BAS-RELIEF FROM BAVIAN.

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Remains and foundations of buildings in well-hewn stones were discovered under the thick mud deposited by the Gomel when swollen by rains. A series of basins cut in the rock, and descending in steps to the stream, were discovered by excavation. The water had originally been led from one to the other by small conduits, the lowest of which was ornamented at its mouth by two rampant lions in relief. Mr. Layard restored this fountain as it had been in the time of the Assyrians. From the nature and number of the monuments at Bavian, the explorer inferred that it had been a sacred spot, devoted to religious ceremonies and national sacrifices. The remains of a causeway, from Nineveh to Bavian, were traced upon the plain.

FOUNTAIN AT BAVIAN.

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(Concluded next month.)