The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-09-10
HISTORIC RELICS OF
LAND OF BABY[O|V|A
DR.. John p. Peters Tells of In
tercsting Discoveries in
Excavations.

Barrstt hail was las, night hllod With
an apprcciativc audience TO listen TO the
lecture of Dr. John y. Peters 81 the
Archa Biological Society OF America. who
described his work in excavatinE and eX-
plorlng ancient ruins 1T Nappur, Baby
lonla and Mesopotamia, the lecture he
Ing accompanied by stereopticon Illus
trations.
Or. Peters was the FIRST 10 begin such
explorations at rho point indicated be-
tween the Euphrntes and the Tigris riv-
ers. under patronage OF the University
of Pennsylvania. having been engaged in
that work from 1855 20 1895
According 70 conclusions formed
through discovery. the civilization Of
Babylonia was an outsrowth OF the earll-
er progress of the Syrians. The French
and the Germans have been conducting
explorations In that region for many
10 the world n wonderful insight into
history that reaches back to the dim
most DAYS OF the great past.
The Bahvlouans we're not much at
Ststuary. for the simple reason that their
country supplied no material suitable Ia
such work. hut they made great advances
In early astronomy and map making. All
OF their records are inscribed on pot
terry. and one especially interesting relic
Of this sort WAS portrayed in the pie
lures. II was in the form OF writ
ten guarantee Of gold ring with an
emerald setting II set forth that the
gold was genuine and solid and made
contract that II the setting fell out within
twenty years the purchase price should
be refunded. This little contract was
made about 1900 years before Christ.
There was another document" OF
abou; the same period. II was an agree
ment In division OF property between four
heirs. and II set forth in detail the Items
going TO each. Some of the records were
inscribed on pottery Jars and cylinders
the oldest Of them going back as far as
1000 years before Christ.
While making excavations In some oi
the ruins, said Dr. Peters. tho invcsti-
gators were at first puzzled To find doors
Of houses situnted eight and ten feet
above the street level, Further research
however. supplied the explanation. After
tho cities of the Euphrntes plains were
hullr, tho earth accumulated In tho
streets and the inhabitants concluded
that IL WAS easier 10 build on top Of tho
old structures than TO attempt TO remove
the dirt accumulatlons from the thor
ouGhfarcs.
As communities grew the necessity fo7
drainage became apparent. and the sys-
tom employed was 10 bury in the ground
innumerabc esrthcn Jars some OF then
perforated with small holes, Later or
the inhabitants laid the earthen Jars and
cartheD cylinders more systematically
under their abodcs and the streets, thus
Improving the drainage TO considera blc
extent
One OF the illustrations showed ar
adobe arch constructed high enough &c
permit n man TO walk through In al
upright position and this arch was in d
fairly good state Of preservation, not
withstanding the fact that surrounding
conditions indicated that II was built
about 1000 years before Christ
What many years ago appeared TO b,
knolls and hills upon the plains OF In,
Euphrates have In later years been found
to be buried cities, and II Is In thcs,
that the excavations and eXplorati ions
have been made. In some Of these ruin:
have been found bricks inscribed viii
the historic mark of Observation-Disclosures
who was the first OF tho Ba bylonian kings
TO successfully make burned brick.