﻿442 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  192 
  9 
  

  

  soft 
  and 
  had 
  recently 
  been 
  disturbed, 
  so 
  we 
  dug 
  down 
  by 
  the 
  side 
  of 
  

   them 
  and 
  discovered 
  some 
  three 
  feet 
  below, 
  the 
  skeletons 
  of 
  other 
  

   animals, 
  sheep 
  and 
  cattle, 
  a 
  collection 
  of 
  copper 
  vases 
  and 
  weapons, 
  

   and 
  the 
  bones 
  of 
  a 
  man. 
  Here 
  was 
  a 
  novel 
  feature; 
  the 
  bodies 
  of 
  the 
  

   victims 
  and 
  the 
  offerings 
  had 
  been 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  grave 
  pit, 
  earth 
  had 
  

   been 
  heaped 
  above 
  them 
  and 
  stamped 
  down 
  and 
  mats 
  laid 
  over 
  the 
  

   top, 
  and 
  thereafter 
  the 
  wagon 
  had 
  been 
  driven 
  in 
  and 
  the 
  slaughter 
  

   of 
  beasts 
  and 
  of 
  grooms 
  had 
  been 
  a 
  later 
  act 
  in 
  the 
  burial 
  tragedy. 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  probable 
  that 
  the 
  wagon 
  stood 
  immediately 
  in 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  

   entrance 
  to 
  the 
  shaft, 
  so 
  digging 
  was 
  continued 
  behind 
  it 
  and 
  the 
  

   sloping 
  earth 
  side 
  was 
  traced 
  back 
  for 
  some 
  distance 
  ; 
  but 
  to 
  our 
  surprise 
  

   this 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  side 
  not 
  of 
  a 
  narrow 
  passage 
  ramp 
  but 
  of 
  a 
  pit 
  

   some 
  25 
  feet 
  square, 
  a 
  "death 
  pit" 
  larger 
  than 
  any 
  we 
  have 
  yet 
  encoun- 
  

   tered, 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  this 
  is 
  covered 
  with 
  the 
  bodies 
  of 
  human 
  victims 
  

   laid 
  out 
  in 
  ordered 
  rows. 
  For 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  week 
  we 
  have 
  been 
  at 
  work 
  

   clearing 
  the 
  last 
  9 
  inches 
  or 
  a 
  foot 
  that 
  covered 
  the 
  floor 
  of 
  the 
  shaft 
  

   and 
  a 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  space 
  still 
  remains 
  to 
  be 
  examined, 
  but 
  already 
  we 
  

   have 
  listed 
  45 
  bodies, 
  of 
  which 
  39 
  are 
  women 
  and 
  6 
  are 
  doubtful. 
  

   And 
  the 
  riches 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  astonishing. 
  In 
  the 
  king's 
  grave 
  last 
  

   year 
  we 
  found 
  nine 
  court 
  ladies 
  wearing 
  headdresses 
  of 
  gold 
  and 
  semi- 
  

   precious 
  stones; 
  here 
  there 
  are 
  already 
  34 
  such, 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  most 
  part 
  

   far 
  more 
  splendid 
  — 
  the 
  best 
  only 
  less 
  remarkable 
  than 
  the 
  headdress 
  

   of 
  Queen 
  Shub-ad 
  herself, 
  gold 
  hair 
  ribbons, 
  wreaths 
  of 
  gold 
  leaves 
  

   and 
  flowers 
  of 
  colored 
  inlay, 
  pins 
  of 
  silver 
  or 
  gold, 
  necklaces 
  of 
  gold 
  

   and 
  lapis 
  row 
  upon 
  row, 
  a 
  wonderful 
  group 
  of 
  regalia. 
  Nor 
  are 
  these 
  

   all 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  pit. 
  In 
  one 
  corner 
  there 
  lay 
  folded 
  up 
  on 
  

   the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  bodies 
  a 
  sort 
  of 
  canopy 
  whose 
  ridgepole 
  was 
  dec- 
  

   orated 
  with 
  bands 
  of 
  gold 
  and 
  colored 
  mosaic 
  over 
  silver 
  and 
  the 
  

   uprights 
  were 
  of 
  silver 
  with 
  copper 
  heads 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  spear 
  

   points 
  hafted 
  with 
  gold, 
  while 
  shell 
  rings 
  held 
  up 
  the 
  hangings. 
  In 
  

   another 
  corner 
  were 
  harps. 
  Of 
  one 
  the 
  sounding 
  box 
  was 
  decorated 
  

   with 
  broad 
  bands 
  of 
  mosaic, 
  the 
  upright 
  beams 
  encrusted 
  with 
  shell, 
  

   lapis 
  lazuli, 
  and 
  red 
  stone 
  between 
  bands 
  of 
  gold, 
  the 
  top 
  bar 
  plated 
  

   with 
  silver; 
  in 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  sounding 
  box 
  was 
  a 
  magnificent 
  head 
  of 
  a 
  

   bearded 
  bull 
  in 
  gold 
  and 
  below 
  this 
  shell 
  plaques 
  with 
  designs 
  picked 
  

   out 
  in 
  red 
  and 
  black. 
  A 
  second 
  instrument 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  type 
  was 
  entirely 
  

   in 
  silver 
  relieved 
  only 
  by 
  a 
  simple 
  inlay 
  in 
  white 
  and 
  blue 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  

   shell 
  plaques 
  beneath 
  the 
  silver 
  cow's 
  head 
  in 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  sounding 
  

   box. 
  Below 
  these 
  was 
  found 
  a 
  third 
  harp 
  of 
  a 
  different 
  sort; 
  the 
  body, 
  

   made 
  of 
  silver, 
  was 
  shaped 
  rather 
  like 
  a 
  boat 
  with 
  a 
  high 
  stern 
  to 
  form 
  

   the 
  back 
  upright; 
  the 
  front 
  upright 
  was 
  supported 
  by 
  a 
  silver 
  statue 
  

   of 
  a 
  stag 
  nearly 
  2 
  feet 
  high 
  whose 
  front 
  feet 
  rest 
  in 
  a 
  crook 
  of 
  the 
  stem 
  

   of 
  a 
  plant, 
  made 
  of 
  copper, 
  the 
  long 
  arrowlike 
  leaves 
  of 
  which 
  rise 
  up 
  

   on 
  each 
  side 
  level 
  with 
  the 
  horns. 
  An 
  exactly 
  similar 
  figure 
  of 
  a 
  stag 
  

   but 
  made 
  of 
  copper 
  and 
  mounted 
  on 
  a 
  square 
  copper 
  base 
  lay 
  alongside. 
  

  

  