Washington sentinel., 1898-01-29
Persian Archaeology.
Iond0n .Ec60.

~ 4 W ~ - " ~AN
especially difficult of explanation
and upon these no light appeared
to be forthcoming. Ever since the
days when Niebuhr and Kerr Por.
ter first made known to Western
arch9ologists the wonders OF the
palaces OF the Ach9menian kings
at Persepolis, students have pom
dered over the sources from which
the builders derived their ins pira
tions. That they were the pro-
ducts Of indigenous ideas was in
every way to be denoted. The
earliest of the edihces was erected
by Darius Hystaspes, and cannot
precede B. c. 5oo--yet the architec'
ture presents many resemblancss
to the work OF the Assyrians in the
palaces Of Sennecherib and Assur-
banipal which had been destroyed
nearly a century before. There
are divergences in style, especially
in the proportions observed, which
indicate that the conceptions were
transmitted. not by direct knowl.
edge OF AssYrian work, but by an
intervening medium; that link is
supplied by the art work OF the
artists who decorated the palaces
and temples OF the old Armenian
kingdom Ct Biana or Van.
This an ;ient kingdom, which had
derived its art and letters directly
from Assyria after its conquest in
the middle OF the ninth century B.
c., survived It's tutor, and rem aine d
independent until the early part Of
the reign of Darius HystaspeS,
when it became one Of the satra-
pies OF the great Persian Empire.
II was the sight OF the great rock
inscriptions of Argistis and other
Vannic monarchs that inspired
Darius to carve the great inscrip-
tion of Behistun, che Rosetta stone
Of cuneiiorm literature. The Per-
sian alphabet had been derived
from and by a hasty modification
Of the commercial writing Of the
age of Nabonidus. Prior to this,
Cyrus and his successors, il using
writing at all, had used the script
Of Ansan, that is the old Elamite
kingdom ofwhich Cyrus was ruler,
and it was not until after the con-
quest of Ecbatana in B. C. $40 that
Cyrus assumes the title of King oi
Persia, and the absolute depend
ence OF Cyrus and his people upon
their educated subjects is shown
bv the fact that his cylinder des-
cribIng the conquest of Babylon
was written and inspired by the
Babylonian priests, and was prob
ably quite unintellIgible TO the
King; m oreover, not single Per-
sian inscription has been found
among the thousands of CONNER
cial tablets discovered in Babylon.
The architecture of the Persian
palaces is remarkable for the ex-
tensive use Of the column, and
above all for the columned halls
or massive canopies supported
upon regularly arranged groups
OF canopies. These constructions
are described in the inscriptions as
and were peculiar to
palaces. They are
found in the palaces OF both Darius
and Nerxes at Persepolis, and con-
sist of groups of four, six or more
columns arranged in groups cor
responding to the number Of col
umns, so as TO form a perfect
square. This form of open air
throne room the Persians trans
mitted to India, where many fine
examples are known, but until
quite recently its origin was un-
known. Until their contact with
he more western and stationary
civilizations the Persians were like
the majority of the tribes who have
come forth from the table land OF
Iran tent d Wellers, and the apadana
s, no doubt, a modification of the
chief dubar tent. This explanation
s, however, more or less applicable
10 all early forms of the house.
A discovery made by the Amer
can expedition, which for FIVE
years has been exploring the ruins
IF the ancient Chaldean city Of
Nippur, one OF the oldest cities in
he world, has unexpectedly fur
lished the source OF the peculiar
Persian construction. The ancient
.itY OF Nippur was built on either
rank of a large canal formerly
lavigable to the Persian Gulf, now
rnown as the Shat-el-Nil. On the
.ast side was the second quarter
ound the great temple of Null lii,
" the older Bel, while on the west
we're groups OF houses in layers
me above the other in stratified
ayers from the time Of the Seleu.
id9 until the lowest about B. C.
900. In one large mound here
he explorers seem to have struck
Ipon the palaces and residences Of
he princes and wealthy citizens.
IN the upper surface the explorers
ound the remains of several Jew
sh houses, in which several OF the
.urious incarnation bowls were
ound, and the remains Of what ap-
,eared to be an apothecary's shop,
or mortars and a number of bot
les sealed with bitumen and filled
nth various substances were
,und. These have been removed
, Constantinople.
Digging through deep stratum
{ burials, mostly Babylonian, the
xcavators came upon a remarka-
lie edifice. The first indication
'as the shaft OF massive brick
olumn nearly metre in diameter.
IS such objects are rare, though