CHAPTER V.

Chapter 513,038 wordsPublic domain

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS; TRADE AND GOVERNMENT.

The monuments of Assyria do not give us the same assistance as those of Egypt in learning about the manners and customs of its inhabitants. We find there no tombs whose pictured walls set before us the daily life and doings of the people. We have to acquire our knowledge from the bas-reliefs of the royal palaces, which represent to us rather the pomp of the court and the conquest of foreign nations than scenes taken from ordinary Assyrian life. It is only incidentally that the manners and customs of the lower classes are depicted. It is true that we can learn a good deal from the contract-tablets and other kinds of what may be called the private literature of Babylonia and Assyria. At present, however, but a small portion of these has been examined, and a literature can never paint so fully and distinctly the manners and customs of the day as the picture or sculpture on the wall. It is only in times comparatively modern that the novelist has sought to give a faithful portrait of the life of the peasant and artisan.

The dress of the upper classes in Assyria did not differ essentially from that of the well-to-do Oriental of to-day. In time of peace the king was dressed in a robe which reached to the ankles, bound round the waist with a broad belt, while a mantle was thrown over his shoulders, and a tiara or fillet was worn on his head. The tiara sometimes resembled the triple tiara of the Pope, sometimes was of cone-like shape, and the fillet was furnished with two long bandelettes which fell down behind. The robe and mantle were alike richly embroidered and edged with fringes. The arms were left bare, except in so far as they could be covered by the mantle, and a heavy pair of bracelets encircled each, the workmanship of the jewelry being similar to that of the chain which was worn round the neck. The feet were shod with sandals which had a raised part behind to protect the heels, and they were fastened to the feet by a ring through which the great toe passed, and a latchet over the instep. Sandals of precisely the same character are still used in Mesopotamia. The monarch's dress in war was similar to that used in time of peace, except that he carried a belt for daggers, while a fringed apron took the place of the mantle. Boots laced in front were also sometimes substituted for the sandals.

The upper classes, and more especially the officials about court, wore a costume similar to that of the king, only of course, less rich and costly. In all cases they were distinguished by the long fringed sleeveless robe which descended to the ankles. The dress of the soldiers and of the common people generally was quite different. It consisted only of the tunic, over which in all probability the long robe of the wealthy was worn, and which did not quite reach the knees. Sometimes a sort of jacket was put on above it, and, in a few instances, a simple kilt seems to take its place. The kilt was frequently worn under the tunic, which was fastened round the waist by a girdle or sword-belt. The arms, legs, and feet, were bare. Some of the soldiers, however, wore sandals, and others, more particularly the cavalry, wore boots, which were laced in front, and came half way up the leg. The upper part of the legs was occasionally protected by drawers of leather or chain-armour, and we even find tunics made of the same materials. Helmets were also employed, but the common soldier usually covered his head with a simple skull-cap.

The dress of the women consisted of a long tunic and mantle, and a fillet for confining the hair.

The king and his officers rode in chariots even when on a campaign. In crossing mountains the chariots often had to be carried on the shoulders of men or animals, their wheels being sometimes first taken off for the purpose. The chariot was large enough to contain not only the king but an umbrella-bearer and a charioteer as well. The latter held the reins in both hands, each rein being single and fastened to either side of a snaffle-like bit. When in the field the royal chariot was followed by a bow-bearer and a quiver-bearer, as well as by led horses, intended to assist the monarch to escape, should the fortune of battle turn against him. The chariot was drawn by two horses, a third horse being usually attached to it by a thong in order to take the place of one of the other two if an accident occurred.

Beside the chariots the army was accompanied by a corps of cavalry. In the time of the first Assyrian Empire the cavalry-soldier rode on the bare back of the horse, with his knees crouched up in front of him; subsequently saddles were introduced, though not stirrups.

The cavalry was divided into two corps—the heavy and the light-armed. The latter were armed only with the bow and arrow and a guard for the wrist, and were chiefly employed in skirmishing. Most of the archers, however, belonged to the infantry. The Assyrians were particularly skilled in the use of the bow, and their superiority in war was probably in great measure due to it. Besides the bow they employed the spear, the short dagger or dirk, and the sword, which was of two kinds. The ordinary kind was long and straight, the less usual kind being curved, like a scimetar. For defence, round shields, of no great size, were carried.

Only the king and the chief nobles were allowed the luxury of a tent. The common soldier had to sleep on the ground, wrapped up in a blanket or plaid. The tent was probably of felt, and had an opening in the centre through which the smoke of a fire might escape. Not only, however, was a sleeping-tent carried for the king, a cooking-tent was carried also. So also was the royal chair, called a _nimedu_, on which the monarch sat when stationary in camp. The chair may be seen in the bas-relief, now in the British Museum, which represents Sennacherib sitting upon it in front of the captured town of Lachish. Above is a short inscription which tells us that 'Sennacherib, the king of legions, the king of Assyria, sat on an upright throne, and the spoil of the city of Lachish passed before him.'

There were various means for assaulting a hostile town. Sometimes scaling-ladders were used, sometimes the walls were undermined with crowbars and pickaxes; sometimes a battering-ram was employed armed with one or two spear-like projections; sometimes fire was applied to the enemy's gates. Other engines are mentioned in the inscriptions, but as they have not been found depicted on the monuments it is difficult to identify them.

The barbarities which followed the capture of a town would be almost incredible, were they not a subject of boast in the inscriptions which record them. Assur-natsir-pal's cruelties were especially revolting. Pyramids of human heads marked the path of the conqueror; boys and girls were burned alive or reserved for a worse fate; men were impaled, flayed alive, blinded, or deprived of their hands and feet, of their ears and noses, while the women and children were carried into slavery, the captured city plundered and reduced to ashes, and the trees in its neighbourhood cut down. During the second Assyrian Empire warfare was a little more humane, but the most horrible tortures were still exercised upon the vanquished. How deeply-seated was the thirst for blood and vengeance on an enemy is exemplified in a bas-relief which represents Assur-bani-pal and his queen feasting in their garden while the head of the conquered Elamite king hangs from a tree above.

The Assyrians made use of chairs, tables, and couches. A piece of sculpture from Khorsabad introduces us to a scene in which the priests of the king are seated, two on a chair on either side of a four-legged table. Their sandals are removed, as was the custom among the Greeks when eating. In the luxurious days of Assur-bani-pal the couch seems to have partially taken the place of the chair, since in the scene alluded to above the king is depicted reclining, though the queen sits in a chair by his side. The number of different kinds of food mentioned in the inscriptions seems to imply that the Assyrians were fond of good living. The common people, it is true, lived mostly on bread, fruit, and vegetables; but the monuments show us soldiers engaged in slaughtering and cooking oxen and sheep.

Wine was the usual beverage at a banquet, and the Assyrians appear to have resembled the Persians in their indulgence in it. Various sorts of wine are enumerated in the inscriptions, most of which were imported from abroad. Among the most highly prized was the wine of Khilbun or Helbon, which is mentioned in Ezek. xxvii. 18, and was grown near Damascus at a village still called Halbûn. Besides grape-wine, palm-wine, made from dates, was brought from Babylon, and beer, milk, cream, butter or ghee, and oil, were all much used. At a feast the wine was ladled out of a large vase into cups, which were then presented to the guests.

The table was ornamented with flowers, and musicians were hired to amuse the banqueters. No less than seven or eight different musical instruments were known, among them the harp, the lyre, and the tambourine. The lyre seems to have been specially employed at feasts, and the harp for the performance of sacred music. The instrumental music was at times accompanied by the voice, and bands of musicians celebrated the triumphant return of the king from war.

Polygamy was permitted—at all events to the monarch—and the palace was accordingly guarded by a whole army of eunuchs. They were generally in attendance on the sovereign, like the scribes whose offices were continually needed in both peace and war. Another attendant must not be forgotten—the servant who stood behind the king armed with a fly-flap, and was almost a necessity in hot weather. Considering the number of captives carried away every year to Assyria in the successful campaigns of its rulers, slaves must have been very plentiful in Nineveh. Indeed, after the Arabian campaign of Assur-bani-pal we are told that a camel was sold for half a shekel of silver, and that a man was worth a correspondingly small sum.

Next to hunting men the chief employment and delight of an Assyrian king was to hunt wild beasts. Tiglath-Pileser I had hunted elephants in the land of the Hittites, as the Egyptian Pharaohs had done before him; subsequently the extinction of the elephant in Western Asia caused his successors to content themselves with lesser game. The reem or wild bull and the lion became their favourite sport, smaller animals like the gazelle, the hare, and the wild ass being left to their subjects to pursue. It was not until the reign of Assur-bani-pal that the lion-hunt ceased to be a dangerous and exciting pastime. With Esar-haddon, however, the old race of warrior kings had come to an end, and the new king introduced a new style of sport. The lions were now caught and kept in cages, until they were turned out for a royal _battue_. As they had to be whipped into activity, neither the monarch nor his companions could have run much risk of being harmed.

The Assyrians were not an agricultural people like the Babylonians. Nevertheless, the kings had their paradises or parks, and the wealthier classes their gardens or shrubberies. The garden was planted with trees rather than with flowers or herbs, and afforded a shady retreat during the summer months. Tiglath-Pileser I had even established a sort of botanical garden, in which he tried to acclimatise some of the trees he had met with in his campaigns. He tells us of it: 'As for the cedar, the _likkarin_ tree, and the almug, from the countries I have conquered, these trees, which none of the kings my fathers that were before me had planted, I took, and in the gardens of my land I planted, and by the name of garden I called them; whatsoever in my land there was not I took, and I established the gardens of Assyria.' The gardens were abundantly watered from the river or canal, by the side of which they were usually planted. Summer-houses were built in the midst of them, and as early as the time of Sennacherib we meet with a 'hanging garden,' grown on the roof of a building.

Fishing was carried on with a line merely, and without a rod. The fisherman sat on the bank, or else swam in the water, supporting himself on an inflated skin.

These inflated skins were largely used in warfare for conveying troops and animals across a stream. The chief officers, along with their chariots and commissariat, were ferried across in boats, but the soldiers had to strip, and with the help of the skins convey themselves, their arms, the horses, and other baggage to the opposite bank.

At times a pontoon-bridge of boats was constructed, at other times the Assyrian army was fortunate enough to meet with bridges of stone or wood. In fact, such bridges existed on all the main roads which it traversed. Western Asia was more thickly populated then than is at present the case, and the roads were not only more numerous than they are to-day, but better kept. Hence the ease and rapidity with which large bodies of men were moved by the Assyrian kings from one part of Asia to another. Where a road did not already exist, it was made by the advancing army, timber being cleared and a highway thrown up for the purpose.

As road-makers the Assyrians seem to have anticipated the Romans. Both their military and their trading instincts led them in this direction. It was only when they came to the water that their career was checked. Excellent as they were as soldiers, they never became sailors. The boats of the Tigris and Euphrates were either rafts or circular coracles of skins stretched on a wooden framework. When Sennacherib wished to attack the Chaldeans of Bit-Yagina in their place of refuge on the Persian Gulf, he had to transport Phœnicians from the west to build his galleys, and to navigate them afterwards. It was the Babylonians 'whose cry was in their ships;' the Assyrians fought and traded on shore.

It was not until the rise of the Second Assyrian Empire that the trade of Assyria became important. The earlier kings had gone forth to war for the sake of booty or out of mere caprice; Tiglath-Pileser II and his successors aimed at getting the commerce of the world into the hands of their own subjects. The fall of Carchemish and the overthrow of the Phœnician cities enabled them to carry out their design. Nineveh became a busy centre of trade, from whence caravans went and returned north and south, east and west. The old Hittite standard of weight, called 'the maneh of Carchemish' by the Assyrians, was made the ordinary legal standard, and Aramaic became the common language of trade. Not unfrequently an Aramaic docket accompanies an Assyrian contract tablet, stating briefly what were its contents and the names of the chief contracting parties. These contract tablets have to do with the sale and lease of houses, slaves, and other property, as well as with the amount of interest to be paid upon loans. We learn from them that the rate of interest was usually as low as four per cent., and when objects like bronze were borrowed as three per cent. House property naturally varied in value. A house sold at Nineveh on the sixteenth of Sivan or May, B.C. 692, fetched one maneh of silver or £9, the average price of a slave. Thus, three Israelites, as Dr. Oppert believes, were sold by a Phœnician on the twentieth of Ab or July, B.C. 709, for £27, retractation or annulment of the sale being subject to a penalty of about £230, part of which was to go to the temple of Istar of Arbela. Twenty years later, however, as many as seven slaves, among them an Israelite, Hoshea, and his two wives, were sold for the same price, while we find a girl handed over by her parents to an Egyptian lady Nitôkris, who wished to marry her to her son Takhos, for the small sum of £2 10_s_. The last deed of sale, by the way, proves that wives in Assyria could sometimes be bought.

All deeds and contracts were signed and sealed in the presence of a number of attesting witnesses, who attached their seals, or, if they were too poor to possess any, their nail-marks, to the documents. It was then enclosed in an outer coating of clay, on which an abstract of its contents was given. Sometimes a further document on papyrus was fastened to it by means of a string.

It was only in the case of the monarch himself that the signatures of attesting witnesses were dispensed with. The British Museum possesses a sort of private will made by Sennacherib in favour of Esar-haddon, when the latter was not as yet heir-apparent to the throne. In this no witnesses are mentioned, and it is considered sufficient that the document should be lodged in the imperial archives. It runs as follows: 'I, Sennacherib, king of legions, king of Assyria, bequeathe armlets of gold, quantities of ivory, a platter of gold, ornaments and chains for the neck, all these beautiful things of which there are heaps, and three sorts of precious stones, 1½ manehs and 2½ shekels in weight, to Esar-haddon, my son, whose name was afterwards changed to Assur-sar-illik-pal by my wish. I have deposited the treasure in the house of Amuk. Thine is the kingdom, O Nebo, our light!' Payments, it must be remembered, were still made by weight, coined money not having been introduced until after the time of Nebuchadnezzar.

The business-like character of the trading community of Nineveh will best be gathered from the documents themselves which have been left to us. It will, therefore, not be out of place to add here translations of some of the contract tablets:—

I. 'Ten shekels of the best silver for the head of Istar of Nineveh, which Bil-lubaladh has lent on a loan in the presence of Mannu-ki-Arbela [here follow three seals]; the silver is to have interest paid upon it at four per cent. The silver has been given on the third day of the month. (Dated) the third day of Sebat, in the eponymy of Rimmon-lid-ani. The witnesses (are) Khatpi-sumnu, Rahu, Ziru-yukin, Neriglissor, Ebed-Nebo of Selappa, Musezib-Assur, Nebo-sallim-sunu, Khanni, and Bel-sad-ili.'

Then follow two lines and a half of Aramaic, the first of which contains the name of Mannu-ki-Arbela.

II. 'Two talents of bronze, the property of Istar of Arbela, which Mannu-ki-Arbela gives to the goddess in the month Ab, in the presence of Samas-akhi-erba; if they are given, interest shall be paid on them at three per cent. (Dated) the eleventh day of Sivan, in the eponymy of Bamba (B.C. 676), before the witnesses: Istar-bab-esses, Kua, Sarru-ikbi, Dumku-pani-sarri, and Nebo-bilua.'

III. 'Four manehs of silver, according to the standard of Carchemish, which Neriglissor, in the presence of Nebo-sum-iddin, son of Nebo-rahim-baladhi, the superintendent of the Guards at Dur-Sargon (Khorsabad), lends out at five shekels of silver per month interest. (Dated) the twenty-sixth day of the month of Iyyar, in the eponymy of Gabbaru (B.C. 667). The witnesses are: Nebo-pal-iddin, Nebo-nirar, the holder of the two pens, Akhu-ramu of the same office, Assur-danin-sarri of the same office, Disi the astronomer, Samas-igir-sumeli (?), Sin-kasid-kala, the executioner, and Merodach ... the astronomer.'

IV. 'The nail-mark of Sar-ludari, the nail-mark of Atar-suru, the nail-mark of the woman Amat-Suhla, the wife of Bel-dur, belonging to the third regiment, owners of the house which is sold. [Then follow four nail-marks.] The whole house, with its woodwork and its doors, situated in the city of Nineveh, adjoining the houses of Mannu-ki-akhi and El-kiya, near the markets (?), has been sold, and Tsil-Assur, the astronomer, an Egyptian, has received it for one maneh of silver, according to the royal standard (£9), in the presence of Sar-ludari, Atar-suru, and Amat-suhla, the wife of Bel-dur. The full price has been paid. This house has been bought. Withdrawal from the contract and agreement is forbidden. Whoever shall act fraudulently (?) at any time, or from among these men who have sworn to the contract and agreement with Tsil-Assur, shall be fined ten manehs of silver (£90). The witnesses are: Susanku-khatnanis, Kharmaza, the captain; Rasuh, the pilot; Nebo-dur-sanin, the foreign traveller; Kharmaza, the chief pilot; Sin-sar-utsur and Zedekiah. (Dated) the sixteenth day of Sivan, in the eponymy of Zaza (B.C. 692), the Governor of Arpad. In the presence of Samas-yukin-akhi, Latturu, and Nebo-sum-utsur.'

V. 'The seal of (Dagon-melech) the master of the slaves.—Imannu, the woman U ... and Melech-ur [Melchior], three persons, have been sold, and thou, O Enuma-ili, the holder of the highplaces which have been erected at the entrance to Dur-Sargon, hast received them from Dagon-melech for three manehs of silver (£27) according to the standard of Carchemish. The full price hast thou paid. These slaves have been bought and taken. Withdrawal from the contract and agreement is forbidden. Whoever shall act fraudulently (?) at any time, and shall deceive and injure me (?), whether Dagon-melech or his brothers, or the sons of his brothers, whether small or great, who have sworn to the contract and agreement on behalf of Enuma-ili, his sons and grandsons, shall pay ... (manehs) of silver, and one maneh of gold to Istar of Arbela, and shall return the price to the owners with ten per cent. interest. Then he will be quit of his contract and agreement, and will not have bought. The witnesses (are): Adda the astronomer, Akhu-irame the astronomer, Pakakha [Pekah] the chief of the ..., Nadbi-Yahu [Nadabiah] the principal ... Bel-sime-ani, Bin-dikiri, Khim-Istar, and Tabni the astronomer, the recipient of the document. (Dated) the twentieth day of Ab, in the eponymy of Mannu-ki-Assur-lih' (B.C. 709).

It will be noticed that the Israelitish witnesses to the last deed of sale, Pekah and Nadabiah, hold public offices, though the exact nature of them is at present unknown. We may conclude from this that some of the Samaritan captives were allowed to live in Nineveh, and so far from being in a condition of slavery were able to be in the service of the state. Among the earliest known examples of Israelitish or Jewish writing are seals which probably belong to a period anterior to the Babylonish Exile, and have been found at Diarbekr and other places in the neighbourhood of the Tigris and Euphrates. It is also possible that the great banking firm of Egibi, which flourished at Babylon from the time of Sennacherib and Esar-haddon to that of Darius and Xerxes, and carried on business transactions as extensive as those of the Rothschilds of to-day, was of Israelitish origin. At all events the name Egibi is not Babylonian, while it is a very exact Babylonian transcript of the Biblical name Jacob.

The contract tablets throw a good deal of light upon Assyrian law. In its main outlines it did not differ much from our own. Precedents and previous decisions seem to have been held in as high estimation as among our own lawyers. The king was the supreme court of appeal, and copies exist of private petitions preferred to him on a variety of matters. Judges were appointed under the king, and prisons were established in the towns. An old Babylonian code of moral precepts addressed to princes denounces the ruler who listens to the evil advice of his courtiers, and does not deliver judgment 'according to the statutes,' 'the law-book,' and 'the writing of the god Ea.' The earliest existing code of laws is one which goes back to the Accadian epoch, and contains an express enactment for protecting the slave against his master. How far it was made the basis of subsequent Semitic legislation it is difficult to say; in one respect, at all events, it differed considerably from the law which followed it. This was in the position it assigned to women. Among the Accadians, the woman was the equal of man; in fact, she ranked before the husband in matters relating to the family; whereas among the Semites she was degraded to a very inferior rank. It is curious to find the Semitic translator of an Accadian text invariably changing the order in which the words for man and woman, male and female occur in the original. In the Accadian the order is 'woman and man,' in the Assyro-Babylonian translation, 'man and woman.'

The high-roads were placed under the charge of commissioners, and in Babylonia, where brick-making was an important occupation, the brick-yards as well. Certain of the taxes, which were raised alike from citizens and aliens, were devoted to the maintenance of them. Unfortunately we know but little at present of the precise way in which the taxes were levied, and the principle on which they were distributed among the various classes of the population. In Babylonia, however, the tenant does not seem to have paid much to the government, since we are told of him that after handing over one-third of the produce of an estate to his landlord, he might keep the rest of it for himself. There is no hint that any portion of it was distrained for the state.

As in modern Turkey, the imperial exchequer after the time of Tiglath-Pileser II was supplied by fixed contributions from the separate provinces and large towns. Thus Nineveh itself was assessed at thirty talents. The best way, however, of giving an idea of the assessment is by a translation of the few fragments of the assessment lists of the Second Empire which have been preserved to us.

I. 'To be expended on linen cloths. Fifty (talents). Thirty talents. The tribute of Nineveh. Ten talents for firewood (?). Twenty talents of Assyria, from the same city, for the equipment of the fleet. Ten talents of Assyria, a fresh assessment. In all (from Assyria) 274 talents. Twenty talents for the harem of the palace. Expended on linen cloths.

* * * * *

Five talents. The tribute of Calah. To be expended on firewood (?). Four talents of Assyria, from the same city. Thirty talents for the highlands. Ten talents from the city of Enil, for the lowlands. ... talents from the city of Nisibis. Twenty talents for 600.... ( ... talents) from the city of Alikhu, for 600 dresses. ( ... talents) for six vestures of linen. Three talents for _epâ_. ( ... talents ...) for keeping the gates in repair. ( ... talents) for the tax-gatherer. Two talents from the city of Alikhu. ( ... talents) for chariots and for wheels. ( ... talents) for the astronomer. Three talents for women's robes. ( ... talents) for the throne of the palace in the middle of the city. Two talents for gala dresses. ( ... talents) for the throne of the palace (in the middle of the city). Two talents ten manehs 500 (shekels). ... in the city of Assur ... again. ... the city of Kalzu[7], two talents (for) three conduits. ( ... talents) from the city of Enil, for the persons of the overseers. (Assessment of) the country of Assyria; two talents for the house of the tax-gatherer; two talents for the right side (of the house); five talents for the completion (of the assessment). ( ... talents) from the nobles, and two talents from the librarians, for firewood (?) each year.

[7] Now Shamameh, south-west Arbela.

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To be expended on linen cloths: ten talents from the land of Risu. (For) the servants of the palace and the people of Nineveh.

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... (for) seats, five talents from their attendants (Levied) every year from the lowlands. The payment to be made by the tax-gatherer: two talents for the male and female spinners.

* * * * *

(For) the house of the Master of the Singers: one talent for their coverings. Also for the house of the singing men themselves. ... for the keep of the war-chariot. In all 190 talents ten manehs.

* * * * *

... manehs for his awning. To be expended in full. ... manehs for the broad streets of the public road: seven talents ten manehs besides. Forty manehs and a shekel and (?) a sleeved dress; twenty-two talents for wood. At six per cent. on each shekel let him put out the money at triple interest.

* * * * *

Two talents without the linen. Fifteen talents ten manehs for the same personage.

* * * * *

Three talents ten manehs for the custom-house. Thirty talents ten manehs on (?) slaves. Two manehs for wine-presses. The money to be put out at double interest.

* * * * *

For rods: one talent (levied on) the north side (of the city). In all, twenty-two talents to be invested. Altogether thirty talents twenty-one manehs out of fifty-three talents. In the presence of the princes the money raised on the slaves to be invested.

* * * * *

[Here follows the endorsement of the tax-collectors:]

We receive no bribes: we give what we take.'

II. 'Thirty talents (are annually received) from Arpad. One hundred talents from Carchemish. Thirty talents from the city of the Kuans.[8] Fifteen talents from Megiddo. Fifteen talents from Mannutsuate. ... talents from Zemar (Gen. x. 18). ... talents from Hadrach (Zech. ix. 1).

[8] The Kue or Kuans inhabited the northern and eastern shores of the Gulf of Antioch. M. François Lenormant has ingeniously suggested that in 1 Kings x. 28, we ought to read (with a slight change of vowel punctuation), 'And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and out of Kue the king's merchants received a drove at a price.'

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... talents to be put out at interest; fifty talents to be melted into bronze. It is weighed in the presence of the princes. (The tribute) of Damascus, Arpad, Carchemish, Kue, Tsubud, Zemar, and Meon-Zemar.'

In spite of the fragmentary character of these lists, and the difficulty of understanding them perfectly in consequence of their brevity and the omission of prepositions, we may nevertheless glean from them a fair idea of the method in which the imperial exchequer of Assyria was replenished, and the objects to which the taxes and tribute were devoted. A considerable amount must have gone to the great army of officials by whom the Second Empire was administered. 'The great king,' it was true, was autocratic like the Russian Czar, but like the Russian Czar he was also controlled by a bureaucracy which managed the government under him. In military matters alone he was supreme, though even here two commanders-in-chief stood at his side, ready to take his place in the command of the troops whenever age or disinclination detained him at home. The lists of Assyrian officials which we possess are very lengthy, and their titles seem almost endless. At the head came the two commanders-in-chief, the Turtannu or Tartan of the right, and the Turtannu of the left, doubtless so called from their position on the right and left of the king. Next to them were the Chamberlain or superintendent of the singing men and women, and then after five other officials whose posts are obscure, the 'Rab-sak' or 'Rab-shakeh.' His title means literally 'chief of the princes,' and he corresponded to the Vizier or Prime Minister of the Turkish Empire. Among other public offices we may notice that of the astronomer, who was supported by the state like the rest, and who ranked immediately after the 'superintendent of the camel-stables.' The latter again was inferior in rank to the 'captain of the watch,' 'the captain of fifty,' 'the overseer of the vineyards,' and 'the overseer of the quays.'

Such, then, was the constitution of the great Assyrian Empire, which first endeavoured to organise Western Asia into a single homogeneous whole, and in effecting its purpose cared neither for justice nor for humanity. Nineveh was 'full of lies and robbery,' but it was God's instrument in chastising His chosen people, and in preparing the way for the ages that were to come, and for a while, therefore, it was allowed to 'make the earth empty' and 'waste.' But the day came when its work was accomplished, and the measure of its iniquity was full. Nineveh, 'the bloody city,' fell, never to rise again and the doom pronounced by Nahum was fulfilled. For centuries the very site of the imperial city remained unknown, and the traveller and historian alike put the vain question: 'Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feeding-place of the young lions, where the lion, even the old lion, walked, and the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?'

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APPENDIX.

TRANSLATIONS FROM ASSYRIAN TEXTS RELATING TO THE HISTORY OF THE KINGDOMS OF ISRAEL AND JUDAH.

_From the inscription of Shalmaneser II, found at Kurkh, on the right bank of the Tigris, to the south-east of Diarbekr._

'In the eponymy of Dayan-Assur (B.C. 854) on the 14th of the month Iyyar I left the city of Nineveh. The river Tigris I crossed. I approached the cities of Giammu on the river Balikh. The fear of my lordship, the sight of my strong weapons they feared, and in the service of themselves they slew Giammu their lord. I descended into the cities of Kitlala and Tul-sa-abil-akhi [the mound of the son of the brother]; I caused my gods to enter his palaces; a plundering in his palaces I made. I opened his store-chambers; his treasures I seized. His goods, his spoil, I carried off; to my city of Assur I brought (them). From the city of Kitlala I departed; to the city of the Fort of Shalmaneser [Tul-Barsip, the Barsampsê of Ptolemy] I approached. In boats of inflated skins for the second time I crossed the Euphrates at its flood. The tribute of the kings of the further bank of the Euphrates; of Sangar of Carchemish; of Kundaspi of Komagênê; of Arame the son of Gusi; of Lalli of Malatiyeh; of Khayani, the son of Gabari; of Girparuda of the Patinians; and of Girparuda of the Gamgumians; silver, gold, lead, bronze, and vases of bronze (in) the city of Assur-tamsukha-atsbat, on the further bank of the Euphrates, and above the river Saguri [the Sajur], which the Hittites call the city of Pethor, in the midst (of it) I received. From the Euphrates I departed. The city of Khalman [Aleppo] I approached; they feared battle; they embraced my feet. Silver and gold I received as their tribute; I offered sacrifices before the god Rimmon of Khalman. From the city of Khalman I departed; to two cities of Irkhulena of Hamath I approached. The cities of Adennu [the Eden of Amos i. 5], Barga and Argana his royal city I captured.[9] His spoil, his goods, and the treasures of his palaces I brought out. To his palaces I set fire. From the city of Argana I departed, the city of Karkar [Aroer] I approached. (His) royal city of Karkar I threw down, dug up, and burned with fire. 1,200 chariots, 1,200 horsemen, and 20,000 men of Hadadezer of Damascus, 700 chariots, 700 horsemen, and 10,000 men of Ahab [Akhabbu] of Israel, 500 men of Kue, 1,000 men from Egypt, 10 chariots, and 10,000 men from the land of Irkanat, 200 men of Matinu-Baal of Arvad, 200 men from the land of Usanat, 30 chariots, and 10,000 men of Adon-Baal of Sizan, 1,000 camels of Gindibuh of the land of the Arabians [Arba'â], 200 men of Bahsa son of Rukhubi [Rehob] of Ammon, these twelve kings (Irkhulena) brought to his help, and to (make) war and battle against me they had come. With the exalted help which Assur the lord rendered, with the mighty weapons which the great protector who goes before me bestowed, I fought with them. From the city of Karkar to the city of Guzau I overthrew them. 14,000 of their troops I slew with weapons. Like Rimmon, the air-god, I caused the storm to come forth upon them. I filled the surface of the water with their (wrecks). I laid low their wide-spread forces with weapons. The low ground of the district received (?) their corpses. To give life to its inhabitants I have enlarged its border (?); that it might support them I divided (it) among its people. The river Orontes I reached close to the banks. In the midst of this battle I took from them their chariots, their horsemen, their horses and their teams.'

[9] On the bronze gates of Balawât Adennu is written Adâ and Barga Parga.

_From the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser II._

'In my eighteenth year for the sixteenth time I crossed the Euphrates. Hazael, of Damascus, advanced to battle; 1,121 of his chariots, 470 of his horsemen, along with his camp I took from him.'

_From a Fragment of the Annals of Shalmaneser II._

'In my eighteenth year for the sixteenth time I crossed the Euphrates. Hazael, of Damascus, trusted in the might of his army, and assembled his army without number. He made Mount Shenir, the highest peak of the mountains which are as you come to Mount Lebanon, his fortress. I fought with him; I overthrew him; 16,000 of his fighting men I slew with weapons, 1,121 of his chariots, 470 of his horsemen, along with his camp, I took from him. To save his life he ascended (the country); I pursued after him. In Damascus, his royal city, I shut him up; his plantations I cut down. To the mountains of the Hauran I went; cities innumerable I threw down, I dug up, I burned with fire; their spoil innumerable I carried away. To the mountains of Baal-rosh at the promontory of the sea I went; I made an image of my majesty there. At that time I received the tribute of the Tyrians, of the Sidonians, and of Jehu, son of Omri.'

_From the Inscription of Rimmon-nirari III._

'Conqueror from the highroad of the rising sun, of the lands of Kip, Ellip [Ekbatana], Kharkhar, Arazias, Mesu, the Medes, Girubbunda to its whole extent, Munna, Barsua, Allabria, Abdadana, Nahri to its extreme frontiers, and Andiu, whose situation is remote, the mountainous border-land to its extreme frontiers, as far as the great sea of the rising sun [the Persian Gulf], from the Euphrates, and the lands of the Hittites, of Phœnicia to its whole extent, of Tyre, of Sidon, of Omri [Samaria], of Edom, and of Philistia as far as the great sea of the setting sun [the Mediterranean], to my yoke I subjected (them), payment of tribute I imposed upon them. To the land of Damascus I went; I shut up Marih, king of Syria, in Damascus, his royal city. The fear of the brilliance of Assur, his lord, overwhelmed him, and he took my feet; he offered homage. 2,300 talents of silver, 20 talents of gold, 3,000 talents of bronze, 5,000 talents of iron, garments of damask and linen, a couch of ivory, a sun-shade of ivory, I took, I carried to (Assyria). His spoil, his goods innumerable, I received in Damascus, his royal city, in the midst of his palace.'

_From Fragments of the Annals of Tiglath-Pileser II._

I. 'They had embraced the mountain of Baal-tsephon [Mount Kasios] as far as the range of Amanus, the land of Zittu (?), the land of Sau to its whole extent, the province of the cities of Kar-Rimmon and Hadrach (Zech. ix. 1), the province of the city of Nukudina, the land of Khazu [Huz] as far as the cities in the circuit of the city of Arâ, the cities, all of them, the cities in their circuit, the mountain of Sarbua to its whole extent, the cities of Askhan and Yadab, Mount Yaraku to its whole extent, the cities of ... ri, Ellitarbi, and Zitânu as far as the midst of the city of Atinni ... and the city of Buname, nineteen districts belonging to Hamath, together with the cities in their circuit in the direction of the sea of the setting sun [the Mediterranean], which in their faithlessness made revolt to Azariah, I turned into the territory of Assyria. My governors and officers I appointed over them.'

II. 'The tribute of Kustaspi of Komagênê, Rezon of Damascus, Menahem of Samaria, Hiram of Tyre, Sibitti-Baal of Gebal, Urikki of Kue, Pisiris of Carchemish, Eniel of Hamath, Parammu of Samahla, Tarkhu-lara of Gamgum, Sulumal of Milid [Malatiyeh], Dadilu of Kolkhis, Vas-surme of Tubal, Uskhitti of Tuna, Urpalla of Tukhan, Tukhamme of Istunda, Urimme of Khusimna, and Zabibieh, queen of the Arabians, gold, silver, lead, iron, elephants' hides, elephants' tusks, tapestries of blue and purple, oak-wood, weapons for service, a royal tent, sheep with bundles of their wool, purple dye, the dyed feathers of flying birds, nine of their wings coloured blue, horses, mules, oxen, sheep, and wethers, camels and she-camels, together with their young ones, I received. In my ninth year Assur my lord regarded me and to the countries of Kipsi, Irangi, Tazakki, Media, Zualzas, Matti, and Umliyas I went.'

III. 'The towns of Gil(ead) and Abel-(beth-Maachah) in the province of Beth-Omri [Samaria], the widespread (district of Naphta)li to its whole extent I turned into the territory of Assyria. My (governors) and officers I appointed (over them). Khanun of Gaza who had fled before my weapons escaped (to the land) of Egypt. The city of Gaza (his royal city I captured. Its spoils), its gods (I carried away. My name) and the image of my majesty (I set up) in the midst of the temple of ... the gods of their land I counted (as a spoil) and ... like a bird ... to his land I restored him and (imposed tribute upon him. Gold), silver, garments of damask and linen (along with other objects) I received. The land of Beth-Omri ... a selection of its inhabitants (with their goods) I transported to Assyria. Pekah their king I put to death, and I appointed Hosea to the sovereignty over them. Ten (talents of gold, ... of silver as) their tribute I received, and I transported them (to Assyria).'

_From the Inscriptions of Sargon._

I. '(In the beginning of my reign) the city of Samaria I besieged, I captured; 27,280 of its inhabitants I carried away; fifty chariots in the midst of them I collected, and the rest of their goods I seized; I set my governor over them and laid upon them the tribute of the former king (Hosea).'

II. '(Sargon) the conqueror of the Thamudites, the Ibadidites, the Marsimanites, and the Khapayans,[10] the remainder of whom was carried away and whom he transported to the midst of the land of Beth-Omri.'

[10] Identified by Delitzsch with the Ephah of Gen. xxv. 4, and Is. lx. 6.

III. 'The Thamudites, the (Ibadidites), the Marsimanites and the Khapayans, distant Arab tribes, who inhabit the desert, of whom no scholar or envoy knew, and who had never brought their tribute to the kings my (fathers), I slaughtered in the service of Assur, and transported what was left of them, setting them in the city of Samaria.'

IV. '(In my ninth expedition and eleventh year) the people of the Philistines, Judah, Edom and the Moabites who dwell by the sea, who owed tribute and presents to Assur my lord, plotted rebellion, men of insolence, who in order to revolt against me carried their bribes for alliance to Pharaoh king of Egypt, a prince who could not save them, and sent him homage. I, Sargon, the established prince, the reverer of the worship of Assur and Merodach, the protector of the renown of Assur, caused the warriors who belonged to me entirely to pass the rivers Tigris and Euphrates during full flood, and that same Yavan [of Ashdod], their king, who trusted in his (forces), and did not (reverence) my sovereignty, heard of the progress of my expedition to the land of the Hittites [Syria], and the fear of (Assur) my (lord) overwhelmed him, and to the border of Egypt ... he fled away.'

_From a Cylinder of Esar-haddon._

'I assembled the kings of Syria and the land beyond the [Mediterranean] sea, Baal king of Tyre, Manasseh king of Judah, Kaus-gabri king of Edom, Mizri[11] king of Moab, Zil-Baal king of Gaza, Metinti king of Ashkelon, Ikausu king of Ekron, Melech-asaph king of Gebal, Matan-Baal king of Arvad, Abi-Baal king, of Shamesh-merom, Pedael king of Beth-Ammon, and Ahimelech king of Ashdod, twelve kings of the sea-coast; Ekistor king of Idalion, Pylagoras king of Khytros, Kissos king of Salamis, Ithuander king of Paphos, Eriêsos king of Soloi, Damasos king of Kurion, Rumesu king of Tamassos, Damusi king of Carthage, Unasagusu king of Lidir, and Butsusu king of Nurê, ten kings of the land of Cyprus in the middle of the sea.'

[11] That is 'the Egyptian;' cf. 2 Sam. xxiii. 20, 21.

* * * * *

INDEX

Accadians, invented the cuneiform system of writing, founded the chief cities and civilisation of Babylonia; erected the earliest known monuments; the language may be called the Latin of Asia, 24; the Accadians first used hieroglyphics or pictures painted on papyrus leaves, from which the cuneiform characters were formed; afterwards soft clay was stamped with cuneitic symbols, and then sun-dried; general use of writing and materials employed; characters changed, 93-95; Sarzec's recent discovery at Tel-Loh, 95.

Adar, a solar deity; pronunciation of name not quite certain; it forms a part of the name Adrammelech, 66.

Adrammelech, one of the gods of Sepharvaim brought to Samaria by the colonists settled there; probably representing some particular attribute of the Sun-god; also the name of one of Sennacherib's regicide sons, 46, 66.

Ahaz, king of Judah, called Jehoahaz in the inscriptions; bribed Pul to attack the Syrians and Israelites; and himself became tributary, 36.

Allat, the goddess queen of the underworld, 76.

APPENDIX.—Translations from Assyrian texts relating to the kingdoms of Israel and Judah:

I. Inscription of Shalmaneser II, found at Kurkh, 146-8. II. The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser II, 148. III. From a Fragment of Shalmaneser II, 148. IV. From the Inscription of Rimmon-nirari III, 148-9. V. From Fragments of the Annals of Tiglath-Pileser II, 149-151. VI. From the Inscriptions of Sargon, 151-2. VII. From a Cylinder of Esar-haddon, 152.

Aramaic, commonly used by the Jews, after the captivity, and became the common language of trade, 132-3.

Ararat or Armenia, long a dangerous neighbour; Tiglath-Pileser II invaded the country, invested Van, and devastated the surrounding country, 35.

Armies composed of charioteers, light and heavy armed cavalry and infantry, and were variously equipped with bows, swords, and daggers, 126.

Armies crossing streams; the common soldiers on inflated skins; the chief officers, chariots, and commissariat in boats, or on pontoon bridges, 131.

Assessment lists of the provinces and large towns after the time of Tiglath-Pileser II; the places and amounts paid to the imperial exchequer, 140-3.

Assur, the name of a city on the western bank of the Tigris, and the capital of the country or district named after it; Assur was a descriptive appellation signifying 'water-boundary' at first, but was slightly changed by the Semitic conquerors so as to mean 'gracious;' the name of Sar, the god of the firmament, in time, was confused with that of the patron deity, and Assur thus came to signify the city, country, and the deity; hence Assur represented at the same time the power and constitution of Assyria, the 'gracious' god, and the primeval firmament; ruins now called Kalah Sherghat, 21-2.

Assur-bani-pal, probably 'the great and noble Asnapper;' succeeded his father, Esar-haddon, 48; he was luxurious, ambitious, and cruel, but a most magnificent patron of literature; he kept scribes constantly engaged on new editions of rare or older works; entrusted his armies to his generals, and before his death found the empire irretrievably weakened; his lion hunts compared with those of his warlike predecessors; Egyptian revolt crushed, and Tirhakah again a fugitive, No-Amon plundered, and two obelisks carried as trophies to Nineveh, 51; Tyre surrendered and the Lydians paid tribute; fall of Elam, Shushan razed, and captive kings compelled to drag Assur-bani-pal's chariot through Nineveh, 51-2; the Arabs severely punished, and the Armenians of Van sought an alliance; rebellion headed by his brother the Babylonian viceroy, with the assistance of Egypt, Palestine, and Arabia, and hired Karian and Ionian mercenaries; Egypt now threw off the yoke; Cuthah was reduced by famine, and Samas-yukin perished in the flames of his palace; Elam ravaged again and the last king became a fugitive, 52.

Assur-natsir, one of the most energetic and ferocious warrior kings, also a great builder of palaces; restored Calah, formed a library, and made the city his favourite residence, 28-9.

Assur-nirari, the last of his line, ascended the throne in troublous time; Assur, the capital, rose in revolt; the cities and outlying districts were surging with discontent; ten years later the army rebelled, and the monarch and his dynasty fell together, 33.

Assyrian book, with illustration from the original in the British Museum, 98.

Assyrian _campaigns_ at first undertaken for the sake of plunder and exacting tribute; made but little effort to retain their conquests, till the time of the Second Empire, 33.

Assyrian _history_ scarcely known till Bel-kapkapi became king; decline of Assyrian power and influence, and revived by Assur-dayan II and his warlike successors, who conquered the Babylonians, Hittites, and Phœnicians, 34-7.

Assyrian _law_ relied greatly on precedents and decisions; the king supreme, and appointed the judges; in its general principles resembled the English; earliest code, Accadian, 138.

Assyrian _literature_, wide range of subjects, included history, legend, poetry, astronomy, and astrology, &c.; letters of the king, reports of astronomers and generals, 102.

Assyrian _palace_, built of brick on a raised platform; description, extent of courts and royal chambers; the observatory built in stages on the west side; exaggerated forms of columnar architecture used; apertures which served as windows protected in winter by heavy folds of tapestry, 86-8.

Assyrian _sculptures_, mostly in relief; three periods traceable; characteristics and comparison with Egyptian art; colour used on the bas-reliefs, 89-90.

Assyrian _Semites_, allied in blood and language to the Hebrews, Aramæans, and Arabs; the Babylonians a mixed race, partly Semites and Accadians, the original possessors of the soil of Chaldea, 24.

Assyrians and Babylonians contrasted, 66-7.

Assyro-Babylonians excelled in a knowledge of mathematics; tables of squares and cubes and geometrical figures have been found at Senkereh, and the plan of an estate at Babylon, 118.

Babel, tower of, and the dispersion, 82-3.

Babylonian _myth_ of the seven evil spirits warring against the moon; flight of Samas and Istar; and the demons put to flight by Merodach; explanation of the myth, 78.

Babylonian _story_ of the god Zu stealing the lightning of Bel compared with that of the Greek Prometheus, 78.

Balawât, colossal doors of, the work of native artists, description of the bronze framework and reliefs; explanatory texts relating to Shalmaneser's campaigns; Carchemish and Armenian warriors depicted, 30.

Banquets, wines of various kinds used; those of Helbon most highly prized; other luxuries common; the tables ornamented with flowers, and musicians hired to entertain the guests, 128-9.

Bel-kapkapi, the founder of the kingdom of Assur; its extent and varying frontiers; the inhabitants Semites, 27.

Bêrôssus' great work of seventy-two books translated into Greek, 102.

Blissful lot of the spirit of Ea-bani described in the epic of Gisdhubar, 76-7.

Botta and Layard's excavation brought to light Dur-Sargon and Nineveh, 26.

Bridges common on all the great roads through Western Asia in the earliest ages; used for war and trade; the country then more populous, and the roads numerous and well kept, 131-2.

Calah founded by Shalmaneser I, whose descendants reigned six generations; it became the seat of royalty under Assur-natsir-pal and Shalmaneser II, 27-9; the palace rebuilt by Assur-etil-ilani, son of Assur-bani-pal, 53.

Chairs, tables, and couches used at meals, 128.

Chaldæan account of the Deluge, and its relation to the Scriptural narrative; the two compared and contrasted, 81-2.

Chariots often carried across mountains on the shoulders of men, or animals; the royal chariot contained the king and two attendants, and was followed by a guard and led horses, 124.

Charms and exorcisms used for curing diseases; the knotted cord and leaves from a sacred book; repute of the witch and wizard, 120-1.

Code of moral precepts addressed to princes and courtiers; earliest Accadian law book expressly protected slaves, 138.

Colossi dragged from the quarries on land by means of sledges, and on rivers and canals by rafts; Sennacherib directed the removal of winged bulls and deities from Balad, 90-3.

Contract tablets relating to loans, sales, leases of houses, and other property: tablets translated: i. Loan of silver and interest paid on it; ii. Loan of bronze; iii. Loan of silver; iv. Sale of a house; v. Sale of slaves, 135-7.

Contrasts between the Assyrians and Babylonians, 66-7.

Creation legend from Cuthah, described chaos, and the formation of monsters, followed by more perfect creatures; the legend from Assur-bani-pal's library and its remarkable resemblance to the account in Genesis; Assyrian account, 79, 80-1.

Cylinder, part of, containing Hezekiah's name, transcribed into ordinary characters, 104-5; compared with one of Nebuchadnezzar's inscriptions; transliteration and translation of part of the inscription, 107-8.

Cyrus permitted the Assyrians to return to their old capital, and released the Jewish exiles from Babylon, 53-4.

Datilla, the river of death, at the mouth of the Euphrates, where Gisdhubar saw the Chaldæan Noah after his translation; but in later times the entrance to Hades and the site of the earthly Paradise were removed to more unknown regions, 76.

Death of Tammuz lamented by Jewish females in the temple at Jerusalem, 65.

Deeds and contracts signed and sealed in the presence of witness, or nail marks made by those unable to write, and the documents carefully preserved, 133.

Defects in the tablets caused by the ignorance of the scribes, 112-3.

Deluge sent as a punishment for the wickedness of mankind, 82.

Descent of Istar into Hades in search of Tammuz, one of the most popular old Babylonian myths; her passage through the seven gates of the underworld, and appearance before Allat; the myth explained, 64-5.

Dread of witchcraft and magic; referred to in hymn to the Sun-god, 113-5.

Dress of all classes; the king in time of peace; the upper classes, soldiers, common people, and women, 123-4.

Dur-Sargina, the modern Khorsabad, built by Sargon, in the form of a square, surrounded by walls forty-six feet thick; the outer wall was flanked with towers; description of the palace and its courts; the royal chambers; the observatory built in stages, 86-7.

Ea (the god), the deep, or ocean-stream, supposed to surround the earth like a serpent; his symbol, attributes, and title; Eridu the chief seat of his worship, near the sacred grove where the tree of life and knowledge had its roots; Ea, a benevolent deity, who taught the art of healing and culture to mankind; his wife, Dav-kina, presided over the lower world, 59.

Eclipse of the sun and revolt of city of Assur, 33.

Educated Assyrians and traders conversant with several languages, 101.

Education widely diffused throughout Babylonia; few unable to read and write, 95.

Egibi, eminent bankers during the reigns of Sennacherib and Esar-haddon, to Darius and Xerxes; the name a very exact transcript of the Biblical Jacob, 138.

Eponyms, officers after whom the year was named; lists determine both the Assyrian and Biblical chronology, 102.

Erimenas, king of Armenia, completely defeated near Malatiyeh in Kappadokia, 46.

Esar-haddon, shortly after his father's murder, defeated his insurgent brothers and Erimenas, near Malatiyeh, and was then proclaimed king; he possessed military genius and political tact, and was the first king who conciliated the conquered nations; Egypt was subdued; Babylon rebuilt, and the plunder and the gods returned to the inhabitants; Manasseh brought captive before him; trade diverted into Assyrian channels, and secured by a daring march to Huz and Buz; terrified the Arabs; drove Teispes westwards; worked the copper mines of Media; exacted tribute from Cyprus, where he obtained some of the materials of his palace at Nineveh, 46-8; he completely overran Egypt, divided the country into 27 satrapies placed under governors watched by Assyrian garrisons, 48.

Esar-haddon II, called Sarakos by the Greeks, on ascending the throne was surrounded by foes; the frontier towns fell quickly, and a public fast was proclaimed and prayers offered to the gods to ward off the doom of Nineveh, but the city was besieged, captured, and destroyed, 53.

Etana, the Babylonian Titan, and his exploits, 83; legend ascribed to Nis-Sin, 110.

Fables, riddles, and proverbs anciently, as now, the delight of Orientals; riddle propounded to Nergal and the other gods, 109.

Fate of Nineveh after its iniquity was full; the very site unknown for ages, 53.

Fishing carried on with a line merely, 131.

Forbidden foods; fasts and humiliations in times of public calamity, 73.

Gisdhubar epic; structure and contents; each of its twelve books corresponded to one of the signs of the zodiac; history of the Deluge contained in the eleventh book; Gisdhubar a solar hero, and his adventures compared with the labours of Hêraclês; resemblance of Accadian and Greek myths; date of the epic more than 2000 years before Christ; formed of older lays put together to form a single poem, 110-12.

Goyim, over which Tidal was king, probably comprised in Gutium, or Kurdistan, 23.

Hadadezer (the Biblical Benhadad) of Damascus formed a confederacy with Hamath and Israel against the Assyrians; Ahab's contingent; rout of the allies at Karkar, or Aroer, 31.

Hades a dreary abode, where spirits flitted, like bats, among the crowned phantoms of heroes; palace of Allat, where the waters of life, near the golden throne, restored to life and the upper air those who drank of them; entrance, the River Datilla, 75-6.

Hanging gardens, watered by means of a screw, 118.

Hazael utterly routed by Shalmaneser II on the heights of Shenir; camp, chariots, and carriages captured, and siege laid to Damascus, 31.

Helbon noted for its wines; still called Halbûn, 127.

Highroads and brickyards placed under commissioners, 131-2.

Human sacrifices an Accadian institution; children burnt to death as expiatory offerings by their fathers, 75.

Hymn to the Sun-god, a mixture of exalted thought and debasing superstition, 113-5.

Hymns in honour of the different deities collected into a sacred book; Semitic translations made, but the hymns recited long afterwards in the original Accadian language, 67-8.

Inferior deities classed among 'the 300 spirits of heaven' and 'the 600 spirits of earth,' 57.

Inscription containing Hezekiah's name transliterated and translated, 101-8.

Israelite officials witnesses of deed of sale, 137.

Istar, the great Accadian goddess, unlike the Beltis or Bilat, wife of Baal, had independent attributes as strongly marked as those of the gods, and was known as the evening star, 57; she became the Semitic Ashtoreth, and was the goddess of love, war, and the chase; she was associated with Tammuz; her different attributes, temples, and worship in different places, 62-4.

Jehu's tribute to Shalmaneser II, gold and silver drinking vessels, a sceptre, and spear handles, 32.

Jewish seals probably earlier than the Babylonish exile found at Diarbekr and other places near the Tigris and Euphrates, 138.

Kandalanu, viceroy of Babylon twenty-two years; the father of Nabopolassar, 53.

Karkar or Aroer, battle of, and defeat of Benhadad and his allies, 31.

Khumbaba the tyrant, slain by Gisdhubar 'in the land of the pine trees,' 111.

King only supreme in military affairs, and assisted by two commanders-in-chief; lists of officials, their titles and duties, 144.

Legend of Lubara, the plague demon, smiting the evil-doers of Babylon and Erech, and its partial resemblance to the angel of the Lord standing with a drawn sword over Jerusalem as a punishment of David's sins, 78.

Libraries early established in all the great cities, as Assur, Calah, and Nineveh; the last filled by Assur-bani-pal with copies of the plundered books of Babylonia, 99; lexical and grammatical phrase books, and lists of the names of animals, birds, reptiles, fish, stones, vegetables, and titles of military and civil officers, were contained in the different books stored up for reference, 100-1; all the branches of learning then known were included; also dispatches of generals, reports of astronomers, royal letters, and lists of eponyms, 102.

Library of Nineveh, rich in poetical literature, comprised epics, hymns to the gods, psalms, and songs; songs to Assur of Assyrian origin, the epics, Babylonian, Accadian, and partly Semitic, by native poets, 109-10.

Liturgy contained rubrics for particular days, and direction of the priests, 68.

March, order of, in a campaign; the king and his attendants, charioteers, heavy and light cavalry, bowmen and infantry variously equipped, 125-6; king and nobles only allowed tents; a royal chair called a _nimedu_ carried for the king's use; bas-relief of Sennacherib seated on one, before Lachish, 126.

Medicines, classification of diseases, prescriptions, and incantations, 119-20.

Merodach, originally a form of the Sun-god; a benevolent and intercessory deity, represented as continually passing between earth and heaven, informing Ea of the sufferings of mankind, and striving to alleviate them; he destroyed the demon Tiamat, and was commonly addressed as 'Bel' or 'Lord;' his star Jupiter; and his wife Zir-panitu, 60.

Merodach-Baladan's envoys induced Hezekiah to join the confederacy of Phœnicia, Moab, Edom, Philistia, and Egypt, against the Assyrians; but Sargon's rapid movements surprised them; Phœnicia and Judah were overrun, and Ashdod burnt before the arrival of the Egyptians; Merodach-Baladan in his own country made vigorous efforts to repel the attack of the conqueror on his return; but the Elamite allies were put to flight, and Sargon entered Babylon in triumph; the following year Merodach-Baladan was pursued to Beth-Yagina, which was taken by storm, and the defenders sent in chains to Nineveh; Merodach-Baladan escaped, and two years afterwards again seized Babylon, but was defeated at the battle of Kis, and a second time became a fugitive, 40-1.

Modes of assaulting fortified towns, and fearful atrocities committed by the conquerors, 126-8.

Monotheists who flourished in Chaldæa in pre-Semitic times, resolved the various deities into manifestations of one supreme god, Anu; old hymns refer to 'the one god,' 58-9.

Myths common to all old forms of faith, 77-8.

Nabopolassar renounced his allegiance to Nineveh, and prepared the way for his son Nebuchadnezzar's empire, 53.

Names of Assyrian kings explained, 54.

Nebo the god of oratory and literature, said to have invented the cuneiform system of writing; great temple at Borsippa dedicated to him; his worship carried to Canaan, as seen in the names of a city and a mountain; had a temple at Bahrein under the name of Enzak; as a planetary deity he represented Mercury, and was often adored as Nusku, perhaps, the Nisroch of the Bible, 61.

Nergal, the god of hunting and war, also presided with Anu over the regions of the dead, 65.

Nineveh, probably coeval with the city of Assur, but only became the capital at a much later period; after the fall of the Assyrian Empire its site was forgotten for ages; Rich's conjecture verified by Layard's excavations, and its buried treasures again brought to light, 25-6.

'Observations of Bel,' the great work on astronomy and astrology, compiled at Accad for Sargon, mostly a record of eclipses of the sun and moon, conjunctions and phases of Venus and Mars; the time of the new year; the zodiacal signs named, and the divisions of the year, 102, 115-6.

Observatories in all the great cities; specimens of the astronomers' fortnightly reports, 117-8.

Official lists and titles almost endless; rank and office of the principal, 144.

Omens, work on, in 137 books compiled for Sargon, known to the last days of the Empire, 102.

Ox-driver's labour song in the fields, 109.

Paradises or parks planted by the kings; gardens and shrubberies containing summer-houses by the wealthy; hanging garden, 130-1.

Penitential psalms composed at a very remote period, one of the finest addressed to Istar, 71-3.

Phœnician galley builders and sailors employed by Sennacherib on the Persian Gulf in his attack on the last refuge of the Chaldæans, 132.

Planisphere from Nineveh, and a table of lunar longitudes, 116-7.

Polygamy practised by the king, and the palace guarded by eunuchs, 129.

Prayer after a bad dream, 70.

Prayer of an Assyrian court for the king, 76.

Prayers to Bel and various deities on different occasions, 68-70.

Private will of Sennacherib in favour of Esar-haddon, 134.

Proud boast of the Babylonian monarch about exalting his throne above the stars, and sitting in the assembly of the gods, 77.

Pul, a military adventurer, seized the crown, B.C. 743, and assumed the name of Tiglath-Pileser II; he was an able ruler, a good general, and a skilful administrator, and consolidated the empire by deporting the turbulent populations to distant homes, and importing others; he divided the empire into provinces, and fixed the annual tribute; he endeavoured to subvert the power of the Hittites of Carchemish, and turn the trade of Asia Minor into Assyrian channels, and render Syria and Phœnicia tributary, 34; he annexed Northern Babylonia, punished the Kurds, utterly defeated Sarduris and his confederates, and captured Arpad after a siege of two years; he stormed Hamath, and transplanted part of the inhabitants to Armenia; he received tribute from the Syrian kings, and Menahem, Rezon, Hiram, and Pisiris; he blockaded Van, and ravaged the surrounding country, 35-6; he was heavily bribed by Ahaz to attack Rezon and Pekah; Damascus was invested and forced to surrender through famine, and forces were sent against the Ammonites, Moabites, and Philistines; on the fall of Damascus it was plundered and the inhabitants transplanted to Kir; Babylonia was reduced, and under his original name of Pul, he assumed the title of King of Sumir (Shinar) and Accad, 37.

Relative rank of women in Accadian and Babylonian times, 139.

Religion of Assyria, including deities and beliefs borrowed from Babylonia; but the Semites had greatly modified the original Accadian conceptions; belief of the _Zi_, evil and good spirits; diseases caused by demoniacal possession, and only curable by exorcisms and charms; the spirits most dreaded those who had been raised to the position of gods, as Anu, Mul-ge, and Ea; spirits of the heavenly bodies, 55-6; curious contrasts: polytheism and monotheism, 83-4; victories ascribed to Assur, and wars undertaken in his name: inconsistency and changes in the cult explained; inferiority to the faith of Israel, 84-5.

Rents paid by tenants of land in Babylonia, 139.

Repetition of the names of the gods, and its efficacy, 73.

Resen, name found in the inscriptions, but the site not yet determined; its meaning, 22-3.

Rimmon or Ramman, 'the thunderer,' the god of the atmosphere, rain, and storms; his cult extended to Syria, and he appears to have been the chief deity of Damascus, where he was known as Hadad or Dadda, 61.

Rimmon-nirari I, inscriptions of: his wars against the Babylonians, Kurds, and Shuites, 27.

Roads formed and kept in good condition, 131-2.

Rowandiz, where the ark is supposed to have rested; a snow-clad peak, 'the mountain of the world,' and 'the mountain of the East;' thought to be the abode of the gods, and the support of the vault of heaven, 77, 82.

Royal hunts, at first wild elephants and lions; but under Esar-haddon had degenerated into a _battue_ of tamed animals kept in cages for the purpose, 129, 130.

Sabbath early known, but confounded with the feast of the New Moon; kept on the seventh, fourteenth, twenty-first, and twenty-eighth day of the lunar month, 73-4.

Sale of Israelitish slaves by a Phœnician; another sale afterwards of seven persons included an Israelite called Hoshea and his two wives, 133.

Samas, the Sun-god, was the son of Sin, in accordance with the astronomical view of the old Babylonians; he was really only a form of Merodach, though in historical times the two were separated, and received different cults; originally identical with Tammuz, through the myth of Istar, separate attributes were assigned to him, and Tammuz became a deity distinct from Samas, 61-2.

Samas-Rimmon, Shalmaneser's second son, quelled the revolt against his father, and succeeded him as king of Assyria, 32.

Sar, the god of the firmament; afterwards confused with the name of the patron deity of the capital of the country, 22. (_See_ Assur.)

Sargon, a usurper, claimed royal descent; was an able general, but a rough and energetic ruler, 37-8; two years after his accession captured Samaria, and removed the inhabitants to Gozan; he found the task of cementing together the empire formed by Tiglath-Pileser by no means easy; Babylonia had thrown off the yoke, and submitted to Merodach-Baladan; Elam threatened him on the south; the Kurds renewed their depredations on the east; the Hittites of Carchemish were unsubdued, Syria held with difficulty, and Egypt appeared as a new enemy, 38; he drove the Elamites back into their own country, suppressed the revolt of Hamath, and burnt the city; put Yahu-bihdi or Ilu-bihdi to a horrible death, marched along the coast of Palestine, and roused the Egyptian army at Raphia, taking its ally the king of Gaza captive, 38-9; he stormed Carchemish, took Pisiris prisoner, and the allies fled northward; the city was plundered, and an Assyrian satrap appointed over it; he had now gained the high road of the caravan trade between Eastern and Western Asia; the Hittite allies continued the struggle six years, when Van submitted, and its king Ursa committed suicide; Cilicia and Tubal were placed under an Assyrian governor, and the city of Malatiyeh was razed to the ground, 39; Merodach-Baladan had formed a powerful combination against Sargon in the west, of Judah, Phœnicia, Edom, Philistia, and Egypt, but before the confederates were ready to act together, Sargon overran Palestine, captured Jerusalem, and burnt Ashdod; he next hurled his forces against Babylonia, compelled the Elamites to retire, and entered the capital in triumph; the following year he pursued Merodach-Baladan to Beth-Yagin, which was taken by storm, and the defenders sent in chains to Nineveh, but Merodach-Baladan escaped, 40-1; extent of Sargon's empire, and conquests; murdered by his own soldiers in Dur-Sargon, his new city, 41; succeeded by his son Sennacherib, 41.

Science mixed with superstition; astronomy with astrology: the observation of nature with augury, 115; modes of measuring time and determining the beginning of the year, 116.

Script characters generally used for official and private documents; this mode of writing clear, well-defined, and continued nearly the same till the fall of Nineveh; clay tablets small, but well baked in a kiln; characters sometimes very minute, and must have been formed with the aid of a magnifying glass, 96-7.

Sennacherib had been brought up in the purple; was weak, boastful, and cruel, and only preserved the empire by the help of his father's veterans and generals; Merodach-Baladan escaped from captivity, and again seized Babylon, but was driven from the country after the battle of Kis, 41-2; Sennacherib next invaded Phœnicia and Judah and the neighbouring countries; Assyrian account of the battle of Eltekeh; capture of illustrious persons and spoil; his boast of cities taken and tribute; but entire silence about the terrible disaster he sustained near Jerusalem, and his precipitate flight; the following year he suppressed Nergal-yusezib's revolt, and appointed Assur Nadin-sumi viceroy of Babylon, 42-5; pursued the Chaldæan refugees and destroyed their last settlements on the Persian Gulf, 45; Elam next invaded Babylonia, and placed Nergal-yusezib on the throne; defeated the Assyrians near Nipur, but died soon afterwards; he was succeeded by Musezib, who defied the power of Assyria nearly four years, but was beaten in the decisive battle of Khalule; the following year Sennacherib captured Babylon, and gave it up to fire and the sword; the inhabitants were sold into slavery, and the waters of the Araxes canal overflowed the ruined city; his Cilician campaign the last; the rest of his life spent in constructing canals, aqueducts, and rebuilding the palace at Nineveh; he was murdered by his two elder sons whilst worshipping in the temple of his god, 46.

Shalmaneser I said to have built Calah, and his descendants reigned uninterruptedly six generations, 27.

Shalmaneser II, his great military successes and long reign, the climax of the first Assyrian empire; his annals contained on a monolith near Diarbekr, a small obelisk, and on the bronze framework of the gates of Balawât; Jehu one of his tributaries; his campaign against the Kurds, Van, and the Manna or Minni; compelled the Hittites to sue for peace, and recaptured Pethor, 29-31; defeated Benhadad and his allies at Aroer or Karkar, and twelve years afterwards completely crushed the power of Hazael on the heights of Shenir, laid siege to Damascus, ravaged the Hauran, and marched to Baal-rosh, where his image was carved on the rocky promontory, 31-2; little further attempted by the king, besides exacting tribute from distant regions; revolt of his eldest son, joined by twenty-seven cities, put down by the energy and military capacity of Samas-Rimmon, 31-2.

Shalmaneser III, a usurper of Tinu; he attempted the capture of Tyre, began a war against Israel, but had scarcely laid siege to Samaria when he died or was murdered, and was succeeded by Sargon, another usurper, 37.

Sin, the Moon-god, called Agu or Acu by the Accadians, was the patron deity of Ur; had a famous temple in the ancient city of Harran, where he was symbolised by an upright cone of stone; his emblem was the crescent moon, 62.

Table of Semitic Babylonian kings arranged in dynasties, which traces them back to B.C. 2330; a recent discovery, 102.

Tables of squares and cubes found at Larsa, also geometrical figures used for augury; the mathematical unit, and mode of expression, 132-3.

Temple, Assyro-Babylonian, and its points of resemblance to Solomon's, 74-5; entrances to temples and palaces guarded by colossal figures of winged bulls; temples filled with images of the gods, great and small, which were supposed to confer special sanctity on the place; offerings of two kinds, sacrifices and meal offerings; no traces of human sacrifices among the Assyrians, although an Accadian institution; referred to in an old astrological work, where children were allowed to be offered by the fathers as expiatory sacrifices, 74-5.

Tiamat, the dragon, destroyed by Merodach, 60, 78-9.

Tiglath-Pileser I, his conquests in Cilicia, Kurdistan; defeated the Moschi, Hittites, and their Colchian allies, and erected a memorial of his exploits near the sources of the Tigris; he garrisoned Pethor with Assyrian soldiers, and on his return to Nineveh planted a park with strange trees brought back with him during his campaigns; he invaded Babylonia, and was at first repulsed, but was victorious afterwards, ravaged the country, and captured Babylon, 28.

Tower of Babel, building destroyed by winds in the night, and 'great and small,' as well as their speech confounded by Anu, 82-3.

Trade, its rise and growth under the Second Empire; fall of Carchemish and the Phœnician cities; the standard of weight, 'the maneh,' and Aramaic, the language of commerce, 132-3.

Van, the capital of Ararat, successfully resisted the Assyrians, whilst the country far and near was wasted for a space of 450 miles, 36; submitted to Sargon, and its king Ursa committed suicide, 39; Van sought an alliance with Assur-bani-pal, 52.

Witches and wizards held in high repute, 121.

Woman's position in Accad and Babylonia, 139.

Xisuthros, the Chaldæan Noah, sails in a ship containing others beside his own family, steered by a pilot; whilst the flood was at its height, sent out a raven, dove, and swallow, to ascertain how far the waters had abated; his vessel rested on Rowandiz, and Xisuthros, immediately after his descent, sacrificed to the gods, and was translated to the land of immortality, 81-2.

Zu, 'the divine storm bird,' who stole the lightning of Bel, the parallel of the Greek story of Prometheus, 78.

* * * * *

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES.

Page

Gen. x. 11 22 Gen. x. 18 143 Gen. xiv. 1 23

Deut. iii. 9 31 Deut. xxii. 49 61

Josh. xv. 59 58 Josh. xix. 38 58

1 Kings viii. 13 12 1 Kings x. 28 143

2 Kings xv. 19 35 2 Kings xvi. 10 37 2 Kings xvii. 30 60, 65 2 Kings xvii. 31 66 2 Kings xviii. 26 101 2 Kings xviii. 30 101 2 Kings xix. 37 61 2 Kings xx. 11 116

2 Chron. xxxiii. 11 47

Ezra ii. 29 61 Ezra iv. 10 48

Is. x. 34 13 Is. xiv. 9 76 Is. xiv. 13, 14 77 Is. xix. 25 14 Is. xx. 1 40 Is. xxii. 14 14 Is. xliv. 17 64 Is. li. 27 30 Is. li. 30 30

Ezek. viii. 14 65 Ezek. xxiii. 14 86 Ezek. xxvii. 18 128

Nahum i. 8 25 Nahum ii. 6, 8, 12 25 Nahum iii. 8 15, 51

Zech. ix. 1 143

HARRISON & SONS, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St. Martin's Lane

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Transcriber's note:

Table of Contents edited with additional entries for user convenience.

Punctuation has been standardised.

Page references to pages 104 and 105 are to illustrations on the two previous pages.

Ditto marks in the Indexes have been replaced with the actual words.

This book was written in a period when many words had not become standarized in their spelling. Numerous words have multiple spelling variations in the text. These have been left unchanged unless noted below:

Page 6 - added hyphen for consistency (Assur-bani-pal and his Queen).

Page 49 - missing '(' added to caption (From the original in the British Museum.).

Page 54 - removed extraneous open single quotation mark (Solomon, the god of peace).

Page 115 - missing "'" added ('Post hoc, ergo propter hoc.').

Page 132 - Beth-Yagina is called Bit-Yagina, left unchanged.

Page 149 - typographical error 'eities' corrected (the cities in their).

Page 160 - typographical error 'Assyriam' corrected (of the Assyrian).

Page 162 - typographical error 'Merodoch' corrected (Merodach-Baladan had formed).