The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1907-11-21

meters beneath the surface we discov-
cred large bronze lion terminating
in spike. At depth of eight and
half meters were two large urns filled
with ashes; two meters below them
was smaller urn, and away down
upon the desert level, IA meters from
the surface, the ground was strewn
with fragments of baked, thrown pot
terry of graceful design. We were then
down among the beginnings of things.
The uppr two and a half meters
represented the period 4506-2750 B. c.
Then how long time is represented
by the remaining II meters Of the
ruins beneath? No one can say. One
may only surmise that the early Meso-
potamians who first settled in the
plain. and who formed upon the wheel
the graceful pottery still found there,
lived fully 10000 years ago, and per-
haps earlier. So great was the an
tiquity of the ruin which we had fear
ed might be modern!
1t may be supposed that in ruin
SO ancient objects strange to the ar
chaeologist should be revealed, and
ismRa, especially the temple hill, was
most productive of such treasures of
ancient art. AS the fallen debris of the
sides Of the temple tower was cleared
away there appeared upon the sur
face small alabaster head of statue.
The face is long and thin; pointed
bear conceals the chin; the nose is de-
0idaH1x n 1.nl1
in which, when found; ivory eyeballs
were held in place with bitumen; the
pupils of the eyes, probably of a dark
stone, were missing The head is COW
cred with @ closely-fitting cap This
type of head is new to the student of
| abylonian art. Clearly distinct from
the round beardless head of a Sum
erian, it must be regarded as the only
head of the statue Of Babylonian
Semitic ever discovered. It's date can
not be determined, vet it represents a
time not far from $500 B. c., when the
Semites first appeared in Mesopotamia.
This head-now in Chicago-is one of
the rarest objects of ancient art.
A unique, blue-stone vase, three
fragments of which appeared in the
ruins of the piano-eonyex brick tenn
pie, is of type equally unknown to
the student of ancient art. A process
sion of grotesque, long-nosed figures,
headed with two musicians playing up
on harps, is depicted upon the stone.
The garments and jewelry and even
the foliage Of the background were
once represented by inlaid work, but
with the exception of a square piece OF
ivory, which formed the dress Of one
figure, and a few bits OF lapis lazuli,
in branch Of tree, the inlaid pieces
have been lost. The fragments of this
beautiful vase present a number of
questions for the archaeologist to an
swer. The procession, the type of the
| figures and the art of inlaying are all
new.
AS the earth was removed from the
edge Of the platform of piano-convex
bricks, there appeared the ancient re-
| fuse-heap Of the temple. Dozens OF
baskets of marble, alabaster, onyx and
porphyry vases, fragmentary and en-
tire, were recovered. Some of the
vases bore inscriptions in a most ar
ehaic character; others were engraved
with strange designs or inlaid with
ivory and stone Representing almost
every conceivable shape, they present a
valuable contribution to the study OF
the earliest art
Among the most interesting objects
of a lower stratum at Bismya was q
cench shell from which a section had
been cut, so that it formed a perfec,
oil lamp, while the valve Of the shell
served as groove for the support Of
the wick. The sea-shell was the lamI
of primitive man. The 'sea-shell Il
now known to have been the ancestor
| of the lamp which later was adopted
by the Hebrews and the Greeks ant
then by modern nations.
Trenches were dug about the base
of the temple tower, where there
seemed to have been secret passage:
for the priests While excavating be.
meath the west corner of the tower, {
bright-eyed Arab excitedly called m,
to the trench and pointed to piece o.
white marble projecting from the clay
4 IIhHSASfIliB the dSltdteu ARABS TO an
other part of the ruin, l waited unit
the work Of the day was over, and
then with my own hands, dug out tn,
oldest statue in the world It was lyins
upon Its back, as 1t had fallen from
the platform above. In cutting away
the hard clay at its feet, found tina
the toes were missing, but they wer,
recovered in fragments at the base
Then I dug toward the head, but a
the neck the marble came to an end
The head was gone! Upon the RICH
upper shoulder appearedl an archai
Inscription of three lines. Just
month later while excavating at tn
farther end of the trench, 100 fee
away two marble heads were fount
lying upon the floor in the corner o
: the chamber; one of them, wheI
placed upon the headless neck, fitte,
it, and the statue was complete.
J The statue is remarkable. No
: only is It the oldest statue in tn
J world, but it is the only perfect Ba
bylonian statue yet discovered. TIL