The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-01-11

|
Under the auspices of the British Mu-
scum, Mr.. King Of the department. or
| Oriental antiquities, had collected a
series of ancient documents which nave
been published under the title OF tine
Letters and Inscriptions of Khammur-
abb, king OF Babylon, about b. C. 22oo'
| A few years ago the dark hiding place
of Dierel-Bahr yielded up the bodies
of the greatest of the Egyptian phara-
obs, and in February of this year some
| more of these august rulers of Nile land
were recovered at Thebes. But 1t is IN
| the field of Oriental literature that the
greatest of our recent discoveries nave
| been made. Nothing has been so as
| tonshing as the universally OF the lite
| rary remains. 1T Is not only royal re-
cords, or few votive inscriptions, tell
| ing us, in grandiloquent terms, the
mighty deeds of some Babylonian or
Egyptian ruler that have been brought
to light. The literature of these records
of the past is far more extensive and
wide-embracing in its character and
the astonishing fact is revealed that
more than twenty centuries before the
Christian Era the art of writing was
not confined to the classes, but had
been acquired by large portion of the
masses. Formerly the earliest record OF
letter writing was the treacherous
missive sent to Joab by the hand OF
Uriah the Hittite, which may approx
mately be placed about B. G. 1000. Still,
there was little indication that the at
tainment of this power was general
at this period or in the later age of
Solomon.
Some ten years ago a most important
find of tablets was made by native dig
gers in Babylonia. The site from which
they were obtained was the mound OF
Tel-Sifr. the site of the ancient city OF
Larsa--the Ellasar of Genesis xiv. This
city, about 3. c.. $500, was of great inn
portance The whole of the land had
been swept by terrible invasion of the
Elamites, and both Erech and Ur be-
ing destroyed, temporary capital was
established at Lar But new power
was rising, which eventually was to
found for ever the great Babylonlan
empire The gradual infiltration of the
Arabs into Babylonia had been going on
for centuries, and at last an Arab dy-
nasty established itself in Babylonia.
making Babylon its center. Gradually
by the wonderful organizing power
which the Semftes have always shown,
they established themselves as rulers
of the whole land, and in B. G.. 22So, the
great King Khammurabi-whom there
is much reason to regard as the Am
raphel of Genesis xiv.--was king para
mount over all Babylonia, and claimed
for himself the title of builder of the
empire"
Among the Inscriptions found at Tel |
Sir are a number of letters, forty-six
of which are written by Khammurabi
to the petty ruler Of the city of Larsa,
These letters, then, carry us back more
than seven centuries in the history and
antiquity Of letter writing. The i'm
portance Of this discovery, now deve,-
oped by Leonard King, is very great |
as they come as contemporary and con-
firmatory records of this most import
ant period in Oriental history. Written |
on little clay tablets about three inches /
long and two wide, they are certainly !
the oldest letters in the world. Their
value is much enhanced by the fact /
that they belong to a period to which
there is every reason to assign the date
of the migration of Abram. To the sub !
ject of Biblical historical criticism they I
the element present when wild cattle |
are of great importance.
On the first examination of the tab
let's Mr.. King was struck with the re-
semblance which the name copied by
ScheI presented to the name of a Baby
lonian general mentioned in the mu-
scum letters. A copy of the CONSTANT
nople letter being obtained by photo
graphs, it was hown that the name OF
did not exist but that
of Inukh-S amar Babylonian general
instead. 1t is now found that there are
three tablets which form series relat-
ing to an important war with Elan,
probably late in the reign of Khan
One of them refers to the cap
ture of certain Elamite statues of god
desses, and the Babylonian king writes
to his subordinate requesting them to
be sent to Babylon. In this letter we
read. ITO Siniddina thus speaks Khan
murabi (the king Zikha-ili-su, and
Khammura bani the Vizier in regard
to the goddesses as messengers 1 send.
As in a temple the goddesses in barks
sacred ships) cause them to ride. To
Babylon may they bring them. The fe-
male bodyguard after them let them
De brought. For the offerings of the
,oddesses let four fat rams be pro-