184 THEOPHILUS G. PINCHES, LL.D., M.R.A.S., ON 



been made — and, naturally, of other similar ceremonies at 

 other, periods of the year. At this time the bark of Nebo, 

 gi^ ma-id-he-ul, which the Rev. Prof. C. J. Ball translates " the 

 ship of the river of overflowing delight," which is explained as 

 ^' the ship of Nabiu'"," was used in the festival-procession to 

 Su-anna, the " City " of Babylon. He states that he decorated 

 the sides of this bark with rows of suns and stones. After this 

 digression he goes on to describe what he did at the house of 

 the victims which were offered to Merodach in Babylon — high 

 like the mountains he erected it, constructed with cement and 

 burnt brick. 



Some distance to the north of E-sagila and the Tower of Babel 

 lay the palace which Nebuchadrezzar inhabited — a structure 

 built or rebuilt by Nabopolassar, his father, and afterwards en- 

 larged and the older portions greatly improved by the new 

 king. It is not of this, however, that Nebuchadrezzar speaks 

 in this place — his subject is the temples which he restored, so 

 he next deals with E-mah, the temple of the goddess Nin- 

 hursagga, " the lady of the mountain," also called Nin-mab, 

 *' the supreme lady," the spouse of Merodach. But, it may 

 be said, the spouse of Merodach was Zer-panitu"^. That is 

 true, but this goddess had many names, and these are merely 

 a few of them. E-mah, " the supreme temple," was therefore 

 as the temple of Juno to the Romans, and it lay, at Babylon, 

 on the east side of the king's palace. This Nebuchadrezzar 

 claims to have built or rebuilt, for she was ummu haniti-ya, 

 " the mother my creatress." 



This, too, we gaze upon in photograph and well-sketched 

 plan. It was a structure with massive walls, its entrance on the 

 north-west, and before it the altar whereon, in the sight of the 

 people, sacrifices were made. Originally white, " giving the 

 impression that it was built of marble," its brickwork is now 

 earth grey. Its recessed architectural decoration is everywhere 

 rectangular, and not, as in other fanes, rounded. To all appear- 

 ance the walls of this edifice were regarded as being not quite 

 strong enough, so the great king surrounded it, close up, with 

 a " mighty kisu,'' or wall of unbaked brick. This was a sub- 

 stantial structure, for it measured more than six feet thick. 



The next temples that Nebuchadrezzar refers to as having 

 been built (or rebuilt) by him are that of Nebo, called E-nig-had- 

 kalama-summa ; for Sin, the moon-god, E kis-nu-gal, " the 

 white limestone temple," the name generally given to fanes 



