44 BABYLONIAN LITERATURE. 



explains away the objection which arises out 

 of these passages in the same way as he does 

 those which result from the mention of Ephe- 

 sns and Hermes. " The Iranians," he says, 

 " and their institutions, existed full thirteen 

 centuries before Christ ; the Babylonians were, 

 therefore, probably acquainted with them." 

 In the first place, it is very doubtful 

 whether the Zend institutions did exist at 

 so remote a period ; but, waiving that ob- 

 scure point, I boldly assert that these insti- 

 tutions, confined for centuries to Bactria, 

 could not have exercised any influence in 

 Babylonia before Cyrus. Then let us add, 

 that the Persian priests are called Magi in 

 " The Nabathrean Agriculture;" and that 

 it is certain that there is no trace of such 

 a word in the Zend Avesta, the priests there 

 being termed athravo, and that the name 

 of Magi does not appear to have been given 

 to the Zoroastrian priests till after the esta- 

 blishment of the Persians at Babylon. 1 I 

 do not insist much on this last point ; 



1 I reserve the discussion of this point for a future essay. 



