volume 2 - Robert Bedrosian's Armenian History Workshop

Ryllo, the Jesuit Father, at Nineveh. 27
presented them to Pope Gregory XVI in 1838 ;
they are
now in the Vatican.* This collection was examined and
described in 1903, and consists of (i) Part of a brick.
(2) Fragment of a cylinder of Sennacherib. (3) A tablet
of adoption, dated in the thirtieth year of the reign of
Nebuchadnezzar II. (4) A contract tablet (ninth year
of Nabonidus or Darius) . (5) Fragment of an alabaster
vessel. (6) Fragment of a brick of Nebuchadnezzar II.
(7) Layer of bitumen, with impression of a similar brick.
(8 and 9) Fragments of two cylinders of Nebuchadnezzar
II. (10) Babylonian seal with figures of Gilgamish and
a bull, and Eabani and a lion. (11) Cylinder seal of
Sharru-ili. (12) Large cylinder seal with figures of the
Bull of Ishtar, Gilgamish, Eabani, etc. (13-18) Small
cylinder seals. Without numbers are : (i) Object in
lapis lazuli. (2-8) Seven small Sassanian gems. (9) A
scarab, inscribed on the base. (10) Fragment of a vase.^
Now though Layard states that " to disturb a grave
on Nebbi Yunis would cause a tumult which might lead
to no agreeable results," he succeeded by artifice in
finding out the contents of one part of the mound. Hearing
that the owner of one of the largest houses on the
mound wanted to make underground chambers for the
use of himself and kinsfolk in the summer, Layard proposed
to him, through his overseer, to excavate them for
him, provided that any sculptures, inscribed stones, etc.,
should belong to Layard. The native agreed, and the
overseer was rewarded by finding several inscriptions
and bricks bearing the name and titles and genealogy of
Esarhaddon* (b.c. 681-668). Soon after Layard returned
to England a native of Nabi Yunis, whilst digging the
* The label
Musei Etrusci
over the cases
ac Aegyptiaci
reads : Gregorio XVI Pont.
Conditori sigilla et scripta |
Max. |
gemmis
lateribusque | ab Asiae gentibus vetustissimis insculpta | Maximilianus
Ryllo Sodalis e Soc. Jesu | ab expeditione Babylonica redux | an.
Christ. M. DCCC. XXXVIII. I owe this transcript to the great
courtesy of Monsignor Giovanni Mercati.
" See Peiser, in Orientalistische Litteraturzeitung, Bd. vii, February
15th, 1904, p. 38 ff.
' Nineveh and Babylon, p. 598.