
+38  I overlaid them,
+39  to keep off enemies from the front
+40  of the wall of unconquered Babylon.
+41,42  Great waters like the might of the sea
+43  I brought near in abundance
+44  and their passing by
+45  was like the passing by of the great billows
+46  of the Western ocean:
+47,48  passages through them were none,
+49,50  but heaps of earth I heaped up,
+51  and embankments of brickwork
+52  I caused to be constructed.
+53,54  The fortresses I skilfully strengthened
+55  and the city of Babylon
+56  I fitted to be a treasure-city.
+57  The handsome pile
+58,59  the fort of Borsippa I made anew:
+60,61  its fosse I dug out and in cement and brick
+62  I reared up its mass
+63  Nebuchadnezzar
+
+_(Continued on Column VII._)
+
+
+
+COLUMN VII
+
+
+1   King of Babylon
+2   whom Merodach, the Sun, the great Lord,
+3   for the holy places of his city
+4   Babylon hath called, am I:
+5   and Bit-Saggatu and Bit-Zida
+6   like the radiance of the Sun I restored:
+7   the fanes of the great gods
+8   I completely brightened.
+9   At former dates from the days of old
+10  to the days ...[1]
+11  of Nabopolassar King of Babylon
+12  the exalted father who begat me,
+13  many a Prince who preceded me
+14,15  whose names El had proclaimed for royalty
+16  for the city, my city, the festivals of these gods
+17  in the perfected places
+18  a princely temple, a large temple did they make
+19  and erected it as their dwelling-places.
+20,21  Their spoils in the midst they accumulated,
+22  they heaped up, and their treasures
+23  for the festival Lilmuku
+24  of the good Lord, Merodach god of gods
+25  they transferred into the midst of Babylon;
+26,27  when at length Merodach who made me for royalty
+28  and the god Nero his mighty son,
+29  committed his people to me
+30  as precious lives.
+31  Highly have I exalted their cities;
+32  (but) above Babylon and Borsippa
+33  I have not added a city
+34  in the realm of Babylonia
+35  as a city of my lofty foundation.
+
+36  A great temple, a house of admiration for men,
+37,38  a vast construction, a lofty pile,
+39,40  a palace of My Royalty for the land of Babylon,
+41  in the midst of the city of Babylon
+42,43  from Imgur Bel to Libit-higal
+44  the ford of the Sun-rise,
+45  from the bank of the Euphrates
+46  as far as Aibur-sabu
+47  which Nabopolassar
+48  King of Babylon the father who begat me
+49,50  made in brick and raised up in its midst,
+51  but whose foundation was damaged
+52  by waters and floods
+53,54  at Bit-Imli near Babylon,
+55,56  and the gates of that palace were thrown down,
+57,58  of this the structure with brickwork I repaired
+59  with its foundation and boundary wall,
+60  and a depth of waters I collected:
+61,62  then opposite the waters I laid its foundation
+63  and with cement and brick
+
+_(Continued on Column VIII_.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN VIII
+
+
+1,2  I skilfully surrounded it;
+3,4  tall cedars for its porticos I fitted;
+5,6  _ikki_ and cedar woods with layers of copper,
+7   on domes and arches
+8,9  and with bronze work, I strongly overlaid its gates
+10  with silver, gold, precious stones,
+11,12  whatsoever they call them, in heaps;
+13  I valiantly collected spoils;
+14  as an adornment of the house were they arranged,
+15  and were collected within it;
+16,17  trophies, abundance, royal treasures,
+18  I accumulated and gathered together.
+19  As to the moving of My Royalty
+20  to any other city,
+21  there has not arisen a desire:
+22  among any other people
+23  no royal palace have I built:
+24  the merchandise and treasures of my kingdom
+25,26,27  I did not deposit within the provinces of Babylon:
+28  a pile for my residence
+29,30  to grace My Royalty was not found:
+31  Therefore with reverence for Merodach my Lord,
+32,33  the exterior and interior in Babylon
+34  as his treasure city
+35,36  and for the elevation of the abode of My Royalty
+37  his shrine I neglected not:
+38  its weak parts which were not completed,
+39  its compartments that were not remembered,
+40  as a securely compacted edifice
+41,42  I dedicated and set up as a preparation for war
+43,44  by Imgur Bel, the fortress of invincible Babylon,
+45  400 cubits in its completeness,
+46  a wall of Nimitti-Bel
+47  an outwork of Babylon
+48,49  for defence.  Two lofty embankments,
+50  in cement and brick,
+51  a fortress like a mountain I made,
+52  and in their sub-structure
+53  I built a brickwork;
+54  then on its summit a large edifice
+55  for the residence of My Royalty
+56,57  with cement and brick I skilfully built
+58  and brought it down by the side of the temple:
+59  and in the exact middle, on the second day
+60  its foundation in a solid depth
+61,62  I made good and its summit I carried round;
+63  and on the 15th day its beauty
+
+_(Continued on Column IX_.)
+
+
+
+COLUMN IX
+
+
+1   I skilfully completed
+2   and exalted as an abode of Royalty.
+3,4  Tall pines, the produce of lofty mountains,
+5   thick _asuhu_ wood
+6,7  and _surman_ wood in choice pillars
+8   for its covered porticos I arranged.
+9   _ikki_ and _musritkanna_ woods
+10  cedar and _surman_ woods
+11  brought forth, and in heaps,
+12  with a surface of silver and gold
+13  and with coverings of copper,
+14,15  on domes and arches, and with works of metal
+16  its gates I strongly overlaid
+17  and completely with _zamat_-stone
+18  I finished off its top.
+19,20  A strong wall in cement and brick
+21  like a mountain I carried round
+22,23  a wall, a brick fortress, a great fortress
+24  with long blocks of stone
+25,26  gatherings from great lands I made
+27,28  and like hills I upraised its head.
+29,30  That house for admiration I caused to build
+31  and for a banner to hosts of men:
+32  with carved work I fitted it;
+33  the strong power of reverence for
+34  the presence of Royalty
+35  environs its walls;
+36,37  the least thing not upright enters it not,
+38  that evil may not make head.
+39  The walls of the fortress of Babylon
+40,41  its defence in war I raised
+42  and the circuit of the city of Babylon.
+43,44  I have strengthened skilfully.
+45  To Merodach my Lord
+46  my hand I lifted:
+47  O Merodach the Lord, Chief of the gods,
+48,49  a surpassing Prince thou hast made me,
+50  and empire over multitudes of men,
+51,52  hast intrusted to me as precious lives;
+53  thy power have I extended on high,
+54,55  over Babylon thy city, before all mankind.
+56  No city of the land have I exalted
+57,58  as was exalted the reverence of thy deity:
+59  I caused it to rest: and may thy power
+60,61  bring its treasures abundantly to my land.
+62  I, whether as King and embellisher,
+63  am the rejoicer of thy heart
+64  or whether as High Priest appointed,
+65  embellishing all thy fortresses,
+
+(_Continued on Column X_.)
+
+
+
+COLUMN X
+
+
+1,2  For thy glory, O exalted Merodach
+3   a house have I made.
+4   May its greatness advance!
+5   May its fulness increase!
+6,7  in its midst abundance may it acquire!
+8   May its memorials be augmented!
+9   May it receive within itself
+10  the abundant tribute
+11,12  of the Kings of nations and of all peoples![1]
+13,14  From the West to the East by the rising sun
+15  may I have no foemen!
+16  May they not be multiplied
+17,18  within, in the midst thereof, forever,
+19  Over the dark races may he rule!
+
+[Footnote 1: Compare Dan. i. 2, "He brought the vessels into the
+treasure-house of his god."]
+
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN POEM ON THE SEVEN EVIL SPIRITS
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The following poem is one of the numerous bilingual texts, written in the
+original Accadian with an interlinear Assyrian translation, which have
+been brought from the library of Assur-bani-pal, at Kouyunjik. The seven
+evil spirits who are mentioned in it are elsewhere described as the seven
+storm-clouds or winds whose leader seems to have been the dragon Tiamat
+("the deep") defeated by Bel-Merodach in the war of the gods. It was these
+seven storm-spirits who were supposed to attack the moon when it was
+eclipsed, as described in an Accadian poem translated by Mr. Fox Talbot in
+a previous volume of "Records of the Past." Here they are regarded as the
+allies of the incubus or nightmare. We may compare them with the Maruts or
+storm-gods of the Rig-Veda (see Max Mueller, "Rig-Veda-Sanhita: the Sacred
+Hymns of the Brahmans translated and explained," Vol. I). The author of
+the present poem seems to have been a native of the Babylonian city of
+Eridu, and his horizon was bounded by the mountains of Susiania, over
+whose summits the storms raged from time to time. A fragment of another
+poem relating to Eridu is appended, which seems to celebrate a temple
+similar to that recorded by Maimonides in which the Babylonian gods
+gathered round the image of the sun-god to lament the death of Tammuz.
+
+A copy of the cuneiform text will be found in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions
+of Western Asia," Vol. IV, pl. 15. M. Fr. Lenormant has translated a
+portion of it in "_La Magie chez les Chaldeens"_ pp. 26, 27.
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN POEM ON THE SEVEN EVIL SPIRITS
+
+
+OBVERSE
+
+
+1   (In) the earth their borders were taken, and that god[1]
+    came not forth.
+2   From the earth he came not forth, (and) their power was
+    baneful.
+3   The heaven like a vault they extended and that which had
+    no exit they opened.[2]
+4   Among the stars of heaven their watch they kept not, in
+    watching (was) their office.
+5   The mighty hero[3] to heaven they exalted, and his father
+    he knew not.[4]
+6   The Fire-god on high, the supreme, the first-born, the
+    mighty, the divider of the supreme crown of Anu!
+7   The Fire-god the light that exalts him with himself he
+    exalts.
+8   Baleful (are) those seven, destroyers.
+9   For his ministers in his dwelling he chooses (them).
+10  O Fire-god, those seven how were they born, how grew
+    they up?
+11  Those seven in the mountain of the sunset were born.
+12  Those seven in the mountain of the sunrise grew up.
+13  In the hollows of the earth have they their dwelling.
+14  On the high-places of the earth are they proclaimed.
+15  As for them in heaven and earth immense (is) their habitation.
+16  Among the gods their couch they have not.
+17  Their name in heaven (and) earth exists not.
+18  Seven they are: in the mountain of the sunset do they rise.
+19  Seven they are: in the mountain of the sunrise did they set.
+20  Into the hollows of the earth do they penetrate.[5]
+21  On the high places of the earth did they ascend.
+22  As for them, goods they have not, in heaven and earth they
+    are not known.[6]
+23  Unto Merodach[7] draw near, and this word may he say
+    unto thee.[8]
+24  Of those baleful seven, as many as he sets before thee,
+    their might may he give thee,
+25  according to the command of his blessed mouth, (he who
+    is) the supreme judge of Anu.
+26  The Fire-god unto Merodach draws near, and this word
+    he saith unto thee.
+27  In the pavilion, the resting-place of might, this word he
+    hears, and
+28  to his father Hea[9] to his house he descends, and speaks:
+29  O my father, the Fire-god unto the rising of the sun has
+    penetrated, and these secret words has uttered.
+30  Learning the story of those seven, their places grant thou
+    to another.
+31  Enlarge the ears, O son of Eridu.[10]
+32  Hea his son Merodach answered:
+33  My son, those seven dwell in earth;
+34  those seven from the earth have issued.
+
+[Footnote 1: That is, the god of fire.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The Assyrian has, "Unto heaven that which was not seen they
+raised."]
+
+[Footnote 3: The Assyrian adds; "the first-born supreme."]
+
+[Footnote 4: In the Accadian text, "they knew not."]
+
+[Footnote 5: In the Accadian, "cause the foot to dwell."]
+
+[Footnote 6: In the Assyrian, "learned."]
+
+[Footnote 7: In the Accadian text, Merodach, the mediator and protector of
+mankind, is called "protector of the covenant."]
+
+[Footnote 8: That is, the fire-god.]
+
+[Footnote 9: Hea, the god of the waters, was the father of Merodach, the
+sun-god.]
+
+[Footnote 10: "Eridu," the "Rata" of Ptolemy, was near the junction of the
+Euphrates and Tigris, on the Arabian side of the river. It was one of the
+oldest cities of Chaldea.]
+
+
+
+REVERSE
+
+
+35  Those seven in the earth were born,
+36  those seven in the earth grew up.
+37  The forces of the deep for war[1] have drawn near.
+38  Go, my son Merodach!
+39  (for) the laurel, the baleful tree that breaks in pieces the
+    incubi,
+40  the name whereof Hea remembers in his heart.
+41  In the mighty enclosure, the girdle of Eridu which is to
+    be praised,
+42  to roof and foundation may the fire ascend and to (work)
+    evil may those seven never draw near.
+43  Like a broad scimitar in a broad place bid (thine) hand
+    rest; and
+44  In circling fire by night and by day[2] on the (sick) man's
+    head may it abide.
+45  At night mingle the potion and at dawn in his hand let
+    him raise (it).
+46  In the night a precept[3] in a holy book,[4] in bed, on the
+    sick man's head let them place.[5]
+47  The hero (Merodach) unto his warriors sends:
+48  Let the Fire-god seize on the incubus.
+49  Those baleful seven may he remove and their bodies may
+    he bind.
+50  During the day the sickness (caused by) the incubus (let
+    him) overcome.
+51  May the Fire-god bring back the mighty powers to their
+    foundations.
+52  May Nin-ci-gal [6] the wife of (Hea) establish before her the
+    _bile_ (of the man).
+53  Burn up the sickness[7] ...
+54  May Nin-akha-kuddu [8] seize upon his body and abide upon
+    his head,
+55  according to the word of Nin-akha-kuddu,
+56  (in) the enclosure of Eridu.
+57  (In) the mighty girdle of the deep and of Eridu may she
+    remember his return (to health).
+58  In (her) great watch may she keep (away) the incubus
+    supreme among the gods (that is) upon his head, and in
+    the night may she watch him.
+59  (By) night and day to the prospering hands of the Sun-god
+    may she intrust him.
+
+_Conclusion_.
+
+60  (In) Eridu a dark pine grew, in a holy place it was planted.
+61  Its (crown) was white crystal which toward the deep spread.
+62  The ... [9] of Hea (was) its pasturage in Eridu, a canal
+    full (of waters).
+63  Its seat (was) the (central) place of this earth.[10]
+64  Its shrine (was) the couch of mother Zicum. [11]
+65  The ...[12] of its holy house like a forest spread its shade;
+    there (was) none who within entered not.
+66  (It was the seat) of the mighty the mother, begetter of Anu.[13]
+67  Within it (also was) Tammuz.[14]
+
+(Of the two next and last lines only the last word, "the universe,"
+remains.)
+
+[Footnote 1: Literally, "warlike expedition."]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Accadian, "day (and) night."]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Masal" (mashal), as in Hebrew, "a proverb."]
+
+[Footnote 4: Literally, "tablet."]
+
+[Footnote 5: It is evident that the poem was to be used as a charm in case
+of sickness. Compare the phylacteries of the Jews.]
+
+[Transcriber's Note: The following footnote (6) is illegible in many
+places. Illegible areas are marked with a '*'.]
+
+[Footnote 6: "Nin-ci-gal" ("the Lady of the Empty Country") was Queen of
+*s, and identified with Gula, or *, "chaos" ["bohu"] of Gen-*, *, "the
+Lady of the House of Death."]
+
+[Footnote 7: In the Accadian, "the sick head (and) sick heart." Then
+follows a lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 8: Apparently another name of Nin-ci-gal.]
+
+[Footnote 9: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 10: Compare the Greek idea of Delphi as the central [Greek:
+omphalos] or "navel" of the earth.]
+
+[Footnote 1: Zicum, or Zigara, was the primeval goddess, "the mother of
+Anu and the gods."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 3: That is, of Zicum.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Tammuz, called "Du-zi" ("the [only] son") in Accadian, was a
+form of the sun-god. His death through the darkness of winter caused Istar
+to descend into Hades in search of him.]
+
+
+
+CHARM FOR AVERTING THE SEVEN EVIL SPIRITS
+
+
+For the sake of completeness a charm for averting the attack of the seven
+evil spirits or storm-clouds may be added here, though the larger part of
+it has already been translated by Mr. Fox Talbot in "Records of the Past,"
+Vol. Ill, p. 143. It forms part of the great collection of magical
+_formulae_, and is lithographed in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western
+Asia," Vol. IV, pl. 2, col. v, lines 30-60.
+
+1   Seven (are) they, seven (are) they!
+2   In the channel of the deep seven (are) they!
+3   (In) the radiance of heaven seven (are) they!
+4   In the channel of the deep in a palace grew they up.
+5   Male they (are) not, female they (are) not.[1]
+6   (In) the midst of the deep (are) their paths.
+7   Wife they have not, son they have not.
+8   Order (and) kindness know they not.
+9   Prayer (and) supplication hear they not.
+10  The _cavern_ in the mountain they enter.
+11  Unto Hea (are) they hostile.
+12  The throne-bearers of the gods (are) they.
+13  Disturbing the _lily_ in the torrents are they set.
+14  Baleful (are) they, baleful (are) they.
+15  Seven (are) they, seven (are) they, seven twice again (are) they.
+16  May the spirits of heaven remember, may the spirits of
+    earth remember.
+
+[Footnote 1: The Accadian text, "Female they are not, male they are not."
+This order is in accordance with the position held by the woman in Accad;
+in the Accadian Table of Laws, for instance, translated in "Records of the
+Past," vol. iii. p. 23, the denial of the father by the son is punished
+very leniently in comparison with the denial of the mother.]
+
+
+
+
+CHALDEAN HYMNS TO THE SUN
+
+TRANSLATED BY FRANCOIS LENORMANT
+
+
+The sun-god, called in the Accadian _Utu_ and _Parra_ (the latter is of
+less frequent occurrence), and in the Semitic Assyrian _Samas_, held a
+less important rank in the divine hierarchy of the Chaldaic-Babylonian
+pantheon, afterward adopted by the Assyrians, than the moon-god (in the
+Accadian _Aku, Enizuna_, and _Huru-ki;_ in the Assyrian _Sin_), who was
+even sometimes said to be his father. His principal and most common title
+was "Judge of Heaven and Earth," in the Accadian _dikud ana kia_, in the
+Assyrian _dainu sa same u irtsiti_. The most important sanctuaries of the
+deity were at Larsam, in southern Chaldsea, and Sippara, in the north of
+Babylonia.
+
+Some few fragments of liturgical or magical hymns addressed to Shamas have
+come down to us. These are five in number, and I give a translation of
+them here. They have all been studied previously by other Assyriologists,
+but I think the present interpretation of them is superior to any which
+has as yet been furnished.
+
+The following are the chief bibliographical data concerning them:
+
+I. The primitive Accadian text, accompanied by an interlinear Assyrian
+version published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol.
+IV, pl. 20, No. 2. I put forth a first attempt at a translation in my
+"_Magie chez les Chaldeens"_ (p. 165), and since then M. Friedrich
+Delitzsch has given a much better explanation of it ("_G. Smith's
+Chaldaeische Genesis,"_ p. 284). Of this hymn we possess only the first
+five lines.
+
+II. The primitive Accadian text, with an interlinear Assyrian version, is
+published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. IV, pl.
+19, No. 2. M. Delitzsch has given a German translation of it in "_G.
+Smith's Chaldaeische Genesis_" p. 284, and a revised one in English has
+just appeared in Prof. Sayce's "Lectures upon Babylonian Literature," p.
+43.
+
+III. A similar sacred text, published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of
+Western Asia," Vol. IV, pl. 28, No. I, in which the indications as to the
+obverse and reverse of the tablet are incorrect and ought to be altered.
+The two fragments left to us, separated by a gap, the extent of which it
+is at present impossible to estimate, belong to an incantatory hymn
+destined to effect the cure of the king's disease. Interpretations have
+been attempted in my "Premieres Civilisations" (Vol. II, p. 165 _et
+seq_.), and in the appendices added by M. Friedrich Delitzsch to his
+German translation of G. Smith's work, already cited.
+
+IV. The primitive Accadian text with an interlinear Assyrian version,
+published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. IV, pi.
+17, col. I. This hymn, like the preceding one, is intended to be recited
+by the priest of magic in order to cure the invalid king. I gave a very
+imperfect translation of it in my "_Magie chez les Chaldeens_" (p. 166).
+
+V. We possess only the Semitic Assyrian version of this text; it was
+published in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. IV, pl.
+17, col. 2. As yet, no one has produced a complete translation of this
+hymn; but a few passages have been quoted by M. Friedrich Delitzsch ("_G.
+Smith's Chaldaeische Genesis_" p. 284) and myself ("_La Magie chez les
+Chaldeens_" p. 164, and pp. 179, 180, of the English edition, 1877).
+
+I refer the reader to the various publications above mentioned for a
+convincing proof of the entirely revised character of the translations
+here submitted to him, and I think he will grant that I have made some
+progress in this branch of knowledge, since my first attempts many years
+ago.
+
+
+
+CHALDEAN HYMNS TO THE SUN
+
+
+FIRST HYMN
+
+
+1  Magical incantation.
+2  Sun, from the foundations of heaven thou art risen;
+3  thou hast unfastened the bolts of the shining skies;
+4  thou hast opened the door of heaven.
+5  Sun, above the countries thou hast raised thy head.
+6  Sun, thou hast covered the immensity of the heavens and
+   the terrestrial countries.
+
+(The fragments of the four following lines are too mutilated to furnish
+any connected sense; all the rest of the hymn is entirely wanting.)
+
+
+
+SECOND HYMN [Footnote: See also Lenormant, "Chaldean Magic," p. 180.]
+
+
+1   Lord, illuminator of the darkness, who piercest the face
+    of darkness,
+2   merciful god, who settest up those that are bowed down,
+    who sustainest the weak,
+3   toward the light the great gods direct their glances,
+4   the archangels of the abyss,[1] every one of them, contemplate
+    eagerly thy face.
+5   The language of praise,[2] as one word, thou directest it.
+6   The host of their heads seeks the light of the Sun in the
+    South.[3]
+7   Like a bridegroom thou restest joyful and gracious.[4]
+8   In thy illumination thou dost reach afar to the boundaries
+    of heaven.[5]
+9   Thou art the banner of the vast earth.
+10  O God! the men who dwell afar off contemplate thee and
+    rejoice.
+11  The great gods fix ...[6]
+12  Nourisher of the luminous heavens, who favorest ...[7]
+13  He who has not turned his hands (toward thee ...[7]
+14  ....[7]
+
+[Footnote 1: In the Assyrian version, "The archangels of the earth." ]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Assyrian version, "The eager language."]
+
+[Footnote 3: The Assyrian version has simply, "of the sun." ]
+
+[Footnote 4: "Like a wife thou submittest thyself, cheerful and kindly."--
+Sayce.]
+
+[Footnote 5: In the Assyrian version, "Thou art the illuminator of the
+limits of the distant heavens."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Here occurs a word which I cannot yet make out.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Lacunae.]
+
+
+
+THIRD HYMN
+
+
+1   Thou who marchest before ...[1]
+2   With Anu and Bel ...[1]
+3   The support of crowds of men, direct them!
+4   He who rules in heaven, he who arranges, is thyself.
+5   He who establishes truth in the thoughts of the nations, is
+    thyself.
+6   Thou knowest the truth, thou knowest what is false.
+7   Sun, justice has raised its head;
+8   Sun, falsehood, like envy, has spoken calumny.
+9   Sun, the servant of Anu and Bel [2] is thyself;
+10  Sun, the supreme judge of heaven and earth is thyself.
+11  Sun, ...
+
+(In this place occurs the gap between the two fragments on the obverse and
+on the reverse of the tablet.)
+
+12 Sun, the supreme judge of the countries, is thyself.
+13 The Lord of living beings, the one merciful to the countries,
+is thyself.
+14 Sun, illuminate this day the King, son of his god,[3] make
+him shine!
+15 Everything that is working evil in his body, may that be
+driven elsewhere.
+16 Like a cruse of ...[4] purify him!
+17 Like a cruse of milk, make him flow!
+18 May it flow like molten bronze!
+19 Deliver him from his infirmity!
+20 Then, when he revives, may thy sublimity direct him!
+21 And me, the magician, thy obedient servant, direct me!
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Accadian, "Ana and Mulge"]
+
+[Footnote 3: Meaning the pious king.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Here follows an incomprehensible word.]
+
+
+
+FOURTH HYMN
+
+
+1   Great Lord, from the midst of the shining heavens at thy
+    rising,
+2   valiant hero, Sun, from the midst of the shining heavens,
+    at thy rising,
+3   in the bolts of the shining heavens, in the entrance which
+    opens heaven, at thy rising
+4   in the bar of the door of the shining heavens, in ...[1]
+    at thy rising,
+5   in the great door of the shining heavens, when thou
+    openest it.
+6   in the highest (summits) of the shining heavens, at the
+    time of thy rapid course,
+7   the celestial archangels with respect and joy press around
+    thee;
+8   the servants of the Lady of crowns[2] lead thee in a festive
+    manner;
+9   the ...[3] for the repose of thy heart fix thy days;
+10  the multitudes of the crowds on the earth turn their eyes
+    often toward thee;
+11  the Spirits of heaven and earth lead thee.
+12  The ...[3] thou crushest them with thy strength,
+13  ...[3] thou discoverest them,
+14  ...[3] thou causest to seize,
+15  ...[3] thou directest.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 2: In the Assyrian version, "of the Lady of the gods."]
+
+[Footnote 3: Lacunae.]
+
+(I am obliged here to pass over five lines which are too mutilated for me
+to attempt to translate them with any degree of certainty.)
+
+21  The Lord, as to me, has sent me;
+22  the great god, Hea, as to me, has sent me.[1]
+23  Settle what has reference to him,[2] teach the order which
+    concerns him, decide the question relating to him.
+24  Thou, in thy course thou directest the human race;
+25  cast upon him a ray of peace, and let it cure his suffering.
+26  The man, son of his god,[3] has laid before thee his shortcomings
+    and his transgressions;
+27  his feet and his hands are in pain, grievously defiled by
+    disease.
+28  Sun, to the lifting up of my hands pay attention;
+29  eat his food, receive the victim, give his god (for a support) to
+    his hand!
+30  By his order let his shortcomings be pardoned! let his
+    transgressions be blotted out!
+31  May his trouble leave him! may he recover from his disease!
+32  Give back life to the King![4]
+33  Then, on the day that he revives, may thy sublimity envelop him!
+34  Direct the King who is in subjection to thee!
+35  And me, the magician, thy humble servant, direct me!
+
+[Footnote 1: There is no Assyrian version of this line; we have only the
+Accadian.]
+
+[Footnote 2: The invalid on behalf of whom the invocation is recited.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The pious man.]
+
+[Footnote 4: From this verse onward the Assyrian version is wanting.]
+
+
+
+FIFTH HYMN [Footnote: Cf. also "Chaldean Magic," pp. 185, 186.]
+
+
+1   Magical incantation.
+2   I have invoked thee, O Sun, in the midst of the high
+    heavens.
+3   Thou art in the shadow of the cedar, and
+4   thy feet rest on the summits.
+5   The countries have called thee eagerly, they have directed
+    their looks toward thee, O Friend;
+6   thy brilliant light illuminates every land,
+7   overthrowing all that impedes thee, assemble the countries,
+8   for thou, O Sun, knowest their boundaries.
+9   Thou who annihilatest falsehood, who dissipatest the evil
+    influence
+10  of wonders, omens, sorceries, dreams, evil apparitions,
+11  who turnest to a happy issue malicious designs, who annihilatest
+    men and countries
+12  that devote themselves to fatal sorceries, I have taken
+    refuge in thy presence.
+13  ...[1]
+14  Do not allow those who make spells, and are hardened, to
+    arise;
+15  Frighten their heart...[2]
+16  Settle also, O Sun, light of the great gods.
+17  Right into my marrow, O Lords of breath, that I may rejoice, even I.
+18  May the gods who have created me take my hands!
+19  Direct the breath of my mouth! my hands
+20  direct them also, Lord, light of the legions of the heavens,
+    Sun, O Judge!
+21  The day, the month, the year...[2]
+22  ...[2] conjure the spell!
+23  ...[2] deliver from the infirmity!
+
+[Footnote 1: Here I am obliged to omit a line, which I cannot yet make
+out.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacunae.]
+
+
+
+
+TWO ACCADIAN HYMNS
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The two following hymns, both of which are unfortunately mutilated, are
+interesting from their subject-matter. The first is addressed to the
+sun-god Tammuz, the husband of Istar, slain by the boar's tusk of winter,
+and sought by the goddess in the underground world. It is this visit which
+is described in the mythological poem known as the "Descent of Istar into
+Hades" ("Records of the Past," Vol. I, p. 143). The myth of Tammuz and
+Istar passed, through the Phoenicians, to the Greeks, among whom Adonis
+and Aphrodite represent the personages of the ancient Accadian legend.
+Tammuz is referred to in Ezek. viii. 14. (See "Records of the Past," Vol.
+IX, p. 147.) The second hymn treats of the world-mountain, the Atlas of
+the Greeks, which supports the heaven with its stars, and is rooted in
+Hades. Under its other name, "Kharsak-kurra," or "Mountain of the East,"
+it was identified with the present Mount Elwend, and was regarded as the
+spot where the ark had rested, and where the gods had their seat. A
+reference is made to it in Isa. xiv. 13. Both hymns illustrate the imagery
+and metaphor out of which grew the mythology of primeval Babylonia, and
+offer curious parallels to the Aryan hymns of the Rig-Veda. The cuneiform
+texts are lithographed in the "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia,"
+Vol. IV, 27, I, 2.
+
+
+
+TWO ACCADIAN HYMNS
+
+
+I
+
+
+1   O shepherd,[1] Lord Tammuz, Bridegroom[2] of Istar!
+2   Lord of Hades, Lord of Tul-Sukhba!
+3   _Understanding_ one, who among the papyri the water drinks
+    not!
+4   His brood in the desert, even the reed, he created not.[3]
+5   Its bulrush in his canal he lifted not up.
+6   The roots of the bulrush were carried away.
+7   O god of the world, who among the papyri the water drinks
+    not!
+    .....[4]
+
+[Footnote 1: The early Accadian kings frequently call themselves
+"shepherds." According to Berosus, Alorus, the first antediluvian king of
+Babylonia, gave himself the same title. Compare the Homeric [Greek:
+poimaen laon].]
+
+[Footnote 2: "Khamir," literally "red" or "blushing one," in reference to
+the glow of the setting sun.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Or, "was not green."]
+
+[Footnote 4: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+II
+
+
+1   O mighty mountain of Bel, Im-kharsak,[1] whose head rivals
+    heaven, whose root (is) the holy deep!
+2   Among the mountains, like a strong wild bull, it lieth down.
+3   Its horn like the brilliance of the sun is bright.
+4   Like the star of heaven[2] it is a prophet and is filled with
+    sheen.
+5   O mighty mother of Beltis, daughter of Bit-Esir: splendor
+    of Bit-kurra,[3] appointment of Bit-Gigune, handmaid of
+    Bit-Cigusurra![4]
+    .....[5]
+
+[Footnote 1: "Wind of the mountain."]
+
+[Footnote 2: That is, Dilbat, "the prophet," or Venus, the morning-star.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "The temple of the East."]
+
+[Footnote 4: "The temple of the land of forests."]
+
+[Footnote 5: Lacuna.]
+
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN PROVERBS AND SONGS
+
+TRANSLATED BY REV. A.H. SAYCE, M.A.
+
+
+The following is a selection from an interesting collection of Accadian
+songs and proverbs, gjven in a mutilated reading-book of the ancient
+language which was compiled for the use of Assyrian (or rather Semitic
+Babylonian) students. These sentences were drawn up at a time when it was
+necessary for the scribes to be familiar with the old language of Accad,
+and to be able to translate it into Assyrian, and hence these phrases are
+of very great philological value, since they indicate often analogous
+words and various verbal forms. The Assyrian translation and the Accadian
+texts are arranged in parallel columns. Some of the proverbs must be taken
+from an agricultural treatise of the same nature as the "Works and Days"
+of Hesiod. Copies of the texts will be found in the "Cuneiform
+Inscriptions of Western Asia," Vol. II, 15, 16.
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN PROVERBS
+
+
+1   Door and bolt are made fast.
+2   Oracle to oracle: to the oracle it is brought.[1]
+3   The cut beam he strikes: the strong beam he shapes.
+4   The resting-place of the field which (is) in the house he
+    will establish.
+5   Within the court of the house he feels himself small.
+6   A heap of witnesses[2] as his foundation he has made strong.
+7   Once and twice he has made gains;[3] yet he is not content.
+8   By himself he dug and wrought.[4]
+9   For silver his resting-place he shall buy.
+10  On his heap of bricks a building he builds not, a beam he
+    set not up.
+11  A house like his own house one man to another consigns.
+12  If the house he contracts for he does not complete, 10
+    shekels of silver he pays.
+13  The joists of his wall he plasters.
+14  In the month Marchesvan,[5] the 30th day (let him choose)
+    for removal.
+15  (Let him choose it, too,) for the burning of weeds.
+16  The tenant of the farm two-thirds of the produce on his
+    own head to the master of the orchard pays out.
+
+[Footnote 1: That is, "compared."]
+
+[Footnote 2: Accadian "izzi ribanna," Assyrian "igar kasritu" ("heap of
+covenant"), like the Hebrew "Galeed," Aramaic "Yegar-sahadutha" (Gen.
+xxxi. 47).]
+
+[Footnote 3: That is, "the more a man has, the more he wants."]
+
+[Footnote 4: That is, "if you want a thing done, do it yourself."]
+
+[Footnote 5: October.]
+
+
+
+ACCADIAN SONGS
+
+
+26  (If) evil
+    thou hast done,
+    (to) the sea forever
+    ...[1] thou goest.
+23  My _city_ bless:
+    among my men
+    fully prosper me.
+26  Bless everything;
+    and to (my) dress be favorable.
+28  Before the oxen as they march
+    in the grain thou liest down.
+30  My knees are marching,
+    my feet are not resting:
+    with no wealth of thine own,
+    grain thou begettest for me.
+34  A heifer am I;
+    to the cow I am yoked:
+    the plough-handle is strong;
+    lift it up, lift it up!
+53  May he perform vengeance:
+    may he return also
+    (to him) who gives.
+55  The marsh as though it were not he passes;[2]
+    the slain as though they were not ...[3] he makes good.
+57  To the waters their god[4]
+    has returned:
+    to the house of bright things
+    he descended (as) an icicle:
+    (on) a seat of snow
+    he grew not old in wisdom.
+    ....[3]
+10  Like an oven
+    (which is) old
+    against thy foes
+    be hard.
+15  Thou wentest, thou spoiledst
+    the land of the foe;
+    (for) he went, he spoiled
+    thy land, (even) the foe.
+18  Kingship
+    in its going forth
+    (is) like a _royal robe_(?)
+19  Into the river thou plungest, and
+    thy water (is) swollen
+    at the time:[5]
+    into the orchard thou plungest, and
+    thy fruit
+    (is) bitter.
+34  The corn (is) high,
+    it is flourishing;
+    how
+    is it known?
+    The corn (is) bearded,
+    it is flourishing;
+    how
+    is it known?
+42  The fruit of death
+    may the man eat,
+    (and yet) the fruit of life
+    may he achieve.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 2: I have translated this line from the Accadian, the Assyrian
+text being wanting, and the words "a recent lacuna" being written instead.
+This makes it clear that the scribe who copied the tablet for
+Assur-bani-pal's library did not understand Accadian and could not
+therefore supply the translation.]
+
+[Footnote 3: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 4: This seems to be quoted from a hymn describing the return of
+Oannes to the Persian Gulf.]
+
+[Footnote 5: See "Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia," vol. i. 25,
+10.]
+
+
+
+
+BABYLONIAN PUBLIC DOCUMENTS CONCERNING PRIVATE PERSONS
+
+EDITED BY MM. OPPERT AND MENANT
+
+
+These translations are taken from a French work published by Dr. Oppert
+and M. Menant; [Footnote: The title of the work is "Documents juridiques
+de l'Assyrie et de la Chaldee," par J. Oppert et J. Menant, Paris, 1877.]
+the versions have been revised, in some essential points, for the "Records
+of the Past," by Dr. Oppert, who holds himself personally responsible for
+the exact representation of the sense of these documents; but on account
+of the unusual difficulty of these texts, the reader may easily be
+convinced that for a long time yet, and particularly in details of minor
+importance, there will remain room enough for a conscientious improvement
+of all previous translations.
+
+
+
+BABYLONIAN PRIVATE CONTRACTS
+
+
+THE STONE OF ZA'ALEH
+
+
+This document, engraved on a small broken slab of basalt, is dated from
+the first year of the reign of Marduk-idin-akhe. It was discovered long
+ago in the small mound of Za'aleh, on the left bank of the Euphrates, a
+few miles northwest of Babylon. The text forms two columns of cursive
+Babylonian characters; the first column is extremely damaged. Though
+defaced, this contract offers some interest by its differing from other
+documents of the aforesaid reign. It has been published in the first
+volume of the collection of the British Museum ("W.A.I.," pl. 66), and
+translated for the first time by Dr. Oppert, "_Expedition en Mesopotamie_"
+t. i, p. 253.
+
+
+
+COLUMN I
+
+
+Covenant which in the town of Babylon, in the month Sebat, in the first
+year of Marduk-idin-akhe, the mighty King, the men of M ..., have agreed:
+
+The waters of the river ...,[1] and the waters of the canals did not go
+through....[2]
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Lacuna of several lines.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+....[1] and all the streams which exist at the mouth of the river Salmani.
+Therefore, Aradsu, son of Erisnunak, has agreed to (aforesaid things) for
+the times to come, in giving his signature to this tablet.
+
+Bit-Karra-basa, son of Hea-habal-idin, Governor of the town of Isin;
+Babilayu, son of Sin-mustesir, Chief; Malik-akh-idinna, son of Nigazi,
+Chief of the _ru-bar;_[2] Tab-asap-Marduk, son of Ina-e-saggatu-irbu, a
+Scribe; Zikar-Nana, son of ...[1] Bin, _sabil_; Nabu-mumaddid-zir, a
+servant, son of Zikar-Ea, a Governor; and Nabu-idin-akhe, son of Namri,
+have fixed it in the furnitures of the house.
+
+In the town of Babylon, on the 30th of Sebat (January), in the first year
+of Marduk-idin-akhe, the mighty King.
+
+The Masters of the Royal Seal have granted approbation.
+
+[Footnote 1: Lacuna of several lines.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Unknown dignity.]
+
+
+
+THE PARIS MICHAUX STONE
+
+
+This monument is so called from the name of the traveller by whom it was
+brought over to France in 1800. It was discovered near the Tigris, not far
+from the ruins of the ancient city of Ctesiphon. It is an ovoid basalt
+stone of seventeen inches in height, by twenty-four in circumference. The
+upper part is decorated with symbolical figures spread over nearly
+one-third of the monument; one of the sides is divided in two parts. At
+the top the moon crescent and the sun are represented; in a somewhat lower
+place there are four altars; two on the right support tiaras; the other
+two are adorned with two symbolical figures. In the middle a winged goat
+kneeling; the lower part of the animal is hidden by the image of another
+altar. The second part contains two altars; one of them bears a sort of
+arrow-head which for a long time has been taken for the symbol of the
+Cuneiform writing, because it resembles the element of these characters,
+On the other part there is a triangular symbol, then, between both altars,
+two kneeling monsters; only the fore part of their body is visible. On the
+left behind the altar there is to be seen a symbolical figure preceding a
+downward pointed arrow. On the back side of the monument there is a
+scorpion, a bird roosting. On the ground there is a bird, on the head of
+which is to be seen an unknown symbol composed of two other monsters, one
+bears a bird's head, and the other has a hideous horned face; the rest of
+the body is wrapped up in a sort of sheath; opposite to which a dog
+kneeling. The top of the stone is bordered with an immense snake; its tail
+extends into the very inscriptions, its head touches the head of the dog.
+On each side of the monument in its lower part, there are two columns of
+cuneiform texts, which contain altogether ninety-five lines.
+
+This monument is now kept since 1801 in the "_Cabinet des Medailles_" at
+Paris (No. 702). Since that epoch it has always attracted the attention of
+scholars; it was published by M. Millin in 1802, "_Monuments inedits_" t.
+I, pl. viii, ix. Muenter first attempted to explain the symbolical figures
+(_"Religion der Babylonier,"_ p. 102, pl. III). Sir Henry Rawlinson has
+also published the inscription again, in "W.A.I.," Vol. I, p. 70. The
+sense of this text has been fixed for the first time, in 1856, by M.
+Oppert's translation in the "_Bulletin Archeologique de l'Atheneum
+Francais_" After this translation, Mr. Fox Talbot gave one in 1861, in the
+"Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society," Vol. XVIII, p. 54.
+
+
+
+COLUMN I
+
+
+20 hin of corn is the quantity for seeding an _arura_.[1] The field is
+situated near the town of Kar-Nabu, on the bank of the river Mekaldan,
+depending of the property of Kilnamandu.
+
+The field is measured as follows:[2] Three stades in length toward the
+East, in the direction of the town of Bagdad; three stades in length
+toward the West, adjoining the house of Tunamissah; 1 stade 50 fathoms[3]
+in breadth toward the North, adjoining the property of Kilnamandu; 1 stade
+50 fathoms up in the South, adjoining the property of Kilnamandu.
+
+Sirusur, son of Kilnamandu, gave it for all future days to Dur-Sarginaiti,
+his daughter, the bride[4] of Tab-asap-Marduk, son of Ina-e-saggatu-irbu
+(the pretended), who wrote this; and Tab-asap-Marduk, son of
+Ina-e-saggatu-irbu, who wrote this in order to perpetuate without
+interruption the memory of this gift, and commemorated on this stone the
+will of the great gods and the god Serah.
+
+[Footnote 1: Or the great U, namely, of the field in question.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Dr. Oppert's first translation of this passage, which is to
+be found in almost all documents of this kind, has been corrected in
+"L'Etalon des mesures assyriennes," p. 42. The field of Kilnamandu was a
+rectangle of 1-5/6 stades in breadth and 3 stades long, viz., 5-1/2 square
+stades, amounting to 19.64 hectares, or 48-1/2 English acres. The Stone of
+Micheux is the only one which affords a valuation of the land.
+
+The arura (great U) is valued at 88 hectares, 207 acres in the Babylonian
+system; a hin is almost 3 litres, or 5 pints and a quarter; 20 hins,
+therefore, are somewhat more than 13 gallons. The fertility of the
+Babylonian soil was renowned in antiquity. See Herodotus i. 193.]
+
+[Footnote 3: A fathom, 10-1/3 feet, is the sixtieth part of a stade, 620
+feet.]
+
+[Footnote 4: This word is explained in a syllabary copied by Dr. Oppert in
+1855, but which has never been published. The three signs of the ideogram
+("Bit-gigunu-a") are rendered by "kallatu" ("a bride"), and this very
+important statement put the translator on the track of the right
+interpretation.]
+
+
+
+COLUMN II
+
+
+Whosoever in the process of time, among the brothers, the sons, the
+family, the men and women, the servants both male and female, of the house
+of Kilnamandu, either a foreigner, or a guest, or whosoever he may be (or
+anyone else), who will destroy this field, who will venture to take away
+the boundary-stone, or will vindicate it: whether he consecrate this field
+to a god, or earn it for his superior, or claim it for himself, or change
+the extent, the surface, or the limits, that he reaps new harvests (crops);
+or who will say of the field with its measures, "There is no granter;"
+whether he call forth malediction and hostility on the tablets; or
+establish on it anyone other who change these curses, in swearing: "The
+head is not the head;" and in asserting: There is no evil eye;[1]
+whosoever will carry elsewhere those tablets; or will throw them into the
+water; will bury them in the earth; will hide them under stones; will burn
+them with fire, will alter what is written on them, will confine them into
+a place where they might not be seen; that man shall be cursed:
+
+May the gods Anu, El, Hea, the Great Goddess, the great gods, inflict upon
+him the utmost contumely, extirpate his name, annihilate his family.
+
+May Marduk, the great Lord of eternity without end, bind him in fetters
+which cannot be broken.
+
+May Samas, the great Judge of heaven and earth, judge his unpunished
+misdeeds, and surprise him in flagrant deeds.
+
+May Sin, the brilliant (_Nannar_), who dwells in the sacred heavens,
+clothe him in leprosy as in a garment, and give him up to the wild beasts
+that wander in the outsides of the town.
+
+May Istar, the Queen of heaven and earth, carry him off, and deliver him
+for avenge to the god and the king.
+
+May Ninip, son of the zenith, son of El the sublime, take away his lands,
+funds, and limits.
+
+May Gula, the great Queen, the wife of Ninip, infilter into his bowels a
+poison which cannot be pushed out, and may he void blood and pus like
+water.
+
+May Bin, the great Guardian of heaven and earth, the son of the warrior
+Anu, inundate his field.
+
+May Serah destroy his firstborn; may he torture his flesh, and load his
+feet with chains.
+
+May Nabu, the supreme Watcher, strike him with misfortune and ruin, and
+blast his happiness that he not obtain it, in the wrath of his face.
+
+May all the great gods whose names are recorded on this tablet, curse him
+with irrevocable malediction, and scatter his race even to the last days.
+
+[Footnote 1: This seems to be a usual formula.]
+
+
+(This monument is equally engraved on a black basalt stone; it offers the
+same arrangement as the stone of Michaux. The analogous documents show
+that numerous inaccuracies have been committed.
+
+In the upper part there occur the same altars, tiaras, birds, as well as
+the above-mentioned goat, dog, scorpion, and snake. The surface of the
+basso-relievo is also covered with Cuneiform writing.
+
+The inscriptions are arranged in four columns, and take both sides of the
+monument. The first column originally finished at the 30th line; it seems
+to have been completed by four lines, which contain one of the essential
+articles of the contract, but which evidently are not in their right
+place, and had been actually forgotten in the original engraving.
+
+On the margins and the bassso-relievo many additions and repetitions are
+to be read, which also prove the engraver's carelessness or
+precipitation.)
+
+
+20 hins[1] of corn are sufficient to seed an _arura_,[2] a field in the
+land of Zunire,[3] on the bank of the river Zirzirri, belonging to the
+house of Ada.
+
+Marduk-idin-akhe, King of Babylon, has thus sentenced according to the
+laws of the country of Assur. Bin-zir-basa, his Minister, has favored
+Marduk-ilusu, son of Ina-e-saggatu-irbu,[4] who has written this to the
+King of Babylon: I say, He has loaded me with favors, and I proclaim that
+this rating has been made according to the epha[5] of the King of Babylon.
+
+20 hin of corn are sufficient to seed an _arura_. Bin-zir-basa, the
+Lieutenant (of the King) has invested him with it, and (the measurer of
+lands) has thus measured it for the time to come.
+
+In the length[6] above toward the North, turned to the river Zirzirri,
+adjoining the house of Ada, and the field of the house of the Satraps. In
+the length below, toward the South of the river Atab-du-Istar, adjoining
+the house of Ada. In breadth above toward the East, adjoining the limits
+of Bit-ulbar. In breadth below toward the West, adjoining the house of
+Ada.
+
+According to the law of Marduk-idin-akhe, King of Babylon, servant of the
+gods of the City of the eternal fire,[7] it was so measured by
+Bel-zir-kini, son of Zikar-Istar, the measurer of the field.
+
+In the town of Dindu, in the month of Tebet, on the 28th day (December) in
+the 10th year of Marduk-idin-akhe, King of Babylon.
+
+In the presence of Bet-ulbar-sakimu, son of Bazi, Chief of the _ru-bar_ of
+the countries;
+
+in the presence of Babilai, son of Sin-mustesir,[8] Chief of the head
+Rulers of the country;
+
+in the presence of Hea-Kudurri-ibni, son of Zikar-Ea, Governor of the
+provinces;
+
+in the presence of Bel-nasir-habal, son of the Chief of the _rubar_ of the
+orders in the provinces;
+
+in the presence of Takisa-belit, son of Riu-simti;
+
+in the presence of Uballitsu, son of Karistiya-napasti;
+
+in the presence of Bel-idin-akh, son of Suti;
+
+in the presence of Sukamuna[9]-idin, son of Meliharbat;
+
+in the presence of Isu-il, son of Habliya;
+
+in the presence of Bel-akhesu, son of Meliharbat;
+
+in the presence of Nis-bet-ulbar, son of Ulamhala;
+
+in the presence of Sumidu, son of Marduk-kabuya, Prefect of the house of
+Ada;
+
+in the presence of E-saggatu-bunuya, _hazan_[10] of the house of Ada;
+
+in the presence of Babrabtatutai, son of Sar-Babil-Assurissi;
+
+in the presence of Sadu-rabu-kabuya, Judge;
+
+in the presence of Marduk-nasir, son of Gamilu.
+
+Whoever in the process of time, among the brothers, the sons, among the
+near relations, the allies of the family of the house of Ada, would claim
+this land, would nourish against it bad designs, or would suggest them;
+whoever would utter these words, "There is no giver," who would say,
+"There is no sealer," or whosoever will say, "I deny that there is a
+master of the house of Ada, that there is a Chief in the house of Ada;
+that there is a _hazan_ of the house of Ada; or that there is either a
+speculator for the house of Ada; or a _gitta_[11] of the house of Ada; or
+a _sumtalu_; or a _lubattu_; or an _aklu_; or a _kisirtu_ in the house of
+Ada;" or he will say, "The confiscation has been pronounced;" whether he
+say: "This field has no measurer," or say, "This seal is not of a sealer"
+(who has the right to); or whoever will take possession of this field; or
+consecrate it to the gods; or claim it for himself; or alter its surface,
+circumference and limits; or construct buildings on this land, and in the
+middle of this field (that man will be cursed):
+
+The gods who are inscribed on this tablet, all those whose name is
+commemorated herein, will curse him with irrevocable curses.
+
+May the gods Anu,[12] Bel, Hea, these great gods, torment him and
+overwhelm him; that ...[13]
+
+May Marduk, the great Lord of eternity without limits, fetter him with
+inextricable bonds.
+
+May Nebo, the supreme minister, overthrow the surface, circumference, and
+limits of his properties.
+
+May Bin, the great Lord of heaven and earth, cause the streams of his
+river to overflow[14] ... have his progeny circumcised, and load his feet
+with a heavy chain.
+
+May Sin, who turns around heaven, envelop his body with leprosy as in a
+garment.
+
+May Samas, the bright Judge of heaven and earth, judge his lawsuit, and
+have him seized in deed doing.
+
+May Istar, the goddess of heaven and earth, deliver him to the vengeance
+of the gods and of the King.
+
+May Gula, the Sovereign Lady, the great wife of Ninip, infilter into his
+bowels with a poison that will not leave him, and may he void pus and
+blood like water.
+
+May Ninip, the god of boundaries, _filium camelas inire cogat_.[15]
+
+May Nergal, the god of arms and bows, break his arrows.
+
+May Zamal, the King of battles, prevent him in the midst of the fray from
+taking a prisoner.
+
+May Turda, the Keeper of the images of the great gods, walking in the
+right ways of the gods, besiege his door during the night.
+
+May Iskhara, the goddess of the ancient customs, not hear him in the
+battles.
+
+May Malik, the great Master of Heaven,[16] while he sins cause him to be
+slain in the act.
+
+May all the gods that are on this stone, whose name is commemorated, curse
+him with irrevocable curses.
+
+(The lines at the end of the first column read as follows:)
+
+[17]If anybody swears thus: This head is not a head ...[17] or institutes
+here an outlaw or a causer of mischief, immerse them in the waters, bury
+them in the earth, hide them under a heap of stones, destroy them by fire.
+
+(On the edge of the second column:)
+
+May the gods whose image is on this table, and whose name is invoked,
+curse him with irrevocable curses.
+
+(On the edge of the fourth column:)
+
+The horses ...[18] the Master of the house of Ada may dispose of them
+after him. 30 horses, 25 buffaloes, 3 mares in the fields are not inclosed
+in the decree of the King of Babylon; Bin-zir-basa has ascribed it for the
+benefit of Mahanitu, after Marduk-ilusu, son of Ina-e-saggatu-irbu.
+
+The Chief of the _rubar_ of the house of Ada has said it (named and
+pronounced) to Marduk-ilusu, son of the Scribe of Marduk-idin-akhe, King
+of Babylon, and Ina-e-saggatu-irbu, the Scribe, the field, this one
+has[19] ... owner of the house of Ada, has given it for the days to come,
+and has yielded it up.
+
+(A great many short inscriptions are placed over the basso-relievos.
+
+1. The smallest of them is placed over a kind of lyre. It reads:
+
+  In sum, an epha and a half.
+
+2. Entangled between the branches of an object difficult to design and the
+horns of a goat, occurs a sentence which has not been translated.
+
+3. The word "_nase_" is written between and the altar supporting a
+triangular object.
+
+4. A legend of three lines is engraved between the mentioned altar, and a
+horned animal.)
+
+  So that he may not devastate the land of Zunire, nor the
+  dwellings which are belonging to the Governor of Zunire.
+
+5. Under an undetermined object, opposite to the nose of the
+above-mentioned fantastical animal is written a sentence composed of a
+perpendicular line and four lines parallel to the circumference.)
+
+  That he will not acknowledge either the _kisirtu_ or the tribute
+  of this house, or the Prefect, or the _hazan_ of the house of Ada.
+
+6. Below the preceding one.
+
+  Either the author of the treaty, or the _hazan_ of the land of
+  Zunire.
+
+7. Included between the roost and the back of the dog occurs another
+sentence which has not been translated.
+
+8. Across the symbolical figures [commencement obscure]:
+
+  That he might not watch upon the streets of Bit-Ada.
+
+9. Between the scorpion and the back of the snake.
+
+  That he may pay the rent of the land.
+
+10. Over the head of the snake.
+
+  That in his abode, there may not be any power, any judge,
+  any implorer.
+
+[Footnote 1: Twenty hins are equal to 60 litres, 13-1/4 gallons.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Great U, the standard agrarian measure.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The country is unknown; the river Zirzirri is also mentioned
+elsewhere.]
+
+[Footnote 4: This name signifies, "In the Pyramid he will increase."]
+
+[Footnote 5: The valuations of the estates are made by the quantity of
+corn required to seed them, as it is the case in rabbinical literature,
+where the unity is a beth-sea, or the surface seeded by a sea. Therefore
+the epha of the king (royal epha) is quite in its place: the epha is
+varying from 32 to 36 pints.
+
+The text itself states the royal endowment of a perhaps conquered land.]
+
+[Footnote 6: There is no valuation of the field. An error crept into the
+French transliteration; "us" is not "a stade," but the word "length."]
+
+[Footnote 7: This is the city generally read "Agade."]
+
+[Footnote 8: Person already mentioned in the Za-aleh Stone.]
+
+[Footnote 9: The god Sukamanu occurs elsewhere.]
+
+[Footnote 10: The "hazan" seems to be a superintendent.]
+
+[Footnote 11: By an error, this line is omitted in the French work; the
+Assyrian words are not yet understood.]
+
+[Footnote 12: In the text is nu.]
+
+[Footnote 13: Lacuna.]
+
+[Footnote 14: The passage is very obscure; if Dr. Oppert's idea is
+correct, there is an allusion to the detested custom of circumcision, the
+performance of which was regarded as an affliction.]
+
+[Footnote 15: See Lev. xx. 15.]
+
+[Footnote 16: "Gara anna."]
+
+[Footnote 17: In the French work, this passage has been left
+untranslated.]
+
+[Footnote 18: Lacunae.]
+
+[Footnote 19: Here are two very obscure words.]
+
+
+
+CONTRACT OF HANKAS
+
+
+(The fourth monument of the reign of Marduk-idin-akhe is a black basalt
+stone of nearly the same size and arrangement as the preceding. At the top
+we also see analogous symbols disposed in a similar way. The inscription
+has but two colums, and occupies but one side of the monument; on the
+other, the image of the King is engraved, and near the garment of the
+King, represented by the basso-relievo, the three lines of the beginning
+are repeated at the end of the document.)
+
+By this table, the author of the everlasting limits has forever
+perpetuated his name.[1]
+
+25 hins[2] of corn are sufficient to seed an arura,[3] in a field lying on
+the bank of the river Besim, belonging to Hankas.
+
+In length[4] above toward the North, adjoining the property of Hankas; in
+length below toward the South, adjoining the property of Imbiyati; in
+breadth above toward the West, adjoining the property of Hankas; in
+breadth below toward the East, limited by the river Besim.
+
+Such is what Marduk-nasir, Captain of the King, has received from the
+hands of Nis-Bel, son of Hankas. He has paid the price for it. Sapiku son
+of Itti-Marduk-balat, son of Zikar-Ea, is the measurer[5] of the field.
+
+                                         Weights of
+1 Chariot with its team of horses[6]     100 silver
+6 Harnesses                              300   "
+1 Ass from Phoenicia                      30   "
+6 Harnesses, 1 Ass from Phoenicia         50   "
+                                                Weights of
+ 1 Mule                                           15 silver
+ 1 Cow (pregnant)                                 30  "
+30 Measures of corn, 60 Measures of 12 epha[7]   137  "
+ 1 Hemicorion, 10 Shovels of 4 epha               16  "
+ 2 Dogs, good                                     12  "
+ 9 Greyhounds from the East                       18  "
+ 1 Hunting dog                                     1  "
+ 1 Shepherd dog                                    1  "
+ 1 Dog (bloodhound[8])                             6  "
+     Total                             616[9] (weights of) silver.
+
+Such is what Nis-Bel, son of Hankas, has paid in the hands of
+Marduk-nasir, Captain of the King, as equivalent of the price of a field
+of 25 hins of (grain).
+
+At any epoch whatever, in the days to come (or process of time) either an
+_aklu,[10]_ or a no-servant, or a farmer, or a husbandman, or a workman,
+or any other guardian who presents himself, and who settles in the house
+of Hankas, and will endeavor to lay waste this field, will earn its
+first-fruits, will turn it over, will plough it (mix up the earth), will
+have it put under water, who will occupy this property by fraud or
+violence and will settle in its territories, either in the name of the
+god, or in the name of the King, or in the name of the representative of
+the Lord of the country, or in the name of the representative of the
+house, or in the name of any person whatever, whoever he may be, who will
+give it, will earn the harvest of the land, will say,[11] "These fields
+are not granted as gifts by the King"; whether he pronounce against them
+the holy malediction or he swears by these words, "The head is not the
+head"; and establish anyone therein, in saying, "There is no eye"; or who
+will carry away this tablet, or will throw it into the river, or will
+break it into pieces, or will bury it under a heap of stones, or will burn
+it by fire, or will bury it in the earth, or will hide it in a dark place,
+that man (shall be cursed):
+
+May the god Anu, Bel, Hea, the great gods, afflict him and curse him with
+maledictions which are not (retracted).
+
+May the god Sin, the splendid in the high heaven, envelop all his members
+with incurable leprosy until the day of his death; and expel him to the
+farthest limits like a wild beast.
+
+May Samas, the Judge of heaven and earth, fly before him; that he change
+into darkness the light of the day.
+
+May Istar, the Sovereign, the Queen of the gods, load him with infirmities
+and anguish of illness like arrows, may she increase (day and night his
+pains,) so that he runs about like a dog, in the ways of his town.
+
+May Marduk, the King of heaven and earth, the Lord of the eternity without
+end, entangle his weapons with bonds which cannot be broken.
+
+May Ninip, the god of crops and boundaries, sweep away its limits and
+tread upon his crops, and remove its limit.
+
+May Gula, the mother (nurse), the great Lady, infect his bowels with a
+poison, and that he void pus and blood like water.
+
+May Bin, the supreme Guardian of heaven and earth, inundate his field like
+a ...[12]
+
+May Serah suffocate his first-born.
+
+May Nabu, the holy minister of the gods, continually pour over his
+destinies laments and curses; and blast his wishes.
+
+May all the great gods whose name is invoked on this table, devote him to
+vengeance and scorn, and may his name, his race, his fruits, his
+offspring, before the face of men perish wretchedly.
+
+By this table, the author of the everlasting limits has forever
+perpetuated his name.
+
+[Footnote 1: See at the end.]
+
+[Footnote 2: These 25 hins represent 75 litres, 16 gallons and a half, for
+seeding a surface of 207 acres.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The great U, or arura.]
+
+[Footnote 4: Again in this deed no statement is given in account of the
+measurings. The space is determined merely by the indication of the
+boundaries.
+
+This document is also the charter of a royal donation: it is not clear
+whether the below-mentioned objects are the price, or if, what is much
+more verisimilar, they are only the accessoria of the field.]
+
+[Footnote 5: Measurer is expressed by "masi-han."]
+
+[Footnote 6: Cf. I Kings x. 29: "A chariot ... of Egypt for 600 shekels of
+silver; and a horse for 150."]
+
+[Footnote 7: It is a question here of the utensils used for measuring,
+viz., thirty of one kind, and sixty of another.]
+
+[Footnote 8: The quality of the dogs is somewhat uncertain.]
+
+[Footnote 9: There is evidently a fault in the total number, 616 instead
+of 716.
+
+A weight of silver may be an obolus, the 360th part of a mina.]
+
+[Footnote 10: The "akli," who were at the royal court, may have been
+legists.]
+
+[Footnote 11: All these are formulae solennes, as in the Roman law.]
+
+[Footnote 12: Obscure.]
+
+
+
+TRANSLATION OF AN UNEDITED FRAGMENT
+
+
+Five-sixths of an _artaba_[1] of corn sows an _arura_, a field
+situated on the Euphrates.
+
+....adjoining ... wide ... adjoining
+... a field in great measure ... Zirbet-u-Alzu
+... and for the days to come he has given ... this
+table ... sin-idin ... son of Tuklat-habal-Marduk,
+Governor of the town of Nisin. Bani-Marduk, son of
+Tuklat ... Malik-kilim, son of Tuklat ... Chief
+of ... An-sali ... son of Zab-zib-malik ...
+Malik-habal-idin, of the town of Balaki ... Chief of
+Sin-idin-habal ... May he cause him to perish ...
+and his offering.[2]
+
+[Footnote 1: The artaba was 3 epha, 18 hins; the mentioned quantity of 15
+hins necessary to seed this very fertile field is only 79 pints.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Dr. Oppert copied this text twenty years ago; he does not
+know whether since that time any other piece of the stone has been
+discovered.]
+
+
+
+
+GREAT INSCRIPTION IN THE PALACE OF KHORSABAD
+
+TRANSLATED BY DR. JULIUS OPPERT
+
+
+The document of which I publish a translation has been copied with
+admirable precision by M. Botta in his "_Monuments de Ninive_" There are
+four specimens of this same text in the Assyrian palace, which bear the
+title of Inscriptions of the Halls, Nos. iv, vii, viii, and x.
+
+There is another historical document in the palace of Khorsabad containing
+more minute particulars, and classed in a chronological order, which I
+translated in my "_Dur-Sar-kayan_," 1870, and in the "Records of the
+Past," Vol. VII.
+
+The several copies of this document have been united in one sole text in a
+work which I published in common with M. Menant in the "_Journal
+Asiatique_," 1863.
+
+I published my translation of the "Great Inscriptions of Khorsabad," in
+the "_Annales de Philosophie Chretienne_," July and August, 1862, tom. V
+(New Series), p. 62; then in my "_Inscriptions des Sargonides_," p. 20
+(1862). The same text was inserted in the work which I edited in communion
+with my friend M. Joachim Menant, entitled "_La Grande Inscription des
+Salles de Khorsabad_," "_Journal Asiatique_," 1863. Some passages have
+been since corrected by me in my "_Dur-Sarkayan_," Paris, 1870, in the
+great work of M. Victor Place, and these corrections have been totally
+admitted by M. Menant in a translation which he has given in his book,
+"_Annales des Rois d'Assyrie_," Paris, 1874, p. 180. As the reader may
+easily convince himself in collating it with my previous attempts, this
+present translation is now amended according to the exigencies of the
+progressing science of Assyriology, as it is now understood.
+
+
+
+GREAT INSCRIPTION OF THE PALACE OF KHORSABAD
+
+
+1   Palace of Sargon, the great King, the powerful King,
+    King of the legions, King of Assyria, Viceroy of the gods
+    at Babylon, King of the Sumers and of the Accads, favorite
+    of the great gods.
+
+2   The gods Assur, Nebo, and Merodach have conferred on
+    me the royalty of the nations, and they have propagated
+    the memory of my fortunate name to the ends of the earth.
+    I have followed the reformed precepts of Sippara, Nipur,
+    Babylon, and Borsippa; I have amended the imperfections
+    which the men of all laws had admitted.
+
+3   I have reunited the dominions of Kalu, Ur, Orchoe, Erikhi,
+    Larsa,[1] Kullab, Kisik, the dwelling-place of the god Laguda;
+    I have subdued their inhabitants. As to the laws
+    of Sumer[2] and of the town of Harran, which had fallen
+    into desuetude from the most ancient times, I have restored
+    to fresh vigor their forgotten customs.
+
+4   The great gods have made me happy by the constancy of
+    their affection, they have granted me the exercise of my
+    sovereignty over all kings; they have re-established obedience
+    upon them all. From the day of my accession there
+    existed no princes who were my masters; I have not, in
+    combats or battles, seen my victor. I have crushed the
+    territories of the rebels like straws, and I have struck them
+    with the plagues of the four elements. I have opened innumerable
+    deep and very extensive forests, I have levelled
+    their inequalities. I have traversed winding and thick
+    valleys, which were impenetrable, like a needle, and I
+    passed in digging tanks dug on my way.
+
+5   By the grace and power of the great gods, my Masters, I
+    have flung my arms; by my force I have defeated my enemies.
+    I have ruled from Iatnan,[3] which is in the middle
+    of the sea of the setting sun, to the frontiers of Egypt and
+    of the country of the Moschians, over vast Phoenicia, the
+    whole of Syria, the whole of _guti muski_[4] of distant Media,
+    near the country of Bikni, to the country of Ellip, from Ras
+    which borders upon Elam, to the banks of the Tigris, to
+    the tribes of Itu, Rubu, Haril, Kaldud, Hauran, Ubul,
+    Ruhua, of the Litai who dwell on the borders of the Surappi
+    and the Ukne, Gambul, Khindar, and Pukud.[5] I have
+    reigned over the _suti_ hunters who are in the territory of
+    Iatbur, in whatever it was as far as the towns of Samhun,
+    Bab-Dur, Dur-Tilit, Khilikh, Pillat, Dunni-Samas, Bubi,
+    Tell-Khumba, which are in the dependency of Elam,[6] and
+    Kar-duniyas[7] Upper and Lower, of the countries of Bit-Amukkan,
+    Bit-Dakkur, Bit-Silan, Bit-Sa'alla, which together
+    form Chaldea in its totality, over the country of Bit-Iakin,
+    which is on the sea-shore, as far as the frontier of
+    Dilmun. I have received their tributes, I have established
+    my Lieutenants over them as Governors, and I have reduced
+    them under my suzerainty.
+
+6   This is what I did from the beginning of my reign to my
+    fifteenth year of reign:
+    I defeated Khumbanigas, King of Elam, in the plains of
+    Kalu.
+
+7   I besieged and occupied the town of Samaria, and took
+    27,280 of its inhabitants captive. I took from them 50
+    chariots, but left them the rest of their belongings. I
+    placed my Lieutenants over them; I renewed the obligation
+    imposed upon them by one of the Kings who preceded
+    me.[8]
+
+8   Hanun, King of Gaza, and Sebech, Sultan[9] of Egypt,
+    allied themselves at Rapih[10] to oppose me, and fight against
+    me; they came before me, I put them to flight. Sebech
+    yielded before my cohorts, he fled, and no one has ever
+    seen any trace of him since. I took with my own hand
+    Hanun, King of Gaza.
+
+9   I imposed a tribute on Pharaoh, King of Egypt; Samsie,
+    Queen of Arabia; It-amar, the Sabean, of gold, sweet smelling
+    herbs of the land, horses, and camels.
+
+10  Kiakku of Sinukhta had despised the god Assur, and refused
+    submission to him. I took him prisoner, and seized
+    his 30 chariots and 7,350 of his soldiers. I gave Sinuhta,
+    the town of his royalty, to Matti from the country of Tuna,
+    I added some horses and asses to the former tribute and
+    appointed Matti as Governor.
+
+11  Amris of Tabal, had been placed upon the throne of Khulli
+    his father; I gave to him a daughter and I gave him Cilicia[10]
+    which had never submitted to his ancestors. But he did
+    not keep the treaty and sent his ambassador to Urzaha,
+    King of Armenia, and to Mita, King of the Moschians,
+    who had seized my provinces. I transported Amris to
+    Assyria, with his belongings, the members of his ancestors'
+    families, and the magnates of the country, as well as 100
+    chariots; I established some Assyrians, devoted to my government,
+    in their places. I appointed my Lieutenant Governor
+    over them, and commanded tributes to be levied
+    upon them.
+
+12  Jaubid of Hamath, a smith,[12] was not the legitimate master
+    of the throne, he was an infidel and an impious man, and
+    he had coveted the royalty of Hamath. He incited the
+    towns of Arpad, Simyra, Damascus, and Samaria to rise
+    against me, took his precautions with each of them, and
+    prepared for battle. I counted all the troops of the god
+    Assur; in the town of Karkar which had declared itself
+    for the rebel, I besieged him and his warriors, I occupied
+    Karkar and reduced it to ashes. I took him, himself, and
+    had him flayed, and I killed the chief of the rioters in each
+    town, and reduced them to a heap of ruins. I recruited
+    my forces with 200 chariots and 600 horsemen from among
+    the inhabitants of the country of Hamath and added them
+    to my empire.
+
+13  Whilst Iranzu of Van[13] lived, he was subservient and devoted
+    to my rule, but fate removed him. His subjects
+    placed his son Aza on the throne. Urzaha the Armenian
+    intrigued with the people of Mount Mildis, Zikirta, Misiandi,
+    with the nobles of Van, and enticed them to rebellion;
+    they threw the body of their Master Aza on the top of the
+    mountains. Ullusun of Van, his brother, whom they had
+    placed on his father's throne, did homage to Urzaha, and
+    gave him 22 fortresses with their garrisons. In the anger
+    of my heart I counted all the armies of the god Assur, I
+    watched like a lion in ambush and advanced to attack these
+    countries. Ullusun of Van saw my expedition approaching,
+    he set out with his troops and took up a strong position
+    in the ravines of the high mountains. I occupied Izirti the
+    town of his royalty, and the towns of Izibia and Armit, his
+    formidable fortresses, I reduced them to ashes. I killed
+    all that belonged to Urzaha the Armenian, in these high
+    mountains. I took with my own hand 250 royal members
+    of his family. I occupied 55 royal towns of which 8 were
+    ordinary towns and 11 impregnable fortresses. I reduced
+    them to ashes. I incorporated the 22 strong towns, that
+    Ullusun of Van had delivered to him with Assyria. I occupied
+    8 strong cities of the country of Tuaya and the districts
+    of Tilusina of Andia; 4,200 men, with their belongings,
+    were carried away into slavery.
+
+14  Mitatti, of Zikirta, had secured himself against my arms;
+    he and the men of his country had fled into the forests;
+    no trace of them was to be seen. I reduced Parda, the
+    town of his royalty to ashes; I occupied twenty-three great
+    towns in the environs, and I spoiled them. The cities of
+    Suandakhul and Zurzukka, of the country of Van, took
+    the part of Mitatti; I occupied and pillaged them. Then I
+    took Bagadatti of the Mount Mildis, and I had him flayed.
+    I banished Dayaukku and his suite to Hamath, and I made
+    them dwell there.
+
+15  Then Ullusun heard in his high mountains of my glorious
+    exploits: he departed in haste like a bird, and kissed my
+    feet; I pardoned his innumerable misdeeds, and I blotted
+    out his iniquities. I granted pardon to him; I replaced
+    him upon the throne of his royalty. I gave him the two
+    fortresses and the 22 great towns that I had taken away
+    from Urzaha and Mitatti. I endeavored to restore peace
+    to his country. I made the image of my Majesty: I wrote
+    on it the glory of the god Assur, my Master, I erected many
+    fac-similes of it in Izirti, the town of his royalty.
+
+16  I imposed a tribute of horses, oxen, and lambs upon Ianzu,
+    King of the river country, in Hupuskia, the town of his
+    power.
+
+17  Assurlih, of Kar-Alla, Itti, of Allapur, had sinned against
+    Assur and despised his power. I had Assurlih flayed. I
+    banished the men of Kar-Alla, whoever they were, and Itti,
+    with his suite, I placed them in Hamath.
+
+18  I took the inhabitants of the towns of Sukkia, Bala,
+    Ahitikna, Pappa,[14] Lallukni away from their homes; I made
+    them dwell at Damascus in Syria.
+
+19  I occupied the 6 towns of the country of Niksamma, I took
+    with my own hand Nirisar, Governor of the town of Surgadia;
+    I added these towns to the satrapy of Parsuas.[15]
+
+20  Bel-sar-usur[16] was King of the town of Kisisim; I had him
+    transported to Assyria with all that he possessed, his treasure,
+    the contents of his palace; I put my Lieutenant in as
+    Governor of the town, to which I gave the name of Kar-Marduk.
+    I had an image made of my Majesty and erected
+    it in the middle of the town. I occupied 6 towns in the
+    neighborhood and I added them to his government.
+
+21  I attacked and conquered Kibaba, Prefect of the town of
+    Kharkhar, I took him and the inhabitants of his country
+    captive, I rebuilt this city and made the inhabitants of the
+    provinces, that my arm had conquered, live there. I placed
+    my Lieutenant as Governor over them. I named the town
+    Kar-Sarkin; I established the worship of the god Assur,
+    my Master, there. I erected an image of my Royal self.
+    I occupied 6 towns in the environs, and added them to his
+    government.
+
+22  I besieged and took the towns of Tel-Akhi-tub, Khindau,
+    Bagai, and Anzaria; I transported the inhabitants of them
+    to Assyria. I rebuilt them; I gave them the names of
+    Kar-Nabu, Kar-Sin, Kar-Ben, Kar-Istar.
+
+23  To maintain my position in Media, I have erected fortifications
+    in the neighborhood of Kar-Sarkin. I occupied
+    34 towns in Media and annexed them to Assyria and I
+    levied annual tributes of horses upon them.
+
+24  I besieged and took the town of Eristana, and the surrounding
+    towns in the country of Bait-Ili; I carried away the
+    spoil.
+
+25  The countries of Agag[17] and Ambanda,[18] in Media, opposite
+    the Arabs of the East, had refused their tributes, I destroyed
+    them, laid them waste, and burnt them by fire.
+
+26  Dalta of Ellip was subject to me, and devoted to the worship
+    of Assur; 5 of his towns revolted and no longer recognized
+    his dominion. I came to his aid, I besieged and
+    occupied these towns, I carried the men and their goods
+    away into Assyria with numberless horses.
+
+27  Urzana, of the town of Musasir, had attached himself to
+    Urzaha the Armenian, and had refused me his allegiance.
+    With the multitude of my army, I covered the city of Musasir
+    as if it were with ravens, and he to save his life, fled
+    alone into the mountains.
+
+28  I entered as a Ruler into Musasir. I seized as spoil Urzana's
+    wife, sons and daughters, his money, his treasures, all
+    the stores of his palace whatever they were, with 20,100
+    men and all that they possessed, the gods Haldia and Bagabarta,
+    his gods, and their holy vessels in great numbers.
+
+29  Urzaha, King of Armenia, heard of the defeat of Musasir
+    and the carrying away of the god Haldia[19] his god, he cut
+    off his life by his own hands with a dagger of his girdle.
+    I held a severe judgment over the whole of Armenia. I
+    spread over the men, who inhabit this country, mourning
+    and lamentation.
+
+30  Tarhunazi, of the town of Melid, sought for revenge. He
+    sinned against the laws of the great gods, and refused his
+    submission. In the anger of my heart, I crushed like
+    briars Melid, which was the town of his kingdom, and the
+    neighboring towns. I made him, his wife, sons and daughters,
+    the slaves of his palace whoever they were, with 5,000
+    warriors, leave Tel-Garimmi; I treated them all as booty.
+    I rebuilt Tel-Garimmi; I had it entirely occupied by some
+    archers from the country of Khammanua, which my hand
+    had conquered, and I added it to the boundaries of this
+    country. I put it in the hands of my Lieutenant, and I
+    restituted the surface of the dominion, as it had been in
+    the time of Gunzinan, the preceding King.
+
+31  Tarhular, of Gamgum, had a son Muttallu, who had murdered
+    his father by the arms, and sat on the throne against
+    my will, and to whom they had intrusted their country.
+    In the anger of my heart, I hastily marched against the
+    town of Markasi, with my chariots and horsemen, who
+    followed on my steps, I treated Muttallu, his son and the
+    families of the country of Bit-Pa'alla in its totality, as
+    captives, and seized as booty the gold and silver and the
+    numberless treasures of his palace. I reinstated the men of
+    Gamgum and the neighboring tribes, and placed my Lieutenant
+    as Governor over them; I treated them like the
+    Assyrians.
+
+32  Azuri, King of Ashdod,[20] determined within himself to
+    render no more tributes; he sent hostile messages against
+    Assyria to the neighboring kings. I meditated vengeance
+    for this, and I withdrew from him the government over
+    his country. I put his brother Akhimit on his throne.
+    But the people of Syria, eager for revolt, got tired of Akhimit's
+    rule, and installed Iaman, who like the former, was
+    not the legitimate master of the throne. In the anger of
+    my heart, I did not assemble the bulk of my army nor
+    divide my baggage, but I marched against Ashdod with
+    my warriors, who did not leave the trace of my feet.
+
+33  Iaman learnt from afar of the approach of my expedition;
+    he fled beyond Egypt toward Libya (Meluhhi),[21] and no
+    one ever saw any further trace of him. I besieged and
+    took Ashdod and the town of Gimtu-Asdudim;[22] I carried
+    away captive Iaman's gods, his wife, his sons, his daughters,
+    his money, and the contents of his palace, together
+    with the inhabitants of his country. I built these towns
+    anew and placed in them the men that my arm had conquered.
+
+34  I placed my Lieutenant as Governor over them, and I
+    treated them as Assyrians. They never again became
+    guilty of impiety.
+
+35  The King of Libya[23] lives in the middle of the desert, in an
+    inaccessible place, at (a month's) journey. From the most
+    remote times until the renewal of the lunar period[24] his
+    fathers had sent no ambassadors to the kings, my ancestors,
+    to ask for peace and friendship and to acknowledge the
+    power of Merodach. But the immense terror inspired by
+    my Majesty roused him, and fear changed his intentions.
+    In fetters of iron he threw him (Iaman), directed his steps
+    toward Assyria and kissed my feet.
+
+36  Muttallu, of Commagene, a fraudulent and hostile man,
+    did not honor the memory of the gods, he plotted a conspiracy,
+    and meditated defection. He trusted upon Ar-gisti,[25]
+    King of Armenia, an helper who did not assist him,
+    took upon himself the collection of the tributes and his
+    part of the spoil, and refused me his submission. In the
+    anger of my heart, I took the road to his country with the
+    chariots of my power, and the horsemen who never left
+    the traces of my feet. Muttallu saw the approach of my
+    expedition, he withdrew his troops, and no one saw any
+    further trace of him. I besieged and occupied his capital
+    and 62 large towns all together. I carried away his wife,
+    his sons, his daughters, his money, his treasure, all precious
+    things from his palace, together with the inhabitants of his
+    country as spoil, I left none of them. I inaugurated this
+    town afresh; I placed in it men from the country of Bit-Iakin,
+    that my arm had conquered. I instituted my Lieutenant
+    as Governor, and subdued them under my rule. I
+    previously took from them 150 chariots, 1,500 horsemen,
+    20,000 archers, 1,000 men armed with shields and lances,
+    and I confided the country to my Satrap.
+
+37  While Dalta, King of Ellip, lived, he was submissive and
+    devoted to my rule, the infirmities of age however came
+    and he walked on the path of death. Nibie and Ispabara,
+    the sons of his wives, claimed both the vacant throne of
+    his royalty, the country and the taxes, and they fought a
+    battle. Nibie applied to Sutruk-Nakhunti[26] King of Elam
+    to support his claims, giving to him pledges for his alliance,
+    and the other came as a helper. Ispabara, on his side,
+    implored me to maintain his cause, and to encourage him,
+    at the same time bowing down, and humbling himself, and
+    asking my alliance. I sent seven of my Lieutenants with
+    their armies to support his claims, they put Nibie and the
+    army of the four rivers,[27] which had helped him, to flight,
+    at the town of Mareobisti. I reinstated Ispabara on the
+    throne; I re-established peace in his country, and confided
+    it to his care.
+
+38  Merodach-Baladan, son of Iakin,[28] King of Chaldaea, the
+    fallacious, the persistent in enmity, did not respect the
+    memory of the gods, he trusted in the sea, and in the retreat
+    of the marshes; he eluded the precepts of the great
+    gods, and refused to send his tributes. He had supported
+    as an ally Khumbanigas, King of Elam. He had excited
+    all the nomadic tribes of the desert against me. He prepared
+    himself for battle, and advanced. During twelve
+    years,[29] against the will of the gods of Babylon, the town
+    of Bel which judges the gods, he had excited the country
+    of the Sumers and Accads, and had sent ambassadors to
+    them. In honor of the god Assur, the father of the gods,
+    and of the great and august Lord Merodach, I roused my
+    courage, I prepared my ranks for battle. I decreed an
+    expedition against the Chaldeans, an impious and riotous
+    people. Merodach-Baladan heard of the approach of my
+    expedition, dreading the terror of his own warriors, he fled
+    before it, and flew in the night time like an owl, falling back
+    from Babylon, to the town of Ikbibel. He assembled together
+    the towns possessing oracles, and the gods living
+    in these towns he brought to save them to Dur-Iakin, fortifying
+    its walls. He summoned the tribes of Gambul,
+    Pukud, Tamun, Ruhua, and Khindar, put them in this place,
+    and prepared for battle. He calculated the extent of a
+    plethrum[30] in front of the great wall. He constructed a
+    ditch 200 spans[31] wide, and deep one fathom and a half.[32]
+    The conduits of water, coming from the Euphrates, flowed
+    out into this ditch; he had cut off the course of the river,
+    and divided it into canals, he had surrounded the town,
+    the place of his revolt, with a dam, he had filled it with
+    water, and cut off the conduits. Merodach-Baladan, with
+    his allies and his soldiers had the insignia of his royalty
+    kept as in an island on the banks of the river; he arranged
+    his plan of battle. I stretched my combatants all along
+    the river dividing them into bands; they conquered the
+    enemies. By the blood of the rebels the waters of these
+    canals reddened like dyed wool. The nomadic tribes
+    were terrified by this disaster which surprised him and fled;
+    I completely separated his allies and the men of Marsan
+    from him; I filled the ranks of the insurgents with mortal
+    terror. He left in his tent the insignia of his royalty, the
+    golden ...[33] the golden throne, the golden parasol,
+    the golden sceptre, the silver chariot, the golden ornaments,
+    and other effects of considerable weight; he fled
+    alone, and disappeared like the ruined battlements of his
+    fortress, and I entered into his retreat. I besieged and
+    occupied the town of Dur-Iakin, I took as spoil and made
+    captive, him, his wife, his sons, his daughters, the gold
+    and silver and all that he possessed, the contents of his
+    palace, whatever it was, with considerable booty from the
+    town. I made each family and every man who had withdrawn
+    himself from my arms, accountable for this sin. I
+    reduced Dur-Iakin the town of his power to ashes. I undermined
+    and destroyed its ancient forts. I dug up the
+    foundation stone;[34] I made it like a thunder-stricken ruin,
+    I allowed the people of Sippara, Nipur, Babylon, and Borsippa,
+    who live in the middle of the towns to exercise their
+    profession, to enjoy their belongings in peace, and I have
+    watched upon them. I took away the possession of the
+    fields which from remote times had been in the hand of
+    the _Suti_ Nomad, and restored them to their rightful owners.
+    I placed the nomadic tribes of the desert again under my
+    yoke, and I restored the forgotten land delimitations which
+    had existed during the tranquillity of the land. I gave to
+    each of the towns of Ur, Orchoe, Erikhi, Larsa, Kullab,
+    and Kisik, the dwelling of the god Laguda, the god that
+    resides in each, and I restored the gods who had been
+    taken away, to their sanctuaries. I re-established the
+    altered laws in full force.
+
+39  I imposed tributes on the countries of Bet-Iakin, the high
+    and low part, and on the towns of Samhun, Bab-Dur, Dur-Tilit,
+    Bubi, Tell-Khumba, which are the resort of Elam.
+    I transplanted into Elam the inhabitants of the Commagene,
+    in Syria, that I had attacked with my own hand,
+    obeying the commands of the great gods my Masters, and
+    I placed them on the territory of Elam, in the town of
+    Sakbat. Nabu-Pakid-Ilan was authorized to collect the
+    taxes from the Elamites in order to govern them; I claimed
+    as a pledge the town of Birtu. I placed all this country
+    in the hands of my Lieutenant at Babylon and my Lieutenant
+    in the country of Gambul.[35]
+
+40  I returned alone to Babylon, to the sanctuaries of Bel, the
+    judge of the gods, in the excitement of my heart and the
+    splendor of my appearance; I took the hands of the great
+    Lord, the august god Merodach, and I traversed the way
+    to the chamber of the spoil.
+
+41  I transported into it 154 talents 26 minas 10 drachms of
+    gold _russu_;[36] 1804 talents 20 minas of silver;[37] ivory,
+    a great deal of copper, iron in an innumerable quantity,
+    some of the stone _ka_, alabaster, the minerals _pi digili_,
+    flattened _pi sirru_ for witness seals, blue and purple stuffs,
+    cloth of _berom_ and cotton, ebony; cedar, and cypress wood,
+    freshly cut from the fine forests on Mount Amanus, in
+    honor of Bel, Zarpanit, Nebo, and Tasmit, and the gods
+    who inhabit the sanctuaries of the Sumers and Accads; all
+    that from my accession to the third year of my reign.[38]
+
+42  Upir, King of Dilmun who dwells at the distance of 30
+    parasanges[39] in the midst of the sea of the rising sun and
+    who is established as a fish, heard of the favor that the gods
+    Assur, Nebo, and Merodach had accorded me; he sent
+    therefore his expiatory gift.
+
+43  And the seven Kings of the country of Iahnagi, of the
+    country of Iatnan (who have established and extended
+    their dwellings at a distance of seven days' navigation in
+    the midst of the sea of the setting sun, and whose name
+    from the most ancient ages until the renewal of the lunar
+    period,[40] none of the Kings my fathers in Assyria and
+    Chaldea[41] had heard), had been told of my lofty achievements
+    in Chaldea and Syria, and my glory, which had
+    spread from afar to the midst of the sea. They subdued
+    their pride and humbled themselves; they presented themselves
+    before me at Babylon, bearing metals, gold, silver,
+    vases, ebony wood, and the manufactures of their country;
+    they kissed my feet.
+
+44  While I endeavored to exterminate Bet-Iakin and reduce
+    Aram, and render my rule more efficacious in the country
+    of Iatbur, which is beyond Elam, my Lieutenant, the Governor
+    of the country of Kue, attacked Mita, the Moschian,
+    and 3,000 of his towns; he demolished these towns, destroyed
+    them, burnt them with fire, and led away many
+    captives. And this Mita the Moschian, who had never
+    submitted to the Kings my predecessors and had never
+    changed his will, sent his envoy to me to the very borders
+    of the sea of the rising sun, bearing professions of allegiance
+    and tributes.
+
+45  In these days, these nations and these countries that my
+    hand has conquered, and that the gods Assur, Nebo, and
+    Merodach have made bow to my feet, followed the ways
+    of piety. With their help I built at the feet of the _musri_,
+    following the divine will and the wish of my heart, a town
+    that I called _Dur-Sarkin_[42] to replace Nineveh.[43]
+    Nisroch,[44] Sin, Samas, Nebo, Bin, Ninip, and their great
+    spouses, who procreate eternally in the lofty temple of the upper
+    and the nether world (Aralli) blessed the splendid wonders,
+    the superb streets in the town of Dur-Sarkin. I reformed
+    the institutions which were not agreeable to their ideas.
+    The priests, the _nisi ramki_, the _surmahhi supar_ disputed
+    at their learned discussions about the pre-eminence of
+    their divinities, and the efficacy of their sacrifices.
+
+46  I built in the town some palaces covered with the skin of
+    the sea-calf,[45] and of sandal wood, ebony, the wood of mastic
+    tree, cedar, cypress, wild pistachio nut tree, a palace of
+    incomparable splendor, as the seat of my royalty. I
+    placed their _dunu_ upon tablets of gold, silver, alabaster,
+    _tilpe_ stones, _parut_ stones, copper, lead, iron, tin, and
+    _khibisti_ made of earth. I wrote thereupon the glory of the gods.
+    Above I built a platform of cedar beams. I bordered the
+    doors of pine and mastic wood with bronze garnitures,
+    and I calculated their distance. I made a spiral staircase
+    similar to the one in the great temple of Syria, that is
+    called in the Phoenician language, _Bethilanni_. Between
+    the doors I placed 8 double lions whose weight is 1 _ner_ 6
+    _soss_, 50 talents[46] of first-rate copper, made in honor of
+    Mylitta ...[47] and their four _kubur_ in materials from
+    Mount Amanus; I placed them on _nirgalli_.[8] Over them I
+    sculptured artistically a crown of beast of the fields, a bird
+    in stone of the mountains. Toward the four celestial regions,
+    I turned their front. The lintels and the uprights
+    I made in large gypsum stone that I had taken away with
+    my own hand, I placed them above. I walled them in
+    and I drew upon me the admiration of the people of the
+    countries.
+
+47  From the beginning to the end, I walked worshipping the
+    god Assur, and following the custom of wise men, I built
+    palaces, I amassed treasures.
+
+48  In the month of blessing, on the happy day, I invoked,
+    in the midst of them, Assur, the father of the gods, the
+    greatest sovereign of the gods and the _Istarat_[49] who inhabit
+    Assyria. I presented vessels of glass, things in
+    chased silver, ivory, valuable jewels and immense presents,
+    in great quantities, and I rejoiced their heart. I exhibited
+    sculptured idols, double and winged, some ...[50]
+    winged, some ...[50] winged, serpents, fishes, and birds,
+    from unknown regions and abysses, the ...[50] in high
+    mountains, summits of the lands that I have conquered
+    with my own hand, for the glory of my royalty. As a worshipper
+    of the gods and the god Assur, I sacrificed in their
+    presence, with the sacrifice of white lambs, holy holocausts
+    of expiation, in order to withdraw the gifts that had not
+    been agreeable to the gods.
+
+49  He has granted me in his august power, a happy existence,
+    long life, and I obtained a constantly lucky reign.
+    I have entrusted myself to his favor.
+
+50  The great Lord Bel-El, the Master of the lands, inhabits
+    the lofty tracts; the gods and _Istarat_ inhabit Assyria;
+    their legions remain there in _pargiti_, and _martakni_.
+
+51  With the Chiefs of provinces, the Satraps, wise men,
+    Astronomers, Magnates, the Lieutenants and Governors
+    of Assyria, I have ruled in my palace, and administered
+    justice.
+
+52  I have bid them take gold, silver, gold and silver vessels,
+    precious stones, copper, iron, considerable products of
+    mountains the mines of which are rich, cloth of _berom_ and
+    cotton, blue and purple cloth, amber, skins of sea-calves,
+    pearls, sandal-wood, ebony, horses from higher Egypt,[51]
+    asses, mules, camels, oxen. With all these numerous
+    tributes I have rejoiced the heart of the gods.
+
+53  May Assur, the father of the gods, bless these palaces, by
+    giving to his images a spontaneous splendor. May he
+    watch over the issue even to the remote future. May the
+    sculptured bull, the protector and god who imparts perfection,
+    dwell in day and in night-time in his presence, and
+    never stir from this threshold!
+
+54  With the help of Assur, may the King who has built these
+    palaces, attain an old age, and may his offspring multiply
+    greatly! May these battlements last to the most remote
+    future! May he who dwells there come forth surrounded
+    with the greatest splendor; may he rejoice in his corporal
+    health, in the satisfaction of his heart accomplish his
+    wishes, attain his end, and may he render his magnificence
+    seven times more imposing!
+
+
+[Footnote 1: Orchoe, the Erech of the Bible, is certainly the Warka of the
+present day; Sippara, Sofeira; Nipur, Niffar; Larsam, Senkereh. Ur (the Ur
+of the Bible) is Mugheir; Kullab and Erikhi are unknown. (See "Exped. en
+Mesopot.," i. p. 255 et seq.)]
+
+[Footnote 2: The old empire Bal-bat-ki. The syllabaries explain this
+ideogram by "Assur," but it is very awkward that in these texts the
+identification with Assur occurs nowhere. I therefore transcribe "Sumer,"
+which was the true name of the people and the language named wrongly
+Accadian. The term of "Sumerian" is supported by MM. Menant, Eneberg,
+Gelzer, Praetorius, Delitzsch, Olshausen, and other scholars.]
+
+[Footnote 3: "Itanus," or Yatnan, in the island of Crete, became afterward
+the name of the island of Cyprus.]
+
+[Footnote 4: For the words in italics no satisfactory translation has as
+yet been found.]
+
+[Footnote 5: The "Pekod" of the Bible (Jer. i. 21; Ezek. xxiii. 23).]
+
+[Footnote 6: Which belongs to Elam.]
+
+[Footnote 7: Lower Chaldea. Nearly all the names of the Elamite towns are
+Semitic (see Gen. x. 22), but the Susian ones are not.]
+
+[Footnote 8: Tiglatpileser, whom Sargon would not acknowledge.]
+
+[Footnote 9: This is the word "siltan," the Hebrew "shilton" ("power"),
+the Arabic "sultan."]
+
+[Footnote 10: Raphia, near the frontier of Egypt.]
+
+[Footnote 11: Khilakku. It seems to be identical with the "Sparda" of
+Persian, the "Sepharad" of Obadiah.]
+
+[Footnote 12: The condition of Jaubid before his accession.]
+
+[Footnote 13: Or Minni.]
+
+[Footnote 14: It seems not to be Paphos.]
+
+[Footnote 15: Parthia(?).]
+
+[Footnote 16: The same name as Belshazzar.]
+
+[Footnote 17: This Agag is very possibly the country of Haman the Agagite,
+if we must not read Agaz.]
+
+[Footnote 18: Ambanda is perhaps the Median "Kampanda."]
+
+[Footnote 19: We find in the inscriptions of Van, the god Haldi as god of
+the Armenians, which proves more forcibly than ever that the syllabary of
+the Armenian inscriptions is the same as the Assyrian syllabary.]
+
+[Footnote 20: See Isaiah xx. 1.]
+
+[Footnote 21: Meluhhi is not Meroe, but Libya, and especially the
+Marmarica. The name seems to be the "Milyes" of Herodotus.]
+
+[Footnote 22: "Asdudim" seems to be a Hebraic plural.]
+
+[Footnote 23: Meluhhi. This is the only passage where small gaps occur.]
+
+[Footnote 24: This is one of the most important passages of the text; the
+period is the Chaldean eclipse period of 1,805 years, and ended in 712
+B.C. Instead of this passage, the stele of Larnaca, now in Berlin, has,
+"from the remotest times, the beginning of Assyria, until now." The
+commencement of the period, 2517 B.C., coincided very nearly with the
+capture of Babylon by the Medes. This date commences the real history;
+previous to this time reigned the 86 princes during twelve lunar periods
+of 1,805, and twelve solar periods of 1,460 years, viz., 39,180 years. The
+very event may have happened eleven years afterward, 2506 B.C. The Deluge
+happened, according to the Chaldeans, in 41697 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 25: This royal name is still found in the Armenian texts of
+Van.]
+
+[Footnote 26: The inscriptions of this prince are translated in the
+seventh volume.]
+
+[Footnote 27: Elam. We are now certain of this identification.]
+
+[Footnote 28: The same who occurs in the Ptolemaic canon (721-709).]
+
+[Footnote 29: From 721 to 709 B.C.]
+
+[Footnote 30: 32 m. 91 cm., 39 yds.]
+
+[Footnote 31: 54 m. 85 cm., 65 yds.]
+
+[Footnote 32: 4 m. 94 cm., 17-1/2 ft.]
+
+[Footnote 33: Unexplained.]
+
+[Footnote 34: "Timin," not "cylinder."]
+
+[Footnote 35: Only two years after the commencement of the war.]
+
+[Footnote 36: 12,544. pd. troy 68.]
+
+[Footnote 37: 152,227. pd. troy, 75. A royal silver drachm is nearly 3s.,
+a royal mina L9; the state drachm and mina is the half of it. A silver
+talent is always very close to L270 sterling.]
+
+[Footnote 38: Sargon speaks of his third "year" and not of his third
+campaign, in order to mark what he had already accomplished before the
+year 717.]
+
+[Footnote 39: One hundred and ten English miles.]
+
+[Footnote 40: This is the second passage where Sargon alludes to this
+period ending under his reign.]
+
+[Footnote 41: "Karduniyas."]
+
+[Footnote 42: Or "Dur-Sarkayan." The King passes rapidly over some other
+peculiarities which he inserts in other texts, namely, the measures of the
+town, and the ceremonies of its edification. The circuit is given as
+containing 3-1/3 ners (miles) 1 stadium 3 canes 2 spans, or 24,740 spans,
+and Botta's measurings afford 6,790 metres (7,427 yds.). This statement
+gives for the span, with a slight correction in the fourth decimal, 27,425
+cm. (10.797 ins., and for the cubit 5,485 cm. 21.594 ins.).]
+
+[Transcriber's Note: Above, the author seems to be using the European
+decimal point ",", in the metric measurements, and the American decimal
+point in the Imperial measurements, ".".]
+
+[Footnote 43: At this time the palace of Nineveh was still in ruins. It
+was rebuilt by Sennacherib.]
+
+[Footnote 44: This is my former transcription of the divine name which is
+now pronounced Hea. But I think sincerely that the latter is not better
+than the former one.]
+
+[Footnote 45: This assimilation is not quite certain.]
+
+[Footnote 46: One thousand ten talents 602 cwt. English.]
+
+[Footnote 47: Obscure.]
+
+[Footnote 48: A very difficult passage; the name of the god Nergal does
+not interfere with the object.]
+
+[Footnote 49: The Hebrew "Astaroth," which signifies "goddesses." Compare
+Judges x. 6.]
+
+[Footnote 50: Obscure.]
+
+[Footnote 51: It is not clear what animals are meant.]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Babylonian and Assyrian Literature, by Anonymous
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN LITERATURE ***
+
+***** This file should be named 10887.txt or 10887.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        https://www.gutenberg.org/1/0/8/8/10887/
+
+Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Andy Schmitt and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+https://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+https://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at https://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit https://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
+donations.  To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+Each eBook is in a subdirectory of the same number as the eBook's
+eBook number, often in several formats including plain vanilla ASCII,
+compressed (zipped), HTML and others.
+
+Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks replace the old file and take over
+the old filename and etext number.  The replaced older file is renamed.
+VERSIONS based on separate sources are treated as new eBooks receiving
+new filenames and etext numbers.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
+EBooks posted prior to November 2003, with eBook numbers BELOW #10000,
+are filed in directories based on their release date.  If you want to
+download any of these eBooks directly, rather than using the regular
+search system you may utilize the following addresses and just
+download by the etext year.
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org/etext06
+
+    (Or /etext 05, 04, 03, 02, 01, 00, 99,
+     98, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 92, 92, 91 or 90)
+
+EBooks posted since November 2003, with etext numbers OVER #10000, are
+filed in a different way.  The year of a release date is no longer part
+of the directory path.  The path is based on the etext number (which is
+identical to the filename).  The path to the file is made up of single
+digits corresponding to all but the last digit in the filename.  For
+example an eBook of filename 10234 would be found at:
+
+     https://www.gutenberg.org/1/0/2/3/10234
+
+or filename 24689 would be found at:
+     https://www.gutenberg.org/2/4/6/8/24689
+
+An alternative method of locating eBooks:
+     https://www.gutenberg.org/GUTINDEX.ALL
+
+