LATER DISCOVERIES AT BABYLON.
As the traveler approaches very near to Babylon, from the north, the first great ruin, as we have already said, is the “mound of Babel,” better known as the Mujelibé, or the “overturned,” a vast mound, from the top of which rises a solitary mass of brick-work, and beyond which are long undulating heaps of earth, bricks and pottery. On all sides are fragments of glass, marble, earthen-ware, and inscribed brick, mingled with that peculiar nitrous and blanched soil, which, bred from the remains of ancient habitations, checks or destroys vegetation, and renders the site of Babylon a naked and hideous waste, fit only for the abode of owls and jackals. Southward from this spot, for nearly three miles, there is an almost uninterrupted line of mounds, the ruins of the vast edifices which once formed part of the city. Mr. Layard commenced his excavations in one of these mounds, finding arrow-heads of iron and bronze, glass bottles, colored and ribbed, and of various forms and sizes, &c., &c., &c. On going deeper, the workmen soon reached solid piers and walls of brick masonry, many of the bricks bearing the usual superscription of Nebuchadnezzar; and the remains of similar buildings were found in various places. But though Mr. Layard’s discoveries of this kind were numerous, few things were brought to light materially different from what had been found and described by others before him.
About the year 1850, however, the French government sent out three gentlemen to make scientific and artistic researches in Media, Mesopotamia, and Babylon. One, M. Jules Oppert, has just returned to Paris, (1854,) and it appears, from his report, that he and his colleagues thought it advisable to begin by confining themselves to the exploration of ancient Babylon. This task was one of immense difficulty, and it was enhanced by the excessive heat of the sun, by privations of all kinds, and by the incessant hostility of the Arabs. After a while M. Oppert’s two colleagues fell ill, so that all the labors of the expedition devolved on him. He first of all made excavations of the ruins of the famous suspended gardens of Babylon, which are now known by the name of the hall of Amran-ibn-Ali; and obtained in them a number of curious architectural and other objects, which are destined to be placed in the Louvre at Paris. He next, in obedience to the special orders of his government, took measures for ascertaining the precise extent of Babylon, a matter which the reader is aware has always been open to controversy. He has succeeded in making a series of minute surveys, and in drawing up detailed plans of the immense city. His opinion is, that even the largest calculations as to its vast extent are not exaggerated; and he puts down that extent at the astounding figure of five hundred square kilometres, French measure, (the square kilometre is eleven hundred and ninety-six square yards.) This is very nearly eighteen times the size of Paris. But, of course, he does not say that this enormous area was occupied, or anything like it: it comprised within the walls huge tracts of cultivated lands and gardens, for supplying the population with food in the event of a siege. M. Oppert has discovered the Babylonian and Assyrian measures, and by means of them has ascertained exactly what part of the city was inhabited, and what part was in fields and gardens. On the limits of the town, properly so called, stands at present the flourishing town of Hillah. This town, situated on the banks of the Euphrates, is built with bricks from the ruins, and many of the household utensils, and personal ornaments of its inhabitants, are taken from them also. Beyond this town is the vast fortress, strengthened by Nebuchadnezzar, and in the midst of it is the royal palace, itself almost as large as a town. M. Oppert says, that he was also able to distinguish the ruins of the famous tower of Babel; they are most imposing, and stand on a site formerly called Borsippa, or the tower of languages. The royal town, situated on the two banks of the Euphrates, covers a space of nearly seven square kilometres, and contains most interesting ruins. Amongst them are those of the royal palace, the fortress, and the suspended gardens. In the collection of curiosities which M. Oppert has brought away with him, is a vase, which he declares to date from the time of one of the Chaldean sovereigns named Narambel, that is, somewhere about sixteen hundred years before Christ; also a number of copies of cuneiform inscriptions which he has every reason to believe that he will be able to decipher. It may not be out of place, to add, here, that in the excavations recently made in Persia, it is said that the palace of Shushan and the tomb of Daniel have probably been found; and also the very pavement described in Esther i. 6, “of red, and blue, and white, and black marble.” On the tomb is the sculptured figure of a man bound hand and foot, with a huge lion in the act of springing upon him to devour him. No history could speak more graphically the story of Daniel in the lion’s den. Various other discoveries have also been made, all of which bear out the statements of the Old Testament history as to the times of the prophet, and the nation of which he speaks.