508 
TOMB OF CYRUS. 
Pasargadas to the east of Persepolis ; (Pliny Nat. Hist, vi.) and 
the vale of Mourg-aub, certainly, is much to the north-east of 
that capital. But Strabo (Strabo, xv.) affords us a still better 
clue, by telling us that “ the river Kur or Cyrus is in the vicinity 
of Pasargadae, flowing through hollow Persia, ( Cede Persis.) 
The last term can only mean the deep vales of Sewan and 
Hajeeabad, which open into that of Merdasht; and the vale of 
Sewan is only separated from the plain of Mourg-aub by the range 
of hills which bounds the latter to the southward. Through the 
plain of Mourg-aub, and amongst these hills, winds the Kur-aub 
towards the valleys of Sewan and Hajeeabad ; traversing the 
whole of that hollow country, till it falls into the Araxes or 
Bundemir, something west of Persepolis. Mourg-aub is distant 
from Persepolis forty-nine measured English miles. It lies north¬ 
eastward of that capital, and the Kur flows at no great distance 
from the ruins described. All these features, therefore, agreeing 
with the picture of Pasargadas drawn by Strabo, we can have no 
hesitation in declaring them much more like the place, than any 
of those pretensions can be, which are brought by forced reason¬ 
ings, on still more forced etymologies on their names. But the late 
able discourses written on the subject, since the investigation of 
Mourg-aub by Mr. Morier, and the translation of its inscriptions 
by Professor Grottefund, seem to have set the question so 
satisfactorily and entirely at rest, that henceforth the traveller 
who visits the ruins on this plain, may assuredly say to himself, 
“ On that throne sat Cyrus , Lord , King, and Ruler of the world! 
In that small house of stone , lies Cyrus , King of Kings ! Covet not 
the little earth that covers his body!” 
June 15th. Quitted the village of Mourg-aub at five o’clock 
this morning, keeping in a direction nearly due south, and 
