The Sun.
London, England, 1853-07-07 00:00:00

" General total

"Buenos Ayres, April 2G.

ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY.

At the meetizig of this society on Saturday, the 2d
instant—Lord Ashburton, president, in th e chair—
The SECRETARY read a paper, by E. C. Ravenshaw,
Esq., on the winged bulls, lions, and other symbolical
figures from Nineveh. The mysterious figures from
N ineveh, which have been lately arrayed in the new
hall of the British Museum, have excited wuch curiosity
as to their meaning. A cursory examination is sufficient
to satisfy the observer that they are not mere architectu-
ral ornaments, but symbols of certain mysteries a.-Id cere-
monies of the primeval religion of Assyria. The era of these
sculptures is so remote, and the traditions respecting them.
so obscure, that the inquiry into their signification must
be difficult, and the conclusions arrived at unsatisfactory;
still it is desirable that sonic attempt should be made to
penetrate tie mystery which surrounds them, and to in-
vite the attentjon of the learned to the investigation.
The chief mythological figures are the winged bull with a
man's face, the winged lion with a man's face, the winged.
man with a fir cone in one hand anii a square basket or
veisel in the other, and a man with e:e head and wings
of an eagle or hawk. The hypothesis w: Lich the writer
maintains with respect to them is, that: they are, as
already surmised by Mr. Layard, the orig:nals of the
cherubim of Ezekiel ; that they were likewise :,he origi-
nals of the apocalyptic beasts of St. John ; anti that,
slightly modified, they were afterwards adopted, and are
now used, as the symbols of the Four Evangelists.
Further, that they were originally invented by the Magi
and Chaldeans' as astronomical symbols of the equinoc-
tial and solstitial points ; that they represent in fact the
four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter ;
and perhaps also the four winds and the four elements.
In support and illustration of these views, the writer
enters into an examination of the passages in the Old
Testament and in other writings, regarding the cherubim,
showing that there is no authority in Scripture for sup-
posing them to be bodiless infants, and comes to the con-
clusion that the face of a cherub was in reality the face of a
bull. At an early period of the Christian Church these
winged animals were adopted as the symbols of the Four
Evangelists. The winged lion was assigned to St.
Mark, as the symbol of strength ; the winged ox to St.
Luke, as the symbol of sacrifice ; the eagle and chalice
to St. John, as the symbol of contemplation ; and the
winged man with a cup and hatchet to St. Matthew, as
the symbol of power. The employment of these figures
as astronomical symbols formed the next branch of in-
quiry, and the conclusions were that the colossal bulls
are symbols of the sun in Taurus, or the vernal equinox;'
that the winged man is Mitra or Serosh, the guardian
of the autumnal equinox ; and the winged man-lion and
the eagle-headed man the symbols of the solstices, being
the four cherubim who watched the gates of Heaven, and
upheld the zodiac. As regardsthe other mythological figures
it is probable that the man with a goat in his arms repre-
sents the constellation Capricorn, and the newly-discovered
fish-god, that of Pisces. All the names of the gods found
in the Nineveh inscriptions will probably, on further in-
quiry, prove to be the names of constellations, stars, or
planets, chosen as the guardian angels of nations, kings,
or individuals. The mystic tree, which forms so con-
spicuous an object in the sculptures, has evidently some
astronomical signification. The number of its roast
or leaves vary considerably, but never exceed 30; and the
winged circle, or the new moon and some stars, &reg."'
rally seen above it. Hence it seems probable that these
trees were orreries showing the month, day, or season,
which is being celebrated by the winged figures or priests
who are represented in connection with them. The
winged circles or eyes, which are frequently placed above
the sacred tree, and seem to form the principal object
of adoration, so closely resemble the winged globes on
the portals of the Egyptian temples, that it is difficult
to disbelieve the identity of their origin. At first they
were probably typical of time, but came afterwards to
be looked upon as the symbols of Ormazd, the-active
creator and source of all good. These speculations may
appear more curious than profitable ; still it cannot be
uninteresting to inquire what were the ideas of men
3,000 years, when the earth was co mparatively young
origin
and learn what were the traditions of Asia as to the ;
race,
were
then destinyentertained f thea
s humanto the Creator fold Governor and what notions
of the

universe.
This was the last meeting of the session.

AUSTRALIAN NABOBS.—Among the passengers who
came home in the Indus, which la.nded the Indian mail
at Southampton on Tuesday, were 19 Australian re-
turned emigrants, most of whom 'were from Melbourne.
They wore white calico hats, and their hale, hearty, and
John Bull appearance formed a striking contrast to that
of the Indian passengers. The sl-aubrity of the climate
from which they had come was manifested throughout
the voyage in the range and power of their organs of di.
gestion. They had all made rapid and large fortunes.