Miscellaneous Correspondence, Notes, and Newspaper Cuttings Relating to Persia [‎48v] (100/255)

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EXPLORATIONS AT SUSA,
Half a century has elapsed since Mr. Kennet
Loftua, by his brief excavations, directed attention
to the archaeological importance of explorations
on the site of ancient Susa. At that time nothing
vras known of the ancient and powerful Elamite
kingdom of which Susa formed the capital, and
little else than the remains of the palaces of the
Aehsemenian kings were expected. The decipher
ment of the historical records of the Chaldean and
Assyrian empires showed that from the re
motest times the great confederation of tribes
who occupied the highlands of western Persia
and the lowland plains on the right bank of the
Tigris had played no inactive part in the earliest
acts of the drama of Oriental history ; and the
attention of scholars was then forcibly directed to
the importance of systematic explorations on the
site.
\
The position of the two great tumidi which
mark the site of the ancient Elamite capital is of
great strategic vaine, as they protect plains
watered by the Karon and Bizful rivers
and gnard the ranges of mountains which rise
step by step to the great tableland of Iran. The
larger of the tumuli is about 15 hundred metres
in length, and some eight hundred in its greatest
width. The larger mound marks the site of
the Achajinenian capitol, and at its northern
extremity M. Dienlafoy uncovered the apadanas
or palaces of Artaxerxes, Mnemon, and Darius,
during his explorations in 1884-1886. Loftus had
obtained several inscribed bricks bearing the names
of Elamite rulers contemporary with the Sargonide
dynasty, b.c. 731'625, hut uo traces or buildings
prior to the Persian age had been found, and
many scholars had formed the opinion that the
town had been completely destroyed in the
terrible siege and sack by Assnrbanipal in b.o.
640. The mention of Elamite palaces in Baby
lonian inscriptions as early as B.c. 1300 and in
the later Assyrian times proved that such build
ings must have existed. One special mention
ipay be quoted :—Kurigalzu, King of Babylon
aboutB.c. 1300, states that he recovered a certain
gem of agate “ from the palace of Susa, which is in
Elam. ’ ’ The obverse of this gem has a dedication by
the order of the Babylonian King Dungi. It was
no doubt carried away by the Elamites in b.c. 2285
When they overran Chaldea. Other kings also
mention these Royal residences. The work of
Oppert, Sayce, Weissbach, and others on the rock
and brick inscriptions made it clear that ex
plorations in the older portions of the ruins
would produce good results.
On his resignation of his post as director of
the Gizeh Museum M. de Morgan was entrusted
with a special scientific mission to make
a thorough exploration of the site f- the
! first results are made known to the world
/I of science in his report to the Minister of
| Public Instruction, and they fully justify the
expectations that were formed of the richness of
the site. Indeed, it is no misstatement of the
facts to say that no explorations in Mesopotamia
have produced such astonishing results or opened
lup so many new problems, not only as regards the
historic ages of the Mesopotamian valley, but in
what has been entirely wanting—traces of pre
historic times. Those results are due to the fact
tliat the head of the expedition was a skilled and
trained explorer, assisted by those who had long
served under him in Egypt and were versed in his
methods. Of the staff 'MM. Jequier, Lampre,
and Gautier had worked in Egypt especially
on primitive sites, and Father Scheil, a learned
French Assyriologist, joined the expedition at a
later period as expert. As Loftus and Dieulafoy
had been unable to find any extensive pre-
Achsemenian remains in the larger tumu-
lus, work was commenced in a smaller but
loftier mound about 250 mhtres to the
west. This mound rises to a height of nearly
100ft. above the surrounding plain,and presented
every indication of being a more ancient ruin.
On his arrival at Susa in December, 1897,
M. de Morgan, who had previously visited the site
in 1891, prepared for a thoroughly scientific
exploration of the site, and here his previous train
ing as a geologist stood him in good stead, as it
had previously done in Egypt. The skilled
explorer knows that in all ancient sites,
especially in the East, the law of stratification
holds good, and that to ascertain the various
strata and their ages is the first task before the
more minute examination can be made. To this
end M. de Morgan commenced his work by
driving a series of tunnels into the mound at
varying heights above the plain. By this means
he struck a number of strata, which yielded results
hitherto not found in Chaldea or Assyria.
Starting with a base tunnel which revealed a
yellow alluvial—no doubt a deposit brought down
from the Persian mountains—he pierced the slope
of the mound with five tunnels,, until the first his
toric stratum was reached at a distance of about
iseven metres below the upper surface of the
,mound. It was in the lower tunnels that most,
iimportant discoveries were made in the finding of
no less than three strata of prehistoric times.
Here, as in all previously excavated stratified
mins, pottery afforded important data. The first
stratum was 10'93 mitres above the plain, and
showed traces of a civilized people. Much pottery,
remarkable for the fineness of its glaze and
decorated with painted patterns in red, black, and
brown, was discovered. The patterns were chiefly
geometrical, but some had figures of birds resembling
the prehistoric pottery from Nagada, in Egypt, and
the,early Greek work. In this stratum but fewworked
flints were found. In the next stratum, 14'30 metres
above the base, the pottery was not so fine,mostly
vases of rough earth, but the flints became more
numerous, and here an important discovery was
made. In many places heaps of small flaked
flints were found which the explorer, from his
Egyptian experiences, recognized as the flint
teeth of sickles ; and in the upper portion many
such fragments were found with the bitumen
adhering to them which had been used to seal
them into the wooden frame of the sickle. It will be
remembered that the Egyptian hieroglyph ma,
a sickle, is coloured at Medum and other sites as
a wooden frame modelled from the ox-jaw in
which flint teeth are set. Here, then, was a
discovery which gladdened the heart of M. de
Morgan. He had maintained in his work on
“ Researches on the beginnings of Egyptian
Civilization ” that cereal growing was not
indigenous to Egypt but had been introduced
by an Asiatic race, who naturally brought
with them the instrument with which to reap
,the crops. Here, then, in the Susanian plain, one
of the greatest corn-growing regions of Western
Asia, ample evidence of a great corn-growing
population is found. The ancient Chaldean
records dating from b.o. 6000, the cone of Ente-
mena and other inscriptions, refer to the corn
wealth of those regions, and Strabo states that
their yield was one hundred or even two bnn-
dred fold. In the strata above, the remains of
(these implements were still more numerous,
And the teeth polished and worn from usage. Stone
maces, one of the earliest prehistoric weapons,
'began to appear. Rising now to another stratum,
21 metres above the base line, we first find
burnt bricks and traces of buildings, but no
inscriptions whatever ; and four metres higher
the first town is discovered—the remains of the
taost ancient Susa, which in many respects
resemble the lowest strata found by the American
explorers at Nippur—but still no inscribed bricks.
Above this, at a depth of about four and a half
metres, we come upon the ancient Elamite or
Anzanian citadel, which was destroyed by
iAssurbanipal about B.o. 640.
Now all these strata, presenting evidence
of progressive degrees of culture, show clearly
jwhat an immense antiquity we must assign
[to the first settlements on this site, and
yaise the important question whether we have not
evidence of antiquity greater than is discovered
an Chaldea. Having ascertained the order of his
strata, M. de Morgan entrusted the work of
opening trenches to M. G. Lampre. After pass
ing through two mlitres of Persian and Arab
debris the Grseco-Persian level was reached,
which by enamelled vases and coins may be said
to cover a period of about five centuries from the
Macedonian conquest to the rise of the Sassanian
dynasties—that is B.c. 330 to a.d. 226. Below
this the Elamite stratum was reached, and
tha remaioa of walls and navementa of.
bricks inscribed with the names of Elamite
rulers—such as Kudur-nakhunta, Selkhak, and
Sutruk-nakh unta—were found ; and from the
amount of cinders and charred wood it
became evident that this was the palace destroyed
by Assurbanipal in his vengeance on Elam. The
terrible destruction by fire and the deliberate
razing of walls made it impossible to ascertain
accurately the general plans, but many dis
coveries of great archaeological importance were
made. The walla were of square kiln-burnt
bricks (0'35m. sq.), of bright brown colour,
those facing the interior being inscribed, so that
the walls were covered with lines of writing.
Along the walla were found many fragments
of enamelled bricks bearing inscriptions or
decorative patterns, also portions of bricks
with figures of men and animals used to form
decorative panels. This mode of decoration had
been familiar to us in its highest style in the
Achasmenian palaces, as is shown by the splendid
enamelled brick work found by M. Dieulafoy and
now in the Louvre. Its use by the Elamite
rulers in the eighth century shows us the source
from which the Aehsemenian artists derived
their inspiration ; there are many other indica
tions of this influence of the older Susanian
civilization. In the larger rooms the bases of
columns were found, but from the large
quantity of cinders and carbon around them it is
evident that these rooms had been roofed like the
Persian apadanas. We can now trace this
interesting form of construction hack to a
much earlier period than the Achsemenian age.
We have the ancient Elamite halls dating about
b.c. 700, probably earlier, but these reproduce
the columued hall of the Kassite period of Nippur
about b.c. 1300. The Kassite or Cossean was first
cousin to the Elamite and of mountain
origin, and therefore it is not difficult to
see, as Sir Henry Layard suggested, the
origin of this style in the wood columned
chambers of the mountain tribes such as the
Bakhtiary or the Yezidis of to-day.
We coma now to the most important and
astonishing discoveries of the historic period.
Assnrbanipal stripped the palace as far as i
he could and wrecked it, but there were
certain monuments which escaped removal on :
account of their weight. Space will permit
us to describe only one of these, but its im- (
portance justifies us. As we have already said,
there was enmity between Elam or Anzan i
and Chaldea from the earliest ages, and indeed
these border wars form the chief items of history. (
One of these campaigns of the greatest importance
is that of Naiam-Sin, the warlike son of the ]
great hero Sargon of Akkad, whose reign is fixed
at b.o. 8750. This event was regarded as of \
the greatest importance and by it contracts were
dated. In the Museum at Constantinople are •;
several contracts found at Tello by M. do Sarzec
which bear the date “ the year when Naram-Sin (
placed his yoke on the land of Elam.” Of this
conquest M. de Morgan discovered a most
remarkable record in the mined Elamite palace.
Torn from its place and much injured by fire, ]
the explorers unearthed a large side of yellow (
limestone, which stood 6ft. 6in. high and about
3ft. in width at the base. The whole face was 1
covered by an elaborate sculptured tableau con
taining many figures. The work is most remark- {
able, both as a whole and in the details, and, j
although bearing every mark of antiquity, may
compare favourably with the sculptures of As- i
Syria. At the top of the side are three solar
discs with their rays. Below is a lofty cone repre- j
senting the peak of a mountain on the surface of
which is cut a long inscription. Before this stands
the King wearing a horned helmet and armed
with an arrow or short spear in his right hand, a
bow in his left. He wears a rich robe reaching
to the knees, and wears sandals. A dagger is
thrust into his girdle. His heard is long. The ^
royal warrior places his foot upon a dead foe,
whilst before him another falls wounded, and
tries to draw an arrow from his breast, and
further off , another personage is represented,
standing with his hands raised in supplication.
The heap of dead beneath the victor’s feet in
various complicated attitudes is most re
markably drawn and carved. Below the King,
mounting some steps, come three ensign
bearers, each with the right hand placed
on his dagger, and his left holding the
bancor. The ensigns are of considerable interest,
as they are already familiar to us from the |
engraved gems of Chaldea—namely, the sacred j
lance, whip, and mace. Below the standard-
bearers come the soldiers variously armed. In
front of these are two trees, behind which are the
enemy, who are represented as turning round in
supplication. From the whole tableau we see
that it represents a campaign in a forest region,
the enemy defeated and driven to the highest
peaks, where they are slain or surrender to the 1
victors. It is exactly the region of the dark pine
forest of the hero Khumbaba, described in the
Epic of Chaldea.
The question now most important is—of whose
campaign is this remarkable monument a
record ? M. de Morgan, who appears not to
have had the benefit of Father Schiel’s expert
evidences, regards it as Elamite ; but the in
scription upon it reveals the astonishing fact
that it is a monument erected by Naram-Sin to
commemorate his great campaign some time about
b.c. 3750. How came it here? M. Maspero and
Dr. Schiel seem to think that it was carried away
from Chaldea by the Elamites, but,considering the
great size and weight, this seems hardly feasible.
The more possible solution is that the side had
been set up by the Chaldean King either in Susa
or in the region. But the Elamite ruler Sutruk-
nakhunta has boldly annexed the monument and
inscribed his own name and titles on it. This is,
in all probability, the earlier King of that name,
who reigned about b.o. 1300, who pillaged many
Babylonian cities and carried away statues of the
gods.
This is not the only monument of importance
found in these explorations. There was also found
a large obelisk of granite six feet in height, the
four sides of which were covered with a long
inscription of some twelve hundred lines written
in very archaic character. The text has not yet
been published by Dr. Schiel, but it proves to he
the record of a Chaldean King named Manistusu,
of whom some inscriptions were found at Nippen.
For further details we must await Dr. Sehiel’a
report on the inscriptions.
Such, then, is a summary account of these most
important explorations. They have traced the
history of this city from the remotest ages to well
known historical times. They raise many questions
of importance, but chief among these is that
of the origin of the civilization of Chaldea. Is it
in these settlers of Elam, whose memorials extend
back to an unknown pre-historic ago, that we
are to look for those tribes, who, attracted by the
rich alluvial soil of Chaldea, came and settled
there and founded Nimrod’s kingdom ? We look
anxiously to M. de Morgan’s continued work for
an answer to some of these most interesting
questions.
hey are already familiar to us from .
aved gems of Chaldea—namely, tho sacrt-i j
'Relow the standard- ,
14
C
i
EXPLORATIONS AT SUSA.
Half a century has elapsed since Mr. Kennet
Loftus, by his brief excavations, directed attention
to the archaeological importance of explorations
on the site of ancient Susa. At that time nothing
was known of the ancient and powerful Elamite
kingdom of which Susa formed tho capital, and
little else than tho remains of the palaces of the
Achmmenian kings were expected. The decipher
ment of the historical records of the Chaldean and
Assyrian empires showed that from the re
motest times tho great confederation of tribes
who occupied tho highlands of western Persia
and the lowland plains on the right bank of the
Tigris had played no inactive part in the earliest
acts of the drama of Oriental history ; and the
attention of scholars was then forcibly directed to
the importance of systematic explorations on the
site.
The position of tho two great tumuli which
mark the site of the ancient Elamite capital is of
great strategic value, as they protect plains
watered by the Karun and Dizful rivers
and guard the ranges of mountains which rise
s tep by step to the great tableland of Iran. The
larger of the tumuli is about 15 hundred metres
in length, and some eight hundred in its greatest
width. The larger mound marks the site of
the Achsemenian capitol, and at its northern
extremity M. Diculafoy uncovered the apadanat
or palaces of Artaxerxes, Mnemon, and Darius,
during his explorations in 1884-1886. Loftus had
obtained several inscribed bricks bearing the names
of Elamite rulers contemporary with the Sargonide
bricks inscribed with the names of Elamite
rulers—such as Kudur-nakhunta, Selkhak, and
Sutruk-nakhunta—were found ; and from the
amount of cinders and charred wood it
became evident that this was the palace destroyed
by Assnrbanipal in his vengeance on Elam. The
terrible destruction by fire and the deliberate
razing of walls made it impossible to ascertain
accurately the general plans, but many dis
coveries of great archaeological importance were
made. Tho walla were of square kiln-burnt
bricks (O'35m. sq.), of bright brown colour,
those facing the interior being inscribed, so that
the walls were covered with lines of writing.
Along the walls were found many fragments
of enamelled bricks bearing inscriptions or
decorative patterns, also portions of bricks
with figures of men and animals used to form
decorative panels. This mode of decoration had
been familiar to us in its highest style in the
Achsemenian palaces, as is shown by the splendid
enamelled brick work found by M. Dieulafoy and
now in tho Louvre. Its uso by the Eiamite
rulers in the eighth century shows us the source
from which the Achaemenian artists derived
their inspiration ; there are many other indica
tions of this influence of the older Susanian
civilization. In the larger rooms the bases of
columns were found, but from tho large
quantity of cinders and carbon aroand them it is
evident that these rooms had been roofed like the
Persian apadanas. We can now trace this
interesting form of construction back to a
much earlier period than the Achsemenian age.
We have the ancient Elamite halls dating about
e.c. 700, probably earlier, but these reproduce
the columned hall of the Kassite period of Nippab
about b.c. 1300. The Kassite or Cossean was first
cousin to tho Elamite and of mountain
origin, and therefore it is not difficult to
see, as Sir Henry Layard suggested, the
origin of this style
...i—.