'Narrative of a journey to the site of Babylon in 1811, now first published: memoir on the ruins; with engravings from the original sketches by the author: remarks on the topography of ancient Babylon, by Major Rennell; in reference to the memoir: second memoir on the ruins; in reference to Major Rennell's remarks: with narrative of a journey to Persepolis: now first printed, with hitherto unpublished cuneiform inscriptions copied at Persepolis: by the late Claudius James Rich, Esq., formerly the Resident of the Hon. East India Company at Bagdad. Edited by his widow.' [‎241] (339/474)

JOURNEY TO PERSEPOLIS.
241
and lower pilaster, seemingly unconnected with the
others, upon which was the beautiful and curious
figure so very accurately drawn by Sir Robert Ker
Porter. It is a mythological figure with six wings ;
on its head is a pair of rain's horns supporting three
cones like cypress-trees, above which is an inscrip
tion that is four times repeated.* There are the
remains here of two lines of pilasters like a portico,
all of white marble. The great extent of rubbish
all about proves, I think, that there must have been
a town here. I think I can trace four different sets
of buildings, and the taste does not in any part seem
Persepolitan.
I ascended the little hill above these ruins, called
the Takht i Suleiman, built into a platform with
large rough stones, faced with enormous blocks of
white marble, cramped together with iron or lead, to
search for which they have everywhere broken large
holes at considerable trouble. The facing blocks are
cut rustically, with raised centres, and smooth lower
frames round them. I measured one, and found it to
be fourteen feet two inches long, by three broad, but
they are of different sizes. It is altogether a very
grand work, and such as the natives believe could
only have been accomplished by Divs.
I next went to a ruin a little to the north of the
rest; it consisted of huge stones, without any inscrip
tions. I then returned to the caravanserai A roadside inn providing accommodation for caravans (groups of travellers). , which was
* See Plate 12.
R