Part 7 (1/2)

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 Achaemenian kings and others of both later and earlier dates.

In these upper strata of the mound are found remains of the Arab, Sa.s.sanian, 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 160.jpg BABIL.]

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.

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 princ.i.p.al 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 160a.jpg ”STELE OF VICTORY”]

[Ill.u.s.tration: 160a-text.jpg TEXT FOR ”STELE OF VICTORY”]

Stele of Naram-Sin, an early Semitic King of Agade in Babylonia, who reigned about B. C. 3750. From the photograph by Messrs. Mansell & Co.

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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 161.jpg ROUGHLY HEWN SCULPTURE OF A LION STANDING OVER A FALLEN MAN, FOUND AT BABYLON.]

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 un.o.bserved; in the photograph some newly smeared filth may be seen adhering to the side of the lion.

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 Achaemenian kings, for, besides its walls, it had the additional protection of the steep slopes of the mound.

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 princ.i.p.al 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. .h.i.therto 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 G.o.d Shu-s.h.i.+nak, 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.

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 stelae 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 163.jpg GENERAL VIEW OF THE EXCAVATIONS ON THE KASR AT BABYLON.]

Showing the depth in the mound to which the diggings are carried.

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.* 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 doc.u.ment in itself has entirely revolutionized current theories as to the growth and origin of the princ.i.p.al 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 cla.s.ses 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.

* 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.”

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 acc.u.mulated. In fact, the leaders.h.i.+p in American excavation has pa.s.sed 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 workmans.h.i.+p 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 165.jpg WITHIN THE PALACE OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR II.]

At Fara and at Ab 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 doc.u.ments, 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 G.o.ddess Ninmakh and the G.o.d Ninib.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 166.jpg EXCAVATIONS IN THE TEMPLE OP NINIB AT BABYLON.]

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 debris from the diggings.

Dr. Andrae, Dr. Koldewey's a.s.sistant, has also completed the excavation of the temple dedicated to Nab at Birs Nimrud. On the princ.i.p.al 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 Nab lying at a lower level below the steep slope of the mound, which is mainly made up of debris from the ziggurat. Dr. Andrae has recently left Babylonia for a.s.syria, where his excavations at Sher-ghat, the site of the ancient a.s.syrian 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.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 167.jpg THE PRINc.i.p.aL MOUND OF BIRS NIMRUD, WHICH MARKS THE SITE OP THE ANCIENT CITY OP BORSIPPA.]