diff options
Diffstat (limited to '17321-h')
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/17321-h.htm | 12670 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/007.jpg | bin | 0 -> 89713 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/008.jpg | bin | 0 -> 121056 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/009.jpg | bin | 0 -> 37947 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/012.jpg | bin | 0 -> 101775 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/014.jpg | bin | 0 -> 103147 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/017.jpg | bin | 0 -> 57035 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/027.jpg | bin | 0 -> 77852 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/038-text.jpg | bin | 0 -> 14663 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/038.jpg | bin | 0 -> 121182 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/050.jpg | bin | 0 -> 69351 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/051.jpg | bin | 0 -> 65913 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/052.jpg | bin | 0 -> 67741 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/053.jpg | bin | 0 -> 78132 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/054.jpg | bin | 0 -> 49423 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/060.jpg | bin | 0 -> 36777 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/065.jpg | bin | 0 -> 60084 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/067.jpg | bin | 0 -> 100936 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/082.jpg | bin | 0 -> 45445 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/086.jpg | bin | 0 -> 176715 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/089.jpg | bin | 0 -> 33433 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/100.jpg | bin | 0 -> 91348 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/109.jpg | bin | 0 -> 64411 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/111.jpg | bin | 0 -> 27851 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/125.jpg | bin | 0 -> 1295 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/126.jpg | bin | 0 -> 1365 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/147.jpg | bin | 0 -> 115271 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/150.jpg | bin | 0 -> 82260 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/154.jpg | bin | 0 -> 129810 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/160.jpg | bin | 0 -> 58311 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/160a-text.jpg | bin | 0 -> 11869 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/160a.jpg | bin | 0 -> 148171 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/161.jpg | bin | 0 -> 87948 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/163.jpg | bin | 0 -> 86261 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/165.jpg | bin | 0 -> 86671 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/166.jpg | bin | 0 -> 93356 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/167.jpg | bin | 0 -> 50119 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/168.jpg | bin | 0 -> 54544 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/169.jpg | bin | 0 -> 58101 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/170.jpg | bin | 0 -> 50722 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/172.jpg | bin | 0 -> 208495 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/175.jpg | bin | 0 -> 162066 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/188.jpg | bin | 0 -> 93282 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/190.jpg | bin | 0 -> 144786 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/192.jpg | bin | 0 -> 73417 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/230.jpg | bin | 0 -> 130157 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/231.jpg | bin | 0 -> 95294 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/231a.jpg | bin | 0 -> 7826 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/233.jpg | bin | 0 -> 132541 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/240.jpg | bin | 0 -> 158870 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/245.jpg | bin | 0 -> 157909 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/256.jpg | bin | 0 -> 76628 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/260.jpg | bin | 0 -> 99445 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/264.jpg | bin | 0 -> 44558 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/264a.jpg | bin | 0 -> 195311 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/280.jpg | bin | 0 -> 113055 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/282.jpg | bin | 0 -> 61678 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/283.jpg | bin | 0 -> 32626 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/284.jpg | bin | 0 -> 70619 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/285.jpg | bin | 0 -> 83702 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/286.jpg | bin | 0 -> 71597 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/287.jpg | bin | 0 -> 74138 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/288.jpg | bin | 0 -> 177001 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/293.jpg | bin | 0 -> 54705 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/297.jpg | bin | 0 -> 47620 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/298.jpg | bin | 0 -> 62494 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/299.jpg | bin | 0 -> 38278 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/320.jpg | bin | 0 -> 133066 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/324.jpg | bin | 0 -> 101304 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/325.jpg | bin | 0 -> 68305 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/326.jpg | bin | 0 -> 78154 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/327.jpg | bin | 0 -> 132641 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/328.jpg | bin | 0 -> 86868 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/330.jpg | bin | 0 -> 91619 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/331.jpg | bin | 0 -> 59849 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/338.jpg | bin | 0 -> 119044 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/344.jpg | bin | 0 -> 113349 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/346.jpg | bin | 0 -> 120157 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/350.jpg | bin | 0 -> 74251 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/356.jpg | bin | 0 -> 95811 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/358.jpg | bin | 0 -> 180319 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/360.jpg | bin | 0 -> 128722 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/366.jpg | bin | 0 -> 183832 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/367.jpg | bin | 0 -> 198304 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/368.jpg | bin | 0 -> 204062 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/369.jpg | bin | 0 -> 193357 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/372.jpg | bin | 0 -> 131720 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/374.jpg | bin | 0 -> 51614 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/376.jpg | bin | 0 -> 123094 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/379.jpg | bin | 0 -> 97271 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/381.jpg | bin | 0 -> 115045 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/382.jpg | bin | 0 -> 65364 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/387.jpg | bin | 0 -> 56121 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/396.jpg | bin | 0 -> 114976 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/397.jpg | bin | 0 -> 71812 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/408.jpg | bin | 0 -> 221597 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/410.jpg | bin | 0 -> 56992 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/413.jpg | bin | 0 -> 75885 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/414.jpg | bin | 0 -> 67061 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/415.jpg | bin | 0 -> 77072 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/417.jpg | bin | 0 -> 63605 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/419.jpg | bin | 0 -> 81775 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/425.jpg | bin | 0 -> 87325 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/426.jpg | bin | 0 -> 102601 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/447.jpg | bin | 0 -> 33650 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/449.jpg | bin | 0 -> 62480 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/450.jpg | bin | 0 -> 111683 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/452.jpg | bin | 0 -> 51981 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/454.jpg | bin | 0 -> 36208 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/cover.jpg | bin | 0 -> 172973 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/frontispiece1-text.jpg | bin | 0 -> 17811 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/frontispiece1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 138627 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/spines.jpg | bin | 0 -> 128963 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/titlepage1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 162716 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 17321-h/images/versa1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 35112 bytes |
115 files changed, 12670 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/17321-h/17321-h.htm b/17321-h/17321-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..cababb2 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/17321-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,12670 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" +"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> +<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Maspero's History of Egypt, Volume 13a by L. W. King and H. R. Hall</title> + +<style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 2em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + pre { font-family: Times; font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +div.chapter {page-break-before: always; margin-top: 4em;} + +p.poem {text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10%; + font-size: 90%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em; } + +p.noindent {text-indent: 0% } + +p.footnote {font-size: 90%; + text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em; } + +sup { vertical-align: top; font-size: 0.6em; } + +div.fig { display:block; + margin:0 auto; + text-align:center; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em;} + +p.caption {font-weight: bold; + text-align: center; } + +a:link {color:blue; text-decoration:none} +a:visited {color:blue; text-decoration:none} +a:hover {color:red} + +</style> + </head> + <body> + +<div style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of History Of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia, And Assyria In The Light Of Recent Discovery, by L.W. King and H.R. Hall</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and +most other parts of the world 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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you +are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the +country where you are located before using this eBook. +</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: History Of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia, And Assyria In The Light Of Recent Discovery</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: L.W. King and H.R. Hall</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: December 16, 2005 [eBook #17321]<br /> +[Most recently updated: January 31, 2023]</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: David Widger</div> +<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF EGYPT ***</div> + + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/spines.jpg" width="100%" alt="Book Spines " /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img alt="cover (168K)" src="images/cover.jpg" width="100%" /> + </div> + + <h1> + HISTORY OF EGYPT + </h1> + <p> + CHALDEA, SYRIA, BABYLONIA, AND ASSYRIA IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT DISCOVERY <b> + BY L. W. KING and H. R. HALL </b> + </p> + <p> + Department of Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities, British Museum + </p> + <p> + Containing over 1200 colored plates and illustrations. + </p> + <p> + Copyright 1906 + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/frontispiece1.jpg" width="100%" alt="Frontispiece1 " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/frontispiece1-text.jpg" width="100%" + alt="Frontispiece1-text " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/titlepage1.jpg" width="100%" alt="Titlepage1 " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/versa1.jpg" width="100%" alt="Versa1 " /> + </div> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2H_4_0001"></a> + PUBLISHERS’ NOTE + </h2> + <p> + It should be noted that many of the monuments and sites of excavations in + Egypt, Mesopotamia, Persia, and Kurdistan described in this volume have + been visited by the authors in connection with their own work in those + countries. The greater number of the photographs here published were taken + by the authors themselves. Their thanks are due to M. Ernest Leroux, of + Paris, for his kind permission to reproduce a certain number of plates + from the works of M. de Morgan, illustrating his recent discoveries in + Egypt and Persia, and to Messrs. W. A. Mansell & Co., of London, for + kindly allowing them to make use of a number of photographs issued by + them. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2H_PREF"></a> + PREFACE + </h2> + <p> + The present volume contains an account of the most important additions + which have been made to our knowledge of the ancient history of Egypt and + Western Asia during the few years which have elapsed since the publication + of Prof. Maspero’s <i>Histoire Ancienne des Peuples de l’Orient Classique</i>, + and includes short descriptions of the excavations from which these + results have been obtained. It is in no sense a connected and continuous + history of these countries, for that has already been written by Prof. + Maspero, but is rather intended as an appendix or addendum to his work, + briefly recapitulating and describing the discoveries made since its + appearance. On this account we have followed a geographical rather than a + chronological system of arrangement, but at the same time the attempt has + been made to suggest to the mind of the reader the historical sequence of + events. + </p> + <p> + At no period have excavations been pursued with more energy and activity, + both in Egypt and Western Asia, than at the present time, and every + season’s work obliges us to modify former theories, and extends our + knowledge of periods of history which even ten years ago were unknown to + the historian. For instance, a whole chapter has been added to Egyptian + history by the discovery of the Neolithic culture of the primitive + Egyptians, while the recent excavations at Susa are revealing a hitherto + totally unsuspected epoch of proto-Elamite civilization. Further than + this, we have discovered the relics of the oldest historical kings of + Egypt, and we are now enabled to reconstitute from material as yet + unpublished the inter-relations of the early dynasties of Babylon. + Important discoveries have also been made with regard to isolated points + in the later historical periods. We have therefore attempted to include + the most important of these in our survey of recent excavations and their + results. We would again remind the reader that Prof. Maspero’s great work + must be consulted for the complete history of the period, the present + volume being, not a connected history of Egypt and Western Asia, but a + description and discussion of the manner in which recent discovery and + research have added to and modified our conceptions of ancient Egyptian + and Mesopotamian civilization. + </p> + +<hr /> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2> + Contents + </h2> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> PUBLISHERS’ NOTE </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_PREF"> PREFACE </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> EGYPT AND MESOPOTAMIA </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0001"> CHAPTER I—THE DISCOVERY OF PREHISTORIC + EGYPT </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0002"> CHAPTER II—ABYDOS AND THE FIRST THREE + DYNASTIES </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkB2HCH0001"> CHAPTER III—MEMPHIS AND THE PYRAMIDS </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkB2HCH0002"> CHAPTER IV—RECENT EXCAVATIONS IN WESTERN + ASIA AND THE DAWN OF CHALDÆAN HISTORY </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkC2HCH0001"> CHAPTER V—ELAM AND BABYLON, THE COUNTRY OF + THE SEA AND THE KASSITES </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkC2HCH0002"> CHAPTER VI—EARLY BABYLONIAN LIFE AND + CUSTOMS </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkD2HCH0001"> CHAPTER VII—TEMPLES AND TOMBS OF THEBES + </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkD2HCH0002"> CHAPTER VIII—THE ASSYRIAN AND + NEO-BABYLONIAN EMPIRES IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT RESEARCH</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkD2HCH0003"> CHAPTER IX—THE LAST DAYS OF ANCIENT EGYPT + </a> + </p> + + <hr /> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2> + List of Illustrations + </h2> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0006">the Bed of an Ancient Watercourse in The Wadiyên, Thebes. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0007">Palaeolithic Implements of the Quaternary Period. From the Desert Plateau and Slopes West of Thebes. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0008">Palaeolithic Implements. From Man, March, 1905. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0009">Upper Desert Plateau, Where Paleolithic Implements Are Found. Thebes: 1,400 Feet Above the Nile. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0010">Flint Knife mounted in a gold handle</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0011">Buff Ware Vase, Predynastic Period</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0012">Camp of the Expedition Of The University Of California at Nag’ Ed-dêr, 1901. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0013">Portion of the “Stele Of Vultures” Found At Telloh </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0016">Obverse of a Slate Relief representing the King of Upper Egypt in the form of a Bull</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0017">Reverse of a Slate Relief</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0018">Obverse of a Slate Relief with representations of the Egyptian nomes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0019">Reverse of a Slate Relief representing animals</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0021">Professor Petrie’s Camp at Abydos, 1901.</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0022">The Tomb of King Den at Abydos</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0023">Examples of conical vase-stoppers taken from Abydos</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0024">The Tomb of King Tjeser at Bêt Khallâf</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0025">False Door of the Tomb Of Teta, an official of the IVth Dynasty</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0026">The Shunet ez-Zebib: The Fortress-town of the IId Dynasty at Abydos</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0005">Statue No. 1 of the Cairo Museum</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0006">Exterior of the Southern Brick Pyramid of Dashur: XIIth Dynasty</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0007">The Pyramids of Giza during the inundation</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0010">List of Archaic cuneiform signs</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0011">Fragment of a list Of Archaic Cuneiform signs</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0012">Obelisk of Manishtusu, King of the City of Kish </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0013">Babil, the most northern mound which marks the site of the ancient city of Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0014">“Stele of Victory,” representing Naram-Sin conquering his enemies</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0016">Roughly hewn sculpture of a lion standing over a fallen man, found at Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0017">General view of the excavations on the Kasr at Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0018">View within the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II.</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0019">Excavations in the temple of Ninib at Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0020">The principal mound of Birs Nimrud, which marks the site of the ancient capital of Borsippa</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0021">The principal mound at Sherghat, which marks the site of Ashuk, the ancient capital of the Assyrians</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0022">The mound of Kuyunjik, one Of the palace mounds of the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0023">Winged bull in the palace of Sennacherib on Kuyunjik, the principal mound marking the site of Nineveh</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0024">Clay Memorial-tablet of Eannadu, viceroy of Shirpurla</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0025">Marble gate-socket bearing an inscription of Entemena, a powerful Patesi of Shirpurla</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0026">Stone gate-socket bearing an inscription of Ur-Engur, an early king of the city of Ur</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0027">Statue of Gudea, viceroy of Shirpurla</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkBimage-0028">Tablet inscribed in Sumerian with details of a survey of certain property</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0005">Clay tablet, found at Susa, bearing an inscription in the early proto-Elamite character</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0006">Clay tablet, recently found at Susa, bearing an inscription in the early proto-Elamite character. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0008">Block of limestone, found at Susa, bearing inscriptions of Karibu-sha-Shushinak</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0009">Brick stamped with an inscription of Kudur-mabug</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0010">Semitic Babylonian contract-tablet, inscribed in the reign of Hammurabi with a deed recording the division of property</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0011">A Kudurru, or Boundary-stone, inscribed with a text of Nazimaruttash</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0012">A Kudurru, or Boundary-stone, inscribed with a text of Melishikhu</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0013">Upper Part of the Stele of Hammurabi, King Of Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0014">Clay contract-tablet and its outer case, First Dynasty</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0015">A track in the desert</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0016">A camping-ground in the desert, between Birejik And Urfa</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0017">Approach to the city of Samarra, situated on the left bank of the Tigris</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0018">A small caravan in the mountains of Kurdistan</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0019">The city of Mosul</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0020">The village of Nebi Yunus</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0021">Portrait-sculpture of Hammurabi, King of Babylon</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0022">A modern machine for irrigation on the Euphrates</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0023">Kaiks, or native boats on the Euphrates at Birejik</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0024">The modern bridge of boats across the Tigris opposite Mosul</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkCimage-0025">A small Kelek, or raft, upon the Tigris at Baghdad</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0005">Statue of Mera, Chief Steward, IXth Dynasty</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0006">Wall of XIth Dynasty: Dêr el-Bahari</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0007">Wall of XVIIIth Dynasty: Dêr el-Bahari. + </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0008">Excavation of the north lower colonnade of the XIth dynasty temple, Dêr el-Bahari, 1904</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0009">The granite threshold and sandstone pillars of the XIth dynasty temple at Dêr el-Bahari</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0010">Excavation of the tomb of a priestess, on a platform of the XIth Dynasty temple, Dêr el-Bahari, 1904</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0011">Cases of antiquities leaving Dêr el-Bahari for transport to Cairo</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0012">Shipping cases of antiquities on board the Nile steamer at Luxor, for the Egypt Exploration Fund</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0013">Statue of Queen Teta-shera</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0014">The Two Temples of Dêr el-Bahari</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0015">The upper court and trilithon gate of the XVIIIth Dynasty temple at Dêr el-Bahari</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0016">The tomb-mountain of Amenhetep III, in the western valley, Thebes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0017">The Tomb-hill of Shêkh ’abd el-Kûrna, Thebes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0018">Wall-painting from a Tomb of Shêkh ’abd el-Kûrna, Western Thebes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0019">Fresco in the Tomb of Senmut at Thebes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0022">The valley of the Tombs of the Queens at Thebes</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0023">The Nile-Bank at Luxor</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0024">The Great Temple at Karnak</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0025">M. Legrain’s excavation of the Karnak statues</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0026">Portrait-group of a great noble and his wife, of the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0027">A tomb fitted up as an Explorer’s Residence</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0029">Stone Object Bearing a Votive Inscription of Arik-dên-ilu</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0030">Entrance into one of the Galleries or Tunnels of the principal mound at Sherghat</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0031">Stone Tablet of Tukulti-Ninib I, King of Assyria</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0032">The Ziggurat, or Temple Tower, of the Assyrian city of Calah</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0033">Work on one of the Rock-inscriptions of Sennacherib, near Bavian in Assyria</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0034">The Principal Rock Sculptures in the Gorge of the Gomel near Bavian</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0035">The rock and citadel of Van</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0036">Ancient Flight of steps and gallery on the face of the Rock-citadel of Van</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0037">Part of the ancient fortifications of the city of Van</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0038">Within the Shrine of E-makh, Temple of the Goddess Nin-makh</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0039">Trench in the Babylonian Plain, between the mound of the Kasr and Tell Amran ibn-Ali, showing a section of the paved sacred way</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0040">The Great Dam of Aswân, showing water rushing through the sluices</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0041">The Kiosk at Philæ in process of underpinning and restoration, January, 1902</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0042">The Ancient Quay Of Philæ, November, 1904</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0043">The Rock of Konosso in January, 1902, Before The Building of the Dam</a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkDimage-0044">The Isle of Konosso, with its inscriptions, November 1904</a> + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + EGYPT AND MESOPOTAMIA + </h2> + <h3> + <i>In the Light of Recent Excavation and Research</i> + </h3> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0001" id="link2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER I—THE DISCOVERY OF PREHISTORIC EGYPT + </h2> + <p> + During the last ten years our conception of the beginnings of Egyptian + antiquity has profoundly altered. When Prof. Maspero published the first + volume of his great <i>Histoire Ancienne des Peuples des l’Orient + Classique</i>, in 1895, Egyptian history, properly so called, still began + with the Pyramid-builders, Sne-feru, Khufu, and Khafra (Cheops and + Chephren), and the legendary lists of earlier kings preserved at Abydos + and Sakkara were still quoted as the only source of knowledge of the time + before the IVth Dynasty. Of a prehistoric Egypt nothing was known, beyond + a few flint flakes gathered here and there upon the desert plateaus, which + might or might not tell of an age when the ancestors of the + Pyramid-builders knew only the stone tools and weapons of the primeval + savage. + </p> + <p> + Now, however, the veil which has hidden the beginnings of Egyptian + civilization from us has been lifted, and we see things, more or less, as + they actually were, unobscured by the traditions of a later day. Until the + last few years nothing of the real beginnings of history in either Egypt + or Mesopotamia had been found; legend supplied the only material for the + reconstruction of the earliest history of the oldest civilized nations of + the globe. Nor was it seriously supposed that any relics of prehistoric + Egypt or Mesopotamia ever would be found. The antiquity of the known + history of these countries already appeared so great that nobody took into + consideration the possibility of our discovering a prehistoric Egypt or + Mesopotamia; the idea was too remote from practical work. And further, + civilization in these countries had lasted so long that it seemed more + than probable that all traces of their prehistoric age had long since been + swept away. Yet the possibility, which seemed hardly worth a moment’s + consideration in 1895, is in 1905 an assured reality, at least as far as + Egypt is concerned. Prehistoric Babylonia has yet to be discovered. It is + true, for example, that at Mukay-yar, the site of ancient Ur of the + Chaldees, burials in earthenware coffins, in which the skeletons lie in + the doubled-up position characteristic of Neolithic interments, have been + found; but there is no doubt whatever that these are burials of a much + later date, belonging, quite possibly, to the Parthian period. Nothing + that may rightfully be termed prehistoric has yet been found in the + Euphrates valley, whereas in Egypt prehistoric antiquities are now almost + as well known and as well represented in our museums as are the + prehistoric antiquities of Europe and America. + </p> + <p> + With the exception of a few palasoliths from the surface of the Syrian + desert, near the Euphrates valley, not a single implement of the Age of + Stone has yet been found in Southern Mesopotamia, whereas Egypt has + yielded to us the most perfect examples of the flint-knapper’s art known, + flint tools and weapons more beautiful than the finest that Europe and + America can show. The reason is not far to seek. Southern Mesopotamia is + an alluvial country, and the ancient cities, which doubtless mark the + sites of the oldest settlements in the land, are situated in the alluvial + marshy plain between the Tigris and the Euphrates; so that all traces of + the Neolithic culture of the country would seem to have disappeared, + buried deep beneath city-mounds, clay and marsh. It is the same in the + Egyptian Delta, a similar country; and here no traces of the prehistoric + culture of Egypt have been found. The attempt to find them was made last + year at Buto, which is known to be one of the most antique centres of + civilization, and probably was one of the earliest settlements in Egypt, + but without success. The infiltration of water had made excavation + impossible and had no doubt destroyed everything belonging to the most + ancient settlement. It is not going too far to predict that exactly the + same thing will be found by any explorer who tries to discover a Neolithic + stratum beneath a city-mound of Babylonia. There is little hope that + prehistoric Chaldæa will ever be known to us. But in Egypt the conditions + are different. The Delta is like Babylonia, it is true; but in the Upper + Nile valley the river flows down with but a thin border of alluvial land + on either side, through the rocky and hilly desert, the dry Sahara, where + rain falls but once in two or three years. Antiquities buried in this soil + in the most remote ages are preserved intact as they were first interred, + until the modern investigator comes along to look for them. And it is on + the desert margin of the valley that the remains of prehistoric Egypt have + been found. That is the reason for their perfect preservation till our own + day, and why we know prehistoric Egypt so well. + </p> + <p> + The chief work of Egyptian civilization was the proper irrigation of the + alluvial soil, the turning of marsh into cultivated fields, and the + reclamation of land from the desert for the purposes of agriculture. Owing + to the rainless character of the country, the only means of obtaining + water for the crops is by irrigation, and where the fertilizing Nile water + cannot be taken by means of canals, there cultivation ends and the desert + begins. Before Egyptian civilization, properly so called, began, the + valley was a great marsh through which the Nile found its way north to the + sea. The half-savage, stone-using ancestors of the civilized Egyptians + hunted wild fowl, crocodiles, and hippopotami in the marshy valley; but + except in a few isolated settlements on convenient mounds here and there + (the forerunners of the later villages), they did not live there. Their + settlements were on the dry desert margin, and it was here, upon low + tongues of desert hill jutting out into the plain, that they buried their + dead. Their simple shallow graves were safe from the flood, and, but for + the depredations of jackals and hyenas, here they have remained intact + till our own day, and have yielded up to us the facts from which we have + derived our knowledge of prehistoric Egypt. Thus it is that we know so + much of the Egyptians of the Stone Age, while of their contemporaries in + Mesopotamia we know nothing, nor is anything further likely to be + discovered. + </p> + <p> + But these desert cemeteries, with their crowds of oval shallow graves, + covered by only a few inches of surface soil, in which the Neolithic + Egyptians lie crouched up with their flint implements and polished pottery + beside them, are but monuments of the later age of prehistoric Egypt. Long + before the Neolithic Egyptian hunted his game in the marshes, and here and + there essayed the work of reclamation for the purposes of an incipient + agriculture, a far older race inhabited the valley of the Nile. The + written records of Egyptian civilization go back four thousand years + before Christ, or earlier, and the Neolithic Age of Egypt must go back to + a period several thousand years before that. But we can now go back much + further still, to the Palaeolithic Age of Egypt. At a time when Europe was + still covered by the ice and snows of the Glacial Period, and man fought + as an equal, hardly yet as a superior, with cave-bear and mammoth, the + Palaeolithic Egyptians lived on the banks of the Nile. Their habitat was + doubtless the desert slopes, often, too, the plateaus themselves; but that + they lived entirely upon the plateaus, high up above the Nile marsh, is + improbable. There, it is true, we find their flint implements, the great + pear-shaped weapons of the types of Chelles, St. Acheul, and Le Moustier, + types well known to all who are acquainted with the flint implements of + the “Drift” in Europe. And it is there that the theory, generally accepted + hitherto, has placed the habitat of the makers and users of these + implements. + </p> + <p> + The idea was that in Palaeolithic days, contemporary with the Glacial Age + of Northern Europe and America, the climate of Egypt was entirely + different from that of later times and of to-day. Instead of dry desert, + the mountain plateaus bordering the Nile valley were supposed to have been + then covered with forest, through which flowed countless streams to feed + the river below. It was suggested that remains of these streams were to be + seen in the side ravines, or wadis, of the Nile valley, which run up from + the low desert on the river level into the hills on either hand. These + wadis undoubtedly show extensive traces of strong water action; they curve + and twist as the streams found their easiest way to the level through the + softer strata, they are heaped up with great water-worn boulders, they are + hollowed out where waterfalls once fell. They have the appearance of dry + watercourses, exactly what any mountain burns would be were the + water-supply suddenly cut off for ever, the climate altered from rainy to + eternal sun-glare, and every plant and tree blasted, never to grow again. + Acting on the supposition that this idea was a correct one, most observers + have concluded that the climate of Egypt in remote periods was very + different from the dry, rainless one now obtaining. To provide the water + for the wadi streams, heavy rainfall and forests are desiderated. They + were easily supplied, on the hypothesis. Forests clothed the mountain + plateaus, heavy rains fell, and the water rushed down to the Nile, carving + out the great watercourses which remain to this day, bearing testimony to + the truth. And the flints, which the Palaeolithic inhabitants of the + plateau-forests made and used, still lie on the now treeless and sun-baked + desert surface. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0006" id="linkimage-0006"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/007.jpg" width="100%" + alt="007.jpg the Bed of an Ancient Watercourse in The Wadiyên, Thebes. " /> + </div> + <p> + This is certainly a very weak conclusion. In fact, it seriously damages + the whole argument, the water-courses to the contrary notwithstanding. The + palæoliths are there. They can be picked up by any visitor. There they + lie, great flints of the Drift types, just like those found in the + gravel-beds of England and Belgium, on the desert surface where they were + made. Undoubtedly where they were made, for the places where they lie are + the actual ancient flint workshops, where the flints were chipped. + Everywhere around are innumerable flint chips and perfect weapons, burnt + black and patinated by ages of sunlight. We are taking one particular spot + in the hills of Western Thebes as an example, but there are plenty of + others, such as the Wadi esh-Shêkh on the right bank of the Nile opposite + Maghagha, whence Mr. H. Seton-Karr has brought back specimens of flint + tools of all ages from the Palaeolithic to the Neolithic periods. + </p> + <p> + The Palæolithic flint workshops on the Theban hills have been visited of + late years by Mr. Seton-Karr, by Prof. Schweinfurth, Mr. Allen Sturge, and + Dr. Blanckenhorn, by Mr. Portch, Mr. Ayrton, and Mr. Hall. The weapons + illustrated here were found by Messrs. Hall and Ayrton, and are now + preserved in the British Museum. Among these flints shown we notice two + fine specimens of the pear-shaped type of St. Acheul, with curious + adze-shaped implements of primitive type to left and right. Below, to the + right, is a very primitive instrument of Chellean type, being merely a + sharpened pebble. Above, to left and right, are two specimens of the + curious half-moon-shaped instruments which are characteristic of the + Theban flint field and are hardly known elsewhere. All have the beautiful + brown patina, which only ages of sunburn can give. The “poignard” type to + the left, at the bottom of the plate, is broken off short. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0007" id="linkimage-0007"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/008.jpg" width="100%" + alt="008.jpg Palaeolithic Implements of the Quaternary Period. From the Desert Plateau and Slopes West of Thebes. " /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="linkimage-0008" id="linkimage-0008"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figright" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/009.jpg" + alt="009.jpg (right): Palaeolithic Implements. From Man, March, 1905." /> + </div> + <p> + In the smaller illustration we see some remarkable types: two scrapers or + knives with strongly marked “bulb of percussion” (the spot where the + flint-knapper struck and from which the flakes flew off), a very regular + <i>coup-de-poing</i> which looks almost like a large arrowhead, and on the + right a much weathered and patinated scraper which must be of immemorial + age. This came from the top plateau, not from the slopes (or subsidiary + plateaus at the head of the <i>wadis</i>), as did the great St. Acheulian + weapons. The circular object is very remarkable: it is the half of the + ring of a “morpholith “(a round flinty accretion often found in the Theban + limestone) which has been split, and the split (flat) side carefully + bevelled. Several of these interesting objects have been found in + conjunction with Palæolithic implements at Thebes. No doubt the flints lie + on the actual surface where they were made. No later water action has + swept them away and covered them with gravel, no later human habitation + has hidden them with successive deposits of soil, no gradual deposit of + dust and rubbish has buried them deep. They lie as they were left in the + far-away Palæolithic Age, and they have lain there till taken away by the + modern explorer. + </p> + <p> + But this is not the case with all the Palæolithic flints of Thebes. In the + year 1882 Maj.-Gen. Pitt-Rivers discovered Palæolithic flints in the + deposit of diluvial detritus which lies between the cultivation and the + mountains on the west bank of the Nile opposite Luxor. Many of these are + of the same type as those found on the surface of the mountain plateau + which lies at the head of the great <i>wadi</i> of the Tombs of the Kings, + while the diluvial deposit is at its mouth. The stuff of which the + detritus is composed evidently came originally from the high plateau, and + was washed down, with the flints, in ancient times. + </p> + <p> + This is quite conceivable, but how is it that the flints left behind on + the plateau remain on the original ancient surface? How is it conceivable + that if (on the old theory) these plateaus were in Palæolithic days + clothed with forest, the Palæolithic flints could even in a single + instance remain undisturbed from Palæolithic times to the present day, + when the forest in which they were made and the forest soil on which they + reposed have entirely disappeared? If there were woods and forests On the + heights, it would seem impossible that we should find, as we do, + Palæolithic implements lying <i>in situ</i> on the desert surface, around the + actual manufactories where they were made. Yet if the constant rainfall + and the vegetation of the Libyan desert area in Palæolithic days is all a + myth (as it most probably is), how came the embedded palaeoliths, found by + Gen. Pitt-Rivers, in the bed of diluvial detritus which is apparently <i>débris</i> + from the plateau brought down by the Palæolithic <i>wadi</i> streams? + </p> + <p> + Water erosion has certainly formed the Theban <i>wadis</i>. But this water + erosion was probably not that which would be the result of perennial + streams flowing down from wooded heights, but of torrents like those of + to-day, which fill the <i>wadis</i> once in three years or so after heavy + rain, but repeated at much closer intervals. We may in fact suppose just + so much difference in meteorological conditions as would make it possible + for sudden rain-storms to occur over the desert at far more frequent + intervals than at present. That would account for the detritus bed at the + mouth of the <i>wadi</i>, and its embedded flints, and at the same time + maintain the general probability of the idea that the desert plateaus were + desert in Palæolithic days as now, and that early man only knapped his + flints up there because he found the flint there. He himself lived on the + slopes and nearer the marsh. + </p> + <p> + This new view seems to be much sounder and more probable than the old one, + maintained by Flinders Petrie and Blanckenhorn, according to which the + high plateau was the home of man in Palæolithic times, when the rainfall, + as shown by the valley erosion and waterfalls, must have caused an + abundant vegetation on the plateau, where man could live and hunt his + game.<a href="#fn1.1" name="fnref1.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> Were this so, it is patent that + the Palæolithic flints could not have been found on the desert surface as + they are. Mr. H. J. L. Beadnell, of the Geological Survey of Egypt, to + whom we are indebted for the promulgation of the more modern and probable + view, says: “Is it certain that the high plateau was then clothed with + forests? What evidence is there to show that it differed in any important + respect from its present aspect? And if, as I suggest, desert conditions + obtained then as now, and man merely worked his flints along the edges of + the plateaus overlooking the Nile valley, I see no reason why flint + implements, dating even from Palæolithic times should not in favourable + cases still be found in the spots where they were left, surrounded by the + flakes struck off in manufacture. On the flat plateaus the occasional + rains which fall—once in three or four years—can effect but + little transport of material, and merely lower the general level by + dissolving the underlying limestone, so that the plateau surface is left + with a coating of nodules and blocks of insoluble flint and chert. Flint + implements might thus be expected to remain in many localities for + indefinite periods, but they would certainly become more or less + ‘patinated,’ pitted on the surface, and rounded at the angles after long + exposure to heat, cold, and blown sand.” This is exactly the case of the + Palæolithic flint tools from the desert plateau. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.1"></a> <a href="#fnref1.1">[1]</a> +Petrie, <i>Nagada and Ballas</i>, p. 49. +</p> + + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0009" id="linkimage-0009"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/012.jpg" width="100%" + alt="012.jpg Upper Desert Plateau, Where Paleolithic Implements Are Found, Thebes: 1,400 Leet Above the Nile. " /> + </div> + <p> + We do not know whether Palæolithic man in Egypt was contemporary with the + cave-man of Europe. We have no means of gauging the age of the Palæolithic + Egyptian weapons, as we have for the Neolithic period. The historical + (dynastic) period of Egyptian annals began with the unification of the + kingdom under one head somewhere about 4500 B.C. At that time copper as + well as stone weapons were used, so that we may say that at the beginning + of the historical age the Egyptians were living in the “Chalcolithic” + period. We can trace the use of copper back for a considerable period + anterior to the beginning of the Ist Dynasty, so that we shall probably + not be far wrong if we do not bring down the close of the purely Neolithic + Age in Egypt—the close of the Age of Stone, properly so called—later + than +5000 B.C. How far back in the remote ages the transition period + between the Palæolithic and Neolithic Ages should be placed, it is utterly + impossible to say. The use of stone for weapons and implements continued + in Egypt as late as the time of the XIIth Dynasty, about 2500-2000 B.C. + But these XIIth Dynasty stone implements show by their forms how late they + are in the history of the Stone Age. The axe heads, for instance, are in + form imitations of the copper and bronze axe heads usual at that period; + they are stone imitations of metal, instead of the originals on whose + model the metal weapons were formed. The flint implements of the XIIth + Dynasty were a curious survival from long past ages. After the time of the + XIIth Dynasty stone was no longer used for tools or weapons, except for + the sacred rite of making the first incision in the dead bodies before + beginning the operations of embalming; for this purpose, as Herodotus + tells us, an “Ethiopian stone” was used. This was no doubt a knife of + flint or chert, like those of the Neolithic ancestors of the Egyptians, + and the continued use of a stone knife for this one purpose only is a very + interesting instance of a ceremonial survival. We may compare the wigs of + British judges. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0010" id="linkimage-0010"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/014.jpg" width="100%" alt="014.jpg Flint Knife " /> + </div> + <p> + We have no specimen of a flint knife which can definitely be asserted to + have belonged to an embalmer, but of the archaistic flint weapons of the + XIIth Dynasty we have several specimens. They were found by Prof. Petrie + at the place named by him “Kahun,” the site of a XIIth Dynasty town built + near the pyramid of King Usertsen (or Senusret) II at Illahun, at the + mouth of the canal leading from the Nile valley into the oasis-province of + the Payyum. These Kahun flints, and others of probably the same period + found by Mr. Seton-Karr at the very ancient flint works in the Wadi + esh-Shêkh, are of very coarse and poor workmanship as compared with the + stone-knapping triumphs of the late Neolithic and early Chalcolithic + periods. The delicacy of the art had all been lost. But the best flint + knives of the early period—dating to just a little before the time + of the Ist Dynasty, when flint-working had attained its apogee, and copper + had just begun to be used—are undoubtedly the most remarkable stone + weapons ever made in the world. The grace and utility of the form, the + delicacy of the fluted chipping on the side, and the minute care with + which the tiny serrations of the cutting edge, serrations so small that + often they can hardly be seen with the naked eye, are made, can certainly + not be parallelled elsewhere. The art of flint-knapping reached its zenith + in Ancient Egypt. The specimen illustrated has a handle covered with gold + decorated with incised designs representing animals. + </p> + <p> + The prehistoric Egyptians may also fairly be said to have attained greater + perfection than other peoples in the Neolithic stage of culture, in other + arts besides the making of stone tools and weapons. Their pottery is of + remarkable perfection. Now that the sites of the Egyptian prehistoric + settlements have been so thoroughly explored by competent archæologists + (and, unhappily, as thoroughly pillaged by incompetent natives), this + prehistoric Egyptian pottery has become extremely well known. In fact, it + is so common that good specimens may be bought anywhere in Egypt for a few + piastres. Most museums possess sets of this pottery, of which great + quantities have been brought back from Egypt by Prof. Petrie and other + explorers. It is of very great interest, artistically as well as + historically. The potter’s wheel was not yet invented, and all the vases, + even those of the most perfect shape, were built up by hand. The + perfection of form attained without the aid of the wheel is truly + marvellous. + </p> + <p> + The commonest type of this pottery is a red polished ware vase with black + top, due to its having been baked mouth downward in a fire, the ashes of + which, according to Prof. Petrie, deoxidized the hæmatite burnishing, and + so turned the red colour to black. “In good examples the hæmatite has not + only been reduced to black magnetic oxide, but the black has the highest + polish, as seen on fine Greek vases. This is probably due to the formation + of carbonyl gas in the smothered fire. This gas acts as a solvent of + magnetic oxide, and hence allows it to assume a new surface, like the + glassy surface of some marbles subjected to solution in water.” This black + and red ware appears to be the most ancient prehistoric Egyptian pottery + known. Later in date are a red ware and a black ware with rude geometrical + incised designs, imitating basketwork, and with the incised lines filled + in with white. Later again is a buff ware, either plain or decorated with + wavy lines, concentric circles, and elaborate drawings of boats sailing on + the Nile, ostriches, fish, men and women, and so on. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0011" id="linkimage-0011"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/017.jpg" + alt="017.jpg (right) Buff Ware Vase, Predynastic Period, Before 4000 B.C." /> + </div> + <p> + These designs are in deep red. With this elaborate pottery the Neolithic + ceramic art of Egypt reached its highest point; in the succeeding period + (the beginning of the historic age) there was a decline in workmanship, + exhibiting clumsy forms and bad colour, and it is not until the time of + the IVth Dynasty that good pottery (a fine polished red) is once more + found. Meanwhile the invention of glazed pottery, which was unknown to the + prehistoric Egyptians, had been made (before the beginning of the Ist + Dynasty). The unglazed ware of the first three dynasties was bad, but the + new invention of light blue glazed faience (not porcelain properly so + called) seems to have made great progress, and we possess fine specimens + at the beginning of the Ist Dynasty. The prehistoric Egyptians were also + proficient in other arts. They carved ivory and they worked gold, which is + known to have been almost the first metal worked by man; certainly in + Egypt it was utilized for ornament even before copper was used for work. + We may refer to the illustration of a flint knife with gold handle, + already given.<a href="#fn1.2" name="fnref1.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.2"></a> <a href="#fnref1.2">[2]</a> +See illustration. +</p> + + <p> + The date of the actual introduction of copper for tools and weapons into + Egypt is uncertain, but it seems probable that copper was occasionally + used at a very early period. Copper weapons have been found in + pre-dynastic graves beside the finest buff pottery with elaborate red + designs, so that we may say that when the flint-working and pottery of the + Neolithic Egyptians had reached its zenith, the use of copper was already + known, and copper weapons were occasionally employed. We can thus speak of + the “Chalcolithic” period in Egypt as having already begun at that time, + no doubt several centuries before the beginning of the historical or + dynastic age. Strictly speaking, the Egyptians remained in the + “Chalcolithic” period till the end of the XIIth Dynasty, but in practice + it is best to speak of this period, when the word is used, as extending + from the time of the finest flint weapons and pottery of the prehistoric + age (when the “Neolithic” period may be said to close) till about the IId + or IIId Dynasty. By that time the “Bronze,” or, rather, “Copper,” Age of + Egypt had well begun, and already stone was not in common use. + </p> + <p> + The prehistoric pottery is of the greatest value to the archæologist, for + with its help some idea may be obtained of the succession of periods + within the late Neolithic-Chalcolithic Age. The enormous number of + prehistoric graves which have been examined enables us to make an + exhaustive comparison of the different kinds of pottery found in them, so + that we can arrange them in order according to pottery they contained. By + this means we obtain an idea of the development of different types of + pottery, and the sequence of the types. Thus it is that we can say with + some degree of confidence that the black and red ware is the most ancient + form, and that the buff with red designs is one of the latest forms of + prehistoric pottery. Other objects found in the graves can be classified + as they occur with different pottery types. + </p> + <p> + With the help of the pottery we can thus gain a more or less reliable + conspectus of the development of the late “Neolithic” culture of Egypt. + This system of “sequence-dating” was introduced by Prof. Petrie, and is + certainly very useful. It must not, however, be pressed too far or be + regarded as an iron-bound system, with which all subsequent discoveries + must be made to fit in by force. It is not to be supposed that all + prehistoric pottery developed its series of types in an absolutely orderly + manner without deviations or throws-back. The work of man’s hands is + variable and eccentric, and does not develop or evolve in an undeviating + course as the work of nature does. It is a mistake, very often made by + anthropologists and archæologists, who forget this elementary fact, to + assume “curves of development,” and so forth, or semi-savage culture, on + absolutely even and regular lines. Human culture has not developed either + evenly or regularly, as a matter of fact. Therefore we cannot always be + sure that, because the Egyptian black and red pottery does not occur in + graves with buff and red, it is for this reason absolutely earlier in date + than the latter. Some of the development-sequences may in reality be + contemporary with others instead of earlier, and allowance must always be + made for aberrations and reversions to earlier types. + </p> + <p> + This caveat having been entered, however, we may provisionally accept + Prof. Petrie’s system of sequence-dating as giving the best classification + of the prehistoric antiquities according to development. So it may fairly + be said that, as far as we know, the black and red pottery (“sequence-date + 30—“) is the most ancient Neolithic Egyptian ware known; that the + buff and red did not begin to be used till about “sequence-date 45;” that + bone and ivory carvings were commonest in the earlier period + (“sequence-dates 30-50”); that copper was almost unknown till + “sequence-date 50,” and so on. The arbitrary numbers used range from 30 to + 80, in order to allow for possible earlier and later additions, which may + be rendered necessary by the progress of discovery. The numbers are of + course as purely arbitrary and relative as those of the different + thermometrical systems, but they afford a convenient system of + arrangement. The products of the prehistoric Egyptians are, so to speak, + distributed on a conventional plan over a scale numbered from 30 to 80, 30 + representing the beginning and 80 the close of the term, so far as its + close has as yet been ascertained. It is probable that “sequence-date 80” + more or less accurately marks the beginning of the dynastic or historical + period. + </p> + <p> + This hypothetically chronological classification is, as has been said, + due to Prof. Petrie, and has been adopted by Mr. Randall-Maclver and + other students of prehistoric Egypt in their work.<a href="#fn1.3" + name="fnref1.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> To Prof. Petrie then is due the + credit of systematizing the study of Egyptian prehistoric antiquities; + but the further credit of having <i>discovered</i> these antiquities + themselves and settled their date belongs not to him but to the + distinguished French archæologist, M. J. de Morgan, who was for several + years director of the museum at Giza, and is now chief of the French + archæological delegation in Persia, which has made of late years so many + important discoveries. The proof of the prehistoric date of this class of + antiquities was given, not by Prof. Petrie after his excavations at + Dendera in 1897-8, but by M. de Morgan in his volume, <i>Recherches sur + les Origines de l’Égypte: l’Âge de la Pierre et les + Métaux</i>, published in 1895-6. In this book the true chronological + position of the prehistoric antiquities was pointed out, and the + existence of an Egyptian Stone Age finally decided. M. de Morgan’s + work was based on careful study of the results of excavations carried on + for several years by the Egyptian government in various parts of Egypt, + in the course of which a large number of cemeteries of the primitive type + had been discovered. It was soon evident to M. de Morgan that these + primitive graves, with their unusual pottery and flint implements, could + be nothing less than the tombs of the prehistoric Egyptians, the + Egyptians of the Stone Age. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.3"></a> <a href="#fnref1.3">[3]</a> +<i>El Amra and Abydos</i>, Egypt Exploration Fund, 1902. +</p> + + <p> + Objects of the prehistoric period had been known to the museums for many + years previously, but owing to the uncertainty of their provenance and the + absence of knowledge of the existence of the primitive cemeteries, no + scientific conclusions had been arrived at with regard to them; and it was + not till the publication of M. de Morgan’s book that they were recognized + and classified as prehistoric. The necropoles investigated by M. de Morgan + and his assistants extended from Kawâmil in the north, about twenty miles + north of Abydos, to Edfu in the south. The chief cemeteries between these + two points were those of Bât Allam, Saghel el-Baglieh, el-’Amra, Nakâda, + Tûkh, and Gebelên. All the burials were of simple type, analogous to those + of the Neolithic races in the rest of the world. In a shallow, oval grave, + excavated often but a few inches below the surface of the soil, lay the + body, cramped up with the knees to the chin, sometimes in a rough box of + pottery, more often with only a mat to cover it. Ready to the hand of the + dead man were his flint weapons and tools, and the usual red and black, or + buff and red, pots lay beside him; originally, no doubt, they had been + filled with the funeral meats, to sustain the ghost in the next world. + Occasionally a simple copper weapon was found. With the body were also + buried slate palettes for grinding the green eye-paint which the Egyptians + loved even at this early period. These are often carved to suggest the + forms of animals, such as birds, bats, tortoises, goats, etc.; on others + are fantastic creatures with two heads. Combs of bone, too, are found, + ornamented in a similar way with birds’ or goats’ heads, often double. And + most interesting of all are the small bone and ivory figures of men and + women which are also found. These usually have little blue beads for eyes, + and are of the quaintest and naivest appearance conceivable. Here we have + an elderly man with a long pointed beard, there two women with inane + smiles upon their countenances, here another woman, of better work this + time, with a child slung across her shoulder. This figure, which is in the + British Museum, must be very late, as prehistoric Egyptian antiquities go. + It is almost as good in style as the early Ist Dynasty objects. Such were + the objects which the simple piety of the early Egyptian prompted him to + bury with the bodies of his dead, in order that they might find solace and + contentment in the other world. + </p> + <p> + All the prehistoric cemeteries are of this type, with the graves pressed + closely together, so that they often impinge upon one another. The + nearness of the graves to the surface is due to the exposed positions, at + the entrances to <i>wadis</i>, in which the primitive cemeteries are + usually found. The result is that they are always swept by the winds, + which prevent the desert sand from accumulating over them, and so have + preserved the original level of the ground. From their proximity to the + surface they are often found disturbed, more often by the agency of + jackals than that of man. + </p> + <p> + Contemporaneously with M. de Morgan’s explorations, Prof. Flinders Petrie + and Mr. J. Quibell had, in the winter of 1894-5, excavated in the + districts of Tukh and Nakada, on the west bank of the Nile opposite + Koptos, a series of extensive cemeteries of the primitive type, from which + they obtained a large number of antiquities, published in their volume + Nagada and Dallas. The plates giving representations of the antiquities + found were of the highest interest, but the scientific value of the + letter-press is vitiated by the fact that the true historical position of + the antiquities was not perceived by their discoverers, who came to the + conclusion that these remains were those of a “New Pace” of Libyan + invaders. This race, they supposed, had entered Egypt after the close of + the flourishing period of the “Old Kingdom” at the end of the VIth + Dynasty, and had occupied part of the Nile valley from that time till the + period of the Xth Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + This conclusion was proved erroneous by M. de Morgan almost as soon as + made, and the French archæologist’s identification of the primitive + remains as pre-dynastic was at once generally accepted. It was obvious + that a hypothesis of the settlement of a stone-using barbaric race in the + midst of Egypt at so late a date as the period immediately preceding the + XIIth Dynasty, a race which mixed in no way with the native Egyptians + themselves, and left no trace of their influence upon the later Egyptians, + was one which demanded greater faith than the simple explanation of M. de + Morgan. + </p> + <p> + The error of the British explorers was at once admitted by Mr. Quibell, + in his volume on the excavations of 1897 at el-Kab, published in 1898.<a + href="#fn1.4" name="fnref1.4"><sup>[4]</sup></a> Mr. Quibell at once + found full and adequate confirmation of M. de Morgan’s discovery in his + diggings at el-Kab. Prof. Petrie admitted the correctness of M. de + Morgan’s views in the preface to his volume Diospolis Parva, published + three years later in 1901.<a href="#fn1.5" + name="fnref1.5"><sup>[5]</sup></a> The preface to the first volume of M. + de Morgan’s book contained a generous recognition of the method and + general accuracy of Prof. Petrie’s excavations, which contrasted + favourably, according to M. de Morgan, with the excavations of others, + generally carried on without scientific control, and with the sole aim of + obtaining antiquities or literary texts.<a href="#fn1.6" + name="fnref1.6"><sup>[6]</sup></a> That M. de Morgan’s own work was + carried out as scientifically and as carefully is evident from the fact + that his conclusions as to the chronological position of the prehistoric + antiquities have been shown to be correct. To describe M. de Morgan’s + discovery as a “happy guess,” as has been done, is therefore beside the + mark. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.4"></a> <a href="#fnref1.4">[4]</a> +El-Kab. Egyptian Research Account, 1897, p. 11. +</p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.5"></a> <a href="#fnref1.5">[5]</a> +Diospolis Parva. Egypt Exploration Fund, 1901, p. 2. +</p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.6"></a> <a href="#fnref1.6">[6]</a> +Recherches: Age de la Pierre, p. xiii. +</p> + + <p> + Another most important British excavation was that carried on by Messrs. + Randall-Maclver and Wilkin at el-’Amra. The imposing lion-headed + promontory of el-’Amra stands out into the plain on the west bank of the + Nile about five miles south of Abydos. At the foot of this hill M. de + Morgan found a very extensive prehistoric necropolis, which he examined, + but did not excavate to any great extent, and the work of thoroughly + excavating it was performed by Messrs. Randall-MacIver and Wilkin for the + Egypt Exploration Fund. The results have thrown very great light upon the + prehistoric culture of Egypt, and burials of all prehistoric types, some + of them previously unobserved, were found. Among the most interesting are + burials in pots, which have also been found by Mr. Garstang in a + predynastic necropolis at Ragagna, north of Abydos. One of the more + remarkable observations made at el-’Amra was the progressive development + of the tombs from the simplest pot-burial to a small brick chamber, the + embryo of the brick tombs of the Ist Dynasty. Among the objects recovered + from this site may be mentioned a pottery model of oxen, a box in the + shape of a model hut, and a slate “palette” with what is perhaps the + oldest Egyptian hieroglyph known, a representation of the fetish-sign of + the god Min, in relief. All these are preserved in the British Museum. The + skulls of the bodies found were carefully preserved for craniometric + examination. + </p> + <p> + In 1901 an extensive prehistoric cemetery was being excavated by Messrs. + Reisner and Lythgoe at Nag’ed-Dêr, opposite Girga, and at el-Ahaiwa, + further north, another prehistoric necropolis has been excavated by these + gentlemen, working for the University of California. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0012" id="linkimage-0012"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/027.jpg" width="100%" + alt="027.jpg Camp of the Expedition Of The University Of California at Nag’ Ed-dêr, 1901. " /> + </div> + <p> + The cemetery of Nag’ed-Dêr is of the usual prehistoric type, with its + multitudes of small oval graves, excavated just a little way below the + surface. Graves of this kind are the most primitive of all. Those at + el-’Amra are usually more developed, often, as has been noted, rising to + the height of regular brick tombs. They are evidently later, nearer to the + time of the Ist Dynasty. The position of the Nag’ed-Dêr cemetery is also + characteristic. It lies on the usual low ridge at the entrance to a desert + <i>wadi</i>, which is itself one of the most picturesque in this part of + Egypt, with its chaos of great boulders and fallen rocks. An illustration + of the camp of Mr. Reisner’s expedition at Nag’ed-Dêr is given above. The + excavations of the University of California are carried out with the + greatest possible care and are financed with the greatest possible + liberality. Mr. Reisner has therefore been able to keep an absolutely + complete photographic record of everything, even down to the successive + stages in the opening of a tomb, which will be of the greatest use to + science when published. + </p> + <p> + For a detailed study of the antiquities of the prehistoric period the + publications of Prof. Petrie, Mr. Quibell, and Mr. Randall-Maclver are + more useful than that of M. de Morgan, who does not give enough details. + Every atom of evidence is given in the publications of the British + explorers, whereas it is a characteristic of French work to give brilliant + conclusions, beautifully illustrated, without much of the evidence on + which the conclusions are based. This kind of work does not appeal to the + Anglo-Saxon mind, which takes nothing on trust, even from the most + renowned experts, and always wants to know the why and wherefore. The + complete publication of evidence which marks the British work will no + doubt be met with, if possible in even more complete detail, in the + American work of Messrs. Reisner, Lythgoe, and Mace (the last-named is an + Englishman) for the University of California, when published. The question + of speedy versus delayed publication is a very vexing one. Prof. Petrie + prefers to publish as speedily as possible; six months after the season’s + work in Egypt is done, the full publication with photographs of everything + appears. Mr. Reisner and the French explorers prefer to publish nothing + until they have exhaustively studied the whole of the evidence, and can + extract nothing more from it. This would be admirable if the French + published their discoveries fully, but they do not. Even M. de Morgan has + not approached the fulness of detail which characterizes British work and + which will characterize Mr. Reisner’s publication when it appears. The + only drawback to this method is that general interest in the particular + excavations described tends to pass away before the full description + appears. + </p> + <p> + Prof. Petrie has explored other prehistoric sites at Abadiya, and Mr. + Quibell at el-Kab. M. de Morgan and his assistants have examined a large + number of sites, ranging from the Delta to el-Kab. Further research has + shown that some of the sites identified by M. de Morgan as prehistoric are + in reality of much later date, for example, Kahun, where the late flints + of XIIth Dynasty date were found. He notes that “large numbers of + Neolithic flint weapons are found in the desert on the borders of the + Fayyum, and at Helwan, south of Cairo,” and that all the important + necropoles and kitchen-middens of the predynastic people are to be found + in the districts of Abydos and Thebes, from el-Kawamil in the North to + el-Kab in the South. It is of course too soon to assert with confidence + that there are no prehistoric remains in any other part of Egypt, + especially in the long tract between the Fayyûm and the district of + Abydos, but up to the present time none have been found in this region. + </p> + <p> + This geographical distribution of the prehistoric remains fits in + curiously with the ancient legend concerning the origin of the ancestors + of the Egyptians in Upper Egypt, and supports the much discussed theory + that they came originally to the Nile valley from the shores of the Red + Sea by way of the Wadi Hammamat, which debouches on to the Nile in the + vicinity of Koptos and Kus, opposite Ballas and Tûkh. The supposition + seems a very probable one, and it may well be that the earliest Egyptians + entered the valley of the Nile by the route suggested and then spread + northwards and southwards in the valley. The fact that their remains are + not found north of el-Kawâmil nor south of el-Kab might perhaps be + explained by the supposition that, when they had extended thus far north + and south from their original place of arrival, they passed from the + primitive Neolithic condition to the more highly developed copper-using + culture of the period which immediately preceded the establishment of the + monarchy. The Neolithic weapons of the Fayyûm and Hel-wân would then be + the remains of a different people, which inhabited the Delta and Middle + Egypt in very early times. This people may have been of Mediterranean + stock, akin to the primitive inhabitants of Palestine, Greece, Italy, and + Spain; and they no doubt were identical with the inhabitants of Lower + Egypt who were overthrown and conquered by Kha-sekhem and the other + Southern founders of the monarchy (who belonged to the race which had come + from the Red Sea by the Wadi Hammamat), and so were the ancestors of the + later natives of Lower Egypt. Whether the Southerners, whose primitive + remains we find from el-Kawâmil to el-Kab, were of the same race as the + Northerners whom they conquered, cannot be decided. The skull-form of the + Southerners agrees with that of the Mediterranean races. But we have no + nécropoles of the Northerners to tell us much of their peculiarities. We + have nothing but their flint arrowheads. + </p> + <p> + But it should be observed that, in spite of the present absence of all + primitive remains (whether mere flints, or actual graves with bodies and + relics) of the primeval population between the Fayyûm and el-Kawâmil, + there is no proof that the primitive race of Upper Egypt was not + coterminous and identical with that of the lower country. It might + therefore be urged that the whole Neolithic population was “Mediterranean” + by its skull-form and body-structure, and specifically “Nilotic” + (indigenous Egyptian) in its culture-type. This is quite possible, but we + have again to account for the legends of distant origin on the Red Sea + coast, the probability that one element of the Egyptian population was of + extraneous origin and came from the east into the Nile valley near Koptos, + and finally the historical fact of an advance of the early dynastic + Egyptians from the South to the conquest of the North. The latter fact + might of course be explained as a civil war analogous to that between + Thebes and Asyût in the time of the IXth Dynasty, but against this + explanation is to be set the fact that the contemporary monuments of the + Southerners exhibit the men of the North as of foreign and non-Egyptian + ethnic type, resembling Libyans. It is possible that they were akin to the + Libyans; and this would square very well with the first theory, but it may + also be made to fit in with a development of the second, which has been + generally accepted. + </p> + <p> + According to this view, the whole primitive Neolithic population of North + and South was Miotic, indigenous in origin, and akin to the + “Mediterraneans “of Prof. Sergi and the other ethnologists. It was not + this population, the stone-users whose nécropoles have been found by + Messrs. de Morgan, Pétrie, and Maclver, that entered the Nile valley by + the Wadi Hammamat. This was another race of different ethnic origin, which + came from the Red Sea toward the end of the Neolithic period, and, being + of higher civilization than the native Nilotes, assumed the lordship over + them, gave a great impetus to the development of their culture, and + started at once the institution of monarchy, the knowledge of letters, and + the use of metals. The chiefs of this superior tribe founded the monarchy, + conquered the North, unified the kingdom, and began Egyptian history. From + many indications it would seem probable that these conquerors were of + Babylonian origin, or that the culture they brought with them (possibly + from Arabia) was ultimately of Babylonian origin. They themselves would + seem to have been Semites, or rather proto-Semites, who came from Arabia + to Africa by way of the straits of Bab el-Mandeb, and proceeded up the + coast to about the neighbourhood of Kusêr, whence the Wadi Hammamat + offered them an open road to the valley of the Nile. By this route they + may have entered Egypt, bringing with them a civilization, which, like + that of the other Semites, had been profoundly influenced and modified by + that of the Sumerian inhabitants of Babylonia. This Semitic-Sumerian + culture, mingling with that of the Nilotes themselves, produced the + civilization of Ancient Egypt as we know it. + </p> + <p> + This is a very plausible hypothesis, and has a great deal of evidence in + its favour. It seems certain that in the early dynastic period two races + lived in Egypt, which differed considerably in type, and also, apparently, + in burial customs. The later Egyptians always buried the dead lying on + their backs, extended at full length. During the period of the Middle + Kingdom (XIth-XIIIth Dynasties) the head was usually turned over on to the + left side, in order that the dead man might look through the two great + eyes painted on that side of the coffin. Afterward the rigidly extended + position was always adopted. The Neolithic Egyptians, however, buried the + dead lying wholly on the left side and in a contracted position, with the + knees drawn up to the chin. The bodies were not embalmed, and the extended + position and mummification were never used. Under the IVth Dynasty we find + in the necropolis of Mêdûm (north of the Payyûm) the two positions used + simultaneously, and the extended bodies are mummified. The contracted + bodies are skeletons, as in the case of most of the predynastic bodies. + When these are found with flesh, skin, and hair intact, their preservation + is due to the dryness of the soil and the preservative salts it contains, + not to intentional embalming, which was evidently introduced by those who + employed the extended position in burial. The contracted position is found + as late as the Vth Dynasty at Dashasha, south of the Eayyûm, but after + that date it is no longer found. + </p> + <p> + The conclusion is obvious that the contracted position without + mummification, which the Neolithic people used, was supplanted in the + early dynastic period by the extended position with mummification, and by + the time of the VIth Dynasty it was entirely superseded. This points to + the supersession of the burial customs of the indigenous Neolithic race by + those of another race which conquered and dominated the indigenes. And, + since the extended burials of the IVth Dynasty are evidently those of the + higher nobles, while the contracted ones are those of inferior people, it + is probable that the customs of extended burial and embalming were + introduced by a foreign race which founded the Egyptian monarchical state, + with its hierarchy of nobles and officials, and in fact started Egyptian + civilization on its way. The conquerors of the North were thus not the + descendants of the Neolithic people of the South, but their conquerors; in + fact, they dominated the indigenes both of North and South, who will then + appear (since we find the custom of contracted burial in the North at + Dashasha and Mêdûm) to have originally belonged to the same race. + </p> + <p> + The conquering race is that which is supposed to have been of Semitic or + proto-Semitic origin, and to have brought elements of Sumerian culture to + savage Egypt. The reasons advanced for this supposition are the following:— + </p> + <p> + (1) Just as the Egyptian race was evidently compounded of two elements, of + conquered “Mediterraneans” and conquering x, so the Egyptian language is + evidently compounded of two elements, the one Nilotic, perhaps related in + some degree to the Berber dialects of North Africa, the other not x, but + evidently Semitic. + </p> + <p> + (2) Certain elements of the early dynastic civilization, which do not + appear in that of the earlier pre-dynastic period, resemble well-known + elements of the civilization of Babylonia. We may instance the use of the + cylinder-seal, which died out in Egypt in the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty, + but was always used in Babylonia from the earliest to the latest times. + The early Egyptian mace-head is of exactly the same type as the early + Babylonian one. In the British Museum is an Egyptian mace-head of red + breccia, which is identical in shape and size with one from Babylonia + (also in the museum) bearing the name of Shargani-shar-ali (i.e. Sargon, + King of Agade), one of the earliest Chaldæan monarchs, who must have lived + about the same time as the Egyptian kings of the IId-IIId Dynasties, to + which period the Egyptian mace-head may also be approximately assigned. + The Egyptian art of the earliest dynasties bears again a remarkable + resemblance to that of early Babylonia. It is not till the time of the IId + Dynasty that Egyptian art begins to take upon itself the regular form + which we know so well, and not till that of the IVth that this form was + finally crystallized. Under the 1st Dynasty we find the figure of man or, + to take other instances, that of a lion, or a hawk, or a snake, often + treated in a style very different from that in which we are accustomed to + see a man, a lion, a hawk, or a snake depicted in works of the later + period. And the striking thing is that these early representations, which + differ so much from what we find in later Egyptian art, curiously resemble + the works of early Babylonian art, of the time of the patesis of Shirpurla + or the Kings Shargani-shar-ali and Narâm-Sin. One of the best known relics + of the early art of Babylonia is the famous “Stele of Vultures” now in + Paris. On this we see the enemies of Eannadu, one of the early rulers of + Shirpurla, cast out to be devoured by the vultures. On an Egyptian relief + of slate, evidently originally dedicated in a temple record of some + historical event, and dating from the beginning of the Ist Dynasty + (practically contemporary, according to our latest knowledge, with + Eannadu), we have an almost exactly similar scene of captives being cast + out into the desert, and devoured by lions and vultures. The two reliefs + are curiously alike in their clumsy, naïve style of art. A further point + is that the official represented on the stele, who appears to be thrusting + one of the bound captives out to die, wears a long fringed garment of + Babylonish cut, quite different from the clothes of the later Egyptians. + </p> + <p> + (3) There are evidently two distinct and different main strata in the + fabric of Egyptian religion. On the one hand we find a mass of myth and + religious belief of very primitive, almost savage, cast, combining a + worship of the actual dead in their tombs—which were supposed to + communicate and thus form a veritable “underworld,” or, rather, + “under-Egypt”—with veneration of magic animals, such as jackals, + cats, hawks, and crocodiles. On the other hand, we have a sun and sky + worship of a more elevated nature, which does not seem to have amalgamated + with the earlier fetishism and corpse-worship until a comparatively late + period. The main seats of the sun-worship were at Heliopolis in the Delta + and at Edfu in Upper Egypt. Heliopolis seems always to have been a centre + of light and leading in Egypt, and it is, as is well known, the On of the + Bible, at whose university the Jewish lawgiver Moses is related to have + been educated “in all the wisdom of the Egyptians.” The philosophical + theories of the priests of the Sun-gods, Râ-Harmachis and Turn, at + Heliopolis seem to have been the source from which sprang the monotheistic + heresy of the Disk-Worshippers (in the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty), who, + under the guidance of the reforming King Akhunaten, worshipped only the + disk of the sun as the source of all life, the door in heaven, so to + speak, through which the hidden One Deity poured forth heat and light, the + origin of life upon the earth. Very early in Egyptian history the + Heliopolitans gained the upper hand, and the Râ-worship (under the Vth + Dynasty, the apogee of the Old Kingdom) came to the front, and for the + first time the kings took the afterwards time-honoured royal title of “Son + of the Sun.” It appears then as a more or less foreign importation into + the Nile valley, and bears most undoubtedly a Semitic impress. Its two + chief seats were situated, the one, Heliopolis, in the North on the + eastern edge of the Delta,—just where an early Semitic settlement + from over the desert might be expected to be found,—the other, Edfu, + in the Upper Egyptian territory south of the Thebaïd, Koptos, and the Wadi + Ham-mamat, and close to the chief settlement of the earliest kings and the + most ancient capital of Upper Egypt. + </p> + <p> + (4) The custom of burying at full length was evidently introduced into + Egypt by the second, or x race. The Neolithic Egyptians buried in the + cramped position. The early Babylonians buried at full length, as far as + we know. On the same “Stele of Vultures,” which has already been + mentioned, we see the burying at full length of dead warriors.<a + href="#fn1.7" name="fnref1.7"><sup>[7]</sup></a> There is no trace of any + <i>early</i> burial in Babylonia in the cramped position. The tombs at + Warka (Erech) with cramped bodies in pottery coffins are of very late + date. A further point arises with regard to embalming. The Neolithic + Egyptians did not embalm the dead. Usually their cramped bodies are found + as skeletons. When they are mummified, it is merely owing to the + preservative action of the salt in the soil, not to any process of + embalming. The second, or x race, however, evidently introduced the + custom of embalming as well as that of burial at full length and the use + of coffins. The Neolithic Egyptian used no box or coffin, the nearest + approach to this being a pot, which was inverted over the coiled up body. + Usually only a mat was put over the body. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.7"></a> <a href="#fnref1.7">[7]</a> +See illustration. +</p> + + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0013" id="linkimage-0013"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/038.jpg" width="100%" + alt="038.jpg Portion of the ‘stele Of Vultures’ Found At Telloh " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/038-text.jpg" width="100%" alt="038-text.jpg " /> + </div> + <p> + Now it is evident that Babylonians and Assyrians, who buried the dead at + full length in chests, had some knowledge of embalming. An Assyrian king + tells us how he buried his royal father:— + </p> + +<p class="poem"> + “Within the grave, the secret place,<br/> + In kingly oil, I gently laid him.<br/> + The grave-stone marketh his resting-place.<br/> + With mighty bronze I sealed its entrance,<br/> + And I protected it with an incantation.” + </p> + +<p class="noindent"> + The “kingly oil” was evidently used with the idea of preserving the body + from decay. Salt also was used to preserve the dead, and Herodotus says + that the Babylonians buried in honey, which was also used by the + Egyptians. No doubt the Babylonian method was less perfect than the + Egyptian, but the comparison is an interesting one, when taken in + connection with the other points of resemblance mentioned above. + </p> + <p> + We find, then, that an analysis of the Egyptian language reveals a Semitic + element in it; that the early dynastic culture had certain characteristics + which were unknown to the Neolithic Egyptians but are closely parallelled + in early Babylonia; that there were two elements in the Egyptian religion, + one of which seems to have originally belonged to the Neolithic people, + while the other has a Semitic appearance; and that there were two sets of + burial customs in early Egypt, one, that of the Neolithic people, the + other evidently that of a conquering race, which eventually prevailed over + the former; these later rites were analogous to those of the Babylonians + and Assyrians, though differing from them in points of detail. The + conclusion is that the x or conquering race was Semitic and brought to + Egypt the Semitic elements in the Egyptian religion and a culture + originally derived from that of the Sumerian inhabitants of Babylonia, the + non-Semitic parent of all Semitic civilizations. + </p> + <p> + The question now arises, how did this Semitic people reach Egypt? We have + the choice of two points of entry: First, Heliopolis in the North, where + the Semitic sun-worship took root, and, second, the Wadi Hamma-mat in the + South, north of Edfu, the southern centre of sun-worship, and + Hierakonpolis (Nekheb-Nekhen), the capital of the Upper Egyptian kingdom + which existed before the foundation of the monarchy. The legends which + seem to bring the ancestors of the Egyptians from the Red Sea coast have + already been mentioned. They are closely connected with the worship of the + Sky and Sun god Horus of Edfu. Hathor, his nurse, the “House of Horus,” + the centre of whose worship was at Dendera, immediately opposite the mouth + of the Wadi Hammamat, was said to have come from Ta-neter, “The Holy + Land,” i.e. Abyssinia or the Red Sea coast, with the company or <i>paut</i> + of the gods. Now the Egyptians always seem to have had some idea that they + were connected racially with the inhabitants of the Land of Punt or + Puenet, the modern Abyssinia and Somaliland. In the time of the XVIIIth + Dynasty they depicted the inhabitants of Punt as greatly resembling + themselves in form, feature, and dress, and as wearing the little + turned-up beard which was worn by the Egyptians of the earliest times, but + even as early as the IVth Dynasty was reserved for the gods. Further, the + word <i>Punt</i> is always written without the hieroglyph determinative of + a foreign country, thus showing that the Egyptians did not regard the + Punites as foreigners. This certainly looks as if the Punites were a + portion of the great migration from Arabia, left behind on the African + shore when the rest of the wandering people pressed on northwards to the + Wadi Hammamat and the Nile. It may be that the modern Gallas and + Abyssinians are descendants of these Punites. + </p> + <p> + Now the Sky-god of Edfu is in legend a conquering hero who advances down + the Nile valley, with his <i>Mesniu</i>, or “Smiths,” to overthrow the + people of the North, whom he defeats in a great battle near Dendera. This + may be a reminiscence of the first fights of the invaders with the + Neolithic inhabitants. The other form of Horus, “Horus, son of Isis,” has + also a body of retainers, the <i>Shemsu-Heru</i>, or “Followers of + Horns,” who are spoken of in late texts as the rulers of Egypt before the + monarchy. They evidently correspond to the dynasties of <i>Manes</i>, + Νεκύες or “Ghosts,” of Manetho, and are + probably intended for the early kings of Hierakonpolis. The mention of + the Followers of Horus as “Smiths” is very interesting, for it would + appear to show that the Semitic conquerors were notable as metal-users, + that, in fact, their conquest was that old story in the dawn of the + world’s history, the utter overthrow and subjection of the stone-users by + the metal-users, the primeval tragedy of the supersession of flint by + copper. This may be, but if the “Smiths” were the Semitic conquerors who + founded the kingdom, it would appear that the use of copper was known in + Egypt to some extent before their arrival, for we find it in the graves + of the late Neolithic Egyptians, very sparsely from “sequence-date 30” to + “45,” but afterwards more commonly. It was evidently becoming known. The + supposition, however, that the “Smiths” were the Semitic conquerors, and + that they won their way by the aid of their superior weapons of metal, + may be provisionally accepted. + </p> + <p> + In favour of the view which would bring the conquerors by way of the Wadi + Hammamat, an interesting discovery may be quoted. Immediately opposite + Den-dera, where, according to the legend, the battle between the <i>Mesniu</i> + and the aborigines took place, lies Koptos, at the mouth of the Wadi + Hammamat. Here, in 1894, underneath the pavement of the ancient temple, + Prof. Petrie found remains which he then diagnosed as belonging to the + most ancient epoch of Egyptian history. Among them were some extremely + archaic statues of the god Min, on which were curious scratched drawings + of bears, <i>crioceras-shells</i>, elephants walking over hills, etc., of + the most primitive description. With them were lions’ heads and birds of a + style then unknown, but which we now know to belong to the period of the + beginning of the Ist Dynasty. But the statues of Min are older. The <i>crioceras-shells</i> + belong to the Red Sea. Are we to see in these statues the holy images of + the conquerors from the Red Sea who reached the Nile valley by way of the + Wadi Hammamat, and set up the first memorials of their presence at Koptos? + It may be so, or the Min statues may be older than the conquerors, and + belong to the Neolithic race, since Min and his fetish (which we find on + the slate palette from el-’Amra, already mentioned) seem to belong to the + indigenous Nilotes. In any case we have in these statues, two of which are + in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, probably the most ancient cult-images + in the world: + </p> + <p> + This theory, which would make all the Neolithic inhabitants of Egypt one + people, who were conquered by a Semitic race, bringing a culture of + Sumerian origin to Egypt by way of the Wadi Hammamat, is that generally + accepted at the present time. It may, however, eventually prove necessary + to modify it. For reasons given above, it may well be that the Neolithic + population was itself not indigenous, and that it reached the Nile valley + by way of the Wadi Hammamat, spreading north and south from the mouth of + the <i>wadi</i>. It may also be considered probable that a Semitic wave + invaded Egypt by way of the Isthmus of Suez, where the early sun-cultus of + Heliopolis probably marks a primeval Semitic settlement. In that case it + would seem that the <i>Mesniu</i> or “Smiths,” who introduced the use of + metal, would have to be referred to the originally Neolithic pre-Semitic + people, who certainly were acquainted with the use of copper, though not + to any great extent. But this is not a necessary supposition. The <i>Mesniu</i> + are closely connected with the Sky-god Horus, who was possibly of Semitic + origin, and another Semitic wave, quite distinct from that which entered + Egypt by way of the Isthmus, may very well also have reached Egypt by the + Wadi Hammamat, or, equally possibly, from the far south, coming down to + the Nile from the Abyssinian mountains. The legend of the coming of Hathor + from Ta-neter may refer to some such wandering, and we know that the + Egyptians of the Old Kingdom communicated with the Land of Punt, not by + way of the Red Sea coast as Hatshepsut did, but by way of the Upper Nile. + This would tally well with the march of the <i>Mesniu</i> northwards from + Edfu to their battle with the forces of Set at Dendera. + </p> + <p> + In any case, at the dawn of connected Egyptian history, we find two main + centres of civilization in Egypt, Heliopolis and Buto in the Delta in the + North, and Edfu and Hierakonpolis in the South. Here were established at + the beginning of the Chalcolithic stage of culture, we may say, two + kingdoms, of Lower and Upper Egypt, which were eventually united by the + superior arms of the kings of Upper Egypt, who imposed their rule upon the + North but at the same time removed their capital thither. The dualism of + Buto and Hierakonpolis really lasted throughout Egyptian history. The king + was always called “Lord of the Two Lands,” and wore the crowns of Upper + and Lower Egypt; the snakes of Buto and Nekhebet (the goddess of Nekheb, + opposite Nekhen or Hierakonpolis) always typified the united kingdom. This + dualism of course often led to actual division and reversion to the + predynastic order of things, as, for instance, in the time of the XXIst + Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + It might well seem that both the impulses to culture development in the + North and South came from Semitic inspiration, and that it was to the + Semitic invaders in North and South that the founding of the two kingdoms + was due. This may be true to some extent, but it is at the same time very + probable that the first development of political culture at Hierakonpolis + was really of pre-Semitic origin. The kingdom of Buto, since its capital + is situated so near to the seacoast, may have owed its origin to oversea + Mediterranean connections. There is much in the political constitution of + later Egypt which seems to have been of indigenous and pre-Semitic origin. + Especially does this seem to be so in the case of the division and + organization of the country into nomes. It is obvious that so soon as + agriculture began to be practised on a large scale, boundaries would be + formed, and in the unique conditions of Egypt, where all boundaries + disappear beneath the inundation every year, it is evident that the fixing + of division-lines as permanently as possible by means of landmarks was + early essayed. We can therefore with confidence assign the formation of + the nomes to very early times. Now the names of the nomes and the symbols + or emblems by which they were distinguished are of very great interest in + this connection. They are nearly all figures of the magic animals of the + primitive religion, and fetish-emblems of the older deities. The names + are, in fact, those of the territories of the Neolithic Egyptian tribes, + and their emblems are those of the protecting tribal demons. The political + divisions of the country seem, then, to be of extremely ancient origin, + and if the nomes go back to a time before the Semitic invasions, so may + also the kingdoms of the South and North. + </p> + <p> + Of these predynastic kingdoms we know very little, except from legendary + sources. The Northerners who were conquered by Aha, Narmer, and + Khâsekhehiui do not look very much like Egyptians, but rather resemble + Semites or Libyans. On the “Stele of Palermo,” a chronicle of early kings + inscribed in the period of the Vth Dynasty, we have a list of early kings + of the North,—Seka, Desau, Tiu, Tesh, Nihab, Uatjântj, Mekhe. The + names are primitive in form. We know nothing more about them. Last year + Mr. C. T. Currelly attempted to excavate at Buto, in order to find traces + of the predynastic kingdom, but owing to the infiltration of water his + efforts were unsuccessful. It is improbable that anything is now left of + the most ancient period at that site, as the conditions in the Delta are + so very different from those obtaining in Upper Egypt. There, at + Hierakonpolis, and at el-Kab on the opposite bank of the Nile, the sites + of the ancient cities Nekhen and Nekheb, the excavators have been very + successful. The work was carried out by Messrs. Quibell and Green, in the + years 1891-9. Prehistoric burials were found on the hills near by, but the + larger portion of the antiquities were recovered from the temple-ruins, + and date back to the beginning of the 1st Dynasty, exactly the time when + the kings of Hierakonpolis first conquered the kingdom of Buto and founded + the united Egyptian monarchy. + </p> + <p> + The ancient temple, which was probably one of the earliest seats of + Egyptian civilization, was situated on a mound, now known as <i>el-Kom + el-ahmar</i>, “the Red Hill,” from its colour. The chief feature of the + most ancient temple seems to have been a circular mound, revetted by a + wall of sandstone blocks, which was apparently erected about the end of + the predynastic period. Upon this a shrine was probably erected. This was + the ancient shrine of Nekhen, the cradle of the Egyptian monarchy. Close + by it were found some of the most valuable relics of the earliest + Pharaonic age, the great ceremonial mace-heads and vases of Narmer and + “the Scorpion,” the shields or “palettes” of the same Narmer, the vases + and stelas of Khâsekhemui, and, of later date, the splendid copper + colossal group of King Pepi I and his son, which is now at Cairo. Most of + the 1st Dynasty objects are preserved in the Ashmo-lean Museum at Oxford, + which is one of the best centres for the study of early Egyptian + antiquities. Narmer and Khâsekhemui are, as we shall see, two of the first + monarchs of all Egypt. These sculptured and inscribed mace-heads, shields, + etc., are monuments dedicated by them in the ancestral shrine at + Hierakonpolis as records of their deeds. Both kings seem to have waged war + against the Northerners, the <i>Anu</i> of Heliopolis and the Delta, and + on these votive monuments from Hierakonpolis we find hieroglyphed records + of the defeat of the <i>Anu</i>, who have very definitely Semitic + physiognomies. + </p> + <p> + On one shield or palette we see Narmer clubbing a man of Semitic + appearance, who is called the “Only One of the Marsh” (Delta), while below + two other Semites fly, seeking “fortress-protection.” Above is a figure of + a hawk, symbolizing the Upper Egyptian king, holding a rope which is + passed through the nose of a Semitic head, while behind is a sign which + may be read as “the North,” so that the whole symbolizes the leading away + of the North into captivity by the king of the South. It is significant, + in view of what has been said above with regard to the probable Semitic + origin of the Heliopolitan Northerners, to find the people typical of the + North-land represented by the Southerners as Semites. Equally Semitic is + the overthrown Northerner on the other side of this well-known monument + which we are describing; he is being trampled under the hoofs and gored by + the horns of a bull, who, like the hawk, symbolizes the king. The royal + bull has broken down the wall of a fortified enclosure, in which is the + hut or tent of the Semite, and the bricks lie about promiscuously. + </p> + <p> + In connection with the Semitic origin of the Northerners, the form of the + fortified enclosures on both sides of this monument (that to whose + protection the two Semites on one side fly, and that out of which the + kingly bull has dragged the chief on the other) is noticeable. As usual in + Egyptian writing, the hieroglyph of these buildings takes the form of a + plan. The plan shows a crenelated enclosure, resembling the walls of a + great Babylonian palace or temple, such as have been found at Telloh, + Warka, or Mukayyar. The same design is found in Egypt at the Shuret + ez-Zebib, an Old Kingdom fortress at Abydos, in the tomb of King Aha at + Nakâda, and in many walls of mastaba-tombs of the early time. This is + another argument in favour of an early connection between Egypt and + Babylonia. We illustrate a fragment of another votive shield or palette of + the same kind, now in the museum of the Louvre, which probably came + originally from Hierakonpolis. It is of exactly similar workmanship to + that of Narmer, and is no doubt a fragment of another monument of that + king. On it we see the same subject of the overthrowing of a Northerner + (of Semitic aspect) by the royal bull. On one side, below, is a fortified + enclosure with crenelated walls of the type we have described, and within + it a lion and a vase; below this another fort, and a bird within it. These + signs may express the names of the two forts, but, owing to the fact that + at this early period Egyptian orthography was not yet fixed, we cannot + read them. On the other side we see a row of animated nome-standards of + Upper Egypt, with the symbols of the god Min of Koptos, the hawk of Horus + of Edfu, the ibis of Thot of Eshmunên, and the jackals of Anubis of + Abydos, which drag a rope; had we the rest of the monument, we should see, + bound at the end of the rope, some prisoner, king, or animal symbolic of + the North. On another slate shield, which we also reproduce, we see a + symbolical representation of the capture of seven Northern cities, whose + names seem to mean the “Two Men,” the “Heron,” the “Owl,” the “Palm,” and + the “Ghost” Cities. + </p> + <p> + “Ghost City” is attacked by a lion, “Owl City” by a hawk, “Palm City” by + two hawk nome-standards, and another, whose name we cannot guess at, is + being opened up by a scorpion. + </p> + <table summary=""> + <tr> + <td> + <a name="linkimage-0016" id="linkimage-0016"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/050.jpg" width="100%" + alt="050.jpg (left) Obverse of a Slate Relief. " /> + </div> + </td> + <td> + <a name="linkimage-0017" id="linkimage-0017"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/051.jpg" width="100%" alt="051.jpg (right) " /> + </div> + </td> + </tr> + </table> + <p> + The operating animals evidently represent nomes and tribes of the Upper + Egyptians. Here again we see the same crenelated walls of the Northern + towns, and there is no doubt that this slate fragment also, which is + preserved in the Cairo Museum, is a monument of the conquests of Narmer. + It is executed in the same archaic style as those from Hierakonpolis. The + animals on the other side no doubt represent part of the spoil of the + North. + </p> + <p> + Returning to the great shield or palette found by Mr. Quibell, we see the + king coming out, followed by his sandal-bearer, the <i>Hen-neter</i> or + “God’s Servant,”<a href="#fn1.8" name="fnref1.8"><sup>[8]</sup></a> to view the dead bodies of the slain Northerners which + lie arranged in rows, decapitated, and with their heads between their + feet. The king is preceded by a procession of nome-standards. + </p> + <p> + Above the dead men are symbolic representations of a hawk perched on a + harpoon over a boat, and a hawk and a door, which doubtless again refer to + the fights of the royal hawk of Upper Egypt on the Nile and at the gate of + the North. The designs on the mace-heads refer to the same conquest of the + North. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn1.8"></a> <a href="#fnref1.8">[8]</a> + In his commentary (Hierakonpolis, i. p. 9) on this scene, + Prof. Petrie supposes that the seven-pointed star sign means + “king,” and compares the eight-pointed star “used for king + in Babylonia.” The eight-pointed star of the cuneiform + script does not mean “king,” but “god.” The star then ought + to mean “god,” and the title “servant of a god,” and this + supposition may be correct. <i>Hen-neter</i>, “god’s servant,” + was the appellation of a peculiar kind of priest in later + days, and was then spelt with the ordinary sign for a god, + the picture of an axe. But in the archaic period, with which + we are dealing, a star like the Babylonian sign may very + well have been used for “god,” and the title of Narmer’s + sandal-bearer may read <i>Hen-neter</i>. He was the slave of the + living god Narmer. All Egyptian kings were regarded as + deities, more or less. +</p> + <p> + The monuments Khâsekhemui, a king, show us that he conquered the North + also and slew 47,209 “Northern Enemies.” The contorted attitudes of the + dead Northerners were greatly admired and sketched at the time, and were + reproduced on the pedestal of the king’s statue found by Mr. Quibell, + which is now at Oxford. It was an age of cheerful savage energy, like most + times when kingdoms and peoples are in the making. About 4000 B.C. is the + date of these various monuments. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0018" id="linkimage-0018"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/052.jpg" width="100%" + alt="052.jpg Obverse Op a Slate Relief. " /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkimage-0019" id="linkimage-0019"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/053.jpg" width="100%" + alt="053.jpg Reverse of a Slate Relief, Representing Animals. " /> + </div> + <p> + Khâsekhemui probably lived later than Narmer, and we may suppose that his + conquest was in reality a re-conquest. He may have lived as late as the + time of the IId Dynasty, whereas Narmer must be placed at the beginning of + the Ist, and his conquest was probably that which first united the two + kingdoms of the South and North. As we shall see in the next chapter, he + is probably one of the originals of the legendary “Mena,” who was regarded + from the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty onwards as the founder of the + kingdom, and was first made known to Europe by Herodotus, under the name + of “Menés.” + </p> + <p> + Narmer is therefore the last of the ancient kings of Hierakonpolis, the + last of Manetho’s “Spirits.” We may possibly have recovered the names of + one or two of the kings anterior to Narmer in the excavations at Abydos + (see Chapter II), but this is uncertain. To all intents and purposes we + have only legendary knowledge of the Southern kingdom until its close, + when Narmer the mighty went forth to strike down the Anu of the North, an + exploit which he recorded in votive monuments at Hierakonpolis, and which + was commemorated henceforward throughout Egyptian history in the yearly + “Feast of the Smiting of the Anu.” Then was Egypt for the first time + united, and the fortress of the “White Wall,” the “Good Abode” of Memphis, + was built to dominate the lower country. The Ist Dynasty was founded and + Egyptian history began. + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/054.jpg" width="100%" alt="" /> + </div> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0002" id="link2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER II—ABYDOS AND THE FIRST THREE DYNASTIES + </h2> + <p> + Until the recent discoveries had been made, which have thrown so much + light upon the early history of Egypt, the traditional order and names of + the kings of the first three Egyptian dynasties were, in default of more + accurate information, retained by all writers on the history of the + period. The names were taken from the official lists of kings at Abydos + and elsewhere, and were divided into dynasties according to the system of + Manetho, whose names agree more or less with those of the lists and were + evidently derived from them ultimately. With regard to the fourth and + later dynasties it was clear that the king-lists were correct, as their + evidence agreed entirely with that of the contemporary monuments. But no + means existed of checking the lists of the first three dynasties, as no + contemporary monuments other than a IVth Dynasty mention of a IId Dynasty + king, Send, had been found. The lists dated from the time of the XVIIIth + and XIXth Dynasties, so that it was very possible that with regard to the + earliest dynasties they might not be very correct. This conclusion gained + additional weight from the fact that no monuments of these earliest kings + were ever discovered; it therefore seemed probable that they were purely + legendary figures, in whose time (if they ever did exist) Egypt was still + a semi-barbarous nation. The jejune stories told about them by Manetho + seemed to confirm this idea. Mena, the reputed founder of the monarchy, + was generally regarded as a historical figure, owing to the persistence of + his name in all ancient literary accounts of the beginnings of Egyptian + history; for it was but natural to suppose that the name of the man who + unified Egypt and founded Memphis would endure in the mouths of the + people. But with regard to his successors no such supposition seemed + probable, until the time of Sneferu and the pyramid-builders. + </p> + <p> + This was the critical view. Another school of historians accepted all the + kings of the lists as historical <i>en bloc</i>, simply because the + Egyptians had registered their names as kings. To them Teta, Ateth, and + Ata were as historical as Mena. + </p> + <p> + Modern discovery has altered our view, and truth is seen to lie between + the opposing schools, as usual. The kings after Mena do not seem to be + such entirely unhistorical figures as the extreme critics thought; the + names of several of them, e.g. Merpeba, of the Ist Dynasty, are correctly + given in the later lists, and those of others were simply misread, e. g. + that of Semti of the same dynasty, misread “Hesepti” by the list-makers. + On the other hand, Mena himself has become a somewhat doubtful quantity. + The real names of most of the early monarchs of Egypt have been recovered + for us by the latest excavations, and we can now see when the list-makers + of the XIXth Dynasty were right and when they were wrong, and can + distinguish what is legendary in their work from what is really + historical. It is true that they very often appear to have been wrong, + but, on the other hand, they were sometimes unexpectedly near the mark, + and the general number and arrangement of their kings seems correct; so + that we can still go to them for assistance in the arrangement of the + names which are communicated to us by the newly discovered monuments. + Manetho’s help, too, need never be despised because he was a copyist of + copyists; we can still use him to direct our investigations, and his + arrangement of dynasties must still remain the framework of our + chronological scheme, though he does not seem to have been always correct + as to the places in which the dynasties originated. + </p> + <p> + More than the names of the kings have the new discoveries communicated to + us. They have shed a flood of light on the beginnings of Egyptian + civilization and art, supplementing the recently ascertained facts + concerning the prehistoric age which have been described in the preceding + chapter. The impulse to these discoveries was given by the work of M. de + Morgan, who excavated sites of the early dynastic as well as of the + predynastic age. Among these was a great mastaba-tomb at Nakâda, which + proved to be that of a very early king who bore the name of Aha, “the + Fighter.” The walls of this tomb are crenelated like those of the early + Babylonian palaces and the forts of the Northerners, already referred to. + M. de Morgan early perceived the difference between the Neolithic + antiquities and those of the later archaic period of Egyptian + civilization, to which the tomb at Nakâda belonged. In the second volume + of his great work on the primitive antiquities of Egypt <i>(L’Age des + Métaux et lé Tombeau Royale de Négadeh)</i>, he described the antiquities + of the Ist Dynasty which had been found at the time he wrote. Antiquities + of the same primitive period and even of an earlier date had been + discovered by Prof. Flinders Petrie, as has already been said, at Koptos, + at the mouth of the Wadi Hammamat. But though Prof. Petrie correctly + diagnosed the age of the great statues of the god Min which he found, he + was led, by his misdating of the “New Race” antiquities from Ballas and + Tûkh, also to misdate several of the primitive antiquities,—the + lions and hawks, for instance, found at Koptos, he placed in the period + between the VIIth and Xth Dynasties; whereas they can now, in the light of + further discoveries at Abydos, be seen to date to the earlier part of the + Ist Dynasty, the time of Narmer and Aha. + </p> + <p> + It is these discoveries at Abydos, coupled with those (already described) + of Mr. Quibell at Hierakonpolis, which have told us most of what we know + with regard to the history of the first three dynasties. At Abydos Prof. + Petrie was not himself the first in the field, the site having already + been partially explored by a French Egyptologist, M. Amélineau. The + excavations of M. Amélineau were, however, perhaps not conducted strictly + on scientific lines, and his results have been insufficiently published + with very few photographs, so that with the best will in the world we are + unable to give M. Amélineau the full credit which is, no doubt, due to him + for his work. The system of Prof. Petrie’s publications has been often, + and with justice, criticized, but he at least tells us every year what he + has been doing, and gives us photographs of everything he has found. For + this reason the epoch-making discoveries at Abydos have been coupled + chiefly with the name of Prof. Petrie, while that of M. Amélineau is + rarely heard in connection with them. As a matter of fact, however, M. + Amélineau first excavated the necropolis of the early kings at Abydos, and + discovered most of the tombs afterwards worked over by Prof. Petrie and + Mr. Mace. Yet most of the important scientific results are due to the + later explorers, who were the first to attempt a classification of them, + though we must add that this classification has not been entirely accepted + by the scientific world. + </p> + <p> + The necropolis of the earliest kings of Egypt is situated in the great bay + in the hills which lies behind Abydos, to the southwest of the main + necropolis. Here, at holy Abydos, where every pious Egyptian wished to + rest after death, the bodies of the most ancient kings were buried. It is + said by Manetho that the original seat of their dominion was This, a town + in the vicinity of Abydos, now represented by the modern Grîrga, which + lies a few miles distant from its site (el-Birba). This may be a fact, but + we have as yet obtained no confirmation of it. It may well be that the + attribution of a Thinite origin to the Ist and IId Dynasties was due + simply to the fact that the kings of these dynasties were buried at + Abydos, which lay within the Thinite nome. Manetho knew that they were + buried at Abydos, and so jumped to the conclusion that they lived there + also, and called them “Thinites.” + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0021" id="linkimage-0021"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/060.jpg" width="100%" + alt="060.jpg Prof. Petrie’s Camp at Abydos, 1901. " /> + </div> + <p> + Their real place of origin must have been Hierakonpolis, where the + pre-dynastic kingdom of the South had its seat. The Hid Dynasty was no + doubt of Memphite origin, as Manetho says. It is certain that the seat of + the government of the IVth Dynasty was at Memphis, where the + pyramid-building kings were buried, and we know that the sepulchres of two + Hid Dynasty kings, at least, were situated in the necropolis of Memphis + (Sakkâra-Mêdûm). So that probably the seat of government was transferred + from Hierakonpolis to Memphis by the first king of the Hid Dynasty. + Thenceforward the kings were buried in the Memphite necropolis. + </p> + <p> + The two great nécropoles of Memphis and Abydos were originally the seats + of the worship of the two Egyptian gods of the dead, Seker and + Khentamenti, both of whom were afterwards identified with the Busirite god + Osiris. Abydos was also the centre of the worship of Anubis, an + animal-deity of the dead, the jackal who prowls round the tombs at night. + Anubis and Osiris-Khentamenti, “He who is in the West,” were associated in + the minds of the Egyptians as the protecting deities of Abydos. The + worship of these gods as the chief Southern deities of the dead, and the + preeminence of the necropolis of Abydos in the South, no doubt date back + before the time of the Ist Dynasty, so that it would not surprise us were + burials of kings of the predynastic Hierakonpolite kingdom discovered at + Abydos. Prof. Petrie indeed claims to have discovered actual royal relics + of that period at Abydos, but this seems to be one of the least certain of + his conclusions. We cannot definitely state that the names “Ro,” “Ka,” and + “Sma” (if they are names at all, which is doubtful) belong to early kings + of Hierakonpolis who were buried at Abydos. It may be so, but further + confirmation is desirable before we accept it as a fact; and as yet such + confirmation has not been forthcoming. The oldest kings, who were + certainly buried at Abydos, seem to have been the first rulers of the + united kingdom of the North and South, Aha and his successors. N’armer is + not represented. It may be that he was not buried at Abydos, but in the + necropolis of Hierakonpolis. This would point to the kings of the South + not having been buried at Abydos until after the unification of the + kingdom. + </p> + <p> + That Aha possessed a tomb at Abydos as well as another at Nakâda seems + peculiar, but it is a phenomenon not unknown in Egypt. Several kings, + whose bodies were actually buried elsewhere, had second tombs at Abydos, + in order that they might <i>possess</i> last resting-places near the tomb + of Osiris, although they might not prefer to <i>use</i> them. Usertsen (or + Senusret) III is a case in point. He was really buried in a pyramid at + Illahun, up in the North, but he had a great rock tomb cut for him in the + cliffs at Abydos, which he never occupied, and probably had never intended + to occupy. We find exactly the same thing far back at the beginning of + Egyptian history, when Aha possessed not only a great mastaba-tomb at + Nakâda, but also a tomb-chamber in the great necropolis of Abydos. It may + be that other kings of the earliest period also had second sepulchres + elsewhere. It is noteworthy that in none of the early tombs at Abydos were + found any bodies which might be considered those of the kings themselves. + M. Amélineau discovered bodies of attendants or slaves (who were in all + probability purposely strangled and buried around the royal chamber in + order that they should attend the king in the next world), but no + royalties. Prof. Petrie found the arm of a female mummy, who may have been + of royal blood, though there is nothing to show that she was. And the + quaint plait and fringe of false hair, which were also found, need not + have belonged to a royal mummy. It is therefore quite possible that these + tombs at Abydos were not the actual last resting-places of the earliest + kings, who may really have been buried at Hierakonpolis or elsewhere, as + Aha was. Messrs. Newberry and Gtarstang, in their <i>Short History of + Egypt</i>, suppose that Aha was actually buried at Abydos, and that the + great tomb with objects bearing his name, found by M. de Morgan at Nakâda, + is really not his, but belonged to a royal princess named Neit-hetep, + whose name is found in conjunction with his at Abydos and Nakâda. But the + argument is equally valid turned round the other way: the Nakâda tomb + might just as well be Aha’s and the Abydos one Neit-hetep’s. Neit-hetep, + who is supposed by Messrs. Newberry and Garstang to have been Narmer’s + daughter and Aha’s wife, was evidently closely connected with Aha, and she + may have been buried with him at Nakâda and commemorated with him at + Abydos.<a href="#fn2.1" name="fnref2.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> It is probable that the XIXth Dynasty list-makers and Manetho + considered the Abydos tombs to have been the real graves of the kings, but + it is by no means impossible that they were wrong. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn2.1"></a> <a href="#fnref2.1">[1]</a> + A princess named Bener-ab (“Sweet-heart”), who may have + been Aha’s daughter, was actually buried beside his tomb at + Abydos. +</p> + <p> + This view of the royal tombs at Abydos tallies to a great extent with that + of M. Naville, who has energetically maintained the view that M. Amélineau + and Prof. Petrie have not discovered the real tombs of the early kings, + but only their contemporary commemorative “tombs” at Abydos. The only real + tomb of the Ist Dynasty, therefore, as yet discovered is that of Aha at + Nakâda, found by M. de Morgan. The fact that attendant slaves were buried + around the Abydos tombs is no bar to the view that the tombs were only the + monuments, not the real graves, of the kings. The royal ghosts would + naturally visit their commemorative chambers at Abydos, in order to be in + the company of the great Osiris, and ghostly servants would be as + necessary to their Majesties at Abydos as elsewhere. + </p> + <p> + It must not be thought that this revised opinion of the Abydos tombs + detracts in the slightest degree from the importance of the discovery of + M. Amélineau and its subsequent and more detailed investigation by Prof. + Petrie. These monuments are as valuable for historical purposes as the + real tombs themselves. The actual bodies of these primeval kings + themselves we are never likely to find. The tomb of Aha at Nakâda had been + completely rifled in ancient times. + </p> + <p> + The commemorative tombs of the kings of the Ist and IId Dynasties at + Abydos lie southwest of the great necropolis, far within the bay in the + hills. Their present aspect is that of a wilderness of sand hillocks, + covered with masses of fragments of red pottery, from which the site has + obtained the modern Arab name of <i>Umm el-Ga’ab</i>, “Mother of Pots.” It + is impossible to move a step in any direction without crushing some of + these potsherds under the heel. They are chiefly the remains of the + countless little vases of rough red pottery, which were dedicated here as + <i>ex-votos</i> by the pious, between the XIXth and XXVIth Dynasties, to + the memory of the ancient kings and of the great god Osiris, whose tomb, + as we shall see, was supposed to have been situated here also. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0022" id="linkimage-0022"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figright" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/065.jpg" + alt="065.jpg (right) the Tomb of King Den at Abydos. About 4000 B.C. " /> + </div> + <p> + Intermingled with these later fragments are pieces of the original Ist + Dynasty vases, which were filled with wine and provisions and were placed + in the tombs, for the refreshment and delectation of the royal ghosts when + they should visit their houses at Abydos. These were thrown out and broken + when the tombs were violated. Here and there one sees a dip in the sand, + out of which rise four walls of great bricks, forming a rectangular + chamber, half-filled with sand. This is one of the royal tomb-chambers of + the Ist Dynasty. That of King Den is illustrated above. A straight + staircase descends into it from the ground-level above. In several of the + tombs the original flooring of wooden beams is still preserved. Den’s is + the most magnificent of all, for it has a floor of granite blocks; we know + of no other instance of stone being used for building in this early age. + Almost every tomb has been burnt at some period unknown. The brick walls + are burnt red, and many of the alabaster vases are almost calcined. This + was probably the work of some unknown enemy. + </p> + <p> + The wide complicated tombs have around the main chamber a series of + smaller rooms, which were used to store what was considered necessary for + the use of the royal ghost. Of these necessaries the most interesting to + us are the slaves, who were, as there is little reason to doubt, purposely + killed and buried round the royal chamber so that their spirits should be + on the spot when the dead king came to Abydos; thus they would be always + ready to serve him with the food and other things which had been stored in + the tomb with them and placed under their charge. There were stacks of + great vases of wine, corn, and other food; these were covered up with + masses of fat to preserve the contents, and they were corked with a + pottery stopper, which was protected by a conical clay sealing, stamped + with the impress of the royal cylinder-seal. There were bins of corn, + joints of oxen, pottery dishes, copper pans, and other things which might + be useful for the ghostly cuisine of the tomb. There were numberless small + objects, used, no doubt, by the dead monarch during life, which he would + be pleased to see again in the next world,—carved ivory boxes, + little slabs for grinding eye-paint, golden buttons, model tools, model + vases with gold tops, ivory and pottery figurines, and other <i>objets + d’art</i>; the golden royal seal of judgment of King Den in its ivory + casket, and so forth. There were memorials of the royal victories in peace + and war, little ivory plaques with inscriptions commemorating the founding + of new buildings, the institution of new religious festivals in honour of + the gods, the bringing of the captives of the royal bow and spear to the + palace, the discomfiture of the peoples of the North-land. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0023" id="linkimage-0023"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/067.jpg" width="100%" + alt="067.jpg Conical Vase-stoppers. From Abydos. 1st Dynasty: About 4000 B.c. " /> + </div> + <p> + All these things, which have done so much to reconstitute for us the + history of the earliest period of the Egyptian monarchy, were placed under + the care of the dead slaves whose bodies were buried round the empty + tomb-chamber of their royal master in Abydos. + </p> + <p> + The killing and entombment of the royal servants is of the highest + anthropological interest, for it throws a vivid light upon the manners of + the time. It shows the primeval Egyptians as a semi-barbaric people of + childishly simple ways of thought. The king was dead. For all his kingship + he was a man, and no man was immortal in this world. But yet how could one + really die? Shadows, dreams, all kinds of phenomena which the primitive + mind could not explain, induced the belief that, though the outer man + might rot, there was an inner man which could not die and still lived on. + The idea of total death was unthinkable. And where should this inner man + still live on but in the tomb to which the outer man was consigned? And + here, doubtless it was believed, in the house to which the body was + consigned, the ghost lived on. And as each ghost had his house with the + body, so no doubt all ghosts could communicate with one another from tomb + to tomb; and so there grew up the belief in a tomb-world, a subterranean + Egypt of tombs, in which the dead Egyptians still lived and had their + being. Later on the boat of the sun, in which the god of light crossed the + heavens by day, was thought to pass through this dead world between his + setting and his rising, accompanied by the souls of the righteous. But of + this belief we find no trace yet in the ideas of the Ist Dynasty. All we + can see is that the <i>sahus</i>, or bodies of the dead, were supposed to + reside in awful majesty in the tomb, while the ghosts could pass from tomb + to tomb through the mazes of the underworld. Over this dread realm of dead + men presided a dead god, Osiris of Abydos; and so the necropolis of Abydos + was the necropolis of the underworld, to which all ghosts who were not its + rightful citizens would come from afar to pay their court to their ruler. + Thus the man of substance would have a monumental tablet put up to himself + in this necropolis as a sort of <i>pied-à-terre</i>, even if he could not + be buried there; for the king, who, for reasons chiefly connected with + local patriotism, was buried near the city of his earthly abode, a second + tomb would be erected, a stately mansion in the city of Osiris, in which + his ghost could reside when it pleased him to come to Abydos. + </p> + <p> + Now none could live without food, and men living under the earth needed it + as much as men living on the earth. The royal tomb was thus provided with + an enormous amount of earthly food for the use of the royal ghost, and + with other things as well, as we have seen. The same provision had also to + be made for the royal resting-place at Abydos. And in both cases royal + slaves were needed to take care of all this provision, and to serve the + ghost of the king, whether in his real tomb at Nakâda, or elsewhere, or in + his second tomb at Abydos. Ghosts only could serve ghosts, so that of the + slaves ghosts had to be made. That was easily done; they died when their + master died and followed him to the tomb. No doubt it seemed perfectly + natural to all concerned, to the slaves as much as to anybody else. But it + shows the child’s idea of the value of life. An animate thing was hardly + distinguished at this period from an inanimate thing. The most ancient + Egyptians buried slaves with their kings as naturally as they buried jars + of wine and bins of corn with them. Both were buried with a definite + object. The slaves had to die before they were buried, but then so had the + king himself. They all had to die sometime or other. And the actual + killing of them was no worse than killing a dog, no worse even than + “killing” golden buttons and ivory boxes. For, when the buttons and boxes + were buried with the king, they were just as much dead as the slaves. Of + the sanctity of <i>human</i> life as distinct from other life, there was + probably no idea at all. The royal ghost needed ghostly servants, and they + were provided as a matter of course. + </p> + <p> + But as civilization progressed, the ideas of the Egyptians changed on + these points, and in the later ages of the ancient world they were + probably the most humane of the peoples, far more so than the Greeks, in + fact. The cultured Hellenes murdered their prisoners of war without + hesitation. Who has not been troubled in mind by the execution of Mkias + and Demosthenes after the surrender of the Athenian army at Syracuse? When + we compare this with Grant’s refusal even to take Lee’s sword at + Appomattox, we see how we have progressed in these matters; while Gylippus + and the Syracusans were as much children as the Ist Dynasty Egyptians. But + the Egyptians of Gylippus’s time had probably advanced much further than + the Greeks in the direction of rational manhood. When Amasis had his rival + Apries in his power, he did not put him to death, but kept him as his + coadjutor on the throne. Apries fled from him, allied himself with Greek + pirates, and advanced against his generous rival. After his defeat and + murder at Momemphis, Amasis gave him a splendid burial. When we compare + this generosity to a beaten foe with the savagery of the Assyrians, for + instance, we see how far the later Egyptians had progressed in the paths + of humanity. + </p> + <p> + The ancient custom of killing slaves was first discontinued at the death + of the lesser chieftains, but we find a possible survival of it in the + case of a king, even as late as the time of the XIth Dynasty; for at + Thebes, in the precinct of the funerary temple of King Neb-hapet-Râ + Mentuhetep and round the central pyramid which commemorated his memory, + were buried a number of the ladies of his <i>harîm</i>. They were all + buried at one and the same time, and there can be little doubt that they + were all killed and buried round the king, in order to be with him in the + next world. Now with each of these ladies, who had been turned into + ghosts, was buried a little waxen human figure placed in a little model + coffin. This was to replace her own slave. She who went to accompany the + king in the next world had to have her own attendant also. But, not being + royal, a real slave was not killed for her; she only took with her a waxen + figure, which by means of charms and incantations would, when she called + upon it, turn into a real slave, and say, “Here am I,” and do whatever + work might be required of her. The actual killing and burial of the slaves + had in all cases except that of the king been long “commuted,” so to + speak, into a burial with the dead person of <i>ushabtis</i>, or + “Answerers,” little figures like those described above, made more usually + of stone, and inscribed with the name of the deceased. They were called + “Answerers” because they answered the call of their dead master or + mistress, and by magic power became ghostly servants. Later on they were + made of wood and glazed <i>faïence</i>, as well as stone. By this means + the greater humanity of a later age sought a relief from the primitive + disregard of the death of others. + </p> + <p> + Anthropologically interesting as are the results of the excavations at Umm + el-Gra’ab, they are no less historically important. There is no need here + to weary the reader with the details of scientific controversy; it will + suffice to set before him as succinctly and clearly as possible the net + results of the work which has been done. + </p> + <p> + Messrs. Amélineau and Petrie have found the secondary tombs and have + identified the names of the following primeval kings of Egypt. We arrange + them in their apparent historical order. + </p> + <p> + 1. Aha Men (?). + </p> + <p> + 2. Narmer (or Betjumer) Sma (?). + </p> + <p> + 3. Tjer (or Khent). Besh. + </p> + <p> + 4. Tja Ati. + </p> + <p> + 5. Den Semti. + </p> + <p> + 6. Atjab Merpeba. + </p> + <p> + 7. Semerkha Nekht. + </p> + <p> + 8. Qâ Sen. + </p> + <p> + 9. Khâsekhem (Khâsekhemui) + </p> + <p> + 10. Hetepsekhemui. + </p> + <p> + 11. Räneb. + </p> + <p> + 12. Neneter. + </p> + <p> + 13. Sekhemab Perabsen. + </p> + <p> + Two or three other names are ascribed by Prof. Petrie to the + Hierakonpolite dynasty of Upper Egypt, which, as it occurs before the time + of Mena and the Ist Dynasty, he calls “Dynasty 0.” Dynasty 0, however, is + no dynasty, and in any case we should prefer to call the “predynastic” + dynasty “Dynasty I.” The names of “Dynasty minus One,” however, remain + problematical, and for the present it would seem safer to suspend judgment + as to the place of the supposed royal names “Ro” and “Ka”(Men-kaf), which + Prof. Petrie supposes to have been those of two of the kings of Upper + Egypt who reigned before Mena. The king “Sma”(“Uniter”) is possibly + identical with Aha or Narmer, more probably the latter. It is not + necessary to detail the process by which Egyptologists have sought to + identify these thirteen kings with the successors of Mena in the lists of + kings and the Ist and IId Dynasties of Manetho. The work has been very + successful, though not perhaps quite so completely accomplished as Prof. + Petrie himself inclines to believe. The first identification was made by + Prof. Sethe, of Gottingen, who pointed out that the names Semti and + Merpeba on a vase-fragment found by M. Amélineau were in reality those of + the kings Hesepti and Merbap of the lists, the Ousaphaïs and Miebis of + Manetho. The perfectly certain identifications are these:— + </p> + <p> + 5. Den Semti = Hesepti, <i>Ousaphaïs</i>, Ist Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + 6. Atjab Merpeba = Merbap, <i>Miebis</i>, Ist Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + 7. Semerkha Nekht= Shemsu or Semsem (?), <i>Semempres</i>, Ist Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + 8. Qâ Sen = Qebh, <i>Bienehhes</i>, Ist Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + 9. Khâsekhemui Besh = Betju-mer (?), <i>Boethos</i>, IId Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + 10. Neneter = Bineneter, <i>Binothris</i>, IId Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + Six of the Abydos kings have thus been identified with names in the lists + and in Manetho; that is to say, we now know the real names of six of the + earliest Egyptian monarchs, whose appellations are given us under + mutilated forms by the later list-makers. Prof. Petrie further identifies + (4) Tja Ati with Ateth, (3) Tjer with Teta, and (1) Aha with Mena. Mena, + Teta, Ateth, Ata, Hesepti, Merbap, Shemsu (?), and Qebh are the names of + the 1st Dynasty as given in the lists. The equivalent of Ata Prof. Petrie + finds in the name “Merneit,” which is found at Umm el-Ga’ab. But there is + no proof whatever that Merneit was a king; he was much more probably a + prince or other great personage of the reign of Den, who was buried with + the kings. Prof. Petrie accepts the identification of the personal name of + Aha as “Men,” and so makes him the only equivalent of Mena. But this + reading of the name is still doubtful. Arguing that Aha must be Mena, and + having all the rest of the kings of the Ist Dynasty identified with the + names in the lists, Prof. Petrie is compelled to exclude Narmer from the + dynasty, and to relegate him to “Dynasty 0,” before the time of Mena. It + is quite possible, however, that Narmer was the successor, not the + predecessor, of Mena. He was certainly either the one or the other, as the + style of art in his time was exactly the same as that in the time of Aha. + The “Scorpion,” too, whose name is found at Hierakonpolis, certainly dates + to the same time as Narmer and Aha, for the style of his work is the same. + And it may well be that he is not to be counted as a separate king, + belonging to “Dynasty 0 “(or “Dynasty -I”) at all, but as identical with + Narmer, just as “Sma” may also be. We thus find that the two kings who + left the most developed remains at Hierakonpolis are the two whose + monuments at Abydos are the oldest of all on that site. That is to say, + the kings whose monuments record the conquest of the North belong to the + period of transition from the old Hierakonpolite dominion of Upper Egypt + to the new kingdom of all Egypt. They, in fact, represent the “Mena” or + Menés of tradition. It may be that Aha bore the personal name of <i>Men</i>, + which would thus be the original of Mena, but this is uncertain. In any + case both Aha and Narmer must be assigned to the Ist Dynasty, with the + result that we know of more kings belonging to the dynasty than appear in + the lists. + </p> + <p> + Nor is this improbable. Manetho’s list is evidently based upon old + Egyptian lists derived from the authorities upon which the king-lists of + Abydos and Sakkâra were based. These old lists were made under the XIXth + Dynasty, when an interest in the oldest kings seems to have been awakened, + and the ruling monarchs erected temples at Abydos in their honour. This + phenomenon can only have been due to a discovery of Umm el-Ga’ab and its + treasures, the tombs of which were recognized as the burial-places (real + or secondary) of the kings before the pyramid-builders. Seti I. and his + son Ramses then worshipped the kings of Umm el-Ga’ab, with their names set + before them in the order, number, and spelling in which the scribes + considered they ought to be inscribed. It is highly probable that the + number known at that time was not quite correct. We know that the spelling + of the names was very much garbled (to take one example only, the signs + for <i>Sen</i> were read as one sign <i>Qebh</i>), so that one or two + kings may have been omitted or displaced. This may be the case with + Narmer, or, as his name ought possibly to be read, <i>Betjumer</i>. His + monuments show by their style that he belongs to the very beginning of the + Ist Dynasty. No name in the Ist Dynasty list corresponds to his. But one + of the lists gives for the first king of the IId Dynasty (the successor of + “Qebh” = Sen) a name which may also be read Betjumer, spelt syllabically + this time, not ideographically. On this account Prof. Naville wishes to + regard the Hierakonpolite monuments of Narmer as belonging to the IId + Dynasty, but, as we have seen, they are among the most archaic known, and + certainly must belong to the beginning of the Ist Dynasty. It is therefore + probable that Khasekhemui Besh and Narmer (Betjumer?) were confused by + this list-maker, and the name Betjumer was given to the first king of the + IId Dynasty, who was probably in reality Khasekhemui. The resemblance of + <i>Betju</i> to <i>Besh</i> may have contributed to this confusion. + </p> + <p> + So Narmer (or Betjumer) found his way out of his proper place at the + beginning of the 1st Dynasty. Whether Aha was also called “Men” or not, it + seems evident that he and Narmer were jointly the originals of the + legendary Mena. Narmer, who possibly also bore the name of Sma, “the + Uniter,” conquered the North. Aha, “the Fighter,” also ruled both South + and North at the same period. Khasekhemui, too, conquered the North, but + the style of his monuments shows such an advance upon that of the days of + Aha and Narmer that it seems best to make him the successor of Sen (or + “Qebh “), and, explaining the transference of the name Betjumer to the + beginning of the IId Dynasty as due to a confusion with Khasekhemui’s + personal name Besh, to make Khasekhemui the founder of the IId Dynasty. + The beginning of a new dynasty may well have been marked by a reassertion + of the new royal power over Lower Egypt, which may have lapsed somewhat + under the rule of the later kings of the Ist Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + Semti is certainly the “Hesepti” of the lists, and Tja Ati is probably + “Ateth.” “Ata” is thus unidentified. Prof. Petrie makes him = Merneit, + but, as has already been said, there is no proof that the tomb of Merneit + is that of a king. “Teta” may be Tjer or Khent, but of this there is no + proof. It is most probable that the names “Teta,” “Ateth,” and “Ata” are + all founded on Ati, the personal name of Tja. The king Tjer is then not + represented in the lists, and “Mena” is a compound of the two oldest + Abydos kings, Narmer (Betjumer) Sma (?) and Aha Men (?). + </p> + <p> + These are the bare historical results that have been attained with regard + to the names, identity, and order of the kings. The smaller memorials that + have been found with them, especially the ivory plaques, have told us of + events that took place during their reigns; but, with the exception of the + constantly recurring references to the conquest of the North, there is + little that can be considered of historical interest or importance. We + will take one as an example. This is the tablet No. 32,650 of the British + Museum, illustrated by Prof. Petrie, <i>Royal Tombs</i> i (Egypt + Exploration Fund), pi. xi, 14, xv, 16. This is the record of a single + year, the first in the reign of Semti, King of Upper and Lower Egypt. On + it we see a picture of a king performing a religious dance before the god + Osiris, who is seated in a shrine placed on a dais. This religious dance + was performed by all the kings in later times. Below we find hieroglyphic + (ideographic) records of a river expedition to fight the Northerners and + of the capture of a fortified town called An. The capture of the town is + indicated by a broken line of fortification, half-encircling the name, and + the hoe with which the emblematic hawks on the slate reliefs already + described are armed; this signifies the opening and breaking down of the + wall. + </p> + <p> + On the other half of the tablet we find the viceroy of Lower Egypt, + Hemaka, mentioned; also “the Hawk (i. e. the king) seizes the seat of the + Libyans,” and some unintelligible record of a jeweller of the palace and a + king’s carpenter. On a similar tablet (of Sen) we find the words “the + king’s carpenter made this record.” All these little tablets are then the + records of single years of a king’s life, and others like them, preserved + no doubt in royal archives, formed the base of regular annals, which were + occasionally carved upon stone. We have an example of one of these in the + “Stele of Palermo,” a fragment of black granite, inscribed with the annals + of the kings up to the time of the Vth Dynasty, when the monument itself + was made. It is a matter for intense regret that the greater portion of + this priceless historical monument has disappeared, leaving us but a piece + out of the centre, with part of the records of only six kings before + Snefru. Of these six the name of only one, Neneter, of the lid Dynasty, + whose name is also found at Abydos, is mentioned. The only important + historical event of Neneter’s reign seems to have occurred in his + thirteenth year, when the towns or palaces of <i>Ha</i> (“North”) and + Shem-Râ (“The Sun proceeds”) were founded. Nothing but the institution and + celebration of religious festivals is recorded in the sixteen yearly + entries preserved to us out of a reign of thirty-five years. The annual + height of the Nile is given, and the occasions of numbering the people are + recorded (every second year): nothing else. Manetho tells us that in the + reign of Binothris, who is Neneter, it was decreed that women could hold + royal honours and privileges. This first concession of women’s rights is + not mentioned on the strictly official “Palermo Stele.” + </p> + <p> + More regrettable than aught else is the absence from the “Palermo Stele” + of that part of the original monument which gave the annals of the + earliest kings. At any rate, in the lines of annals which still exist + above that which contains the chronicle of the reign of Neneter no entry + can be definitely identified as belonging to the reigns of Aha or Narmer. + In a line below there is a mention of the “birth of Khâsekhemui,” + apparently a festival in honour of the birth of that king celebrated in + the same way as the reputed birthday of a god. This shows the great honour + in which Khâsekhemui was held, and perhaps it was he who really finally + settled the question of the unification of North and South and + consolidated the work of the earlier kings. + </p> + <p> + As far as we can tell, then, Aha and Narmer were the first conquerors of + the North, the unifiers of the kingdom, and the originals of the legendary + Mena. In their time the kingdom’s centre of gravity was still in the + South, and Narmer (who is probably identical with “the Scorpion”) + dedicated the memorials of his deeds in the temple of Hierakonpolis. It + may be that the legend of the founding of Memphis in the time of “Menés” + is nearly correct (as we shall see, historically, the foundation may have + been due to Merpeba), but we have the authority of Manetho for the fact + that the first two dynasties were “Thinite” (that is, Upper Egyptian), and + that Memphis did not become the capital till the time of the Hid Dynasty. + With this statement the evidence of the monuments fully agrees. The + earliest royal tombs in the pyramid-field of Memphis date from the time of + the Hid Dynasty, so that it is evident that the kings had then taken up + their abode in the Northern capital. We find that soon after the time of + Khâsekhemui the king Perabsen was especially connected with Lower Egypt. + His personal name is unknown to us (though he may be the “Uatjnes” of the + lists), but we do know that he had two banner-names, Sekhem-ab and + Perabsen. The first is his hawk or Horus-name, the second his Set-name; + that is to say, while he bore the first name as King of Upper Egypt under + the special patronage of Horus, the hawk-god of the Upper Country, he bore + the second as King of Lower Egypt, under the patronage of Set, the deity + of the Delta, whose fetish animal appears above this name instead of the + hawk. This shows how definitely Perabsen wished to appear as legitimate + King of Lower as well as Upper Egypt. In later times the Theban kings of + the XIIth Dynasty, when they devoted themselves to winning the allegiance + of the Northerners by living near Memphis rather than at Thebes, seem to + have been imitating the successors of Khâsekhemui. + </p> + <p> + Moreover, we now find various evidences of increasing connection with the + North. A princess named Ne-maat-hap, who seems to have been the mother of + Sa-nekht, the first king of the Hid Dynasty, bears the name of the sacred + Apis of Memphis, her name signifying “Possessing the right of Apis.” + According to Manetho, the kings of the Hid Dynasty are the first + Memphites, and this seems to be quite correct. With Ne-maat-hap the royal + right seems to have been transferred to a Memphite house. But the + Memphites still had associations with Upper Egypt: two of them, Tjeser + Khet-neter and Sa-nekht, were buried near Abydos, in the desert at Bêt + Khallâf, where their tombs were discovered and excavated by Mr. Garstang + in 1900. The tomb of Tjeser is a great brick-built mastaba, forty feet + high and measuring 300 feet by 150 feet. The actual tomb-chambers are + excavated in the rock, twenty feet below the ground-level and sixty feet + below the top of the mastaba. They had been violated in ancient times, but + a number of clay jar-sealings, alabaster vases, and bowls belonging to the + tomb furniture were found by the discoverer. Sa-nekht’s tomb is similar. + In it was found the preserved skeleton of its owner, who was a giant seven + feet high. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0024" id="linkimage-0024"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/082.jpg" width="100%" + alt="082.jpg the Tomb of King Tjeser at Bêt Khallâf. About 3700 B.c. " /> + </div> + <p> + It is remarkable that Manetho chronicles among the kings of the early + period a king named Sesokhris, who was five cubits high. This may have + been Sa-nekht. + </p> + <p> + Tjeser had two tombs, one, the above-mentioned, near Abydos, the other at + Sakkâra, in the Memphite pyramid-field. This is the famous Step-Pyramid. + Since Sa-nekht seems really to have been buried at Bêt Khal-laf, probably + Tjeser was, too, and the Step-Pyramid may have been his secondary or sham + tomb, erected in the necropolis of Memphis as a compliment to Seker, the + Northern god of the dead, just as Aha had his secondary tomb at Abydos in + compliment to Khentamenti. Sne-feru, also, the last king of the Hid + Dynasty, seems to have had two tombs. One of these was the great Pyramid + of Mêdûm, which was explored by Prof. Petrie in 1891, the other was at + Dashûr. Near by was the interesting necropolis already mentioned, in which + was discovered evidence of the continuance of the cramped position of + burial and of the absence of mummification among a certain section of the + population even as late as the time of the IVth Dynasty. This has been + taken to imply that the fusion of the primitive Neolithic and invading + sub-Semitic races had not been effected at that time. + </p> + <p> + With the IVth Dynasty the connection of the royal house with the South + seems to have finally ceased. The governmental centre of gravity was + finally transferred to Memphis, and the kings were thenceforth for several + centuries buried in the great pyramids which still stand in serried order + along the western desert border of Egypt, from the Delta to the province + of the Fayyum. With the latest discoveries in this Memphite pyramid-field + we shall deal in the next chapter. + </p> + <p> + The transference of the royal power to Memphis under the Hid Dynasty + naturally led to a great increase of Egyptian activity in the Northern + lands. We read in Manetho of a great Libyan war in the reign of + Neche-rophes, and both Sa-nekht and Tjeser seem to have finally + established Egyptian authority in the Sinaitic peninsula, where their + rock-inscriptions have been found. + </p> + <p> + In 1904 Prof. Petrie was despatched to Sinai by the Egypt Exploration + Fund, in order finally to record the inscriptions of the early kings in + the Wadi Maghara, which had been lately very much damaged by the + operations of the turquoise-miners. It seems almost incredible that + ignorance and vandalism should still be so rampant in the twentieth + century that the most important historical monuments are not safe from + desecration in order to obtain a few turquoises, but it is so. Prof. + Petrie’s expedition did not start a day too soon, and at the suggestion of + Sir William Garstin, the adviser to the Ministry of the Interior, the + majority of the inscriptions have been removed to the Cairo Museum for + safety and preservation. Among the new inscriptions discovered is one of + Sa-nekht, which is now in the British Museum. Tjeser and Sa-nekht were not + the first Egyptian kings to visit Sinai. Already, in the days of the 1st + Dynasty, Semerkha had entered that land and inscribed his name upon the + rocks. But the regular annexation, so to speak, of Sinai to Egypt took + place under the Memphites of the Hid Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + With the Hid Dynasty we have reached the age of the pyramid-builders. The + most typical pyramids are those of the three great kings of the IVth + Dynasty, Khufu, Khafra, and Menkaura, at Giza near Cairo. But, as we have + seen, the last king of the Hid Dynasty, Snefru, also had one pyramid, if + not two; and the most ancient of these buildings known to us, the + Step-Pyramid of Sakkâra, was erected by Tjeser at the beginning of that + dynasty. The evolution of the royal tombs from the time of the 1st Dynasty + to that of the IVth is very interesting to trace. At the period of + transition from the predynastic to the dynastic age we have the great + mastaba of Aha at Nakâda, and the simplest chamber-tombs at Abydos. All + these were of brick; no stone was used in their construction. Then we find + the chamber-tomb of Den Semti at Abydos with a granite floor, the walls + being still of brick. Above each of the Abydos tombs was probably a low + mound, and in front a small chapel, from which a flight of steps descended + into the simple chamber. On one of the little plaques already mentioned, + which were found in these tombs, we have an archaic inscription, entirely + written in ideographs, which seems to read, “The Big-Heads (i. e. the + chiefs) come to the tomb.” The ideograph for “tomb” seems to be a rude + picture of the funerary chapel, but from it we can derive little + information as to its construction. Towards the end of the Ist Dynasty, + and during the lid, the royal tombs became much more complicated, being + surrounded with numerous chambers for the dead slaves, etc. Khâsekhemui’s + tomb has thirty-three such chambers, and there is one large chamber of + stone. We know of no other instance of the use of stone work for building + at this period except in the royal tombs. No doubt the mason’s art was + still so difficult that it was reserved for royal use only. + </p> + <p> + Under the Hid Dynasty we find the last brick mastabas built for royalty, + at Bêt Khallâf, and the first pyramids, in the Memphite necropolis. In the + mastaba of Tjeser at Bêt Khallâf stone was used for the great portcullises + which were intended to bar the way to possible plunderers through the + passages of the tomb. The Step-Pyramid at Sakkâra is, so to speak, a + series of mastabas of stone, imposed one above the other; it never had the + continuous casing of stone which is the mark of a true pyramid. The + pyramid of Snefru at Mêdûm is more developed. It also originated in a + mastaba, enlarged, and with another mastaba-like erection on the top of + it; but it was given a continuous sloping casing of fine limestone from + bottom to top, and so is a true pyramid. A discussion of recent theories + as to the building of the later pyramids of the IVth Dynasty will be found + in the next chapter. + </p> + <p> + In the time of the Ist Dynasty the royal tomb was known by the name of + “Protection-around-the-Hawk, i.e. the king”(<i>Sa-ha-heru</i>); but under + the Hid and IVth Dynasties regular names, such as “the Firm,” “the + Glorious,” “the Appearing,” etc., were given to each pyramid. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0025" id="linkimage-0025"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/086.jpg" width="100%" + alt="086.jpg False Door of the Tomb Of Teta, About 3600 B.c. " /> + </div> + <p> + We must not omit to note an interesting point in connection with the royal + tombs at Abydos, In that of King Khent or Tjer (the reading of the + ideograph is doubtful) M. Amélineau found a large bed or bier of granite, + with a figure of the god Osiris lying in state sculptured in high relief + upon it. This led him to jump to the conclusion that he had found the tomb + of the god Osiris himself, and that a skull he found close by was the + veritable cranium of the primeval folk-hero, who, according to the + euhemerist theory, was the deified original of the god. The true + explanation is given by Dr. Wallis Budge in his <i>History of Egypt</i>, + i, p. 19. It is a fact that the tomb of Tjer was regarded by the Egyptians + of the XIXth Dynasty as the veritable tomb of Osiris. They thought they + had discovered it, just as M. Amélineau did. When the ancient royal tombs + of Umm el-Ga’ab were rediscovered and identified at the beginning of the + XIXth Dynasty, and Seti I built the great temple of Abydos to the divine + ancestors in honour of the discovery, embellishing it with a relief of + himself and his son Ramses making offerings to the names of his + predecessors (the “Tablet of Abydos “), the name of King Khent or Tjer + (which is perhaps the really correct original form) was read by the royal + scribes as “Khent” and hastily identified with the first part of the name + of the god <i>Khent-amenti</i> Osiris, the lord of Abydos. The tomb was + thus regarded as the tomb of Osiris himself, and it was furnished with a + great stone figure of the god lying on his bier, attended by the two hawks + of Isis and Nephthys; ever after the site was visited by crowds of + pilgrims, who left at Umm el-Ga’ab the thousands of little votive vases + whose fragments have given the place its name of the “Mother of Pots.” + This is the explanation of the discovery of the “Tomb of Osiris.” We have + not found what M. Amélineau seems rather naively to have thought possible, + a confirmation of the ancient view that Osiris was originally a man who + ruled over Egypt and was deified after his death; but we have found that + the Egyptians themselves were more or less euhemerists, and did think so. + </p> + <p> + It may seem remarkable that all this new knowledge of ancient Egypt is + derived from tombs and has to do with the resting-places of the kings when + dead, rather than with their palaces or temples when living. Of temples at + this early period we have no trace. The oldest temple in Egypt is perhaps + the little chapel in front of the pyramid of Snefru at Mêdûm. We first + hear of temples to the gods under the IVth Dynasty, but of the actual + buildings of that period we have recovered nothing but one or two + inscribed blocks of stone. Prof. Petrie has traced out the plan of the + oldest temple of Osiris at Abydos, which may be of the time of Khufu, from + scanty evidences which give us but little information. It is certain, + however, that this temple, which is clearly one of the oldest in Egypt, + goes back at least to his time. Its site is the mound called Kom + es-Sultan, “The Mound of the King,” close to the village of el-Kherba, and + on the borders of the cultivation northeast of the royal tombs at Umm + el-Oa’ab. + </p> + <p> + Of royal palaces we have more definite information. North of the Kom + es-Sultan are two great fortress-enclosures of brick: the one is known as + <i>Sûnet es-Zebîb</i>, “the Storehouse of Dried Orapes;” the other is + occupied by the Coptic monastery of Dêr Anba Musâs. Both are certainly + fortress-palaces of the earliest period of the Egyptian monarchy. We know + from the small record-plaques of this period that the kings were + constantly founding or repairing places of this kind, which were always + great rectangular enclosures with crenelated brick walls like those of + early Babylonian buildings. + </p> + <p> + We have seen that the Northern Egyptian possessed similar fortress-cities + which were captured by Narmer. These were the seats of the royal residence + in various parts of the country. Behind their walls was the king’s house, + and no doubt also a town of nobles and retainers, while the peasants lived + on the arable land without. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0026" id="linkimage-0026"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/089.jpg" width="100%" + alt="089.jpg the Shunet ez-Zebib: The Fortress-town, About 3900 B.c. " /> + </div> + <p> + The Shûnet ez-Zebîb and its companion fortress were evidently the royal + cities of the 1st and IId Dynasties at Abydos. The former has been + excavated by Mr. E. R. Ayrton for the Egypt Exploration Fund, under the + supervision of Prof. Petrie. He found jar-sealings of Khâsekhemui and + Perabsen. In later times the place was utilized as a burial-place for + ibis-mummies (it had already been abandoned as a city before the time of + the XIIth Dynasty), and from this fact it received the name of <i>Shenet + deb-hib</i>, or “Storehouse of Ibis Burials.” The Arab invaders adapted + this name to their own language in the nearest form which would have any + meaning, as <i>Shûnet ez-Zebïb</i>, “the Storehouse of Dried Grapes.” The + Arab word <i>shûna</i> (“Barn” or “Storehouse”) was, it should be noted, + taken over from the Coptic <i>sheune,</i> which is the old-Egyptian <i>shenet</i>. + The identity of <i>sheune</i> or <i>shûna</i> with the German “Scheune” is + a quaint and curious coincidence. In the illustration of the Shûnet + ez-Zebib the curved line of crenelated wall, following the contour of the + hill, should be noted, as it is a remarkable example of the building of + this early period. + </p> + <p> + It will have been seen from the foregoing description of what far-reaching + importance the discoveries at Abydos have been. A new chapter of the + history of the human race has been opened, which contains information + previously undreamt of, information which Egyptologists had never dared to + hope would be recovered. The sand of Egypt indeed conceals inexhaustible + treasures, and no one knows what the morrow’s work may bring forth. + </p> + <p> + <i>Ex Africa semper aliquid novi!</i> + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="linkB2HCH0001" id="linkB2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER III—MEMPHIS AND THE PYRAMIDS + </h2> + <p> + Memphis, the “beautiful abode,” the “City of the White Wall,” is said to + have been founded by the legendary Menés, who in order to build it + diverted the stream of the Nile by means of a great dyke constructed near + the modern village of Koshêsh, south of the village of Mitrahêna, which + marks the central point of the ancient metropolis of Northern Egypt. It + may be that the city was founded by Aha or Narmer, the historical + originals of Mena or Menés; but we have another theory with regard to its + foundation, that it was originally built by King Merpeba Atjab, whose tomb + was also discovered at Abydos near those of Aha and Narmer. Merpeba is the + oldest king whose name is absolutely identified with one occurring in the + XIXth Dynasty king-lists and in Manetho. He is certainly the “Merbap” or + “Merbepa” (“Merbapen”) of the lists and the <i>Miebis</i> of Manetho. In + both the lists and in Manetho he stands fifth in order from Mena, and he + was therefore the sixth king of the Ist Dynasty. The lists, Manetho, and + the small monuments in his own tomb agree in making him the immediate + successor of Semti Den (Ousaphaïs), and from the style of these latter it + is evident that he comes after Tja, Tjer, Narmer, and Aha. That is to say, + the contemporary evidence makes him the fifth king from Aha, the first + original of “Menés.” + </p> + <p> + Now after the piety of Seti I had led him to erect a great temple at + Abydos in memory of the ancient kings, whose sepulchres had probably been + brought to light shortly before, and to compile and set up in the temple a + list of his predecessors, a certain pious snobbery or snobbish piety + impelled a worthy named Tunure, who lived at Memphis, to put up in his own + tomb at Sakkâra a tablet of kings like the royal one at Abydos. If + Osiris-Khentamenti at Abydos had his tablet of kings, so should + Osiris-Seker at Sakkâra. But Tunure does not begin his list with Mena; his + initial king is Merpeba. For him Merpeba was the first monarch to be + commemorated at Sakkâra. Does not this look very much as if the strictly + historical Merpeba, not the rather legendary and confused Mena, was + regarded as the first Memphite king? It may well be that it was in the + reign of Merpeba, not in that of Aha or Narmer, that Memphis was founded. + </p> + <p> + The XIXth Dynasty lists of course say nothing about Mena or Merpeba having + founded Memphis; they only give the names of the kings, nothing more. The + earliest authority for the ascription of Memphis to “Menés”, is Herodotus, + who was followed in this ascription, as in many other matters, by Manetho; + but it must be remembered that Manetho was writing for the edification of + a Greek king (Ptolemy Philadelphus) and his Greek court at Alexandria, and + had therefore to evince a respect for the great Greek classic which he may + not always have really felt. Herodotus is not, of course, accused of any + wilful misstatement in this or in any other matter in which his accuracy + is suspected. He merely wrote down what he was told by the Egyptians + themselves, and Merpeba was sufficiently near in time to Aha to be easily + confounded with him by the scribes of the Persian period, who no doubt + ascribed everything to “Mena” that was done by the kings of the Ist and + IId Dynasties. Therefore it may be considered quite probable that the + “Menés” who founded Memphis was Merpeba, the fifth or sixth king of the + Ist Dynasty, whom Tunure, a thousand years before the time of Herodotus + and his informants, placed at the head of the Memphite “List of Sakkâra.” + </p> + <p> + The reconquest of the North by Khâsekhemui doubtless led to a further + strengthening of Memphis; and it is quite possible that the deeds of this + king also contributed to make up the sum total of those ascribed to the + Herodotean and Manethonian Menés. + </p> + <p> + It may be that a town of the Northerners existed here before the time of + the Southern Conquest, for Phtah, the local god of Memphis, has a very + marked character of his own, quite different from that of Khen-tamenti, + the Osiris of Abydos. He is always represented as a little bow-legged + hydrocephalous dwarf very like the Phoenician <i>Kabeiroi</i>. It may be + that here is another connection between the Northern Egyptians and the + Semites. The name “Phtah,” the “Opener,” is definitely Semitic. We may + then regard the dwarf Phtah as originally a non-Egyptian god of the + Northerners, probably Semitic in origin, and his town also as antedating + the conquest. But it evidently was to the Southerners that Memphis owed + its importance and its eventual promotion to the position of capital of + the united kingdom. Then the dwarf Phtah saw himself rivalled by another + Phtah of Southern Egyptian origin, who had been installed at Memphis by + the Southerners. This Phtah was a sort of modified edition of Osiris, in + mummy-form and holding crook and whip, but with a refined edition of the + Kabeiric head of the indigenous Phtah. The actual god of “the White Wall” + was undoubtedly confused vith the dead god of the necropolis, whose name + was Seker or Sekri (Sokari), “the Coffined.” The original form of this + deity was a mummied hawk upon a coffin, and it is very probable that he + was imported from the South, like the second Phtah, at the time of the + conquest, when the great Northern necropolis began to grow up as a + duplicate of that at Abydos. Later on we find Seker confused with the + ancient dwarf-god, and it is the latter who was afterwards chiefly revered + as Phtah-Socharis-Osiris, the protector of the necropolis, the mummied + Phtah being the generally recognized ruler of the City of the White Wall. + </p> + <p> + It is from the name of Seker that the modern Sak-kâra takes its title. + Sakkâra marks the central point of the great Memphite necropolis, as it is + the nearest point of the western desert to Memphis. Northwards the + necropolis extended to Griza and Abu Roâsh, southwards, to Daslmr; even + the nécropoles of Lisht and Mêdûm may be regarded as appanages of Sakkâra. + At Sakkâra itself Tjeser of the IIId Dynasty had a pyramid, which, as we + have seen, was probably not his real tomb (which was the great mastaba at + Bêt Khallâf), but a secondary or sham tomb corresponding to the “tombs” of + the earliest kings at Umm el-Ga’ab in the necropolis of Abydos. Many later + kings, however, especially of the Vith Dynasty, were actually buried at + Sakkâra. Their tombs have all been thoroughly described by their + discoverer, Prof. Maspero, in his history. The last king of the Hid + Dynasty, Snefru, was buried away down south at Mêdûm, in splendid + isolation, but he may also have had a second pyramid at Sakkâra or Abu + Roash. + </p> + <p> + The kings of the IVth Dynasty were the greatest of the pyramid builders, + and to them belong the huge edifices of Griza. The Vth Dynasty favoured + Abusîr, between Cîza and Sakkâra; the Vith, as we have said, preferred + Sakkâra itself. With them the end of the Old Kingdom and of Memphite + dominion was reached; the sceptre fell from the hands of the Memphite + kings and was taken up by the princes of Herakleopolis (Ahnasyet + el-Medina, near Béni Suêf, south of the Eayyûm) and Thebes. Where the + Herakleopolite kings were buried we do not know; probably somewhere in the + local necropolis of the Gebel es-Sedment, between Ahnasya and the Fayyûm. + The first Thebans (the XIth Dynasty) were certainly buried at Thebes, but + when the Herakleopolites had finally disappeared, and all Egypt was again + united under one strong sceptre, the Theban kings seem to have been drawn + northwards. They removed to the seat of the dominion of those whom they + had supplanted, and they settled in the neighbourhood of Herakleopolis, + near the fertile province of the Fayyûm, and between it and Memphis. Here, + in the royal fortress-palace of Itht-taui, “Controlling the Two Lands,” + the kings of the XIIth Dynasty lived, and they were buried in the + nécropoles of Dashûr, Lisht, and Illahun (Hawara), in pyramids like those + of the old Memphite kings. These facts, of the situation of Itht-taui, of + their burial in the southern an ex of the old necropolis of Memphis, and + of the fori of their tombs (the true Upper Egyptian and Thebian form was a + rock-cut gallery and chamber driven deep into the hill), show how + solicitous were the Amenemhats and Senusrets of the suffrages of Lower + Egypt, how anxious they were to conciliate the ancient royal pride of + Memphis. + </p> + <p> + Where the kings of the XIIIth Dynasty and the Hyksos or “Shepherds” were + buried, we do not know. The kings of the restored Theban empire were all + interred at Thebes. There are, in fact, no known royal sepulchres between + the Fayyûm and Abydos. The great kings were mostly buried in the + neighbourhood of Memphis, Abydos, and Thebes. The sepulchres of the + “Middle Empire”—the XIth to XIIIth Dynasties—in the + neighbourhood of the Fayyûm may fairly be grouped with those of the same + period at Dashûr, which belongs to the necropolis of Memphis, since it is + only a mile or two south of Sakkâra. + </p> + <p> + It is chiefly with regard to the sepulchres of the kings that the most + momentous discoveries of recent years have been made at Thebes, and at + Sakkâra, Abusîr, Dashûr, and Lisht, as at Abydos. For this reason we deal + in succession with the finds in the nécropoles of Abydos, Memphis, and + Thebes respectively. And with the sepulchres of the “Old Kingdom,” in the + Memphite necropolis proper, we have naturally grouped those of the “Middle + Kingdom” at Dashûr, Lisht, Illahun, and Hawara. + </p> + <p> + Some of these modern discoveries have been commented on and illustrated by + Prof. Maspero in his great history. But the discoveries that have been + made since this publication have been very important,—those at + Abusîr, indeed, of first-rate importance, though not so momentous as those + of the tombs of the Ist and IId Dynasties at Abydos, already described. At + Abu Roash and at Gîza, at the northern end of the Memphite necropolis, + several expeditions have had considerable success, notably those of the + American Dr. Reisner, assisted by Mr. Mace, who excavated the royal tombs + at Umm el-Ga’ab for Prof. Petrie, those of the German Drs. Steindorff and + Borchardt,—the latter working for the <i>Beutsch-Orient Gesellschaft</i>,—and + those of other American excavators. Until the full publication of the + results of these excavations appears, very little can be said about them. + Many mastaba-tombs have, it is understood, been found, with interesting + remains. Nothing of great historical importance seems to have been + discovered, however. It is otherwise when we come to the discoveries of + Messrs. Borchardt and Schâfer at Abusîr, south of Gîza and north of + Sakkâra. At this place results of first-rate historical importance have + been attained. + </p> + <p> + The main group of pyramids at Abusir consists of the tombs of the kings + Sahurà, Neferarikarâ, and Ne-user-Râ, of the Vth Dynasty. The pyramids + themselves are smaller than those of Gîza, but larger than those of + Sakkâra. In general appearance and effect they resemble those of Gîza, but + they are not so imposing, as the desert here is low. Those of Gîza, + Sakkâra, and Dashûr owe much of their impressiveness to the fact that they + are placed at some height above the cultivated land. The excavation and + planning of these pyramids were carried out by Messrs. Borchardt and + Schâfer at the expense of Baron von Bissing, the well-known Egyptologist + of Munich, and of the <i>Deutsch-Orient Gesell-schaft</i> of Berlin. The + antiquities found have been divided between the museums of Berlin and + Cairo. + </p> + <p> + One of the most noteworthy discoveries was that of the funerary temple of + Ne-user-Râ, which stood at the base of his pyramid. The plan is + interesting, and the granite lotus-bud columns found are the most ancient + yet discovered in Egypt. Much of the paving and the wainscoting of the + walls was of fine black marble, beautifully polished. An interesting find + was a basin and drain with lion’s-head mouth, to carry away the blood of + the sacrifices. Some sculptures in relief were discovered, including a + gigantic representation of the king and the goddess Isis, which shows that + in the early days of the Vth Dynasty the king and the gods were already + depicted in exactly the same costume as they wore in the days of the + Ramses and the Ptolemies. The hieratic art of Egypt had, in fact, now + taken on itself the final outward appearance which it retained to the very + end. There is no more of the archaism and absence of conventionality, + which marks the art of the earliest dynasties. + </p> + <p> + We can trace by successive steps the swift development of Egyptian art + from the rude archaism of the Ist Dynasty to its final consummation under + the Vth, when the conventions became fixed. In the time of Khäsekhemui, at + the beginning of the IId Dynasty, the archaic character of the art has + already begun to wear off. Under the same dynasty we still have styles of + unconventional naïveté, such as the famous Statue “No. 1” of the Cairo + Museum, bearing the names of Kings Hetepahaui, Neb-râ, and Neneter. But + with the IVth Dynasty we no longer look for unconventionality. Prof. + Petrie discovered at Abydos a small ivory statuette of Khufu or Cheops, + the builder of the Great Pyramid of Gîza. The portrait is a good one and + carefully executed. It was not till the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty, + indeed, that the Egyptians ceased to portray their kings as they really + were, and gave them a purely conventional type of face. This convention, + against which the heretical King Amenhetep IV (Akhunaten) rebelled, in + order to have himself portrayed in all his real ungainliness and ugliness, + did not exist till long after the time of the IVth and Vth Dynasties. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0005" id="linkBimage-0005"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figright" style="width:50%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/100.jpg" + alt="100.jpg Statue No. 1 of the Cairo Museum, About 3900 B.C." /> + </div> + <p> + The kings of the XIIth Dynasty especially were most careful that their + statues should be accurate portraits; indeed, the portraits of Usertsen + (Senusret) III vary from a young face to an old one, showing that the king + was faithfully depicted at different periods of his life. + </p> + <p> + But the general conventions of dress and deportment were finally fixed + under the Vth Dynasty. After this time we no longer have such absolutely + faithful and original presentments as the other little ivory statuette + found by Prof. Petrie at Abydos (now in the British Museum), which shows + us an aged monarch of the Ist Dynasty. It is obvious that the features are + absolutely true to life, and the figure wears an unconventionally + party-coloured and bordered robe of a kind which kings of a later day may + have worn in actual life, but which they would assuredly never be depicted + as wearing by the artists of their day. To the end of Egyptian history, + the kings, even the Roman emperors, were represented on the monuments + clothed in the official costume of their ancestors of the IVth and Vth + Dynasties, in the same manner as we see Khufu wearing his robe in the + little figure from Abydos, and Ne-user-Rà on the great relief from Abusîr. + There are one or two exceptions, such as the representations of the + original genius Akhunaten at Tell el-Amarna and the beautiful statue of + Ramses II at Turin, in which we see these kings wearing the real costume + of their time, but such exceptions are very rare. + </p> + <p> + The art of Abusîr is therefore of great interest, since it marks the end + of the development of the priestly art. Secular art might develop as it + liked, though the crystallizing influence of the ecclesiastical canon is + always evident here also. But henceforward it was an impiety, which only + an Akhunaten could commit, to depict a king or a god on the walls of a + temple otherwise (except so far as, the portrait was concerned) than as he + had been depicted in the time of the Vth Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + Other buildings have been excavated by the Germans at Abusîr, notably the + usual town of mastaba-tombs belonging to the chief dignitaries of the + reign, which is always found at the foot of a royal pyramid of this + period. Another building of the highest interest, belonging to the same + age, was also excavated, and its true character was determined. This is a + building at a place called er-Rîgha or Abû Ghuraib, “Father of Crows,” + between Abusîr and Gîza. It was formerly supposed to be a pyramid, but the + German excavations have shown that it is really a temple of the Sun-god Râ + of Heliopolis, specially venerated by the kings of the Vth Dynasty, who + were of Heliopolitan origin. The great pyramid-builders of the IVth + Dynasty seem to have been the last true Memphites. At the end of the reign + of Shepseskaf, the last monarch of the dynasty, the sceptre passed to a + Heliopolitan family. The following VIth Dynasty may again have been + Memphite, but this is uncertain. The capital continued to be Memphis, and + from the beginning of the Hid Dynasty to the end of the Old Kingdom and + the rise of Herakle-opolis and Thebes, Memphis remained the chief city of + Egypt. + </p> + <p> + The Heliopolitans were naturally the servants of the Sun-god above all + other gods, and they were the first to call themselves “Sons of the Sun,” + a title retained by the Pharaohs throughout all subsequent history. It was + Ne-user-Râ who built the Sun-temple of Abu Ghuraib, on the edge of the + desert, north of his pyramid and those of his two immediate predecessors + at Abusir. As now laid bare by the excavations of 1900, it is seen to + consist of an artificial mound, with a great court in front to the + eastward. On the mound was erected a truncated obelisk, the stone emblem + of the Sun-god. The worshippers in the court below looked towards the + Sun’s stone erected upon its mound in the west, the quarter of the sun’s + setting; for the Sun-god of Heliopolis was primarily the setting sun, + Tum-Râ, not Râ Harmachis, the rising sun, whose emblem is the Great Sphinx + at Gîza, which looks towards the east. The sacred emblem of the + Heliopolitan Sun-god reminds us forcibly of the Semitic <i>bethels</i> or + <i>baetyli</i>, the sacred stones of Palestine, and may give yet another + hint of the Semitic origin of the Heliopolitan cult. In the court of the + temple is a huge circular altar of fine alabaster, several feet across, on + which slain oxen were offered to the Sun, and behind this, at the eastern + end of the court, are six great basins of the same stone, over which the + beasts were slain, with drains running out of them by which their blood + was carried away. This temple is a most interesting monument of the + civilization of the “Old Kingdom” at the time of the Vth Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + At Sakkâra itself, which lies a short distance south of Abusir, no new + royal tombs have, as has been said, been discovered of late years. But a + great deal of work has been done among the private mastaba-tombs by the + officers of the <i>Service des Antiquités</i>, which reserves to itself + the right of excavation here and at Dashûr. The mastaba of the sage and + writer Kagernna (or rather Gemnika, “I-have-found-a-ghost,” which sounds + very like an American Indian appellation) is very fine. + “I-have-found-a-ghost” lived in the reign of the king Tatkarâ Assa, the + “Tancheres” of Manetho, and he wrote maxims like his great contemporary + Phtahhetep (“Offered to Phtah”), who was also buried at Sakkâra. The + officials of the <i>Service des Antiquités</i> who cleaned the tomb + unluckily misread his name Ka-bi-n (an impossible form which could only + mean, literally translated, “Ghost-soul-of” or “Ghost-soul-to-me”), and + they have placed it in this form over the entrance to his tomb. This + mastaba, like those, already known, of Mereruka (sometimes misnamed + “Mera”) and the famous Ti, both also at Sakkâra, contains a large number + of chambers, ornamented with reliefs. In the vicinity M. Grébaut, then + Director of the Service of Antiquities, discovered a very interesting + Street of Tombs, a regular Via Sacra, with rows of tombs of the + dignitaries of the VIth Dynasty on either side of it. They are generally + very much like one another; the workmanship of the reliefs is fine, and + the portrait of the owner of the tomb is always in evidence. + </p> + <p> + Several of the smaller mastabas have lately been disposed of to the + various museums, as they are liable to damage if they remain where they + stand; moreover, they are not of great value to the Museum of Cairo, but + are of considerable value to various museums which do not already possess + complete specimens of this class of tombs. A fine one, belonging to the + chief Uerarina, is now exhibited in the Assyrian Basement of the British + Museum; another is in the Museum of Leyden; a third at Berlin, and so on. + Most of these are simple tombs of one chamber. In the centre of the rear + wall we always see the <i>stele</i> or gravestone proper, built into the + fabric of the tomb. Before this stood the low table of offerings with a + bowl for oblations, and on either side a tall incense-altar. From the + altar the divine smoke (<i>senetr</i>) arose when the <i>hen-ka</i>, or + priest of the ghost (literally, “Ghost’s Servant”), performed his duty of + venerating the spirits of the deceased, while the <i>Kher-heb</i>, or + cantor, enveloped in the mystic folds of the leopard-skin and with bronze + incense-burner in hand, sang the holy litanies and spells which should + propitiate the ghost and enable him to win his way to ultimate perfection + in the next world. + </p> + <p> + The stele is always in the form of a door with pyloni-form cornice. On + either side is a figure of the deceased, and at the sides are carved + prayers to Anubis, and at a later date to Osiris, who are implored to give + the funerary meats and “everything good and pure on which the god there + (as the dead man in the tomb has been constituted) lives;” often we find + that the biography and list of honorary titles and dignities of the + deceased have been added. + </p> + <p> + Sakkâra was used as a place of burial in the latest as well as in the + earliest time. The Egyptians of the XXVIth Dynasty, wearied of the long + decadence and devastating wars which had followed the glorious epoch of + the conquering Pharaohs of the XVIIIth and XIXth Dynasties, turned for a + new and refreshing inspiration to the works of the most ancient kings, + when Egypt was a simple self-contained country, holding no intercourse + with outside lands, bearing no outside burdens for the sake of pomp and + glory, and knowing nothing of the decay and decadence which follows in the + train of earthly power and grandeur. They deliberately turned their backs + on the worn-out and discredited imperial trappings of the Thothmes and + Ramses, and they took the supposed primitive simplicity of the Snefrus, + the Khufus, and the Ne-user-Râs for a model and ensampler to their lives. + It was an age of conscious and intended archaism, and in pursuit of the + archaistic ideal the Mem-phites of the Saïte age had themselves buried in + the ancient necropolis of Sakkâra, side by side with their ancestors of + the time of the Vth and VIth Dynasties. Several of these tombs have lately + been discovered and opened, and fitted with modern improvements. One or + two of them, of the Persian period, have wells (leading to the sepulchral + chamber) of enormous depth, down which the modern tourist is enabled to + descend by a spiral iron staircase. The Serapeum itself is lit with + electricity, and in the Tombs of the Kings at Thebes nothing disturbs the + silence but the steady thumping pulsation of the dynamo-engine which + lights the ancient sepulchres of the Pharaohs. Thus do modern ideas and + inventions help us to see and so to understand better the works of ancient + Egypt. But it is perhaps a little too much like the Yankee at the Court of + King Arthur. The interiors of the later tombs are often decorated with + reliefs which imitate those of the early period, but with a kind of + delicate grace which at once marks them for what they are, so that it is + impossible to confound them with the genuine ancient originals from which + they were adapted. + </p> + <p> + Riding from Sakkâra southwards to Dashûr, we pass on the way the gigantic + stone mastaba known as the <i>Mastabat el-Fara’ûn</i>, “Pharaoh’s Bench.” + This was considered to be the tomb of the Vth Dynasty king, Unas, until + his pyramid was found by Prof. Maspero at Sakkâra. From its form it might + be thought to belong to a monarch of the Hid Dynasty, but the great size + of the stone blocks of which it is built seems to point rather to the + XIIth. All attempts to penetrate its secret by actual excavation have been + unavailing. + </p> + <p> + Further south across the desert we see from the Mastabat el-Fara’ûn four + distinct pyramids, symmetrically arranged in two lines, two in each line. + The two to the right are great stone erections of the usual type, like + those of Gîza and Abusîr, and the southernmost of them has a peculiar + broken-backed appearance, due to the alteration of the angle of + inclination of its sides during construction. Further, it is covered + almost to the ground by the original casing of polished white limestone + blocks, so that it gives a very good idea of the original appearance of + the other pyramids, which have lost their casing. These two pyramids very + probably belong to kings of the Hid Dynasty, as does the Step-Pyramid of + Sakkâra. They strongly resemble the Gîza type, and the northernmost of the + two looks very like an understudy of the Great Pyramid. It seems to mark + the step in the development of the royal pyramid which was immediately + followed by the Great Pyramid. But no excavations have yet proved the + accuracy of this view. Both pyramids have been entered, but nothing has + been found in them. It is very probable that one of them is the second + pyramid of Snefru. + </p> + <p> + The other two pyramids, those nearest the cultivation, are of very + different appearance. They are half-ruined, they are black in colour, and + their whole effect is quite different from that of the stone pyramids. For + they are built of brick, not of stone. They are pyramids, it is true, but + of a different material and of a different date from those which we have + been describing. They are built above the sepulchres of kings of the XIIth + Dynasty, the Theban house which transferred its residence northwards to + the neighbourhood of the ancient Northern capital. We have, in fact, + reached the end of the Old Kingdom at Sakkâra; at Dashûr begin the + sepulchres of the Middle Kingdom. Pyramids are still built, but they are + not always of stone; brick is used, usually with stone in the interior. + The general effect of these brick pyramids, when new, must have been + indistinguishable from that of the stone ones, and even now, when it has + become half-ruined, such a great brick pyramid as that of Usertsen + (Senusret) III at Dashûr is not without impressiveness. After all, there + is no reason why a brick building should be less admirable than a stone + one. And in its own way the construction of such colossal masses of bricks + as the two eastern pyramids of Dashûr must have been as arduous, even as + difficult, as that of building a moderate-sized stone pyramid. The + photograph of the brick pyramids of Dashûr on this page shows well the + great size of these masses of brickwork, which are as impressive as any of + the great brick structures of Babylonia and Assyria. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0006" id="linkBimage-0006"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/109.jpg" width="100%" + alt="109.jpg Exterior of the Southern Brick Pyramid Of Dashur " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> +EXTERIOR OF THE SOUTHERN BRICK PYRAMID OF DASHÛR:<br/> +XIITH DYNASTY.<br/> +Excavated by M. de Morgan, 1895. This is the secondary tomb of Amenemhat III; +about 2200 B.C.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The XIIth Dynasty use of brick for the royal tombs was a return to the + custom of earlier days, for from the time of Aha to that Tjeser, from the + 1st Dynasty to the Hid, brick had been used for the building of the royal + mastaba-tombs, out of which the pyramids had developed. + </p> + <p> + At this point, where we take leave of the great pyramids of the Old + Kingdom, we may notice the latest theory as to the building of these + monuments, which has of late years been enunciated by Dr. Borchardt, and + is now generally accepted. The great Prussian explorer Lepsius, when he + examined the pyramids in the ‘forties, came to the conclusion that each + king, when he ascended the throne, planned a small pyramid for himself. + This was built in a few years’ time, and if his reign were short, or if he + were unable to enlarge the pyramid for other reasons, it sufficed for his + tomb. If, however, his reign seemed likely to be one of some length, after + the first plan was completed he enlarged his pyramid by building another + and a larger one around it and over it. Then again, when this addition was + finished, and the king still reigned and was in possession of great + resources, yet another coating, so to speak, was put on to the pyramid, + and so on till colossal structures like the First and Second Pyramid of + Giza, which, we know, belonged to kings who were unusually long-lived, + were completed. And finally the aged monarch died, and was buried in the + huge tomb which his long life and his great power had enabled him to + erect. This view appeared eminently reasonable at the time, and it seemed + almost as though we ought to be able to tell whether a king had reigned + long or not by the size of his pyramid, and even to obtain a rough idea of + the length of his reign by counting the successive coats or accretions + which it had received, much as we tell the age of a tree by the rings in + its bole. A pyramid seemed to have been constructed something after the + manner of an onion or a Chinese puzzle-box. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0007" id="linkBimage-0007"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/111.jpg" + alt="111.jpg the Pyramids of Giza During The Inundation." /> + </div> + <p> + Prof. Pétrie, however, who examined the Griza pyramids in 1881, and + carefully measured them all up and finally settled their trigonometrical + relation, came to the conclusion that Lepsius’s theory was entirely + erroneous, and that every pyramid was built and now stands as it was + originally planned. Dr.Borchardt, however, who is an architect by + profession, has examined the pyramids again, and has come to the + conclusion that Prof. Pétrie’s statement is not correct, and that there is + an element of truth in Lepsius’s hypothesis. He has shown that several of + the pyramids, notably the First and Second at Giza, show unmistakable + signs of a modified, altered, and enlarged plan; in fact, long-lived kings + like Khufu seem to have added considerably to their pyramids and even to + have entirely remodelled them on a larger scale. This has certainly been + the case with the Great Pyramid. We can, then, accept Lepsius’s theory as + modified by Dr. Borchardt. + </p> + <p> + Another interesting point has arisen in connection with the Great Pyramid. + Considerable difference of opinion has always existed between + Egyptologists and the professors of European archaeology with regard to + the antiquity of the knowledge of iron in Egypt. The majority of the + Egyptologists have always maintained, on the authority of the + inscriptions, that iron was known to the ancient Egyptians from the + earliest period. They argued that the word for a certain metal in old + Egyptian was the same as the Coptic word for “iron.” They stated that in + the most ancient religious texts the Egyptians spoke of the firmament of + heaven as made of this metal, and they came to the conclusion that it was + because this metal was blue in colour, the hue of iron or steel; and they + further pointed out that some of the weapons in the tomb-paintings were + painted blue and others red, some being of iron, that is to say, others of + copper or bronze. Finally they brought forward as incontrovertible + evidence an actual fragment of worked iron, which had been found between + two of the inner blocks, down one of the air-shafts, in the Great Pyramid. + Here was an actual piece of iron of the time of the IVth Dynasty, about + 3500 B.C. + </p> + <p> + This conclusion was never accepted by the students of the development of + the use of metal in prehistoric Europe, when they came to know of it. No + doubt their incredulity was partly due to want of appreciation of the + Egyptological evidence, partly to disinclination to accept a conclusion + which did not at all agree with the knowledge they had derived from their + own study of prehistoric Europe. In Southern Europe it was quite certain + that iron did not come into use till about 1000 B.C.; in Central Europe, + where the discoveries at Hallstatt in the Salzkammergut exhibit the + transition from the Age of Bronze to that of Iron, about 800 B.C. The + exclusively Iron Age culture of La Tène cannot be dated earlier than the + eighth century, if as early as that. How then was it possible that, if + iron had been known to the Egyptians as early as 3500 B.C., its knowledge + should not have been communicated to the Europeans until over two thousand + years later? No; iron could not have been really known to the Egyptians + much before 1000 B.C. and the Egyptological evidence was all wrong. This + line of argument was taken by the distinguished Swedish archaeologist, + Prof. Oscar Montelius, of Upsala, whose previous experience in dealing + with the antiquities of Northern Europe, great as it was, was hardly + sufficient to enable him to pronounce with authority on a point affecting + far-away African Egypt. And when dealing with Greek prehistoric + antiquities Prof. Montelius’s views have hardly met with that ready + agreement which all acknowledge to be his due when he is giving us the + results of his ripe knowledge of Northern antiquities. He has, in fact, + forgotten, as most “prehistoric” archaeologists do forget, that the + antiquities of Scandinavia, Greece, Egypt, the Semites, the bronze-workers + of Benin, the miners of Zimbabwe, and the Ohio mound-builders are not to + be treated all together as a whole, and that hard and fast lines of + development cannot be laid down for them, based on the experience of + Scandinavia. + </p> + <p> + We may perhaps trace this misleading habit of thought to the influence of + the professors of natural science over the students of Stone Age and + Bronze Age antiquities. Because nature moves by steady progression and + develops on even lines—<i>nihil facit per sal-tum</i>—it seems + to have been assumed that the works of man’s hands have developed in the + same way, in a regular and even scheme all over the world. On this + supposition it would be impossible for the great discovery of the use of + iron to have been known in Egypt as early as 3500 B.C. for this knowledge + to have remained dormant there for two thousand years, and then to have + been suddenly communicated about 1000 B.C. to Greece, spreading with + lightning-like rapidity over Europe and displacing the use of bronze + everywhere. Yet, as a matter of fact, the work of man does develop in + exactly this haphazard way, by fits and starts and sudden leaps of + progress after millennia of stagnation. Throwsback to barbarism are just + as frequent. The analogy of natural evolution is completely inapplicable + and misleading. + </p> + <p> + Prof. Montelius, however, following the “evolutionary” line of thought, + believed that because iron was not known in Europe till about 1000 B.C. it + could not have been known in Egypt much earlier; and in an important + article which appeared in the Swedish ethnological journal <i>Ymer</i> in + 1883, entitled <i>Bronsaldrn i Egypten</i> (“The Bronze Age in Egypt”), he + essayed to prove the contrary arguments of the Egyptologists wrong. His + main points were that the colour of the weapons in the frescoes was of no + importance, as it was purely conventional and arbitrary, and that the + evidence of the piece of iron from the Great Pyramid was insufficiently + authenticated, and therefore valueless, in the absence of other definite + archaeological evidence in the shape of iron of supposed early date. To + this article the Swedish Egyptologist, Dr. Piehl, replied in the same + periodical, in an article entitled <i>Bronsaldem i Egypten</i>, in which + he traversed Prof. Montelius’s conclusions from the Egyptological point of + view, and adduced other instances of the use of iron in Egypt, all, it is + true, later than the time of the IVth Dynasty. But this protest received + little notice, owing to the fact that it remained buried in a Swedish + periodical, while Prof. Montelius’s original article was translated into + French, and so became well-known. + </p> + <p> + For the time Prof. Montelius’s conclusions were generally accepted, and + when the discoveries of the prehistoric antiquities were made by M. de + Morgan, it seemed more probable than ever that Egypt had gone through a + regular progressive development from the Age of Stone through those of + copper and bronze to that of iron, which was reached about 1100 or 1000 + B.C. The evidence of the iron fragment from the Great Pyramid was put on + one side, in spite of the circumstantial account of its discovery which + had been given by its finders. Even Prof. Pétrie, who in 1881 had accepted + the pyramid fragment as undoubtedly contemporary with that building, and + had gone so far as to adduce additional evidence for its authenticity, + gave way, and accepted Montelius’s view, which held its own until in 1902 + it was directly controverted by a discovery of Prof. Pétrie at Abydos. + This discovery consisted of an undoubted fragment of iron found in + conjunction with bronze tools of VIth Dynasty date; and it settled the + matter.<a href="#fn3.1" name="fnref3.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> The VIth Dynasty date of this piece of iron, which was more + probably worked than not (since it was buried with tools), was held to be + undoubted by its discoverer and by everybody else, and, if this were + undoubted, the IVth Dynasty date of the Great Pyramid fragment was also + fully established. The discoverers of the earlier fragment had no doubt + whatever as to its being contemporary with the pyramid, and were supported + in this by Prof. Pétrie in 1881. Therefore it is now known to be the fact + that iron was used by the Egyptians as early as 3500 B.C.<a href="#fn3.2" name="fnref3.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.1"></a> <a href="#fnref3.1">[1]</a> + See H. R. Hall’s note on “The Early Use of Iron in Egypt,” + in <i>Man</i> (the organ of the Anthropological Society of + London), iii (1903), No. 86. +</p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.2"></a> <a href="#fnref3.2">[2]</a> + Prof. Montelius objected to these conclusions in a review + of the British Museum “Guide to the Antiquities of the + Bronze Age,” which was published in Man, 1005 (Jan.), No 7. + For an answer to these objections, see Hall, ibid., No. 40. +</p> + <p> + It would thus appear that though the Egyptians cannot be said to have used + iron generally and so to have entered the “Iron Age” before about 1300 + B.C. (reign of Ramses II), yet iron was well known to them and had been + used more than occasionally by them for tools and building purposes as + early as the time of the IVth Dynasty, about 3500 B.C. Certainly dated + examples of its use occur under the IVth, VIth, and XIIIth Dynasties. Why + this knowledge was not communicated to Europe before about 1000 B.C. we + cannot say, nor are Egyptologists called upon to find the reason. So the + Great Pyramid has played an interesting part in the settlement of a very + important question. + </p> + <p> + It was supposed by Prof. Pétrie that the piece of iron from the Great + Pyramid had been part of some arrangement employed for raising the stones + into position. Herodotus speaks of the machines, which were used to raise + the stones, as made of little pieces of wood. The generally accepted + explanation of his meaning used to be that a small crane or similar wooden + machine was used for hoisting the stone by means of pulley and rope; but + M. Legrain, the director of the works of restoration in the Great Temple + of Karnak, has explained it differently. Among the “foundation deposits” + of the XVIIIth Dynasty at Dêr el-Bahari and elsewhere, beside the little + plaques with the king’s name and the model hoes and vases, was usually + found an enigmatic wooden object like a small cradle, with two sides made + of semicircular pieces of wood, joined along the curved portion by round + wooden bars. M. Legrain has now explained this as a model of the machine + used to raise heavy stones from tier to tier of a pyramid or other + building, and illustrations of the method of its use may be found in + Choisy’s <i>Art de Bâtir chez les anciens Egyptiens</i>. There is little + doubt that this primitive machine is that to which Herodotus refers as + having been used in the erection of the pyramids. + </p> + <p> + The later historian, Diodorus, also tells us that great mounds or ramps of + earth were used as well, and that the stones were dragged up these to the + requisite height. There is no doubt that this statement also is correct. + We know that the Egyptians did build in this very way, and the system has + been revived by M. Legrain for his work at Karnak, where still exist the + remains of the actual mounds and ramps by which the great western pylon + was erected in Ptolemaïc times. Work carried on in this way is slow and + expensive, but it is eminently suited to the country and understood by the + people. If they wish to put a great stone architrave weighing many tons + across the top of two columns, they do not hoist it up into position; they + rear a great ramp or embankment of earth against the two pillars, + half-burying them in the process, then drag the architrave up the ramp by + means of ropes and men, and put it into position. Then the ramp is cleared + away. This is the ancient system which is now followed at Karnak, and it + is the system by which, with the further aid of the wooden machines, the + Great Pyramid and its compeers were erected in the days of the IVth + Dynasty. <i>Plus cela change, plus c’est la même chose</i>. + </p> + <p> + The brick pyramids of the XIIth Dynasty were erected in the same way, for + the Egyptians had no knowledge of the modern combination of wooden + scaffolding and ladders. There was originally a small stone pyramid of the + same dynasty at Dashûr, half-way between the two brick ones, but this has + now almost disappeared. It belonged to the king Amenemhat II, while the + others belonged, the northern to Usertsen (Sen-usret) III, the southern to + Amenemhat III. Both these latter monarchs had other tombs elsewhere, + Usertsen a great rock-cut gallery and chamber in the cliff at Abydos, + Amenemhat a pyramid not very far to the south, at Hawara, close to the + Fayyûm. It is uncertain whether the Hawara pyramid or that of Dashûr was + the real burial-place of the king, as at neither place is his name found + alone. At Hawara it is found in conjunction with that of his daughter, the + queen-regnant Se-bekneferurâ (Skemiophris), at Dashûr with that of a king + Auabrâ Hor, who was buried in a small tomb near that of the king, and + adjoining the tombs of the king’s children. Who King Hor was we do not + quite know. His name is not given in the lists, and was unknown until M. + de Morgan’s discoveries at Dashûr. It is most probable that he was a + prince who was given royal honours during the lifetime of Amenemhat III, + whom he predeceased.<a href="#fn3.3" name="fnref3.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> In the beautiful wooden statue of him found in his + tomb, which is now in the Cairo Museum, he is represented as quite a + youth. Amenemhat III was certainly succeeded by Amenemhat IV, and it is + impossible to intercalate Hor between them. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.3"></a> <a href="#fnref3.3">[3]</a> + See below, p. 121. Possibly he was a son of Amenemhat III. +</p> + <p> + The identification of the owners of the three western pyramids of Dashûr + is due to M. de Morgan and his assistants, Messrs. Legrain and Jéquier, + who excavated them from 1894 till 1896. The northern pyramid, that of + Usertsen (Senusret) III, is not so well preserved as the southern. It is + more worn away, and does not present so imposing an appearance. In both + pyramids the outer casing of white stone has entirely disappeared, leaving + only the bare black bricks. Each stood in the midst of a great necropolis + of dignitaries of the period, as was usually the case. Many of the + mastabas were excavated by M. de Morgan. Some are of older periods than + the XIIth Dynasty, one belonging to a priest of King Snefru, Aha-f-ka + (“Ghost-fighter”), who bore the additional titles of “director of prophets + and general of infantry.” There were pluralists even in those days. And + the distinction between the privy councillor (Geheimrat) and real privy + councillor (Wirk-licher-Greheimrat) was quite familiar; for we find it + actually made, many an old Egyptian officially priding himself in his tomb + on having been a real privy councillor! The Egyptian bureaucracy was + already ancient and had its survivals and its anomalies even as early as + the time of the pyramid-builders. + </p> + <p> + In front of the pyramid of Usertsen (Senusret) III at one time stood the + usual funerary temple, but it has been totally destroyed. By the side of + the pyramid were buried some of the princesses of the royal family, in a + series of tombs opening out of a subterranean gallery, and in this gallery + were found the wonderful jewels of the princesses Sit-hathor and Merit, + which are among the greatest treasures of the Cairo Museum. Those who have + not seen them can obtain a perfect idea of their appearance from the + beautiful water-colour paintings of them by M. Legrain, which are + published in M. de Morgan’s work on the “Fouilles à Dahchour” (Vienna, + 1895). Altogether one hundred and seven objects were recovered, consisting + of all kinds of jewelry in gold and coloured stones. Among the most + beautiful are the great “pectorals,” or breast-ornaments, in the shape of + pylons, with the names of Usertsen II, Usertsen III, and Amenemhat III; + the names are surrounded by hawks standing on the sign for gold, gryphons, + figures of the king striking down enemies, etc., all in <i>cloisonné</i> + work, with beautiful stones such as lapis lazuli, green felspar, and + carnelian taking the place of coloured enamels. The massive chains of + golden beads and cowries are also very remarkable. These treasures had + been buried in boxes in the floor of the subterranean gallery, and had + luckily escaped the notice of plunderers, and so by a fortunate chance + have survived to tell us what the Egyptian jewellers could do in the days + of the XIIth Dynasty. Here also were found two great Nile barges, + full-sized boats, with their oars and other gear complete. They also may + be seen in the Museum of Cairo. It can only be supposed that they had + served as the biers of the royal mummies, and had been brought up in state + on sledges. The actual royal chamber was not found, although a + subterranean gallery was driven beneath the centre of the pyramid. + </p> + <p> + The southern brick pyramid was constructed in the same way as the northern + one. At the side of it were also found the tombs of members of the royal + house, including that of the king Hor, already mentioned, with its + interesting contents. The remains of the mummy of this ephemeral monarch, + known only from his tomb, were also found. The entrails of the king were + placed in the usual “canopic jars,” which were sealed with the seal of + Amenemhat III; it is thus that we know that Hor died before him. In many + of the inscriptions of this king, on his coffin and stelo, a peculiarly + affected manner of writing the hieroglyphs is found,—the birds are + without their legs, the snake has no tail, the bee no head. Birds are + found without their legs in other inscriptions of this period; it was a + temporary fashion and soon discarded. + </p> + <p> + In the tomb of a princess named Nubhetep, near at hand, were found more + jewels of the same style as those of Sit-hathor and Merit. The pyramid + itself contained the usual passages and chambers, which were reached with + much difficulty and considerable tunnelling by M. de Morgan. In fact, the + search for the royal death-chambers lasted from December 5, 1894, till + March 17, 1895, when the excavators’ gallery finally struck one of the + ancient passages, which were found to be unusually extensive, contrasting + in this respect with the northern pyramid. The royal tomb-chamber had, of + course, been emptied of what it contained. It must be remembered that, in + any case, it is probable that the king was not actually buried here, but + in the pyramid of Hawara. + </p> + <p> + The pyramid of Amenemhat II, which lies between the two brick pyramids, + was built entirely of stone. Nothing of it remains above ground, but the + investigation of the subterranean portions showed that it was remarkable + for the massiveness of its stones and the care with which the masonry was + executed. The same characteristics are found in the dependent tombs of the + princesses Ha and Khnumet, in which more jewelry was found. This splendid + stonework is characteristic of the Middle Kingdom; we find it also in the + temple of Mentuhetep III at Thebes. + </p> + <p> + Some distance south of Dashûr is Mêdûm, where the pyramid of Sneferu + reigns in solitude, and beyond this again is Lisht, where in the years + 1894-6 MM. Gautier and Jéquier excavated the pyramid of Usertsen + (Sen-usret) I. The most remarkable find was a cache of the seated statues + of the king in white limestone, in absolutely perfect condition. They were + found lying on their sides, just as they had been hidden. Six figures of + the king in the form of Osiris, with the face painted red, were also + found. Such figures seem to have been regularly set up in front of a royal + sepulchre; several were found in front of the funerary temple of + Mentu-hetep III, Thebes, which we shall describe later. A fine altar of + gray granite, with representations in relief of the nomes bringing + offerings, was also recovered. The pyramid of Lisht itself is not built of + bricks, like those of Dashûr, but of stone. It was not, however, erected + in so solid a fashion as those of earlier days at Gîza or Abusîr, and + nothing is left of it now but a heap of débris. The XIIth Dynasty + architects built walls of magnificent masonry, as we have seen, and there + is no doubt that the stone casing of their pyramids was originally very + fine, but the interior is of brick or rubble; the wonderful system of + building employed by kings of the IVth Dynasty at Giza was not practised. + </p> + <p> + South of Lisht is Illahun, and at the entrance to the province of the + Fayyûm, and west of this, nearer the Fayyûm, is Hawara, where Prof. Petrie + excavated the pyramids of Usertsen (Senusret) II and Amenem-hat III. His + discoveries have already been described by Prof. Maspero in his history, + so that it will suffice here merely to compare them with the results of M. + de Morgan’s later work at Dashûr and that of MM. Gautier and Jéquier at + Lisht, to note recent conclusions in connection with them, and to describe + the newest discoveries in the same region. + </p> + <p> + Both pyramids are of brick, lined with stone, like those of Dashûr, with + some differences of internal construction, since stone walls exist in the + interior. The central chambers and passages leading to them were + discovered; and in both cases the passages are peculiarly complex, with + dumb chambers, great stone portcullises, etc., in order to mislead and + block the way to possible plunderers. The extraordinary sepulchral chamber + of the Hawara pyramid, which, though it is over twenty-two feet long by + ten feet wide over all, is hewn out of one solid block of hard yellow + quartzite, gives some idea of the remarkable facility of dealing with huge + stones and the love of utilizing them which is especially characteristic + of the XIIth Dynasty. The pyramid of Hawara was provided with a funerary + temple the like of which had never been known in Egypt before and was + never known afterwards. It was a huge building far larger than the pyramid + itself, and built of fine limestone and crystalline white quartzite, in a + style eminently characteristic of the XIIth Dynasty. In actual superficies + this temple covered an extent of ground within which the temples of + Karnak, Luxor, and the Ramesseum, at Thebes, could have stood, but has now + almost entirely disappeared, having been used as a quarry for two thousand + years. In Roman times this destroying process had already begun, but even + then the building was still magnificent, and had been noted with wonder by + all the Greek visitors to Egypt from the time of Herodotus downwards. Even + before his day it had received the name of the “Labyrinth,” on account of + its supposed resemblance to the original labyrinth in Crete. + </p> + <p> + That the Hawara temple was the Egyptian labyrinth was pointed out by + Lepsius in the ‘forties of the last century. Within the last two or three + years attention has again been drawn to it by Mr. Arthur Evans’s discovery + of the Cretan labyrinth itself in the shape of the Minoan or early + Mycenæan palace of Knossos, near Candia in Crete. It is impossible to + enter here into all the arguments by which it has been proved that the + Knossian palace is the veritable labyrinth of the Minotaur legend, nor + would it be strictly germane to our subject were we to do so; but it may + suffice to say here that the word + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:10%;"> + <img src="images/125.jpg" width="100%" alt="125.jpg (greek Word) " /> + </div> + <p> + has been proved to be of Greek-or rather of pre-Hellenic-origin, and would + mean in Karian “Place of the Double-Axe,” like La-braunda in Karia, where + Zeus was depicted with a double axe (labrys) in his hand. The non-Aryan, + “Asianic,” group of languages, to which certainly Lycian and probably + Karian belong, has been shown by the German philologer Kretschmer to have + spread over Greece into Italy in the period before the Aryan Greeks + entered Hellas, and to have left undoubted traces of its presence in Greek + place-names and in the Greek language itself. Before the true Hellenes + reached Crete, an Asianic dialect must have been spoken there, and to this + language the word “labyrinth” must originally have belonged. The classical + labyrinth was “in the Knossian territory.” The palace of Knossos was + emphatically the chief seat of the worship of a god whose emblem was the + double-axe; it was the Knossian “Place of the Double-Axe,” the Cretan + “Labyrinth.” + </p> + <p> + It used to be supposed that the Cretan labyrinth had taken its name from + the Egyptian one, and the, word itself was supposed to be of Egyptian + origin. An Egyptian etymology was found for it as “<i>Ro-pi-ro-henet</i>,” + “Temple-mouth-canal,” which might be interpreted, with some violence to + Egyptian construction, as “The temple at the mouth of the canal,” i.e. the + Bahr Yusuf, which enters the Fayyûm at Hawara. But unluckily this word + would have been pronounced by the natives of the vicinity as + “Elphilahune,” which is not very much like + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:10%;"> + <img src="images/126.jpg" width="100%" alt="126.jpg (greek Word) " /> + </div> + <p> + “<i>Ro-pi-ro-henet</i>” is, in fact, a mere figment of the philological + imagination, and cannot be proved ever to have existed. The element <i>Ro-henet</i>, + “canal-mouth” (according to the local pronunciation of the Fayyûm and + Middle Egypt, called <i>La-hunè</i>), is genuine; it is the origin of the + modern Illahun (<i>el-Lahun</i>), which is situated at the “canal-mouth.” + However, now that we know that the word labyrinth can be explained + satisfactorily with the help of Karian, as evidently of Greek (pre-Aryan) + origin, and as evidently the original name of the Knossian labyrinth, it + is obvious that there is no need to seek a far-fetched explanation of the + word in Egypt, and to suppose that the Greeks called the Cretan labyrinth + after the Egyptian one. + </p> + <p> + The contrary is evidently the case. Greek visitors to Egypt found a + resemblance between the great Egyptian building, with its numerous halls + and corridors, vast in extent, and the Knossian palace. Even if very + little of the latter was visible in the classical period, as seems + possible, yet the site seems always to have been kept holy and free from + later building till Roman times, and we know that the tradition of the + mazy halls and corridors of the labyrinth was always clear, and was + evidently based on a vivid reminiscence. Actually, one of the most + prominent characteristics of the Knossian palace is its mazy and + labyrinthine system of passages and chambers. The parallel between the two + buildings, which originally caused the Greek visitors to give the + pyramid-temple of Hawara the name of “labyrinth,” has been traced still + further. The white limestone walls and the shining portals of “Parian + marble,” described by Strabo as characteristic of the Egyptian labyrinth, + have been compared with the shining white selenite or gypsum used at + Knossos, and certain general resemblances between the Greek architecture + of the Minoan age and the almost contemporary Egyptian architecture of the + XIIth Dynasty have been pointed out.<a href="#fn3.4" name="fnref3.4"><sup>[4]</sup></a> Such resemblances may go to swell + the amount of evidence already known, which tells us that there was a + close connection between Egyptian and Minoan art and civilization, + established at least as early as 2500 B.C. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.4"></a> <a href="#fnref3.4">[4]</a> + See H. R. Hall, Journal of Hellenic Studies, 1905 (Pt. + ii). The Temple of the Sphinx at Gîza may also be compared + with those of Hawara and Knossos. It seems most probable + that the Temple of the Sphinx is a XIIth Dynasty building. +</p> + <p> + For it must be remembered that within the last few years we have learned + from the excavations in Crete a new chapter of ancient history, which, it + might almost seem, shows us Greece and Egypt in regular communication from + nearly the beginnings of Egyptian history. As the excavations which have + told us this were carried on in Crete, not in Egypt, to describe them does + not lie within the scope of this book, though a short sketch of their + results, so far as they affect Egyptian history in later days, is given in + Chapter VII. Here it may suffice to say that, as far as the early period + is concerned, Egypt and Crete were certainly in communication in the time + of the XIIth Dynasty, and quite possibly in that of the VIth or still + earlier. We have IIId Dynasty Egyptian vases from Knossos, which were + certainly not imported in later days, for no ancient nation had + antiquarian tastes till the time of the Saïtes in Egypt and of the Romans + still later. In fact, this communication seems to go so far back in time + that we are gradually being led to perceive the possibility that the + Minoan culture of Greece was in its origin an offshoot from that of + primeval Egypt, probably in early Neolithic times. That is to say, the + Neolithic Greeks and Neolithic Egyptians were both members of the same + “Mediterranean” stock, which quite possibly may have had its origin in + Africa, and a portion of which may have crossed the sea to Europe in very + early times, taking with it the seeds of culture which in Egypt developed + in the Egyptian way, in Greece in the Greek way. Actual communication and + connection may not have been maintained at first, and probably they were + not. Prof. Petrie thinks otherwise, and would see in the boats painted on + the predynastic Egyptian vases (see Chapter I) the identical galleys by + which, in late Neolithic times, commerce between Crete and Egypt was + carried on across the Mediterranean. It is certain, however, that these + boats are ordinary little river craft, the usual Nile <i>felûkas</i> and + <i>gyassas</i> of the time; they are depicted together with emblems of the + desert and cultivated land,-ostriches, antelopes, hills, and + palm-trees,-and the thoroughly inland and Upper Egyptian character of the + whole design springs to the eye. There can be no doubt whatever that the + predynastic boats were not seagoing galleys. + </p> + <p> + It was probably not till the time of the pyramid-builders that connection + between the Greek Mediterraneans and the Nilotes was re-established. + Thence-forward it increased, and in the time of the XIIth Dynasty, when + the labyrinth of Amenemhat III was built, there seems to have been some + kind of more or less regular communication between the two countries. + </p> + <p> + It is certain that artistic ideas were exchanged between them at this + period. How communication was carried on we do not know, but it was + probably rather by way of Cyprus and the Syrian coast than directly across + the open sea. We shall revert to this point when we come to describe the + connection between Crete and Egypt in the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty, + when Cretan ambassadors visited the Egyptian court and were depicted in + tomb paintings at Thebes. Between the time of the XIIth Dynasty and that + of the XVIIIth this connection seems to have been very considerably + strengthened; for at Knossos have been found an Egyptian statuette of an + Egyptian named Abnub, who from his name must have lived about the end of + the XIIIth Dynasty, and the top of an alabastron with the royal name of + Khian, one of the Hyksos kings. + </p> + <p> + Quite close to Hawara, at Illahun, in the ruins of the town which was + built by Usertsen’s workmen when they were building his pyramid, Prof. + Petrie found fragments of pottery of types which we now know well from + excavations in Crete and Cyprus, though they were then unknown. They are + fragments of the polychrome Cretan ware called, after the name of the + place where it was first found in Crete, Kamares ware, and of a black ware + ornamented with small punctures, which are often filled up with white. + This latter ware has been found elsewhere associated with XIIIth Dynasty + antiquities. The former is known to belong in Crete to the “early Minoan” + period, long anterior to the “late Minoan” or “Palace” period, which was + contemporary with the Egyptian XVIIIth Dynasty. We have here another + interesting proof of a connection between XIIth Dynasty Egypt and early + Minoan Crete. The later connection, under the XVIIIth and following + dynasties, is also illustrated in the same reign by Prof. Petrie’s finds + of late Mycenaean objects and foreign graves at Medinet Gurob.<a href="#fn3.5" name="fnref3.5"><sup>[5]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.5"></a> <a href="#fnref3.5">[5]</a> + One man who was buried here bore the name An-Tursha, + “Pillar of the Tursha.” The Tursha were a people of the + Mediterranean, possibly Tylissians of Crete. +</p> + <p> + These excavations at Hawara, Illahun, Kahun, and Gurob were carried out in + the years 1887-9. Since then Prof. Petrie and his co-workers have + revisited the same district, and Gurob has been re-examined (in 1904) by + Messrs. Loat and Ayrton, who discovered there a shrine devoted to the + worship of fish. This work was carried on at the same time as Prof. + Petrie’s main excavation for the Egypt Exploration Fund at Annas, or + Ahnas-yet el-Medina, the site of the ancient Henensu, the Herakleopolis of + the Greeks. Prof. Naville had excavated there for the Egypt Exploration + Fund in 1892, but had not completely cleared the temple. This work was now + taken up by Prof. Petrie, who laid the whole building bare. It is + dedicated to Hershefi, the local deity of Herakleopolis. This god, who was + called Ar-saphes by the Greeks, and identified with Herakles, was in fact + a form of Horus with the head of a ram; his name means “Terrible-Face.” + The greater part of the temple dates to the time of the XIXth Dynasty, and + nothing of the early period is left. We know, however, that the Middle + Kingdom was the flourishing period of the city of Hershefi. For a + comparatively brief period, between the age of Memphite hegemony and that + of Theban dominion, Herakleopolis was the capital city of Egypt. The kings + of the IXth and Xth Dynasties were Herakleopolites, though we know little + of them. One, Kheti, is said to have been a great tyrant. Another, + Nebkaurâ, is known only as a figure in the “Legend of the Eloquent + Peasant,” a classical story much in vogue in later days. Another, + Merikarâ, is a more real personage, for we have contemporary records of + his days in the inscriptions of the tombs at Asyût, from which we see that + the princes of Thebes were already wearing down the Northerners, in spite + of the resistance of the adherents of Herakleopolis, among whom the most + valiant were the chiefs of Asyût. The civil war eventuated in favour of + Thebes, and the Theban XIth Dynasty assumed the double crown. The sceptre + passed from Memphis and the North, and Thebes enters upon the scene of + Egyptian history. + </p> + <p> + With this event the Nile-land also entered upon a new era of development. + The metropolis of the kingdom was once more shifted to the South, and, + although the kings of the XIIth Dynasty actually resided in the North, + their Theban origin was never forgotten, and Thebes was regarded as the + chief city of the country. The XIth Dynasty kings actually reigned at + Thebes, and there the later kings of the XIIIth Dynasty retired after the + conquest of the Hyksos. The fact that with Thebes were associated all the + heroic traditions of the struggle against the Hyksos ensured the final + stability of the capital there when the hated Semites were finally driven + out, and the national kingdom was re-established in its full extent from + north to south. But for occasional intervals, as when Akhunaten held his + court at Tell el-Amarna and Ramses II at Tanis, Thebes remained the + national capital for six hundred years, till the time of the XXIId + Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + Another great change which differentiates the Middle Kingdom (XIth-XIIIth + Dynasties) from the Old Kingdom was caused by Egypt’s coming into contact + with other outside nations at this period. During the whole history of the + Old Kingdom, Egyptian relations with the outer world had been nil. We have + some inkling of occasional connection with the Mediterranean peoples, the + <i>Ha-nebu</i> or Northerners; we have accounts of wars with the people of + Sinai and other Bedawin and negroes; and expeditions were also sent to the + land of Punt (Somaliland) by way of the Upper Nile. But we have not the + slightest hint of any connection with, or even knowledge of, the great + nations of the Euphrates valley or the peoples of Palestine. The + Babylonian king Narâm-Sin invaded the Sinaitic peninsula (the land of + Magan) as early as 3750 b. c, about the time of the IIId Egyptian Dynasty. + The great King Tjeser, of that dynasty, also invaded Sinai, and so did + Snefru, the last king of the dynasty. But we have no hint of any collision + between Babylonians and Egyptians at that time, nor do either of them + betray the slightest knowledge of one another’s existence. It can hardly + be that the two civilized peoples of the world in those days were really + absolutely ignorant of each other, but we have no trace of any connection + between them, other than the possible one before the founding of the + Egyptian monarchy. + </p> + <p> + This early connection, however, is very problematical. We have seen that + there seems to be in early Egyptian civilization an element ultimately of + Babylonian origin, and that there are two theories as to how it reached + Egypt. One supposes that it was brought by a Semitic people of Arab + affinities (represented by the modern Grallas), who crossed the Straits of + Bab el-Man-deb and reached Egypt either by way of the Wadi Hammamat or by + the Upper Nile. The other would bring it across the Isthmus of Suez to the + Delta, where, at Heliopolis, there certainly seems to have been a + settlement of a Semitic type of very ancient culture. In both cases we + should have Semites bringing Babylonian culture to Egypt. This, as we may + remind the reader, was not itself of Semitic origin, but was a development + due to a non-Semitic people, the Sumerians as they are called, who, so far + as we know, were the aboriginal inhabitants of Babylonia. The Sumerian + language was of agglutinative type, radically distinct both from the pure + Semitic idioms and from Egyptian. The Babylonian elements of culture which + the early Semitic invaders brought with them to Egypt were, then, + ultimately of Sumerian origin. Sumerian civilization had profoundly + influenced the Semitic tribes for centuries before the Semitic conquest of + Babylonia, and when the Sumerians became more and more a conquered race, + finally amalgamating with their conquerors and losing their racial and + linguistic individuality, they were conquered by an alien race but not by + an alien culture. For the culture of the Semites was Sumerian, the Semitic + races owing their civilization to the Sumerians. That is as much as to say + that a great deal of what we call Semitic culture is fundamentally + non-Semitic. + </p> + <p> + In the earliest days, then, Egypt received elements of Sumerian culture + through a Semitic medium, which introduced Semitic elements into the + language of the people, and a Semitic racial strain. It is possible. that + both theories as to the routes of these primeval conquerors are true, and + that two waves of Semites entered the Nile valley towards the close of the + Neolithic period, one by way of the Upper Nile or Wadi Hammamat, the other + by way of Heliopolis. + </p> + <p> + After the reconsolidation of the Egyptian people, with perhaps an + autocratic class of Semitic origin and a populace of indigenous Nilotic + race, we have no trace of further connection with the far-away centre of + Semitic culture in Babylonia till the time of the Theban hegemony. Under + the XIIth Dynasty we see Egyptians in friendly relations with the Bedawin + of Idumsea and Southern Palestine. Thus Sanehat, the younger son of + Amenemhat I, when the death of his royal father was announced, fled from + the new king Usertsen (Senusret) into Palestine, and there married the + daughter of the chief Ammuanshi and became a Syrian chief himself, only + finally returning to Egypt as an old man on the assurance of the royal + pardon and favour. We have in the reign of Usertsen (Senusret) II the + famous visit of the Arab chief Abisha (Abêshu’) with his following to the + court of Khnumhetep, the prince of the Oryx nome in Middle Egypt, as we + see it depicted on the walls of Khnumhetep’s tomb at Beni Hasan. We see + Usertsen (Senusret) III invading Palestine to chastise the land of Sekmem + and the vile Syrians.<a href="#fn3.6" name="fnref3.6"><sup>[6]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn3.6"></a> <a href="#fnref3.6">[6]</a> + We know of this campaign from the interesting historical + stele of the general Sebek-khu (who took part in it), which + was found during Mr. Garstang’s excavations at Abydos, not + previously referred to above. They were carried out in 1900, + and resulted in the complete clearance of a part of the + great cemetery which had been created during the XIIth + Dynasty. The group of objects from the tombs of this + cemetery, and those of XVIIIth Dynasty tombs also found, is + especially valuable as showing the styles of objects in use + at these two periods (see Garstang, el-Ardbah, 1901). +</p> + <p> + The arm of Egypt was growing longer, and its weight was being felt in + regions where it had previously been entirely unknown. Eventually the + collision came. Egypt collided with an Asiatic power, and got the worst of + the encounter. So much the worse that the Theban monarchy of the Middle + Kingdom was overthrown, and Northern Egypt was actually conquered by the + Asiatic foreigners and ruled by a foreign house for several centuries. Who + these conquering Hyksos, or Shepherd Kings, were no recent discovery has + told us. An old idea was that they were Mongols. It was supposed that the + remarkable faces of the sphinxes of Tanis, now in the Cairo Museum, which + bore the names of Hyksos kings, were of Mongolian type, as also those of + two colossal royal heads discovered by M. Naville at Bubastis. But M. + Golénischeff has now shown that these heads are really those of XIIth + Dynasty kings, and not of Hyksos at all. Messrs. Newberry and Garstang + have lately endeavoured to show that this type was foreign, and probably + connected with that of the Kheta, or Hittites, of Northern Syria, who came + into prominence as enemies of Egypt at a later period. They think that the + type was introduced into the Egyptian royal family by Nefret, the queen of + Usertsen (Senusret) II, whom they suppose to have been a Hittite princess. + At the same time they think it probable that the type was also that of the + Hyksos, whom they consider to have been practically Hittites. They + therefore revive the theory of de Cara, which connects the Hyksos with the + Hittites and these with the Pelasgi and Tyrseni. + </p> + <p> + This is a very interesting theory, which, when carried out to its logical + conclusion, would connect the Hyksos and Hittites racially with the + pre-Hellenic “Minoan” Mycenseans of Greece, as well as with the Etruscans + of Italy. But there is little of certainty in it. It is by no means + impossible that we may eventually come to know that the Hittites (<i>Kheta</i>, + the <i>Khatte</i> of the Assyrians) and other tribes of Asia Minor were + racially akin to the “Minoans” of Greece, but the connection between the + Hyksos and the Hittites is to seek. The countenances of the Kheta on the + Egyptian monuments of Ramses II’s time have an angular cast, and so have + those of the Tanis sphinxes, of Queen Nefret, of the Bubastis statues, and + the statues of Usertsen (Senusret) III and Amenemhat III. We might then + suppose, with Messrs. Newberry and Garstang, that Nefret was a Kheta + princess, who gave her peculiar racial traits to her son Usertsen + (Senusret) III and his son Amenem-hat, were it not far more probable that + the resemblance between this peculiar XIIth Dynasty type and the Kheta + face is purely fortuitous. + </p> + <p> + There is really no reason to suppose that the type of face presented by + Nefret, Usertsen, and Amenemhat is not purely Egyptian. It may be seen in + many a modern fellah, and the truth probably is that the sculptors have in + the case of these rulers very faithfully and carefully depicted their + portraits, and that their faces happen to have been of a rather hard and + forbidding type. But, if we grant the contention of Messrs. Newberry and + Garstang for the moment, where is the connection between these XIIth + Dynasty kings and the Hyksos? All the Tanite monuments with this peculiar + facial type which would be considered Hyksos are certainly of the XIIth + Dynasty. The only statue of a Hyksos king, which was undoubtedly + originally made for him and is not one of the XIIth Dynasty usurped, is + the small one of Khian at Cairo, discovered by M. Naville at Bubastis, and + this has no head. So that we have not the slightest idea of what a Hyksos + looked like. Moreover, the evidence of the Hyksos names which are known to + us points in quite a different direction. The Kheta, or Hittites, were + certainly not Semites, yet the Hyksos names are definitely Semitic. In + fact it is most probable that the Hyksos, or Shepherd Kings, were, as the + classical authorities say they were, and as their name (<i>hiku-semut</i> + or <i>hihu-shasu</i>,) “princes of the deserts” or (“princes of the + Bedawîn”) also testifies, purely and simply Arabs. + </p> + <p> + Now it is not a little curious that almost at the same time that a nomad + Arab race conquered Lower Egypt and settled in it as rulers (just as ‘Amr + and the followers of Islam did over two thousand years later), another + Arab race may have imposed its rule upon Babylonia. Yet this may have been + the case; for the First Dynasty of Babylon, to which the famous Hammurabi + belonged, was very probably of Arab origin, to judge by the forms of some + of the royal names. It is by no means impossible that there was some + connection between these two conquests, and that both Babylonia and Egypt + fell, in the period before the year 2000 B.C. before some great migratory + movement from Arabia, which overran Babylonia, Palestine, and even the + Egyptian Delta. + </p> + <p> + In this manner Egypt and Babylonia may have been brought together in + common subjection to the Arab. We do not know whether any regular + communication between Egypt, under Semitic rule, and Babylonia was now + established; but we do know that during the Hyksos period there were + considerable relations between Egypt and over-sea Crete, and relations + with Mesopotamia may possibly have been established. At any rate, when the + war of liberation, which was directed by the princes of Thebes, was + finally brought to a successful conclusion and the Arabs were expelled, we + find the Egyptians a much changed nation. They had adopted for war the use + of horse and chariot, which they learnt from their Semitic conquerors, + whose victory was in all probability largely gained by their use, and, + generally speaking, they had become much more like the Western Asiatic + nations. Egypt was no longer isolated, for she had been forcibly brought + into contact with the foreign world, and had learned much. She was no + longer self-contained within her own borders. If the Semites could conquer + her, so could she conquer the Semites. Armed with horse and chariot, the + Egyptians went forth to battle, and their revenge was complete. All + Palestine and Syria were Egyptian domains for five hundred years after the + conquest by Thothmes I and III, and Ashur and Babel sent tribute to the + Pharaoh of Egypt. + </p> + <p> + The reaction came, and Egypt was thrown prostrate beneath the feet of + Assyria; but her claim to dominion over the Western Asiatics was never + abandoned, and was revived in all its pomp by Ptolemy Euergetes, who + brought back in triumph to Egypt the images of the gods which had been + removed by Assyrians and Babylonians centuries before. This claim was + never allowed by the Asiatics, it is true, and their kings wrote to the + proudest Pharaoh as to an absolute equal. Even the King of Cyprus calls + the King of Egypt his brother. But Palestine was admitted to be an + Egyptian possession, and the Phoenicians were always energetic supporters + of the Egyptian régime against the lawless Bedawîn tribes, who were + constantly intriguing with the Kheta or Hittite power to the north against + Egypt. + </p> + <p> + The existence of this extra-Egyptian imperial possession meant that the + eyes of the Egyptians were now permanently turned in the direction of + Western Asia, with which they were henceforth in constant and intimate + communication. The first Theban period and the Hyksos invasion, therefore, + mark a turning-point in Egyptian history, at which we may fitly leave it + for a time in order to turn our attention to those peoples of Western Asia + with whom the Egyptians had now come into permanent contact. + </p> + <p> + Just as new discoveries have been made in Egypt, which have modified our + previous conception of her history, so also have the excavators of the + ancient sites in the Mesopotamian valley made, during the last few years, + far-reaching discoveries, which have enabled us to add to and revise much + of our knowledge of the history of Babylonia and Assyria. In Palestine and + the Sinaitic peninsula also the spade has been used with effect, but a + detailed account of work in Sinai and Palestine falls within the limits of + a description of Biblical discoveries rather than of this book. The + following chapters will therefore deal chiefly with modern discoveries + which have told us new facts with regard to the history of the ancient + Sumerians themselves, and of the Babylonians, Elamites, Kassites, and + Assyrians, the inheritors of the ancient Sumerian civilization, which was + older than that of Egypt, and which, as we have seen, probably contributed + somewhat to its formation. These were the two primal civilizations of the + ancient world. For two thousand years each marched upon a solitary road, + without meeting the other. Eventually the two roads converged. We have + hitherto dealt with the road of the Egyptians; we now describe that of the + Mesopotamians, up to the point of convergence. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkB2HCH0002" id="linkB2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER IV—RECENT EXCAVATIONS IN WESTERN ASIA <br /> AND THE DAWN OF + CHALDÆAN HISTORY + </h2> + <p> + In the preceding pages it has been shown how recent excavations in Egypt + have revealed an entirely new chapter in the history of that country, and + how, in consequence, our theories with regard to the origin of Egyptian + civilization have been entirely remodelled. Excavations have been and are + being carried out in Mesopotamia and the adjacent countries with no less + enthusiasm and energy than in Egypt itself, and, although it cannot be + said that they have resulted in any sweeping modification of our + conceptions with regard to the origin and kinship of the early races of + Western Asia, yet they have lately added considerably to our knowledge of + the ancient history of the countries in that region of the world. This is + particularly the case in respect of the Sumerians, who, so far as we know + at present, were the earliest inhabitants of the fertile plains of + Mesopotamia. The beginnings of this ancient people stretch back into the + remote past, and their origin is still shrouded in the mists of antiquity. + When first we come across them they have already attained a high level of + civilization. They have built temples and palaces and houses of burnt and + unburnt brick, and they have reduced their system of agriculture to a + science, intersecting their country with canals for purposes of irrigation + and to ensure a good supply of water to their cities. Their sculpture and + pottery furnish abundant evidence that they have already attained a + comparatively high level in the practice of the arts, and finally they + have evolved a complicated system of writing which originally had its + origin in picture-characters, but afterwards had been developed along + phonetic lines. To have attained to this pitch of culture argues long + periods of previous development, and we must conclude that they had been + settled in Southern Babylonia many centuries before the period to which we + must assign the earliest of their remains at present discovered. + </p> + <p> + That this people were not indigenous to Babylonia is highly probable, but + we have little data by which to determine the region from which they + originally came. Prom the fact that they built their ziggurats, or temple + towers, of huge masses of unburnt brick which rose high above the + surrounding plain, and that their ideal was to make each “like a + mountain,” it has been argued that they were a mountain race, and the home + from which they sprang has been sought in Central Asia. Other scholars + have detected signs of their origin in their language and system of + writing, and, from the fact that they spoke an agglutinative tongue and at + the earliest period arranged the characters of their script in vertical + lines like the Chinese, it has been urged that they were of Mongol + extraction. Though a case may be made out for this hypothesis, it would be + rash to dogmatize for or against it, and it is wiser to await the + discovery of further material on which a more certain decision may be + based. But whatever their origin, it is certain that the Sumerians + exercised an extraordinary influence on all races with which, either + directly or indirectly, they came in contact. The ancient inhabitants of + Elam at a very early period adopted in principle their method of writing, + and afterwards, living in isolation in the mountainous districts of + Persia, developed it on lines of their own. [* See Chap. V, and note.] On + their invasion of Babylonia the Semites fell absolutely under Sumerian + influence, and, although they eventually conquered and absorbed the + Sumerians, their civilization remained Sumerian to the core. Moreover, by + means of the Semitic inhabitants of Babylonia Sumerian culture continued + to exert its influence on other and more distant races. We have already + seen how a Babylonian element probably enters into Egyptian civilization + through Semitic infiltration across the Straits of Bab el-Mandeb or by way + of the Isthmus of Suez, and it was Sumerian culture which these Semites + brought with them. In like manner, through the Semitic Babylonians, the + Assyrians, the Kassites, and the inhabitants of Palestine and Syria, and + of some parts of Asia Minor, Armenia, and Kurdistan, all in turn + experienced indirectly the influence of Sumerian civilization and + continued in a greater or less degree to reproduce elements of this early + culture. + </p> + <p> + It will be seen that the influence of the Sumerians furnishes us with a + key to much that would otherwise prove puzzling in the history of the + early races of Western Asia. It is therefore all the more striking to + recall the fact that but a few years ago the very existence of this + ancient people was called in question. At that time the excavations in + Mesopotamia had not revealed many traces of the race itself, and its + previous existence had been mainly inferred from a number of Sumerian + compositions inscribed upon Assyrian tablets found in the library of + Ashur-bani-pal at Nineveh. These compositions were furnished with Assyrian + translations upon the tablets on which they were inscribed, and it was + correctly argued by the late Sir Henry Rawlinson, the late M. Oppert, + Prof. Schrader, Prof. Sayce, and other scholars that they were written in + the language of the earlier inhabitants of the country whom the Semitic + Babylonians had displaced. But M. Halévy started a theory to the effect + that Sumerian was not a language at all, in the proper sense of the term, + but was a cabalistic method of writing invented by the Semitic Babylonian + priests. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0010" id="linkBimage-0010"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/147.jpg" width="100%" + alt="147.jpg List of Archaic Cuneiform Signs. " /> + </div> +<p class="caption"> + Drawn up by an Assyrian scribe to assist him in his studies + of early texts. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The argument on which the upholders of this theory mainly relied was that + many of the phonetic values of the Sumerian signs were obviously derived + from Semitic equivalents, and they hastily jumped to the conclusion that + the whole language was similarly derived from Semitic Babylonian, and was, + in fact, a purely arbitrary invention of the Babylonian priests. This + theory ignored all questions of inherent probability, and did not attempt + to explain why the Babylonian priests should have troubled themselves to + make such an invention and afterwards have stultified themselves by + carefully appending Assyrian translations to the majority of the Sumerian + compositions which they copied out. Moreover, the nature of these + compositions is not such as we should expect to find recorded in a + cabalistic method of writing. They contain no secret lore of the + Babylonian priests, but are merely hymns and prayers and religious + compositions similar to those employed by the Babylonians and Assyrians + themselves. + </p> + <p> + But in spite of its inherent improbabilities, M. Halévy succeeded in + making many converts to his theory, including Prof. Friedrich Delitzsch + and a number of the younger school of German Assyriologists. More + conservative scholars, such as Sir Henry Rawlinson, M. Oppert, and Prof. + Schrader, stoutly opposed the theory, maintaining that Sumerian was a real + language and had been spoken by an earlier race whom the Semitic + Babylonians had conquered; and they explained the resemblance of some of + the Sumerian values to Semitic roots by supposing that Sumerian had not + been suddenly superseded by the language of the Semitic invaders of + Babylonia, but that the two tongues had been spoken for long periods side + by side and that each had been strongly influenced by the other. This very + probable and sane explanation has been fully corroborated by subsequent + excavations, particularly those that were carried out at Telloh in + Southern Babylonia by the late M. de Sarzec. In these mounds, which mark + the site of the ancient Sumerian city of Shirpurla, were found thousands + of clay tablets inscribed in archaic characters and in the Sumerian + language, proving that it had actually been the language of the early + inhabitants of Babylonia; while the examples of their art and the + representations of their form and features, which were also afforded by + the diggings at Telloh, proved once for all that the Sumerians were a race + of strongly marked characteristics and could not be ascribed to a Semitic + stock. + </p> + <p> + The system of writing invented by the ancient Sumerians was adopted by the + Semitic Babylonians, who modified it to suit their own language. Moreover, + the archaic forms of the characters, many of which under the Sumerians + still retained resemblances to the pictures of objects from which they + were descended, were considerably changed. The lines, of which they were + originally composed, gave way to wedges, and the number of the wedges of + which each sign consisted was gradually diminished, so that in the time of + the Assyrians and the later Babylonians many of the characters bore small + resemblance to the ancient Sumerian forms from which they had been + derived. The reading of Sumerian and early Babylonian inscriptions by the + late Assyrian scribes was therefore an accomplishment only to be acquired + as the result of long study, and it is interesting to note that as an + assistance to the reading of these early texts the scribes compiled lists + of archaic signs. Sometimes opposite each archaic character they drew a + picture of the object from which they imagined it was derived. This fact + is significant as proving that the Assyrian scribes recognized the + pictorial origin of cuneiform writing, but the pictures they drew opposite + the signs are rather fanciful, and it cannot be said that their guesses + were very successful. That we are able to criticize the theories of the + Assyrians as to the origin and forms of the early characters is in the + main due to M. de Sarzec’s labours, from whose excavations many thousands + of inscriptions of the Sumerians have been recovered. + </p> + <p> + The main results of M. de Sarzec’s diggings at Telloh have already been + described by M. Maspero in his history, and therefore we need not go over + them again, but will here confine ourselves to the results which have been + obtained from recent excavations at Telloh and at other sites in Western + Asia. With the death of M. de Sarzec, which occurred in his sixty-fifth + year, on May 31, 1901, the wonderfully successful series of excavations + which he had carried out at Telloh was brought to an end. In consequence + it was feared at the time that the French diggings on this site might be + interrupted for a considerable period. Such an event would have been + regretted by all those who are interested in the early history of the + East, for, in spite of the treasures found by M. de Sarzec in the course + of his various campaigns, it was obvious that the site was far from being + exhausted, and that the tells as yet unexplored contained inscriptions and + antiquities extending back to the very earliest periods of Sumerian + history. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0011" id="linkBimage-0011"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/150.jpg" width="100%" + alt="150.jpg Fragment of a List Of Archaic Cuneiform Signs. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Opposite each the scribe has drawn a picture of the object + from which he imagined it was derived. Photograph by Messrs. + Mansell & Co.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The announcement which was made in 1902, that the French government had + appointed Capt. Gaston Cros as the late M. de Sarzec’s successor, was + therefore received with general satisfaction. The fact that Capt. Cros had + already successfully carried out several difficult topographical missions + in the region of the Sahara was a sufficient guarantee that the new + diggings would be conducted on a systematic and exhaustive scale. + </p> + <p> + The new director of the French mission in Chaldæa arrived at Telloh in + January, 1903, and one of his first acts was to shift the site of the + mission’s settlement from the bank of the Shatt el-Hai, where it had + always been established in the time of M. de Sarzec, to the mounds where + the actual digging took place. The Shatt el-Hai had been previously chosen + as the site of the settlement to ensure a constant supply of water, and as + it was more easily protected against attack by night. But the fact that it + was an hour’s ride from the diggings caused an unnecessary loss of time, + and rendered the strict supervision of the diggers a matter of + considerable difficulty. During the first season’s work rough huts of + reeds, surrounded by a wall of earth and a ditch, served the new + expedition for its encampment among the mounds of Telloh, but last year + these makeshift arrangements were superseded by a regular house built out + of the burnt bricks which are found in abundance on the site. A reservoir + has also been built, and caravans of asses bring water in skins from the + Shatt el-Hai to keep it filled with a constant supply of water, while the + excellent relations which Capt. Cros has established with the Karagul + Arabs, who occupy Telloh and its neighbourhood, have proved to be the best + kind of protection for the mission engaged in scientific work upon the + site. + </p> + <p> + The group of mounds and hillocks, known as Telloh, which marks the site of + the ancient Sumerian city of Shirpurla, is easily distinguished from the + flat surrounding desert. The mounds extend in a rough oval formation + running north and south, about two and a half miles long and one and a + quarter broad. In the early spring, when the desert is covered with a + light green verdure, the ruins are clearly marked out as a yellow spot in + the surrounding green, for vegetation does not grow upon them. In the + centre of this oval, which approximately marks the limits of the ancient + city and its suburbs, are four large tells or mounds running, roughly, + north and south, their sides descending steeply on the east, but with + their western slopes rising by easier undulations from the plain. These + four principal tells are known as the “Palace Tell,” the “Tell of the + Fruit-house,” the “Tell of the Tablets,” and the “Great Tell,” and, rising + as they do in the centre of the site, they mark the position of the + temples and the other principal buildings of the city. + </p> + <p> + An indication of the richness of the site in antiquities was afforded to + the new mission before it had started regular excavation and while it was + yet engaged in levelling its encampment and surrounding it with a wall and + ditch. The spot selected for the camp was a small mound to the south of + the site of Telloh, and here, in the course of preparing the site for the + encampment and digging the ditch, objects were found at a depth of less + than a foot beneath the surface of the soil. These included daggers, + copper vases, seal-cylinders, rings of lapis and cornelian, and pottery. + M. de Sarzec had carried out his latest diggings in the Tell of the + Tablets, and here Capt. Cros continued the excavations and came upon the + remains of buildings and recovered numerous objects, dating principally + from the period of Gudea and the kings of Ur. The finds included small + terra-cotta figures, a boundary-stone of Gamil-Sin, and a new statue of + Gudea, to which we will refer again presently. + </p> + <p> + In the Tell of the Fruit-house M. de Sarzec had already discovered numbers + of monuments dating from the earlier periods of Sumerian history before + the conquest and consolidation of Babylonia under Sargon of Agade, and had + excavated a primitive terrace built by the early king Ur-Ninâ. Both on and + around this large mound Capt. Cros cut an extensive series of trenches, + and in digging to the north of the mound he found a number of objects, + including an alabaster tablet of Ente-mena which had been blackened by + fire. At the foot of the tell he found a copper helmet like those + represented on the famous Stele of Vultures discovered by M. de Sarzec, + and among the tablets here recovered was one with an inscription of the + time of Urukagina, which records the complete destruction of the city of + Shirpurla during his reign, and will be described in greater detail later + on in this chapter. On the mound itself a considerable area was uncovered + with remains of buildings still in place, the use of which appears to have + been of an industrial character. They included flights of steps, canals + with raised banks, and basins for storing water. Not far off are the + previously discovered wells of Bannadu, so that it is legitimate to + suppose that Capt. Cros has here come upon part of the works which were + erected at a very early period of Sumerian history for the distribution of + water to this portion of the city. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0012" id="linkBimage-0012"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/154.jpg" width="100%" + alt="154.jpg Obelisk of Manishtusu. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + An early Semitic king of the city of Kish in Babylonia. The + photograph is taken from M. de Morgan’s <i>Délégation en Perse, + Mém</i>., t. i, pi. ix.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + In the Palace Tell Capt. Cros has sunk a series of deep shafts to + determine precisely the relations which the buildings of Ur-Bau and Gudea, + found already on this part of the site, bear to each other, and to the + building of Adad-nadin-akhê, which had been erected there at a much later + period. Prom this slight sketch of the work carried out during the last + two years at Telloh it will have been seen that the Prench mission in + Chaldæa is at present engaged in excavations of a most important + character, which are being conducted in a regular and scientific manner. + As the area of the excavations marks the site of the chief city of the + Sumerians, the diggings there have yielded and are yielding material of + the greatest interest and value for the reconstruction of the early + history of Chaldæa. After briefly describing the character and results of + other recent excavations in Mesopotamia and the neighbouring lands, we + will return to the discoveries at Telloh and sketch the new information + they supply on the history of the earliest inhabitants of the country. + </p> + <p> + Another French mission that is carrying out work of the very greatest + interest to the student of early Babylonian history is that which is + excavating at Susa in Persia, under the direction of M. J. de Morgan, + whose work on the prehistoric and early dynastic sites in Egypt has + already been described. M. de Morgan’s first season’s digging at Susa was + carried out in the years 1897-8, and the success with which he met from + the very first, when cutting trenches in the mound which marks the + acropolis of the ancient city, has led him to concentrate his main efforts + in this part of the ruins ever since. Provisional trenches cut in the part + of the ruins called “the Royal City,” and in others of the mounds at Susa, + indicate that many remains may eventually be found there dating from the + period of the Achæmenian Kings of Persia. But it is in the mound of the + acropolis at Susa that M. de Morgan has found monuments of the greatest + historical interest and value, not only in the history of ancient Elam, + but also in that of the earliest rulers of Chaldæa. + </p> + <p> + In the diggings carried out during the first season’s work on the site, an + obelisk was found inscribed on four sides with a long text of some + sixty-nine columns, written in Semitic Babylonian by the orders of + Manishtusu, a very early Semitic king of the city of Kish in Babylonia.[* + See illustration.] The text records the purchase by the King of Kish of + immense tracts of land situated at Kish and in its neighbourhood, and its + length is explained by the fact that it enumerates full details of the + size and position of each estate, and the numbers and some of the names of + the dwellers on the estates who were engaged in their cultivation. After + details have been given of a number of estates situated in the same + neighbourhood, a summary is appended referring to the whole neighbourhood, + and the fact is recorded that the district dealt with in the preceding + catalogue and summary had been duly acquired by purchase by Manishtusu, + King of Kish. The long text upon the obelisk is entirely taken up with + details of the purchase of the territory, and therefore its subject has + not any great historical value. Mention is made in it of two personages, + one of whom may possibly be identified with a Babylonian ruler whose name + is known from other sources. If the proposed identification t should prove + to be correct, it would enable us to assign a more precise date to + Manishtusu than has hitherto been possible. One of the personages in + question was a certain Urukagina, the son of Engilsa, patesi of Shirpurla, + and it has been suggested that he is the same Urukagina who is known to + have occupied the throne of Shirpurla, though this identification would + bring Manishtusu down somewhat later than is probable from the general + character of his inscriptions. The other personage mentioned in the text + is the son of Manishtusu, named Mesalim, and there is more to be said for + the identification of this prince with Mesilim, the early King of Kish, + who reigned at a period anterior to that of Eannadu, patesi of Shirpurla. + </p> + <p> + The mere fact of so large and important an obelisk, inscribed with a + Semitic text by an early Babylonian king, being found at Susa was an + indication that other monuments of even greater interest might be + forthcoming from the same spot; and this impression was intensified when a + stele of victory was found bearing an inscription of Naram-Sin, the early + Semitic King of Agade, who reigned about 3750 B.C. One face of this stele + is sculptured with a representation of the king conquering his enemies in + a mountainous country. [* See illustration.] The king himself wears a + helmet adorned with the horns of a bull, and he carries his battle-axe and + his bow and an arrow. He is nearly at the summit of a high mountain, and + up its steep sides, along paths through the trees which clothe the + mountain, climb his allies and warriors bearing standards and weapons. The + king’s enemies are represented suing for mercy as they turn to fly before + him. One grasps a broken spear, while another, crouching before the king, + has been smitten in the throat by an arrow from the king’s bow. On the + plain surface of the stele above the king’s head may be seen traces of an + inscription of Narâm-Sin engraved in three columns in the archaic + characters of his period. From the few signs of the text that remain, we + gather that Narâm-Sin had conducted a campaign with the assistance of + certain allied princes, including the Princes of Sidur, Saluni, and + Lulubi, and it is not improbable that they are to be identified with the + warriors represented on the stele as climbing the mountain behind + Narâm-Sin. + </p> + <p> + In reference to this most interesting stele of Narâm-Sin we may here + mention another inscription of this king, found quite recently at Susa and + published only this year, which throws additional light on Narâm-Sin’s + allies and on the empire which he and his father Sargon founded. The new + inscription was engraved on the base of a diorite statue, which had been + broken to pieces so that only the base with a portion of the text + remained. From this inscription we learn that Narâm-Sin was the head of a + confederation of nine chief allies, or vassal princes, and waged war on + his enemies with their assistance. Among these nine allies of course the + Princes of Sidur, Saluni, and Lulubi are to be included. The new text + further records that Narâm-Sin made an expedition against Magan (the + Sinaitic peninsula), and defeated Manium, the lord of that region, and + that he cut blocks of stone in the mountains there and transported them to + his city of Agade, where from one of them he made the statue on the base + of which the text was inscribed. It was already known from the so-called + “Omens of Sargon and Narâm-Sin” (a text inscribed on a clay tablet from + Ashur-bani-pal’s library at Nineveh which associates the deeds of these + two early rulers with certain augural phenomena) that Narâm-Sin had made + an expedition to Sinai in the course of his reign and had conquered the + king of the country. The new text gives contemporary confirmation of this + assertion and furnishes us with additional information with regard to the + name of the conquered ruler of Sinai and other details of the campaign. + </p> + <p> + That monuments of such great interest to the early history of Chaldæa + should have been found at Susa in Persia was sufficiently startling, but + an easy explanation was at first forthcoming from the fact that + Narâm-Sin’s stele of victory had been used by the later Elamite king, + Shutruk-Nakhkhunte, for an inscription of his own; this he had engraved in + seven long lines along the great cone in front of Narâm-Sin, which is + probably intended to represent the peak of the mountain. From the fact + that it had been used in this way by Shutruk-Nakhkhunte, it seemed + permissible to infer that it had been captured in the course of a campaign + and brought to Susa as a trophy of war. But we shall see later on that the + existence of early Babylonian inscriptions and monuments in the mound of + the acropolis at Susa is not to be explained in this way, but was due to + the wide extension of both Sumerian and Semitic influence throughout + Western Asia from the very earliest periods. This subject will be treated + more fully in the chapter dealing with the early history of Blam. + </p> + <p> + The upper surface of the tell of the acropolis at Susa for a depth of + nearly two metres contains remains of the buildings and antiquities of the + Achæmenian kings and others of both later and earlier dates. In these + upper strata of the mound are found remains of the Arab, Sassanian, + Parthian, Seleucian, and Persian periods, mixed indiscriminately with one + another and with Elamite objects and materials of all ages, from that of + the earliest patesis down to that of the Susian kings of the seventh + century B.C. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0013" id="linkBimage-0013"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/160.jpg" width="100%" alt="160.jpg Babil. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The most northern of the mounds which now mark the site of + the ancient city of Babylon; used for centuries as a quarry + for building materials.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The reason of this mixture of the remains of many races and periods is + that the later builders on the mound made use of the earlier building + materials which they found preserved within it. Along the skirts of the + mound may still be seen the foundations of the wall which formed the + principal defence of the acropolis in the time of Xerxes, and in many + places not only are the foundations preserved but large pieces of the wall + itself still rise above the surface of the soil. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0014" id="linkBimage-0014"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/160a.jpg" width="100%" alt="160a.jpg ‘Stele of Victory’ " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/160a-text.jpg" width="100%" + alt="160a-text.jpg Text for ‘Stele of Victory’ " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Stele of Narâm-Sin, an early Semitic King of Agade in + Babylonia, who reigned about B. C. 3750. From the photograph + by Messrs. Mansell & Co.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The plan of the wall is quite irregular, following the contours of the + mound, and, though it is probable that the wall was strengthened and + defended at intervals by towers, no trace of these now remains. The wall + is very thick and built of unburnt bricks, and the system of fortification + seems to have been extremely simple at this period. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0016" id="linkBimage-0016"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/161.jpg" width="100%" + alt="161.jpg Roughly Hewn Sculpture of a Lion Standing over A Fallen Man, Found at Babylon. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The group probably represents Babylon or the Babylonian king + triumphing over the country’s enemies. The Arabs regard the + figure as an evil spirit, and it is pitted with the marks of + bullets shot at it. They also smear it with filth when they + can do so unobserved; in the photograph some newly smeared + filth may be seen adhering to the side of the lion.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The earlier citadel or fortress of the city of Susa was built at the top + of the mound and must have been a more formidable stronghold than that of + the Achæmenian kings, for, besides its walls, it had the additional + protection of the steep slopes of the mound. + </p> + <p> + Below the depth of two metres from the surface of the mound are found + strata in which Elamite objects and materials are, no longer mixed with + the remains of later ages, but here the latest Elamite remains are found + mingled with objects and materials dating from the earliest periods of + Elam’s history. The use of un-burnt bricks as the principal material for + buildings erected on the mound in all ages has been another cause of this + mixture of materials, for it has little power of resistance to water, and + a considerable rain-storm will wash away large portions of the surface and + cause the remains of different strata to be mixed indiscriminately with + one another. In proportion as the trenches were cut deeper into the mound + the strata which were laid bare showed remains of earlier ages than those + in the upper layers, though here also remains of different periods are + considerably mixed. The only building that has hitherto been discovered at + Susa by M. de Morgan, the ground plan of which was in a comparatively good + state of preservation, was a small temple of the god Shu-shinak, and this + owed its preservation to the fact that it was not built of unburnt brick, + but was largely composed of burnt brick and plaques and tiles of enamelled + terra-cotta. + </p> + <p> + But although the diggings of M. de Morgan at Susa have so far afforded + little information on the subject of Elamite architecture, the separate + objects found have enabled us to gain considerable knowledge of the + artistic achievements of the race during the different periods of its + existence. Moreover, the stelæ and stone records that have been recovered + present a wealth of material for the study of the long history of Elam and + of the kings who ruled in Babylonia during the earliest ages. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0017" id="linkBimage-0017"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/163.jpg" width="100%" + alt="163.jpg General View of the Excavations on The Kasr At Babylon. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Showing the depth in the mound to which the diggings are + carried.<br/><br/> +</p> + <p> + The most famous of M. de Morgan’s recent finds is the long code of laws + drawn up by Hammurabi, the greatest king of the First Dynasty of Babylon.<a href="#fn4.1" name="fnref4.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> + This was engraved upon a huge block of black diorite, and was found in the + tell of the acropolis in the winter of 1901-2. This document in itself has + entirely revolutionized current theories as to the growth and origin of + the principal ancient legal codes. It proves that Babylonia was the + fountainhead from which many later races borrowed portions of their + legislative systems. Moreover, the subjects dealt with in this code of + laws embrace most of the different classes of the Babylonian people, and + it regulates their duties and their relations to one another in their + ordinary occupations and pursuits. It therefore throws much light upon + early Babylonian life and customs, and we shall return to it in the + chapter dealing with these subjects. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn4.1"></a> <a href="#fnref4.1">[1]</a> +It will be noted that the Babylonian dynasties are referred to throughout this +volume as “First Dynasty,” “Second Dynasty,” “Third Dynasty,” etc. They are +thus distinguished from the Egyptian dynasties, the order of which is indicated +by Roman numerals, e.g. “Ist Dynasty,” “IId Dynasty,” “IIId Dynasty.” +</p> + <p> + The American excavators at Nippur, under the direction of Mr. Haynes, have + done much in the past to increase our knowledge of Sumerian and early + Babylonian history, but the work has not been continued in recent years, + and, unfortunately, little progress has been made in the publication of + the material already accumulated. In fact, the leadership in American + excavation has passed from the University of Pennsylvania to that of + Chicago. This progressive university has sent out an expedition, under the + general direction of Prof. R. F. Harper (with Dr. E. J. Banks as director + of excavations), which is doing excellent work at Bismya, and, although it + is too early yet to expect detailed accounts of their achievements, it is + clear that they have already met with considerable success. One of their + recent finds consists of a white marble statue of an early Sumerian king + named Daudu, which was set up in the temple of E-shar in the city of + Udnun, of which he was ruler. From its archaic style of workmanship it may + be placed in the earliest period of Sumerian history, and may be regarded + as an earnest of what may be expected to follow from the future labours of + Prof. Harper’s expedition. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0018" id="linkBimage-0018"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/165.jpg" width="100%" + alt="165.jpg Within the Palace of Nebuchadnezzar II. " /> + </div> + <p> + At Fâra and at Abû Hatab in Babylonia, the Deutsch-Orient Gesellschaft, + under Dr. Koldewey’s direction, has excavated Sumerian and Babylonian + remains of the early period. At the former site they unearthed the remains + of many private houses and found some Sumerian tablets of accounts and + commercial documents, but little of historical interest; and an + inscription, which seems to have come from Abu Hatab, probably proves that + the Sumerian name of the city whose site it marks was Kishurra. But the + main centre of German activity in Babylonia is the city of Babylon itself, + where for the last seven years Dr. Koldewey has conducted excavations, + unearthing the palaces of Nebuchadnezzar II on the mound termed the Kasr, + identifying the temple of E-sagila under the mound called Tell Amran + ibn-Ali, tracing the course of the sacred way between E-sagila and the + palace-mound, and excavating temples dedicated to the goddess Ninmakh and + the god Ninib. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0019" id="linkBimage-0019"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/166.jpg" width="100%" + alt="166.jpg Excavations in the Temple Op Ninib at Babylon. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + In the middle distance may be seen the metal trucks running + on light rails which are employed on the work for the + removal of the débris from the diggings. +</p> + <p> + Dr. Andrae, Dr. Koldewey’s assistant, has also completed the excavation of + the temple dedicated to Nabû at Birs Nimrud. On the principal mound at + this spot, which marks the site of the ancient city of Borsippa, traces of + the ziggurat, or temple tower, may still be seen rising from the soil, the + temple of Nabû lying at a lower level below the steep slope of the mound, + which is mainly made up of débris from the ziggurat. Dr. Andrae has + recently left Babylonia for Assyria, where his excavations at Sher-ghat, + the site of the ancient Assyrian city of Ashur, are confidently expected + to throw considerable light on the early history of that country and the + customs of the people, and already he has made numerous finds of + considerable interest. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0020" id="linkBimage-0020"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/167.jpg" width="100%" + alt="167.jpg the Principal Mound of Birs Nimrud, Which Marks The Site Of the Ancient City Of Borsippa. " /> + </div> + <p> + Since the early spring of 1903 excavations have been conducted at + Kuyunjik, the site of the city of Nineveh, by Messrs. L. W. King and R. C. + Thompson on behalf of the Trustees of the British Museum, and have + resulted in the discovery of many early remains in the lower strata of the + mound, in addition to the finding of new portions of the two palaces + already known and partly excavated, the identification of a third palace, + and the finding of an ancient temple dedicated to Nabû, whose existence + had already been inferred from a study of the Assyrian inscriptions.<a href="#fn4.2" name="fnref4.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> All + these diggings at Babylon, at Ashur, and at Nineveh throw more light upon + the history of the country during the Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods, + and will be referred to later in the volume. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn4.2"></a> <a href="#fnref4.2">[2]</a> + It may be noted that excavations are also being actively + carried on in Palestine at the present time. Mr. Macalister + has for some years been working for the Palestine + Exploration Fund at Gezer; Dr. Schumacher is digging at + Megiddo for the German Palestine Society; and Prof. Sellin + is at present excavating at Taanach (Ta’annak) and will + shortly start work at Dothan. Good work on remains of later + historical periods is also being carried on under the + auspices of the Deutsch-Orient Gesellschaft at Ba’albek and + in Galilee. It would be tempting to include here a summary + of the very interesting results that have recently been + achieved in this fruitful field of archaeological research, + for it is true that these excavations may strictly be said + to bear on the history of a portion of Western Asia. But the + problems which they raise would more naturally be discussed + in a work dealing with recent excavation and research in + relation to the Bible, and to have summarized them + adequately would have increased the size of the present + volume considerably beyond its natural limits. They have + therefore not been included within the scope of the present + work. +</p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0021" id="linkBimage-0021"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/168.jpg" width="100%" + alt="168.jpg the Principal Mound at Sherghat, Which Marks The Site of Ashuk, the Ancient Capital Of The Assyrians. " /> + </div> + <p> + Meanwhile, we will return to the diggings described at the beginning of + this chapter, as affording new information concerning the earliest periods + of Chaldæan history. + </p> + <p> + A most interesting inscription has recently been discovered by Capt. Cros + at Telloh, which throws considerable light on the rivalry which existed + between the cities of Shirpurla and Gishkhu, and at the same time + furnishes valuable material for settling the chronology of the earliest + rulers whose inscriptions have been found at Mppur and their relations to + contemporary rulers in Shirpurla. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0022" id="linkBimage-0022"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/169.jpg" width="100%" + alt="169.jpg the Mound of Kuyunjik, Which Formed One Of The Palace Mounds of the Ancient Assyrian City Of Nineveh. " /> + </div> + <p> + The cities of Gishkhu and Shirpurla were probably situated not far from + one another, and their rivalry is typical of the history of the early + city-states of Babylonia. The site of the latter city, as has already been + said, is marked by the mounds of Telloh on the east bank of the Shatt + el-Hai, the natural stream joining the Tigris and Euphrates, which has + been improved and canalized by the dwellers in Southern Babylonia from the + earliest period. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0023" id="linkBimage-0023"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/170.jpg" width="100%" + alt="170.jpg Winged Bull in the Palace of Sennacherib On Kuyunjik, the Principal Mound Marking The Site of Nineveh. " /> + </div> + <p> + The site of Gishkhu may be set with considerable probability not far to + the north of Telloh on the opposite bank of the Shatt el-Hai. These two + cities, situated so close to one another, exercised considerable political + influence, and though less is known of Gishkhu than of the more famous + Babylonian cities such as Ur, Brech, and Larsam, her proximity to + Shirpurla gave her an importance which she might not otherwise have + possessed. The earliest knowledge we possess of the relations existing + between Gishkhu and Shirpurla refers to the reign of Mesilim, King of + Kish, the period of whose rule may be provisionally set before that of + Sargon of Agade, i.e, about 4000 B.C. + </p> + <p> + At this period there was rivalry between the two cities, in consequence of + which Mesilim, King of Kish, was called in as arbitrator. A record of the + treaty of delimitation that was drawn up on this occasion has been + preserved upon the recently discovered cone of Entemena. This document + tells us that at the command of the god Enlil, described as “the king of + the countries,” Ningirsu, the chief god of Shirpurla, and the god of + Gishkhu decided to draw up a line of division between their respective + territories, and that Mesilim, King of Kish, acting under the direction of + his own god Kadi, marked out the frontier and set up a stele between the + two territories to commemorate the fixing of the boundary. + </p> + <p> + This policy of fixing the boundary by arbitration seems to have been + successful, and to have secured peace between Shirpurla and Gishkhu for + some generations. But after a period which cannot be accurately determined + a certain patesi of Gishkhu, named Ush, was filled with ambition to extend + his territory at the expense of Shirpurla. He therefore removed the stele + which Mesilim had set up, and, invading the plain of Shirpurla, succeeded + in conquering and holding a district named Gu-edin. But Ush’s successful + raid was not of any permanent benefit to his city, for he was in his turn + defeated by the forces of Shirpurla, and his successor upon the throne, a + patesi named Enakalli, abandoned a policy of aggression, and concluded + with Eannadu, patesi of Shirpurla, a solemn treaty concerning the boundary + between their realms, the text of which has been preserved to us upon the + famous Stele of Vultures in the Louvre.<a href="#fn4.3" name="fnref4.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn4.3"></a> <a href="#fnref4.3">[3]</a> + A fragment of this stele is also preserved in the British + Museum. It is published in Cuneiform Texts in the British + Museum, Pt. vii. +</p> + <p> + According to this treaty Gu-edin was restored to Shirpurla, and a deep + ditch was dug between the two territories which should permanently + indicate the line of demarcation. The stele of Mesilim was restored to its + place, and a second stele was inscribed and set up as a memorial of the + new treaty. Enakalli did not negotiate the treaty on equal terms with + Eannadu, for he only secured its ratification by consenting to pay heavy + tribute in grain for the supply of the great temples of Nin-girsu and Ninâ + in Shirpurla. It would appear that under Eannadu the power and influence + of Shirpurla were extended over the whole of Southern Babylonia, and + reached even to the borders of Elam. At any rate, it is clear that during + his lifetime the city of Gishkhu was content to remain in a state of + subjection to its more powerful neighbour. But it was always ready to + seize any opportunity of asserting itself and of attempting to regain its + independence. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0024" id="linkBimage-0024"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/172.jpg" width="100%" + alt="172.jpg Clay Memorial-tablet of Eannadu. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The characters of the inscription well illustrate the + pictorial origin of the Sumerian system of writing. + Photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + Accordingly, after Eannadu’s death the men of Gishkhu again took the + offensive. At this time Urlumma, the son and successor of Enakalli, was on + the throne of Gishkhu, and he organized the forces of the city and led + them out to battle. His first act was to destroy the frontier ditches + named after Ningirsu and Ninâ, the principal god and goddess of Shirpurla, + which Eannadu, the powerful foe of Gishkhu, had caused to be dug. He then + tore down the stele on which the terms of Eannadu’s treaty had been + engraved and broke it into pieces by casting it into the fire, and the + shrines which Eannadu had built near the frontier, and had consecrated to + the gods of Shirpurla, he razed to the ground. But again Shirpurla in the + end proved too strong for Gishkhu. The ruler in Shirpurla at this time was + Enannadu, who had succeeded his brother Eannadu upon the throne. He + marched out to meet the invading forces of the men of Gishkhu, and a + battle was fought in the territory of Shirpurla. According to one account, + the forces of Shirpurla were victorious, while on the cone of Ente-mena no + mention is made of the issue of the combat. The result may not have been + decisive, but Enannadu’s action at least checked Urlumma’s encroachments + for the time. + </p> + <p> + It would appear that the death of the reigning patesi in Shirpurla was + always the signal for an attack upon that city by the men of Gishkhu. They + may have hoped that the new ruler would prove a less successful leader + than the last, or that the accession of a new monarch might give rise to + internal dissensions in the city which would weaken Shirpurla’s power of + resisting a sudden attack. As Eannadu’s death had encouraged Urlumma to + lead out the men of Gishkhu, so the death of Enannadu seemed to him a good + opportunity to make another bid for victory. But this time the result of + the battle was not indecisive. Entemena had succeeded his father Enannadu, + and he led out to victory the forces of Shir-purla. The battle was fought + near the canal Lumma-girnun-ta, and when the men of Gishkhu were put to + flight they left sixty of their fellows lying dead upon the banks of the + canal. Entemena tells us that the bones of these warriors were left to + bleach in the open plain, but he seems to have buried those of the men of + Gishkhu who fell in the pursuit, for he records that in five separate + places he piled up burial-mounds in which the bodies of the slain were + interred. Entemena was not content with merely inflicting a defeat upon + the army of Gishkhu and driving it back within its own borders, for he + followed up his initial advantage and captured the capital itself. He + deposed and imprisoned Urlumma, and chose one of his own adherents to rule + as patesi of Gishkhu in his stead. The man he appointed for this high + office was named Hi, and he had up to that time been priest in Ninâb. + Entemena summoned him to his presence, and, after marching in a triumphal + procession from Girsu in the neighbourhood of Shirpurla to the conquered + city, proceeded to invest him with the office of patesi of Gishkhu. + </p> + <p> + Entemena also repaired the frontier ditches named after Ningirsu and Ninâ, + which had been employed for purposes of irrigation as well as for marking + the frontier; and he gave instructions to Hi to employ the men dwelling in + the district of Karkar on this work, as a punishment for the active part + they had taken in the recent raid into the territory of Shirpurla. + Entemena also restored and extended the system of canals in the region + between the Tigris and the Euphrates, lining one of the principal channels + with stone. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0025" id="linkBimage-0025"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/175.jpg" width="100%" alt="175.jpg Marble Gate " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Marble Gate-Socket Bearing An Inscription Of Entemena, A Powerful + Patesi, Or Viceroy, Of Shirpurla.<br/> + In the photograph the gate-socket is resting on its side so as to show the + inscription, but when in use it was set flat upon the ground and partly + buried below the level of the pavement of the building in which it was + used. It was fixed at the side of a gateway and the pivot of the heavy + gate revolved in the shallow hole or depression in its centre. As stone is + not found in the alluvial soil of Babylonia, the blocks for gate-sockets + had to be brought from great distances and they were consequently highly + prized. The kings and patesis who used them in their buildings generally + had their names and titles engraved upon them, and they thus form a + valuable class of inscriptions for the study of the early history. + Photograph by Messrs. Man-sell & Co. +</p> + <p> + He thus added greatly to the wealth of Shirpurla by increasing the area of + territory under cultivation, and he continued to exercise authority in + Gishkhu by means of officers appointed by himself. A record of his victory + over Gishkhu was inscribed by Entemena upon a number of clay cones, that + the fame of it might be preserved in future days to the honour of Ningirsu + and the goddess Ninâ. He ends this record with a prayer for the + preservation of the frontier. If ever in time to come the men of Gishkhu + should break out across the frontier-ditch of Ningirsu, or the + frontier-ditch of Ninâ, in order to seize or lay waste the lands of + Shirpurla, whether they be men of the city of Gishkhu itself or men of the + mountains, he prays that Enlil may destroy them and that Ningirsu may lay + his curse upon them; and if ever the warriors of his own city should be + called upon to defend it, he prays that they may be full of courage and + ardour for their task. + </p> + <p> + The greater part of this information with regard to the struggles between + Gishkhu and Shirpurla, between the period of Mesilim, King of Kish, and + that of Entemena, is supplied by the inscription of the latter ruler which + has been found written around a small cone of clay. There is little doubt + that the text was also engraved by the orders of Entemena upon a stone + stele which was set up, like those of Mesilim and Eannadu, upon the + frontier. Other copies of the inscription were probably engraved and + erected in the cities of Gishkhu and Shirpurla, and to ensure the + preservation of the record Entemena probably had numerous copies of it + made upon small cones of clay which were preserved and possibly buried in + the structure of the temples of Shirpurla. Entemena’s foresight in this + matter has been justified by results, for, while his great memorials of + stone have perished, the preservation of one of his small cones has + sufficed to make known to later ages his own and his forefathers’ prowess + in their continual contests with their ancient rival Gishkhu. + </p> + <p> + After the reign of Entemena we have little information with regard to the + relations between Gishkhu and Shirpurla, though it is probable that the + effects of his decisive victory continued to exercise a moderating + influence on Gishkhu’s desire for expansion and secured a period of + peaceful development for Shirpurla without the continual fear of + encroachments on the part of her turbulent neighbour. We may assume that + this period of tranquillity continued during the reigns of Enannadu II, + Enlitarzi, and Lugal-anda, but, when in the reign of Urukagina the men of + Gishkhu once more emerge from their temporary obscurity, they appear as + the authors of deeds of rapine and bloodshed committed on a scale that was + rare even in that primitive age. + </p> + <p> + In the earlier stages of their rivalry Gishkhu had always been defeated, + or at any rate checked, in her actual conflicts with Shirpurla. When + taking the aggressive the men of Gishkhu seem generally to have confined + themselves to the seizure of territory, such as the district of Gu-edin, + which was situated on the western bank of the Shaft el-Hai and divided + from their own lands only by the frontier-ditch. If they ever actually + crossed the Shaft el-Hai and raided the lands on its eastern bank, they + never ventured to attack the city of Shirpurla itself. And, although their + raids were attended with some success in their initial stages, the ruling + patesis of Shirpurla were always strong enough to check them; and on most + occasions they carried the war into the territory of Gishkhu, with the + result that they readjusted the boundary on their own terms. But it would + appear that all these primitive Chalæan cities were subject to alternate + periods of expansion and defeat, and Shirpurla was not an exception to the + rule. It was probably not due so much to Urukagina’s personal qualities or + defects as a leader that Shirpurla suffered the greatest reverse in her + history during his reign, but rather to Gishkhu’s gradual increase in + power at a time when Shirpurla herself remained inactive, possibly lulled + into a false sense of security by the memory of her victories in the past. + Whatever may have been the cause of Gishkhu’s final triumph, it is certain + that it took place in Urukagina’s reign, and that for many years + afterwards the hegemony of Southern Babylonia remained in her hands, while + Shirpurla for a long period passed completely out of existence as an + independent or semi-independent state. + </p> + <p> + The evidence of the catastrophe that befell Shirpurla at this period is + furnished by a small clay tablet recently found at Telloh during Captain + Cros’s excavations on that site. The document on which the facts in + question are recorded had no official character, and in all probability it + had not been stored in any library or record chamber. The actual spot at + Telloh where it was found was to the north of the mound in which the most + ancient buildings have been recovered, and at the depth of two metres + below the surface. No other tablets appear to have been found near it, but + that fact in itself would not be sufficient evidence on which to base any + theory as to its not having originally formed part of the archives of the + city. Its unofficial character is attested by the form of the tablet and + the manner in which the information upon it is arranged. In shape there is + little to distinguish the document from the tablets of accounts inscribed + in the reign of Urukagina, great numbers of which have been found recently + at Telloh. Roughly square in shape, its edges are slightly convex, and the + text is inscribed in a series of narrow columns upon both the obverse and + the reverse. The text itself is not a carefully arranged composition, such + as are the votive and historical inscriptions of early Sumerian rulers. It + consists of a series of short sentences enumerating briefly and without + detail the separate deeds of violence and sacrilege performed by the men + of Gishkhu after their capture of the city. It is little more than a + catalogue or list of the shrines and temples destroyed during the sack of + the city, or defiled by the blood of the men of Shirpurla who were slain + therein. No mention is made in the list of the palace of the Urukagina, or + of any secular building, or of the dwellings of the citizens themselves. + There is little doubt that these also were despoiled and destroyed by the + victorious enemy, but the writer of the tablet is not concerned for the + moment with the fate of his city or his fellow citizens. He appears to be + overcome with the thought of the deeds of sacrilege committed against his + gods; his mind is entirely taken up with the magnitude of the insult + offered to the god Ningirsu, the city-god of Shirpurla. His bare + enumeration of the deeds of sacrilege and violence loses little by its + brevity, and, when he has ended the list of his accusations against the + men of Gishkhu, he curses the goddess to whose influence he attributes + their success. + </p> + <p> + No composition at all like this document has yet been recovered, and as it + is not very long we may here give a translation of the text. It will be + seen that the writer plunges at once into the subject of his charges + against the men of Gishkhu. No historical <i>résumé</i> prefaces his + accusations, and he gives no hint of the circumstances that have rendered + their delivery possible. The temples of his city have been profaned and + destroyed, and his indignation finds vent in a mere enumeration of their + titles. To his mind the facts need no comment, for to him it is barely + conceivable that such sacred places of ancient worship should have been + defiled. He launches his indictment against Gishkhu in the following + terms: “The men of Gishkhu have set fire to the temple of E-ki [... ], + they have set fire to Antashura, and they have carried away the silver and + the precious stones therefrom! They have shed blood in the palace of + Tirash, they have shed blood in Abzubanda, they have shed blood in the + shrine of Enlil and in the shrine of the Sun-god, they have shed blood in + Akhush, and they have carried away the silver and the precious stones + therefrom! They have shed blood in the Gikana of the sacred grove of the + goddess Ninmakh, and they have carried away the silver and the precious + stones therefrom! They have shed blood in Baga, and they have carried away + the silver and the precious stones therefrom! They have shed blood in + Abzu-ega, they have set fire to the temple of Gatumdug, and they have + carried away the silver and the precious stones therefrom, and have + destroyed her statue! They have set fire to the.... of the temple E-anna + of the goddess Ninni, and they have carried away the silver and the + precious stones therefrom, and have destroyed her statue! They have shed + blood in Shapada, and they have carried away the silver and precious + stones therefrom! They have.... in Khenda, they have shed blood in the + temple of Nindar in the town of Kiab, and they have carried away the + silver and the precious stones therefrom! They have set fire to the temple + of Dumuzi-abzu in the town of Kinunir, and they have carried away the + silver and the precious stones therefrom! They have set fire to the temple + of Lugaluru, and they have carried away the silver and the precious stones + therefrom! They have shed blood in E-engura, the temple of the goddess + Ninâ, and they have carried away the silver and the precious stones + therefrom! They have shed blood in Sag..., the temple of Amageshtin, and + the silver and the precious stones of Amageshtin have they carried away! + They have removed the grain from Ginarbaniru, the field of the god + Ningirsu, so much of it as was under cultivation! The men of Gishkhu, by + the despoiling of Shirpurla, have committed a transgression against the + god Ningirsu! The power that is come unto them, from them shall be taken + away! Of transgression on the part of Urukagina, King of Girsu, there is + none. As for Lugalzaggisi, patesi of Gishkhu, may his goddess Ni-daba bear + on her head (the weight of) this transgression!” + </p> + <p> + Such is the account, which has come down to us from the rough tablet of + some unknown scribe, of the greatest misfortune experienced by Shirpurla + during the long course of her history. Many of the great temples mentioned + in the text as among those which were burnt down and despoiled of their + treasures are referred to more than once in the votive and historical + inscriptions of earlier rulers of Shirpurla, who occupied the throne + before the ill-fated Urukagina. The names of some of them, too, are to be + found in the texts of the later pate-sis of that city, so that it may be + concluded that in course of time they were rebuilt and restored to their + former splendour. But there is no doubt that the despoiling and partial + destruction of Shirpurla in the reign of Urukagina had a lasting effect + upon the fortunes of that city, and effectively curtailed her influence + among the greater cities of Southern Babylonia. + </p> + <p> + We may now turn our attention to the leader of the men of Gishkhu, under + whose direction they achieved their final triumph over their ancient, and + for long years more powerful, rival Shirpurla. The writer of our tablet + mentions his name in the closing words of his text when he curses him and + his goddess for the destruction and sacrilege that they have wrought. “As + for Lugalzaggisi,” he says, “patesi of Gishkhu, may his goddess Nidaba + bear on her head (the weight of ) this transgression!” Now the name of + Lugalzaggisi has been found upon a number of fragments of vases made of + white calcite stalagmite which were discovered by Mr. Haynes during his + excavations at Nippur. All the vases were engraved with the same + inscription, so that it was possible by piecing the fragments of text + together to obtain a more or less complete copy of the records which were + originally engraved upon each of them. From these records we learned for + the first time, not only the name of Lugalzaggisi, but the fact that he + founded a powerful coalition of cities in Babylonia at what was obviously + a very early period in the history of the country. In the text he + describes himself as “King of Erech, king of the world, the priest of Ana, + the hero of Nidaba, the son of Ukush, patesi of Gishkhu, the hero of + Nidaba, the man who was favourably regarded by the sure eye of the King of + the Lands (i.e. the god Enlil), the great patesi of Enlil, unto whom + understanding was granted by Enki, the chosen of the Sun-god, the exalted + minister of Enzu, endowed with strength by the Sun-god, the worshipper of + Ninni, the son who was conceived by Nidaba, who was nourished by + Ninkharsag with the milk of life, the attendant of Umu, priestess of + Erech, the servant who was trained by Ninâgidkhadu, the mistress of Erech, + the great minister of the gods.” Lugalzaggisi then goes on to describe the + extent of his dominion, and he says: “When the god Enlil, the lord of the + countries, bestowed upon Lugalzaggisi the kingdom of the world, and + granted unto him success in the sight of the world, when he filled the + lands with his power, and conquered them from the rising of the sun unto + the setting of the same, at that time he made straight his path from the + Lower Sea of the Tigris and Euphrates unto the Upper Sea, and he granted + him dominion over all from the rising of the sun unto the setting of the + same, so that he caused the lands to dwell in peace.” + </p> + <p> + Now when first the text of this inscription was published there existed + only vague indications of the date to be assigned to Lugalzaggisi and the + kingdom that he founded. It was clear from the titles which he bore, that, + though Gishkhu was his native place, he had extended his authority far + beyond that city and had chosen Erech as his capital. Moreover, he claimed + an empire extending from “the Lower Sea of the Tigris and Euphrates unto + the Upper Sea.” There is no doubt that the Lower Sea here mentioned is the + Persian Gulf, and it has been suggested that the Upper Sea may be taken to + be the Mediterranean, though it may possibly have been Lake Van or Lake + Urmi. But whichever of these views might be adopted, it was clear that + Lugalzaggisi was a great conqueror, and had achieved the right to assume + the high-sounding title of lugal halama, “king of the world.” In these + circumstances it was of the first importance for the study of primitive + Chaldæan history and chronology to ascertain approximately the period at + which Lugalzaggisi reigned. + </p> + <p> + The evidence on which such a question could be provisionally settled was + of the vaguest and most uncertain character, but such as it was it had to + suffice, in the absence of more reliable data. In settling all problems + connected with early Chaldæan chronology, the starting-point was, and in + fact still is, the period of Sargon I, King of Agade, inasmuch as the date + of his reign is settled, according to the reckoning of the scribes of + Nabonidus, as about 3800 B.C. It is true that this date has been called in + question, and ingenious suggestions for amending it have been made by some + writers, while others have rejected it altogether, holding that it merely + represented a guess on the part of the late Babylonians and could be + safely ignored in the chronological schemes which they brought forward. + But nearly every fresh discovery made in the last few years has tended to + confirm some point in the traditions current among the later Babylonians + with regard to the earlier history of their country. Consequently, + reliance may be placed with increased confidence on the truth of such + traditions as a whole, and we may continue to accept those statements + which yet await confirmation from documents more nearly contemporary with + the early period to which they refer. It is true that such a date as that + assigned by Nabonidus to Sargon is not to be regarded as absolutely fixed, + for Nabonidus is obviously speaking in round numbers, and we may allow for + some minor inaccuracies in the calculations of his scribes. But it is + certain that the later Babylonian priests and scribes had a wealth of + historical material at their disposal which has not come down to us. We + may therefore accept the date given by Nabonidus for Sargon of Agade and + his son Narâm-Sin as approximately accurate, and this is also the opinion + of the majority of writers on early Babylonian history. + </p> + <p> + The diggings at Nippur furnished indications that certain inscriptions + found on that site and written in a very archaic form of script were to be + assigned to a period earlier than that of Sargon. One class of evidence + was obtained from a careful study of the different levels at which the + inscriptions and the remains of buildings were found. At a comparatively + deep level in the mound inscriptions of Sargon himself were recovered, + along with bricks stamped with the name of Narâm-Sin, his son. It was, + therefore, a reasonable conclusion roughly to date the particular stratum + in which these objects were found to the period of the empire established + by Sargon, with its centre at Agade. Later on excavations were carried to + a lower level, and remains of buildings were discovered which appeared to + belong to a still earlier period of civilization. An altar was found + standing in a small enclosure surrounded by a kind of curb. Near by were + two immense clay vases which appeared to have been placed on a ramp or + inclined plane leading up to the altar, and remains were also found of a + massive brick building in which was an arch of brick. No inscriptions were + actually found at this level, but in the upper level assigned to Sargon + were a number of texts which might very probably be assigned to the + pre-Sargonic period. None of these were complete, and they had the + appearance of having been intentionally broken into small fragments. There + was therefore something to be said for the theory that they might have + been inscribed by the builders of the construction in the lowest levels of + the mound, and that they were destroyed and scattered by some conqueror + who had laid their city in ruins. + </p> + <p> + But all such evidence derived from noting the levels at which inscriptions + are found is in its nature extremely uncertain and liable to many + different interpretations, especially if the strata show signs of having + been disturbed. Where a pavement or building is still intact, with the + inscribed bricks of the builder remaining in their original positions, + conclusions may be confidently drawn with regard to the age of the + building and its relative antiquity to the strata above and below it. But + the strata in the lowest levels at Nippur, as we have seen, were not in + this condition, and such evidence as they furnished could only be accepted + if confirmed by independent data. Such confirmation was to be found by + examination of the early inscriptions themselves. + </p> + <p> + It has been remarked that most of them were broken into small pieces, as + though by some invader of the country; but this was not the case with + certain gate-sockets and great blocks of diorite which were too hard and + big to be easily broken. Moreover, any conqueror of a city would be + unlikely to spend time and labour in destroying materials which might be + usefully employed in the construction of other buildings which he himself + might erect. Stone could not be obtained in the alluvial plains of + Babylonia and had to be quarried in the mountains and brought great + distances. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0026" id="linkBimage-0026"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/188.jpg" width="100%" alt="188.jpg Stone Gate " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Stone Gate-Socket Bearing An Inscription of Uk-Engur, An Early King + of The City Of Ur. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + From any building of his predecessors which he razed to the ground, an + invader would therefore remove the gate-sockets and blocks of stone for + his own use, supposing he contemplated building on the site. If he left + the city in ruins and returned to his own country, some subsequent king, + when clearing the ruined site for building operations, might come across + the stones, and he would not leave them buried, but would use them for his + own construction. And this is what actually did happen in the case of some + of the building materials of one of these early kings, from the lower + strata of Nippur. Certain of the blocks which bore the name of + Lugalkigubnidudu had been used again by Sargon, King of Agade, who + engraved his own name upon them without obliterating the name of the + former king. + </p> + <p> + It followed that Lugalkigubnidudu belonged to the pre-Sargonic period, + and, although the same conclusive evidence was not forthcoming in the case + of Lugalzag-gisi, he also without much hesitation was set in this early + period, mainly on the strength of the archaic forms of the characters + employed in his inscriptions. In fact, they were held to be so archaic + that, not only was he said to have reigned before Sargon of Agade, but he + was set in the very earliest period of Chaldæan history, and his empire + was supposed to have been contemporaneous with the very earliest rulers of + Shirpurla. The new inscription found by Captain Cros will cause this + opinion to be considerably modified. While it corroborates the view that + Lugalzaggisi is to be set in the pre-Sargonic period, it proves that he + lived and reigned very shortly before him. As we have already seen, he was + the contemporary of Urukagina, who belongs to the middle period of the + history of Shirpurla. Lugalzaggisi’s capture and sack of the city of + Shirpurla was only one of a number of conquests which he achieved. His + father Ukush had been merely patesi of the city of Gish-khu, but he + himself was not content with the restricted sphere of authority which such + a position implied, and he eventually succeeded in enforcing his authority + over the greater part of Babylonia. From the fact that he styles himself + King of Erech, we may conclude that he removed his capital from Ukush to + that city, after having probably secured its submission by force of arms. + In fact, his title of “king of the world” can only have been won as the + result of many victories, and Captain Cros’s tablet gives us a glimpse of + the methods by which he managed to secure himself against the competition + of any rival. The capture of Shirpurla must have been one of his earliest + achievements, for its proximity to Gish-khu rendered its reduction a + necessary prelude to any more extensive plan of conquest. But the kingdom + which Lugalzaggisi founded cannot have endured long. + </p> + <p> + Under Sargon of Agade, the Semites gained the upper hand in Babylonia, and + Erech, Grishkhu, and Shirpurla, as well as the other ancient cities in the + land, fell in turn under his domination and formed part of the extensive + empire which he ruled. + </p> + <p> + Concerning the later rulers of city-states of Babylonia which succeeded + the disruption of the empire founded by Sargon of Agade and consolidated + by Narâm-Sin, his son, the excavations have little to tell us which has + not already been made use of by Prof. Maspero in his history of this + period.<a href="#fn4.4" name="fnref4.4"><sup>[4]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn4.4"></a> <a href="#fnref4.4">[4]</a> + The tablets found at Telloh by the late M. de Sarzec, and + published during his lifetime, fall into two main classes, + which date from different periods in early Chaldæan + history. The great majority belong to the period when the + city of Ur held pre-eminence among the cities of Southern + Babylonia, and they are dated in the reigns of Dungi, Bur- + Sin, Gamil-Sin, and Ine-Sin. The other and smaller + collection belongs to the earlier period of Sargon and + Narâm-Sin; while many of the tablets found in M. de Sarzec’s + last diggings, which were published after his death, are to + be set in the great gap between these two periods. Some of + those recently discovered, which belong to the period of + Dungi, contain memoranda concerning the supply of food for + the maintenance of officials stopping at Shirpurla in the + course of journeys in Babylonia and Elam, and they throw an + interesting light on the close and constant communication + which took place at this time between the great cities of + Mesopotamia and the neighbouring countries. +</p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0027" id="linkBimage-0027"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/190.jpg" width="100%" alt="190.jpg Statue of Gudea. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The most famous of the later patesis, or viceroys, of + Shirpurla, the Sumerian city in Southern Babylonia now + marked by the mounds of Telloh. Photograph by Messrs. + Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + Ur, Isin, and,Larsam succeeded one another in the position of leading city + in Babylonia, holding Mppur, Eridu, Erech, Shirpurla, and the other chief + cities in a condition of semi-dependence upon themselves. We may note that + the true reading of the name of the founder of the dynasty of Ur has now + been ascertained from a syllabary to be Ur-Engur; and an unpublished + chronicle in the British Museum relates that his son Dungi cared greatly + for the city of Eridu, but sacked Babylon and carried off its spoil, + together with the treasures from E-sagila, the great temple of Marduk. + Such episodes must have been common at this period when each city was + striving for hegemony. Meanwhile, Shirpurla remained the centre of + Sumerian influence in Babylonia, and her patesis were content to owe + allegiance to so powerful a ruler as Dungi, King of Ur, while at all times + exercising complete authority within their own jurisdiction. + </p> + <p> + During the most recent diggings that have been carried out at Telloh a + find of considerable value to the history of Sumerian art has been made. + The find is also of great general interest, since it enables us to + identify a portrait of Gudea, the most famous of the later Sumerian + patesis. In the course of excavating the Tell of Tablets Captain Cros + found a little seated statue made of diorite. It was not found in place, + but upside down, and appeared to have been thrown with other débris + scattered in that portion of the mound. On lifting it from the trench it + was seen that the head of the statue was broken off, as is the case with + all the other statues of Gudea found at Telloh. The statue bore an + inscription of Gudea, carefully executed and well preserved, but it was + smaller than other statues of the same ruler that had been already + recovered, and the absence of the head thus robbed it of any extraordinary + interest. On its arrival at the Louvre, M. Léon Heuzey was struck by its + general resemblance to a Sumerian head of diorite formerly discovered by + M. de Sarzec at Telloh, which has been preserved in the Louvre for many + years. On applying the head to the newly found statue, it was found to fit + it exactly, and to complete the monument, and we are thus enabled to + identify the features of Gudea. Prom a photographic reproduction of this + statue, it is seen that the head is larger than it should be, in + proportion to the body, a characteristic which is also apparent in a small + Sumerian statue preserved in the British Museum. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBimage-0028" id="linkBimage-0028"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/192.jpg" width="100%" + alt="192.jpg Tablet Inscribed in Sumerian With Details of A Survey of Certain Property. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Probably situated in the neighbourhood of Telloh. The + circular shape is very unusual, and appears to have been + used only for survey-tablets. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell + & Co. +</p> + <p> + Gudea caused many statues of himself to be made out of the hard diorite + which he brought for that purpose from the Sinaitic peninsula, and from + the inscriptions preserved upon them it is possible to ascertain the + buildings in which they were originally placed. Thus one of the statues + previously found was set up in the temple of Ninkharsag, two others in + E-ninnû, the temple of the god Ningirsu, three more in the temple of the + goddess Bau, one in E-anna, the temple of the goddess Ninni, and another + in the temple of Gatumdug. The newly found statue of the king was made to + be set up in the temple erected by Gudea at Girsu in honour of the god + Ningishzida, as is recorded in the inscription engraved on the front of + the king’s robe, which reads as follows: + </p> + <p> + “In the day when the god Ningirsu, the strong warrior of Enlil, granted + unto the god Ningishzida, the son of Ninâzu, the beloved of the gods, (the + guardianship of) the foundation of the city and of the hills and valleys, + on that day Gudea, patesi of Shirpurla, the just man who loveth his god, + who for his master Ningirsu hath constructed his temple E-ninnu, called + the shining Imgig, and his temple E-pa, the temple of-the seven zones of + heaven, and for the goddess Ninâ, the queen, his lady, hath constructed + the temple Sirara-shum, which riseth higher than (all) the temples in the + world, and hath constructed their temples for the great gods of Lagash, + built for his god Ningishzida his temple in Girsu. Whosoever shall + proclaim the god Ningirsu as his god, even as I proclaim him, may he do no + harm unto the temple of my god! May he proclaim the name of this temple! + May that man be my friend, and may he proclaim my name! Gudea hath made + the statue, and ‘Unto - Gudea - the - builder - of - the - temple - hath + life-been-given hath he called its name, and he hath brought it into the + temple.” + </p> + <p> + The long name which Gudea gave to the statue, “Unto - Gudea - the - + builder - of - the - temple - hath - life-been-given,” is characteristic + of the practice of the Sumerian patesis, who always gave long and + symbolical names to statues, stelae, and sacred objects dedicated and set + up in their temples. The occasion on which the temple was built, and this + statue erected within it, seems to have been the investiture of the god + Ningishzida with special and peculiar powers, and it possibly inaugurated + his introduction into the pantheon of Shirpurla. Ningishzida is called in + the inscription the son of Ninazu, who was the husband of the Queen of the + Underworld. + </p> + <p> + In one of his aspects he was therefore probably a god of the underworld + himself, and it is in this character that he was appointed by Ningirsu as + guardian of the city’s foundations. But “the hills and valleys” (i.e. the + open country) were also put under his jurisdiction, so that in another + aspect he was a god of vegetation. It is therefore not improbable that, + like the god Dumuzi, or Tammuz, he was supposed to descend into the + underworld in winter, ascending to the surface of the earth with the + earliest green shoots of vegetation in the spring.<a href="#fn4.5" name="fnref4.5"><sup>[5]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn4.5"></a> <a href="#fnref4.5">[5]</a> + Cf. Thureau-Dangin, Rev. d’Assyr., vol. vi. (1904), p. 24. +</p> + <p> + A most valuable contribution has recently been made to our knowledge of + Sumerian religion and of the light in which these early rulers regarded + the cult and worship of their gods, by the complete interpretation of the + long texts inscribed upon the famous cylinders of Gudea, the patesi of + Shirpurla, which have been preserved for many years in the Louvre. These + two great cylinders of baked clay were discovered by the late M. de Sarzec + so long ago as the year 1877, during the first period of his diggings at + Telloh, and, although the general nature of their contents has long been + recognized, no complete translation of the texts inscribed upon them had + been published until a few months ago. M. Thureau-Dangin, who has made the + early Sumerian texts his special study, has devoted himself to their + interpretation for some years past, and he has just issued the first part + of his monograph upon them. In view of the importance of the texts and of + the light they throw upon the religious beliefs and practices of the early + Sumerians, a somewhat detailed account of their contents may here be + given. + </p> + <p> + The occasion on which the cylinders were made was the rebuilding by Gudea + of E-ninnû, the great temple of the god Ningirsu, in the city of + Shirpurla. The two cylinders supplement one another, one of them having + been inscribed while the work of construction was still in progress, the + other after the completion of the temple, when the god Ningirsu had been + installed within his shrine with due pomp and ceremony. It would appear + that Southern Babylonia had been suffering from a prolonged drought, and + that the water in the rivers and canals had fallen, so that the crops had + suffered and the country was threatened with famine. Gudea was at a loss + to know by what means he might restore prosperity to his country, when one + night he had a dream, and it was in consequence of this dream that he + eventually erected one of the most sumptuously appointed of Sumerian + temples. By this means he secured the return of Ningirsu’s favour and that + of the other gods, and his country once more enjoyed the blessings of + peace and prosperity. + </p> + <p> + In the opening words of the first of his cylinders Gudea describes how the + great gods themselves took counsel and decreed that he should build the + temple of E-ninnû and thereby restore to his city the supply of water it + had formerly enjoyed. He records that on the day on which the destinies + were fixed in heaven and upon earth, Enlil, the chief of the gods, and + Ningirsu, the city-god of Shirpurla, held converse. And Enlil, turning to + Ningirsu, said: “In my city that which is fitting is not done. The stream + doth not rise. The stream of Enlil doth not rise. The high waters shine + not, neither do they show their splendour. The stream of Enlil bringeth + not good water like the Tigris. Let the King (i.e. Ningirsu) therefore + proclaim the temple. Let the decrees of the temple E-ninnû be made + illustrious in heaven and upon earth!” The great gods did not communicate + their orders directly to Gudea, but conveyed their wishes to him by means + of a dream. And while the patesi slept a vision of the night came to him, + and he beheld a man whose stature was so great that it equalled the + heavens and the earth. And by the crown he wore upon his head Gudea knew + that the figure must be a god. And by his side was the divine eagle, the + emblem of Shirpurla, and his feet rested upon the whirlwind, and a lion + was crouching upon his right hand and upon his left. And the figure spoke + to the patesi, but he did not understand the meaning of the words. Then it + seemed to Gudea that the sun rose from the earth and he beheld a woman + holding in her hand a pure reed, and she carried also a tablet on which + was a star of the heavens, and she seemed to take counsel with herself. + And while Gudea was gazing he seemed to see a second man who was like a + warrior; and he carried a slab of lapis lazuli and on it he drew out the + plan of a temple. And before the patesi himself it seemed that a fair + cushion was placed, and upon the cushion was set a mould, and within the + mould was a brick, the brick of destiny. And on the right hand the patesi + beheld an ass which lay upon the ground. + </p> + <p> + Such was the dream which Gudea beheld in a vision of the night, and he was + troubled because he could not interpret it. So he decided to go to the + goddess Ninâ, who could divine all mysteries of the gods, and beseech her + to tell him the meaning of the vision. But before applying to the goddess + for her help, he thought it best to secure the mediation of the god + Ningirsu and the goddess Gatumdug, in order that they should use their + influence with Ninâ to induce her to reveal the interpretation of the + dream. So the patesi set out to the temple of Ningirsu, and, having + offered a sacrifice and poured out fresh water, he prayed to the god that + his sister, Ninâ, the child of Eridu, might be prevailed upon to give him + help. And the god hearkened to his prayer. Then Gudea made offerings, and + before the sleeping-chamber of the goddess Gatumdug he offered a sacrifice + and poured out fresh water. And he prayed to the goddess, calling her his + queen and the child of the pure heaven, who gave life to the countries and + befriended and preserved the people or the man on whom she looked with + favour. + </p> + <p> + “I have no mother,” cried Gudea, “but thou art my mother! I have no + father, but thou art a father to me!” And the goddess Gatumdug gave ear to + the patesi’s prayer. Thus encouraged by her favour and that of Ningirsu, + Gudea set out for the temple of the goddess Ninâ. + </p> + <p> + On his arrival at the temple, the patesi offered a sacrifice and poured + out fresh water, as he had already done when approaching the presence of + Ningirsu and Gatumdug. And he prayed to Ninâ, as the goddess who divines + the secrets of the gods, beseeching her to interpret the vision that had + been sent to him; and he then recounted to her the details of his dream. + When the patesi had finished his story, the goddess addressed him and told + him that she would explain the meaning of his dream to him. And this was + the interpretation of the dream. The man whose stature was so great that + it equalled the heavens and the earth, whose head was that of a god, at + whose side was the divine eagle, whose feet rested on the whirlwind, while + a lion couched on his right hand and on his left, was her brother, the god + Ningirsu. And the words which he uttered were an order to the patesi that + he should build the temple E-ninnû. And the sun which rose from the earth + before the patesi was the god Ningishzida, for like the sun he goes forth + from the earth. And the maiden who held a pure reed in her hand, and + carried the tablet with the star, was her sister, the goddess Nidaba: the + star was the pure star of the temple’s construction, which she proclaimed. + And the second man, who was like a warrior and carried the slab of lapis + lazuli, was the god Nindub, and the plan of the temple which he drew was + the plan of E-ninnû. And the brick which rested in its mould upon the + cushion was the sacred brick of E-ninnû. And as for the ass which lay upon + the ground, that, the goddess said, was the patesi himself. + </p> + <p> + Having interpreted the meaning of the dream, the goddess Ninâ proceeded to + give Gudea instruction as to how he should go to work to build the temple. + She told him first of all to go to his treasure-house and bring forth his + treasures from their sealed cases, and out of these to make certain + offerings which he was to place near the god Ningirsu, in the temple in + which he was dwelling at that time. The offerings were to consist of a + chariot, adorned with pure metal and precious stones; bright arrows in a + quiver; the weapon of the god, his sacred emblem, on which Gudea was to + inscribe his own name; and finally a lyre, the music of which was wont to + soothe the god when he took counsel with himself. Ninâ added that if the + patesi carried out her instructions and made the offerings she had + specified, Ningirsu would reveal to him the plan on which the temple was + to be built, and would also bless him. Gudea bowed himself down in token + of his submission to the commands of the goddess, and proceeded to execute + them forthwith. He brought out his treasures, and from the precious woods + and metals which he possessed his craftsmen fashioned the objects he was + to present, and he set them in Ningirsu’s temple near to the god. He + worked day and night, and, having prepared a suitable spot in the + precincts of the temple at the place of judgment, he spread out upon it as + offerings a fat sheep and a kid and the skin of a young female kid. Then + he built a fire of cypress and cedar and other aromatic woods, to make a + sweet savour, and, entering the inner chamber of the temple, he offered a + prayer to Ningirsu. He said that he wished to build the temple, but he had + received no sign that this was the will of the god, and he prayed for a + sign. + </p> + <p> + While he prayed the patesi was stretched out upon the ground, and the god, + standing near his head, then answered him. He said that he who should + build his temple was none other than Gudea, and that he would give him the + sign for which he asked. But first he described the plan on which the + temple was to be built, naming its various shrines and chambers and + describing the manner in which they were to be fashioned and adorned. And + the god promised that when Gudea should build the temple, the land would + once more enjoy abundance, for Ningirsu would send a wind which should + proclaim to the heavens the return of the waters. And on that day the + waters would fall from the heavens, the water in the ditches and canals + would rise, and water would gush out from the dry clefts in the ground. + And the great fields would once more produce their crops, and oil would be + poured out plenteously in Sumer[sp.] and wool would again be weighed in + great abundance. In that day the god would go to the mountain where dwelt + the whirlwind, and he would himself direct the wind which should give the + land the breath of life. Gudea must therefore work day and night at the + task of building the temple. One company of men was to relieve another at + its toil, and during the night the men were to kindle lights so that the + plain should be as bright as day. Thus the builders would build + continuously. Men were also to be sent to the mountains to cut down cedars + and pines and other trees and bring their trunks to the city, while masons + were to go to the mountains and were to cut and transport huge blocks of + stone to be used in the construction of the temple. Finally the god gave + Gudea the sign for which he asked. The sign was that he should feel his + side touched as by a flame, and thereby he should know that he was the man + chosen by Ningirsu to carry out his commands. + </p> + <p> + Gudea bowed his head in submission, and his first act was to consult the + omens, and the omens were favourable. He then proceeded to purify the city + by special rites, so that the mother when angered did not chide her son, + and the master did not strike his servant’s head, and the mistress, though + provoked by her handmaid, did not smite her face. And Gudea drove all the + evil wizards and sorcerers from the city, and he purified and sanctified + the city completely. Then he kindled a great fire of cedar and other + aromatic woods, to make a sweet savour for the gods, and prayers were + offered day and night; and the patesi addressed a prayer to the Anun-naki, + or Spirits of the Earth, who dwelt in Shirpurla, and assigned a place to + them in the temple. Then, having completed his purification of the city + itself, he consecrated its immediate surroundings. Thus he consecrated the + district of Gu-edin, whence the revenues of Ningirsu were derived, and the + lands of the goddess Ninâ with their populous villages. And he consecrated + the wild and savage bulls which no man could turn aside, and the cedars + which were sacred to Ningirsu, and the cattle of the plains. And he + consecrated the armed men, and the famous warriors, and the warriors of + the Sun-god. And the emblems of the god Ningirsu, and of the two great + goddesses, Ninâ and Ninni, he installed before them in their shrines. + </p> + <p> + Then Gudea sent far and wide to fetch materials for the construction of + the temple. And the Elamite came from Elani, and men of Susa came from + Susa, and men brought wood from the mountains of Sinai and Melukh-kha. And + into the mountain of cedars, where no man before had penetrated, the + patesi cut a road, and he brought cedars and beams of other precious woods + in great quantities to the city. And he also made a road into the mountain + where stone was quarried, into places where no man before had penetrated. + And he carried great blocks of stone down from the mountain and loaded + them into barges and brought them to the city. And the barges brought + bitumen and plaster, and they were loaded as though they were carrying + grain, and all manner of great things were brought to the city. Copper ore + was brought from the mountain of copper in the land of Kimash, and gold + was brought in powder from the mountains, and silver was brought from the + mountains and porphyry from the land of Melukhkha, and marble from the + mountain of marble. And the patesi installed goldsmiths and silversmiths, + who wrought in these precious metals, for the adornment of the temple; and + he brought smiths who worked in copper and lead, who were priests of + Nin-tu-kalama. In his search for fitting materials for the building of the + temple, Gudea journeyed from the lower country to the upper country, and + from the upper country to the lower country he returned. + </p> + <p> + The only other materials now wanting for the construction of the temple + were the sun-dried bricks of clay, of which the temple platform and the + structure of the temple itself were in the main composed. Their + manufacture was now inaugurated by a symbolical ceremony carried out by + the patesi in person. At dawn he performed an ablution with the fitting + rites that accompanied it, and when the day was more advanced he slew a + bull and a kid as sacrifices, and he then entered the temple of Ningirsu, + where he prostrated himself. And he took the sacred mould and the fair + cushion on which it rested in the temple, and he poured a libation into + the mould. Afterwards, having made offerings of honey and butter, and + having burnt incense, he placed the cushion and the mould upon his head + and carried it to the appointed place. There he placed clay in the mould, + shaping it into a brick, and he left the brick in its mould within the + temple. And last of all he sprinkled oil of cedar-wood around. + </p> + <p> + The next day at dawn Gudea broke the mould and set the brick in the sun. + And the Sun-god was rejoiced at the brick that he had fashioned. And Gudea + took the brick and raised it on high towards the heavens, and he carried + the brick to his people. In this way the patesi inaugurated the + manufacture of the sun-dried bricks for the temple, the sacred brick which + he had made being the symbol and pattern of the innumerable bricks to be + used in its construction. He then marked out the plan of the temple, and + the text states that he devoted himself to the building of the temple like + a young man who has begun building a house and allows no pleasure to + interfere with his task. And he chose out skilled workmen and employed + them on the building, and he was filled with joy. The gods, too, are + stated to have helped with the building, for Enki fixed the temennu of the + temple, and the goddess Ninâ looked after its oracles, and Gatumdug, the + mother of Shir-purla, fashioned bricks for it morning and evening, while + the goddess Bau sprinkled aromatic oil of cedar-wood. Gudea himself laid + its foundations, and as he did so he blessed the temple seven times, + comparing it to the sacred brick, to the holy libation-vase, to the divine + eagle of Shirpurla, to a terrible couching panther, to the beautiful + heavens, to the day of offerings, and to the morning light which brightens + the land. He caused the temple to rise towards heaven like a mountain, or + like a cedar growing in the desert. He built it of bricks of Sumer, and + the timbers which he set in place were as strong as the dragon of the + deep. + </p> + <p> + While he was engaged on the building Gudea took counsel of the god Enki, + and he built a fountain for the gods, where they might drink. With the + great stones which he had brought and fashioned he built a reservoir and a + basin for the temple. And seven of the great stones he set up as stelæ, + and he gave them favourable names. The text then recounts the various + parts and shrines of the temple, and it describes their splendours in + similes drawn from the heavens and the earth and the abyss, or deep, + beneath the earth. The temple itself is described as, being like the + crescent of the new moon, or like the sun in the midst of the stars, or + like a mountain of lapis lazuli, or like a mountain of shining marble. + Parts of it are said to have been terrible and strong as a savage bull, or + a lion, or the antelope of the abyss, or the monster Lakhamu who dwells in + the abyss, or the sacred leopard that inspires terror. One of the doors of + the temple was guarded by a figure of the hero who slew the monster with + six heads, and at another door was a good dragon, and at another a lion; + opposite the city were set figures of the seven heroes, and facing the + rising sun was fixed the emblem of the Sun-god. Figures of other heroes + and favourable monsters were set up as guardians of other portions of the + temple. The fastenings of the main entrance were decorated with dragons + shooting out their tongues, and the bolt of the great door was fashioned + like a raging hound. + </p> + <p> + After this description of the construction and adornment of the temple the + text goes on to narrate how Gudea arranged for its material endowment. He + stalled oxen and sheep, for sacrifice and feasting, in the outhouses and + pens within the temple precincts, and he heaped up grain in its granaries. + Its storehouses he filled with spices so that they were like the Tigris + when its waters are in flood, and in its treasure-chambers he piled up + precious stones, and silver, and lead in abundance. Within the temple + precincts he planted a sacred garden which was like a mountain covered + with vines; and on the terrace he built a great reservoir, or tank, lined + with lead, in addition to the great stone reservoir within the temple + itself. He constructed a special dwelling-place for the sacred doves, and + among the flowers of the temple garden and under the shade of the great + trees the birds of heaven flew about unmolested. + </p> + <p> + The first of the two great cylinders of Gudea ends at this point in the + description of the temple, and it is evident that its text was composed + while the work of building was still in progress. Moreover, the writing of + the cylinder was finished before the actual work of building the temple + was completed, for the last column of the text concludes with a prayer to + Ningirsu to make it glorious during the progress of the work, the prayer + ending with the words, “O Ningirsu, glorify it! Glorify the temple of + Ningirsu during its construction!” The text of the second of the two great + cylinders is shorter than that of the first, consisting of twenty-four + instead of thirty columns of writing, and it was composed and written + after the temple was completed. Like the first of the cylinders, it + concludes with a prayer to Ningirsu on behalf of the temple, ending with + the similar refrain, “O Ningirsu, glorify it! Glorify the temple of + Ningirsu after its construction!” The first cylinder, as we have seen, + records how it came about that Gudea decided to rebuild the temple E-ninnû + in honour of Ningirsu. It describes how, when the land was suffering from + drought and famine, Gudea had a dream, how Ninâ interpreted the dream to + mean that he must rebuild the temple, and how Ningirsu himself promised + that this act of piety would restore abundance and prosperity to the land. + Its text ends with the long description of the sumptuous manner in which + the patesi carried out the work, the most striking points of which we have + just summarized. The narrative of the second cylinder begins at the moment + when the building of the temple was finished, and when all was ready for + the great god Nin-girsu to be installed therein, and its text is taken up + with a description of the ceremonies and rites with which this solemn + function was carried out. It presents us with a picture, drawn from life, + of the worship and cult of the ancient Sumerians in actual operation. In + view of its importance from the point of view of the study and comparison + of the Sumerian and Babylonian religious systems, its contents also may be + summarized. We will afterwards discuss briefly the information furnished + by both the cylinders on the Sumerian origin of many of the religious + beliefs and practices which were current among the later Semitic + inhabitants of Babylonia and Assyria. + </p> + <p> + When Gudea had finished building the new temple of E-ninnû, and had + completed the decoration and adornment of its shrines, and had planted its + gardens and stocked its treasure-chambers and storehouses, he applied + himself to the preliminary ceremonies and religious preparations which + necessarily preceded the actual function of transferring the statue of the + god Ningirsu from his old temple to his new one. Gudea’s first act was to + install the Anunnaki, or Spirits of the Earth, in the new temple, and when + he had done this, and had supplied additional sheep for their sacrifices + and food in abundance for their offerings, he prayed to them to give him + their assistance and to pronounce a prayer at his side when he should lead + Ningirsu into his new dwelling-place. The text then describes how Gudea + went to the old temple of Ningirsu, accompanied by his protecting spirits + who walked before him and behind him. Into the old temple he carried + sumptuous offerings, and when he had set them before the god, he addressed + him in prayer and said: “O my King, Ningirsu! O Lord, who curbest the + raging waters! O Lord, whose word surpasseth all others! O Son of Enlil, O + warrior, what commands shall I faithfully carry out? O Ningirsu, I have + built thy temple, and with joy would I lead thee therein, and my goddess + Bau would install at thy side.” We are told that the god accepted Gudea’s + prayer, and thereby he gave his consent to be removed from the old temple + of E-ninnû to his new one which bore the same name. + </p> + <p> + But the ceremony of the god’s removal was not carried out at once, for the + due time had not arrived. The year ended, and the new year came, and then + “the month of the temple” began. The third day of the month was that + appointed for the installation of Ningirsu. Gudea meanwhile had sprinkled + the ground with oil, and set out offerings of honey and butter and wine, + and grain mixed with milk, and dates, and food untouched by fire, to serve + as food for the gods; and the gods themselves had assisted in the + preparations for the reception of Ningirsu. The god Asaru made ready the + temple itself, and Ninmada performed the ceremony of purification. The god + Enki issued oracles, and the god Nindub, the supreme priest of Eridu, + brought incense. Ninâ performed chants within the temple, and brought + black sheep and holy cows to its folds and stalls. This record of the help + given by the other gods we may interpret as meaning that the priests + attached to the other great Sumerian temples took part in the preparation + of the new temple, and added their offerings to the temple stores. To many + of the gods, also, special shrines within the temple were assigned. + </p> + <p> + When the purification of E-ninnû was completed and the way between the old + temple and the new made ready, all the inhabitants of the city prostrated + themselves on the ground. “The city,” says Gudea, “was like the mother of + a sick man who prepareth a potion for him, or like the cattle of the plain + which lie down together, or like the fierce lion, the master of the plain, + when he coucheth.” During the day and the night before the ceremony of + removal, prayers and supplications were uttered, and at the first light of + dawn on the appointed day the god Ningirsu went into his new temple “like + a whirlwind,” the goddess Bau entering at his side “like the sun rising + over Shirpurla.” She entered beside his couch, like a faithful wife, whose + cares are for her own household, and she dwelt beside his ear and bestowed + abundance upon Shirpurla. + </p> + <p> + As the day began to brighten and the sun rose, Gudea set out as offerings + in the temple a fat ox and a fat sheep, and he brought a vase of lead and + filled it with wine, which he poured out as a libation, and he performed + incantations. Then, having duly established Ningirsu and Bau in the chief + shrine, he turned his attention to the lesser gods and installed them in + their appointed places in the temple, where they would be always ready to + assist Ningirsu in the temple ceremonies and in the issue of his decrees + for the welfare of the city and its inhabitants. Thus he established the + god Galalim, the son of Ningirsu, in a chosen spot in the great court in + front of the temple, where, under the orders of his father, he should + direct the just and curb the evil-doer; he would also by his presence + strengthen and preserve the temple, while his special duty was to guard + the throne of destiny and, on behalf of Ningirsu, to place the sceptre in + the hands of the reigning patesi. Near to Ningirsu and under his orders + Gudea also established the god Dunshaga, whose function it was to sanctify + the temple and to look after its libations and offerings, and to see to + the due performance of the ceremonies of ablution. This god would offer + water to Ningirsu with a pure hand, he would pour out libations of wine + and strong drink, and would tend the oxen, sheep, kids, and other + offerings which were brought to the temple night and day. To the god + Lugalkurdub, who was also installed in the temple, was assigned the + privilege of holding in his hand the mace with the seven heads, and it was + his duty to open the door of the Gate of Combat. He guarded the sacred + weapons of Ningirsu and destroyed the countries of his enemies. He was + Ningirsu’s chief leader in battle, and another god with lesser powers was + associated with him as his second leader. + </p> + <p> + Ningirsu’s counsellor was the god Lugalsisa, and he also had his appointed + place in E-ninnû. It was his duty to receive the prayers of Shirpurla and + render them propitious; he superintended and blessed Ningirsu’s journey + when he visited Eridu or returned from that city, and he made special + intercessions for the life of Gudea. The minister of Ningirsu’s harîm was + the god Shakanshabar, and he was installed near to Nin-girsu that he might + issue his commands, both great and small. The keeper of the harîm was the + god Urizu, and it was his duty to purify the water and sanctify the grain, + and he tended Ningirsu’s sleeping-chamber and saw that all was arranged + therein as was fitting. The driver of Ningirsu’s chariot was the god + Ensignun; it was his duty to keep the sacred chariot as bright as the + stars of heaven, and morning and evening to tend and feed Ningirsu’s + sacred ass, called Ug-kash, and the ass of Eridu. The shepherd of + Ningirsu’s kids was the god Enlulim, and he tended the sacred she-goat who + suckled the kids, and he guarded her so that the serpent should not steal + her milk. This god also looked after the oil and the strong drink of + E-ninnû, and saw that its store increased. + </p> + <p> + Ningirsu’s beloved musician was the god Ushum-gabkalama, and he was + installed in E-ninnû that he might take his flute and fill the temple + court with joy. It was his privilege to play to Ningirsu as he listened in + his harîm, and to render the life of the god pleasant in E-ninnû. + Ningirsu’s singer was the god Lugaligi-khusham, and he had his appointed + place in E-ninnû, for he could appease the heart and soften anger; he + could stop the tears which flowed from weeping eyes, and could lessen + sorrow in the sighing heart. Gudea also installed in E-ninnû the seven + twin-daughters of the goddess Bau, all virgins, whom Ningirsu had + begotten. Their names were Zarzaru, Impaë, Urenuntaëa, Khegir-nuna, + Kheshaga, Gurmu, and Zarmu. Gudea installed them near their father that + they might offer favourable prayers. + </p> + <p> + The cultivator of the district of Gu-edin was the god Gishbare, and he was + installed in the temple that he might cause the great fields to be + fertile, and might make the wheat glisten in Gu-edin, the plain assigned + to Ningirsu for his revenues. It was this god’s duty also to tend the + machines for irrigation, and to raise the water into the canals and + ditches of Shirpurla, and thus to keep the city’s granaries well filled. + The god Kal was the guardian of the fishing in Gu-edin, and his chief duty + was to place fish in the sacred pools. The steward of Gu-edin was the god + Dimgalabzu, whose duty it was to keep the plain in good order, so that the + birds might abound there and the beasts might raise their young in peace; + he also guarded the special privilege, which the plain enjoyed, of freedom + from any tax levied upon the increase of the cattle pastured there. Last + of all Gudea installed in E-ninnû the god Lugalenurua-zagakam, who looked + after the construction of houses in the city and the building of + fortresses upon the city wall; in the temple it was his privilege to raise + on high a battle-axe made of cedar. + </p> + <p> + All these lesser deities, having close relations to the god Ningirsu, were + installed by Gudea in his temple in close proximity to him, that they + might be always ready to perform their special functions. But the greater + deities also had their share in the inauguration of the temple, and of + these Gudea specially mentions Ana, Enlil, Ninkharsag, Enki, and Enzu, who + all assisted in rendering the temple’s lot propitious. For at least three + of the greater gods (Ana, Enlil, and the goddess Nin-makh) Gudea erected + shrines near one another and probably within the temple’s precincts, and, + as the passage which records this fact is broken, it is possible that the + missing portion of the text recorded the building of shrines to other + deities. In any case, it is clear that the composer of the text represents + all the great gods as beholding the erection and inauguration of + Ningirsu’s new temple with favour. + </p> + <p> + After the account of the installation of Ningirsu, and his spouse Bau, and + his attendant deities, the text records the sumptuous offerings which + Gudea placed within Ningirsu’s shrine. These included another chariot + drawn by an ass, a seven-headed battle-axe, a sword with nine emblems, a + bow with terrible arrows and a quiver decorated with wild beasts and + dragons shooting out their tongues, and a bed which was set within the + god’s sleeping-chamber. On the couch in the shrine the goddess Bau + reclined beside her lord Ningirsu, and ate of the great victims which were + sacrificed in their honour. + </p> + <p> + When the ceremony of installation had been successfully performed, Gudea + rested, and for seven days he feasted with his people. During this time + the maid was the equal of her mistress, and master and servant consorted + together as friends. The powerful and the humble man lay down side by + side, and in place of evil speech only propitious words were heard. The + rich man did not wrong the orphan and the strong man did not oppress the + widow. The laws of Ninâ and Ningirsu were observed, justice was bright in + the sunlight, and the Sun-god trampled iniquity under foot. The building + of the temple also restored material prosperity to the land, for the + canals became full of water and fish swarmed in the pools, the granaries + were filled with grain and the flocks and herds brought forth their + increase. The city of Shirpurla was satiated with abundance. + </p> + <p> + Such is a summary of the account which Gudea has left us of his rebuilding + of the temple E-ninnû, of the reasons which led him to undertake the work, + and of the results which followed its completion. It has often been said + that the inscriptions of the ancient Sumerians are without much intrinsic + value, that they mainly consist of dull votive formulæ, and that for + general interest the best of them cannot be compared with the later + inscriptions of the Semitic inhabitants of Mesopotamia. This reproach, for + which until recently there was considerable justification, has been + finally removed by the working out of the texts upon Gudea’s cylinders. + For picturesque narrative, for wealth of detail, and for striking similes, + it would be hard to find their superior in Babylonian and Assyrian + literature. They are, in fact, very remarkable compositions, and in + themselves justify the claim that the Sumerians were possessed of a + literature in the proper sense of the term. + </p> + <p> + But that is not their only value, for they give a vivid picture of ancient + Sumerian life and of the ideals and aims which actuated the people and + their rulers. The Sumerians were essentially an unmilitary race. That they + could maintain a stubborn fight for their territory is proved by the + prolonged struggle maintained by Shirpurla against her rival Gishkhu, but + neither ruler nor people was inflamed by love of conquest for its own + sake. They were settled in a rich and fertile country, which supplied + their own wants in abundance, and they were content to lead a peaceful + life therein, engaged in agricultural and industrial pursuits, and devoted + wholly to the worship of their gods. Gudea’s inscriptions enable us to + realize with what fervour they carried out the rebuilding of a temple, and + how the whole resources of the nation were devoted to the successful + completion of the work. It is true that the rebuilding of E-ninnû was + undertaken in a critical period when the land was threatened with famine, + and the peculiar magnificence with which the work was carried out may be + partly explained as due to the belief that such devotion would ensure a + return of material prosperity. But the existence of such a belief is in + itself an index to the people’s character, and we may take it that the + record faithfully represents the relations of the Sumerians to their gods, + and the important place which worship and ritual occupied in the national + life. + </p> + <p> + Moreover, the inscriptions of Gudea furnish much valuable information with + regard to the details of Sumerian worship and the elaborate organization + of the temples. From them we can reconstruct a picture of one of these + immense buildings, with its numerous shrines and courts, surrounded by + sacred gardens and raising its ziggurat, or temple tower, high above the + surrounding city. Within its dark chambers were the mysterious figures of + the gods, and what little light could enter would have been reflected in + the tanks of sacred water sunk to the level of the pavement. The air + within the shrines must have been heavy with the smell of incense and of + aromatic woods, while the deep silence would have been broken only by the + chanting of the priests and the feet of those that bore offerings. Outside + in the sunlight cedars and other rare trees cast a pleasant shade, and + birds flew about among the flowers and bushes in the outer courts and on + the garden terraces. The area covered by the temple buildings must have + been enormous, for they included the dwellings of the priests, stables and + pens for the cattle, sheep, and kids employed for sacrifice, and + treasure-chambers and storehouses and granaries for the produce from the + temple lands. + </p> + <p> + We also get much information with regard to the nature of the offerings + and the character of the ceremonies which were performed. We may mention + as of peculiar interest Gudea’s symbolical rite which preceded the making + of the sun-dried bricks, and the ceremony of the installation of Ningirsu + in the presence of the prostrate city. The texts also throw an interesting + light on the truly Oriental manner in which, when approaching one deity + for help, the cooperation and assistance of other deities were first + secured. Thus Gudea solicited the intercession of Ningirsu and Gatumdug + before applying to the goddess Ninâ to interpret his dream. The extremely + human character of the gods themselves is also well illustrated. Thus we + gather from the texts that Ningirsu’s temple was arranged like the palace + of a Sumerian ruler and that he was surrounded by gods who took the place + of the attendants and ministers of his human counterpart. His son was + installed in a place of honour and shared with him the responsibility of + government. Another god was his personal attendant and cupbearer, who + offered him fair water and looked after the ablutions. Two more were his + generals, who secured his country against the attacks of foes. Another was + his counsellor, who received and presented petitions from his subjects and + superintended his journeys. Another was the head of his harîm, a position + of great trust and responsibility, while a keeper of the harîm looked + after the practical details. Another god was the driver of his chariot, + and it is interesting to note that the chariot was drawn by an ass, for + horses were not introduced into Western Asia until a much later period. + Other gods performed the functions of head shepherd, chief musician, chief + singer, head cultivator and inspector of irrigation, inspector of the + fishing, land steward, and architect. His household also included his wife + and his seven virgin daughters. In addition to the account of the various + functions performed by these lesser deities, the texts also furnish + valuable facts with regard to the characters and attributes of the greater + gods and goddesses, such as the attributes of Ningirsu himself, and the + character of Ninâ as the goddess who divined and interpreted the secrets + of the gods. + </p> + <p> + But perhaps the most interesting conclusions to be drawn from the texts + relate to the influence exerted by the ancient Sumerians upon Semitic + beliefs and practices. It has, of course, long been recognized that the + later Semitic inhabitants of Babylonia and Assyria drew most of their + culture from the Sumerians, whom they displaced and absorbed. Their system + of writing, the general structure of their temples, the ritual of their + worship, the majority of their religious compositions, and many of their + gods themselves are to be traced to a Sumerian origin, and much of the + information obtained from the cylinders of Gudea merely confirms or + illustrates the conclusions already deduced from other sources. As + instances we may mention the belief in spirits, which is illustrated by + the importance attached to the placating of the Anunnaki, or Spirits of + the Earth, to whom a special place and special offerings were assigned in + E-ninnû. The Sumerian origin of ceremonies of purification is confirmed by + Gudea’s purification of the city before beginning the building of the + temple, and again before the transference of the god from his old temple + to the new one. The consultation of omens, which was so marked a feature + of Babylonian and Assyrian life, is seen in actual operation under the + Sumerians; for, even after Gudea had received direct instructions from + Ningirsu to begin building his temple, he did not proceed to carry them + out until he had consulted the omens and found that they were favourable. + Moreover, the references to mythological beings, such as the seven heroes, + the dragon of the deep, and the god who slew the dragon, confirm the + opinion that the creation legends and other mythological compositions of + the Babylonians were derived by them from Sumerian sources. But there are + two incidents in the narrative which are on a rather different plane and + are more startling in their novelty. One is the story of Gudea’s dream, + and the other the sign which he sought from his god. The former is + distinctly apocalyptic in character, and both may be parallelled in what + is regarded as purely Semitic literature. That such conceptions existed + among the Sumerians is a most interesting fact, and although the theory of + independent origin is possible, their existence may well have influenced + later Semitic beliefs. + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="linkC2HCH0001" id="linkC2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER V—ELAM AND BABYLON, <br /> THE COUNTRY OF THE SEA AND THE + KASSITES + </h2> + <p> + Up to five years ago our knowledge of Elam and of the part she played in + the ancient world was derived, in the main, from a few allusions to the + country to be found in the records of Babylonian and Assyrian kings. It is + true that a few inscriptions of the native rulers had been found in + Persia, but they belonged to the late periods of her history, and the + majority consisted of short dedicatory formulae and did not supply us with + much historical information. But the excavations carried on since then by + M. de Morgan at Susa have revealed an entirely new chapter of ancient + Oriental history, and have thrown a flood of light upon the position + occupied by Elam among the early races of the East. + </p> + <p> + Lying to the north of the Persian Gulf and to the east of the Tigris, and + rising from the broad plains nearer the coast to the mountainous districts + within its borders on the east and north, Elam was one of the nearest + neighbours of Chaldæa. A few facts concerning her relations with Babylonia + during certain periods of her history have long been known, and her + struggles with the later kings of Assyria are known in some detail; but + for her history during the earliest periods we have had to trust mainly to + conjecture. That in the earlier as in the later periods she should have + been in constant antagonism with Babylonia might legitimately be + suspected, and it is not surprising that we should find an echo of her + early struggles with Chaldæa in the legends which were current in the + later periods of Babylonian history. In the fourth and fifth tablets, or + sections, of the great Babylonian epic which describes the exploits of the + Babylonian hero Gilgamesh, a story is told of an expedition undertaken by + Gilgamesh and his friend Ba-bani against an Elamite despot named + Khum-baba. It is related in the poem that Khumbaba was feared by all who + dwelt near him, for his roaring was like the storm, and any man perished + who was rash enough to enter the cedar-wood in which he dwelt. But + Gilgamesh, encouraged by a dream sent him by Sha-mash, the Sun-god, + pressed on with his friend, and, having entered the wood, succeeded in + slaying Khumbaba and in cutting off his head. This legend is doubtless + based on episodes in early Babylonian and Elamite history. Khumbaba may + not have been an actual historical ruler, but at least he represents or + personifies the power of Elam, and the success of Gilgamesh no doubt + reflects the aspirations with which many a Babylonian expedition set out + for the Elamite frontier. + </p> + <p> + Incidentally it may be noted that the legend possibly had a still closer + historical parallel, for the name of Khumbaba occurs as a component in a + proper name upon one of the Elamite contracts found recently by M. de + Morgan at Mai-Amir. The name in question is written <i>Khumbaba-arad-ili</i>, + “Khumbaba, the servant of God,” and it proves that at the date at which + the contract was written (about 1300-1000 B.C.) the name of Khumbaba was + still held in remembrance, possibly as that of an early historical ruler + of the country. + </p> + <p> + In her struggles with Chaldæa, Elam was not successful during the earliest + historical period of which we have obtained information; and, so far as we + can tell at present, her princes long continued to own allegiance to the + Semitic rulers whose influence was predominant from time to time in the + plains of Lower Mesopotamia. Tradition relates that two of the earliest + Semitic rulers whose names are known to us, Sargon and Narâm-Sin, kings of + Agade, held sway in Elam, for in the “Omens” which were current in a later + period concerning them, the former is credited with the conquest of the + whole country, while of the latter it is related that he conquered Apirak, + an Elamite district, and captured its king. Some doubts were formerly cast + upon these traditions inasmuch as they were found in a text containing + omens or forecasts, but these doubts were removed by the discovery of + contemporary documents by which the later traditions were confirmed. + Sargon’s conquest of Elam, for instance, was proved to be historical by a + reference to the event in a date-formula upon tablets belonging to his + reign. Moreover, the event has received further confirmation from an + unpublished tablet in the British Museum, containing a copy of the + original chronicle from which the historical extracts in the “Omens” were + derived. The portion of the composition inscribed upon this tablet does + not contain the lines referring to Sargon’s conquest of Elam, for these + occurred in an earlier section of the composition; but the recovery of the + tablet puts beyond a doubt the historical character of the traditions + preserved upon the omen-tablet as a whole, and the conquest of Elam is + thus confirmed by inference. The new text does recount the expedition + undertaken by Narâm-Sin, the son of Sargon, against Apirak, and so + furnishes a direct confirmation of this event. + </p> + <p> + Another early conqueror of Elam, who was probably of Semitic origin, was + Alu-usharshid, king of the city of Kish, for, from a number of his + inscriptions found near those of Sargon at Nippur in Babylonia, we learn + that he subdued Elam and Para’se, the district in which the city of Susa + was probably situated. From a small mace-head preserved in the British + Museum we know of another conquest of Elam by a Semitic ruler of this + early period. The mace-head was made and engraved by the orders of + Mutabil, an early governor of the city of Dûr-ilu, to commemorate his own + valour as the man “who smote the head of the hosts” of Elam. Mutabil was + not himself an independent ruler, and his conquest of Elam must have been + undertaken on behalf of the suzerain to whom he owed allegiance, and thus + his victory cannot be classed in the same category as those of his + predecessors. A similar remark applies to the success against the city of + Anshan in Elam, achieved by Grudea, the Sumerian ruler of Shirpurla, + inasmuch as he was a patesi, or viceroy, and not an independent king. Of + greater duration was the influence exercised over Elam by the kings of Ur, + for bricks and contract-tablets have been found at Susa proving that + Dungi, one of the most powerful kings of Ur, and Bur-Sin, Ine-Sin, and + Oamil-Sin, kings of the second dynasty in that city, all in turn included + Elam within the limits of their empire. + </p> + <p> + Such are the main facts which until recently had been ascertained with + regard to the influence of early Babylonian rulers in Elam. The + information is obtained mainly from Babylonian sources, and until recently + we have been unable to fill in any details of the picture from the Elamite + side. But this inability has now been removed by M. de Morgan’s + discoveries. From the inscribed bricks, cones, stelæ, and statues that + have been brought to light in the course of his excavations at Susa, we + have recovered the name of a succession of native Elamite rulers. All + those who are to be assigned to this early period, during which Elam owed + allegiance to the kings of Babylonia, ascribe to themselves the title of + <i>patesi</i>, or viceroy, of Susa, in acknowledgment of their dependence. + Their records consist principally of building inscriptions and foundation + memorials, and they commemorate the construction or repair of temples, the + cutting of canals, and the like. They do not, therefore, throw much light + upon the problems connected with the external history of Elam during this + early period, but we obtain from them a glimpse of the internal + administration of the country. We see a nation without ambition to extend + its boundaries, and content, at any rate for the time, to owe allegiance + to foreign rulers, while the energies of its native princes are devoted + exclusively to the cultivation of the worship of the gods and to the + amelioration of the conditions of the life of the people in their charge. + </p> + <p> + A difficult but interesting problem presents itself for solution at the + outset of our inquiry into the history of this people as revealed by their + lately recovered inscriptions,—the problem of their race and origin. + Found at Susa in Elam, and inscribed by princes bearing purely Elamite + names, we should expect these votive and memorial texts to be written + entirely in the Elamite language. But such is not the case, for many of + them are written in good Semitic Babylonian. While some are entirely + composed in the tongue which we term Elamite or Anzanite, others, so far + as their language and style is concerned, might have been written by any + early Semitic king ruling in Babylonia. Why did early princes of Susa make + this use of the Babylonian tongue? + </p> + <p> + At first sight it might seem possible to trace a parallel in the use of + the Babylonian language by kings and officials in Egypt and Syria during + the fifteenth century B.C., as revealed in the letters from Tell + el-Amarna. But a moment’s thought will show that the cases are not + similar. The Egyptian or Syrian scribe employed Babylonian as a medium for + his official foreign correspondence because Babylonian at that period was + the <i>lingua franca</i> of the East. But the object of the early Elamite + rulers was totally different. Their inscribed bricks and memorial stelæ + were not intended for the eyes of foreigners, but for those of their own + descendants. Built into the structure of a temple, or buried beneath the + edifice, one of their principal objects was to preserve the name and deeds + of the writer from oblivion. Like similar documents found on the sites of + Assyrian and Babylonian cities, they sometimes include curses upon any + impious man, who, on finding the inscription after the temple shall have + fallen into ruins, should in any way injure the inscription or deface the + writer’s name. It will be obvious that the writers of these inscriptions + intended that they should be intelligible to those who might come across + them in the future. If, therefore, they employed the Babylonian as well as + the Elamite language, it is clear that they expected that their future + readers might be either Babylonian or Elamite; and this belief can only be + explained on the supposition that their own subjects were of mixed race. + </p> + <p> + It is therefore certain that at this early period of Elamite history + Semitic Babylonians and Elamites dwelt side by side in Susa and retained + their separate languages. The problem therefore resolves itself into the + inquiry: which of these two peoples occupied the country first? Were the + Semites at first in sole possession, which was afterwards disputed by the + incursion of Elamite tribes from the north and east? Or were the Elamites + the original inhabitants of the land, into which the Semites subsequently + pressed from Babylonia? + </p> + <p> + A similar mixture of races is met with in Babylonia itself in the early + period of the history of that country. There the early Sumerian + inhabitants were gradually dispossessed by the invading Semite, who + adopted the civilization of the conquered race, and took over the system + of cuneiform writing, which he modified to suit his own language. In + Babylonia the Semites eventually predominated and the Sumerians as a race + disappeared, but during the process of absorption the two languages were + employed indiscriminately. The kings of the First Babylonian Dynasty wrote + their votive inscriptions sometimes in Sumerian, sometimes in Semitic + Babylonian; at other times they employed both languages for the same text, + writing the record first in Sumerian and afterwards appending a Semitic + translation by the side; and in the legal and commercial documents of the + period the old Sumerian legal forms and phrases were retained intact. In + Elam we may suppose that the use of the Sumerian and Semitic languages was + the same. + </p> + <p> + It may be surmised, however, that the first Semitic incursions into Elam + took place at a much later period than those into Babylonia, and under + very different conditions. When overrunning the plains and cities of the + Sumerians, the Semites were comparatively uncivilized, and, so far as we + know, without a system of writing of their own. The incursions into Elam + must have taken place under the great Semitic conquerors, such as Sar-gon + and Narâm-Sin and Alu-usharshid. At this period they had fully adopted and + modified the Sumerian characters to express their own Semitic tongue, and + on their invasion of Elam they brought their system of writing with them. + The native princes of Elam, whom they conquered, adopted it in turn for + many of their votive texts and inscribed monuments when they wished to + write them in the Babylonian language. + </p> + <p> + Such is the most probable explanation of the occurrence in Elam of + inscriptions in the Old Babylonian language, written by native princes + concerning purely domestic matters. But a further question now suggests + itself. Assuming that this was the order in which events took place, are + we to suppose that the first Semitic invaders of Elam found there a native + population in a totally undeveloped stage of civilization? Or did they + find a population enjoying a comparatively high state of culture, + different from their own, which they proceeded to modify and transform! + Luckily, we have not to fall back on conjecture for an answer to these + questions, for a recent discovery at Susa has furnished material from + which it is possible to reconstruct in outline the state of culture of + these early Elamites. + </p> + <p> + This interesting discovery consists of a number of clay tablets inscribed + in the proto-Elamite system of writing, a system which was probably the + only one in use in the country during the period before the Semitic + invasion. The documents in question are small, roughly formed tablets of + clay very similar to those employed in the early periods of Babylonian + history, but the signs and characters impressed upon them offer the + greatest contrast to the Sumerian and early Babylonian characters with + which we are familiar. Although they cannot be fully deciphered at + present, it is probable that they are tablets of accounts, the signs upon + them consisting of lists of figures and what are probably ideographs for + things. Some of the ideographs, such as that for “tablet,” with which many + of the texts begin, are very similar to the Sumerian or Babylonian signs + for the same objects; but the majority are entirely different and have + been formed and developed upon a system of their own. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0005" id="linkCimage-0005"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/230.jpg" width="100%" + alt="230.jpg Clay Tablet, Found at Susa, Bearing An Inscription in the Early Proto-elamite Character. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The photograph is taken from M. de Morgan’s <i>Délégation en + Perse, Mém.</i>, t. vi, pi. 23. +</p> + <p> + On these tablets, in fact, we have a new class of cuneiform writing in an + early stage of its development, when the hieroglyphic or pictorial + character of the ideographs was still prominent. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0006" id="linkCimage-0006"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/231.jpg" width="100%" + alt="231.jpg Clay Tablet, Recently Found at Susa, Bearing An Inscription in the Early Proto-elamite Character. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The photograph is reproduced from M. de Morgan’s <i>Délégation + en Perse, Mém.</i>, t. vi, pi. 22. +</p> + <p> + Although the meaning of the majority of these ideographs has not yet been + identified, Père Scheil, who has edited the texts, has succeeded in making + out the system of numeration. He has identified the signs for unity, 10, + 100, and 1,000, and for certain fractions, and the signs for these figures + are quite different from those employed by the Sumerians. + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/231a.jpg" width="100%" alt="231a.jpg Fractions " /> + </div> + <p> + The system, too, is different, for it is a decimal, and not a sexagesimal, + system of numeration. + </p> + <p> + That in its origin this form of writing had some connection with that + employed and, so far as we know, invented by the ancient Sumerians is + possible.<a href="#fn5.1" name="fnref5.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> But it shows small trace of Sumerian influence, and the + disparity in the two systems of numeration is a clear indication that, at + any rate, it broke off and was isolated from the latter at a very early + period. Having once been adopted by the early Elamites, it continued to be + used by them for long periods with but small change or modification. + Employed far from the centre of Sumerian civilization, its development was + slow, and it seems to have remained in its ideographic state, while the + system employed by the Sumerians, and adopted by the Semitic Babylonians, + was developed along syllabic lines. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn5.1"></a> <a href="#fnref5.1">[1]</a> + It is, of course, also possible that the system of writing + had no connection in its origin with that of the Sumerians, + and was invented independently of the system employed in + Babylonia. In that case, the signs which resemble certain of + the Sumerian characters must have been adopted in a later + stage of its development. Though it would be rash to + dogmatize on the subject, the view that connects its origin + with the Sumerians appears on the whole to fit in best with + the evidence at present available. +</p> + <p> + It was without doubt this proto-Elamite system of writing which the + Semites from Babylonia found employed in Elam on their first incursions + into that country. They brought with them their own more convenient form + of writing, and, when the country had once been finally subdued, the + subject Elamite princes adopted the foreign system of writing and language + from their conquerors for memorial and monumental inscriptions. But the + ancient native writing was not entirely ousted, and continued to be + employed by the common people of Elam for the ordinary purposes of daily + life. That this was the case at least until the reign of + Karibu-sha-Shu-shinak, one of the early subject native rulers, is clear + from one of his inscriptions engraved upon a block of limestone to + commemorate the dedication of what were probably some temple furnishings + in honour of the god Shu-shinak. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0008" id="linkCimage-0008"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/233.jpg" width="100%" + alt="233.jpg Block of Limestone, Found at Susa, Bearing Inscriptions of Karibu-sha-Shushinak. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The photograph is taken from M. de Morgan’s <i>Délégation en + Perse</i>, Mém., t. vi, pi. 2. +</p> + <p> + The main part of the inscription is written in Semitic Babylonian, and + below there is an addition to the text written in proto-Elamite + characters, probably enumerating the offerings which the + Karibu-sha-Shushinak decreed should be made for the future in honour of + the god.<a href="#fn5.2" name="fnref5.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> In course of time this proto-Elamite system of writing by means + of ideographs seems to have died out, and a modified form of the + Babylonian system was adopted by the Elamites for writing their own + language phonetically. It is in this phonetic character that the so-called + “Anzanite” texts of the later Elamite princes were composed. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn5.2"></a> <a href="#fnref5.2">[2]</a> + We have assumed that both inscriptions were the work of + Karibu-sha-Shushinak. But it is also possible that the + second one in proto-Elamite characters was added at a later + period. From its position on the stone it is clear that it + was written after and not before Karibu-sha-Shushinak’s + inscription in Semitic Babylonian. See the photographic + reproduction. +</p> + <p> + Karibu-sha-Shushinak, whose recently discovered bilingual inscription has + been referred to above, was one of the earlier of the subject princes of + Elam, and he probably reigned at Susa not later than B.C. 3000. He styles + himself “patesi of Susa, governor of the land of Elam,” but we do not know + at present to what contemporary king in Babylonia he owed allegiance. The + longest of his inscriptions that have been recovered is engraved upon a + stele of limestone and records the building of the Gate of Shushinak at + Susa and the cutting of a canal; it also recounts the offerings which + Karibu-sha-Shushinak dedicated on the completion of the work. It may here + be quoted as an example of the class of votive inscriptions from which the + names of these early Elamite rulers have been recovered. The inscription + runs as follows: “For the god Shushinak, his lord, Karibu-sha-Shushinak, + the son of Shimbi-ish-khuk, patesi of Susa, governor of the land of Elam,—when + he set the (door) of his Gate in place,... in the Gate of the god + Shushinak, his lord, and when he had opened the canal of Sidur, he set up + in face thereof his canopy, and he set planks of cedar-wood for its gate. + A sheep in the interior thereof, and sheep without, he appointed (for + sacrifice) to him each day. On days of festival he caused the people to + sing songs in the Gate of the god Shushinak. And twenty measures of fine + oil he dedicated to make his gate beautiful. Four <i>magi</i> of silver he + dedicated; a censer of silver and gold he dedicated for a sweet odour; + a,sword he dedicated; an axe with four blades he dedicated, and he + dedicated silver in addition for the mounting thereof.... A righteous + judgment he judged in the city! As for the man who shall transgress his + judgment or shall remove his gift, may the gods Shushinak and Shamash, Bel + and Ea, Ninni and Sin, Mnkharsag and Nati—may all the gods uproot + his foundation, and his seed may they destroy!” + </p> + <p> + It will be seen that Karibu-sha-Shushinak takes a delight in enumerating + the details of the offerings he has ordained in honour of his city-god + Shushinak, and this religious temper is peculiarly characteristic of the + princes of Elam throughout the whole course of their history. Another + interesting point to notice in the inscription is that, although the + writer invokes Shushinak, his own god, and puts his name at the head of + the list of deities whose vengeance he implores upon the impious, he also + calls upon the gods of the Babylonians. As he wrote the inscription itself + in Babylonian, in the belief that it might be recovered by some future + Semitic inhabitant of his country, so he included in his imprecations + those deities whose names he conceived would be most reverenced by such a + reader. In addition to Karibu-sha-Shushinak the names of a number of other + patesis, or viceroys, have recently been recovered, such as Khutran-tepti, + and Idadu I and his son Kal-Rukhu-ratir, and his grandson Idadu II. All + these probably ruled after Karibu-sha-Shushinak, and may be set in the + early period of Babylonian supremacy in Elam. + </p> + <p> + It has been stated above that the allegiance which these early Elamite + princes owed to their overlords in Babylonia was probably reflected in the + titles which they bear upon their inscriptions recently found at Susa. + These titles are “<i>patesi</i> of Susa, <i>shakkannak</i> of Elam,” which + may be rendered as “viceroy of Susa, governor of Elam.” But inscriptions + have been found on the same site belonging to another series of rulers, to + whom a different title is applied. Instead of referring to themselves as + viceroys of Susa and governors of Elam, they bear the title of <i>sukkal</i> + of Elam, of Siparki, and of Susa. Siparki, or Sipar, was probably the name + of an important section of Elamite territory, and the title <i>sukkalu</i>, + “ruler,” probably carries with it an idea of independence of foreign + control which is absent from the title of <i>patesi</i>. It is therefore + legitimate to trace this change of title to a corresponding change in the + political condition of Elam; and there is much to be said for the view + that the rulers of Elam who bore the title of <i>sukkalu</i> reigned at a + period when Elam herself was independent, and may possibly have exercised + a suzerainty over the neighbouring districts of Babylonia. + </p> + <p> + The worker of this change in the political condition of Elam and the + author of her independence was a king named Kutir-Nakhkhunte or + Kutir-Na’khunde, whose name and deeds have been preserved in later + Assyrian records, where he is termed Kudur-Nankhundi and Kudur-Nakhundu.<a href="#fn5.3" name="fnref5.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> + This ruler, according to the Assyrian king Ashur-bani-pal, was not content + with throwing off the yoke under which his land had laboured for so long, + but carried war into the country of his suzerain and marched through + Babylonia devastating and despoiling the principal cities. This successful + Elamite campaign took place, according to the computation of the later + Assyrian scribes, about the year 2280 B. c, and it is probable that for + many years afterwards the authority of the King of Elam extended over the + plains of Babylonia. It has been suggested that Kutir-Nakh-khunte, after + including Babylonia within his empire, did not remain permanently in Elam, + but may have resided for a part of each year, at least, in Lower + Mesopotamia. His object, no doubt, would have been to superintend in + person the administration of his empire and to check any growing spirit of + independence among his local governors. He may thus have appointed in Susa + itself a local governor who would carry on the business of the country + during his absence, and, under the king himself, would wield supreme + authority. Such governors may have been the sukkali, who, unlike the + patesi, were independent of foreign control, but yet did not enjoy the + full title of “king.” + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn5.3"></a> <a href="#fnref5.3">[3]</a> + For references to the passages where the name occurs, see + King, <i>Letters of Hammurabi</i>, vol. i, p. Ivy. +</p> + <p> + It is possible that the sukkalu who ruled in Elam during the reign of + Kutir-Nakhkhunte was named Temti-agun, for a short inscription of this + ruler has been recovered, in which he records that he built and dedicated + a certain temple with the object of ensuring the preservation of the life + of Kutir-Na’khundi. If we may identify the Kutir-Va’khundi of this text + with the great Elamite conqueror, Kutir-Nakhkhunte, it follows that + Temti-agun, the sukkal of Susa, was his subordinate. The inscription + mentions other names which are possibly those of rulers of this period, + and reads as follows: “Temti-agun, sukkal of Susa, the son of the sister + of Sirukdu’, hath built a temple of bricks at Ishme-karab for the + preservation of the life of Kutir-Na’khundi, and for the preservation of + the life of Lila-irtash, and for the preservation of his own life, and for + the preservation of the life of Temti-khisha-khanesh and of + Pil-kishamma-khashduk.” As Lila-irtash is mentioned immediately after + Kutir-Na’khundi, he was possibly his son, and he may have succeeded him as + ruler of the empire of Elam and Babylonia, though no confirmation of this + view has yet been discovered. Temti-khisha-khanesh is mentioned + immediately after the reference to the preservation of the life of + Temti-agun himself, and it may be conjectured that the name was that of + Temti-agun’s son, or possibly that of his wife, in which event the last + two personages mentioned in the text may have been the sons of Temti-agun. + </p> + <p> + This short text affords a good example of one class of votive inscriptions + from which it is possible to recover the names of Elamite rulers of this + period, and it illustrates the uncertainty which at present attaches to + the identification of the names themselves and the order in which they are + to be arranged. Such uncertainty necessarily exists when only a few texts + have been recovered, and it will disappear with the discovery of + additional monuments by which the results already arrived at may be + checked. We need not here enumerate all the names of the later Elamite + rulers which have been found in the numerous votive inscriptions recovered + during the recent excavations at Susa. The order in which they should be + arranged is still a matter of considerable uncertainty, and the facts + recorded by them in such inscriptions as we possess mainly concern the + building and restoration of Elamite temples and the decoration of shrines, + and they are thus of no great historical interest. These votive texts are + well illustrated by a remarkable find of foundation deposits made last + year by M. de Morgan in the temple of Shushinak at Susa, consisting of + figures and jewelry of gold and silver, and objects of lead, bronze, iron, + stone, and ivory, cylinder-seals, mace-heads, vases, etc. This is the + richest foundation deposit that has been recovered on any ancient site, + and its archaeological interest in connection with the development of + Elamite art is great. But in no other way does the find affect our + conception of the history of the country, and we may therefore pass on to + a consideration of such recent discoveries as throw new light upon the + course of history in Western Asia. + </p> + <p> + With the advent of the First Dynasty in Babylon Elam found herself face to + face with a power prepared to dispute her claims to exercise a suzerainty + over the plains of Mesopotamia. It is held by many writers that the First + Dynasty of Babylon was of Arab origin, and there is much to be said for + this view. M. Pognon was the first to start the theory that its kings were + not purely Babylonian, but were of either Arab or Aramaean extraction, and + he based his theory on a study of the forms of the names which some of + them bore. The name of Samsu-imna, for instance, means “the sun is our + god,” but the form of the words of which the name is composed betray + foreign influence. Thus in Babylonian the name for “sun” or the Sun-god + would be <i>Shamash</i> or <i>Shamshu</i>, not <i>Samsu</i>; in the second + half of the name, while <i>ilu</i> (“god”) is good Babylonian, the ending + <i>na</i>, which is the pronominal suffix of the first person plural, is + not Babylonian, but Arabic. We need not here enter into a long + philological discussion, and the instance already cited may suffice to + show in what way many of the names met in the Babylonian inscriptions of + this period betray a foreign, and possibly an Arabic, origin. But whether + we assign the forms of these names to Arabic influence or not, it may be + regarded as certain that, the First Dynasty of Babylon had its origin in + the incursion into Babylonia of a new wave of Semitic immigration. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0009" id="linkCimage-0009"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/240.jpg" width="100%" + alt="240.jpg Brick Stamped With an Inscription Of Kudur-mabug" /> + </div> + <p> + The invading Semites brought with them fresh blood and unexhausted energy, + and, finding many of their own race in scattered cities and settlements + throughout the country, they succeeded in establishing a purely Semitic + dynasty, with its capital at Babylon, and set about the task of freeing + the country from any vestiges of foreign control. Many centuries earlier + Semitic kings had ruled in Babylonian cities, and Semitic empires had been + formed there. Sargon and Narâm-Sin, having their capital at Agade, had + established their control over a considerable area of Western Asia and had + held Elam as a province. But so far as Elam was concerned Kutir-Nakhkhunte + had reversed the balance and had raised Elam to the position of the + predominant power. + </p> + <p> + Of the struggles and campaigns of the earlier kings of the First Dynasty + of Babylon we know little, for, although we possess a considerable number + of legal and commercial documents of the period, we have recovered no + strictly historical inscriptions. Our main source of information is the + dates upon these documents, which are not dated by the years of the + reigning king, but on a system adopted by the early Babylonian kings from + their Sumerian predecessors. In the later periods of Babylonian history + tablets were dated in the year of the king who was reigning at the time + the document was drawn up, but this simple system had not been adopted at + this early period. In place of this we find that each year was cited by + the event of greatest importance which occurred in that year. This event + might be the cutting of a canal, when the year in which this took place + might be referred to as “the year in which the canal named Ai-khegallu was + cut;” or it might be the building of a temple, as in the date-formula, + “the year in which the great temple of the Moon-god was built;” or it + might be “the conquest of a city, such as the year in which the city of + Kish was destroyed.” Now it will be obvious that this system of dating had + many disadvantages. An event might be of great importance for one city, + while it might never have been heard of in another district; thus it + sometimes happened that the same event was not adopted throughout the + whole country for designating a particular year, and the result was that + different systems of dating were employed in different parts of Babylonia. + Moreover, when a particular system had been in use for a considerable + time, it required a very good memory to retain the order and period of the + various events referred to in the date-formulae, so as to fix in a moment + the date of a document by its mention of one of them. In order to assist + themselves in their task of fixing dates in this manner, the scribes of + the First Dynasty of Babylon drew up lists of the titles of the years, + arranged in chronological order under the reigns of the kings to which + they referred. Some of these lists have been recovered, and they are of + the greatest assistance in fixing the chronology, while at the same time + they furnish us with considerable information concerning the history of + the period of which we should otherwise have been in ignorance. + </p> + <p> + From these lists of date-formulæ, and from the dates themselves which are + found upon the legal and commercial tablets of the period, we learn that + Kish, Ka-sallu, and Isin all gave trouble to the earlier kings of the + First Dynasty, and had in turn to be subdued. Elam did not watch the + diminution of her influence in Babylonia without a struggle to retain it. + Under Kudur-mabug, who was prince or governor of the districts lying along + the frontier of Elam, the Elamites struggled hard to maintain their + position in Babylonia, making the city of Ur the centre from which they + sought to check the growing power of Babylon. From bricks that have been + recovered from Mukayyer, the site of the city of Ur, we learn that + Kudur-mabug rebuilt the temple in that city dedicated to the Moon-god, + which is an indication of the firm hold he had obtained upon the city. It + was obvious to the new Semitic dynasty in Babylon that, until Ur and the + neighbouring city of Larsam had been captured, they could entertain no + hope of removing the Elamite yoke from Southern Babylonia. It is probable + that the earlier kings of the dynasty made many attempts to capture them, + with varying success. An echo of one of their struggles in which they + claimed the victory may be seen in the date-formula for the fourteenth + year of the reign of Sin-muballit, Hammurabi’s father and predecessor on + the throne of Babylon. This year was referred to in the documents of the + period as “the year in which the people of Ur were slain with the sword.” + It will be noted that the capture of the city is not commemorated, so that + we may infer that the slaughter of the Elamites which is recorded did not + materially reduce their influence, as they were left in possession of + their principal stronghold. In fact, Elam was not signally defeated in the + reign of Kudur-mabug, but in that of his son Rim-Sin. From the + date-formulæ of Hammurabi’s reign we learn that the struggle between Elam + and Babylon was brought to a climax in the thirtieth year of his reign, + when it is recorded in the formulas that he defeated the Elamite army and + overthrew Rim-Sin, while in the following year we gather that he added the + land of E’mutbal, that is, the western district of Elam, to his dominions. + </p> + <p> + An unpublished chronicle in the British Museum gives us further details of + Hammurabi’s victory over the Elamites, and at the same time makes it clear + that the defeat and overthrow of Rim-Sin was not so crushing as has + hitherto been supposed. This chronicle relates that Hammurabi attacked + Rim-Sin, and, after capturing the cities of Ur and Larsam, carried their + spoil to Babylon. Up to the present it has been supposed that Hammurabi’s + victory marked the end of Elamite influence in Babylonia, and that + thenceforward the supremacy of Babylon was established throughout the + whole of the country. But from the new chronicle we gather that Hammurabi + did not succeed in finally suppressing the attempts of Elam to regain her + former position. It is true that the cities of Ur and Larsam were finally + incorporated in the Babylonian empire, and the letters of Hammurabi to + Sin-idinnam, the governor whom he placed in authority over Larsam, afford + abundant evidence of the stringency of the administrative control which he + established over Southern Babylonia. But Rîm-Sin was only crippled for the + time, and, on being driven from Ur and Larsam, he retired beyond the + Elamite frontier and devoted his energies to the recuperation of his + forces against the time when he should feel himself strong enough again to + make a bid for victory in his struggle against the growing power of + Babylon. It is probable that he made no further attempt to renew the + contest during the life of Hammurabi, but after Samsu-iluna, the son of + Hammurabi, had succeeded to the Babylonian throne, he appeared in + Babylonia at the head of the forces he had collected, and attempted to + regain the cities and territory he had lost. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0010" id="linkCimage-0010"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/245.jpg" width="100%" + alt="245.jpg Semitic Babylonian Contract-tablet " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Inscribed in the reign of Hammurabi with a deed recording + the division of property. The actual tablet is on the right; + that which appears to be another and larger tablet on the + left is the hollow clay case in which the tablet on the + right was originally enclosed. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell + & Co. +</p> + <p> + The portion of the text of the chronicle relating to the war between + Rîm-Sin and Samsu-iluna is broken so that it is not possible to follow the + campaign in detail, but it appears that Samsu-iluna defeated Rim-Sin, and + possibly captured him or burnt him alive in a palace in which he had taken + refuge. + </p> + <p> + With the final defeat of Rîm-Sin by Samsu-iluna it is probable that Elam + ceased to be a thorn in the side of the kings of Babylon and that she made + no further attempts to extend her authority beyond her own frontiers. But + no sooner had Samsu-iluna freed his country from all danger from this + quarter than he found himself faced by a new foe, before whom the dynasty + eventually succumbed. This fact we learn from the unpublished chronicle to + which reference has already been made, and the name of this new foe, as + supplied by the chronicle, will render it necessary to revise all current + schemes of Babylonian chronology. Samsu-iluna’s new foe was no other than + Iluma-ilu, the first king of the Second Dynasty, and, so far from having + been regarded as Samsu-iluna’s contemporary, hitherto it has been imagined + that he ascended the throne of Babylon one hundred and eighteen years + after Samsu-iluna’s death. The new information supplied by the chronicle + thus proves two important facts: first, that the Second Dynasty, instead + of immediately succeeding the First Dynasty, was partly contemporary with + it; second, that during the period in which the two dynasties were + contemporary they were at war with one another, the Second Dynasty + gradually encroaching on the territory of the First Dynasty, until it + eventually succeeded in capturing Babylon and in getting the whole of the + country under its control. We also learn from the new chronicle that this + Second Dynasty at first established itself in “the Country of the Sea,” + that is to say, the districts in the extreme south of Babylonia bordering + on the Persian Gulf, and afterwards extended its borders northward until + it gradually absorbed the whole of Babylonia. Before discussing the other + facts supplied by the new chronicle, with regard to the rise and growth of + the Country of the Sea, whose kings formed the so-called “Second Dynasty,” + it will be well to refer briefly to the sources from which the information + on the period to be found in the current histories is derived. + </p> + <p> + All the schemes of Babylonian chronology that have been suggested during + the last twenty years have been based mainly on the great list of kings + which is preserved in the British Museum. This document was drawn up in + the Neo-Babylonian or Persian period, and when complete it gave a list of + the names of all the Babylonian kings from the First Dynasty of Babylon + down to the time in which it was written. The names of the kings are + arranged in dynasties, and details are given as to the length of their + reigns and the total number of years each dynasty lasted. The beginning of + the list which gave the names of the First Dynasty is wanting, but the + missing portion has been restored from a smaller document which gives a + list of the kings of the First and Second Dynasties only. In the great + list of kings the dynasties are arranged one after the other, and it was + obvious that its compiler imagined that they succeeded one another in the + order in which he arranged them. But when the total number of years the + dynasties lasted is learned, we obtain dates for the first dynasties in + the list which are too early to agree with other chronological information + supplied by the historical inscriptions. The majority of writers have + accepted the figures of the list of kings and have been content to ignore + the discrepancies; others have sought to reconcile the available data by + ingenious emendations of the figures given by the list and the historical + inscriptions, or have omitted the Second Dynasty entirely from their + calculations. The new chronicle, by showing that the First and Second + Dynasties were partly contemporaneous, explains the discrepancies that + have hitherto proved so puzzling. + </p> + <p> + It would be out of place here to enter into a detailed discussion of + Babylonian chronology, and therefore we will confine ourselves to a brief + description of the sequence of events as revealed by the new chronicle. + According to the list of kings, Iluma-ilu’s reign was a long one, lasting + for sixty years, and the new chronicle gives no indication as to the + period of his reign at which active hostilities with Babylon broke out. If + the war occurred in the latter portion of his reign, it would follow that + he had been for many years organizing the forces of the new state he had + founded in the south of Babylonia before making serious encroachments in + the north; and in that case the incessant campaigns carried on by Babylon + against Blam in the reigns of Hammurabi and Samsu-iluna would have + afforded him the opportunity of establishing a firm foothold in the + Country of the Sea without the risk of Babylonian interference. If, on the + other hand, it was in the earlier part of his reign that hostilities with + Babylon broke out, we may suppose that, while Samsu-iluna was devoting all + his energies to crush Bim-Sin, the Country of the Sea declared her + independence of Babylonian control. In this case we may imagine + Samsu-iluna hurrying south, on the conclusion of his Elamite campaign, to + crush the newly formed state before it had had time to organize its forces + for prolonged resistance. + </p> + <p> + Whichever of these alternatives eventually may prove to be correct, it is + certain that Samsu-iluna took the initiative in Babylon’s struggle with + the Country of the Sea, and that his action was due either to her + declaration of independence or to some daring act of aggression on the + part of this small state which had hitherto appeared too insignificant to + cause Babylon any serious trouble. The new chronicle tells us that + Samsu-iluna undertook two expeditions against the Country of the Sea, both + of which proved unsuccessful. In the first of these he penetrated to the + very shores of the Persian Gulf, where a battle took place in which + Samsu-iluna was defeated, and the bodies of many of the Babylonian + soldiers were washed away by the sea. In the second campaign Iluma-ilu did + not await Samsu-iluna’s attack, but advanced to meet him, and again + defeated the Babylonian army. In the reign of Abêshu’, Samsu-iluna’s son + and successor, Iluma-ilu appears to have undertaken fresh acts of + aggression against Babylon; and it was probably during one of his raids in + Babylonian territory that Abêshu’ attempted to crush the growing power of + the Country of the Sea by the capture of its daring leader, Iluma-ilu + himself. The new chronicle informs us that, with this object in view, + Abêshu’ dammed the river Tigris, hoping by this means to cut off Iluma-ilu + and his army, but his stratagem did not succeed, and Iluma-ilu got back to + his own territory in safety. + </p> + <p> + The new chronicle does not supply us with further details of the struggle + between Babylon and the Country of the Sea, but we may conclude that all + similar attempts on the part of the later kings of the First Dynasty to + crush or restrain the power of the new state were useless. It is probable + that from this time forward the kings of the First Dynasty accepted the + independence of the Country of the Sea upon their southern border as an + evil which they were powerless to prevent. They must have looked back with + regret to the good times the country had enjoyed under the powerful sway + of Hammurabi, whose victorious arms even their ancient foes, the Blamites, + had been unable to withstand. But, although the chronicle does not recount + the further successes achieved by the Country of the Sea, it records a + fact which undoubtedly contributed to hasten the fall of Babylon and bring + the First Dynasty to an end. It tells us that in the reign of + Samsu-ditana, the last king of the First Dynasty, the men of the land of + Khattu (the Hittites from Northern Syria) marched against him in order to + conquer the land of Akkad; in other words, they marched down the Euphrates + and invaded Northern Babylonia. The chronicle does not state how far the + invasion was successful, but the appearance of a new enemy from the + northwest must have divided the Babylonian forces and thus have reduced + their power of resisting pressure from the Country of the Sea. + Samsu-ditana may have succeeded in defeating the Hittites and in driving + them from his country; but the fact that he was the last king of the First + Dynasty proves that in his reign Babylon itself fell into the hands of the + king of the Country of the Sea. + </p> + <p> + The question now arises, To what race did the people of the Country of the + Sea belong? Did they represent an advance-guard of the Kassite tribes, who + eventually succeeded in establishing themselves as the Third Dynasty in + Babylon? Or were they the Elamites who, when driven from Ur and Larsam, + retreated southwards and maintained their independence on the shores of + the Persian Gulf? Or did they represent some fresh wave of Semitic + immigration’? That they were not Kassites is proved by the new chronicle + which relates how the Country of the Sea was conquered by the Kassites, + and how the dynasty founded by Iluma-ilu thus came to an end. There is + nothing to show that they were Elamites, and if the Country of the Sea had + been colonized by fresh Semitic tribes, so far from opposing their kindred + in Babylon, most probably they would have proved to them a source of + additional strength and support. In fact, there are indications that the + people of the Country of the Sea are to be referred to an older stock than + the Elamites, the Semites, or the Kassites. In the dynasty of the Country + of the Sea there is no doubt that we may trace the last successful + struggle of the ancient Sumerians to retain possession of the land which + they had held for so many centuries before the invading Semites had + disputed its possession with them. + </p> + <p> + Evidence of the Sumerian origin of the kings of the Country of the Sea may + be traced in the names which several of them bear. Ishkibal, Grulkishar, + Peshgal-daramash, A-dara-kalama, Akur-ul-ana, and Melam-kur-kura, the + names of some of them, are all good Sumerian names, and Shushshi, the + brother of Ishkibal, may also be taken as a Sumerian name. It is true that + the first three kings of the dynasty, Iluma-ilu, Itti-ili-nibi, and + Damki-ilishu, and the last king of the dynasty, Ea-gamil, bear Semitic + Babylonian names, but there is evidence that at least one of these is + merely a Semitic rendering of a Sumerian equivalent. Iluma-ilu, the + founder of the dynasty, has left inscriptions in which his name is written + in its correct Sumerian form as Dingir-a-an, and the fact that he and some + of his successors either bore Semitic names or appear in the late list of + kings with their Sumerian names translated into Babylonian form may be + easily explained by supposing that the population of the Country of the + Sea was mixed and that the Sumerian and Semitic tongues were to a great + extent employed indiscriminately. This supposition is not inconsistent + with the suggestion that the dynasty of the Country of the Sea was + Sumerian, and that under it the Sumerians once more became the predominant + race in Babylonia. + </p> + <p> + The new chronicle also relates how the dynasty of the Country of the Sea + succumbed in its turn before the incursions of the Kassites. We know that + already under the First Dynasty the Kassite tribes had begun to make + incursions into Babylonia, for the ninth year of Samsu-iluna was named in + the date-formulae after a Kassite invasion, which, as it was commemorated + in this manner by the Babylonians, was probably successfully repulsed. + Such invasions must have taken place from time to time during the period + of supremacy attained by the Country of the Sea, and it was undoubtedly + with a view to stopping such incursions—for the future that Ea-gamil—the + last king of the Second Dynasty, decided to invade Elam and conquer the + mountainous districts in which the Kassite tribes had built their + strongholds. This Elamite campaign of Ea-gamil is recorded by the new + chronicle, which relates how he was defeated and driven from the country + by Ulam-Buriash, the brother of Bitiliash the Kassite. Ulam-Buriash did + not rest content with repelling Ea-gamil’s invasion of his land, but + pursued him across the border and succeeded in conquering the Country of + the Sea and in establishing there his own administration. The gradual + conquest of the whole of Babylonia by the Kassites no doubt followed the + conquest of the Country of the Sea, for the chronicle relates how the + process of subjugation, begun by Ulam-Buriash, was continued by his nephew + Agum, and we know from the lists of kings that Ea-gamil was the last king + of the dynasty founded by Iluma-ilu. In this fashion the Second Dynasty + was brought to an end, and the Sumerian element in the mixed population of + Babylonia did not again succeed in gaining control of the government of + the country. + </p> + <p> + It will be noticed that the account of the earliest Kassite rulers of + Babylonia which is given by the new chronicle does not exactly tally with + the names of the kings of the Third Dynasty as found upon the list of + kings. On this document the first king of the dynasty is named Gandash, + with whom we may probably identify Ulam-Buriash, the Kassite conqueror of + the Country of the Sea; the second king is Agum, and the third is + Bitiliashi. According to the new chronicle Agum was the son of Bitiliashi, + and it would be improbable that he should have ruled in Babylonia before + his father. But this difficulty is removed by supposing that the two names + were transposed by some copyist. The different names assigned to the + founder of the Kassite dynasty may be due to the existence of variant + traditions, or Ulam-Buriash may have assumed another name on his conquest + of Babylonia, a practice which was usual with the later kings of Assyria + when they occupied the Babylonian throne. + </p> + <p> + The information supplied by the new chronicle with regard to the relations + of the first three dynasties to one another is of the greatest possible + interest to the student of early Babylonian history. We see that the + Semitic empire founded at Babylon by Sumu-abu, and consolidated by + Hammurabi, was not established on so firm a basis as has hitherto been + believed. The later kings of the dynasty, after Elam had been conquered, + had to defend their empire from encroachments on the south, and they + eventually succumbed before the onslaught of the Sumerian element, which + still remained in the population of Babylonia and had rallied in the + Country of the Sea. This dynasty in its turn succumbed before the invasion + of the Kassites from the mountains in the western districts of Elam, and, + although the city of Babylon retained her position as the capital of the + country throughout these changes of government, she was the capital of + rulers of different races, who successively fought for and obtained the + control of the fertile plains of Mesopotamia. + </p> + <p> + It is probable that the Kassite kings of the Third Dynasty exercised + authority not only over Babylonia but also over the greater part of Elam, + for a number of inscriptions of Kassite kings of Babylonia have been found + by M. de Morgan at Susa. These inscriptions consist of grants of land + written on roughly shaped stone stelæ, a class which the Babylonians + themselves called <i>kudurru</i>, while they have been frequently referred + to by modern writers as “boundary-stones.” This latter term is not very + happily chosen, for it suggests that the actual monuments themselves were + set up on the limits of a field or estate to mark its boundary. It is true + that the inscription on a kudurru enumerates the exact position and size + of the estate with which it is concerned, but the kudurru was never + actually used to mark the boundary. It was preserved as a title-deed, in + the house of the owner of the estate or possibly in the temple of his god, + and formed his charter or title-deed to which he could appeal in case of + any dispute arising as to his right of ownership. One of the kudurrus + found by M. de Morgan records the grant of a number of estates near + Babylon by Nazimaruttash, a king of the Third or Kassite Dynasty, to the + god Marduk, that is to say they were assigned by the king to the service + of E-sagila, the great temple of Marduk at Babylon. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0011" id="linkCimage-0011"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/256.jpg" + alt="256.jpg a Kudurru Or ‘boundary-stone.’ " /> + </div> + <p> + All the crops and produce from the land were granted for the supply of the + temple, which was to enjoy the property without the payment of any tax or + tribute. The text also records the gift of considerable tracts of land in + the same district to a private individual named Kashakti-Shugab, who was + to enjoy a similar freedom from taxation so far as the lands bestowed upon + him were concerned. + </p> + <p> + This freedom from taxation is specially enacted by the document in the + words: “Whensoever in the days that are to come the ruler of the country, + or one of the governors, or directors, or wardens of these districts, + shall make any claim with regard to these estates, or shall attempt to + impose the payment of a tithe or tax upon them, may all the great gods + whose names are commemorated, or whose arms are portrayed, or whose + dwelling-places are represented, on this stone, curse him with an evil + curse and blot out his name!” + </p> + <p> + Incidentally, this curse illustrates one of the most striking + characteristics of the kudurrus, or “boundary-stones,” viz. the carved + figures of gods and representations of their emblems, which all of them + bare in addition to the texts inscribed upon them. At one time it was + thought that these symbols were to be connected with the signs of the + zodiac and various constellations and stars, and it was suggested that + they might have been intended to represent the relative positions of the + heavenly bodies at the time the document was drawn up. But this text of + Nazimaruttash and other similar documents that have recently been + discovered prove that the presence of the figures and emblems of the gods + upon the stones is to be explained on another and far more simple theory. + They were placed there as guardians of the property to which the kudurru + referred, and it was believed that the carving of their figures or emblems + upon the stone would ensure their intervention in case of any attempted + infringement of the rights and privileges which it was the object of the + document to commemorate and preserve. A photographic reproduction of one + side of the kudurru of Nazi-maruttash is shown in the accompanying + illustration. There will be seen a representation of Gula or Bau, the + mother of the gods, who is portrayed as seated on her throne and wearing + the four-horned head-dress and a long robe that reaches to her feet. In + the field are emblems of the Sun-god, the Moon-god, Ishtar, and other + deities, and the representation of divine emblems and dwelling-places is + continued on another face of the stone round the corner towards which + Grula is looking. The other two faces of the document are taken up with + the inscription. + </p> + <p> + An interesting note is appended to the text inscribed upon the stone, + beginning under the throne and feet of Marduk and continuing under the + emblems of the gods upon the other side. This note relates the history of + the document in the following words: “In those days Kashakti-Shugab, the + son of Nusku-na’id, inscribed (this document) upon a memorial of clay, and + he set it before his god. But in the reign of Marduk-aplu-iddina, king of + hosts, the son of Melishikhu, King of Babylon, the wall fell upon this + memorial and crushed it. Shu-khuli-Shugab, the son of Nibishiku, wrote a + copy of the ancient text upon a new stone stele, and he set it (before the + god).” It will be seen, therefore, that this actual stone that has been + recovered was not the document drawn up in the reign of Nazimaruttash, but + a copy made under Marduk-aplu-iddina, a later king of the Third Dynasty. + The original deed was drawn up to preserve the rights of Kashakti-Shugab, + who shared the grant of land with the temple of Marduk. His share was less + than half that of the temple, but, as both were situated in the same + district, he was careful to enumerate and describe the temple’s share, to + prevent any encroachment on his rights by the Babylonian priests. + </p> + <p> + It is probable that such grants of land were made to private individuals + in return for special services which they had rendered to the king. Thus a + broken kudurru among M. de Morgan’s finds records the confirmation of a + man’s claims to certain property by Biti-liash II, the claims being based + on a grant made to the man’s ancestor by Kurigalzu for services rendered + to the king during his war with Assyria. One of the finest specimens of + this class of charters or title-deeds has been found at Susa, dating from + the reign of Melishikhu, a king of the Third Dynasty. The document in + question records a grant of certain property in the district of + Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû, near the cities Agade and Dûr-Kurigalzu, made by + Melishikhu to Marduk-aplu-iddina, his son, who succeeded him upon the + throne of Babylon. The text first gives details with regard to the size + and situation of the estates included in the grant of land, and it states + the names of the high officials who were entrusted with the duty of + measuring them. The remainder of the text defines and secures the + privileges granted to Marduk-aplu-iddina together with the land, and, as + it throws considerable light upon the system of land tenure at the period, + an extract from it may here be translated: + </p> + <p> + “To prevent the encroachment on his land,” the inscription runs, “thus + hath he (i.e. the king) established his (Marduk-aplu-iddina’s) charter. On + his land taxes and tithes shall they not impose; ditches, limits, and + boundaries shall they not displace; there shall be no plots, stratagems, + or claims (with regard to his possession); for forced labour or public + work for the prevention of floods, for the maintenance and repair of the + royal canal under the protection of the towns of Bit-Sikkamidu and + Damik-Adad, among the gangs levied in the towns of the district of + Ninâ-Agade, they shall not call out the people of his estate; they are not + liable to forced labour on the sluices of the royal canal, nor are they + liable for building dams, nor for closing the canal, nor for digging out + the bed thereof.” + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0012" id="linkCimage-0012"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figright" style="width:50%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/260.jpg" + alt="260.jpg Kuottrru, Or ‘boundary-stone.’ " /> + </div> + <p> + “A cultivator of his lands, whether hired or belonging to the estate, and + the men who receive his instructions (i.e. his overseers) shall no + governor of Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû cause to leave his lands, whether by the + order of the king, or by the order of the governor, or by the order of + whosoever may be at Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû. On wood, grass, straw, corn, and + every other sort of crop, on his carts and yoke, on his ass and + man-servant, shall they make no levy. During the scarcity of water in the + canal running between the Bati-Anzanim canal and the canal of the royal + district, on the waters of his ditch for irrigation shall they make no + levy; from the ditch of his reservoir shall they not draw water, neither + shall they divert (his water for) irrigation, and other land shall they + not irrigate nor water therewith. The grass of his lands shall they not + mow; the beasts belonging to the king or to a governor, which may be + assigned to the district of Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû, shall they not drive + within his boundary, nor shall they pasture them on his grass. He shall + not be forced to build a road or a bridge, whether for the king, or for + the governor who may be appointed in the district of Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû, + neither shall he be liable for any new form of forced labour, which in the + days that are to come a king, or a governor appointed in the district of + Bît-Pir-Shadû-rabû, shall institute and exact, nor for forced labour long + fallen into disuse which may be revived anew. To prevent encroachment on + his land the king hath fixed the privileges of his domain, and that which + appertaineth unto it, and all that he hath granted unto him; and in the + presence of Shamash, and Marduk, and Anunitu, and the great gods of heaven + and earth, he hath inscribed them upon a stone, and he hath left it as an + everlasting memorial with regard to his estate.” + </p> + <p> + The whole of the text is too long to quote, and it will suffice to note + here that Melishikhu proceeds to appeal to future kings to respect the + land and privileges which he has granted to his son, Marduk-aplu-iddina, + even as he himself has respected similar grants made by his predecessors + on the throne; and the text ends with some very vivid curses against any + one, whatever his station, who should make any encroachments on the + privileges granted to Marduk-aplu-iddina, or should alter or do any harm + to the memorial-stone itself. The emblems of the gods whom Melishikhu + invokes to avenge any infringement of his grant are sculptured upon one + side of the stone, for, as has already been remarked, it was believed that + by carving them upon the memorial-stone their help in guarding the stone + itself and its enactments was assured. + </p> + <p> + From the portion of the text inscribed upon the stone which has just been + translated it is seen that the owner of land in Babylonia in the period of + the Kassite kings, unless he was granted special exemption, was liable to + furnish forced labour for public works to the state or to his district, to + furnish grazing and pasture for the flocks and herds of the king or + governor, and to pay various taxes and tithes on his land, his water for + irrigation, and his crops. From the numerous documents of the First + Dynasty of Babylon that have been recovered and published within the last + few years we know that similar customs were prevalent at that period, so + that it is clear that the successive conquests to which the country was + subjected, and the establishment of different dynasties of foreign kings + at Babylon, did not to any appreciable extent affect the life and customs + of the inhabitants of the country or even the general character of its + government and administration. Some documents of a commercial and legal + nature, inscribed upon clay tablets during the reigns of the Kassite kings + of Babylon, have been found at Nippur, but they have not yet been + published, and the information we possess concerning the life of the + people in this period is obtained indirectly from kudurrus or + boundary-stones, such as those of Nazimaruttash and Melishikhu which have + been already described. Of documents relating to the life of the people + under the rule of the kings of the Country of the Sea we have none, and, + with the exception of the unpublished chronicle which has been described + earlier in this chapter, our information for this period is confined to + one or two short votive inscriptions. But the case is very different with + regard to the reigns of the Semitic kings of the First Dynasty of Babylon. + Thousands of tablets relating to legal and commercial transactions during + this period have been recovered, and more recently a most valuable series + of royal letters, written by Hammurabi and other kings of his dynasty, has + been brought to light. + </p> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img alt="264 (43K)" src="images/264.jpg" width="100%" /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="linkCimage-0013" id="linkCimage-0013"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/264a.jpg" width="100%" + alt="264a.jpg Upper Part of the Stele Of Hammurabi, King Of Babylon. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The stele is inscribed with his great code of laws. The Sun- + god is represented as seated on a throne in the form of a + temple façade, and his feet are resting upon the mountains. + Photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + Moreover, the recently discovered code of laws drawn up by Hammurabi + contains information of the greatest interest with regard to the + conditions of life that were prevalent in Babylonia at that period. From + these three sources it is possible to draw up a comparatively full account + of early Babylonian life and customs. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkC2HCH0002" id="linkC2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER VI—EARLY BABYLONIAN LIFE AND CUSTOMS + </h2> + <p> + In tracing the ancient history of Mesopotamia and the surrounding + countries it is possible to construct a narrative which has the appearance + of being comparatively full and complete. With regard to Babylonia it may + be shown how dynasty succeeded dynasty, and for long periods together the + names of the kings have been recovered and the order of their succession + fixed with certainty. But the number and importance of the original + documents on which this connected narration is based vary enormously for + different periods. Gaps occur in our knowledge of the sequence of events, + which with some ingenuity may be bridged over by means of the native lists + of kings and the genealogies furnished by the historical inscriptions. On + the other hand, as if to make up for such parsimony, the excavations have + yielded a wealth of material for illustrating the conditions of early + Babylonian life which prevailed in such periods. The most fortunate of + these periods, so far as the recovery of its records is concerned, is + undoubtedly the period of the Semitic kings of the First Dynasty of + Babylon, and in particular the reign of its greatest ruler, Hammurabi. + When M. Maspero wrote his history, thousands of clay tablets, inscribed + with legal and commercial documents and dated in the reigns of these early + kings, had already been recovered, and the information they furnished was + duly summarized by him.<a href="#fn6.1" name="fnref6.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> But since that time two other sources of + information have been made available which have largely increased our + knowledge of the constitution of the early Babylonian state, its system of + administration, and the conditions of life of the various classes of the + population. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn6.1"></a> <a href="#fnref6.1">[1]</a> + Most of these tablets are preserved in the British Museum. + The principal?works in which they have been published are + Cuneiform Texts in the British Museum (1896, etc.), + Strassmaier’s Altbabylonischen Vertràge aus Warka, and + Meissner’s Beitràge zum altbabylonischen Privatrecht. A + number of similar tablets of this period, preserved in the + Pennsylvania Museum, will shortly be published by Dr. Ranke. +</p> + <p> + One of these new sources of information consists of a remarkable series of + royal letters, written by kings of the First Dynasty, which has been + recovered and is now preserved in the British Museum. The letters were + addressed to the governors and high officials of various great cities in + Babylonia, and they contain the king’s orders with regard to details of + the administration of the country which had been brought to his notice. + The range of subjects with which they deal is enormous, and there is + scarcely one of them which does not add to our knowledge of the period.<a href="#fn6.2" name="fnref6.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> + The other new source of information is the great code of laws, drawn up by + Hammurabi for the guidance of his people and defining the duties and + privileges of all classes of his subjects, the discovery of which at Susa + has been described in a previous chapter. The laws are engraved on a great + stele of diorite in no less than forty-nine columns of writing, of which + forty-four are preserved,<a href="#fn6.3" name="fnref6.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> and at the head of the stele is sculptured a + representation of the king receiving them from Shamash, the Sun-god. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn6.2"></a> <a href="#fnref6.2">[2]</a> + See King, Letters and Inscriptions of Hammurabi, 3 vols. + (1898-1900). +</p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn6.3"></a> <a href="#fnref6.3">[3]</a> +See Scheil, <i>Délégationen perse, Mémoires</i>, tome iv (1902). +</p> + + <p> + This code shows to what an extent the administration of law and justice + had been developed in Babylonia in the time of the First Dynasty. From the + contracts and letters of the period we already knew that regular judges + and duly appointed courts of law were in existence, and the code itself + was evidently intended by the king to give the royal sanction to a great + body of legal decisions and enactments which already possessed the + authority conferred by custom and tradition. The means by which such a + code could have come into existence are illustrated by the system of + procedure adopted in the courts at this period. After a case had been + heard and judgment had been given, a summary of the case and of the + evidence, together with the judgment, was drawn up and written out on + tablets in due legal form and phraseology. A list of the witnesses was + appended, and, after the tablet had been dated and sealed, it was stored + away among the legal archives of the court, where it was ready for + production in the event of any future appeal or case in which the recorded + decision was involved. This procedure represents an advanced stage in the + system of judicial administration, but the care which was taken for the + preservation of the judgments given was evidently traditional, and would + naturally give rise in course of time to the existence of a recognized + code of laws. + </p> + <p> + Moreover, when once a judgment had been given and had been duly recorded + it was irrevocable, and if any judge attempted to alter such a decision he + was severely punished. For not only was he expelled from his + judgment-seat, and debarred from exercising judicial functions in the + future, but, if his judgment had involved the infliction of a penalty, he + was obliged to pay twelve times the amount to the man he had condemned. + Such an enactment must have occasionally given rise to hardship or + injustice, but at least it must have had the effect of imbuing the judges + with a sense of their responsibility and of instilling a respect for their + decisions in the minds of the people. A further check upon injustice was + provided by the custom of the elders of the city, who sat with the judge + and assisted him in the carrying out of his duties; and it was always open + to a man, if he believed that he could not get justice enforced, to make + an appeal to the king. It is not our present purpose to give a technical + discussion of the legal contents of the code, but rather to examine it + with the object of ascertaining what light it throws upon ancient + Babylonian life and customs, and the conditions under which the people + lived. + </p> + <p> + The code gives a good deal of information with regard to the family life + of the Babylonians, and, above all, proves the sanctity with which the + marriage-tie was invested. The claims that were involved by marriage were + not lightly undertaken. Any marriage, to be legally binding, had to be + accompanied by a duly executed and attested marriage-contract. If a man + had taken a woman to wife without having carried out this necessary + preliminary, the woman was not regarded as his wife in the legal sense. On + the other hand, when once such a marriage-contract had been drawn up, its + inviolability was stringently secured. A case of proved adultery on the + part of a man’s wife was punished by the drowning of the guilty parties, + though the husband of the woman, if he wished to save his wife, could do + so by an appeal to the king. Similarly, death was the penalty for a man + who ravished another man’s betrothed wife while she was still living in + her father’s house, but in this case the girl’s innocence and inexperience + were taken into account, and no penalty was enforced against her and she + was allowed to go free. Where the adultery of a wife was not proved, and + only depended on the accusation of the husband, the woman could clear + herself by swearing her own innocence; if, however, the accusation was not + brought by the husband himself, but by others, the woman could clear + herself by submitting to the ordeal by water; that is to say, she would + plunge into the Euphrates; if the river carried her away and she were + drowned, it was regarded as proof that the accusation was well founded; + if, on the contrary, she survived and got safely to the bank, she was + considered innocent and was forthwith allowed to return to her household + completely vindicated. + </p> + <p> + It will have been seen that the duty of chastity on the part of a married + woman was strictly enforced, but the husband’s responsibility to properly + maintain his wife was also recognized, and in the event of his desertion + she could under certain circumstances become the wife of another man. + Thus, if he left his city and fled from it of his own free will and + deserted his wife, he could not reclaim her on his return, since he had + not been forced to leave the city, but had done so because he hated it. + This rule did not apply to the case of a man who was taken captive in + battle. In such circumstances the wife’s action was to be guided by the + condition of her husband’s affairs. If the captive husband possessed + sufficient property on which his wife could be maintained during his + captivity in a strange land, she had no reason nor excuse for seeking + another marriage. If under these circumstances she became another man’s + wife, she was to be prosecuted at law, and, her action being the + equivalent of adultery, she was to be drowned. But the case was regarded + as altered if the captive husband had not sufficient means for the + maintenance of his wife during his absence. The woman would then be thrown + on her own resources, and if she became the wife of another man she + incurred no blame. On the return of the captive he could reclaim his wife, + but the children of the second marriage would remain with their own + father. These regulations for the conduct of a woman, whose husband was + captured in battle, give an intimate picture of the manner in which the + constant wars of this early period affected the lives of those who took + part in them. + </p> + <p> + Under the Babylonians at the period of the First Dynasty divorce was + strictly regulated, though it was far easier for the man to obtain one + than for the woman. If we may regard the copies of Sumerian laws, which + have come down to us from the late Assyrian period, as parts of the code + in use under the early Sumerians, we must conclude that at this earlier + period the law was still more in favour of the husband, who could divorce + his wife whenever he so desired, merely paying her half a mana as + compensation. Under the Sumerians the wife could not obtain a divorce at + all, and the penalty for denying her husband was death. These regulations + were modified in favour of the woman in Hammurabi’s code; for under its + provisions, if a man divorced his wife or his concubine, he was obliged to + make proper provision for her maintenance. Whether she were barren or had + borne him children, he was obliged to return her marriage portion; and in + the latter case she had the custody of the children, for whose maintenance + and education he was obliged to furnish the necessary supplies. Moreover, + at the man’s death she and her children would inherit a share of his + property. When there had been no marriage portion, a sum was fixed which + the husband was obliged to pay to his divorced wife, according to his + status. In cases where the wife was proved to have wasted her household + and to have entirely failed in her duty, her husband could divorce her + without paying any compensation, or could make her a slave in his house, + and the extreme penalty for this offence was death. On the other hand, a + woman could not be divorced because she had contracted a permanent + disease; and, if she desired to divorce her husband and could prove that + her past life had been seemly, she could do so, returning to her father’s + house and taking her marriage portion with her. + </p> + <p> + It is not necessary here to go very minutely into the regulations given by + the code with regard to marriage portions, the rights of widows, the laws + of inheritance, and the laws regulating the adoption and maintenance of + children. The customs that already have been described with regard to + marriage and divorce may serve to indicate the spirit in which the code is + drawn up and the recognized status occupied by the wife in the Babylonian + household. The extremely independent position enjoyed by women in the + early Babylonian days is illustrated by the existence of a special class + of women, to which constant reference is made in the contracts and letters + of the period. When the existence of this class of women was first + recognized from the references to them in the contract-tablets inscribed + at the time of the First Dynasty, they were regarded as priestesses, but + the regulations concerning them which occur in the code of Hammurabi prove + that their duties were not strictly sacerdotal, but that they occupied the + position of votaries. The majority of those referred to in the + inscriptions of this period were vowed to the service of E-bab-bara, the + temple of the Sun-god at Sippara, and of E-sagila, the great temple of + Marduk at Babylon, but it is probable that all the great temples in the + country had classes of female votaries attached to them. From the evidence + at present available it may be concluded that the functions of these women + bore no resemblance to that of the sacred prostitutes devoted to the + service of the goddess Ishtar in the city of Erech. They seem to have + occupied a position of great influence and independence in the community, + and their duties and privileges were defined and safeguarded by special + legislation. + </p> + <p> + Generally they lived together in a special building, or convent, attached + to the temple, but they had considerable freedom and could leave the + convent and also contract marriage. Their vows, however, while securing + them special privileges, entailed corresponding responsibilities. Even + when married a votary was still obliged to remain a virgin, and, should + her husband desire to have children, she could not bear them herself, but + must provide him with a maid or concubine. Also she had to maintain a high + standard of moral conduct, for any breach of which severe penalties were + enforced. Thus, if a votary who was not living in the convent opened a + beer-shop, or should enter one for drink, she ran the risk of being put to + death. But the privileges she enjoyed were also considerable, for even + when unmarried she enjoyed the status of a married woman, and if any man + slandered her he incurred the penalty of branding on the forehead. + Moreover, a married votary, though she could not bear her husband + children, was secured in her position as the permanent head of his + household. The concubine she might give to her husband was always the + wife’s inferior, even after bearing him children, and should the former + attempt to put herself on a level of equality with the votary, the latter + might brand her as a slave and put her with the female slaves. If the + concubine proved barren she could be sold. The votary could also possess + property, and on taking her vows was provided with a portion by her father + exactly as though she were being given in marriage. Her portion was vested + in herself and did not become the property of the order of votaries, nor + of the temple to which she was attached. The proceeds of her property were + devoted to her own maintenance, and on her father’s death her brothers + looked after her interests, or she might farm the property out. Under + certain circumstances she could inherit property and was not obliged to + pay taxes on it, and such property she could bequeath at her own death; + but upon her death her portion returned to her own family unless her + father had assigned her the privilege of bequeathing it. That the social + position enjoyed by a votary was considerable is proved by the fact that + many women of good family, and even members of the royal house, took vows. + The existence of the order and its high repute indicate a very advanced + conception of the position of women among the early Babylonians. + </p> + <p> + From the code of Hammurabi we also gather considerable information with + regard to the various classes of which the community was composed and to + their relative social positions. For the purposes of legislation the + community was divided into three main classes or sections, which + corresponded to well-defined strata in the social system. The lowest of + these classes consisted of the slaves, who must have formed a considerable + portion of the population. The class next above them comprised the large + body of free men, who were possessed of a certain amount of property but + were poor and humble, as their name, <i>muslikênu</i>, implied. These we + may refer to as the middle class. The highest, or upper class, in the + Babylonian community embraced all the officers and ministers attached to + the court, the higher officials and servants of the state, and the owners + of considerable lands and estates. The differences which divided and + marked off from one another the two great classes of free men in the + population of Babylonia is well illustrated by the scale of payments as + compensation for injury which they were obliged to make or were entitled + to receive. Thus, if a member of the upper class were guilty of stealing + an ox, or a sheep, or an ass, or a pig, or a boat, from a temple or a + private house, he had to pay the owner thirty times its value as + compensation, whereas if the thief were a member of the middle class he + only had to pay ten times its price, but if he had no property and so + could not pay compensation he was put to death. The penalty for + manslaughter was less if the assailant was a man of the middle class, and + such a man could also divorce his wife more cheaply, and was privileged to + pay his doctor or surgeon a smaller fee for a successful operation. + </p> + <p> + But the privileges enjoyed by a man of the middle class were + counterbalanced by a corresponding diminution of the value at which his + life and limbs were assessed. Thus, if a doctor by carrying out an + operation unskilfully caused the death of a member of the upper class, or + inflicted a serious injury upon him, such as the loss of an eye, the + punishment was the amputation of both hands, but no such penalty seems to + have been exacted if the patient were a member of the middle class. If, + however, the patient were a slave of a member of the middle class, in the + event of death under the operation, the doctor had to give the owner + another slave, and in the event of the slave losing his eye, he had to pay + the owner half the slave’s value. Penalties for assault were also + regulated in accordance with the social position and standing of the + parties to the quarrel. Thus, if one member of the upper class knocked out + the eye or the tooth of one of his equals, his own eye or his own tooth + was knocked out as a punishment, and if he broke the limb of one of the + members of his own class, he had his corresponding limb broken; but if he + knocked out the eye of a member of the middle class, or broke his limb, he + suffered no punishment in his own person, but was fined one mana of + silver, and for knocking out the tooth of such a man he was fined + one-third of a mana. If two members of the same class were engaged in a + quarrel, and one of them made a peculiarly improper assault upon the + other, the assailant was only fined, the fine being larger if the quarrel + was between members of the upper class. But if such an assault was made by + one man upon another who was of higher rank than himself, the assailant + was punished by being publicly beaten in the presence of the assembly, + when he received sixty stripes from a scourge of ox-hide. These + regulations show the privileges and responsibilities which pertained to + the two classes of free men in the Babylonian community, and they indicate + the relative social positions which they enjoyed. + </p> + <p> + Both classes of free men could own slaves, though it is obvious that they + were more numerous in the households and on the estates of members of the + upper class. The slave was the absolute property of his master and could + be bought and sold and employed as a deposit for a debt, but, though + slaves as a class had few rights of their own, in certain circumstances + they could acquire them. Thus, if the owner of a female slave had begotten + children by her he could not use her as the payment for a debt, and in the + event of his having done so he was obliged to ransom her by paying the + original amount of the debt in money. It was also possible for a male + slave, whether owned by a member of the upper or of the middle class, to + marry a free woman, and if he did so, his children were free and did not + become the property of his master. Also, if the free woman whom the slave + married brought with her a marriage portion from her father’s house, this + remained her own property on the slave’s death, and supposing the couple + had acquired other property during the time they lived together as man and + wife, the owner of the slave could only claim half of such property, the + other half being retained by the free woman for her own use and for that + of her children. + </p> + <p> + Generally speaking, the lot of the slave was not a particularly hard one, + for he was a recognized member of his owner’s household, and, as a + valuable piece of property, it was obviously to his owner’s interest to + keep him healthy and in good condition. In fact, the value of the slave is + attested by the severity of the penalty imposed for abducting a male or + female slave from the owner’s house and removing him or her from the city; + for a man guilty of this offence was put to death. The same penalty was + imposed for harbouring and taking possession of a runaway slave, whereas a + fixed reward was paid by the owner to any one by whom a runaway slave was + captured and brought back. Special legislation was also devised with the + object of rendering the theft of slaves difficult and their detection + easy. Thus, if a brander put a mark upon a slave without the owner’s + consent, he was liable to have his hands cut off, and if he could prove + that he did so through being deceived by another man, that man was put to + death. For bad offences slaves were liable to severe punishments, such as + cutting off the ear, which was the penalty for denying his master, and + also for making an aggravated assault on a member of the upper class of + free men. But it is clear that on the whole the slave was well looked + after. He was also not condemned to remain perpetually a slave, for while + still in his master’s service it was possible for him, under certain + conditions, to acquire property of his own, and if he did so he was able + with his master’s consent to purchase his freedom. If a slave were + captured by the enemy and taken to a foreign land and sold, and were then + brought back by his new owner to his own country, he could claim his + liberty without having to pay any purchase-money to either of his masters. + </p> + <p> + The code of Hammurabi also contains detailed regulations concerning the + duties of debtors and creditors, and it throws an interesting light on the + commercial life of the Babylonians at this early period. For instance, it + reveals the method by which a wealthy man, or a merchant, extended his + business and obtained large profits by trading with other towns. This he + did by employing agents who were under certain fixed obligations to him, + but acted independently so far as their trading was concerned. From the + merchant these agents would receive money or grain or wool or oil or any + sort of goods wherewith to trade, and in return they paid a fixed share of + their profits, retaining the remainder as the recompense for their own + services. They were thus the earliest of commercial travellers. In order + to prevent fraud between the merchant and the agent special regulations + were framed for the dealings they had with one another. Thus, when the + agent received from the merchant the money or goods to trade with, it was + enacted that he should at the time of the transaction give a properly + executed receipt for the amount he had received. Similarly, if the agent + gave the merchant money in return for the goods he had received and in + token of his good faith, the merchant had to give a receipt to the agent, + and in reckoning their accounts after the agent’s return from his journey, + only such amounts as were specified in the receipts were to be regarded as + legal obligations. If the agent forgot to obtain his proper receipt he did + so at his own risk. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0014" id="linkCimage-0014"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/280.jpg" width="100%" + alt="280.jpg Clay Contract Tablet and Its Outer Case " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Dating from the period of the First Dynasty of Babylon. +</p> + <p> + Travelling at this period was attended with some risk, as it is in the + East at the present day, and the caravan with which an agent travelled was + liable to attack from brigands, or it might be captured by enemies of the + country from which it set out. It was right that loss from this cause + should not be borne by the agent, who by trading with the goods was + risking his own life, but should fall upon the merchant who had merely + advanced the goods and was safe in his own city. It is plain, however, + that disputes frequently arose in consequence of the loss of goods through + a caravan being attacked and robbed, for the code states clearly the + responsibility of the merchant in the matter. If in the course of his + journey an enemy had forced the agent to give up some of the goods he was + carrying, on his return the agent had to specify the amount on oath, and + he was then acquitted of all responsibility in the matter. If he attempted + to cheat his employer by misappropriating the money or goods advanced to + him, on being convicted of the offence before the elders of the city, he + was obliged to repay the merchant three times the amount he had taken. On + the other hand, if the merchant attempted to defraud his agent by denying + that the due amount had been returned to him, he was obliged on conviction + to pay the agent six times the amount as compensation. It will thus be + seen that the law sought to protect the agent from the risk of being + robbed by his more powerful employer. + </p> + <p> + The merchant sometimes furnished the agent with goods which he was to + dispose of in the best markets he could find in the cities and towns along + his route, and sometimes he would give the agent money with which to + purchase goods in foreign cities for sale on his return. If the venture + proved successful the merchant and his agent shared the profits between + them, but if the agent made bad bargains he had to refund to the merchant + the value of the goods he had received; if the merchant had not agreed to + risk losing any profit, the amount to be refunded to him was fixed at + double the value of the goods advanced. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0015" id="linkCimage-0015"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/282.jpg" width="100%" + alt="282.jpg a Track in the Desert. " /> + </div> + <p> + This last enactment gives an indication of the immense profits which were + obtained by both the merchant and the agent from this system of foreign + trade, for it is clear that what was regarded fair profit for the merchant + was double the value of the goods disposed of. The profits of a successful + journey would also include a fair return to the agent for the trouble and + time involved in his undertaking. Many of the contract tablets of this + early period relate to such commercial journeys, which show that various + bargains were made between the different parties interested, and sometimes + such contracts, or partnerships, were entered into, not for a single + journey only, but for long periods. We may therefore conclude that at the + time of the First Dynasty of Babylon, and probably for long centuries + before that period, the great trade-routes of the East were crowded with + traffic. With the exception that donkeys and asses were employed for + beasts of burden and were not supplemented by horses and camels until a + much later period, a camping-ground in the desert on one of the great + trade-routes must have presented a scene similar to that of a caravan + camping in the desert at the present day. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0016" id="linkCimage-0016"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/283.jpg" width="100%" + alt="283.jpg a Camping-ground in the Desert, Between Birejik And Urfa. " /> + </div> + <p> + The rough tracks beaten by the feet of men and beasts are the same to-day + as they were in that remote period. We can imagine a body of these early + travellers approaching a walled city at dusk and hastening their pace to + get there before the gates were shut. Such a picture as that of the + approach to the city of Samarra, with its mediaeval walls, may be taken as + having had its counterpart in many a city of the early Babylonians. The + caravan route leads through the desert to the city gate, and if we + substitute two massive temple towers for the domes of the mosques that + rise above the wall, little else in the picture need be changed. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0017" id="linkCimage-0017"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/284.jpg" width="100%" + alt="284.jpg Approach to the City of Samarra, Situated on The Left Bank of the Tigris. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + A small caravan is here seen approaching the city at sunset + before the gates are shut. Samarra was only founded in A. D. + 834, by the Khalif el-Motasim, the son of Harûn er-Rashîd, + but customs in the East do not change, and the photograph + may be used to illustrate the approach of an early + Babylonian caravan to a walled city of the period. +</p> + <p> + The houses, too, at this period must have resembled the structures of + unburnt brick of the present day, with their flat mud tops, on which the + inmates sleep at night during the hot season, supported on poles and + brushwood. The code furnishes evidence that at that time, also, the houses + were not particularly well built and were liable to fall, and, in the + event of their doing so, it very justly fixes the responsibility upon the + builder. It is clear from the penalties for bad workmanship enforced upon + the builder that considerable abuses had existed in the trade before the + time of Hammurabi, and it is not improbable that the enforcement of the + penalties succeeded in stamping them out. Thus, if a builder built a house + for a man, and his work was not sound and the house fell and crushed the + owner so that he died, it was enacted that the builder himself should be + put to death. If the fall of the house killed the owner’s son, the + builder’s own son was to be put to death. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0018" id="linkCimage-0018"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/285.jpg" width="100%" + alt="285.jpg a Small Caravan in the Mountains of Kurdistan. " /> + </div> + <p> + If one or more of the owner’s slaves were killed, the builder had to + restore him slave for slave. Any damage which the owner’s goods might have + suffered from the fall of the house was to be made good by the builder. In + addition to these penalties the builder was obliged to rebuild the house, + or any portion of it that had fallen through not being properly secured, + at his own cost. On the other hand, due provisions were made for the + payment of the builder for sound work; and as the houses of the period + rarely, if ever, consisted of more than one story, the scale of payment + was fixed by the area of ground covered by the building. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0019" id="linkCimage-0019"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/286.jpg" width="100%" alt="286.jpg the City of Mosul. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Situated on the right bank of the Tigris opposite the mounds + which mark the site of the ancient city of Nineveh. The + flat-roof ednouses which may be distinguished in the + photograph are very similar in form and construction to + those employed by the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians. +</p> + <p> + From the code of Hammurabi we also gain considerable information with + regard to agricultural pursuits in ancient Babylonia, for elaborate + regulations are given concerning the landowner’s duties and + responsibilities, and his relations to his tenants. The usual practice in + hiring land for cultivation was for the tenant to pay his rent in kind, by + assigning a certain proportion of the crop, generally a third or a half, + to the owner. If a tenant hired certain land for cultivation he was bound + to till it and raise a crop, and should he neglect to do so he had to pay + the owner what was reckoned as the average rent of the land, and he had + also to break up the land and plough it before handing it back. As the + rent of a field was usually reckoned at harvest, and its amount depended + on the size of the crop, it was only fair that damage to the crop from + flood or storm should not be made up by the tenant; thus it was enacted by + the code that any loss from such a cause should be shared equally by the + owner of the field and the farmer, though if the latter had already paid + his rent at the time the damage occurred he could not make a claim for + repayment. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0020" id="linkCimage-0020"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/287.jpg" width="100%" + alt="287.jpg the Village of Nebi Yunus. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Built on one of the mounds marking the site of the Assyrian + city of Nineveh. The mosque in the photograph is built over + the traditional site of the prophet Jonah’s tomb. The flat- + roofed houses of the modern dwellers on the mound can be + well seen in the picture. +</p> + <p> + It is clear from the enactments of the code that disputes were frequent, + not only between farmers and landowners, but also between farmers and + shepherds. It is certain that the latter, in the attempt to find pasture + for the flocks, often allowed their sheep to feed off the farmers’ fields + in the spring. This practice the code set itself to prevent by fixing a + scale of compensation to be paid by any shepherd who caused his sheep to + graze on cultivated land without the owner’s consent. If the offence was + committed in the early spring, when the crop was still small, the farmer + was to harvest the crop and receive a considerable price in kind as + compensation for the shepherd. But if it occurred later on in the spring, + when the sheep had been brought in from the meadows and turned into the + great common field at the city gate, the offence would less probably be + due to accident and the damage to the crop would be greater. In these + circumstances the shepherd had to take over the crop and pay the farmer + very heavily for his loss. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0021" id="linkCimage-0021"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/288.jpg" width="100%" + alt="288.jpg Portrait-sculpture of Hammurabi, King Of Babylon " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + From a stone slab in the British Museum. +</p> + <p> + The planting of gardens and orchards was encouraged, and a man was allowed + to use a field for this purpose without paying a yearly rent. He might + plant it and tend it for four years, and in the fifth year of his tenancy + the original owner of the field took half of the garden in payment, while + the other half the planter of the garden kept for himself. If a bare patch + had been left in the garden it was to be reckoned in the planter’s half. + Regulations were framed to ensure the proper carrying out of the planting, + for if the tenant neglected to do this during the first four years, he was + still liable to plant the plot he had taken without receiving his half, + and he had to pay the owner compensation in addition, which varied in + amount according to the original condition of the land. If a man hired a + garden, the rent he paid to the owner was fixed at two-thirds of its + produce. Detailed regulations are also given in the code concerning the + hire of cattle and asses, and the compensation to be paid to the owner for + the loss or ill-treatment of his beasts. These are framed on the just + principle that the hirer was responsible only for damage or loss which he + could have reasonably prevented. Thus, if a lion killed a hired ox or ass + in the open country, or if an ox was killed by lightning, the loss fell + upon the owner and not on the man who hired the beast. But if the hirer + killed the ox through carelessness or by beating it unmercifully, or if + the beast broke its leg while in his charge, he had to restore another ox + to the owner in place of the one he had hired. For lesser damages to the + beast the hirer had to pay compensation on a fixed scale. Thus, if the ox + had its eye knocked out during the period of its hire, the man who hired + it had to pay to the owner half its value; while for a broken horn, the + loss of the tail, or a torn muzzle, he paid a quarter of the value of the + beast. + </p> + <p> + Fines were also levied for carelessness in looking after cattle, though in + cases of damage or injury, where carelessness could not be proved, the + owner of a beast was not held responsible. A bull might go wild at any + time and gore a man, however careful and conscientious the owner might be, + and in these circumstances the injured man could not bring an action + against the owner. But if a bull had already gored a man, and, although it + was known to be vicious, the owner had not blunted its horns or shut it + up, in the event of its goring and killing a free man, he had to pay half + a mana of silver. One-third of a mana was the price paid for a slave who + was killed. A landed proprietor who might hire farmers to cultivate his + fields inflicted severe fines for acts of dishonesty with regard to the + cattle, provender, or seed-corn committed to their charge. If a man stole + the provender for the cattle he had to make it good, and he was also + liable to the punishment of having his hands cut off. In the event of his + being convicted of letting out the oxen for hire, or stealing the + seed-corn so that he did not produce a crop, he had to pay very heavy + compensation, and, if he could not pay, he was liable to be torn to pieces + by the oxen in the field he should have cultivated. + </p> + <p> + In a dry land like Babylonia, where little rain falls and that in only one + season of the year, the irrigation of his fields forms one of the most + important duties of the agriculturist. The farmer leads the water to his + fields along small irrigation-canals or channels above the level of the + soil, their sides being formed of banks of earth. It is clear that similar + methods were employed by the early Babylonians. One such channel might + supply the fields of several farmers, and it was the duty of each man + through whose land the channel flowed to keep its banks on his land in + repair. If he omitted to strengthen his bank or dyke, and the water forced + a breach and flooded his neighbour’s field, he had to pay compensation in + kind for any crop that was ruined; while if he could not pay, he and his + goods were sold, and his neighbours, whose fields had been damaged through + his carelessness, shared the money. + </p> + <p> + The land of Babylonian farmers was prepared for irrigation before it was + sown by being divided into a number of small square or oblong tracts, each + separated from the others by a low bank of earth, the seed being + afterwards sown within the small squares or patches. Some of the banks + running lengthwise through the field were made into small channels, the + ends of which were carried up to the bank of the nearest main irrigation + canal. No system of gates or sluices was employed, and when the farmer + wished to water one of his fields he simply broke away the bank opposite + one of his small channels and let the water flow into it. He would let the + water run along this small channel until it reached the part of his land + he wished to water. He then blocked the channel with a little earth, at + the same time breaking down its bank so that the water flowed over one of + the small squares and thoroughly soaked it. When this square was finished + he filled up the bank and repeated the process for the next square, and so + on until he had watered the necessary portion of the field. When this was + finished he returned to the main channel and stopped the flow of the water + by blocking up the hole he had made in the dyke. The whole process was, + and to-day still is, extremely simple, but it needs care and vigilance, + especially in the case of extensive irrigation when water is being carried + into several parts of an estate at once. It will be obvious that any + carelessness on the part of the irrigator in not shutting off the water in + time may lead to extensive damage, not only to his own fields, but to + those of his neighbours. In the early Babylonian period, if a farmer left + the water running in his channel, and it flooded his neighbour’s field and + hurt his crop, he had to pay compensation according to the amount of + damage done. + </p> + <p> + It was stated above that the irrigation-canals and little channels were + made above the level of the soil so that the water could at any point be + tapped and allowed to flow over the surrounding land; and in a flat + country like Babylonia it will be obvious that some means had to be + employed for raising the water from its natural level to the higher level + of the land. As we should expect, reference is made in the Babylonian + inscriptions to irrigation-machines, and, although their exact form and + construction are not described, they must have been very similar to those + employed at the present day. The modern inhabitants of Mesopotamia employ + four sorts of contrivances for raising the water into their + irrigation-channels; three of these are quite primitive, and are those + most commonly employed. The method which gives the least trouble and which + is used wherever the conditions allow is a primitive form of water-wheel. + This can be used only in a river with a good current. The wheel is formed + of rough boughs and branches nailed together, with spokes joining the + outer rims to a roughly hewn axle. A row of rough earthenware cups or + bottles are tied round the outer rim for picking up the water, and a few + rough paddles are fixed so that they stick out beyond the rim. The wheel + is then fixed in place near the bank of the river, its axle resting in + pillars of rough masonry. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0022" id="linkCimage-0022"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/293.jpg" width="100%" + alt="293.jpg a Modern Machine for Irrigation on The Euphrates. " /> + </div> + <p> + As the current turns the wheel, the bottles on the rim dip below the + surface and are raised up full. At the top of the wheel is fixed a trough + made by hollowing half the trunk of a date-palm, and into this the bottles + pour their water, which is conducted from the trough by means of a small + aqueduct into the irrigation-channel on the bank. + </p> + <p> + The convenience of the water-wheel will be obvious, for the water is + raised without the labour of man or beast, and a constant supply is + secured day and night so long as the current is strong enough to turn the + wheel. The water can be cut off by blocking the wheel or tying it up. + These wheels are most common on the Euphrates, and are usually set up + where there is a slight drop in the river bed and the water runs swiftly + over shallows. As the banks are very high, the wheels are necessarily huge + contrivances in order to reach the level of the fields, and their very + rough construction causes them to creak and groan as they turn with the + current. In a convenient place in the river several of these are sometimes + set up side by side, and the noise of their combined creakings can be + heard from a great distance. Some idea of what one of these machines looks + like can be obtained from the illustration. At Hit on the Euphrates a line + of gigantic water-wheels is built across the river, and the noise they + make is extraordinary. + </p> + <p> + Where there is no current to turn one of these wheels, or where the bank + is too high, the water must be raised by the labour of man or beast. The + commonest method, which is the one employed generally on the Tigris, is to + raise it in skins, which are drawn up by horses, donkeys, or cattle. A + recess with perpendicular sides is cut into the bank, and a wooden spindle + on wooden struts is supported horizontally over the recess. A rope running + over the spindle is fastened to the skin, while the funnel end of the skin + is held up by a second rope, running over a lower spindle, until its mouth + is opposite the trough into which the water is to be poured. The beasts + which are employed for raising the skin are fastened to the ends of the + ropes, and they get a good purchase for their pull by being driven down a + short cutting or inclined plane in the bank. To get a constant flow of + water, two skins are usually employed, and as one is drawn up full the + other is let down empty. + </p> + <p> + The third primitive method of raising water, which is commoner in Egypt + than in Mesopotamia at the present day, is the <i>shadduf</i>, and is + worked by hand. It consists of a beam supported in the centre, at one end + of which is tied a rope with a bucket or vessel for raising the water, and + at the other end is fixed a counterweight.<a href="#fn6.4" name="fnref6.4"><sup>[4]</sup></a> On an Assyrian bas-relief + found at Kuyunjik are representations of the shadduf in operation, two of + them being used, the one above the other, to raise the water to successive + levels. These were probably the contrivances usually employed by the early + Babylonians for raising the water to the level of their fields, and the + fact that they were light and easily removed must have made them tempting + objects to the dishonest farmer. Hammurabi therefore fixed a scale of + compensation to be paid to the owner by a detected thief, which varied + according to the class and value of the machine he stole. The rivers and + larger canals of Babylonia were used by the ancient inhabitants not only + for the irrigation of their fields, but also as waterways for the + transport of heavy materials. The recently published letters of Hammurabi + and Abêshu’ contain directions for the transportation of corn, dates, + sesame seed, and wood, which were ordered to be brought in ships to + Babylon, and the code of Hammurabi refers to the transportation by water + of wool and oil. It is therefore clear that at this period considerable + use was made of vessels of different size for conveying supplies in bulk + by water. The method by which the size of such ships and barges was + reckoned was based on the amount of grain they were capable of carrying, + and this was measured by the <i>gur</i>, the largest measure of capacity. + Thus mention is made in the inscriptions of vessels of five, ten, fifteen, + twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, and seventy-five gur capacity. A + boat-builder’s fee for building a vessel of sixty gur was fixed at two + shekels of silver, and it was proportionately less for boats of smaller + capacity. To ensure that the boat-builder should not scamp his work, + regulations were drawn up to fix on him the responsibility for unsound + work. Thus if a boat-builder were employed to build a vessel, and he put + faulty work into its construction so that it developed defects within a + year of its being launched, he was obliged to strengthen and rebuild it at + his own expense. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn6.4"></a> <a href="#fnref6.4">[4]</a> + The fourth class of machine for raising water employed in + Mesopotamia at the present day consists of an endless chain + of iron buckets running over a wheel. This is geared by + means of rough wooden cogs to a horizontal wheel, the + spindle of which has long poles fixed to it, to which horses + or cattle are harnessed. The beasts go round in a circle and + so turn the machine. The contrivance is not so primitive as + the three described above, and the iron buckets are of + European importation. +</p> + <p> + The hire of a boatman was fixed at six gur of corn to be paid him yearly, + but it is clear that some of the larger vessels carried crews commanded by + a chief boatman, or captain, whose pay was probably on a larger scale. If + a man let his boat to a boatman, the latter was responsible for losing or + sinking it, and he had to replace it. A boatman was also responsible for + the safety of his vessel and of any goods, such as corn, wool, oil, or + dates, which he had been hired to transport, and if they were sunk through + his carelessness he had to make good the loss. If he succeeded in + refloating the boat after it had been sunk, he was only under obligation + to pay the owner half its value in compensation for the damage it had + sustained. In the case of a collision between two vessels, if one was at + anchor at the time, the owner of the other vessel had to pay compensation + for the boat that was sunk and its cargo, the owner of the latter + estimating on oath the value of what had been sunk. Boats were also + employed as ferries, and they must have resembled the primitive form of + ferry-boat in use at the present day, which is heavily built of huge + timbers, and employed for transporting beasts as well as men across a + river. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0023" id="linkCimage-0023"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/297.jpg" width="100%" + alt="297.jpg Kaiks, Or Native Boats on the Euphrates At Birejik. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Employed for ferrying caravans across the river. +</p> + <p> + There is evidence that under the Assyrians rafts floated on inflated skins + were employed for the transport of heavy goods, and these have survived in + the keleks of the present day. They are specially adapted for the + transportation of heavy materials, for they are carried down by the + current, and are kept in the course by means of huge sweeps or oars. Being + formed only of logs of wood and skins, they are not costly, for wood is + plentiful in the upper reaches of the rivers. At the end of their journey, + after the goods are landed, they are broken up. The wood is sold at a + profit, and the skins, after being deflated, are packed on to donkeys to + return by caravan. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0024" id="linkCimage-0024"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/298.jpg" width="100%" + alt="298.jpg the Modern Bridge of Boats Across The Tigris Opposite Mosul. " /> + </div> + <p> + It is not improbable that such rafts were employed on the Tigris and the + Euphrates from the earliest periods of Chaldæan history, though boats + would have been used on the canals and more sluggish waterways. + </p> + <p> + In the preceding pages we have given a sketch of the more striking aspects + of early Babylonian life, on which light has been thrown by recently + discovered documents belonging to the period of the First Dynasty of + Babylon. We have seen that, in the code of laws drawn up by Hammurabi, + regulations were framed for settling disputes and fixing responsibilities + under almost every condition and circumstance which might arise among the + inhabitants of the country at that time; and the question naturally arises + as to how far the code of laws was in actual operation. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCimage-0025" id="linkCimage-0025"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:50%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/299.jpg" + alt="299.jpg a Small Kelek, Ok Raft, Upon the Tigris At Baghdad. " /> + </div> + <p> + It is conceivable that the king may have held admirable convictions, but + have been possessed of little power to carry them out and to see that his + regulations were enforced. Luckily, we have not to depend on conjecture + for settling the question, for Hammurabi’s own letters which are now + preserved in the British Museum afford abundant evidence of the active + control which the king exercised over every department of his + administration and in every province of his empire. In the earlier periods + of history, when each city lived independently of its neighbours and had + its own system of government, the need for close and frequent + communication between them was not pressing, but this became apparent as + soon as they were welded together and formed parts of an extended empire. + Thus in the time of Sargon of Agade, about 3800 B.C., an extensive system + of royal convoys was established between the principal cities. At Telloh + the late M. de Sarzec came across numbers of lumps of clay bearing the + seal impressions of Sargon and of his son Narâm-Sin, which had been used + as seals and labels upon packages sent from Agade to Shirpurla. In the + time of Dungi, King of Ur, there was a constant interchange of officials + between the various cities of Babylonia and Elam, and during the more + recent diggings at Telloh there have been found vouchers for the supply of + food for their sustenance when stopping at Shirpurla in the course of + their journeys. In the case of Hammurabi we have recovered some of the + actual letters sent by the king himself to Sin-idinnam, his local governor + in the city of Larsam, and from them we gain considerable insight into the + principles which guided him in the administration of his empire. + </p> + <p> + The letters themselves, in their general characteristics, resembled the + contract tablets of the period which have been already described. They + were written on small clay tablets oblong in shape, and as they were only + three or four inches long they could easily be carried about the person of + the messenger into whose charge they were delivered. After the tablet was + written it was enclosed in a thin envelope of clay, having been first + powdered with dry clay to prevent its sticking to the envelope. The name + of the person for whom the letter was intended was written on the outside + of the envelope, and both it and the tablet were baked hard to ensure that + they should not be broken on their travels. The recipient of the letter, + on its being delivered to him, broke the outer envelope by tapping it + sharply, and it then fell away in pieces, leaving the letter and its + message exposed. The envelopes were very similar to those in which the + contract tablets of the period were enclosed, of which illustrations have + already been given, their only difference being that the text of the + tablet was not repeated on the envelope, as was the case with the former + class of documents. + </p> + <p> + The royal letters that have been recovered throw little light on military + affairs and the prosecution of campaigns, for, being addressed to + governors of cities and civil officials, most of them deal with matters + affecting the internal administration of the empire. One letter indeed + contains directions concerning the movements of two hundred and forty + soldiers of “the King’s Company” who had been stationed in Assyria, and + another letter mentions certain troops who were quartered in the city of + Ur. A third deals with the supply of clothing and oil for a section of the + Babylonian army, and troops are also mentioned as having formed the escort + for certain goddesses captured from the Elamites; while directions are + sent to others engaged in a campaign upon the Elamite frontier. The letter + which contains directions for the safe escort of the captured Elamite + goddesses, and the one ordering the return of these same goddesses to + their own shrines, show that foreign deities, even when captured from an + enemy, were treated by the Babylonians with the same respect and reverence + that was shown by them to their own gods and goddesses. Hammurabi gave + directions in the first letter for the conveyance of the goddesses to + Babylon with all due pomp and ceremony, sheep being supplied for sacrifice + upon the journey, and their usual rites being performed by their own + temple-women and priestesses. The king’s voluntary restoration of the + goddesses to their own country may have been due to the fact that, after + their transference to Babylon, the army of the Babylonians suffered defeat + in Elam. This misfortune would naturally have been ascribed by the king + and the priests to the anger of the Elamite goddesses at being detained in + a foreign land, and Hammurabi probably arrived at his decision that they + should be escorted back in the hope of once more securing victory for the + Babylonian arms. + </p> + <p> + The care which the king exercised for the due worship of his own gods and + the proper supply of their temples is well illustrated from the letters + that have been recovered, for he superintended the collection of the + temple revenues, and the herdsmen and shepherds attached to the service of + the gods sent their reports directly to him. He also took care that the + observances of religious rites and ceremonies were duly carried out, and + on one occasion he postponed the hearing of a lawsuit concerning the title + to certain property which was in dispute, as it would have interfered with + the proper observance of a festival in the city of Ur. The plaintiff in + the suit was the chief of the temple bakers, and it was his duty to + superintend the preparation of certain offerings for the occasion. In + order that he should not have to leave his duties, the king put off the + hearing of the case until after the festival had been duly celebrated. The + king also exercised a strict control over the priests themselves, and + received reports from the chief priests concerning their own subordinates, + and it is probable that the royal sanction was obtained for all the + principal appointments. The guild of soothsayers was an important + religious class at this time, and they also were under the king’s direct + control. A letter written by Ammiditana, one of the later kings of the + First Dynasty, to three high officials of the city of Sippar, contains + directions with regard to certain duties to be carried out by the + soothsayers attached to the service of the city, and indicates the nature + of their functions. Ammiditana wrote to the officials in question, stating + that there was a scarcity of corn in the city of Shagga, and he therefore + ordered them to send a supply thither. But before the corn was brought + into the city they were told to consult the soothsayers, who were to + divine the future and ascertain whether the omens were favourable. If they + proved to be so, the corn was to be brought in. We may conjecture that the + king took this precaution, as he feared the scarcity of corn in Shagga was + due to the anger of some local deity or spirit, and that, if this were the + case, the bringing in of the corn would only lead to fresh troubles. This + danger it was the duty of the soothsayers to prevent. + </p> + <p> + Another class of the priesthood, which we may infer was under the king’s + direct control, was the astrologers, whose duty it probably was to make + reports to the king of the conjunctions of the heavenly bodies, with a + view to ascertaining whether they portended good or evil to the state. No + astrological reports written in this early period have been recovered, but + at a later period under the Assyrian empire the astrologers reported + regularly to the king on such matters, and it is probable that the + practice was one long established. One of Hammurabi’s letters proves that + the king regulated the calendar, and it is legitimate to suppose that he + sought the advice of his astrologers as to the times when intercalary + months were to be inserted. The letter dealing with the calendar was + written to inform Sin-idinnam, the governor of Larsam, that an intercalary + month was to be inserted. “Since the year (i.e. the calendar) hath a + deficiency,” he writes, “let the month which is now beginning be + registered as a second Elul,” and the king adds that this insertion of an + extra month will not justify any postponement in the payment of the + regular tribute due from the city of Larsam, which had to be paid a month + earlier than usual to make up for the month that was inserted. The + intercalation of additional months was due to the fact that the Babylonian + months were lunar, so that the calendar had to be corrected at intervals + to make it correspond to the solar year. + </p> + <p> + From the description already given of the code of laws drawn up by + Hammurabi it will have been seen that the king attempted to incorporate + and arrange a set of regulations which should settle any dispute likely to + arise with regard to the duties and privileges of all classes of his + subjects. That this code was not a dead letter, but was actively + administered, is abundantly proved by many of the letters of Hammurabi + which have been recovered. From these we learn that the king took a very + active part in the administration of justice in the country, and that he + exercised a strict supervision, not only over the cases decided in the + capital, but also over those which were tried in the other great cities + and towns of Babylonia. Any private citizen was entitled to make a direct + appeal to the king for justice, if he thought he could not obtain it in + his local court, and it is clear from Hammurabi’s letters that he always + listened to such an appeal and gave it adequate consideration. The king + was anxious to stamp out all corruption on the part of those who were + invested with authority, and he had no mercy on any of his officers who + were convicted of taking bribes. On one occasion when he had been informed + of a case of bribery in the city of Dûr-gurgurri, he at once ordered the + governor of the district in which Dûr-gurgurri lay to investigate the + charge and send to Babylon those who were proved to be guilty, that they + might be punished. He also ordered that the bribe should be confiscated + and despatched to Babylon under seal, a wise provision which must have + tended to discourage those who were inclined to tamper with the course of + justice, while at the same time it enriched the state. It is probable that + the king tried all cases of appeal in person when it was possible to do + so. But if the litigants lived at a considerable distance from Babylon, he + gave directions to his local officials on the spot to try the case. When + he was convinced of the justice of any claim, he would decide the case + himself and send instructions to the local authorities to see that his + decision was duly carried out. It is certain that many disputes arose at + this period in consequence of the extortions of money-lenders. These men + frequently laid claim in a fraudulent manner to fields and estates which + they had received in pledge as security for seed-corn advanced by them. In + cases where fraud was proved Hammurabi had no mercy, and summoned the + money-lender to Babylon to receive punishment, however wealthy and + powerful he might be. + </p> + <p> + A subject frequently referred to in Hammurabi’s letters is the collection + of revenues, and it is clear that an elaborate system was in force + throughout the country for the levying and payment of tribute to the state + by the principal cities of Babylonia, as well as for the collection of + rent and revenue from the royal estates and from the lands which were set + apart for the supply of the great temples. Collectors of both secular and + religious tribute sent reports directly to the king, and if there was any + deficit in the supply which was expected from a collector he had to make + it up himself; but the king was always ready to listen to and investigate + a complaint and to enforce the payment of tribute or taxes so that the + loss should not fall upon the collector. Thus, in one of his letters + Hammurabi informs the governor of Larsam that a collector named Sheb-Sin + had reported to him, saying “Enubi-Marduk hath laid hands upon the money + for the temple of Bît-il-kittim (i.e. the great temple of the Sun-god at + Larsam) which is due from the city of Dûr-gurgurri and from the (region + round about the) Tigris, and he hath not rendered the full sum; and + Gimil-Marduk hath laid hands upon the money for the temple of + Bît-il-kittim which is due from the city.of Rakhabu and from the region + round about that city, and he hath not (paid) the full amount. But the + palace hath exacted the full sum from me.” It is probable that both + Enubi-Marduk and Gimil-Marduk were money-lenders, for we know from another + letter that the former had laid claim to certain property on which he had + held a mortgage, although the mortgage had been redeemed. In the present + case they had probably lent money or seed-corn to certain cultivators of + land near Dûr-gurgurri and Rakhabu and along the Tigris, and in settlement + of their claims they had seized the crops and had, moreover, refused to + pay to the king’s officer the proportion of the crops that was due to the + state as taxes upon the land. The governor of Larsam, the principal city + in the district, had rightly, as the representative of the palace (i.e. + the king), caused the tax-collector to make up the deficiency, but + Hammurabi, on receiving the subordinate officer’s complaint, referred the + matter back to the governor. The end of the letter is wanting, but we may + infer that Hammurabi condemned the defaulting money-lenders to pay the + taxes due, and fined them in addition, or ordered them to be sent to the + capital for punishment. + </p> + <p> + On another occasion Sheb-Sin himself and a second tax-collector named + Sin-mushtal appear to have been in fault and to have evaded coming to + Babylon when summoned thither by the king. It had been their duty to + collect large quantities of sesame seed as well as taxes paid in money. + When first summoned, they had made the excuse that it was the time of + harvest and they would come after the harvest was over. But as they did + not then make their appearance, Hammurabi wrote an urgent letter insisting + that they should be despatched with the full amount of the taxes due, in + the company of a trustworthy officer who would see that they duly arrived + at the capital. + </p> + <p> + Tribute on flocks and herds was also levied by the king, and collectors or + assessors of the revenue were stationed in each district, whose duty it + was to report any deficit in the revenue accounts. The owners of flocks + and herds were bound to bring the young cattle and lambs that were due as + tribute to the central city of the district in which they dwelt, and they + were then collected into large bodies and added to the royal flocks and + herds; but, if the owners attempted to hold back any that were due as + tribute, they were afterwards forced to incur the extra expense and + trouble of driving the beasts to Babylon. The flocks and herds owned by + the king and the great temples were probably enormous, and yielded a + considerable revenue in themselves apart from the tribute and taxes due + from private owners. Shepherds and herdsmen were placed in charge of them, + and they were divided into groups under chief shepherds, who arranged the + districts in which the herds and flocks were to be grazed, distributing + them when possible along the banks and in the neighbourhood of rivers and + canals which would afford good pasturage and a plentiful supply of water. + The king received reports from the chief shepherds and herdsmen, and it + was the duty of the governors of the chief cities and districts of + Babylonia to make tours of inspection and see that due care was taken of + the royal flocks and sheep. The sheep-shearing for all the flocks that + were pastured near the capital took place in Babylon, and the king used to + send out summonses to his chief shepherds to inform them of the day when + the shearing would take place; and it is probable that the governors of + the other great cities sent out similar orders to the shepherds of flocks + under their charge. Royal and priestly flocks were often under the same + chief officer, a fact which shows the very strict control the king + exercised over the temple revenues. + </p> + <p> + The interests of the agricultural population were strictly looked after by + the king, who secured a proper supply of water for purposes of irrigation + by seeing that the canals and waterways were kept in a proper state of + repair and cleaned out at regular intervals. There is also evidence that + nearly every king of the First Dynasty of Babylon cut new canals, and + extended the system of irrigation and transportation which had been handed + down to him from his fathers. The draining of the marshes and the proper + repair of the canals could only be carried out by careful and continuous + supervision, and it was the duty of the local governors to see that the + inhabitants of villages and owners of land situated on the banks of a + canal should keep it in proper order. When this duty had been neglected + complaints were often sent to the king, who gave orders to the local + governor to remedy the defect. Thus on one occasion it had been ordered + that a canal at Erech which had silted up should be deepened, but the + dredging had not been carried out thoroughly, so that the bed of the canal + soon silted up again and boats were prevented from entering the city. In + these circumstances Hammurabi gave pressing orders that the obstruction + was to be removed and the canal made navigable within three days. + </p> + <p> + Damage was often done to the banks of canals by floods which followed the + winter rains, and a letter of Abêshu’ gives an interesting account of a + sudden rise of the water in the Irnina canal so that it overflowed its + banks. The king was building a palace at the city of Kâr-Irnina, which was + supplied by the Irnina canal, and every year it was possible to put so + much work into the building. But one year, when little more than a third + of the year’s work was done, the building operations were stopped by + flood, the canal having overflowed its banks so that the water rose right + up to the wall of the town. In return for the duty of keeping the canals + in order, the villagers along the banks had the privilege of fishing in + its waters in the portion which was in their charge, and any poaching by + other villagers in this part of the stream was strictly forbidden. On one + occasion, in the reign of Samsu-iluna, Hammurabi’s son and successor, the + fishermen of the district of Rabim went down in their boats to the + district of Shakanim and caught fish there contrary to the law. So the + inhabitants of Shakanim complained of this poaching to the king, who sent + a palace official to the authorities of Sippar, near which city the + districts in question lay, with orders to inquire into the matter and take + steps to prevent all such poaching for the future. + </p> + <p> + The regulation of transportation on the canals was also under the royal + jurisdiction. The method of reckoning the size of ships has already been + described, and there is evidence that the king possessed numerous vessels + of all sizes for the carrying of grain, wool, and dates, as well as for + the wood and stone employed in his building operations. Each ship seems to + have had its own crew, under the command of a captain, and it is probable + that officials who regulated the transportation from the centres where + they were stationed were placed in charge of separate sections of the + rivers and of the canals. + </p> + <p> + It is obvious, from the account that has been given of the numerous + operations directly controlled and superintended by the king, that he had + need of a very large body of officials, by whose means he was enabled to + carry out successfully the administration of the country. In the course of + the account we have made mention of the judges and judicial officers, the + assessors and collectors of revenue, and the officials of the palace who + were under the king’s direct orders. It is also obvious that different + classes of officers were in charge of all the departments of the + administration. Two classes of officials, who were placed in charge of the + public works and looked after and controlled the public slaves, and + probably also had a good deal to do with the collection of the revenue, + had special privileges assigned to them, and special legislation was drawn + up to protect them in the enjoyment of the same. As payment for their + duties they were each granted land with a house and garden, they were + assigned the use of certain sheep and cattle with which to stock their + land, and in addition they received a regular salary. They were in a sense + personal retainers of the king and were liable to be sent at any moment on + a special mission to carry out the king’s commands. Disobedience was + severely punished; for, if such an officer, when detailed for a special + mission, did not go but hired a substitute, he was liable to be put to + death and the substitute he had hired could take his office. Sometimes an + officer was sent for long periods some distance from his home to take + charge of a garrison, and when this was done his home duties were + performed by another man, who temporarily occupied his house and land, but + gave it back to the officer on his return. If such an officer had a son + old enough to perform his duty in his father’s absence, he was allowed to + do so and to till his father’s lands; but if the son was too young, the + substitute who took the officer’s place had to pay one-third of the + produce of the land to the child’s mother for his education. Before + departing on his journey to the garrison it was the officer’s duty to + arrange for the proper cultivation of his land and the discharge of his + local duties during his absence. If he omitted to do so and left his land + and duties neglected for more than a year, and another had meanwhile taken + his place, on his return he could not reclaim his land and office. It will + be obvious, therefore, that his position was a specially favoured one and + much sought after, and these regulations ensured that the duties attaching + to the office were not neglected. + </p> + <p> + In the course of his garrison duty or when on special service, these + officers ran some risk of being captured by the enemy, and in that event + regulations were drawn up for their ransom. If the captured officer was + wealthy and could pay for his own ransom, he was bound to do so, but if he + had not the necessary means his ransom was to be paid out of the local + temple treasury, and, when the funds in the temple treasury did not + suffice, he was to be ransomed by the state. It was specially enacted that + his land and garden and house were in no case to be sold in order to pay + for his ransom. These were inalienably attached to the office which he + held, and he was not allowed to sell them or the sheep and cattle with + which they were stocked. Moreover, he was not allowed to bequeath any of + this property to his wife or daughter, so that his office would appear to + have been hereditary and the property attached to it to have been entailed + on his son if he succeeded him. Such succession would not, of course, have + taken place if the officer by his own neglect or disobedience had + forfeited his office and its privileges during his lifetime. + </p> + <p> + It has been suggested with considerable probability that these officials + were originally personal retainers and follows of Sumu-abu, the founder of + the First Dynasty of Babylon. They were probably assigned lands throughout + the country in return for their services to the king, and their special + duties were to preserve order and uphold the authority of their master. In + the course of time their duties were no doubt modified, but they retained + their privileges and they must have continued to be a very valuable body + of officers, on whose personal loyalty the king could always rely. In the + preceding chapter we have already seen how grants of considerable estates + were made by the Kassite kings of the Third Dynasty to followers who had + rendered conspicuous services, and at the same time they received the + privilege of holding such lands free of all liability to forced labour and + the payment of tithes and taxes. We may conclude that the class of royal + officers under the kings of the First Dynasty had a similar origin. + </p> + <p> + In the present chapter, from information recently made available, we have + given some account of the system of administration adopted by the early + kings of Babylon, and we have described in some detail the various classes + of the Babylonian population, their occupations, and the conditions under + which they lived. In the two preceding chapters we have dealt with the + political history of Western Asia from the very earliest period of the + Sumerian city-states down to the time of the Kassite kings. In the course + of this account we have seen how Mesopotamia in the dawn of history was in + the sole possession of the Sumerian race and how afterwards it fell in + turn under the dominion of the Semites and the kings of Elam. The + immigration of fresh Semitic tribes at the end of the third millennium + before Christ resulted in the establishment in Babylon of the Semitic + kings who are known as First Dynasty kings; and under the sway of + Hammurabi, the greatest of this group of kings, the empire thus + established in Western Asia had every appearance of permanence. Although + Elam no longer troubled Babylon, a great danger arose from a new and + unexpected quarter. In the Country of the Sea—which comprised the + districts in the extreme south of Babylonia on the shores of the Persian + Gulf—the Sumerians had rallied their forces, and they now declared + themselves independent of Babylonian control. A period of conflict + followed between the kings of the First Dynasty and the kings of the + Country of the Sea, in which the latter more than held their own; and, + when the Hittite tribes of Syria invaded Northern Babylonia in the reign + of Samsu-ditana, Babylon’s power of resistance was so far weakened that + she fell an easy prey to the rulers of the Country of the Sea. But the + reappearance of the Sumerians in the rôle of leading race in Western Asia + was destined not to last long, and was little more than the last flicker + of vitality exhibited by this ancient and exhausted race. Thus the Second + Dynasty fell in its turn before the onslaught of the Kassite tribes who + descended from the mountainous districts in the west of Elam, and, having + overrun the whole of Mesopotamia, established a new dynasty at Babylon, + and adopted Babylonian civilization. + </p> + <p> + With the advent of the Kassite kings a new chapter opens in the history of + Western Asia. Up to that time Egypt and Babylon, the two chief centres of + ancient civilization, had no doubt indirectly influenced one another, but + they had not come into actual contact. During the period of the Kassite + kings both Babylon and Assyria established direct relations with Egypt, + and from that time forward the influence they exerted upon one another was + continuous and unbroken. We have already traced the history of Babylon up + to this point in the light of recent discoveries, and a similar task + awaits us with regard to Assyria. Before we enter into a discussion of + Assyria’s origin and early history in the light of recent excavation and + research, it is necessary that we should return once more to Egypt, and + describe the course of her history from the period when Thebes succeeded + in displacing Memphis as the capital city. + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="linkD2HCH0001" id="linkD2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER VII—TEMPLES AND TOMBS OF THEBES + </h2> + <p> + We have seen that it was in the Theban period that Egypt emerged from her + isolation, and for the first time came into contact with Western Asia. + This grand turning-point in Egyptian history seemed to be the appropriate + place at which to pause in the description of our latest knowledge of + Egyptian history, in order to make known the results of archaeological + discovery in Mesopotamia and Western Asia generally. The description has + been carried down past the point of convergence of the two originally + isolated paths of Egyptian and Babylonian civilization, and what new + information the latest discoveries have communicated to us on this subject + has been told in the preceding chapters. We now have to retrace our steps + to the point where we left Egyptian history and resume the thread of our + Egyptian narrative. + </p> + <p> + The Hyksos conquest and the rise of Thebes are practically + contemporaneous. The conquest took place perhaps three or four hundred + years after the first advancement of Thebes to the position of capital of + Egypt, but it must be remembered that this position was not retained + during the time of the XIIth Dynasty. The kings of that dynasty, though + they were Thebans, did not reign at Thebes. Their royal city was in the + North, in the neighbourhood of Lisht and Mêdûm, where their pyramids were + erected, and their chief care was for the lake province of the Fayyûm, + which was largely the creation of Amenemhat III, the Moeris of the Greeks. + It was not till Thebes became the focus of the national resistance to the + Hyksos that its period of greatness began. Henceforward it was the + undisputed capital of Egypt, enlarged and embellished by the care and + munificence of a hundred kings, enriched by the tribute of a hundred + conquered nations. + </p> + <p> + But were we to confine ourselves to the consideration only of the latest + discoveries of Theban greatness after the expulsion of the Hyksos, we + should be omitting much that is of interest and importance. For the + Egyptians the first grand climacteric in their history (after the + foundation of the monarchy) was the transference of the royal power from + Memphis and Herakleopolis to a Theban house. The second, which followed + soon after, was the Hyksos invasion. The two are closely connected in + Theban history; it is Thebes that defeated Herakleopolis and conquered + Memphis; it is Theban power that was overthrown by the Hyksos; it is + Thebes that expelled them and initiated the second great period of + Egyptian history. We therefore resume our narrative at a point before the + great increase of Theban power at the time of the expulsion of the Hyksos, + and will trace this power from its rise, which followed the defeat of + Herakleopolis and Memphis. It is upon this epoch—the beginning of + Theban power—that the latest discoveries at Thebes have thrown some + new light. + </p> + <p> + More than anywhere else in Egypt excavations have been carried on at + Thebes, on the site of the ancient capital of the country. And here, if + anywhere, it might have been supposed that there was nothing more to be + found, no new thing to be exhumed from the soil, no new fact to be added + to our knowledge of Egyptian history. Yet here, no less than at Abydos, + has the archaeological exploration of the last few years been especially + successful, and we have seen that the ancient city of Thebes has a great + deal more to tell us than we had expected. + </p> + <p> + The most ancient remains at Thebes were discovered by Mr. Newberry in the + shape of two tombs of the VIth Dynasty, cut upon the face of the + well-known hill of Shêkh Abd el-Kûrna, on the west bank of the Nile + opposite Luxor. Every winter traveller to Egypt knows, well the ride from + the sandy shore opposite the Luxor temple, along the narrow pathway + between the gardens and the canal, across the bridges and over the + cultivated land to the Ramesseum, behind which rises Shêkh Abd el-Kûrna, + with its countless tombs, ranged in serried rows along the scarred and + scarped face of the hill. This hill, which is geologically a fragment of + the plateau behind which some gigantic landslip was sent sliding in the + direction of the river, leaving the picturesque gorge and cliffs of Dêr + el-Bahari to mark the place from which it was riven, was evidently the + seat of the oldest Theban necropolis. Here were the tombs of the Theban + chiefs in the period of the Old Kingdom, two of which have been found by + Mr. Newberry. In later times, it would seem, these tombs were largely + occupied and remodelled by the great nobles of the XVIIIth Dynasty, so + that now nearly all the tombs extant on Shêkh Abd el-Kûrna belong to that + dynasty. + </p> + <p> + Of the Thebes of the IXth and Xth Dynasties, when the Herakleopolites + ruled, we have in the British Museum two very remarkable statues—one + of which is here illustrated—of the steward of the palace, Mera. The + tomb from which they came is not known. Both are very beautiful examples + of the Egyptian sculptor’s art, and are executed in a style eminently + characteristic of the transition period between the work of the Old and + Middle Kingdoms. As specimens of the art of the Hierakonpolite period, of + which we have hardly any examples, they are of the greatest interest. Mera + is represented wearing a different head-dress in each figure; in one he + has a short wig, in the other a skullcap. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0005" id="linkDimage-0005"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/320.jpg" width="100%" alt="320.jpg Statue of Mera " /> + </div> + <p> + When the Herakleopolite dominion was finally overthrown, in spite of the + valiant resistance of the princes of Asyût, and the Thebans assumed the + Pharaonic dignity, thus founding the XIth Dynasty, the Theban necropolis + was situated in the great bay in the cliffs, immediately north of Shêkh + Abd el-Kûrna, which is known as Dêr el-Bahari. In this picturesque part of + Western Thebes, in many respects perhaps the most picturesque place in + Egypt, the greatest king of the XIth Dynasty, Neb-hapet-Râ Mentuhetep, + excavated his tomb and built for the worship of his ghost a funerary + temple, which he called <i>Akh-aset</i>, “Glorious-is-its- Situation,” a + name fully justified by its surroundings. This temple is an entirely new + discovery, made by Prof. Naville and Mr. Hall in 1903. The results + obtained up to date have been of very great importance, especially with + regard to the history of Egyptian art and architecture, for our sources of + information were few and we were previously not very well informed as to + the condition of art in the time of the XIth Dynasty. + </p> + <p> + The new temple lies immediately to the south of the great XVIIIth Dynasty + temple at Dêr el-Bahari, which has always been known, and which was + excavated first by Mariette and later by Prof. Naville, for the Egypt + Exploration Fund. To the results of the later excavations we shall return. + When they were finally completed, in the year 1898, the great XVIIIth + Dynasty temple, which was built by Queen Hatshepsu, had been entirely + cleared of débris, and the colonnades had been partially restored (under + the care of Mr. Somers Clarke) in order to make a roof under which to + protect the sculptures on the walls. The whole mass of débris, consisting + largely of fallen <i>talus</i> from the cliffs above, which had almost + hidden the temple, was removed; but a large tract lying to the south of + the temple, which was also covered with similar mounds of débris, was not + touched, but remained to await further investigation. It was here, beneath + these heaps of débris, that the new temple was found when work was resumed + by the Egypt Exploration Fund in 1903. The actual tomb of the king has not + yet been revealed, although that of Neb-hetep Mentuhetep, who may have + been his immediate predecessor, was discovered by Mr. Carter in 1899. It + was known, however, and still uninjured in the reign of Ramses IX of the + XXth Dynasty. Then, as we learn from the report of the inspectors sent to + examine the royal tombs, which is preserved in the Abbott Papyrus, they + found the <i>pyramid-tomb</i> of King Xeb-hapet-Râ which is in Tjesret + (the ancient Egyptian name for Dêr el-Bahari); it was intact. We know, + therefore, that it was intact about 1000 B.C. The description of it as a + pyramid-tomb is interesting, for in the inscription of Tetu, the priest of + Akh-aset, who was buried at Abydos, Akh-aset is said to have been a + pyramid. That the newly discovered temple was called Akh-aset we know from + several inscriptions found in it. And the most remarkable thing about this + temple is that in its centre there was a pyramid. This must be the + pyramid-tomb which was found intact by the inspectors, so that the tomb + itself must be close by. But it does not seem to have been beneath the + pyramid, below which is only solid rock. It is perhaps a gallery cut in + the cliffs at the back of the temple. + </p> + <p> + The pyramid was then a dummy, made of rubble within a revetment of heavy + flint nodules, which was faced with fine limestone. It was erected on a + pyloni-form base with heavy cornice of the usual Egyptian pattern. This + central pyramid was surrounded by a roofed hall or ambulatory of small + octagonal pillars, the outside wall of which was decorated with coloured + reliefs, depicting various scenes connected with the <i>sed-heb</i> or + jubilee-festival of the king, processions of the warriors and magnates of + the realm, scenes of husbandry, boat-building, and so forth, all of which + were considered appropriate to the chapel of a royal tomb at that period. + Outside this wall was an open colonnade of square pillars. The whole of + this was built upon an artificially squared rectangular platform of + natural rock, about fifteen feet high. To north and south of this were + open courts. The southern is bounded by the hill; the northern is now + bounded by the Great Temple of Hat-shepsu, but, before this was built, + there was evidently a very large open court here. The face of the rock + platform is masked by a wall of large rectangular blocks of fine white + limestone, some of which measure six feet by three feet six inches. They + are beautifully squared and laid in bonded courses of alternate sizes, and + the walls generally may be said to be among the finest yet found in Egypt. + We have already remarked that the architects of the Middle Kingdom appear + to have been specially fond of fine masonry in white stone. The contrast + between these splendid XIth Dynasty walls, with their great base-stones of + sandstone, and the bad rough masonry of the XVIIIth Dynasty temple close + by, is striking. The XVIIIth Dynasty architects and masons had degenerated + considerably from the standard of the Middle Kingdom. + </p> + <p> + This rock platform was approached from the east in the centre by an + inclined plane or ramp, of which part of the original pavement of wooden + beams remains <i>in situ</i>. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0006" id="linkDimage-0006"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/324.jpg" width="100%" + alt="324.jpg Xith Dynasty Wall: Dêr el-Bahari. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Excavated by Mr. Hall, 1904, for the Egypt Exploration Fund. +</p> + <p> + To right and left of this ramp are colonnades, each of twenty-two square + pillars, all inscribed with the name and titles of Mentuhetep. The walls + masking the platform in these colonnades were sculptured with various + scenes, chiefly representing boat processions and campaigns against the + Aamu or nomads of the Sinaitic peninsula. The design of the colonnades is + the same as that of the Great Temple, and the whole plan of this part, + with its platform approached by a ramp flanked by colonnades, is so like + that of the Great Temple that we cannot but assume that the peculiar + design of the latter, with its tiers of platforms approached by ramps + flanked by colonnades, is not an original idea, but was directly copied by + the XVIIIth Dynasty architects from the older XIth Dynasty temple which + they found at Dêr el-Bahari when they began their work. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0007" id="linkDimage-0007"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/325.jpg" width="100%" + alt="325.jpg Xviiith Dynasty Wall, Dêr el-Bahari. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Excavated by M. Naville, 1896; repaired by Mr. Howard + Carter, 1904. +</p> + <p> + The supposed originality of Hatshepsu’s temple is then non-existent; it + was a copy of the older design, in fact, a magnificent piece of archaism. + But Hatshepsu’s architects copied this feature only; the actual + arrangements <i>on</i> the platforms in the two temples are as different + as they can possibly be. In the older we have a central pyramid with a + colonnade round it, in the newer may be found an open court in front of + rock-cave shrines. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0008" id="linkDimage-0008"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/326.jpg" width="100%" + alt="326.jpg Excavation of the North Lower Colonnade Of The Xith Dynasty Temple, Dêr el-Bahari, 1904. " /> + </div> + <p> + Before the XIth Dynasty temple was set up a series of statues of King + Mentuhetep and of a later king, Amenhetep I, in the form of Osiris, like + those of Usertsen (Senusret) I at Lisht already mentioned. One of these + statues is in the British Museum. In the south court were discovered six + statues of King Usertsen (Senusret) III, depicting him at different + periods of his life. Pour of the heads are preserved, and, as the + expression of each differs from that of the other, it is quite evident + that some show him as a young, others as an old, man. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0009" id="linkDimage-0009"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/327.jpg" width="100%" + alt="327.jpg Granite Threshold and Octagonal Sandstone Pillars " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Of The XIth Dynasty Temple At Dêr El-Bahari. About 2500 B.C. +</p> + <p> + The face is of the well-known hard and lined type which is seen also in + the portraits of Amenemhat III, and was formerly considered to be that of + the Hyksos. Messrs. Newberry and Garstang, as we have seen, consider it to + be so, indirectly, as they regard the type as having been introduced into + the XIIth Dynasty by Queen Nefret, the mother of Usertsen (Sen-usret) III. + This queen, they think, <i>was</i> a Hittite princess, and the Hittites + were practically the same thing as the Hyksos. We have seen, however, that + there is very little foundation for this view, and it is more than + probable that this peculiar physiognomy is of a type purely Egyptian in + character. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0010" id="linkDimage-0010"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/328.jpg" width="100%" + alt="328.jpg Excavation of the Tomb Of a Priestess, " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + On The Platform Of The XIth Dynasty Temple, Dêr El-Bahari, + 1904. +</p> + <p> + On the platform, around the central pyramid, were buried in small + chamber-tombs a number of priestesses of the goddess Hathor, the mistress + of the desert and special deity of Dêr el-Bahari. They were all members of + the king’s harîm, and they bore the title of “King’s Favourite.” As told + in a previous chapter, all were buried at one time, before the final + completion of the temple, and it is by no means impossible that they were + strangled at the king’s death and buried round him in order that their + ghosts might accompany him in the next world, just as the slaves were + buried around the graves (or secondary graves) of the 1st Dynasty kings at + Aby-dos. They themselves, as also already related, took with them to the + next world little waxen figures which when called upon could by magic be + turned into ghostly slaves. These images were <i>ushabtiu,</i> + “answerers,” the predecessors of the little figures of wood, stone, and + pottery which are found buried with the dead in later times. The + priestesses themselves were, so to speak, human <i>ushabtiu,</i> for royal + use only, and accompanied the kings to their final resting-place. + </p> + <p> + With the priestesses was buried the usual funerary furniture + characteristic of the period. This consisted of little models of granaries + with the peasants bringing in the corn, models of bakers and brewers at + work, boats with their crews, etc., just as we find them in the XIth and + XIIth Dynasty tombs at el-Bersha and Beni Hasan. These models, too, were + supposed to be transformed by magic into actual workmen who would work for + the deceased, heap up grain for her, brew beer for her, ferry her over the + ghostly Nile into the tomb-world, or perform any other services required. + </p> + <p> + Some of the stone sarcophagi of the priestesses are very elaborately + decorated with carved and painted reliefs depicting each deceased + receiving offerings from priests, one of whom milks the holy cows of + Hathor to give her milk. The sarcophagi were let down into the tomb in + pieces and there joined together, and they have been removed in the same + way. The finest is a unique example of XIth Dynasty art, and it is now + preserved in the Museum of Cairo. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0011" id="linkDimage-0011"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/330.jpg" width="100%" + alt="330.jpg Cases of Antiquities Leaving Dêr el-Bahari For Transport to Cairo. " /> + </div> + <p> + In memory of the priestesses there were erected on the platform behind the + pyramid a number of small shrines, which were decorated with the most + delicately coloured carvings in high relief, representing chiefly the same + subjects as those on the sarcophagi. The peculiar style of these reliefs + was previously unknown. In connection with them a most interesting + possibility presents itself. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0012" id="linkDimage-0012"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/331.jpg" width="100%" + alt="331.jpg Shipping Cases of Antiquities on Board the Nile Steamer at Luxor, for the Egypt Exploration Fund. " /> + </div> + <p> + We know the name of the chief artist of Mentuhetep’s reign. He was called + Mertisen, and he thus describes himself on his tombstone from Abydos, now + in the Louvre: “I was an artist skilled in my art. I knew my art, how to + represent the forms of going forth and returning, so that each limb may be + in its proper place. I knew how the figure of a man should walk and the + carriage of a woman, the poising of the arm to bring the hippopotamus low, + the going of the runner. I knew how to make amulets, which enable us to go + without fire burning us and without the flood washing us away. No man + could do this but I, and the eldest son of my body. Him has the god + decreed to excel in art, and I have seen the perfections of the work of + his hands in every kind of rare stone, in gold and silver, in ivory and + ebony.” Now since Mertisen and his son were the chief artists of their + day, it is more than probable that they were employed to decorate their + king’s funerary chapel. So that in all probability the XIth Dynasty + reliefs from Dêr el-Bahari are the work of Mertisen and his son, and in + them we see the actual “forms of going forth and returning, the poising of + the arm to bring the hippopotamus low, the going of the runner,” to which + he refers on his tombstone. This adds a note of personal interest to the + reliefs, an interest which is often sadly wanting in Egypt, where we + rarely know the names of the great artists whose works we admire so much. + We have recovered the names of the sculptor and painter of Seti I’s temple + at Abydos and that of the sculptor of some of the tombs at Tell el-Amarna, + but otherwise very few names of the artists are directly associated with + the temples and tombs which they decorated, and of the architects we know + little more. The great temple of Dêr el-Bahari was, however, we know, + designed by Senmut, the chief architect to Queen Hatshepsu. + </p> + <p> + It is noticeable that Mertisen’s art, if it is Mertisen’s, is of a + peculiar character. It is not quite so fully developed as that of the + succeeding XIIth Dynasty. The drawing of the figures is often peculiar, + strange lanky forms taking the place of the perfect proportions of the + IVth-VIth and the XIIth Dynasty styles. Great elaboration is bestowed upon + decoration, which is again of a type rather archaic in character when + compared with that of the XIIth Dynasty. We are often reminded of the rude + sculptures which used to be regarded as typical of the art of the XIth + Dynasty, while at the same time we find work which could not be surpassed + by the best XIIth Dynasty masters. In fact, the art of Neb-hapet-Râ’s + reign was the art of a transitional period. Under the decadent Memphites + of the VIIth and VIIIth Dynasties, Egyptian art rapidly fell from the high + estate which it had attained under the Vth Dynasty, and, though good work + was done under the Hierakonpolites, the chief characteristic of Egyptian + art at the time of the Xth and early XIth Dynasties is its curious + roughness and almost barbaric appearance. When, however, the kings of the + XIth Dynasty reunited the whole land under one sceptre, and the long reign + of Neb-hapet-Râ Mentuhetep enabled the reconsolidation of the realm to be + carried out by one hand, art began to revive, and, just as to Neb-hapet-Râ + must be attributed the renascence of the Egyptian state under the hegemony + of Thebes, so must the revival of art in his reign be attributed to his + great artists, Mertisen and his son. They carried out in the realm of art + what their king had carried out in the political realm, and to them must + be attributed the origin of the art of the Middle Kingdom which under the + XIIth Dynasty attained so high a pitch of excellence. The sculptures of + the king’s temple at Dêr el-Bahari, then, are monuments of the renascence + of Egyptian art, after the state of decadence into which it had fallen + during the long civil wars between South and North; it is a reviving art, + struggling out of barbarism to regain perfection, and therefore has much + about it that seems archaic, stiff, and curious when compared with later + work. To the XVIIIth Dynasty Egyptian it would no doubt have seemed + hopelessly old-fashioned and even semi-barbarous, and he had no qualms + about sweeping it aside whenever it appeared in the way of the work of his + own time; but to us this very strangeness gives additional charm and + interest, and we can only be thankful that Mertisen’s work has lasted (in + fragments only, it is true) to our own day, to tell us the story of a + little known chapter in the history of ancient Egyptian art. + </p> + <p> + From this description it will have been seen that the temple is an + important monument of the Egyptian art and architecture of the Middle + Kingdom. It is the only temple of that period of which considerable traces + have been found, and on that account the study of it will be of the + greatest interest. It is the best preserved of the older temples of Egypt, + and at Thebes it is by far the most ancient building recovered. + Historically it has given us a new king of the XIth Dynasty, + Sekhâhe-tep-Râ Mentuhetep, and the name of the queen of Neb-hapet-Râ + Mentuhetep, Aasheit, who seems to have been an Ethiopian, to judge from + her portrait, which has been discovered. It is interesting to note that + one of the priestesses was a negress. + </p> + <p> + The name Neb-hapet-Râ may be unfamiliar to those readers who are + acquainted with the lists of the Egyptian kings. It is a correction of the + former reading, “Neb-kheru-Râ,” which is now known from these excavations + to be erroneous. Neb-hapet-Râ (or, as he used to be called, Neb-kheru-Râ) + is Mentuhetep III of Prof. Petrie’s arrangement. Before him there seem to + have come the kings Mentuhetep Neb-hetep (who is also commemorated in this + temple) and Neb-taui-Râ; after him, Sekhâhetep-Râ Mentuhetep IV and + Seânkhkarâ Mentuhetep V, who were followed by an Antef, bearing the banner + or hawk-name Uah-ânkh. This king was followed by Amenemhat I, the first + king of the XIIth Dynasty. Antef Uah-ânkh may be numbered Antef I, as the + prince Antefa, who founded the XIth Dynasty, did not assume the title of + king. + </p> + <p> + Other kings of the name of Antef also ruled over Egypt, and they used to + be regarded as belonging to the XIth Dynasty; but Prof. Steindorff has now + proved that they really reigned after the XIIIth Dynasty, and immediately + before the Sekenenrâs, who were the fighters of the Hyksos and + predecessors of the XVIIIth Dynasty. The second names of Antef III + (Seshes-Râ-up-maat) and Antef IV (Seshes-Râ-her-her-maat) are exactly + similar to those of the XIIIth Dynasty kings and quite unlike those of the + Mentuheteps; also at Koptos a decree of Antef II (Nub-kheper-Râ) has been + found inscribed on a doorway of Usertsen (Senusret) I; so that he cannot + have preceded him. Prof. Petrie does not yet accept these conclusions, and + classes all the Antefs together with the Mentuheteps in the XIth Dynasty. + He considers that he has evidence from Herakleopolis that Antef + Xub-kheper-Râ (whom he numbers Antef V) preceded the XIIth Dynasty, and he + supposes that the decree of Nub-kheper-Râ at Koptos is a later copy of the + original and was inscribed during the XIIth Dynasty. But this is a + difficult saying. The probabilities are that Prof. Steindorff is right. + Antef Uah-ânkh must, however, have preceded the XIIth Dynasty, since an + official of that period refers to his father’s father as having lived in + Uah-ânkh ‘s time. + </p> + <p> + The necropolis of Dêr el-Bahari was no doubt used all through the period + of the XIth and XIIth Dynasties, and many tombs of that period have been + found there. A large number of these were obliterated by the building of + the great temple of Queen Hatshepsu, in the northern part of the + cliff-bay. We know of one queen’s tomb of that period which runs right + underneath this temple from the north, and there is another that is + entered at the south side which also runs down underneath it. Several + tombs were likewise found in the court between it and the XIth Dynasty + temple. We know that the XVIIIth Dynasty temple was largely built over + this court, and we can see now the XIth Dynasty mask-wall on the west of + the court running northwards underneath the mass of the XVIIIth Dynasty + temple. In all probability, then, when the temple of Hatshepsu was built, + the larger portion of the Middle Kingdom necropolis (of chamber-tombs + reached by pits), which had filled up the bay to the north of the + Mentuhetep temple, was covered up and obliterated, just as the older VIth + Dynasty gallery tombs of Shêkh Abd el-Kûrna had been appropriated and + altered at the same period. + </p> + <p> + The kings of the XIIth and XIIIth Dynasties were not buried at Thebes, as + we have seen, but in the North, at Dashûr, Lisht, and near the Fayymn, + with which their royal city at Itht-taui had brought them into contact. + But at the end of the XIIIth Dynasty the great invasion of the Hyksos + probably occurred, and all Northern Egypt fell under the Arab sway. The + native kings were driven south from the Fayymn to Abydos, Koptos, and + Thebes, and at Thebes they were buried, in a new necropolis to the north + of Dêr el-Bahari (probably then full), on the flank of a long spur of hill + which is now called Dra’ Abu-’l-Negga, “Abu-’l-Negga’s Arm.” Here the + Theban kings of the period between the XIIIth and XVIIth Dynasties, + Upuantemsaf, Antef Nub-kheper-Râ, and his descendants, Antefs III and IV, + were buried. In their time the pressure of foreign invasion seems to have + been felt, for, to judge from their coffins, which show progressive + degeneration of style and workmanship, poverty now afflicted Upper Egypt + and art had fallen sadly from the high standard which it had reached in + the days of the XIth and XIIth Dynasties. Probably the later Antefs and + Sebekemsafs were vassals of the Hyksos. Their descendants of the XVIIth + Dynasty were buried in the same necropolis of Dra’ Abu-’l-Negga, and so + were the first two kings of the XVIIIth Dynasty, Aahmes and Amenhetep I. + The tombs of the last two have not yet been found, but we know from the + Abbott Papyrus that Amenhetep’s was here, for, like that of Menttihetep + III, it was found intact by the inspectors. It was a gallery-tomb of very + great length, and will be a most interesting find when it is discovered, + as it no doubt eventually will be. Aahmes had a tomb at Abydos, which was + discovered by Mr. Currelly, working for the Egypt Exploration Fund. This, + however, like the Abydene tomb of Usert-sen (Senusret) III, was in all + likelihood a sham or secondary tomb, the king having most probably been + buried at Thebes, in the Dra’ Abu-’l-Negga. The Abydos tomb is of + interesting construction. The entrance is by a simple pit, from which a + gallery runs round in a curving direction to a great hall supported by + eighteen square pillars, beyond which is a further gallery which was never + finished. Nothing was found in the tomb. On the slope of the mountain, due + west of and in a line with the tomb, Mr. Currelly found a terrace-temple + analogous to those of Dêr el-Bahari, approached not by means of a ramp but + by stairways at the side. It was evidently the funerary temple of the + tomb. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0013" id="linkDimage-0013"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/338.jpg" width="100%" + alt="338.jpg Statue of Queen Teta-shera " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Statue of Queen Teta-shera<br/> + Grandmother of Aahmes, the conqueror of the Hyksos and + founder of the XVIIIth Dynasty. About 1700 B. C. British + Museum. From the photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + The secondary tomb of Usertsen (Senusret) III at Abydos, which has already + been mentioned, was discovered in the preceding year by Mr. A. E. P. + Weigall, and excavated by Mr. Currelly in 1903. It lies north of the + Aahmes temple, between it and the main cemetery of Abydos. It is a great + <i>bâb</i> or gallery-tomb, like those of the later kings at Thebes, with + the usual apparatus of granite plugs, barriers, pits, etc., to defy + plunderers. The tomb had been plundered, nevertheless, though it is + probable that the robbers were vastly disappointed with what they found in + it. Mr. Currelly ascribes the absence of all remains to the plunderers, + but the fact is that there probably never was anything in it but an empty + sarcophagus. Near the tomb Mr. Weigall discovered some dummy mastabas, a + find of great interest. Just as the king had a secondary tomb, so + secondary mastabas, mere dummies of rubble like the XIth Dynasty pyramid + at Dêr el-Bahari, were erected beside it to look like the tombs of his + courtiers. Some curious sinuous brick walls which appear to act as + dividing lines form a remarkable feature of this sham cemetery. In a line + with the tomb, on the edge of the cultivation, is the funerary temple + belonging to it, which was found by Mr. Randall-Maclver in 1900. Nothing + remains but the bases of the fluted limestone columns and some brick + walls. A headless statue of Usertsen was found. + </p> + <p> + We have an interesting example of the custom of building a secondary tomb + for royalties in these two nécropoles of Dra’ Abu-’l-Negga and Abydos. + Queen Teta-shera, the grandmother of Aahmes, a beautiful statuette of whom + may be seen in the British Museum, had a small pyramid at Abydos, eastward + of and in a line with the temple and secondary tomb of Aahmes. In 1901 Mr. + Mace attempted to find the chamber, but could not. In the next year Mr. + Currelly found between it and the Aahmes tomb a small chapel, containing a + splendid stele, on which Aahmes commemorates his grandmother, who, he + says, was buried at Thebes and had a <i>mer-âhât</i> at Abydos, and he + records his determination to build her also a pyramid at Abydos, out of + his love and veneration for her memory. It thus appeared that the pyramid + to the east was simply a dummy, like Usertsen’s mastabas, or the + Mentuhetep pyramid at Dêr el-Bahari. Teta-shera was actually buried at + Dra’ Abu-’l-Negga. Her secondary pyramid, like that of Aahmes himself, was + in the “holy ground” at Abydos, though it was not an imitation <i>bâb</i>, + but a dummy pyramid of rubble. This well illustrates the whole custom of + the royal primary and secondary tombs, which, as we have seen, had + obtained in the case of royal personages from the time of the 1st Dynasty, + when Aha had two tombs, one at Nakâda and the other at Abydos. It is + probable that all the 1st Dynasty tombs at Abydos are secondary, the kings + being really buried elsewhere. After their time we know for certain that + Tjeser and Snefru had duplicate tombs, possibly also Unas, and certainly + Usertsen (Senusret) III, Amenemhat III, and Aahmes; while Mentuhetep III + and Queen Teta-shera had dummy pyramids as well as their tombs. Ramses III + also had two tombs, both at Thebes. The reasons for this custom were two: + first, the desire to elude plunderers, and second, the wish to give the + ghost a <i>pied-à-terre</i> on the sacred soil of Abydos or Sakkâra. + </p> + <p> + As the inscription of Aahmes which records the building of the dummy + pyramid of Teta-shera is of considerable interest, it may here be + translated. The text reads: “It came to pass that when his Majesty the + king, even the king of South and North, Neb-pehti-Râ, Son of the Sun, + Aahmes, Giver of Life, was taking his pleasure in the <i>tjadu</i>-hall, + the hereditary princess greatly favoured and greatly prized, the king’s + daughter, the king’s sister, the god’s wife and great wife of the king, + Nefret-ari-Aahmes, the living, was in the presence of his Majesty. And the + one spake unto the other, seeking to do honour to These There,<a href="#fn7.1" name="fnref7.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> which + consisteth in the pouring of water, the offering upon the altar, the + painting of the stele at the beginning of each season, at the Festival of + the New Moon, at the feast of the month, the feast of the going-forth of + the <i>Sem</i>-priest, the Ceremonies of the Night, the Feasts of the + Fifth Day of the Month and of the Sixth, the <i>Hak</i>-festival, the <i>Uag</i>-festival, + the feast of Thoth, the beginning of every season of heaven and earth. And + his sister spake, answering him: ‘Why hath one remembered these matters, + and wherefore hath this word been said? Prithee, what hath come into thy + heart?’ The king spake, saying: ‘As for me, I have remembered the mother + of my mother, the mother of my father, the king’s great wife and king’s + mother Teta-shera, deceased, whose tomb-chamber and <i>mer-ahât</i> are at + this moment upon the soil of Thebes and Abydos. I have spoken thus unto + thee because my Majesty desireth to cause a pyramid and chapel to be made + for her in the Sacred Land, as a gift of a monument from my Majesty, and + that its lake should be dug, its trees planted, and its offerings + prescribed; that it should be provided with slaves, furnished with lands, + and endowed with cattle, with <i>hen-ka</i> priests and <i>kher-heb</i> + priests performing their duties, each man knowing what he hath to do.’ + Behold! when his Majesty had thus spoken, these things were immediately + carried out. His Majesty did these things on account of the greatness of + the love which he bore her, which was greater than anything. Never had + ancestral kings done the like for their mothers. Behold! his Majesty + extended his arm and bent his hand, and made for her the king’s offering + to Geb, to the Ennead of Gods, to the lesser Ennead of Gods... [to Anubis] + in the God’s Shrine, thousands of offerings of bread, beer, oxen, geese, + cattle... to [the Queen Teta-shera].” This is one of the most interesting + inscriptions discovered in Egypt in recent years, for the picturesqueness + of its diction is unusual. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn7.1"></a> <a href="#fnref7.1">[1]</a> + A polite periphrasis for the dead. +</p> + <p> + As has already been said, the king Amenhetep I was also buried in the Dra’ + Abu-’l-Negga, but the tomb has not yet been found. Amenhetep I and his + mother, Queen Nefret-ari-Aahmes, who is mentioned in the inscription + translated above, were both venerated as tutelary demons of the Western + Necropolis of Thebes after their deaths, as also was Mentuhetep III. At + Dêr el-Bahari both kings seem to have been worshipped with Hathor, the + Mistress of the Waste. The worship of Amen-Râ in the XVIIIth Dynasty + temple of Dêr el-Bahari was a novelty introduced by the priests of Amen at + that time. But the worship of Hathor went on side by side with that of + Amen in a chapel with a rock-cut shrine at the side of the Great Temple. + Very possibly this was the original cave-shrine of Hathor, long before + Mentuhetep’s time, and was incorporated with the Great Temple and + beautified with the addition of a pillared hall before it, built over part + of the XIth Dynasty north court and wall, by Hatshepsu’s architects. + </p> + <p> + The Great Temple, the excavation of which for the Egypt Exploration Fund + was successfully brought to an end by Prof. Naville in 1898, was erected + by Queen Hatshepsu in honour of Amen-Râ, her father Thothmes I, and her + brother-husband Thothmes II, and received a few additions from Thothmes + III, her successor. He, however, did not complete it, and it fell into + disrepair, besides suffering from the iconoclastic zeal of the heretic + Akhunaten, who hammered out some of the beautifully painted scenes upon + its walls. These were badly restored by Ramses II, whose painting is + easily distinguished from the original work by the dulness and badness of + its colour. + </p> + <p> + The peculiar plan and other remarkable characteristics of this temple are + well known. Its great terraces, with the ramps leading up to them, flanked + by colonnades, which, as we have seen, were imitated from the design of + the old XIth Dynasty temple at its side, are familiar from a hundred + illustrations, and the marvellously preserved colouring of its delicate + reliefs is known to every winter visitor to Egypt, and can be realized by + those who have never been there through the medium of Mr. Howard Carter’s + wonderful coloured reproductions, published in Prof. Naville’s edition of + the temple by the Egypt Exploration Fund. The Great Temple stands to-day + clear of all the débris which used to cover it, a lasting monument to the + work of the greatest of the societies which busy themselves with the + unearthing of the relics of the ancient world. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0014" id="linkDimage-0014"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/344.jpg" width="100%" + alt="344.jpg the Two Temples of Dêr el-Bahari. Excavated By Prof. Naville, 1893-8 and 1903-6, for the Egypt Exploration Fund " /> + </div> + <p> + The two temples of Dêr el-Bahari will soon stand side by side, as they + originally stood, and will always be associated with the name of the + society which rescued them from oblivion, and gave us the treasures of the + royal tombs at Abydos. The names of the two men whom the Egypt Exploration + Fund commissioned to excavate Dêr el-Bahari and Abydos, and for whose work + it exclusively supplied the funds, Profs. Naville and Petrie, will live + chiefly in connection with their work at Dêr el-Bahari and Abydos. + </p> + <p> + The Egyptians called the two temples <i>Tjeserti</i>, “the two holy + places,” the new building receiving the name of <i>Tjeser-tjesru</i>, + “Holy of Holies,” and the whole tract of Dêr el-Bahari the appellation <i>Tjesret</i>, + “the Holy.” The extraordinary beauty of the situation in which they are + placed, with its huge cliffs and rugged hillsides, may be appreciated from + the photograph which is taken from a steep path half-way up the cliff + above the Great Temple. In it we see the Great Temple in the foreground + with the modern roofs of two of its colonnades, devised in order to + protect the sculptures beneath them, the great trilithon gate leading to + the upper court, and the entrance to the cave-shrine of Amen-Râ, with the + niches of the kings on either side, immediately at the foot of the cliff. + In the middle distance is the duller form of the XIth Dynasty temple, with + its rectangular platform, the ramp leading up to it, and the pyramid in + the centre of it, surrounded by pillars, half-emerging from the great + heaps of sand and débris all around. The background of cliffs and hills, + as seen in the photograph, will serve to give some idea of the beauty of + the surroundings,—an arid beauty, it is true, for all is desert. + There is not a blade of vegetation near; all is salmon-red in colour + beneath a sky of ineffable blue, and against the red cliffs the white + temple stands out in vivid contrast. + </p> + <p> + The second illustration gives a nearer view of the great trilithon gate in + the upper court, at the head of the ramp. The long hill of Dra’ + Abu-’l-Negga is seen bending away northward behind the gate. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0015" id="linkDimage-0015"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/346.jpg" width="100%" + alt="346.jpg the Upper Court and Trilithon Gate " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Of The Xviiith Dynasty Temple At Dêk El-Bahari. About 1500 + B.C. +</p> + <p> + This is the famous gate on which the jealous Thothmes III chiselled out + Hatshepsu’s name in the royal cartouches and inserted his own in its + place; but he forgot to alter the gender of the pronouns in the + accompanying inscription, which therefore reads “King Thothmes III, she + made this monument to her father Amen.” + </p> + <p> + Among Prof. Naville’s discoveries here one of the most important is that + of the altar in a small court to the north, which, as the inscription + says, was made in honour of the god Râ-Harmachis “of beautiful white stone + of Anu.” It is of the finest white limestone known. Here also were found + the carved ebony doors of a shrine, now in the Cairo Museum. One of the + most beautiful parts of the temple is the Shrine of Anubis, with its + splendidly preserved paintings and perfect columns and roof of white + limestone. The effect of the pure white stone and simplicity of + architecture is almost Hellenic. + </p> + <p> + The Shrine of Hathor has been known since the time of Mariette, but in + connection with it some interesting discoveries have been made during the + excavation of the XIth Dynasty temple. In the court between the two + temples were found a large number of small votive offerings, consisting of + scarabs, beads, little figures of cows and women, etc., of blue glazed <i>faïence</i> + and rough pottery, bronze and wood, and blue glazed ware ears, eyes, and + plaques with figures of the sacred cow, and other small objects of the + same nature. These are evidently the ex-votos of the XVIIIth Dynasty + fellahîn to the goddess Hathor in the rock-shrine above the court. When + the shrine was full or the little ex-votos broken, the sacristans threw + them over the wall into the court below, which thus became a kind of + dust-heap. Over this heap the sand and débris gradually collected, and + thus they were preserved. The objects found are of considerable interest + to anthropological science. + </p> + <p> + The Great Temple was built, as we have said, in honour of Thothmes I and + II, and the deities Amen-Râ and Hathor. More especially it was the + funerary chapel of Thothmes I. His tomb was excavated, not in the Dra’ + Abu-l-Negga, which was doubtless now too near the capital city and not in + a sufficiently dignified position of aloofness from the common herd, but + at the end of the long valley of the Wadiyên, behind the cliff-hill above + Dêr el-Bahari. Hence the new temple was oriented in the direction of his + tomb. Immediately behind the temple, on the other side of the hill, is the + tomb which was discovered by Lepsius and cleared in 1904 for Mr. Theodore + N. Davis by Mr. Howard Carter, then chief inspector of antiquities at + Thebes. Its gallery is of very small dimensions, and it winds about in the + hill in corkscrew fashion like the tomb of Aahmes at Aby-dos. Owing to its + extraordinary length, the heat and foul air in the depths of the tomb were + almost insupportable and caused great difficulty to the excavators. When + the sarcophagus-chamber was at length reached, it was found to contain the + empty sarcophagi of Thothmes I and of Hatshepsu. The bodies had been + removed for safe-keeping in the time of the XXIst Dynasty, that of + Thothmes I having been found with those of Set! I and Ramses II in the + famous pit at Dêr el-Bahari, which was discovered by M. Maspero in 1881. + Thothmes I seems to have had another and more elaborate tomb (No. 38) in + the Valley of the Tombs of the Kings, which was discovered by M. Loret in + 1898. Its frescoes had been destroyed by the infiltration of water. + </p> + <p> + The fashion of royal burial in the great valley behind Dêr el-Bahari was + followed during the XVIIIth, XIXth, and XXth Dynasties. Here in the + eastern branch of the Wadiyên, now called the <i>Bibân el-Mulûk</i>, “the + Tombs of the Kings,” the greater number of the mightiest Theban Pharaohs + were buried. In the western valley rested two of the kings of the XVIIIth + Dynasty, who desired even more remote burial-places, Amenhetep III and Ai. + The former chose for his last home a most kingly site. Ancient kings had + raised great pyramids of artificial stone over their graves. Amenhetep, + perhaps the greatest and most powerful Pharaoh of them all, chose to have + a natural pyramid for his grave, a mountain for his tumulus. The + illustration shows us the tomb of this monarch, opening out of the side of + one of the most imposing hills in the Western Valley. No other king but + Amenhetep rested beneath this hill, which thus marks his grave and his + only. + </p> + <p> + It is in the Eastern Valley, the Valley of the Tombs of the Kings properly + speaking, that the tombs of Thothmes I and Hatshepsu lie, and here the + most recent discoveries have been made. It is a desolate spot. As we come + over the hill from Dêr el-Bahari we see below us in the glaring sunshine a + rocky canon, with sides sometimes sheer cliff, sometimes sloped by great + falls of rock in past ages. At the bottom of these slopes the square + openings of the many royal tombs can be descried. [See illustration.] Far + below we see the forms of tourists and the tomb-guards accompanying them, + moving in and out of the openings like ants going in and out of an ants’ + nest. Nothing is heard but the occasional cry of a kite and the ceaseless + rhythmical throbbing of the exhaust-pipe of the electric light engine in + the unfinished tomb of Ramses XI. Above and around are the red desert + hills. The Egyptians called it “The Place of Eternity.” + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0016" id="linkDimage-0016"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/350.jpg" width="100%" + alt="350.jpg the Tomb-mountain of Amenhetep Iii, in The Western Valley, Thebes. " /> + </div> + <p> + In this valley some remarkable discoveries have been made during the last + few years. In 1898 M. Grébaut discovered the tomb of Amenhetep II, in + which was found the mummy of the king, intact, lying in its sarcophagus in + the depths of the tomb. The royal body now lies there for all to see. The + tomb is lighted with electricity, as are all the principal tombs of the + kings. At the head of the sarcophagus is a single lamp, and, when the + party of visitors is collected in silence around the place of death, all + the lights are turned out, and then the single light is switched on, + showing the royal head illuminated against the surrounding blackness. The + effect is indescribably weird and impressive. The body has only twice been + removed from the tomb since its burial, the second time when it was for a + brief space taken up into the sunlight to be photographed by Mr.. Carter, + in January, 1902. The temporary removal was carefully carried out, the + body of his Majesty being borne up through the passages of the tomb on the + shoulders of the Italian electric light workmen, preceded and followed by + impassive Arab candle-bearers. The workmen were most reverent in their + handling of the body of “<i> il gran ré</i>,” as they called him. + </p> + <p> + In the tomb were found some very interesting objects, including a model + boat (afterwards stolen), across which lay the body of a woman. This body + now lies, with others found close by, in a side chamber of the tomb. One + may be that of Hatshepsu. The walls of the tomb-chamber are painted to + resemble papyrus, and on them are written chapters of the “Book of What Is + in the Underworld,” for the guidance of the royal ghost. + </p> + <p> + In 1902-3 Mr. Theodore Davis excavated the tomb of Thothmes IV. It yielded + a rich harvest of antiquities belonging to the funeral state of the king, + including a chariot with sides of embossed and gilded leather, decorated + with representations of the king’s warlike deeds, and much fine blue + pottery, all of which are now in the Cairo Museum. The tomb-gallery + returns upon itself, describing a curve. An interesting point with regard + to it is that it had evidently been violated even in the short time + between the reigns of its owner and Horem-heb, probably in the period of + anarchy which prevailed at Thebes during the reign of the heretic + Akhunaten; for in one of the chambers is a hieratic inscription recording + the repair of the tomb in the eighth year of Horemheb by Maya, + superintendent of works in the Tombs of the Kings. It reads as follows: + “In the eighth year, the third month of summer, under the Majesty of King + Tjeser-khepru-Râ Sotp-n-Râ, Son of the Sun, Horemheb Meriamen, his Majesty + (Life, health, and wealth unto him!) commanded that orders should be sent + unto the Fanbearer on the King’s Left Hand, the King’s Scribe and Overseer + of the Treasury, the Overseer of the Works in the Place of Eternity, the + Leader of the Festivals of Amen in Karnak, Maya, son of the judge Aui, + born of the Lady Ueret, that he should renew the burial of King + Men-khepru-Râ, deceased, in the August Habitation in Western Thebes.” + Men-khepru-Râ was the prenomen or throne-name of Thothmes IV. Tied round a + pillar in the tomb is still a length of the actual rope used by the + thieves for crossing the chasm, which, as in many of the tombs here, was + left open in the gallery to bar the way to plunderers. The mummy of the + king was found in the tomb of Amenhetep II, and is now at Cairo. + </p> + <p> + The discovery of the tomb of Thothmes I and Hat-shepsu has already been + described. In 1905 Mr. Davis made his latest find, the tomb of Iuaa and + Tuaa, the father and mother of Queen Tii, the famous consort of Amenhetep + III and mother of Akhunaten the heretic. Readers of Prof. Maspero’s + history will remember that Iuaa and Tuaa are mentioned on one of the large + memorial scarabs of Amenhetep III, which commemorates his marriage. The + tomb has yielded an almost incredible treasure of funerary furniture, + besides the actual mummies of Tii’s parents, including a chariot overlaid + with gold. Gold overlay of great thickness is found on everything, boxes, + chairs, etc. It was no wonder that Egypt seemed the land of gold to the + Asiatics, and that even the King of Babylon begs this very Pharaoh + Amenhetep to send him gold, in one of the letters found at Tell el-Amarna, + “for gold is as water in thy land.” It is probable that Egypt really + attained the height of her material wealth and prosperity in the reign of + Amenhetep III. Certainly her dominion reached its farthest limits in his + time, and his influence was felt from the Tigris to the Sudan. He hunted + lions for his pleasure in Northern Mesopotamia, and he built temples at + Jebel Barkal beyond Dongola. We see the evidence of lavish wealth in the + furniture of the tomb of Iuaa and Tuaa. Yet, fine as are many of these + gold-overlaid and overladen objects of the XVIIIth Dynasty, they have + neither the good taste nor the charm of the beautiful jewels from the + XIIth Dynasty tombs at Dashûr. It is mere vulgar wealth. There is too much + gold thrown about. “For gold is as water in thy land.” In three hundred + years’ time Egypt was to know what poverty meant, when the poor + priest-kings of the XXIst Dynasty could hardly keep body and soul together + and make a comparatively decent show as Pharaohs of Egypt. Then no doubt + the latter-day Thebans sighed for the good old times of the XVIIIth + Dynasty, when their city ruled a considerable part of Africa and Western + Asia and garnered their riches into her coffers. But the days of the XIIth + Dynasty had really been better still. Then there was not so much wealth, + but what there was (and there was as much gold then, too) was used + sparingly, tastefully, and simply. The XIIth Dynasty, not the XVIIIth, was + the real Golden Age of Egypt. + </p> + <p> + From the funeral panoply of a tomb like that of Iuaa and Tuaa we can + obtain some idea of the pomp and state of Amenhetep III. But the remains + of his Theban palace, which have been discovered and excavated by Mr. C. + Tytus and Mr. P. E. Newberry, do not bear out this idea of magnificence. + It is quite possible that the palace was merely a pleasure house, erected + very hastily and destined to fall to pieces when its owner tired of it or + died, like the many palaces of the late Khedive Ismail. It stood on the + border of an artificial lake, whereon the Pharaoh and his consort Tii + sailed to take their pleasure in golden barks. This is now the cultivated + rectangular space of land known as the Birket Habû, which is still + surrounded by the remains of the embankment built to retain its waters, + and becomes a lake during the inundation. On the western shore of this + lake Amenhetep erected the “stately pleasure dome,” the remains of which + still cover the sandy tract known as el-Malkata, “the Salt-pans,” south of + the great temple of Medînet Habû. These remains consist merely of the + foundations and lowest wall-courses of a complicated and rambling building + of many chambers, constructed of common unburnt brick and plastered with + white stucco on walls and floors, on which were painted beautiful frescoes + of fighting bulls, birds of the air, water-fowl, fish-ponds, etc., in much + the same style as the frescoes of Tell el-Amarna executed in the next + reign. There were small pillared halls, the columns of which were of wood, + mounted on bases of white limestone. The majority still remain in + position. In several chambers there are small daïses, and in one the + remains of a throne, built of brick and mud covered with plaster and + stucco, upon which the Pharaoh Amenhetep sat. This is the palace of him + whom the Greeks called Memnon, who ruled Egypt when Israel was in bondage + and when the dynasty of Minos reigned in Crete. Here by the side of his + pleasure-lake the most powerful of Egyptian Pharaohs whiled away his time + during the summer heats. Evidently the building was intended to be of the + lightest construction, and never meant to last; but to our ideas it seems + odd that an Egyptian Pharaoh should live in a mud palace. Such a building + is, however, quite suited to the climate of Egypt, as are the modern crude + brick dwellings of the fellahîn. In the ruins of the palace were found + several small objects of interest, and close by was an ancient glass + manufactory of Amenhetep III’s time, where much of the characteristic + beautifully coloured and variegated opaque glass of the period was made. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0017" id="linkDimage-0017"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/356.jpg" width="100%" + alt="356.jpg the Tomb-hill of Shêkh ’abd el-Kûrna, Thebes" /> + </div> + <p> + The tombs of the magnates of Amenhetep III’s reign and of the reigns of + his immediate predecessors were excavated, as has been said, on the + eastern slope of the hill of Shêkh ‘Abd el-Kûrna, where was the earliest + Theban necropolis. No doubt many of the early tombs of the time of the + VIth Dynasty were appropriated and remodelled by the XVIIIth Dynasty + magnates. We have an instance of time’s revenge in this matter, in the + case of the tomb of Imadua, a great priestly official of the time of the + XXth Dynasty. This tomb previously belonged to an XVIIIth Dynasty worthy, + but Imadua appropriated it three hundred years later and covered up all + its frescoes with the much begilt decoration fashionable in his period. + Perhaps the XVIIIth Dynasty owner had stolen it from an original owner of + the time of the VIth Dynasty. The tomb has lately been cleared out by Mr. + Newberry. + </p> + <p> + Much work of the same kind has been done here of late years by Messrs. + Newberry and R. L. Mond, in succession. To both we are indebted for the + excavation of many known tombs, as well as for the discovery of many + others previously unknown. Among the former was that of Sebekhetep, + cleared by Mr. Newberry. Se-bekhetep was an official of the time of + Thothmes III. From his tomb, and from others in the same hill, came many + years ago the fine frescoes shown in the illustration, which are among the + most valued treasures of the Egyptian department of the British Museum. + They are typical specimens of the wall-decoration of an XVIIIth Dynasty + tomb. On one may be seen a bald-headed peasant, with staff in hand, + pulling an ear of corn from the standing crop in order to see if it is + ripe. He is the “Chief Reaper,” and above him is a prayer that the “great + god in heaven” may increase the crop. To the right of him is a charioteer + standing beside a car and reining back a pair of horses, one black, the + other bay. Below is another charioteer with two white horses. He sits on + the floor of the car with his back to them, eating or resting, while they + nibble the branches of a tree close by. Another scene is that of a scribe + keeping tally of offerings brought to the tomb, while fellahm are bringing + flocks of geese and other fowl, some in crates. The inscription above is + apparently addressed by the goose-herd to the man with the crates. It + reads: “Hasten thy feet because of the geese! Hearken! thou knowest not + the next minute what has been said to thee!” Above, a reïs with a stick + bids other peasants squat on the ground before addressing the scribe, and + he is saying to them: “Sit ye down to talk.” The third scene is in another + style; on it may be seen Semites bringing offerings of vases of gold, + silver, and copper to the royal presence, bowing themselves to the ground + and kissing the dust before the throne. The fidelity and accuracy with + which the racial type of the tribute-bearers is given is most + extraordinary; every face seems a portrait, and each one might be seen any + day now in the Jewish quarters of Whitechapel. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0018" id="linkDimage-0018"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/358.jpg" width="100%" + alt="358.jpg Wall-painting from a Tomb " /> + </div> + <p> + The first two paintings are representative of a very common style of + fresco-pictures in these tombs. The care with which the animals are + depicted is remarkable. Possibly one of the finest Egyptian + representations of an animal is the fresco of a goat in the tomb of + Gen-Amen, discovered by Mr. Mond. There is even an attempt here at + chiaroscuro, which is unknown to Egyptian art generally, except at Tell + el-Amarna. Evidently the Egyptian painters reached the apogee of their art + towards the end of the XVIIIth Dynasty. The third, the representation of + tribute-bearers, is of a type also well known at this period. In all the + chief tombs we have processions of Egyptians, Westerners, Northerners, + Easterners, and Southerners, bringing tribute to the Pharaoh. The North is + represented by the Semites, the East by the Punites (when they occur), the + South by negroes, the West by the Keftiu or people of Crete and Cyprus. + The representations of the last-named people have become of the very + highest interest during the last few years, on account of the discoveries + in Crete, which have revealed to us the state and civilization of these + very Keftiu. Messrs. Evans and Halbherr have discovered at Knossos and + Phaistos the cities and palace-temples of the king who sent forth their + ambassadors to far-away Egypt with gifts for the mighty Pharaoh; these + ambassadors were painted in the tombs of their hosts as representative of + the quarter of the world from which they came. + </p> + <p> + The two chief Egyptian representations of these people, who since they + lived in Greece may be called Greeks, though their more proper title would + be “Pe-lasgians,” are to be found in the tombs of Rekhmarâ and Senmut, the + former a vizier under Thothmes III, the latter the architect of + Hatshepsu’s temple at Dêr el-Bahari. Senmut’s tomb is a new rediscovery. + It was known, as Rekhmarâ’s was, in the early days of Egyptological + science, and Prisse d’Avennes copied its paintings. It was afterwards lost + sight of until rediscovered by Mr. Newberry and Prof. Steindorff. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0019" id="linkDimage-0019"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/360.jpg" width="100%" + alt="360.jpg Fresco in the Tomb of Senmut at Thebes. About 1500 B.c. " /> + </div> + <p> + The tomb of Rekhmarâ (No. 35) is well known to every visitor to Thebes, + but it is difficult to get at that of Senmut (No. 110); it lies at the top + of the hill round to the left and overlooking Dêr el-Bahari, an + appropriate place for it, by the way. In some ways Senmut’s + representations are more interesting than Rekhmarâ’s. They are more easily + seen, since they are now in the open air, the fore hall of the tomb having + been ruined; and they are better preserved, since they have not been + subjected to a century of inspection with naked candles and pawing with + greasy hands, as have Rekhmarâ’s frescoes. Further, there is no + possibility of mistaking what they represent. From right to left, walking + in procession, we see the Minoan gift-bearers from Crete, carrying in + their hands and on their shoulders great cups of gold and silver, in shape + like the famous gold cups found at Vaphio in Lakonia, but much larger, + also a ewer of gold and silver exactly like one of bronze discovered by + Mr. Evans two years ago at Knossos, and a huge copper jug with four + ring-handles round the sides. All these vases are specifically and + definitely Mycenaean, or rather, following the new terminology, Minoan. + They are of Greek manufacture and are carried on the shoulders of + Pelasgian Greeks. The bearers wear the usual Mycenaean costume, high boots + and a gaily ornamented kilt, and little else, just as we see it depicted + in the fresco of the Cupbearer at Knossos and in other Greek + representations. The coiffure, possibly the most characteristic thing + about the Mycenaean Greeks, is faithfully represented by the Egyptians + both here and in Rekhmarâ’s tomb. The Mycenaean men allowed their hair to + grow to its full natural length, like women, and wore it partly hanging + down the back, partly tied up in a knot or plait (the <i>kepas</i> of the + dandy Paris in the Iliad) on the crown of the head. This was the universal + fashion, and the Keftiu are consistently depicted by the XVIIIth Dynasty + Egyptians as following it. The faces in the Senmut fresco are not so well + portrayed as those in the Rekhmarâ fresco. There it is evident that the + first three ambassadors are faithfully depicted, as the portraits are + marked. The procession advances from left to right. The first man, “the + Great Chief of the Kefti and the Isles of the Green Sea,” is young, and + has a remarkably small mouth with an amiable expression. His complexion is + fair rather than dark, but his hair is dark brown. His lieutenant, the + next in order, is of a different type,—elderly, with a most + forbidding visage, Roman nose, and nutcracker jaws. Most of the others are + very much alike,—young, dark in complexion, and with long black hair + hanging below their waists and twisted up into fantastic knots and curls + on the tops of their heads. One, carrying on his shoulder a great silver + vase with curving handles and in one hand a dagger of early European + Bronze Age type, is looking back to hear some remark of his next + companion. Any one of these gift-bearers might have sat for the portrait + of the Knossian Cupbearer, the fresco discovered by Mr. Evans in the + palace-temple of Minos; he has the same ruddy brown complexion, the same + long black hair dressed in the same fashion, the same parti-coloured kilt, + and he bears his vase in much the same way. We have only to allow for the + difference of Egyptian and Mycenaean ways of drawing. There is no doubt + whatever that these Keftiu of the Egyptians were Cretans of the Minoan + Age. They used to be considered Phoenicians, but this view was long ago + exploded. They are not Semites, and that is quite enough. Neither are they + Asiatics of any kind. They are purely and simply Mycenaean, or rather + Minoan, Greeks of the pre-Hellenic period—Pelasgi, that is to say. + </p> + <p> + Probably no discovery of more far-reaching importance to our knowledge of + the history of the world generally and of our own culture especially has + ever been made than the finding of Mycenæ by Schliemann, and the further + finds that have resulted therefrom, culminating in the discoveries of Mr. + Arthur Evans at Knossos. Naturally, these discoveries are of extraordinary + interest to us, for they have revealed the beginnings and first bloom of + the European civilization of to-day. For our culture-ancestors are neither + the Egyptians, nor the Assyrians, nor the Hebrews, but the Hellenes, and + they, the Aryan-Greeks, derived most of their civilization from the + pre-Hellenic people whom they found in the land before them, the Pelasgi + or “Mycenæan” Greeks, “Minoans,” as we now call them, the Keftiu of the + Egyptians. These are the ancient Greeks of the Heroic Age, to which the + legends of the Hellenes refer; in their day were fought the wars of Troy + and of the Seven against Thebes, in their day the tragedy of the Atridse + was played out to its end, in their day the wise Minos ruled Knossos and + the <i>Ægean</i>. And of all the events which are at the back of these + legends we know nothing. The hiéroglyphed tablets of the pre-Hellenic + Greeks lie before us, but we cannot read them; we can only see that the + Minoan writing in many ways resembled the Egyptian, thus again confirming + our impression of the original early connection of the two cultures. + </p> + <p> + In view of this connection, and the known close relations between Crete + and Egypt, from the end of the XIIth Dynasty to the end of the XVIIIth, we + might have hoped to recover at Knossos a bilingual inscription in Cretan + and Egyptian hieroglyphs which would give us the key to the Minoan script + and tell us what we so dearly wish to know. But this hope has not yet been + realized. Two Egyptian inscriptions have been found at Knossos, but no + bilingual one. A list of Keftian names is preserved in the British Museum + upon an Egyptian writing-board from Thebes with what is perhaps a copy of + a single Cretan hieroglyph, a vase; but again, nothing bilingual. A list + of “Keftian words” occurs at the head of a papyrus, also in the British + Museum, but they appear to be nonsense, a mere imitation of the sounds of + a strange tongue. Still we need not despair of finding the much desired + Cretan-Egyptian bilingual inscription yet. Perhaps the double text of a + treaty between Crete and Egypt, like that of Ramses II with the Hittites, + may come to light. Meanwhile we can only do our best with the means at our + hand to trace out the history of the relations of the oldest European + culture with the ancient civilization of Egypt. The tomb-paintings at + Thebes are very important material. Eor it is due to them that the voice + of the doubter has finally ceased to be heard, and that now no + archaeologist questions that the Egyptians were in direct communication + with the Cretan Mycenæans in the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty, some fifteen + hundred years before Christ, for no one doubts that the pictures of the + Keftiu are pictures of Mycenaeans. + </p> + <p> + As we have seen, we know that this connection was far older than the time + of the XVIIIth Dynasty, but it is during that time and the Hyksos period + that we have the clearest documentary proof of its existence, from the + statuette of Abnub and the alabastron lid of King Khian, found at Knossos, + down to the Mycenaean pottery fragments found at Tell el-Amarna, a site + which has been utterly abandoned since the time of the heretic Akhunaten + (B.C. 1430), so that there is no possibility of anything found there being + later than his time. That the connection existed as late as the time of + the XXth Dynasty we know from the representations of golden <i>Bügelkannen</i> + or false-necked vases of Mycenaean form in the tomb of Ramses III in the + Bibân el-Mulûk, and of golden cups of Vaphio type in the tomb of Imadua, + already mentioned. This brings the connection down to about 1050 B.C. + </p> + <p> + After that date we cannot hope to find any certain evidence of connection, + for by that time the Mycenaean civilization had probably come to an end. + In the days of the XIIth and XVIIIth Dynasties a great and splendid power + evidently existed in Crete, and sent its peaceful ambassadors, the Keftiu + who are represented in the Theban tombs, to Egypt. But with the XIXth + Dynasty the name of the Keftiu disappears from Egyptian records, and their + place is taken by a congeries of warring seafaring tribes, whose names as + given by the Egyptians seem to be forms of tribal and place names well + known to us in the Greece of later days. We find the Akaivasha (<i>Axaifol</i>, + Achaians), Shakalsha (Sagalassians of Pisidia), Tursha (Tylissians of + Crete?), and Shardana (Sardians) allied with the Libyans and Mashauash + (Maxyes) in a land attack upon Egypt in the days of Meneptah, the + successor of Ramses II—just as in the later days of the XXVIth + Dynasty the Northern pirates visited the African shore of the + Mediterranean, and in alliance with the predatory Libyans attacked Egypt. + </p> + <p> + Prof. Petrie has lately [History of Egypt, iii, pp. Ill, I12.] proffered + an alternative view, which would make all these tribes Tunisians and + Algerians, thus disposing of the identification of the Akaivasha with the + Achaians, and making them the ancient representatives of the town of + el-Aghwat (Roman Agbia) in Tunis. But several difficulties might be + pointed out which are in the way of an acceptance of this view, and it is + probable that the older identifications with Greek tribes must still be + retained, so that Meneptah’s Akaivasha are evidently the ancient + representatives of the Achai(v)ans, the Achivi of the Roman poets. The + terminations <i>sha</i> and <i>na</i>, which appear in these names, are + merely ethnic and locative affixes belonging to the Asianic language + system spoken by these tribes at that time, to which the language of the + Minoan Cretans (which is written in the Knossian hieroglyphs) belonged. + They existed in ancient Lycian in the forms <i>azzi</i> and <i>nna</i>, + and we find them enshrined in the Asia Minor place-names terminating in <i>assos</i> + and <i>nda</i>, as Halikarnassos, Sagalassos (Shakalasha in Meneptah’s + inscription), Oroanda, and Labraunda (which, as we have seen, is the same + as the [Greek word], a word of pre-Hellenic origin, both meaning “Place of + the Double Axe”) The identification of these <i>sha</i> and <i>nal</i> + terminations in the Egyptian transliterations of the foreign names, with + the Lycian affixes referred to, was made some five years ago,<a href="#fn7.2" name="fnref7.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> and is now + generally accepted. We have, then, to find the equivalents of these names, + to strike off the final termination, as in the case of Akaiva-sha, where + Akaiva only is the real name, and this seems to be the Egyptian equivalent + of <i>Axaifol</i>, Achivi. It is strange to meet with this great name on + an Egyptian monument of the thirteenth century B.C. But yet not so + strange, when we recollect that it is precisely to that period that Greek + legend refers the war of Troy, which was an attack by Greek tribes from + all parts of the Ægean upon the Asianic city at Hissarlik in the Troad, + exactly parallel to the attacks of the Northerners on Egypt. And Homer + preserves many a reminiscence of early Greek visits, peaceful and the + reverse, to the coast of Egypt at this period. The reader will have + noticed that one no longer treats the siege of Troy as a myth. To do so + would be to exhibit a most uncritical mind; even the legends of King + Arthur have a historic foundation, and those of the Nibelungen are still + more probable. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn7.2"></a> <a href="#fnref7.2">[2]</a> + See Hall, <i>Oldest Civilization of Greece</i>, p. 178 <i>f</i>. +</p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img alt="366 (179K)" src="images/366.jpg" width="100%" /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img alt="367 (193K)" src="images/367.jpg" width="100%" /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/368.jpg" width="100%" + alt="368.jpg Page Image to Display Greek Words " /> + </div> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/369.jpg" width="100%" + alt="369.jpg Page Image to Display Greek Words " /> + </div> + <p> + In the eighth year of Ramses III the second Northern attack was made, by + the Pulesta (<i>Pelishtim</i>, Philistines), Tjakaray, Shakalasha + (Sagalassians), Vashasha, and Danauna or Daanau, in alliance with North + Syrian tribes. The Danauna are evidently the ancient representatives of + the <i>Aavaoî</i>, the Danaans who formed the bulk of the Greek army + against Troy under the leadership of the long-haired Achaians, [Greek + words] (like the Keftiu). The Vashasha have been identified by the writer + with the Axians, the [Greek word] of Crete. Prof. Petrie compares the name + of the Tjakaray with that of the (modern) place Zakro in Crete. + Identifications with modern place-names are of doubtful value; for + instance, we cannot but hold that Prof. Petrie errs greatly in identifying + the name of the Pidasa (another tribe mentioned in Ramses II’s time) with + that of the river Pidias in Cyprus. “Pidias” is a purely modern corruption + of the ancient Pediseus, which means the “plain-river” (because it flows + through the central plain of the island), from the Greek [Greek word]. If, + then, we make the Pidasa Cypriotes we assume that pure Greek was spoken in + Cyprus as early as 1100 b. c, which is highly improbable. The Pidasa were + probably Le-leges (Pedasians); the name of Pisidia may be the same, by + metathesis. Pedasos is a name always connected with the much wandering + tribe of the Leleges, where-ever they are found in Lakonia or in Asia + Minor. We believe them to have been known to the Egyptians as Pidasa. The + identification of the Tjakaray with Zakro is very tempting. The name was + formerly identified with that of the Teukrians, but the v in the word + Tewpot lias always been a stumbling-block in the way. Perhaps Zakro is + neither more nor less than the Tetkpoc-name, since the legendary Teucer, + the archer, was connected with the eastern or Eteokretan end of Crete, + where Zakro lies. In Mycenæan times Zakro was an important place, so that + the Tjakaray may be the Teukroi, after all, and Zakro may preserve the + name. At any rate, this identification is most alluring and, taken in + conjunction with the other cumulative identifications, is very probable; + but the identification of the Pidæa with the river Pediæus in Cyprus is + neither alluring nor probable. + </p> + <p> + In the time of Ramses II some of these Asia Minor tribes had marched + against Egypt as allies of the Hittites. We find among them the Luka or + Lycians, the Dardenui (Dardanians, who may possibly have been at that time + in the Troad, or elsewhere, for all these tribes were certainly + migratory), and the Masa (perhaps the Mysians). With the Cretans of Ramses + Ill’s time must be reckoned the Pulesta, who are certainly the + Philistines, then most probably in course of their traditional migration + from Crete to Palestine. In Philistia recent excavations by Mr. Welch have + disclosed the unmistakable presence of a late Mycenæan culture, and we can + only ascribe this to the Philistines, who were of Cretan origin. + </p> + <p> + Thus we see that all these Northern tribal names hold together with + remarkable persistence, and in fact refuse to be identified with any + tribes but those of Asia Minor and the Ægean. In them we see the broken + remnants of the old Minoan (Keftian) power, driven hither and thither + across the seas by intestinal feuds, and “winding the skein of grievous + wars till every man of them perished,” as Homer says of the heroes after + the siege of Troy. These were in fact the wanderings of the heroes, the + period of <i>Sturm und Drang</i> which succeeded the great civilized epoch + of Minos and his thalassocracy, of Knossos, Phaistos, and the Keftius. On + the walls of the temple of Medînet Habû, Ramses III depicted the portraits + of the conquered heroes who had fallen before the Egyptian onslaught, and + he called them heroes, <i>tuher</i> in Egyptian, fully recognizing their + Berserker gallantry. Above all in interest are the portraits of the + Philistines, those Greeks who at this very time seized part of Palestine + (which takes its name from them), and continued to exist there as a + separate people (like the Normans in France) for at least two centuries. + Goliath the giant was, then, a Greek; certainly he was of Cretan descent, + and so a Pelasgian. + </p> + <p> + Such are the conclusions to which modern discovery in Crete has impelled + us with regard to the pictures of the Keftiu at Shêkh ‘Abd el-Kûrna. It is + indeed a new chapter in the history of the relations of ancient Egypt with + the outside world that Dr. Arthur Evans has opened for us. And in this + connection some American work must not be overlooked. An expedition sent + out by the University of Pennsylvania, under Miss Harriet Boyd, has + discovered much of importance to Mycenæan study in the ruins of an ancient + town at Gournia in Crete, east of Knossos. Here, however, little has been + found that will bear directly on the question of relations between + Mycenaean Greece and Egypt. + </p> + <p> + The Theban nécropoles of the New Empire are by no means exhausted by a + description of the Tombs of the Kings and Shêkh ‘Abd el-Kûrna; but few new + discoveries have been made anywhere except in the picturesque valley of + the Tombs of the Queens, south of Shêkh ‘Abd el-Kûrna. Here the Italian + Egyptologist, Prof. Schiaparelli, has lately discovered and excavated some + very fine tombs of the XIXth and XXth Dynasties. The best is that of Queen + Nefertari, one of the wives of Ramses II. The colouring of the reliefs + upon these walls is extraordinarily bright, and the portraits of the + queen, who has a very beautiful face, with aquiline nose, are wonderfully + preserved. She was of the dark type, while another queen, Titi by name, + who was buried close by, was fair, and had a retroussé nose. Prof. + Schiaparelli also discovered here the tombs of some princes of the XXth + Dynasty, who died young. All the tombs are much alike, with a single short + gallery, on the walls of which are mythological scenes, figures of the + prince and of his father, the king, etc., painted in a crude style, which + shows a great degeneration from that of the XVIIIth Dynasty tombs. + </p> + <p> + We now leave the great necropolis and turn to the later temples of the + Western Bank at Thebes. These were of a funerary character, like those of + Dêr el-Bahari, already described. The most imposing of all in some + respects is the Ramesseum, where lies the huge granite colossus of Ramses + II, prostrate and broken, which Diodorus knew as the statue of Osymandyas. + This name is a late corruption of Ramses II’s throne-name, User-maat-Rà, + pronounced Ûsimare. The temple has been cleared by Mr. Howard Carter for + the Egyptian government, and the small town of priests’ houses, magazines, + and cellars, to the west of it, has been excavated by him. This is quite a + little Pompeii, with its small streets, its houses with the stucco still + clinging to the walls, its public altar, its market colonnade, and its + gallery of statues. The statues are only of brick like the walls, and + roughly shaped and plastered, but they were portraits, undoubtedly, of + celebrities of the time, though we do not know of whom. On either side are + the long magazines in which were kept the possessions of the priests of + the Ramesseum, the grain from the lands with which they were endowed, and + everything meet to be offered to the ghost of the king whom they served. + The plan of the place had evidently been altered after the time of Ramses + II, as remains of overbuilding were found here and there. The magazines + were first investigated in 1896 by Prof. Petrie, who also found in the + neighbourhood the remains of a number of small royal funerary temples of + the XVIIIth Dynasty, all looking in the direction of the hill, beyond + which lay the tombs of the kings. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0022" id="linkDimage-0022"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/372.jpg" width="100%" + alt="372.jpg the Valley of The Tombs Of The Queens at Thebes. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + In which Prof. Schiaparelli discovered the tomb of Ramses + II’s wife (1904). +</p> + <p> + We may now turn to Luxor, where immediately above the landing-place of the + steamers and dahabiyas rise the stately coloured colonnades of the Temple + of Luxor. Unfortunately, modern excavations have not been allowed to + pursue their course to completion here, as in the first great colonnaded + court, which was added by Ramses II to the original building of Amenhetep + III, Tutankhamen, and Horemheb, there still remains the Mohammedan Mosque + of Abu-’l-Haggâg, which may not be removed. Abu-’l-Haggâg, “the Father of + Pilgrims” (so called on account of the number of pilgrims to his shrine), + was a very holy shêkh, and his memory is held in the greatest reverence by + the Luksuris. It is unlucky that this mosque was built within the court of + the Great Temple, and it cannot be removed till Moslem religious + prejudices become at least partially ameliorated, and then the work of + completely excavating the Temple of Luxor may be carried out. + </p> + <p> + Between Luxor and Karnak lay the temple of the goddess Mut, consort of + Amen and protectress of Thebes. It stood in the part of the city known as + Asheru. This building was cleared in 1895 at the expense and under the + supervision of two English ladies, Miss Benson and Miss Gourlay. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0023" id="linkDimage-0023"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/374.jpg" width="100%" + alt="374.jpg the Nile-bank at Luxor " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + With A Dahabîya And A Steamer Of The Anglo-American Nile + Company. +</p> + <p> + The temple had always been remarkable on account of the prodigious number + of seated figures of the lioness-headed goddess Sekhemet, or Pakhet, which + it contains, dedicated by Amenhetep III and Sheshenk I; most of those in + the British Museum were brought from this temple. The excavators found + many more of them, and also some very interesting portrait-statues of the + late period which had been dedicated there. The most important of these + was the head and shoulders of a statue of Mentuemhat, governor of Thebes + at the time of the sack of the city by Ashur-bani-pal of Assyria in 668 + B.C. In Miss Benson’s interesting book, <i>The Temple of Mut in Asher</i>, + it is suggested, on the authority of Prof. Petrie, that his facial type is + Cypriote, but this speculation is a dangerous one, as is also the similar + speculation that the wonderful portrait-head of an old man found by Miss + Benson [* Plate vii of her book.] is of Philistine type. We have only to + look at the faces of elderly Egyptians to-day to see that the types + presented by Mentuemhat and Miss Benson’s “Philistine” need be nothing but + pure Egyptian. The whole work of the clearing was most efficiently carried + out, and the Cairo Museum obtained from it some valuable specimens of + Egyptian sculpture. + </p> + <p> + The Great Temple of Karnak is one of the chief cares of the Egyptian + Department of Antiquities. Its paramount importance, so to speak, as the + cathedral temple of Egypt, renders its preservation and exploration a work + of constant necessity, and its great extent makes this work one which is + always going on and which probably will be going on for many years to + come. The Temple of Karnak has cost the Egyptian government much money, + yet not a piastre of this can be grudged. For several years past the works + have been under the charge of M. Georges Legrain, the well-known engineer + and draughtsman who was associated with M. de Morgan in the work at + Dashûr. His task is to clear out the whole temple thoroughly, to discover + in it what previous investigators have left undiscovered, and to restore + to its original position what has fallen. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0024" id="linkDimage-0024"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/376.jpg" width="100%" + alt="376.jpg the Great Temple Op Karnak. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The left-hand obelisk is the highest in Egypt, and was + erected by Hatshepsu; the right-hand obelisk was put up by + Thothmes III. + </p> + + <p> + No general work of restoration is contemplated, nor would this be in the + slightest degree desirable. Up to the present M. Legrain has certainly + carried out all three branches of his task with great success. An + unforeseen event has, however, considerably complicated and retarded the + work. In October, 1899, one of the columns of the side aisles of the great + Hypostyle Hall fell, bringing down with it several others. The whole place + was a chaotic ruin, and for a moment it seemed as though the whole of the + Great Hall, one of the wonders of the world, would collapse. The disaster + was due to the gradual infiltration of water from the Nile beneath the + structure, whose foundations, as is usual in Egypt, were of the flimsiest + description. Even the most imposing Egyptian temples have jerry-built + foundations; usually they are built on the top of the wall-stumps of + earlier buildings of different plan, filled in with a confused mass of + earlier slabs and weak rubbish of all kinds. Had the Egyptian buildings + been built on sure foundations, they would have been preserved to a much + greater extent even than they are. In such a climate as that of Egypt a + stone building well built should last for ever. + </p> + <p> + M. Legrain has for the last five years been busy repairing the damage. All + the fallen columns are now restored to the perpendicular, and the capitals + and architraves are in process of being hoisted into their original + positions. The process by which M. Legrain carries out this work has been + already described. He works in the old Egyptian fashion, building great + inclines or ramps of earth up which the pillar-drums, the capitals, and + the architrave-blocks are hauled by manual labour, and then swung into + position. This is the way in which the Egyptians built Karnak, and in this + way, too, M. Le-grain is rebuilding it. It is a slow process, but a sure + one, and now it will not be long before we shall see the hall, except its + roof, in much the same condition as it was when Seti built it. Lovers of + the picturesque will, however, miss the famous leaning column, hanging + poised across the hall, which has been a main feature in so many pictures + and photographs of Karnak. This fell in the catastrophe of 1899, and + naturally it has not been possible to restore it to its picturesque, but + dangerous, position. + </p> + <p> + The work at Karnak has been distinguished during the last two years by two + remarkable discoveries. Outside the main temple, to the north of the + Hypostyle Hall, M. Legrain found a series of private sanctuaries or + shrines, built of brick by personages of the XVIIIth Dynasty and later, in + order to testify their devotion to Amen. In these small cells were found + some remarkable statues, one of which is illustrated. It is one of the + most perfect of its kind. A great dignitary of the XVIIIth Dynasty is seen + seated with his wife, their daughter standing between them. Round his neck + are four chains of golden rings, with which he had been decorated by the + Pharaoh for his services. It is a remarkable group, interesting for its + style and workmanship as well as for its subject. As an example of the + formal hieratic type of portraiture it is very fine. + </p> + <p> + The other and more important discovery of the two was made by M. Legrain + on the south side of the Hypo-style Hall. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0025" id="linkDimage-0025"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/379.jpg" width="100%" + alt="379.jpg the Great Temple Of Karnak. " /> + </div> + <p> + The left-hand obelisk is the highest in Egypt, and was erected by + Hatshepsu; the right-hand obelisk was put up by Thothmes III. + </p> + <p> + M. de Morgan in the work at Dashûr. His task is to clear out the whole + temple thoroughly, to discover in it what previous investigators have left + undiscovered, and to restore to its original position what has fallen. + Tentative excavations, begun in an unoccupied tract under the wall of the + hall, resulted in the discovery of parts of statues; the place was then + regularly excavated, and the result has been amazing. The ground was full + of statues, large and small, at some unknown period buried pell-mell, one + on the top of another. Some are broken, but the majority are perfect, + which is in itself unusual, and is due very much to the soft, muddy soil + in which they have lain. Statues found on dry desert land are often + terribly cracked, especially when they are of black granite, the crystals + of which seem to have a greater tendency to disintegration than have those + of the red syenite. The Karnak statues are figures of pious persons, who + had dedicated portraits of themselves in the temple of Amen, together with + those of great men whom the king had honoured by ordering their statues + placed in the temple during their lives. + </p> + <p> + Of this number was the great sage Amenhetep, son of Hapi, the founder of + the little desert temple of Dêr el-Medîna, near Dêr el-Bahari, who was a + sort of prime minister under Amenhetep III, and was venerated in later + days as a demigod. His statue was found with the others by M. Legrain. + Among them is a figure made entirely of green felspar, an unusual material + for so large a statuette. A fine portrait of Thothmes III was also found. + The illustration shows this wonderfully fruitful excavation in progress, + with the diggers at work in the black mud soil, in the foreground the + basket-boys carrying away the rubbish on their shoulders, and the massive + granite walls of the Great Hypostyle Hall of Seti in the background. The + huge size of the roof-blocks is noticeable. These are not the actual + uppermost roof-blocks, but only the architraves from pillar to pillar; the + original roof consisted of similar blocks laid across in the transverse + direction from architrave to architrave. An Egyptian granite temple was in + fact built upon the plan of a child’s box of bricks; it was but a modified + and beautified Stonehenge. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0026" id="linkDimage-0026"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/381.jpg" width="100%" + alt="381.jpg Portrait-group of a Great Noble and his Wife " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Of The Time Of The Xviiith Dynasty. Discovered by M. Legrain + at Karnak. +</p> + <p> + Other important discoveries have been made by M. Legrain in the course of + his work. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0027" id="linkDimage-0027"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/382.jpg" width="100%" + alt="382.jpg a Tomb Fitted up As an Explorer’s Residence. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + The Tomb of Pentu (No. 5) at Tell el-Amarna, inhabited by + Mr. de G. Davies during his work for the Archaeological + Survey of Egypt (Egypt Exploration Fund). About 1400 B.C. +</p> + <p> + Among them are statues of the late Middle Kingdom, including one of King + Usertsen (Senusret) IV of the XIIIth Dynasty. There are also reliefs of + the reign of Amenhetep I, which are remarkable for the delicacy of their + workmanship and the sureness of their technique. + </p> + <p> + We know that the temple was built as early as the time of TJsertsen, for + in it have been found one or two of his blocks; and no doubt the original + shrine, which was rebuilt in the time of Philip Arrhidseus, was of the + same period, but hitherto no remains of the centuries between his time and + that of Hatshepsu had been found. With M. Legrain’s work in the greatest + temple of Thebes we finish our account of the new discoveries in the chief + city of ancient Egypt, as we began it with the work of M. Naville in the + oldest temple there. + </p> + <p> + One of the most interesting questions connected with the archaeology of + Thebes is that which asks whether the heretical disk-worshipper Akhunaten + (Amenhetep IV) erected buildings there, and whether any trace of them has + ever been discovered. To those who are interested in Egyptian history and + religion the transitory episode of the disk-worship heresy is already + familiar. The precise character of the heretical dogma, which Amenhetep IV + proclaimed and desired his subjects to. accept, has lately been well + explained by Mr. de Garis Davies in his volumes, published by the + “Archaeological Survey of Egypt” branch of the Egypt Exploration Fund, on + the tombs of el-Amarna. He shows that the heretical doctrine was a + monotheism of a very high order. Amenhetep IV (or as he preferred to call + himself, Akhunaten, “Glory of the Disk”) did not, as has usually been + supposed, merely worship the Sun-disk itself as the giver of life, and + nothing more. He venerated the glowing disk merely as the visible + emanation of the deity behind it, who dispensed heat and life to all + living things through its medium. The disk was, so to speak, the window in + heaven through which the unknown God, the “Lord of the Disk,” shed a + portion of his radiance on the world. Now, given an ignorance of the true + astronomical character of the sun, we see how eminently rational a + religion this was. In effect, the sun is the source of all life upon this + earth, and so Akhunaten caused its rays to be depicted each with a hand + holding out the sign of life to the earth. The monotheistic worship of the + sun alone is certainly the highest form of pagan religion, but Akhunaten + saw further than this. His doctrine was that there was a deity behind the + sun, whose glory shone through it and gave us life. This deity was unnamed + and unnamable; he was “the Lord of the Disk.” We see in his heresy, + therefore, the highest attitude to which religious ideas had attained + before the days of the Hebrew prophets. + </p> + <p> + This religion seems to have been developed out of the philosophical + speculations of the priests of the Sun at Heliopolis. Akhunaten with + unwise iconoclastic zeal endeavoured to root out the worship of the + ancient gods of Egypt, and especially that of Amen-Bà, the ruler of the + Egyptian pantheon, whose primacy in the hearts of the people made him the + most redoubtable rival of the new doctrine. But the name of the old + Sun-god Bà-Harmaehis was spared, and it is evident that Akhunaten regarded + him as more or less identical with his god. + </p> + <p> + It has been supposed by Prof. Petrie that Queen Tii, the mother of + Akhunaten, was of Mitannian (Armenian) origin, and that she brought the + Aten religion to Egypt from her native land, and taught it to her son. + Certainly it seems as though the new doctrine had made some headway before + the death of Amenhetep III, but we have no reason to attribute it to Tii, + or to suppose that she brought it with her from abroad. There is no proof + whatever that she was not a native Egyptian, and the mummies of her + parents, Iuaa and Tuaa, are purely Egyptian in facial type. It seems + undoubted that the Aten cult was a development of pure Egyptian religious + thought. + </p> + <p> + At first Akhunaten tried to establish his religion at Thebes alongside + that of Amen and his attendant pantheon. He seems to have built a temple + to the Aten there, and we see that his courtiers began to make tombs for + themselves in the new realistic style of sculptural art, which the king, + heretical in art as in religion, had introduced. The tomb of Barnes at + Shêkh ‘Abd el-Kûrna has on one side of the door a representation of the + king in the old regular style, and on the other side one in the new + realistic style, which depicts him in all the native ugliness in which + this strange truth-loving man seems to have positively gloried. We find, + too, that he caused a temple to the Aten to be erected in far-away Napata, + the capital of Nubia, by Jebel Barkal in the Sudan. The facts as to the + Theban and Napata temples have been pointed out by Prof. Breasted, of + Chicago. + </p> + <p> + But the opposition of the Theban priesthood was too strong. Akhunaten + shook the dust of the capital off his feet and retired to the isolated + city of Akhet-aten, “the Glory of the Disk,” at the modern Tell el-Amarna, + where he could philosophize in peace, while his kingdom was left to take + care of itself. He and his wife Nefret-iti, who seems to have been a + faithful sharer of his views, reigned over a select court of + Aten-worship-ping nobles, priests, and artists. The artists had under + Akhunaten an unrivalled opportunity for development, of which they had + already begun to take considerable advantage before the end of his reign + and the restoration of the old order of ideas. Their style takes on itself + an almost bizarre freedom, which reminds us strongly of the similar + characteristic in Mycenaean art. There is a strange little relief in the + Berlin Museum of the king standing cross-legged, leaning on a staff, and + languidly smelling a flower, while the queen stands by with her garments + blown about by the wind. The artistic monarch’s graceful attitude is + probably a faithful transcript of a characteristic pose. + </p> + <p> + We see from this what an Egyptian artist could do when his shackles were + removed, but unluckily Egypt never produced another king who was at the + same time an original genius, an artist, and a thinker. When Akhunaten + died, the Egyptian artists’ shackles were riveted tighter than ever. The + reaction was strong. The kingdom had fallen into anarchy, and the foreign + empire which his predecessors had built up had practically been thrown to + the winds by Akhunaten. The whole is an example of the confusion and + disorganization which ensue when a philosopher rules. Not long after the + heretic’s death the old religion was fully restored, the cult of the disk + was blotted out, and the Egyptians returned joyfully to the worship of + their myriad deities. Akhunaten’s ideals were too high for them. The + débris of the foreign empire was, as usual in such cases, put together + again, and customary law and order restored by the conservative + reactionaries who succeeded him. Henceforth Egyptian civilization runs an + uninspired and undeveloping course till the days of the Saïtes and the + Ptolemies. This point in the history of Egypt, therefore, forms a + convenient stopping-place at which to pause, while we turn once more to + Western Asia, and ascertain to what extent recent excavations and research + have thrown new light upon the problems connected with the rise and + history of the Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian Empires. + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/387.jpg" width="100%" alt="387.jpg " /> + </div> + <p> + <a name="linkD2HCH0002" id="linkD2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER VIII—THE ASSYRIAN AND NEO-BABYLONIAN EMPIRES IN THE LIGHT OF RECENT RESEARCH + </h2> + <p> + The early history of Assyria has long been a subject on which historians + were obliged to trust largely to conjecture, in their attempts to + reconstruct the stages by which its early rulers obtained their + independence and laid the foundations of the mighty empire over which + their successors ruled. That the land was colonized from Babylonia and was + at first ruled as a dependency of the southern kingdom have long been + regarded as established facts, but until recently little was known of its + early rulers and governors, and still less of the condition of the country + and its capital during the early periods of their existence. Since the + excavations carried out by the British Museum at Kala Sherghat, on the + western bank of the Tigris, it has been known that the mounds at that spot + mark the site of the city of Ashur, the first capital of the Assyrians, + and the monuments and records recovered during those excavations have + hitherto formed our principal source of information for the early history + of the country.<a href="#fn8.1" name="fnref8.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> Some of the oldest records found in the course of these + excavations were short votive texts inscribed by rulers who bore the title + of <i>ishshakku</i>, corresponding to the Sumerian and early Babylonian + title of patesi, and with some such meaning as “viceroy.” It was rightly + conjectured from the title which they bore that these early rulers owed + allegiance to the kings of Babylon and were their nominees, or at any rate + their tributaries. The names of a few of these early viceroys were + recovered from their votive inscriptions and from notices in later + historical texts, but it was obvious that our knowledge of early Assyrian + history would remain very fragmentary until systematic excavations in + Assyria were resumed. Three years ago (1902) the British Museum resumed + excavations at Kuyunjik, the site of Nineveh. The work was begun and + carried out under the direction of Mr. L. W. King, but since last summer + has been continued by Mr. R. C. Thompson. Last year, too, excavations were + reopened at Sherghat by the Deutsch-Orient Ge-sellschaft, at first under + the direction of Dr. Koldewey, and afterwards under that of Dr. Andrae, by + whom they are at present being carried on. This renewed activity on the + sites of the ancient cities of Assyria is already producing results of + considerable interest, and the veil which has so long concealed the + earlier periods in the history of that country is being lifted. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn8.1"></a> <a href="#fnref8.1">[1]</a> + For the texts and translations of these documents, see + Budge and King, Annals of the Kings of Assyria, pp. iff. +</p> + <p> + Shortly before these excavations in Assyria were set on foot an indication + was obtained from an early Babylonian text that the history of Assyria as + a dependent state or province of Babylon must be pushed back to a far more + remote period than had hitherto been supposed. In one of Hammurabi’s + letters to Sin-idinnam, governor of the city of Larsam, to which reference + has already been made, directions are given for the despatch to the king + of “two hundred and forty men of ‘the King’s Company’ under the command of + Nannar-iddina... who have left the country of Ashur and the district of + Shitullum.” From this most interesting reference it followed that the + country to the north of Babylonia was known as Assyria at the time of the + kings of the First Dynasty of Babylon, and the fact that Babylonian troops + were stationed there by Hammurabi proved that the country formed an + integral part of the Babylonian empire. + </p> + <p> + These conclusions were soon after strikingly confirmed by two passages in + the introductory sections of Hammurabi’s code of laws which was discovered + at Susa. Here Hammurabi records that he “restored his (i.e. the god + Ashur’s) protecting image unto the city of Ashur,” and a few lines farther + on he describes himself as the king “who hath made the names of Ishtar + glorious in the city of Nineveh in the temple of E-mish-mish.” That Ashur + should be referred to at this period is what we might expect, inasmuch as + it was known to have been the earliest capital of Assyria; more striking + is the reference to Nineveh, proving as it does that it was a flourishing + city in Hammurabi’s time and that the temple of Ishtar there had already + been long established. It is true that Gudea, the Sumerian patesi of + Shirpurla, records that he rebuilt the temple of the goddess Ninni + (Ishtar) at a place called Nina. Now Nina may very probably be identified + with Nineveh, but many writers have taken it to be a place in Southern + Babylonia and possibly a district of Shirpurla itself. No such uncertainty + attaches to Hammurabi’s reference to Nineveh, which is undoubtedly the + Assyrian city of that name. Although no account has yet been published of + the recent excavations carried out at Nineveh by the British Museum, they + fully corroborate the inference drawn with regard to the great age of the + city. The series of trenches which were cut deep into the lower strata of + Kuyunjik revealed numerous traces of very early habitations on the mound. + </p> + <p> + Neither in Hammurabi’s letters, nor upon the stele inscribed with his code + of laws, is any reference made to the contemporary governor or ruler of + Assyria, but on a contract tablet preserved in the Pennsylvania Museum a + name has been recovered which will probably be identified with that of the + ruler of Assyria in Hammurabi’s reign. In legal and commercial documents + of the period of the First Dynasty of Babylon the contracting parties + frequently swore by the names of two gods (usually Shamash and Marduk) and + also that of the reigning king. Now it has been found by Dr. Banke that on + this document in the Pennsylvania Museum the contracting parties swear by + the name of Hammurabi and also by that of Shamshi-Adad. As only gods and + kings are mentioned in the oath formulas of this period, it follows that + Shamshi-Adad was a king, or at any rate a patesi or ishshakku. Now from + its form the name Shamshi-Adad must be that of an Assyrian, not that of a + Babylonian, and, since he is associated in the oath formula with + Hammurabi, it is legitimate to conclude that he governed Assyria in the + time of Hammurabi as a dependency of Babylon. An early Assyrian ishshakku + of this name, who was the son of Ishme-Dagan, is mentioned by + Tiglath-Pileser I, but he cannot be identified with the ruler of the time + of Hammurabi, since, according to Tiglath-Pileser, he ruled too late, + about 1800 B.C. A brick-inscription of another Shamshi-Adad, however, the + son of Igur-kapkapu, is preserved in the British Museum, and it is + probable that we may identify him with Hammurabi’s Assyrian viceroy. + Erishum and his son Ikunum, whose inscriptions are also preserved in the + British Museum, should certainly be assigned to an early period of + Assyrian history. + </p> + <p> + The recent excavations at Sherghat are already yielding the names of other + early Assyrian viceroys, and, although the texts of the inscriptions in + which their names occur have not yet been published, we may briefly + enumerate the more important of the discoveries that have been made. Last + year a small cone or cylinder was found which, though it bears only a few + lines of inscription, restores the names of no less than seven early + Assyrian viceroys whose existence was not previously known. The cone was + inscribed by Ashir-rîm-nishêshu, who gives his own genealogy and records + the restoration of the wall of the city of Ashur, which he states had been + rebuilt by certain of his predecessors on the throne. The principal + portion of the inscription reads as follows: “Ashir-rîm-nishêshu, the + viceroy of the god Ashir, the son of Ashir-nirari, the viceroy of the god + Ashir, the son of Ashir-rabi, the viceroy. The city wall which Kikia, + Ikunum, Shar-kenkate-Ashir, and Ashir-nirari, the son of Ishme-Dagan, my + forefathers, had built, was fallen, and for the preservation of my life... + I rebuilt it.” Perhaps no inscription has yet been recovered in either + Assyria or Babylonia which contained so much new information packed into + so small a space. Of the names of the early viceroys mentioned in it only + one was previously known, i.e. the name of Ikunum, the son of Erishum, is + found in a late copy of a votive text preserved in the British Museum. + Thus from these few lines the names of three rulers in direct succession + have been recovered, viz., Ashir-rabi, Ashir-nirari, and + Ashur-rîm-nishêshu, and also those of four earlier rulers, viz., Kikia, + Shar-kenkate-Ashir, Ishme-Dagan, and his son Ashir-nirari. Another + interesting point about the inscription is the spelling of the name of the + national god of the Assyrians. In the later periods it is always written + <i>Ashur</i>, but at this early time we see that the second vowel is + changed and that at first the name was written <i>Ashir</i>, a form that + was already known from the Cappadocian cuneiform inscriptions. The form + Ashir is a good participial construction and signifies “the Beneficent,” + “the Merciful One.” + </p> + <p> + Another interesting find, which was also made last year, consists of four + stone tablets, each engraved with the same building-inscription of + Shalmaneser I, a king who reigned over Assyria about 1300 B.C. In + recording his rebuilding of E-kharsag-kurkura, the temple of the god Ashur + in the city of Ashur, he gives a brief summary of the temple’s history + with details as to the length of time which elapsed between the different + periods during which it had been previously restored. The temple was + burned in Shalmaneser’s time, and, when recording this fact and the + putting out of the fire, he summarizes the temple’s history in a long + parenthesis, as will be seen from the following translation of the + extract: “When E-kharsag-kurkura, the temple of Ashur, my lord, which + Ushpia (variant <i>Aushpia</i>), the priest of Ashur, my forefather, had + built aforetime,—and it fell into decay and Erishu, my forefather, + the priest of Ashur, rebuilt it; 159 years passed by after the reign of + Erishu, and that temple fell into decay, and Shamshi-Adad, the priest of + Ashur, rebuilt it; (during) 580 years that temple which Shamshi-Adad, the + priest of Ashur, had built, grew hoary and old—(when) fire broke out + in the midst thereof..., at that time I drenched that temple (with water) + in (all) its circuit.” + </p> + <p> + From this extract it will be seen that Shalmaneser gives us, in Ushpia or + Aushpia, the name of a very early Assyrian viceroy, who in his belief was + the founder of the great temple of the god Ashur. He also tells us that + 159 years separated Erishu from a viceroy named Shamshi-Adad, and that 580 + years separated Shamshi-Adad from his own time. When these inscriptions + were first found they were hailed with considerable satisfaction by + historians, as they gave what seemed to be valuable information for + settling the chronology of the early patesis. But confidence in the + accuracy of Shalmaneser’s reckoning was somewhat shaken a few months + afterwards by the discovery of a prism of Esarhaddon, who gave in it a + history of the same temple, but ascribed totally different figures for the + periods separating the reigns of Erishu and Shamshi-Adad, and the temple’s + destruction by fire. Esarhaddon agrees with Shalmaneser in ascribing the + founding of the temple to Ushpia, but he states that only 126 years + (instead of 159 years) separated Erishu (whom he spells Irishu), the son + of Ilu-shumma, from Shamshi-Adad, the son of Bêl-kabi; and he adds that + 434 years (instead of 580 years) elapsed between Shamshi-Adad’s + restoration of the temple and the time when it was burned down. As + Shalmaneser I lived over six hundred years earlier than Esarhaddon, he was + obviously in a better position to ascertain the periods at which the + events recorded took place, but the discrepancy between the figures he + gives and those of Esarhaddon is disconcerting. It shows that Assyrian + scribes could make bad mistakes in their reckoning, and it serves to cast + discredit on the absolute accuracy of the chronological notices contained + in other late Assyrian inscriptions. So far from helping to settle the + unsolved problems of Assyrian chronology, these two recent finds at + Sherghat have introduced fresh confusion, and Assyrian chronology for the + earlier periods is once more cast into the melting pot. + </p> + <p> + In addition to the recovery of the names of hitherto unknown early rulers + of Assyria, the recent excavations at Sherghat have enabled us to + ascertain the true reading of the name of Shalmaneser I’s grandfather, who + reigned a considerable time after Assyria had gained her independence. The + name of this king has hitherto been read as Pudi-ilu, but it is now shown + that the signs composing the first part of the name are not to be taken + phonetically, but as ideographs, the true reading of the name being + Arik-dên-ilu, the signification of which is “Long (i.e. far-reaching) is + the judgment of God.” Arik-dên-ilu was a great conqueror, as were his + immediate descendants, all of whom extended the territory of Assyria. By + strengthening the country and increasing her resources they enabled + Arik-dên-ilu ‘s great-grandson, Tukulti-Ninib I, to achieve the conquest + of Babylon itself. Concerning Tukulti-Ninib’s reign and achievements an + interesting inscription has recently been discovered. This is now + preserved in the British Museum, and before describing it we may briefly + refer to another phase of the excavations at Sherghat. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0029" id="linkDimage-0029"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/396.jpg" width="100%" + alt="396.jpg Stone Object Bearing a Votive Inscription Of Arik-dên-ilu. " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + An early independent King of Assyria, who reigned about B.C. + 1350. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co. +</p> + <p> + The mounds of Sherghat rise a considerable height above the level of the + plain, and are to a great extent of natural and not of artificial + formation. In fact, the existence of a group of high natural mounds at + this point on the bank of the Tigris must have led to its selection by the + early Assyrians as the site on which to build their first stronghold. The + mounds were already so high, from their natural formation, that there was + no need for the later Assyrian kings to increase their height artificially + (as they raised the chief palace-mound at Nineveh), and the remains of the + Assyrian buildings of the early period are thus only covered by a few feet + of débris and not by masses of unburnt brick and artificially piled up + soil. This fact has considerably facilitated the systematic uncovering of + the principal mound that is now being carried out by Dr. Andrae. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0030" id="linkDimage-0030"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/397.jpg" width="100%" + alt="397.jpg Entrance Into One of the Galleries Or Tunnels Cut Into the Principal Mound at Sherghat. " /> + </div> + <p> + Work has hitherto been confined to the northwest corner of the mound + around the ziggurat, or temple tower, and already considerable traces of + Assyrian buildings have been laid bare in this portion of the site. The + city wall on the northern side has been uncovered, as well as quays with + steps leading down to the water along the river front. Part of the great + temple of the god Ashur has been excavated, though a considerable portion + of it must be still covered by the modern Turkish fort at the extreme + northern point of the mounds; also part of a palace erected by + Ashur-nasir-pal has been identified. In fact, the work at Sherghat + promises to add considerably to our knowledge of ancient Assyrian + architecture. + </p> + <p> + The inscription of Tukulti-Ninib I, which was referred to above as having + been recently acquired by the trustees of the British Museum, affords + valuable information for the reconstruction of the history of Assyria + during the first half of the thirteenth century B.C.<a href="#fn8.2" name="fnref8.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> It is seen from the + facts summarized that for our knowledge of the earlier history of the + country we have to depend to a large extent on short brick-inscriptions + and votive texts supplemented by historical references in inscriptions of + the later period. The only historical inscription of any length belonging + to the early Assyrian period, which had been published up to a year ago, + was the famous memorial slab containing an inscription of Adad-nirari I, + which was acquired by the late Mr. George Smith some thirty years ago. + Although purchased in Mosul, the slab had been found by the natives in the + mounds at Sherghat, for the text engraved upon it in archaic Assyrian + characters records the restoration of a part of the temple of the god + Ashur in the ancient city of Ashur, the first capital of the Assyrians, + now marked by the mounds of Sherghat, which have already been described. + The object of Adad-nirari in causing the memorial slab to be inscribed was + to record the restoration of the portion of the temple which he had + rebuilt, but the most important part of the inscription was contained in + the introductory phrases with which the text opens. They recorded the + conquests achieved not only by Adad-nirari but by his father Arik-dên-ilu, + his grandfather Bél-nirari, and his great-grandfather Ashur-uballit. They + thus enabled the historian to trace the gradual extension and + consolidation of the Assyrian empire during a critical period in its early + history. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn8.2"></a> <a href="#fnref8.2">[2]</a> + For the text and translation of the inscription, see King, + Studies it Eastern History, i (1904). +</p> + <p> + The recently recovered memorial slab of Tukulti-Ninib I is similar to that + of his grandfather Adad-nirari I, and ranks in importance with it for the + light it throws on the early struggles of Assyria. Tukulti-Ninib ‘s slab, + like that of Adad-nirari, was a foundation memorial intended to record + certain building operations carried out by order of the king. The building + so commemorated was not the restoration of a portion of a temple, but the + founding of a new city, in which the king erected no less than eight + temples dedicated to various deities, while he also records that he built + a palace therein for his own habitation, that he protected the city by a + strongly fortified wall, and that he cut a canal from the Tigris by which + he ensured a continuous supply of fresh water. These were the facts which + the memorial was primarily intended to record, but, like the text of + Adad-nirari I, the most interesting events for the historian are those + referred to in the introductory portions of the inscription. Before giving + details concerning the founding of the new city, named Kar-Tukulti-Mnib, + “the Fortress of Tukulti-Mnib,” the king supplies an account of the + military expeditions which he had conducted during the course of his reign + up to the time when the foundation memorial was inscribed. These + introductory paragraphs record how the king gradually conquered the + peoples to the north and northeast of Assyria, and how he finally + undertook a successful campaign against Babylon, during which he captured + the city and completely subjugated both Northern and Southern Babylonia. + Tukulti-Mnib’s reign thus marks an epoch in the history of his country. + </p> + <p> + We have already seen how, during the early ages of her history, Assyria + had been merely a subject province of the Babylonian empire. Her rulers + had been viceroys owing allegiance to their overlords in Babylon, under + whose orders they administered the country, while garrisons of Babylonian + soldiers, and troops commanded by Babylonian officers, served to keep the + country in a state of subjection. Gradually, however, the country began to + feel her feet and long for independence. The conquest of Babylon by the + kings of the Country of the Sea afforded her the opportunity of throwing + off the Babylonian yoke. In the fifteenth century the Assyrian kings were + powerful enough to have independent relations with the kings of Egypt, + and, during the two centuries which preceded Tukulti-Mnib’s reign. + </p> + <p> + Assyria’s relations with Babylon were the cause of constant friction due + to the northern kingdom’s growth in power and influence. The frontier + between the two countries was constantly in dispute, and, though sometimes + rectified by treaty, the claims of Assyria often led to war between the + two countries. The general result of these conflicts was that Assyria + gradually extended her authority farther southwards, and encroached upon + territory which had previously been Babylonian. The successes gained by + Ashur-uballit, Bêl-nirari, and Adad-nirari I against the contemporary + Babylonian kings had all resulted in the cession of fresh territory to + Assyria and in an increase of her international importance. Up to the time + of Tukulti-Mnib no Assyrian king had actually seated himself upon the + Babylonian throne. This feat was achieved by Tukulti-Mnib, and his reign + thus marks an important step in the gradual advance of Assyria to the + position which she later occupied as the predominant power in Western + Asia. + </p> + <p> + Before undertaking his campaign against Babylon, Tukulti-Mnib secured + himself against attack from other quarters, and his newly discovered + memorial inscription supplies considerable information concerning the + steps he took to achieve this object. In his inscription the king does not + number his military expeditions, and, with the exception of the first one, + he does not state the period of his reign in which they were undertaken. + The results of his campaigns are summarized in four paragraphs of the + text, and it is probable that they are not described in chronological + order, but are arranged rather according to the geographical position of + the districts which he invaded and subdued. Tukulti-Ninib records that his + first campaign took place at the beginning of his sovereignty, in the + first year of his reign, and it was directed against the tribes and + peoples inhabiting the territory on the east of Assyria. Of the tribes + which he overran and conquered on this occasion the most important was the + Kuti, who probably dwelt in the districts to the east of the Lower Zâb. + They were a turbulent race and they had already been conquered by + Arik-dên-ilu and Adad-nirari I, but on neither occasion had they been + completely subdued, and they had soon regained their independence. Their + subjugation by Tukulti-Ninib was a necessary preliminary to any conquest + in the south, and we can well understand why it was undertaken by the king + at the beginning of his reign. Other conquests which were also made in the + same region were the Ukumanî and the lands of Elkhu-nia, Sharnida, and + Mekhri, mountainous districts which probably lay to the north of the Lower + Zâb. The country of Mekhri took its name from the mekhru-tree, a kind of + pine or fir, which grew there in abundance upon the mountainsides, and was + highly esteemed by the Assyrian kings as affording excellent wood for + building purposes. At a later period Ashur-nasir-pal invaded the country + in the course of his campaigns and brought back beams of mekhru-wood, + which he used in the construction of the temple dedicated to the goddess + Ishtar in Nineveh. + </p> + <p> + The second group of tribes and districts enumerated by Tukulti-Ninib as + having been subdued in his early years, before his conquest of Babylon, + all lay probably to the northwest of Assyria. The most powerful among + these peoples were the Shubari, who, like the Kutî on the eastern border + of Assyria, had already been conquered by Adad-nirari I, but had regained + their independence and were once more threatening the border on this side. + The third group of his conquests consisted of the districts ruled over by + forty kings of the lands of Na’iri, which was a general term for the + mountainous districts to the north of Assyria, including territory to the + west of Lake Van and extending eastwards to the districts around Lake + Urmi. The forty kings in this region whom Tukulti-Ninib boasts of having + subdued were little more than chieftains of the mountain tribes, each one + possessing authority over a few villages scattered among the hills and + valleys. But the men of Na’iri were a warlike and hardy race, and, if left + long in undisturbed possession of their native fastnesses, they were + tempted to make raids into the fertile plains of Assyria. It was therefore + only politic for Tukulti-Ninib to traverse their country with fire and + sword, and, by exacting heavy tribute, to keep the fear of Assyrian power + before their eyes. From the king’s records we thus learn that he subdued + and crippled the semi-independent races living on his borders to the + north, to the northwest, and to the east. On the west was the desert, from + which region he need fear no organized attack when he concentrated his + army elsewhere, for his permanent garrisons were strong enough to repel + and punish any incursion of nomadic tribes. He was thus in a position to + try conclusions with his hereditary foe in the south, without any fear of + leaving his land open to invasion in his absence. + </p> + <p> + The campaign against Babylon was the most important one undertaken by + Tukulti-Ninib, and its successful issue was the crowning point of his + military career. The king relates that the great gods Ashur, Bel, and + Shamash, and the goddess Ishtar, the queen of heaven and earth, marched at + the head of his warriors when he set out upon the expedition. After + crossing the border and penetrating into Babylonian territory he seems to + have had some difficulty in forcing Bitiliashu, the Kassite king who then + occupied the throne of Babylon, to a decisive engagement. But by a skilful + disposition of his forces he succeeded in hemming him in, so that the + Babylonian army was compelled to engage in a pitched battle. The result of + the fighting was a complete victory for the Assyrian arms. Many of the + Babylonian warriors fell fighting, and Bitiliashu himself was captured by + the Assyrian soldiers in the midst of the battle. Tukulti-Ninib boasts + that he trampled his lordly neck beneath his feet, and on his return to + Assyria he carried his captive back in fetters to present him with the + spoils of the campaign before Ashur, the national god of the Assyrians. + </p> + <p> + Before returning to Assyria, however, Tukulti-Ninib marched with his army + throughout the length and breadth of Babylonia, and achieved the + subjugation of the whole of the Sumer and Akkad. He destroyed the + fortifications of Babylon to ensure that they should not again be used + against himself, and all the inhabitants who did not at once submit to his + decrees he put co the sword. He then appointed his own officers to rule + the country and established his own system of administration, adding to + his previous title of “King of Assyria,” those of “King of Karduniash (i. + e. Babylonia)” and “King of Sumer and Akkad.” It was probably from this + period that he also adopted the title of “King of the Poor Quarters of the + World.” As a mark of the complete subjugation of their ancient foe, + Tukulti-Ninib and his army carried back with them to Assyria not only the + captive Babylonian king, but also the statue of Marduk, the national god + of Babylon. This they removed from B-sagila, his sumptuous temple in + Babylon, and they looted the sacred treasures from the treasure-chambers, + and carried them off together with the spoil of the city. + </p> + <p> + Tukulti-Ninib no doubt left a sufficient proportion of his army in Babylon + to garrison the city and support the governors and officials into whose + charge he committed the administration of the land, but he himself + returned to Assyria with the rich spoil of the campaign, and it was + probably as a use for this large increase of wealth and material that he + decided to found another city which should bear his own name and + perpetuate it for future ages. The king records that he undertook this + task at the bidding of Bel (i.e. the god Ashur), who commanded that he + should found a new city and build a dwelling-place for him therein. In + accordance with the desire of Ashur and the gods, which was thus conveyed + to him, the king founded the city of Kar-Tukulti-Ninib, and he erected + therein temples dedicated not only to Ashur, but also to the gods Adad, + and Sha-mash, and Ninib, and Nusku, and Nergal, and Imina-bi, and the + goddess Ishtar. The spoils from Babylon and the temple treasures from + E-sagila were doubtless used for the decoration of these temples and the + adornment of their shrines, and the king endowed the temples and appointed + regular offerings, which he ordained should be their property for ever. He + also built a sumptuous palace for his own abode when he stayed in the + city, which he constructed on a mound or terrace of earth, faced with + brick, and piled high above the level of the city. Finally, he completed + its fortification by the erection of a massive wall around it, and the + completion of this wall was the occasion on which his memorial tablet was + inscribed. + </p> + <p> + The memorial tablet was buried and bricked up within the actual structure + of the wall, in order that in future ages it might be read by those who + found it, and so it might preserve his name and fame. After finishing the + account of his building operations in the new city and recording the + completion of the city wall from its foundation to its coping stone, the + king makes an appeal to any future ruler who should find it, in the + following words: “In the days that are to come, when this wall shall have + grown old and shall have fallen into ruins, may a future prince repair the + damaged parts thereof, and may he anoint my memorial tablet with oil, and + may he offer sacrifices and restore it unto its place, and then Ashur will + hearken unto his prayers. But whosoever shall destroy this wall, or shall + remove my memorial tablet or my name that is inscribed thereon, or shall + leave Kar-Tukulti-Ninib, the city of my dominion, desolate, or shall + destroy it, may the lord Ashur overthrow his kingdom, and may he break his + weapons, and may he cause his warriors to be defeated, and may he diminish + his boundaries, and may he ordain that his rule shall be cut off, and on + his days may he bring sorrow, and his years may he make evil, and may he + blot out his name and his seed from the land!” + </p> + <p> + By such blessings and curses Tukulti-Ninib hoped to ensure the + preservation of his name and the rebuilding of his city, should it at any + time be neglected and fall into decay. Curiously enough, it was in this + very city that Tukulti-Ninib met his own fate less than seven years after + he had founded it. At that time one of his own sons, who bore the name of + Ashur-nasir-pal, conspired against his father and stirred up the nobles to + revolt. The insurrection was arranged when Tukulti-Ninib was absent from + his capital and staying in Kar-Tukulti-Ninib, where he was probably + protected by only a small bodyguard, the bulk of his veteran warriors + remaining behind in garrison at Ashur. The insurgent nobles, headed by + Ashur-nasir-pal, fell upon the king without warning when he was passing + through the city without any suspicion of risk from a treacherous attack. + The king defended himself and sought refuge in a neighbouring house, but + the conspirators surrounded the building and, having forced an entrance, + slew him with the sword. Thus Tukulti-Ninib perished in the city he had + built and beautified with the spoils of his campaigns, where he had looked + forward to passing a peaceful and secure old age. Of the fate of the city + itself we know little except that its site is marked to-day by a few + mounds which rise slightly above the level of the surrounding desert. The + king’s memorial tablet only has survived. For some 3,200 years it rested + undisturbed in the foundations of the wall of unburnt brick, where it was + buried by Tukulti-Ninib on the completion of the city wall. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0031" id="linkDimage-0031"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/408.jpg" width="100%" + alt="408.jpg Stone Tablet. Bearing an Inscription Of Tukulti-Ninib I " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + King of Assyria, about B. C. 1275. +</p> + <p> + Thence it was removed by the hands of modern Arabs, and it is now + preserved in the British Museum, where the characters of the inscription + may be seen to be as sharp and uninjured as on the day when the Assyrian + graver inscribed them by order of the king. + </p> + <p> + In the account of his first campaign, which is preserved upon the memorial + tablet, it is stated that the peoples conquered by Tukulti-Ninib brought + their yearly tribute to the city of Ashur. This fact is of considerable + interest, for it proves that Tukulti-Ninib restored the capital of Assyria + to the city of Ashur, removing it from Calah, whither it had been + transferred by his father Shalmaneser I. The city of Calah had been + founded and built by Shalmaneser I in the same way that his son + Tukulti-Ninib built the city of Kar-Tukulti-Ninib, and the building of + both cities is striking evidence of the rapid growth of Assyria and her + need of expansion around fresh centres prepared for administration and + defence. The shifting of the Assyrian capital to Calah by Shalmaneser I + was also due to the extension of Assyrian power in the north, in + consequence of which there was need of having the capital nearer the + centre of the country so enlarged. Ashur’s recovery of her old position + under Tukulti-Ninib I was only a temporary check to this movement + northwards, and, so long as Babylon remained a conquered province of the + Assyrian empire, obviously the need for a capital farther north than Ashur + would not have been pressing. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0032" id="linkDimage-0032"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/410.jpg" + alt="410.jpg the Ziggurat, Or Temple Tower, of The Assyrian City of Calah. " /> + </div> + <p> + But with Tukulti-Ninib’s death Babylon regained her independence and freed + herself from Assyrian control, and the centre of the northern kingdom was + once more subject to the influences which eventually resulted in the + permanent transference of her capital to Nineveh. To the comparative + neglect into which Ashur and Calah consequently fell, we may probably + trace the extensive remains of buildings belonging to the earlier periods + of Assyrian history which have been recovered and still remain to be + found, in the mounds that mark their sites. + </p> + <p> + We have given some account of the results already achieved from the + excavations carried out during the last two years at Sherghat, the site of + the city of Ashur. That much remains to be done on the site of Calah, the + other early capital of Assyria, is evident from even a cursory examination + of the present condition of the mounds that mark the location of the city. + These mounds are now known by the name of Nimrûd and are situated on the + left or eastern bank of the Tigris, a short distance above the point at + which it is joined by the stream of the Upper Zâb, and the great mound + which still covers the remains of the ziggurat, or temple tower, can be + seen from a considerable distance across the plain. During the excavations + formerly carried out here for the British Museum, remains of palaces were + recovered which had been built or restored by Shal-maneser I, + Ashur-nasir-pal, Shalmaneser II, Tiglath-pileser III, Sargon, Esarhaddon, + and Ashur-etil-ilâni. After the conclusion of the diggings and the removal + of many of the sculptures to England, the site was covered again with + earth, in order to protect the remains of Assyrian buildings which were + left in place. Since that time the soil has sunk and been washed away by + the rains so that many of the larger sculptures are now protruding above + the soil, an example of which is seen in the two winged bulls in the + palace of Ashur-nasir-pal. It is improbable that the mounds of Nimrûd will + yield such rich results as Sherghat, but the site would probably well + repay prolonged and systematic excavation. + </p> + <p> + We have hitherto summarized and described the principal facts, with regard + to the early history of Babylonia and Assyria and the neighbouring + countries, which have been obtained from the excavations conducted + recently on the sites of ancient cities. From the actual remains of the + buildings that have been unearthed we have secured information with regard + to the temples and palaces of ancient rulers and the plans on which they + were designed. Erom the objects of daily life and of religious use which + have been recovered, such as weapons of bronze and iron, and vessels of + metal, stone, and clay, it is possible for the archaeologist to draw + conclusions with regard to the customs of these early peoples; while from + a study of their style and workmanship and of such examples of their + sculpture as have been brought to light, he may determine the stage of + artistic development at which they had arrived. The clay tablets and stone + monuments that have been recovered reveal the family life of the people, + their commercial undertakings, their system of legislation and land + tenure, their epistolary correspondence, and the administration under + which they lived, while the royal inscriptions and foundation-memorials + throw light on the religious and historical events of the period in which + they were inscribed. Information on all these points has been acquired as + the result of excavation, and is based on the discoveries in the ruins of + early cities which have remained buried beneath the soil for some + thousands of years. But for the history of Assyria and of the other + nations in the north there is still another source of information to which + reference must now be made. + </p> + <p> + The kings of Assyria were not content with recording their achievements on + the walls of their buildings, on stelae set up in their palaces and + temples, on their tablets of annals preserved in their archive-chambers, + and on their cylinders and foundation-memorials concealed within the + actual structure of the buildings themselves. They have also left records + graven in the living rock, and these have never been buried, but have been + exposed to wind and weather from the moment they were engraved. Records of + irrigation works and military operations successfully undertaken by + Assyrian kings remain to this day on the face of the mountains to the + north and east of Assyria. The kings of one great mountain race that had + its capital at Van borrowed from the Assyrians this method of recording + their achievements, and, adopting the Assyrian character, have left + numerous rock-inscriptions in their own language in the mountains of + Armenia and Kurdistan. In some instances the action of rain and frost has + nearly if not quite obliterated the record, and a few have been defaced by + the hand of man. But as the majority are engraved in panels cut on the + sheer face of the rock, and are inaccessible except by means of ropes and + tackle, they have escaped mutilation. The photograph reproduced will serve + to show the means that must be adopted for reaching such rock-inscriptions + in order to examine or copy them. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0033" id="linkDimage-0033"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/413.jpg" width="100%" + alt="413.jpg Work in Progress on One of the Rock-inscriptions Of Sennacherib " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + In The Gorge Of The River Gomel, Near Bavian. +</p> + <p> + The inscription shown in the photograph is one of those cut by Sennacherib + in the gorge near Bavian, through which the river Gomel flows, and can be + reached only by climbing down ropes fixed to the top of the cliff. The + choice of such positions by the kings who caused the inscriptions to be + engraved was dictated by the desire to render it difficult to destroy + them, but it has also had the effect of delaying to some extent their + copying and decipherment by modern workers. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0034" id="linkDimage-0034"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/414.jpg" width="100%" + alt="414.jpg the Principal Rock Sculptures in The Gorge of The Gomel " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Near Bavian In Assyria. +</p> + <p> + Considerable progress, however, has recently been made in identifying and + copying these texts, and we may here give a short account of what has been + done and of the information furnished by the inscriptions that have been + examined. + </p> + <p> + Recently considerable additions have been made to our knowledge of the + ancient empire of Van and of its relation to the later kings of Assyria by + the labours of Prof Lehmann and Dr. Belck on the inscriptions which the + kings of that period caused to be engraved upon the rocks among the + mountains of Armenia. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0035" id="linkDimage-0035"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/415.jpg" width="100%" + alt="415.jpg the Rock and Citadel of Van. " /> + </div> + <p> + The flat roofs of the houses of the city of Van may be seen to the left of + the photograph nestling below the rock. + </p> + <p> + The centre and capital of this empire was the ancient city which stood on + the site of the modern town of Van at the southwest corner of the lake + which bears the same name. The city was built at the foot of a natural + rock which rises precipitously from the plain, and must have formed an + impregnable stronghold against the attack of the foe. + </p> + <p> + In this citadel at the present day remain the ancient galleries and + staircases and chambers which were cut in the living rock by the kings who + made it their fortress, and their inscriptions, engraved upon the face of + the rock on specially prepared and polished surfaces, enable us to + reconstruct in some degree the history of that ancient empire. From time + to time there have been found and copied other similar texts, which are + cut on the mountainsides or on the massive stones which formed part of the + construction of their buildings and fortifications. A complete collection + of these texts, together with translations, will shortly be published by + Prof. Lehmann. Meanwhile, this scholar has discussed and summarized the + results to be obtained from much of his material, and we are thus already + enabled to sketch the principal achievements of the rulers of this + mountain race, who were constantly at war with the later kings of Assyria, + and for two centuries at least disputed her claim to supremacy in this + portion of Western Asia. + </p> + <p> + The country occupied by this ancient people of Van was the great + table-land which now forms Armenia. The people themselves cannot be + connected with the Armenians, for their language presents no + characteristics of those of the Indo-European family, and it is equally + certain that they are not to be traced to a Semitic origin. It is true + that they employed the Assyrian method of writing their inscriptions, and + their art differs only in minor points from that of the Assyrians, but in + both instances this similarity of culture was directly borrowed at a time + when the less civilized race, having its centre at Van, came into direct + contact with the Assyrians. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0036" id="linkDimage-0036"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/417.jpg" width="100%" + alt="417.jpg Ancient Flight of Steps and Gallery on the Face Of the Rock-citadel of Van. " /> + </div> + <p> + The exact date at which this influence began to be exerted is not certain, + but we have records of immediate relations with Assyria in the second half + of the ninth century before Christ. The district inhabited by the Vannic + people was known to the Assyrians by the name of Urartu, and although the + inscriptions of the earlier Assyrian kings do not record expeditions + against that country, they frequently make mention of campaigns against + princes and petty rulers of the land of Na’iri. They must therefore for + long have exercised an indirect, if not a direct, influence on the peoples + and tribes which lay more to the north. + </p> + <p> + The earliest evidence of direct contact between the Assyrians and the land + of Urartu which we at present possess dates from the reign of + Ashur-nasir-pal, and in the reign of his son Shalmaneser II three + expeditions were undertaken against the people of Van. The name of the + king of Urartu at this time was Arame, and his capital city, Arzasku, + probably lay to the north of Lake Van. On all three occasions the + Assyrians were victorious, forcing Arame to abandon his capital and + capturing his cities as far as the sources of the Euphrates. Subsequently, + in the year 833 B.C., Shalmaneser II made another attack upon the country, + which at that time was under the sway of Sarduris I. Under this monarch + the citadel of Van became the great stronghold of the people of Urartu, + for he added to the natural strength of the position by the construction + of walls built between the rock of Van and the harbour. The massive blocks + of stone of which his fortifications were composed are standing at the + present day, and they bear eloquent testimony to the energy with which + this monarch devoted himself to the task of rendering his new citadel + impregnable. The fortification and strengthening of Van and its citadel + was carried on during the reigns of his direct successors and descendants, + Ispui-nis, Menuas, and Argistis I, so that when Tiglath-pile-ser III + brought fire and sword into the country and laid siege to Van in the reign + of Sarduris II, he could not capture the citadel. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0037" id="linkDimage-0037"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/419.jpg" width="100%" + alt="419.jpg Part of the Ancient Fortifications Of The City Of Van, Between the Citadel and The Lake. " /> + </div> + <p> + It was not difficult for the Assyrian king to assault and capture the city + itself, which lay at the foot of the citadel as it does at the present + day, but the latter, within the fortifications of which Sarduris and his + garrison withdrew, proved itself able to withstand the Assyrian attack. + The expedition of Tiglath-pileser III did not succeed in crushing the + Vannic empire, for Rusas I, the son and successor of Sarduris II, allied + himself to the neighbouring mountain races and gave considerable trouble + to Sargon, the Assyrian king, who was obliged to undertake an expedition + to check their aggressions. + </p> + <p> + It was probably Rusas I who erected the buildings on Toprak Kala, the hill + to the east of Van, traces of which remain to the present day. He built a + palace and a temple, and around them he constructed a new city with a + reservoir to supply it with water, possibly because the slopes of Toprak + Kala rendered it easier of defence than the city in the plain (beneath the + rock and citadel) which had fallen an easy prey to Tiglath-pileser III. + The site of the temple on Toprak Kala has been excavated by the trustees + of the British Museum, and our knowledge of Vannic art is derived from the + shields and helmets of bronze and small bronze figures and fittings which + were recovered from this building. One of the shields brought to the + British Museum from the Toprak Kala, where it originally hung with others + on the temple walls, bears the name of Argistis II, who was the son and + successor of Rusas I, and who attempted to give trouble to the Assyrians + by stirring the inhabitants of the land of Kummukh (Kommagene) to revolt + against Sargon. His son, Rusas II, was the contemporary of Esarhaddon, and + from some recently discovered rock-inscriptions we learn that he extended + the limits of his kingdom on the west and secured victories against Mushki + (Meshech) to the southeast of the Halys and against the Hittites in + Northern Syria. Rusas III rebuilt the temple on Toprak Kala, as we know + from an inscription of his on one of the shields from that place in the + British Museum. Both he and Sarduris III were on friendly terms with the + Assyrians, for we know that they both sent embassies to Ashur-bani-pal. + </p> + <p> + By far the larger number of rock-inscriptions that have yet been found and + copied in the mountainous districts bordering on Assyria were engraved by + this ancient Vannic people, and Drs. Lehmann and Belck have done good + service by making careful copies and collations of all those which are at + present known. Work on other classes of rock-inscriptions has also been + carried on by other travellers. A new edition of the inscriptions of + Sennacherib in the gorge of the Gomel, near the village of Bavian, has + been made by Mr. King, who has also been fortunate enough to find a number + of hitherto unknown inscriptions in Kurdistan on the Judi Dagh and at the + sources of the Tigris. The inscriptions at the mouth of the Nahr el-Kelb, + “the Dog River,” in Syria, have been reexamined by Dr. Knudtzon, and the + long inscription which Nebuchadnezzar II cut on the rocks at Wadi Brissa + in the Lebanon, formerly published by M. Pognon, has been recopied by Dr. + Weissbach. Finally, the great trilingual inscription of Darius Hystaspes + on the rock at Bisutun in Persia, which was formerly copied by the late + Sir Henry Raw-linson and used by him for the successful decipherment of + the cuneiform inscriptions, was completely copied last year by Messrs. + King and Thompson.<a href="#fn8.3" name="fnref8.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn8.3"></a> <a href="#fnref8.3">[3]</a> + Messrs. King and Thompson are preparing a new edition of + this inscription. +</p> + <p> + The main facts of the history of Assyria under her later kings and of + Babylonia during the Neo-Babylonian and Persian periods were many years + ago correctly ascertained, and recent excavation and research have done + little to add to our knowledge of the history of these periods. It was + hoped that the excavations conducted by Dr. Koldewey at Babylon would + result in the recovery of a wealth of inscriptions and records referring + to the later history of the country, but unfortunately comparatively few + tablets or inscriptions have been found, and those that have been + recovered consist mainly of building-inscriptions and votive texts. One + such building-inscription contains an interesting historical reference. It + occurs on a barrel-cylinder of clay inscribed with a text of Nabopolassar, + and it was found in the temple of Ninib and records the completion and + restoration of the temple by the king. In addition to recording the + building operations he had carried out in the temple, Nabopolassar boasts + of his opposition to the Assyrians. He says: “As for the Assyrians who had + ruled all peoples from distant days and had set the people of the land + under a heavy yoke, I, the weak and humble man who worshippeth the Lord of + Lords (i.e. the god Marduk), through the mighty power of Nabû and Marduk, + my lords, held back their feet from the land of Akkad and cast off their + yoke.” + </p> + <p> + It is not yet certain whether the Babylonians under Nabopolassar actively + assisted Cyaxares and the Medes in the siege and in the subsequent capture + of Nineveh in 606 B.C. but this newly discovered reference to the + Assyrians by Nabopolassar may possibly be taken to imply that the + Babylonians were passive and not active allies of Cyaxares. If the + cylinder were inscribed after the fall of Nineveh we should have expected + Nabopolassar, had he taken an active part in the capture of the city, to + have boasted in more definite terms of his achievement. On his stele which + is preserved at Constantinople, Nabonidus, the last king of the + Neo-Babylonian empire, who himself suffered defeat at the hands of Cyrus, + King of Persia, ascribed the fall of Nineveh to the anger of Marduk and + the other gods of Babylon because of the destruction of their city and the + spoliation of their temples by Sennacherib in 689 B.C. We see the irony of + fate in the fact that Cyrus also ascribed the defeat and deposition of + Nabonidus and the fall of Babylon to Marduk’s intervention, whose anger he + alleges was aroused by the attempt of Nabonidus to concentrate the worship + of the local city-gods in Babylon. + </p> + <p> + Thus it will be seen that recent excavation and research have not yet + supplied the data for filling in such gaps as still remain in our + knowledge of the later history of Assyria and Babylon. The closing years + of the Assyrian empire and the military achievements of the great + Neo-Babylonian rulers, Nabopolassar, Nerig-lissar, and Nebuchadnezzar II, + have not yet been found recorded in any published Assyrian or Babylonian + inscription, but it may be expected that at any moment some text will be + discovered that will throw light upon the problems connected with the + history of those periods which still await solution. Meanwhile, the + excavations at Babylon, although they have not added much to our knowledge + of the later history of the country, have been of immense service in + revealing the topography of the city during the Neo-Babylonian period, as + well as the positions, plans, and characters of the principal buildings + erected by the later Babylonian kings. The discovery of the palaces of + Nebuchadnezzar II on the mound of the Kasr, of the small but complete + temple E-makh, of the temple of the goddess Nin-makh to the northeast of + the palaces, and of the sacred road dividing them and passing through the + Great Gate of Ishtar (adorned with representations of lions, bulls, and + dragons in raised brick upon its walls) has enabled us to form some + conception of the splendour and magnificence of the city as it appeared + when rebuilt by its last native rulers. Moreover, the great temple + E-sagila, the famous shrine of the god Marduk, has been identified and + partly excavated beneath the huge mound of Tell Amran ibn-Ali, while a + smaller and less famous temple of Ninib has been discovered in the lower + mounds which lie to the eastward. Finally, the sacred way from E-sagila to + the palace mound has been traced and uncovered. We are thus enabled to + reconstitute the scene of the most solemn rite of the Babylonian festival + of the New Year, when the statue of the god Marduk was carried in solemn + procession along this road from the temple to the palace, and the + Babylonian king made his yearly obeisance to the national god, placing his + own hands within those of Marduk, in token of his submission to and + dependence on the divine will. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0038" id="linkDimage-0038"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/425.jpg" width="100%" + alt="425.jpg Within the Shrine Op E-makh, The Temple Op The Goddess Nin-makh. " /> + </div> + <p> + Though recent excavations have not led to any startling discoveries with + regard to the history of Western Asia during the last years of the + Babylonian empire, research among the tablets dating from the + Neo-Babylonian and Persian periods has lately added considerably to our + knowledge of Babylonian literature. These periods were marked by great + literary activity on the part of the priests at Babylon, Sippar, and + elsewhere, who, under the royal orders, scoured the country for all + remains of the early literature which was preserved in the ancient temples + and archives of the country, and made careful copies and collections of + all they found. Many of these tablets containing Neo-Babylonian copies of + earlier literary texts are preserved in the British Museum, and have been + recently published, and we have thus recovered some of the principal + grammatical, religious, and magical compositions of the earlier Babylonian + period. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0039" id="linkDimage-0039"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/426.jpg" width="100%" + alt="426.jpg Trench in the Babylonian Plain " /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + Between The Mound Of The Kasr And Tell Amran Ibn-Ali, + Showing A Section Of The Paved Sacred Way. +</p> + <p> + Among the most interesting of such recent finds is a series of tablets + inscribed with the Babylonian legends concerning the creation of the world + and man, which present many new and striking parallels to the beliefs on + these subjects embodied in Hebrew literature. We have not space to treat + this subject at greater length in the present work, but we may here note + that discovery and research in its relation to the later empires that + ruled at Babylon have produced results of literary rather than of + historical importance. But we should exceed the space at our disposal if + we attempted even to skim this fascinating field of study in which so much + has recently been achieved. For it is time we turned once more to Egypt + and directed our inquiry towards ascertaining what recent research has to + tell us with regard to her inhabitants during the later periods of her + existence as a nation of the ancient world. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkD2HCH0003" id="linkD2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER IX—THE LAST DAYS OF ANCIENT EGYPT + </h2> + <p> + Before we turned from Egypt to summarize the information, afforded by + recent discoveries, upon the history of Western Asia under the kings of + the Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods, we noted that the Asiatic empire + of Egypt was regained by the reactionary kings of the XIXth Dynasty, after + its temporary loss owing to the vagaries of Akhunaten. Palestine remained + Egyptian throughout the period of the judges until the foundation of the + kingdom of Judah. With the decline of military spirit in Egypt and the + increasing power of the priesthood, authority over Asia became less and + less a reality. Tribute was no longer paid, and the tribes wrangled + without a restraining hand, during the reigns of the successors of Ramses + III. By the time of the priest-kings of Thebes (the XXIst Dynasty) the + authority of the Pharaohs had ceased to be exercised in Syria. Egypt was + itself divided into two kingdoms, the one ruled by Northern descendants of + the Ramessids at Tanis, the other by the priestly monarchs at Thebes, who + reigned by right of inheritance as a result of the marriage of the + daughter of Ramses with the high priest Amenhetep, father of Herhor, the + first priest-king. The Thebans fortified Gebelên in the South and el-Hêbi + in the North against attack, and evidently their relations with the + Tanites were not always friendly. + </p> + <p> + In Syria nothing of the imperial power remained. The prestige of the god + Amen of Thebes, however, was still very great. We see this clearly from a + very interesting papyrus of the reign of Herhor, published in 1899 by Mr. + Golenischeff, which describes the adventures of Uenuamen, an envoy sent + (about 1050 B.C.) to Phoenicia to bring wood from the mountains of Lebanon + for the construction of a great festival bark of the god Amen at Thebes. + In the course of his mission he was very badly treated (We cannot well + imagine Thothmes III or Amenhetep III tolerating ill-treatment of their + envoy!) and eventually shipwrecked on the coast of the land of Alashiya or + Cyprus. He tells us in the papyrus, which seems to be the official report + of his mission, that, having been given letters of credence to the Prince + of Byblos from the King of Tanis, “to whom Amen had given charge of his + North-land,” he at length reached Phoenicia, and after much discussion and + argument was able to prevail upon the prince to have the wood which he + wanted brought down from Lebanon to the seashore. + </p> + <p> + Here, however, a difficulty presented itself,—the harbour was filled + with the piratical ships of the Cretan Tjakaray, who refused to allow + Uenuamen to return to Egypt. They said, ‘Seize him; let no ship of his go + unto the land of Egypt!’ “Then,” says Uenuamen in the papyrus, “I sat down + and wept. The scribe of the prince came out unto me; he said unto me, + ‘What ail-eth thee?’ I replied, ‘Seest thou not the birds which fly, which + fly back unto Egypt? Look at them, they go unto the cool canal, and how + long do I remain abandoned here? Seest thou not those who would prevent my + return?’ He went away and spoke unto the prince, who began to weep at the + words which were told unto him and which were so sad. He sent his scribe + out unto me, who brought me two measures of wine and a deer. He sent me + Tentnuet, an Egyptian singing-girl who was with him, saying unto her, + ‘Sing unto him, that he may not grieve!’ He sent word unto me, ‘Eat, + drink, and grieve not! To-morrow shalt thou hear all that I shall say.’ On + the morrow he had the people of his harbour summoned, and he stood in the + midst of them, and he said unto the Tjakaray, ‘What aileth you?’ They + answered him, ‘We will pursue the piratical ships which thou sendest unto + Egypt with our unhappy companions.’ He said unto them, ‘I cannot seize the + ambassador of Amen in my land. Let me send him away and then do ye pursue + after him to seize him!’ He sent me on board, and he sent me away... to + the haven of the sea. The wind drove me upon the land of Alashiya. The + people of the city came out in order to slay me. I was dragged by them to + the place where Hatiba, the queen of the city, was. I met her as she was + going out of one of her houses into the other. I greeted her and said unto + the people who stood by her, ‘Is there not one among you who understandeth + the speech of Egypt?’ One of them replied, ‘I understand it.’ I said unto + him, ‘Say unto thy mistress: even as far as the city in which Amen + dwelleth (i. e. Thebes) have I heard the proverb, “In all cities is + injustice done; only in Alashiya is justice to be found,” and now is + injustice done here every day!’ She said, ‘What is it that thou sayest?’ I + said unto her, ‘Since the sea raged and the wind drove me upon the land in + which thou livest, therefore thou wilt not allow them to seize my body and + to kill me, for verily I am an ambassador of Amen. Remember that I am one + who will be sought for always. And if these men of the Prince of Byblos + whom they seek to kill (are killed), verily if their chief finds ten men + of thine, will he not kill them also?’ She summoned the men, and they were + brought before her. She said unto me, ‘Lie down and sleep...’” + </p> + <p> + At this point the papyrus breaks off, and we do not know how Uenuamen + returned to Egypt with his wood. The description of his casting-away and + landing on Alashiya is quite Homeric, and gives a vivid picture of the + manners of the time. The natural impulse of the islanders is to kill the + strange castaway, and only the fear of revenge and of the wrath of a + distant foreign deity restrains them. Alashiya is probably Cyprus, which + also bore the name Yantinay from the time of Thothmes III until the + seventh century, when it is called Yatnan by the Assyrians. A king of + Alashiya corresponded with Amenhetep III in cuneiform on terms of perfect + equality, three hundred years before: “Brother,” he writes, “should the + small amount of the copper which I have sent thee be displeasing unto thy + heart, it is because in my land the hand of Nergal my lord slew all the + men of my land (i.e. they died of the plague), and there was no working of + copper; and this was, my brother, not pleasing unto thy heart. Thy + messenger with my messenger swiftly will I send, and whatsoever amount of + copper thou hast asked for, O my brother, I, even I, will send it unto + thee.” The mention by Herhor’s envoy of Nesibinebdad (Smendes), the King + of Tanis, a powerful ruler who in reality constantly threatened the + existence of the priestly monarchy at Thebes, as “him to whom Amen has + committed the wardship of his North-land,” is distinctly amusing. The hard + fact of the independence of Lower Egypt had to be glozed somehow. + </p> + <p> + The days of Theban power were coming to an end and only the prestige of + the god Amen remained strong for two hundred years more. But the alliance + of Amen and his priests with a band of predatory and destroying foreign + conquerors, the Ethiopians (whose rulers were the descendants of the + priest-kings, who retired to Napata on the succession of the powerful + Bubastite dynasty of Shishak to that of Tanis, abandoning Thebes to the + Northerners), did much to destroy the prestige of Amen and of everything + connected with him. An Ethiopian victory meant only an Assyrian + reconquest, and between them Ethiopians and Assyrians had well-nigh ruined + Egypt. In the Saïte period Thebes had declined greatly in power as well as + in influence, and all its traditions were anathema to the leading people + of the time, although not of course in Akhunaten’s sense. + </p> + <p> + With the Saïte period we seem almost to have retraced our steps and to + have reentered the age of the Pyramid Builders. All the pomp and glory of + Thothmes, Amenhetep, and Ramses were gone. The days of imperial Egypt were + over, and the minds of men, sickened of foreign war, turned for peace and + quietness to the simpler ideals of the IVth and Vth Dynasties. We have + already seen that an archaistic revival of the styles of the early + dynasties is characteristic of this late period, and that men were buried + at Sakkâra and at Thebes in tombs which recall in form and decoration + those of the courtiers of the Pyramid Builders. Everywhere we see this + fashion of archaism. A Theban noble of this period named Aba was buried at + Thebes. Long ago, nearly three thousand years before, under the VIth + Dynasty, there had lived a great noble of the same name, who was buried in + a rock-tomb at Dêr el-Gebrâwî, in Middle Egypt. This tomb was open and + known in the days of the second Aba, who caused to be copied and + reproduced in his tomb in the Asasîf at Thebes most of the scenes from the + bas-relief with which it had been decorated. The tomb of the VIth Dynasty + Aba has lately been copied for the Archaeological Survey of Egypt (Egypt + Exploration Fund) by Mr. de Garis Davies, who has found the reliefs of the + XXVIth Dynasty Aba of considerable use to him in reconstituting destroyed + portions of their ancient originals. + </p> + <p> + During late years important discoveries of objects of this era have been + few. One of the most noteworthy is that of a contemporary inscription + describing the battle of Momemphis, which is mentioned by Herodotus (ii, + 163, 169). We now have the official account of this battle, and know that + it took place in the third year of the reign of Amasis—not before he + became king. This was the fight in which the unpatriotic king, Apries, who + had paid for his partiality for the Greeks of Nau-kratis with the loss of + his throne, was finally defeated. As we see from this inscription, he was + probably murdered by the country people during his flight. + </p> + <p> + The following are the most important passages of the inscription: “His + Majesty (Amasis) was in the Festival-Hall, discussing plans for his whole + land, when one came to say unto him, ‘Hââ-ab-Râ (Apries) is rowing up; he + hath gone on board the ships which have crossed over. Haunebu (Greeks), + one knows not their number, are traversing the North-land, which is as if + it had no master to rule it; he (Apries) hath summoned them, they are + coming round him. It is he who hath arranged their settlement in the + Peh-ân (the An-dropolite name); they infest the whole breadth of Egypt, + those who are on thy waters fly before them!’... His Majesty mounted his + chariot, having taken lance and bow in his hand... (the enemy) reached + Andropolis; the soldiers sang with joy on the roads... they did their duty + in destroying the enemy. His Majesty fought like a lion; he made victims + among them, one knows not how many. The ships and their warriors were + overturned, they saw the depths as do the fishes. Like a flame he + extended, making a feast of fighting. His heart rejoiced.... The third + year, the 8th Athyr, one came to tell Majesty: ‘Let their vile-ness be + ended! They throng the roads, there are thousands there ravaging the land; + they fill every road. Those who are in ships bear thy terror in their + hearts. But it is not yet finished.’ Said his Majesty unto his soldiers: + ‘...Young men and old men, do this in the cities and nomes!’... Going upon + every road, let not a day pass without fighting their galleys!’... The + land was traversed as by the blast of a tempest, destroying their ships, + which were abandoned by the crews. The people accomplished their fate, + killing the prince (Apries) on his couch, when he had gone to repose in + his cabin. When he saw his friend overthrown... his Majesty himself buried + him (Apries), in order to establish him as a king possessing virtue, for + his Majesty decreed that the hatred of the gods should be removed from + him.” + </p> + <p> + This is the event to which we have already referred in a preceding + chapter, as proving the great amelioration of Egyptian ideas with regard + to the treatment of a conquered enemy, as compared with those of other + ancient nations. Amasis refers to the deposed monarch as his “friend,” and + buries him in a manner befitting a king at the charges of Amasis himself. + This act warded off from the spirit of Apries the just anger of the gods + at his partiality for the “foreign devils,” and ensured his reception by + Osiris as a king neb menkh, “possessing virtues.” + </p> + <p> + The town of Naukratis, where Apries established himself, had been granted + to the Greek traders by Psametik I a century or more before. Mr. D. G. + Hogarth’s recent exploration of the site has led to a considerable + modification of our first ideas of the place, which were obtained from + Prof. Petrie ‘s excavations. Prof. Petrie was the discoverer of Naukratis, + and his diggings told us what Naukratis was like in the first instance, + but Mr. Hogarth has shown that several of his identifications were + erroneous and that the map of the place must be redrawn. The chief error + was in the placing of the Hellenion (the great meeting-place of the + Greeks), which is now known to be in quite a different position from that + assigned to it by Prof. Petrie. The “Great Temenos” of Prof. Petrie has + now been shown to be non-existent. Mr. Hogarth has also pointed out that + an old Egyptian town existed at Nau-kratis long before the Greeks came + there. This town is mentioned on a very interesting stele of black basalt + (discovered at Tell Gaif, the site of Naukratis, and now in the Cairo + Museum), under the name of “Permerti, which is called Nukrate.” The first + is the old Egyptian name, the second the Greek name adapted to Egyptian + hieroglyphs. The stele was erected by Tekhtnebf, the last native king of + Egypt, to commemorate his gifts to the temples of Neïth on the occasion of + his accession at Sais. It is beautifully cut, and the inscription is + written in a curious manner, with alphabetic spellings instead of + ideographs, and ideographs instead of alphabetic spellings, which savours + fully of the affectation of the learned pedant who drafted it; for now, of + course, in the fourth century before Christ, nobody but a priestly + antiquarian could read hieroglyphics. Demotic was the only writing for + practical purposes. + </p> + <p> + We see this fact well illustrated in the inscriptions of the Ptolemaïc + temples. The accession of the Ptolemies marked a great increase in the + material wealth of Egypt, and foreign conquest again came in fashion. + Ptolemy Euergetes marched into Asia in the grand style of a Ramses and + brought back the images of gods which had been carried off by Esarhaddon + or Nebuchadnezzar II centuries before. He was received on his return to + Egypt with acclamations as a true successor of the Pharaohs. The imperial + spirit was again in vogue, and the archaistic simplicity and independence + of the Saïtes gave place to an archaistic imperialism, the first-fruits of + which were the repair and building of temples in the great Pharaonic + style. On these we see the Ptolemies masquerading as Pharaohs, and the + climax of absurdity is reached when Ptolemy Auletes (the Piper) is seen + striking down Asiatic enemies in the manner of Amen-hetep or Ramses! This + scene is directly copied from a Ramesside temple, and we find imitations + of reliefs of Ramses II so slavish that the name of the earlier king is + actually copied, as well as the relief, and appears above the figure of a + Ptolemy. The names of the nations who were conquered by Thothmes III are + repeated on Ptolemaic sculptures to do duty for the conquered of + Euergetes, with all sorts of mistakes in spelling, naturally, and also + with later interpolations. Such an inscription is that in the temple of + Kom Ombo, which Prof. Say ce has held to contain the names of “Caphtor and + Casluhim” and to prove the knowledge of the latter name in the fourteenth + century before Christ. The name of Caphtor is the old Egyptian Keftiu + (Crete); that of Casluhim is unknown in real Old Egyptian inscriptions, + and in this Ptolemaic list at Kom Ombo it may be quite a late + interpolation in the lists, perhaps no older than the Persian period, + since we find the names of Parsa (Persia) and Susa, which were certainly + unknown to Thothmes III, included in it. We see generally from the + Ptolemaic inscriptions that nobody could read them but a few priests, who + often made mistakes. One of the most serious was the identification of + Keftiu with Phoenicia in the Stele of Canopus. This misled modern + archaeologists down to the time of Dr. Evans’s discoveries at Knossos, + though how these utterly un-Semitic looking Keftiu could have been + Phoenicians was a puzzle to everybody. We now know, of course, that they + were Mycenaean or Minoan Cretans, and that the Ptolemaic antiquaries made + a mistake in identifying the land of Keftiu with Phoenicia. + </p> + <p> + We must not, however, say too much in dispraise of the Ptolemaic Egyptians + and their works. We have to be grateful to them indeed for the building of + the temples of Edfu and Dendera, which, owing to their later date, are + still in good preservation, while the best preserved of the old Pharaonic + fanes, such as Medinet Habû, have suffered considerably from the ravages + of time. Eor these temples show us to-day what an old Egyptian temple, + when perfect, really looked like. They are, so to speak, perfect mummies + of temples, while of the old buildings we have nothing but the disjointed + and damaged skeletons. + </p> + <p> + A good deal of repairing has been done to these buildings, especially to + that at Edfu, of late years. But the main archaeological interest of + Ptolemaic and Roman times has been found in the field of epigraphy and the + study of papyri, with which the names of Messrs. Kenyon, Grenfell, and + Hunt are chiefly connected. The treasures which have lately been obtained + by the British Museum in the shape of the manuscripts of Aristotle’s + “Constitution of Athens,” the lost poems of Bacchylides, and the Mimes of + Herondas, all of which have been published for the trustees of that + institution by Mr. Kenyon, are known to those who are interested in these + subjects. The long series of publications of Messrs. Grenfell and Hunt, + issued at the expense of the Egypt Exploration Fund (Graeco-Roman branch), + with the exception of the volume of discoveries at Teb-tunis, which was + issued by the University of California, is also well known. + </p> + <p> + The two places with which Messrs. Grenfell and Hunt’s work has been + chiefly connected are the Fayyûm and Behnesâ, the site of the ancient + Permje or Oxyr-rhynchus. The lake-province of the Fayyûm, which attained + such prominence in the days of the XIIth Dynasty, seems to have had little + or no history during the whole period of the New Empire, but in Ptolemaic + times it revived and again became one of the richest and most important + provinces of Egypt. The town of Arsinoë was founded at Crocodilopolis, + where are now the mounds of Kom el-Fâris (The Mound of the Horseman), near + Medinet el-Payyum, and became the capital of the province. At Illahûn, + just outside the entrance to the Fayyûm, was the great Nile harbour and + entrepôt of the lake-district, called Ptolemaïs Hormos. + </p> + <p> + The explorations of Messrs. Hogarth, Grenfell, and Hunt in the years of + 1895-6 and 1898-9 resulted in the identification of the sites of the + ancient cities of Karanis (Kom Ushîm), Bacchias (Omm el-’Atl), Euhemeria + (Kasr el-Banât), Theadelphia (Harît), and Philoteris (Wadfa). The work for + the University of California in 18991900 at Umm el-Baragat showed that + this place was Tebtunis. Dime, on the northern coast of the Birket Karûn, + the modern representative of the ancient Lake Moeris, is now known to be + the ancient Sokno-paiou Nesos (the Isle of Soknopaios), a local form of + Sebek, the crocodile-god of the Fayyûm. At Karanis this god was worshipped + under the name of Petesuchos (“He whom Sebek has given”), in conjunction + with Osiris Pnepherôs (P-nefer-ho, “the beautiful of face”); at Tebtunis + he became Seknebtunis., i.e. Sebek-neb-Teb-tunis (Sebek, lord of + Tebtunis). This is a typical example of the portmanteau pronunciations of + the latter-day Egyptians. + </p> + <p> + Many very interesting discoveries were made during the course of the + excavations of these places (besides Mr. Hogarth’s find of the temple of + Petesuchos and Pnepherôs at Karanis), consisting of Roman pottery of + varied form and Roman agricultural implements, including a perfect + plough.<a href="#fn9.1" name="fnref9.1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> The main interest of all, however, lies, both here and at + Behnesâ, in the papyri. They consist of Greek and Latin documents of all + ages from the early Ptolemaic to the Christian. In fact, Messrs. Grenfell + and Hunt have been unearthing and sifting the contents of the waste-paper + baskets of the ancient Ptolemaic and Roman Egyptians, which had been + thrown out on to dust-heaps near the towns. Nothing perishes in,, the dry + climate and soil of Egypt, so the contents of the ancient dust-heaps have + been preserved intact until our own day, and have been found by Messrs. + Grenfell and Hunt, just as the contents of the houses of the ancient + Indian rulers of Chinese Turkestan, at Niya and Khotan, with their store + of Kha-roshthi documents, have been preserved intact in the dry Tibetan + desert climate and have been found by Dr. Stein.<a href="#fn9.2" name="fnref9.2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> There is much analogy + between the discoveries of Messrs. Grenfell and Hunt in Egypt and those of + Dr. Stein in Turkestan. + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn9.1"></a> <a href="#fnref9.1">[1]</a> + Illustrated on Plate IX of Fayûm Towns and Their Papyri. +</p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn9.2"></a> <a href="#fnref9.2">[2]</a> +See Dr. Stein’s Sand-buried Ruins of Khotan, London, 1903. +</p> + <p> + The Græco-Egyptian documents are of all kinds, consisting of letters, + lists, deeds, notices, tax-assessments, receipts, accounts, and business + records of every sort and kind, besides new fragments of classical authors + and the important “Sayings of Jesus,” discovered at Behnesâ, which have + been published in a special popular form by the Egypt Exploration Fund.<a href="#fn9.3" name="fnref9.3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> + </p> + +<p class="footnote"> +<a name="fn9.3"></a> <a href="#fnref9.3">[3]</a> + * Aoyla ‘Itjffov, 1897, and <i>New Sayings of Jesus</i>, 1904. +</p> + <p> + These last fragments of the oldest Christian literature, which are of such + great importance and interest to all Christians, cannot be described or + discussed here. The other documents are no less important to the student + of ancient literature, the historian, and the sociologist. The classical + fragments include many texts of lost authors, including Menander. We will + give a few specimens of the private letters and documents, which will show + how extremely modern the ancient Egyptians were, and how little difference + there actually is between our civilization and theirs, except in + the-matter of mechanical invention. They had no locomotives and + telephones; otherwise they were the same. We resemble them much more than + we resemble our mediaeval ancestors or even the Elizabethans. + </p> + <p> + This is a boy’s letter to his father, who would not take him up to town + with him to see the sights: “Theon to his father Theon, greeting. It was a + fine thing of you not to take me with you to the city! If you won’t take + me with you to Alexandria, I won’t write you a letter, or speak to you, or + say good-bye to you; and if you go to Alexandria I won’t take your hand or + ever greet you again. That is what will happen if you won’t take me. + Mother said to Archelaus, ‘It quite upsets him to be left behind.’ It was + good of you to send me presents on the 12th, the day you sailed. Send me a + lyre, I implore you. If you don’t, I won’t eat, I won’t drink: there + now!’” Is not this more like the letter of a spoiled child of to-day than + are the solemnly dutiful epistles of even our grandfathers and + grandmothers when young? The touch about “Mother said to Archelaus, ‘It + quite upsets him to be left behind’” is delightfully like the modern small + boy, and the final request and threat are also eminently characteristic. + </p> + <p> + Here is a letter asking somebody to redeem the writer’s property from the + pawnshop: “Now please redeem my property from Sarapion. It is pledged for + two minas. I have paid the interest up to the month Epeiph, at the rate of + a stater per mina. There is a casket of incense-wood, and another of onyx, + a tunic, a white veil with a real purple border, a handkerchief, a tunic + with a Laconian stripe, a garment of purple linen, two armlets, a + necklace, a coverlet, a figure of Aphrodite, a cup, a big tin flask, and a + wine-jar. From Onetor get the two bracelets. They have been pledged since + the month Tybi of last year for eight... at the rate of a stater per mina. + If the cash is insufficient owing to the carelessness of Theagenis, if, I + say, it is insufficient, sell the bracelets and make up the money.” Here + is an affectionate letter of invitation: “Greeting, my dear Serenia, from + Petosiris. Be sure, dear, to come up on the 20th for the birthday festival + of the god, and let me know whether you are coming by boat or by donkey, + that we may send for you accordingly. Take care not to forget.” + </p> + <p> + Here is an advertisement of a gymnastic display: + </p> + <p> + “The assault-at-arms by the youths will take place to-morrow, the 24th. + Tradition, no less than the distinguished character of the festival, + requires that they should do their utmost in the gymnastic display. Two + performances.” Signed by Dioskourides, magistrate of Oxyrrhynchus. + </p> + <p> + Here is a report from a public physician to a magistrate: “To Claudianus, + the mayor, from Dionysos, public physician. I was to-day instructed by + you, through Herakleides your assistant, to inspect the body of a man who + had been found hanged, named Hierax, and to report to you my opinion of + it. I therefore inspected the body in the presence of the aforesaid + Herakleides at the house of Epagathus in the Broadway ward, and found it + hanged by a noose, which fact I accordingly report.” Dated in the twelfth + year of Marcus Aurelius (A.D. 173). + </p> + <p> + The above translations are taken, slightly modified, from those in The + Oxyrrhynchus Papyri, vol. i. The next specimen, a quaint letter, is + translated from the text in Mr. Grenfell’s Greek Papyri (Oxford, 1896), p. + 69: “To Noumen, police captain and mayor, from Pokas son of Onôs, unpaid + policeman. I have been maltreated by Peadius the priest of the temple of + Sebek in Crocodilopolis. On the first epagomenal day of the eleventh year, + after having abused me about... in the aforesaid temple, the person + complained against sprang upon me and in the presence of witnesses struck + me many blows with a stick which he had. And as part of my body was not + covered, he tore my shirt, and this fact I called upon the bystanders to + bear witness to. Wherefore I request that if it seems proper you will + write to Klearchos the headman to send him to you, in order that, if what + I have written is true, I may obtain justice at your hands.” + </p> + <p> + A will of Hadrian’s reign, taken from the Oxyrrhynchus Papyri (i, p. 173), + may also be of interest: “This is the last will and testament, made in the + street (i.e. at a street notary’s stand), of Pekysis, son of Hermes and + Didyme, an inhabitant of Oxyrrhynchus, being sane and in his right mind. + So long as I live, I am to have powers over my property, to alter my will + as I please. But if I die with this will unchanged, I devise my daughter + Ammonous whose mother is Ptolema, if she survive me, but if not then her + children, heir to my shares in the common house, court, and rooms situate + in the Cretan ward. All the furniture, movables, and household stock and + other property whatever that I shall leave, I bequeath to the mother of my + children and my wife Ptolema, the freedwoman of Demetrius, son of + Hermippus, with the condition that she shall have for her lifetime the + right of using, dwelling in, and building in the said house, court, and + rooms. If Ammonous should die without children and intestate, the share of + the fixtures shall belong to her half-brother on the mother’s side, + Anatas, if he survive, but if not, to... No one shall violate the terms of + this my will under pain of paying to my daughter and heir Ammonous a fine + of 1,000 drachmae and to the treasury an equal sum.” Here follow the + signatures of testator and witnesses, who are described, as in a passport, + one of them as follows: “I, Dionysios, son of Dionysios of the same city, + witness the will of Pekysis. I am forty-six years of age, have a curl over + my right temple, and this is my seal of Dionysoplaton.” + </p> + <p> + During the Roman period, which we have now reached in our survey, the + temple building of the Ptolemies was carried on with like energy. One of + the best-known temples of the Roman period is that at Philse, which is + known as the “Kiosk,” or “Pharaoh’s Bed.” Owing to the great + picturesqueness of its situation, this small temple, which was built in + the reign of Trajan, has been a favourite subject for the painters of the + last fifty years, and next to the Pyramids, the Sphinx, and Karnak, it is + probably the most widely known of all Egyptian buildings. Recently it has + come very much to the front for an additional reason. Like all the other + temples of Philse, it had been archæologically surveyed and cleared by + Col. H. Gr. Lyons and Dr. Borchardt, but further work of a far-reaching + character was rendered necessary by the building of the great Aswân dam, + below the island of Philse, one of the results of which has been the + partial submergence of the island and its temples, including the + picturesque Kiosk. The following account, taken from the new edition + (1906) of Murray’s <i>Guide to Egypt and the Sudan</i>, will suffice + better than any other description to explain what the dam is, how it has + affected Philse, and what work has been done to obviate the possibility of + serious damage to the Kiosk and other buildings. + </p> + <p> + “In 1898 the Egyptian government signed a contract with Messrs. John Aird + & Co. for the construction of the great reservoir and dam at Shellâl, + which serves for the storage of water at the time of the flood Nile. The + river is ‘held up’ here sixty-five feet above its old normal level. A + great masonry dyke, 150 feet high in places, has been carried across the + Bab el-Kebir of the First Cataract, and a canal and four locks, two + hundred feet long and thirty feet wide, allow for the passage of traffic + up and down the river. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0040" id="linkDimage-0040"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figright" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/447.jpg" + alt="447.jpg the Great Dam of Asw.n " /> + +<p class="caption"> +Showing Water Rushing Through The Sluices +</p> + </div> + <p> + The dam is 2,185 yards long and over ninety feet thick at the base; in + places it rises one hundred feet above the bed of the river. It is built + of the local red granite, and at each end the granite dam is built into + the granite hillside. Seven hundred and eight thousand cubic yards of + masonry were used. The sluices are 180 in number, and are arranged at four + different levels. The sight of the great volume of water pouring through + them is a very fine one. The Nile begins to rise in July, and at the end + of November it is necessary to begin closing the sluice-gates to hold up + the water. By the end of February the reservoir is usually filled and + Philæ partially submerged, so that boats can sail in and out of the + colonnades and Pharaoh’s Bed. By the beginning of July the water has been + distributed, and it then falls to its normal level. + </p> + <p> + “It is of course regrettable that the engineers were unable to find + another site for the dam, as it seemed inevitable that some damage would + result to the temples of Philæ from their partial submergence. Korosko was + proposed as a site, but was rejected for cogent reasons, and apparently + Shellâl was the only possible place. Further, no serious person, who + places the greatest good of the greatest number above considerations of + the picturesque and the ‘interesting,’ will deny that if it is necessary + to sacrifice Philæ to the good of the people of Egypt, Philæ must go. ‘Let + the dead bury their dead.’ The concern of the rulers of Egypt must be with + the living people of Egypt rather than with the dead bones of the past; + and they would not be doing their duty did they for a moment allow + artistic and archaeological considerations to outweigh in their minds the + practical necessities of the country. This does not in the least imply + that they do not owe a lesser duty to the monuments of Egypt, which are + among the most precious relics of the past history of mankind. They do owe + this lesser duty, and with regard to Philæ it has been conscientiously + fulfilled. The whole temple, in order that its stability may be preserved + under the stress of submersion, has been braced up and underpinned, under + the superintendence of Mr. Ball, of the Survey Department, who has most + efficiently carried out this important work, at a cost of £22,000. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0041" id="linkDimage-0041"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/449.jpg" width="100%" + alt="449.jpg the Kiosk at Philæ in Process of Underpinning And Restoration, January, 1902. " /> + </div> + <p> + Steel girders have been fixed across the island from quay to quay, and + these have been surrounded by cement masonry, made water-tight by forcing + in cement grout. Pharaoh’s Bed and the colonnade have been firmly + underpinned in cement masonry, and there is little doubt that the actual + stability of Philæ is now more certain than that of any other temple in + Egypt. The only possible damage that can accrue to it is the partial + discolouration of the lower courses of the stonework of Pharaoh’s Bed, + etc., which already bear a distinct high-water mark. Some surface + disintegration from the formation of salt crystals is perhaps inevitable + here, but the effects of this can always be neutralized by careful + washing, which it should be an important charge of the Antiquities + Department to regularly carry out.” + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0042" id="linkDimage-0042"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/450.jpg" width="100%" + alt="450.jpg the Ancient Quay Op Philæ, November, 1904" /> + </div> + +<p class="caption"> + This is entirely covered when the reservoir is full, and the + palm-trees are farther submerged. +</p> + <p> + The photographs accompanying the present chapter show the dam, the Kiosk + in process of conservation and underpinning (1902), and the shores of the + island as they now appear in the month of November, with the water nearly + up to the level of the quays. A view is also given of the island of + Konosso, with its inscriptions, as it is now. The island is simply a huge + granite boulder of the kind characteristic of the neighbourhood of Shellâl + (Phila?) and Aswân. + </p> + <p> + On the island of Elephantine, opposite Aswân, an interesting discovery has + lately been made by Mr. Howard Carter. This is a remarkable well, which + was supposed by the ancients to lie immediately on the tropic. It formed + the basis of Eratosthenes’ calculations of the measurement of the earth. + Important finds of documents written in Aramaic have also been made here; + they show that there was on the island in Ptolemaic times a regular colony + of Syrian merchants. + </p> + <p> + South of Aswân and Philse begins Nubia. The Nubian language, which is + quite different from Arabic, is spoken by everybody on the island of + Elephantine, and its various dialects are used as far south as Dongola, + where Arabic again is generally spoken till we reach the land of the + negroes, south of Khartum. In Ptolemaic and Roman days the Nubians were a + powerful people, and the whole of Nubia and the modern North Sudan formed + an independent kingdom, ruled by queens who bore the title or name of + Candace. It was the eunuch of a Candace who was converted to Christianity + as he was returning from a mission to Jerusalem to salute Jehovah. “Go and + join thyself unto his chariot” was the command to Philip, and when the + Ethiopian had heard the gospel from his lips he went on his way rejoicing. + The capital of this Candace was at Meroë, the modern Bagarawiya, near + Shendi. Here, and at Naga not far off, are the remains of the temples of + the Can-daces, great buildings of semi-barbaric Egyptian style. For the + civilization of the Nubians, such as it was, was of Egyptian origin. Ever + since Egyptian rule had been extended southwards to Jebel Barkal, beyond + Dongola, in the time of Amenhetep II, Egyptian culture had influenced the + Nubians. Amenhetep III built a temple to Amen at Napatà, the capital of + Nubia, which lay under the shadow of Mount Barkal; Akhunaten erected a + sanctuary of the Sun-Disk there; and Ramses II also built there. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0043" id="linkDimage-0043"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%;"> + <img src="images/452.jpg" width="100%" + alt="452.jpg the Rock of Konosso in January, 1902, Before The Building of the Dam and Formation Of The Reservoir. " /> + </div> + <p> + The place in fact was a sort of appanage of the priests of Amen at Thebes, + and when the last priest-king evacuated Thebes, leaving it to the + Bubastites of the XXIId Dynasty, it was to distant Napata that he retired. + Here a priestly dynasty continued to reign until, two centuries later, the + troubles and misfortunes of Egypt seemed to afford an opportunity for the + reassertion of the exiled Theban power. Piankhi Mera-men returned to Egypt + in triumph as its rightful sovereign, but his successors, Shabak, + Shabatak, and Tirha-kah, had to contend constantly with the Assyrians. + Finally ITrdamaneh, Tirhakah’s successor, returned to Nubia, leaving + Egypt, in the decadence of the Assyrian might, free to lead a quiet + existence under Psametik I and the succeeding monarchs of the XXVIth + Dynasty. When Cambyses conquered Egypt he aspired to conquer Nubia also, + but his army was routed and destroyed by the Napatan king, who tells us in + an inscription how he defeated “the man Kambasauden,” who had attacked + him. At Napata the Nubian monarchs, one of the greatest of whom in + Ptolemaic times was Ergam-enes, a contemporary of Ptolemy Philopator, + continued to reign. But the first Roman governor of Egypt, Ælius Gallus, + destroyed Napata, and the Nubians removed their capital to Meroë, where + the Candaces reigned. + </p> + <p> + The monuments of this Nubian kingdom, the temples of Jebel Barkal, the + pyramids of Nure close by, the pyramids of Bagarawiya, the temples of Wadi + Ben Naga, Mesawwarat en-Naga, and Mesawwarat es-Sufra (“Mesawwarat” + proper), were originally investigated by Cailliaud and afterwards by + Lepsius. During the last few years they and the pyramids excavated by Dr. + E. A. Wallis-Budge, of the British Museum, for the Sudan government, have + been again explored. As the results of his work are not yet fully + published, it is possible at present only to quote the following + description from Cook’s <i>Handbook for Egypt and the Sudan</i> (by Dr. + Budge), p. 6, of work on the pyramids of Jebel Barkal: “the writer + excavated the shafts of one of the pyramids here in 1897, and at the depth + of about twenty-five cubits found a group of three chambers, in one of + which were a number of bones of the sheep which was sacrificed there about + two thousand years ago, and also portions of a broken amphora which had + held Rho-dian wine. A second shaft, which led to the mummy-chamber, was + partly emptied, but at a further depth of twenty cubits water was found. + The high-water mark of the reservoir when full is ——— + and, as there were no visible means for pumping it out, the mummy-chamber + could not be entered.” With regard to the Bagarawîya pyramids, Dr. Budge + writes, on p. 700 of the same work, à propos of the story of the Italian + Ferlini that he found Roman jewelry in one of these pyramids: “In 1903 the + writer excavated a number of the pyramids of Meroë for the + Governor-General of the Sudan, Sir F. R. Wingate, and he is convinced that + the statements made by Ferlini are the result of misapprehension on his + part. The pyramids are solid throughout, and the bodies are buried under + them. When the details are complete the proofs for this will be + published.” Dr. Budge has also written upon the subject of the orientation + of the Jebel Barkal and Nure pyramids. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDimage-0044" id="linkDimage-0044"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="figleft" style="width:40%;"> + <img width="100%" src="images/454.jpg" + alt="454.jpg the Isle of Konosso, With Its Inscriptions " /> + </div> + <p> + It is very curious to find the pyramids reappearing in Egyptian + tomb-architecture in the very latest period of Egyptian history. We find + them when Egyptian civilization was just entering upon its vigorous + manhood, then they gradually disappear, only to revive in its decadent and + exiled old age. The Ethiopian pyramids are all of much more elongated form + than the old Egyptian ones. It is possible that they may be a survival of + the archaistic movement of the XXVIth Dynasty, to which we have already + referred. + </p> + <p> + These are not the latest Egyptian monuments in the Sudan, nor are the + temples of Naga and Mesawwarat the most ancient, though they belong to the + Roman period and are decidedly barbarian as to their style and, + especially, as to their decoration. The southernmost as well as latest + relic of Egypt in the Sudan is the Christian church of Soba, on the Blue + Mie, a few miles above Khartum. In it was found a stone ram, an emblem of + Amen-Râ, which had formerly stood in the temple of Naga and had been + brought to Soba perhaps under the impression that it was the Christian + Lamb. It was removed to the garden of the governor-general’s palace at + Khartum, where it now stands. + </p> + <p> + The church at Soba is a relic of the Christian kingdom of Alua, which + succeeded the realm of the Candaces. One of its chief seats was at + Dongola, and all Nubia is covered with the ruins of its churches. It was, + of course, an offshoot of the Christianity of Egypt, but a late one, since + Isis was still worshipped at Philse in the sixth century, long after the + Edict of Theodosius had officially abolished paganism throughout the Roman + world, and the Nubians were at first zealous votaries of the goddess of + Philo. So also when Egypt fell beneath the sway of the Moslem in the + seventh century, Nubia remained an independent Christian state, and + continued so down to the twelfth century, when the soldiers of Islam + conquered the country. + </p> + <p> + Of late pagan and early Christian Egypt very much that is new has been + discovered during the last few years. The period of the Lower Empire has + yielded much to the explorers of Oxyrrhynchus, and many papyri of interest + belonging to this period have been published by Mr. Kenyon in his <i>Catalogue + of the Greek Papyri in the British Museum</i>, especially the letters of + Flavius Abinæus, a military officer of the fourth century. The papyri of + this period are full of the high-flown titles and affected phraseology + which was so beloved of Byzantine scribes. “Glorious Dukes of the + Thebaïd,” “most magnificent counts and lieutenants,” “all-praiseworthy + secretaries,” and the like strut across the pages of the letters and + documents which begin “In the name of Our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, + the God and Saviour of us all, in the year x of the reign of the most + divine and praised, great, and beneficent Lord Flavius Heraclius (or + other) the eternal Augustus and Auto-krator, month x, year x of the In + diction.” It is an extraordinary period, this of the sixth and seventh + centuries, which we have now entered, with its bizarre combination of the + official titulary of the divine and eternal Cæsars Imperatores Augusti + with the initial invocation of Christ and the Trinity. It is the + transition from the ancient to the modern world, and as such has an + interest all its own. + </p> + <p> + In Egypt the struggle between the adherents of Chalcedon, the “Melkites” + or Imperialists of the orthodox Greek rite, and the Eutychians or + Mono-physites, the followers of the patriarch Dioskoros, who rejected + Chalcedon, was going on with unabated fury, and was hardly stopped even by + the invasion of the pagan Persians. The last effort of the party of + Constantinople to stamp out the Monophysite heresy was made when Cyril was + patriarch and governor of Egypt. According to an ingenious theory put + forward by Mr. Butler, in his <i>Arab Conquest of Egypt</i>, it is Cyril + the patriarch who was the mysterious Mukaukas, the [Greek word], or “Great + and Magnificent One,” who played so doubtful a part in the epoch-making + events of the Arab conquest by Amr in A.D. 639-41. Usually this Mukaukas + has been regarded as a “noble Copt,” and the Copts have generally been + credited with having assisted the Islamites against the power of + Constantinople. This was a very natural and probable conclusion, but Mr. + Butler will have it that the Copts resisted the Arabs valiantly, and that + the treacherous Mukaukas was none other than the Constantinopolitan + patriarch himself. + </p> + <p> + In the papyri it is interesting to note the gradual increase of Arab names + after the conquest, more especially in those of the Archduke Rainer ‘s + collection from the Fayyûm, which was so near the new capital city, + Fustât. In Upper Egypt the change was not noticeable for a long time, and + in the great collection of Coptic <i>ostraka</i> (inscriptions on slips of + limestone and sherds of pottery, used as a substitute for paper or + parchment), found in the ruins of the Coptic monastery established, on the + temple site of Dêr el-Bahari, we find no Arab names. These documents, part + of which have been published by Mr. W. E. Crum for the Egypt Exploration + Fund, while another part will shortly be issued for the trustees of the + British Museum by Mr. Hall, date to the seventh and eighth centuries. + Their contents resemble those of the earlier papyri from Oxyrrhynchus, + though they are not of so varied a nature and are generally written by + persons of less intelligence, i.e. the monks and peasants of the + monasteries and villages of Tjême, or Western Thebes. During the late + excavation of the XIth Dynasty temple of Dêr el-Bahari, more of these <i>ostraka</i> + were found, which will be published for the Egypt Exploration Fund by + Messrs. Naville and Hall. Of actual buildings of the Coptic period the + most important excavations have been those of the French School of Cairo + at Bâwît, north of Asyût. This work, which was carried on by M. Jean + Clédat, has resulted in the discovery of very important frescoes and + funerary inscriptions, belonging to the monastery of a famous martyr, St. + Apollo. With these new discoveries of Christian Egypt our work reaches its + fitting close. The frontier which divides the ancient from the modern + world has almost been crossed. We look back from the monastery of Bâwît + down a long vista of new discoveries until, four thousand years before, we + see again the Great Heads coming to the Tomb of Den, Narmer inspecting the + bodies of the dead Northerners, and, far away in Babylonia, Narâm-Sin + crossing the mountains of the East to conquer Elam, or leading his allies + against the prince of Sinai. + </p> + <p> + THE END. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF EGYPT ***</div> +<div style='text-align:left'> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will +be renamed. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law 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™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ +concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, +and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following +the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use +of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for +copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very +easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation +of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project +Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may +do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected +by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark +license, especially commercial redistribution. +</div> + +<div style='margin-top:1em; font-size:1.1em; text-align:center'>START: FULL LICENSE</div> +<div style='text-align:center;font-size:0.9em'>THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE</div> +<div style='text-align:center;font-size:0.9em'>PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +To protect the Project Gutenberg™ 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™ License available with this file or online at +www.gutenberg.org/license. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ +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™ electronic works in your +possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a +Project Gutenberg™ 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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ 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™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this +agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ +electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the +Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection +of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual +works in the collection are in the public domain in the United +States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law 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™ mission of promoting +free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ +works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the +Project Gutenberg™ 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™ License when +you share it without charge with others. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ work. The Foundation makes no +representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any +country other than the United States. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other +immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear +prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ 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: +</div> + +<blockquote> + <div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> + This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most + other parts of the world 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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you + are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws + of the country where you are located before using this eBook. + </div> +</blockquote> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is +derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (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™ +trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ 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™ License for all works +posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the +beginning of this work. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ License. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ work in a format +other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official +version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website +(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™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works +provided that: +</div> + +<div style='margin-left:0.7em;'> + <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> + • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed + to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ 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.” + </div> + + <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> + • 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™ + 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™ + works. + </div> + + <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> + • 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. + </div> + + <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> + • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works. + </div> +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project +Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than +are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing +from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of +the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set +forth in Section 3 below. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.F. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project +Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg™ 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 1.F.3. 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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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 MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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™ electronic works in +accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the +production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ +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™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or +additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any +Defect you cause. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™ +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Project Gutenberg™ 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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ 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™ 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 information page at www.gutenberg.org. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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. 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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, +Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up +to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website +and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact +</div> + +<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/donate/">www.gutenberg.org/donate</a>. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +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. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To +donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate +</div> + +<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project +Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be +freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and +distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of +volunteer support. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in +the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not +necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper +edition. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Most people start at our website which has the main PG search +facility: <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, +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. +</div> + +</div> + +</body> +</html> + diff --git a/17321-h/images/007.jpg b/17321-h/images/007.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..1753b0e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/007.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/008.jpg b/17321-h/images/008.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ce874d3 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/008.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/009.jpg b/17321-h/images/009.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6ef69f3 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/009.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/012.jpg b/17321-h/images/012.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c7eee47 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/012.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/014.jpg b/17321-h/images/014.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..54ae865 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/014.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/017.jpg b/17321-h/images/017.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..24de432 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/017.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/027.jpg b/17321-h/images/027.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2ca2333 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/027.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/038-text.jpg b/17321-h/images/038-text.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2f3a3dc --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/038-text.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/038.jpg b/17321-h/images/038.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c0bcd9b --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/038.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/050.jpg b/17321-h/images/050.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..518ff43 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/050.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/051.jpg b/17321-h/images/051.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..e566717 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/051.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/052.jpg b/17321-h/images/052.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..58f8370 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/052.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/053.jpg b/17321-h/images/053.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..75960b7 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/053.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/054.jpg b/17321-h/images/054.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..27a1bd4 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/054.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/060.jpg b/17321-h/images/060.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..64a6bf6 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/060.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/065.jpg b/17321-h/images/065.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fbf4378 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/065.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/067.jpg b/17321-h/images/067.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a97348f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/067.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/082.jpg b/17321-h/images/082.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9b5c9f5 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/082.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/086.jpg b/17321-h/images/086.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2cd2ea5 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/086.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/089.jpg b/17321-h/images/089.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f7734c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/089.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/100.jpg b/17321-h/images/100.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5d28685 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/100.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/109.jpg b/17321-h/images/109.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..728c278 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/109.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/111.jpg b/17321-h/images/111.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..08ed01e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/111.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/125.jpg b/17321-h/images/125.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c99284e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/125.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/126.jpg b/17321-h/images/126.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..80f6cee --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/126.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/147.jpg b/17321-h/images/147.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..81bb6c9 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/147.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/150.jpg b/17321-h/images/150.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ef35106 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/150.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/154.jpg b/17321-h/images/154.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..7e7520e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/154.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/160.jpg b/17321-h/images/160.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f177edf --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/160.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/160a-text.jpg b/17321-h/images/160a-text.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9ef7f58 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/160a-text.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/160a.jpg b/17321-h/images/160a.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7fbfa6 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/160a.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/161.jpg b/17321-h/images/161.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..885ed3f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/161.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/163.jpg b/17321-h/images/163.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a575a0f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/163.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/165.jpg b/17321-h/images/165.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..41028ae --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/165.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/166.jpg b/17321-h/images/166.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fb4e09e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/166.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/167.jpg b/17321-h/images/167.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3e192a2 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/167.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/168.jpg b/17321-h/images/168.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6e23903 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/168.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/169.jpg b/17321-h/images/169.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2fe7bb4 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/169.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/170.jpg b/17321-h/images/170.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c3a8e6a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/170.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/172.jpg b/17321-h/images/172.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d6011d8 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/172.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/175.jpg b/17321-h/images/175.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4073cf9 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/175.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/188.jpg b/17321-h/images/188.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..e2b7e5f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/188.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/190.jpg b/17321-h/images/190.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6eafded --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/190.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/192.jpg b/17321-h/images/192.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2b8e813 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/192.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/230.jpg b/17321-h/images/230.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..31269b4 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/230.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/231.jpg b/17321-h/images/231.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..756a79d --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/231.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/231a.jpg b/17321-h/images/231a.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ef0a478 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/231a.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/233.jpg b/17321-h/images/233.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..e145b4a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/233.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/240.jpg b/17321-h/images/240.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..61de9c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/240.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/245.jpg b/17321-h/images/245.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ccde09a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/245.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/256.jpg b/17321-h/images/256.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4b0eb0b --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/256.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/260.jpg b/17321-h/images/260.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..8a24a8f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/260.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/264.jpg b/17321-h/images/264.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d02efd2 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/264.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/264a.jpg b/17321-h/images/264a.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6f4f821 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/264a.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/280.jpg b/17321-h/images/280.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..99c318d --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/280.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/282.jpg b/17321-h/images/282.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9db6c5a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/282.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/283.jpg b/17321-h/images/283.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..003ebe1 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/283.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/284.jpg b/17321-h/images/284.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..dc40a8a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/284.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/285.jpg b/17321-h/images/285.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b465a88 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/285.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/286.jpg b/17321-h/images/286.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9f51e1e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/286.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/287.jpg b/17321-h/images/287.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3810774 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/287.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/288.jpg b/17321-h/images/288.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fb67a6f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/288.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/293.jpg b/17321-h/images/293.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..1804a2c --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/293.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/297.jpg b/17321-h/images/297.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..7deb577 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/297.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/298.jpg b/17321-h/images/298.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6aad9aa --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/298.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/299.jpg b/17321-h/images/299.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9d11920 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/299.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/320.jpg b/17321-h/images/320.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3bec736 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/320.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/324.jpg b/17321-h/images/324.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fc0dc9b --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/324.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/325.jpg b/17321-h/images/325.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ad4d79d --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/325.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/326.jpg b/17321-h/images/326.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b4e2769 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/326.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/327.jpg b/17321-h/images/327.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ee15bab --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/327.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/328.jpg b/17321-h/images/328.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..40a65ca --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/328.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/330.jpg b/17321-h/images/330.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2ff7c5b --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/330.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/331.jpg b/17321-h/images/331.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d926cca --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/331.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/338.jpg b/17321-h/images/338.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9301dba --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/338.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/344.jpg b/17321-h/images/344.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..641be07 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/344.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/346.jpg b/17321-h/images/346.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..32b35e5 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/346.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/350.jpg b/17321-h/images/350.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..266fc87 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/350.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/356.jpg b/17321-h/images/356.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fcbc7ab --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/356.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/358.jpg b/17321-h/images/358.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..194dda8 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/358.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/360.jpg b/17321-h/images/360.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..54491c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/360.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/366.jpg b/17321-h/images/366.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..096506c --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/366.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/367.jpg b/17321-h/images/367.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..20445f9 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/367.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/368.jpg b/17321-h/images/368.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..cf31154 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/368.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/369.jpg b/17321-h/images/369.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..651a94c --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/369.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/372.jpg b/17321-h/images/372.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..be56641 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/372.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/374.jpg b/17321-h/images/374.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b795f8c --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/374.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/376.jpg b/17321-h/images/376.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9eb3bfd --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/376.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/379.jpg b/17321-h/images/379.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ae06878 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/379.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/381.jpg b/17321-h/images/381.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..0d951d5 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/381.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/382.jpg b/17321-h/images/382.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..7bb2106 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/382.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/387.jpg b/17321-h/images/387.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9bf421a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/387.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/396.jpg b/17321-h/images/396.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..50f37f7 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/396.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/397.jpg b/17321-h/images/397.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..249ca49 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/397.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/408.jpg b/17321-h/images/408.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..76f5382 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/408.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/410.jpg b/17321-h/images/410.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b0b0e87 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/410.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/413.jpg b/17321-h/images/413.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f00e600 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/413.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/414.jpg b/17321-h/images/414.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b4798b4 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/414.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/415.jpg b/17321-h/images/415.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..391bee4 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/415.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/417.jpg b/17321-h/images/417.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d2cd1a0 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/417.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/419.jpg b/17321-h/images/419.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..80979d1 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/419.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/425.jpg b/17321-h/images/425.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..fafa95e --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/425.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/426.jpg b/17321-h/images/426.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2847618 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/426.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/447.jpg b/17321-h/images/447.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f8c99a8 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/447.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/449.jpg b/17321-h/images/449.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f4477ad --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/449.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/450.jpg b/17321-h/images/450.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4ac4137 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/450.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/452.jpg b/17321-h/images/452.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9ddf35a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/452.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/454.jpg b/17321-h/images/454.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..35f7c2a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/454.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/cover.jpg b/17321-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..013bc1c --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/cover.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/frontispiece1-text.jpg b/17321-h/images/frontispiece1-text.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..7e66c7a --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/frontispiece1-text.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/frontispiece1.jpg b/17321-h/images/frontispiece1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b5f33e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/frontispiece1.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/spines.jpg b/17321-h/images/spines.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ee35490 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/spines.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/titlepage1.jpg b/17321-h/images/titlepage1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..721af37 --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/titlepage1.jpg diff --git a/17321-h/images/versa1.jpg b/17321-h/images/versa1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..62c6d8f --- /dev/null +++ b/17321-h/images/versa1.jpg |
