, 1872-12-24
A CHALDEAN STORY OF THE DELUGE.
Proceedings Before the Eritis7, Arch.
biological Soc5czy-AssyriRn Tablets

ETnnSllted.
Mr. George Smith Of the British Museum
logical Society on q cuneiform inscription re-
Gently discovered by him in the Museum con-
tanning an account of the Deluge. Mr.. Smith
eaid be had recently been examining the division
comprising the NEUROLOGICAL and mythical
tablets, and from that section he obtained q num-
ber Of tablets giving curious series of legends
The flood. o. discoyering these documents, @ M
which were much mutilated, he se arched over al
tho collections Of fragments Of inscriptions,
consisting Of several Thousands Of smaller pieces,
and ultimately recovered eighty fragments Of
those legends by the aid of which he was
enabled to restore nearly all the text Of the de-
scription Of the food, and considerable portions
nelly at least twelve in number, formingo no
story or set Of legends, the account Of the nood
being on the eleventh tnblet. OF the inscription
describing the food, there we're fragments Of
three copies containing duplicate texts; these
about GEO years before the Christian era, and
they we're found in the library Of that mon
arch IN the palace at Ninevoh. The
.orlgina! tezt was very ancient, as its original
composition could not be placed later than
era, and it was, in all likelihood, very much
older. It belonged to tho time OF q Monarch
whose name, written in monograms, Mr. Smith
was unable to read phonetical1y, and, therefore,
ChlleA uAu UJ fHtu6 VI LuG 61SllB III Lib
zdubar, and he probably lived IN tho epoch i'm
1nediately following the flood. The tablets
gave an account OF his history and exploits, and
from one, the eleventh and most important Of
ALL it appeared that he heard OF patriarch, Sist,
WHO had attained immortality without death,
and he sought him to learn the secret. Sisit, on
being asked how he became immortal, relato8
the story of the food. The translation is very
imperfect, owing to portions of the tablet being
broken. After telling OF the building of the
1f,$ t,y@1 l-F4 r.
II caused to go up into the ship all my male
and female servants, the beasts Of tho field, the
animals of the ield and the aons of the army
all Of them, caused to go up. A food shamns
made, and he spake saving in tho night, will
tho midst Of the ship, and shut thy door, A
flood ho raised, and he pake saying in the night,
II will cause it to rain from Heaven heavily
In the day that celebrated his festival, the day
which he had appointed; fear had, I.cntered to
guide the ship, to Buzursadirebi the pilot: the
palace gave to his hand. The raging Of storm
il the morning arose, from the horizon Of
Heaven extending and wide Vul IN the midst OF
the throne bearers went over mountains and
plains the destroyer Nergai overturned; NiniD
went in front, and cast down; tie spirits carried
destruction; in their glory they swept the earth;
Of Vul the flood, reached to Heaven; the bright
earth to q waste was turned; the surface of the
earth, like it swept; it destroyed all
life, from the face of the earth the
stroug tempest over the people, reached to
Heaven. Brother cav not his brother, it did not
spare the people. In Heaven, tho gods feared
to the heaven Of Anu. The gods like dogs with
tails hidden couched down. Spaho Ishtar dis
course, uttered tho great goddess her speech,
The world to sin has turned, and then in the
prophesied in the PRESENCE Of tho gods evil, to
evil Here devoted Ill nv people, and I
prophesied thus, IL have besotten man,
and let him not like tho sons Of
the fishes fill tho soa."' The gods concerning
the spirits wero weeping with her; the gods in
lips for the coming evil. Six days and nights
passed, the wind, tempest, and storm, over
whelmed, on the seventh day in its course, was
calned the storm, and all the tempest, which had
he caused to dry, and the wind and tempest end
ed. I was carried through the sea. The doerof
evil, and tho whole OF mankind who turned to
sin, like reeds their corpses Aoated. I opened
the window, and the light broke in, over my ref
uge 1t passed; I eat gtill, and over my refuge
came peace. I WAS carried oyer the elore, at tho
boundary Of tho sea for II measures it sscended
oyer the land. 10 the country OF
n!z'F n went t.on1aS the ship; IT.; tho mountain
pass over it, it was not able. The first day and
the second day, the mountain Of Mir the same
Tho third day and the fourth day, the mountain
Of Mir tho sa1ne. The fifth and sixth, tho
mountain Of Mir tho Same. On the seventh
day, in the course of it I sent forth dove, and
it left Tho dove went and searched and resting
place it did not find, and it treturned. sent forth
G swallow, and it left. The swallow went and
searched aud . resting place it did not find, and
raven went. and the corpses on the waters it saw,
and it did ont, it swan, and wandered away, and
did not return. sent the animals forth to .tho
four winds. poured out q ibation. I built an
altar on the peak OF the mountain, by aevcn
herbs cut. at the bottom of then, / placed
lccted at its burning, tho gods collected
over the sacrifice gathered. From OF old also,
the great God in his course, the great brightness
gods, as Of Ulzni stone, on my countenance I
could not endure; in those days prayed that
forever might not endure. May the gods come
to my altar; may Bel not como to my a1tnr for
he did not consider and had made . tempest and
my people he had consigned to the deep from Of
old, also Bel in his course saw the ship, and
went Bel with anger filed tothe gods and spirits;
let not any one come out alive, lot not q man Ee
saved from the deep. Ninip hia mouth opened
and spake, and said to the warrior Bel, 'Who
and Hes knew all things. Hea his mouth opened
and spake, and said to the warrior Bel, Thou
prince Of the gods, warrior, when thouwas angry
tempest thou makest, tho doer Of sin did bis
uU6l VI 6fll LIS 0F3l, lilly IH0
cd not be broken, may the captive not be deliy-
cred; instead Of thee making a tempest, may
lions increase and men be reduced; instead Of
thee making tempest, may 1eopardB increase
and men be reduced; instead OF thee making
tempest, may famine happen, and the country
be destroyed; instead OF thee making a tenn
pest may peetilence increase and men be de-
stroyed.' did not peer into the wisdom Of the
gods. reyorent and attentive dream they sent,
and the wisdom Of the gods he heard. When
ind ant had L.
the midst Of the ship, he took my hand and
brought ME out, mo he brought out, he caused
me to bring my wife to my side, he purified tho
country, he established in covenant and
took tho people in tie presence Of Sieit and the
people when s;sit end his wife and the people
to be like the gods we're carried array, then dwell
Ssit in q remote place at the mouth Of the riy-
ers."
Sisit then told Izdubar how he might become
purified, ard the tablet closes by describing their
parting and the subsequent doings of Izdubar
On reviewing the evidence, Alr, Smith said that
it was apparent That Tie events Of the flood mar
rat tod inf In