The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-22

1t certainly was not later.
The world was not an infant even in
those days. The earliest of the writ
ings found represent a development
that could not have been reached in
less than three thousand years. How
long men lived without writing may
never be known. but there is proof
enough in the results of the expedition
to show that the worshippers of Bel
wrote on clay six thousand years be-
fore Christ Professor Hilprecht
makes the statement advisedly. 1t Is
based on his knowledge of cuneiform
development, and asthere are barely
half a dozen men in the world today
who can compare with him in that sci
ence, there will be few to dispute his
announcement.
He stated his belief in this compu-
tation a few days ago. and 1t is pub
lished now for the first time.
Hilprecht believed 1t firmly when he
wrote the first volumes Of the report
but he held it back until. after another
years study, his belief became a posi-
tive certainty.
The deciphering Of the Inscriptions
and the piecing Of the, fragmentary
text will be the work of years. After
porting over thousands of fragments Of
vases marked by him as the product
of a single century the professor be-
came convinced that each vase had
borne the same Inscriptions temple
history-and he set about restoring it.
The text, when completed, was
formed of eighty seven fragments, and
had 1872 lines of cuneiform writing.
It's translation occupied nearly year.
"Hilprecht may well be proud" said
Professor Sayce, of Oxford, of the
magnificent results he has achieved,
and the other European erchaeologist,
who, with Sayce Is considered a leader
In ho I11n0T10n1 nf Munich
added that mo other living Assyriol-
ogist could equal such a contribution
to science
As it is, Hilprecht has added to his
tory about thirty new kings, previous
1y unknown to us, and has cleared up
by his reconstruction of Babylonian
history the exact relations of the early
Semitic dynaSties to the old Sumer1an
kings Of Babylonia.
The expedition is admitted to be one
Of the most important scientific under
takings in the history Of Western Asia.
1t was organized and sent out In the
summer of 1885, number of prom1-
nent Philadelphians organizing Bah
ylonian exploration fund, Of which the
officers were Provost Charles G. Harri
son, DR.. William Pepper, president OF
the department of archaeology and
palaeontology; Edward w. Clark,
chairman of the Babylonian section,
and Clarence II. Clark, treasurer of the
department. Rev. John P. Peters, who
now has ministerial charge in New
York, was director; H. V. Hilprecht
and r. F. Harper were Assyriolog1sts,
and ]. H. Haynes, of Robert college,
Constantinople, the general executive
man.
Since 1898 Haynes has been director
of the work, while Hilprecht continued
to be the student and translator OF all
the inscriptions discovered. To the
present time $4,000 or $4,000 have been
spent on the work.
The explorers found many interesting
stories bound UP in the mute objects
of their search fof5-, f-~ 81 fs.--
King Sargon, for all his piety, pract-
Used an enterprise that would be froWn-
ed upon in these days Centuries be-
fore he lived one of the kings of Nip
pur, Lugal Kigub-Nidudu, gave to the
temple a door socket, of stone, round
block on which the lower corner of the
door turned. Stones were rare in Bah
ylonia, for the land was alluvial. The
old king wanted all the credit for his
gift, SO he had his name carved on 1t
with votive inscription that the gods
might make no mistake.
Sargon also wanted to present door
socket to the temple, but he could find
no stone, and so appropriated the stone
given by his predecessor. He turned it
over, set his slaves to work, and had
his name and presentation sentiments
nicely cut on it's face. For $500 years
Sargon slept in the comfort that his
pious gift gave him, and Bel doubtless
has wondered what had become of the
other socket, until the Pennsylvania
expedition found the stone under the
debris and turned it over.
CUNIEFORMS OF VAST VALUE.
Professor Hilprecht's summer work
for the last three years has been the
cataloguing and organization Of the
Semitic and Hittite sections of the I'M
perial Ottoman Museum, as an officer
of the Turkish government. The re-
suit Of his work has been of incalcui-
able advantage to the University of
Pennsylvania. The Turkish law now
foIbids the removal of any archaeo-
logical material from the country, all
antiquities being deposited in the
museum In Constantinople, but in rec
ognition of his work the sultan pres
ented him with more than sixty boxes
of the antiquities that he chose as most
valuable in the expeditions find.
The university now has three times as many
cuneiform writings as all other European
museums put together. None of the tablets
are from the latest expedition. the results of
which have not yet reached Constantinople,
being now route from BaSsorah by way of
Arabia and the Red sea. These in turn will
have to be arranged ana catalogued like all