﻿OLD 
  WORLD 
  ARCHEOLOGY 
  — 
  CASANOWICZ. 
  459 
  

  

  was 
  found, 
  in 
  1901-2, 
  by 
  the 
  French 
  expedition 
  on 
  the 
  site 
  of 
  the 
  

   ancient 
  city 
  of 
  Susa, 
  the 
  Biblical 
  Shushan, 
  once 
  the 
  capital 
  of 
  

   Elam 
  and 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  residences 
  of 
  the 
  Persian 
  Kings. 
  On 
  the 
  top 
  

   of 
  the 
  stele 
  a 
  bas-relief 
  represents 
  the 
  king 
  standing 
  before 
  the 
  sun- 
  

   god 
  (Shamash), 
  from 
  whom 
  he 
  receives 
  the 
  laws. 
  The 
  code 
  com- 
  

   prises, 
  in 
  the 
  present 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  monument, 
  245 
  distinct 
  laws, 
  

   and 
  it 
  is 
  assumed 
  that 
  about 
  35 
  more 
  have 
  been 
  erased. 
  They 
  are 
  

   concerned 
  with 
  all 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  commercial, 
  agricultural, 
  social, 
  

   and 
  domestic 
  life. 
  

  

  Hammurabi, 
  the 
  originator 
  or 
  compiler 
  of 
  these 
  laws, 
  is 
  identified 
  

   with 
  Amraphel, 
  mentioned 
  in 
  Genesis 
  xiv 
  as 
  a 
  contemporary 
  of 
  

   Abraham. 
  This 
  code 
  of 
  laws 
  is 
  thus 
  the 
  oldest 
  in 
  existence, 
  antedat- 
  

   ing 
  by 
  about 
  one 
  thousand 
  years 
  the 
  Pentateuch, 
  with 
  which 
  it 
  

   shows 
  many 
  similarities 
  in 
  form 
  and 
  substance 
  (pi. 
  21). 
  

  

  24. 
  In 
  the 
  alcove, 
  the 
  Rosetta 
  Stone. 
  Cast 
  in 
  plaster 
  from 
  the 
  

   original, 
  of 
  black 
  basalt, 
  now 
  in 
  the 
  British 
  Museum, 
  London, 
  Eng- 
  

   land. 
  The 
  Rosetta 
  Stone 
  was 
  discovered 
  in 
  1799 
  by 
  Boussard, 
  a 
  

   French 
  officer, 
  near 
  Fort 
  St. 
  Julien, 
  near 
  the 
  Rosetta, 
  mouth 
  of 
  the 
  

   Nile, 
  in 
  Egypt. 
  The 
  inscription 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  Egyptian 
  and 
  Greek 
  lan- 
  

   guages. 
  The 
  Egyptian 
  portion 
  is 
  written 
  in 
  hieroglyphic 
  and 
  

   demotic 
  characters. 
  This 
  bilingular 
  inscription 
  supplied 
  the 
  key 
  

   to 
  the 
  deciphering 
  of 
  the 
  ancient 
  monuments 
  of 
  Egypt. 
  In 
  its 
  

   present 
  condition 
  the 
  stone 
  measures 
  3 
  feet 
  3 
  inches 
  by 
  2 
  feet 
  6 
  inches, 
  

   and 
  contains 
  14 
  lines 
  of 
  hieroglyphic, 
  32 
  of 
  demotic, 
  and 
  54 
  of 
  Greek 
  

   script. 
  The 
  upper 
  part, 
  containing 
  probably 
  14 
  or 
  15 
  more 
  lines 
  

   of 
  hieroglyphics 
  and 
  some 
  sculptured 
  ornament 
  on 
  top, 
  has 
  been 
  

   broken 
  off, 
  and 
  the 
  right-hand 
  bottom 
  corner 
  has 
  also 
  suffered 
  in- 
  

   jury. 
  The 
  inscription 
  contains 
  a 
  decree 
  by 
  the 
  Egyptian 
  priests 
  as- 
  

   sembled 
  at 
  Memphis, 
  in 
  196 
  B. 
  C., 
  to 
  celebrate 
  the 
  first 
  commemora- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  coronation, 
  in 
  the 
  eighth 
  year 
  of 
  his 
  reign, 
  of 
  Ptolemy 
  V. 
  

   Epiphanes 
  (205-182 
  B. 
  G). 
  It 
  enumerates 
  the 
  benefits 
  which 
  the 
  

   King 
  has 
  conferred 
  upon 
  Egypt, 
  chief 
  among 
  them, 
  that 
  he 
  has 
  re- 
  

   duced 
  taxes; 
  dedicated 
  certain 
  revenues 
  to 
  the 
  temples; 
  released 
  

   prisoners; 
  abolished 
  the 
  pressgang; 
  and 
  averted 
  great 
  damage 
  from 
  

   the 
  land 
  by 
  restraining 
  the 
  waters 
  of 
  an 
  unusually 
  high 
  Nile. 
  In 
  

   return 
  the 
  priesthood 
  directed 
  that 
  a 
  statute 
  of 
  the 
  king, 
  inscribed 
  

   " 
  Ptolemy 
  the 
  Saviour 
  of 
  Egypt," 
  be 
  set 
  up 
  in 
  the 
  temples 
  ; 
  that 
  a 
  

   shrine 
  containing 
  an 
  image 
  of 
  him 
  be 
  placed 
  in 
  every 
  temple 
  and 
  be 
  

   carried 
  with 
  those 
  of 
  other 
  deified 
  kings 
  in 
  processions; 
  that 
  the 
  

   first 
  five 
  days 
  of 
  the 
  month 
  of 
  Thoth 
  should 
  be 
  set 
  apart 
  for 
  special 
  

   services 
  in 
  his 
  honor 
  ; 
  and 
  that 
  a 
  copy 
  of 
  this 
  decree, 
  engraved 
  upon 
  

   a 
  tablet 
  of 
  hard 
  stone, 
  in 
  hieroglyphics, 
  demotic, 
  and 
  Greek 
  charac- 
  

   ters, 
  should 
  be 
  erected 
  in 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  temples 
  of 
  the 
  first, 
  second; 
  

   and 
  third 
  orders 
  (pi. 
  22) 
  . 
  

  

  