The Bourbon news., 1913-09-30
EXCAVATIONS REVEAL ANCIENT
LIBRARY IN NINEvEH'S RUINS.
Public Ledger.

(PuDllc Ledger
Excavations have revealed to us
some astonishing facts with regard
to the literary attainments of the an
cient peoples of the East. The most
interesting of these finds were those
encountered in the ruined palace of
ancient Nineveh.
1t was no mere religious literature
that was there discovered; it poss-
essed far more solid elements The
tablets found on the site of the city
that long ago crumbled into the dust
show that the scribes studied their
literature to advantage Commenta-
ries, dictionaries and critical works
evidenced a love of literature, not
the mere making of books. The Min
evite Literature presents several curl
Gus features that for some time the
archaelogists found it difficult to eX-
plain.
In the first place, says Harper's
Weekly, it is pointed out, there are
no tablets, except State documents
or historical inscriptions, prior to the
reign of Assurrbanipa1 (B. G. $685.
625,) a circumstance that indicates
that the library was founded in his
reign. Then, too, the careful arrange
ment of the tablets in groups and sets,
with an index or catalogue in many
cases, shows that it was formed on
definite plan and was not gradual
growth during long period of time.
Finally very large numbers of the
tablets have an Endorsement to the
effect that they were "like the old
copy
The question arises. What was the
origin of these older works? The
first indication was afforded by the
statement on certain of the tablets
that they were copies of ablets from
Babyloiian cities and the discover
| les in the libraries of Babylonian tenn
! pies of duplicates of tablets alrady
known to the archaeologists from the
Assyrian Library proved that the
Bablonians had similar literature.
Copies of the Grafton legends have
been found at Borsippa, and the AS
syrian Library had a copy of the
| Code of Hammurabi Transcribed into
the Assyrian script. 1t is clear, then,
that it was Babylonia tha furnished
the "old copies"
All doubt as to the Chaldean origin
of the literary treasures of the royal
library at Nineveh is removed by a
tablet in the British Museum. This
consists of letter written apparently
by Assurbanipal. but probably by the
priest scribe who acted as the royal
librarian. 1t was addressed to a Ger
tain Shadunu, who was a man of con
siderable Importance, and, as is now
ascertained,. the heaE of a manuscript
commission dispatched to search fol
tablets in the BabylOnian libraries
1t has been translated thus:
"The word of the King to Shadunu
am well; mast thou be happy. The
The day thou seest this letter OF
mine take certain persons and such
persons of BorSippa, as thou know
est and seek out all the tablets laiC
Up in the temple E-zida. Seek out
the rare tablets such as may be
found on your journey which do no
exist in Assyria, and send them tt
me. | am giving orders to the treas
urers and projects. --hou shall put
them in a strong box. No one shall
withhold tablets from thee; and il
there be any tablet or stele of which
have not made mention to you, anC
thou shall learn of it, and it is good
for my palace, search for it and gel
it and send it to me-
1t thus appears that a commission
with unlimited powers was dispatch
by the Assyrian King to search both
the temple and private libraries OF
BabylOnia and taken from them works
suitable for the newly established
royal library at Nineveh.
The destruction of Nineveh occur
red about 609 B. c., so that the Ii
brary had life of only about half a
century-a fact that would account
in great measure for the freshness
of the tablets.