cording to St. Martin)1 Zozarta Zabelita ; the Chaldeans give
it the name of Xurta ; and, under the Romans, it had that of
Bâzebdâ : its elevation is 900 feet above the level of the sea ;2
and, in the time of Edrisi, it was a commercial depot for
goods passing into Armenia, as well as by water to Mosul.3
At about 23 miles S.E. of Jezireh, measuring along the
windings, the Tigris receives the Khabur. Of this stream
very little is known at present beyond the mere fact, that the
main branch rises about one day’s journey to the N.E. of
Julâmerik, and takes a westerly direction from thence towards
Zâkho ; receiving in this part of its course several tributaries
from the mountainous countries lying southward and northward
of its course. One of those from the south comes from
the neighbourhood of Amadiyah ; and this stream, which
is noticed by Tavernier and other travellers, has been, till
recently, taken for the Khabur itself ; but we now know that
the latter has its source a great distance to the northward :
and by its presumed distance from Julâmerik it would seem to
be one of the streams described as the Se’rt river.
Thd main trunk of the Khabur, having received this accession,
pursues a south-westerly course to the town and island
of Zâkho. At about 15 miles below this place, the Hazir-su
comes into the Khabur by a southerly course from Jebel Judi,
and is then apparently a large stream.4 After the junction
this river takes the name of Peïshâbur,6 and pursues nearly a
W.S.W. course till it enters the Tigris near the Roman
Catholic village and ferry of Peïshâbur. It appears, however,
to carry into the Tigris a much smaller body of water than
the great stream bearing the name of Khâbur which joins
the Euphrates below De'ir.
The Tigris pursues the previous direction, that is, nearly
S.E., almost to Eski Mosul, which it passes by a western
1 Mémoires sur l ’Arménie, Vol. I.
! See Ainsworth’s Journey in the ‘ Expedition.’ Sestini thinks this was the
ancient Batna, or Zabda, capital of the Zabideceni.—Voyage de Constantinople
à Basrah, p. 128.
8 Recueil de Voyages et Mémoires publié par la Société de Géographie,
Tome IV., p. 153. Paris, 1840.
4 See Ainsworth’s Journey, sequel. 5 Rich’s Kurdistân, Vol. I., p. 379
course ; and afterwards curves round Tel Ajus, So as to
approach Mosul itself in a S.S. easterly direction ; having, in
the latter part of its course of about 80 miles from the
Khabur, received many1 feeders, which come from the elevated
groùnds in its neighbourhood, but more particularly on
the eastern side.
Mosul is a walled city, with eight gates, standing on the
right bank of the Tigris. It contains about 20,000 families,
Turks, Christians, and Jews, who still carry on some commerce
with Kurdistân, Diyâr Bekr, Baghdâd, and other
provinces, chiefly by caravans. On the left bank, both above
and below Mosul, are the ruins of Nineveh, the walls of
which city extend about 3100 yards along the river,8 and
nearly the same distance towards the interior.
At about 28 miles by the river, and 20 miles in direct
distance south, 12° east below Nineveh, is the celebrated bund,
or dyke of solid masonry, called Zikru-1 awâz, or Nimrud,
which crosses the bed of the river ;3 and at seven miles lower
there is a dyke, called Zikr Isma’i l/ similar to the former,
but in a more dilapidated state. At the distance of about
two miles and three-quarters S.E. from the first dyke, and
about four miles and a half N.N.E. from the other, are the
ruins of Nimrud, or Ashur.5 These, which are still known
to the people by the name of Al-Athur,6 are, at the present
timef less considerable than those of Nineveh, being only
about four miles in circumference ; they are terminated at the
N.W. angle by a great pyramidal mound, 144^ feet high,
and 777 in circumference,7 which was once coated with
bricks. Some of these were found by Mr. Rich, who states,
that they are about the same size as those of Babylon, and are
inscribed with arrow-headed characters.8 Here Mr. Ainsworth
also discovered the foundations of some massive walls,
1 MS. of Mr. Ainsworth.
8 For a further description of Nineveh and Mdsul, the Mes-Pylæ of Xenophon,
see the ‘ Expedition.’
8 Ormsby’s MSS., and Rich’s Kurdistân, Vol. II., p. 129.
4 Ormsby, and Rich, p. 352.
5 Probably the Larissa of Xenophon.—Rich, Vol. II., p. 129.
* Ibid., p. 131. 7 Ibid., p. 132. * Ibid., p. 130-