GEOGRAPHY AND ANTIQUITIES. 389 



ago, sat. It is composed of metal and of ivory, the metal being richly 

 wrought and the ivory beautifully carved. It seems that the throne 

 was separated from the state apartments by means of a large curtain, 

 the rings by which it was drawn and undrawn having been preserved. 

 No human remains have come to light, and every thing indicates the 

 destruction of the palace by fire. It is said that the throne has been 

 partially fused by the heat. Under the date of Jan. 6, a writer says, 

 "Yesterday we removed more than thirty metal vases, bowls, and 

 saucers, most beautifully embossed and engraved, some shields and 

 swords, of which the handles alone remain, the iron blades being de- 

 composed, and a small marble vase. The cups and bowls and other 

 ornaments are of some unknown alloy of metals, but they are all so 

 incrusted with decomposed and crystallized copper, and so fragile, that 

 they cannot be handled without great danger, and Mr. Layard is send- 

 ing them home in the state in which he found them, without attempt- 

 ing to remove the rust. Not the least curious part of the discovery are 

 several hundred mother-of-pearl studs, in form exactly resembling our 

 shirt buttons." In a part of the building not far distant from that con- 

 taining the throne, the whole of the culinary apparatus of the monarch 

 of Assyria has been discovered. It consists, among other things, of an 

 immense brazen caldron, and more than 100 dishes, &c., of the same 

 metal. No golden utensils have, however, yet come to light. 



The Literary Gazette states that, at Koyunjik, Mr. Layard has 

 found a chamber which is completely filled with terra-cotta tablets, the 

 inscriptions on which are stamped in, so that, though Major Rawlinson 

 thinks it very probable these tablets may be records of the empire, it is 

 still not unlikely that many of them may, in fact, be duplicates of, or 

 a collection of, manifestoes for issuing to the people or their immediate 

 rulers ; in short, a sort of Assyrian official printing-office. We believe 

 that no fewer than twenty-five cases are on their way to England. In 

 the pyramid at Nimroud, also, a unique statue has been discovered. 

 It is from four to five feet in height, in gypsum, elaborately carved and 

 very perfect. There is also a high relief of the king, very beautifully 

 executed, standing in an arch eight feet high, and covered with minute 

 inscriptions. 



A vessel has reached London with some of the results of these late 

 excavations. The two most remarkable specimens are the gigantic 

 bull, already known by report, and a lion of nearly equal dimensions. 

 Both these animals are constructed on precisely the same principle. 

 The heads are human, with caps upon them, and beards elaborately 

 curled, and they have the large spreading wings so frequent in Assy- 

 rian antiquities. The side view of them is in bas-relief, and so seen 

 they appear to be in motion, the off-legs being inclined backwards. 

 The head, however, and one of the front legs, are brought to the edge 

 of the slab, round which they are carried so as to present a full front 

 view ; a fifth leg is added, in a stationary position, to correspond with the 

 others. These figures are in size from nine to ten feet square. Another 

 curious specimen is a group of two human figures, in very high relief, 

 each dressed in a cap ornamented with horns. This is at present in 

 separate pieces, having been apparently sawn for facility of conveyance. 



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