. The eastern nations and Greece. ands the Babylonians also rose in revolt, while from themountain defiles on the east issuedthe armies of the recent-grown empireof the Aryan Medes, led by the re-nowned Cyaxares, and laid close siegeto Nineveh. The city was finally taken and sacked,and dominion passed away forever fromthe proud capital (606 ). Two hun-dred years later, when Xenophon withhis Ten Thousand Greeks, in hismemorable retreat (sect. 265), passedthe spot, the once great city was acrumbling mass of ruins and its namehad been forgotten. II. THE CIVILIZATION 68. Assyrian Excavations a
. The eastern nations and Greece. ands the Babylonians also rose in revolt, while from themountain defiles on the east issuedthe armies of the recent-grown empireof the Aryan Medes, led by the re-nowned Cyaxares, and laid close siegeto Nineveh. The city was finally taken and sacked,and dominion passed away forever fromthe proud capital (606 ). Two hun-dred years later, when Xenophon withhis Ten Thousand Greeks, in hismemorable retreat (sect. 265), passedthe spot, the once great city was acrumbling mass of ruins and its namehad been forgotten. II. THE CIVILIZATION 68. Assyrian Excavations and Dis-coveries. In Assyria there are manymounds like those in Babylonia. Thesemark the sites of the old Assyriancities; for though stone in this uppercountry is abundant, the Assyrians,under the influence of Babylonia, usedmainly sun-dried bricks in the construc-tion of their buildings.^ Hence in theirdecay the Assyrian edifices have leftjust such earth-mounds as those whichform the tombs of the old Babyloniancities and Fig. 48. An Assyrian KingAND HIS Captives The captives are held by hook andbridle in nose and lips. The sculp-ture thus depicting this cruel prac-tice of the Assyrian kings is a vividillustration of these words of theprophet Isaiah: Therefore will Iput my hook in thy nose, and mybridle in thy lips. — Isa. xxxvii, 29 1 Stone, when employed, was used mainly for decorative purposes and for thefoundation of walls. Because of the freer use of stone by the Assyrian architect andsculptor (sect. 69), the Assyrian ruins have yielded far more monuments than theBabylonian. 70 THE ASSYRIAN EMPIRE [§69 In 1843-1844 M. Botta, the French consul at Mosul on theTigris, excavated the mound at Khorsabad, and astonished the worldwith most wonderful specimens of Assyrian art from the palace ofSargon II. The sculptured and lettered slabs were removed to themuseum of the Louvre, in Paris. In 1845-1851 Layard disentombedthe palace of Sennacherib and those of other kings a
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