' DISCOVERIES IX BABYLONIA AND THE NEIGHBODPJNG LANDS. Ill 



ruins that the remains of the great tower, resembling that of 

 Babylon, arise. The old Sumerian name of this structure was 

 E-kuia, probably meaning " the temple of the land," though 

 " Tem])le of the mountahi " (or " Mountain-Temple ") is also a 

 possible rendering. It was dedicated to Enlila, who was called 

 " the older Bel," i.e., not Bel-Merodach, but his divine grand- 

 father. The antiquity of this town and temple was regarded 

 by the Babylonians as being as great as that of the world itself, 

 for the tradition was that Merodach built or created both in the 

 beginning, when Babylon, Erech, and Eridu also came into 

 existence. Professor Hilpiecht describes this structure as 

 attaining even now a height of 96 feet above the level of the 

 plain on which the city stood, and around lie the fallen walls 

 and buried houses whicli originally occupied its precincts. The 

 erections here are of various dates, and extend back as far as 

 2800 years B.C. or earlier. 



"What the original height of the tower may have been we 

 have no means of ascertaining, but in form it was a tower in 

 stages, like those at Babylon, Borsippa, and elsewhere. Traces 

 of three platforms were laid bare, and Professor Hilprecht says 

 that no remains of a fourtli could be detected, and that the 

 accumulations of rubbish on the top were not sufficient to 

 warrant the supposition that there had been ever more than 

 that number. This, however, is naturally a point which is open 

 to discussion. It is needless to say that, in the days of 

 Babylonia's prosperity, the kings each vied with their pre- 

 decessors in restoring and perfecting the structure, and changes 

 in its form — slight ones, in all probability — seem to have been 

 made from time to time, the kings who effected them having 

 been Sargon of Agade, Xaram-Sin, his son, Sur-Engur (2800 B.C.), 

 Dungi, Sur-Xinib, Bur-Sin, Isme-Dagan, Kuri-galzu (1400 B.C.), 

 Addu-sum-usur (about 900 B.C.), Esar-haddon (681 B.C.), and 

 others, down to an unknown restorer of the structure 500 B.C. 

 or later. 



And here it is worthy of note, that though in the tenth 

 chapter of Genesis the ancient Babylonians are represented as 

 proposing to make brick, and burn them thoroughly, this latter 

 precaution against decay was not always taken, not only here, 

 but also in other places, for the whole seems to have been con- 

 structed of small crude bricks, except on the S.E. side of the 

 lowest stage, which was faced with burnt brick of the same size. 

 On each side of the structure, however, were channels of burnt 

 brick to cany off the rain-water, and all four sides were plas- 

 tered with bitumen in such a way that they sloped gradually 



