—Cement and Layers of Reeds.—Some Pyramids o f Brick, others of Stone.—
Pyramids of Mexico, &c.—Excavations in Assyria and elsewhere.—Great Fire
Temple near Ispah&n.—Singular Sepulchral Excavations.—Ancient Causeways and
Roads.—Canals.—Bunds.—Dikes.—Tunnels.—Arches.—Ancient Mines.—Rocks removed
by Fire.—Phoenician and Assyrian remains.—Tomb of Cyrus.—Ancient
"Writing, Sculpture, and Painting.—Ruins of Persepolis.—Floating and Stationary
Bridges.—Cements, &c.
C H AP T E R XX.
[Page 633 to 662.]
BOATS AND HYDRAULIC WORKS OP THE EAST.
Logs, Rafts, and inflated Skins.—Boats of Branches and Wicker-work, covered with
Bitumen.—The Boats of Hit, and their Construction.—Dimensions, &c., of Noah’s
Ark.—Round Boats of Mesopotamia.—Canoes of Reeds and of Timber.—Wooden
Boats of Hit and ’A'nah.—Ferry-boats, and mode of using them.—Sea-going Boats.-S
Persian and Arab Boats.—Trankeys and Bagalas.—Early use of the Compass.—
Chinese Vessels and Boats.—Subaqueous Walls.—Water-baskets.—Water-levers.—
Bulloek-rollers.—Water-wheels.—Persian Wheels.—Kanats or Kahreezes.—Souterazi.
—Cisterns.—Reservoirs, Tanks, and Cisterns in Syria, India, &c.
LIST OF PLATES.
No. of
Plate.
39. Mount Ararat ........................................... .......... Frontispiece.
30. Birs Nimrud To fa c e page 25
31. Ruins of Nineveh . . . . . . , , 39
34. Great Mosque and interior of U r’fah • , • , , 77
41. T y r e ........................................................... ......... , , 93
40. Straits of Bab-el-Mandeb . . • • • , , 127
Cl. Ruins of Babylon . « • • • • , , 163
50. Ruins of Beles . • . . . . • , , 213
2. Ferry on the Aras . . « • • • , , 229
49. S a r d i s ..................................................................... , , 265
36. Gaza ........................................ , , 281
10. Island of Nearchus . . . . . . , , 350
32. Ruins of Siis . ........................................... , , 353
46. Cedars of Lebanon • • • • . . , , 389
47. Tadmor or Palmyra • • • . . . , , 428
83. M e m b i j ........................................... .......... , , 433
38. A c re ............................................................................... , , 4 8 0
27. Elath or Eziongeber . . . . . . ,, 569
45. Port of Dhahab (Gold), on the Red Sea • • , , 585
48. Persepolis • • . • . . . . , , 620
I t has been necessary to alter the order of succession of a few of the Plates; but they
will easily be found by reference to the above pages.
EXP E D I T I O N
TO THE
EUPHRATES AND TIGRIS.
CHAPTER I.
Seat of Paradise and its four Rivers.—State of the World before the Deluge
—Supposed residence of Noah.—Description of the first Babylonia. -
Construction of the A rk.— First Settlements in Armenia.—State of Antediluvian
Knowledge.—Primeval Astronomy, and its preservation among
the Kirghis Kazaks.—Cycles of the Ancients.—Traditional History.—
Records preserved in Armenia.—Shem proceeds to Shinar.—Japhet and
Ham continue in Armenia.—Noah’s precepts.—First Human Immolation
by Lamech.—Arkite Worship.—Antediluvian Idolatry or Sabaism.—
Ham’s Sin and Curse.—Trifling change caused by the Deluge.—Noah’s
Allotment.;® Japhet occupies the northern extremity of Asia and Europe,
i s , ™ occupies Babylonia, Syria, &c.—Ham removes from Asia Minor
to Byblus.—Possessions of Cush.—Ham’s Idolatry in Syria.—Canaan and
Mizraim’s Territories.—The Emim, Amalekites, Philistines, Thamudites,
Himyarites, and other Tribes in Syria, Arabia, and Egypt.—The Cushites
invade Babylonia and expel the people of Shem.—Rise of N imrud s Kingdom,
and establishment of Ham’s Religion.—Construction and object of
the Tower of Babel.—Spread of Mankind in consequence.
T h e preceding volume contains an account of the four great
rivers of Western Asia, also of the countries which they fer-descriptive,
tilize, together with a general description of the territory
stretching eastward and westward of those streams, as far as
the banks of the Indus in the former, and those of the Nile in
the latter direction.
Several circumstances, in addition to those briefly enumerated
in the Twelfth Chapter, appear to connect that part of
the world which contains the rivers in question with the ter-
vol. 11. b