Explorations in Bible lands during the 19th century - H. V. Hilprecht

256 EXPLORATIONS IN BIBLE LANDS
of Kish, the old suzerains and hereditary enemies of the
princes of Lagash.
More than once in my preceding sketch of De Sarzec's
labors and results I have referred to his discovery of new
fragments of the so-called " stele of vultures."
This famous
monument of the past, one of the most interesting art
treasures unearthed in Tello, received its name from a flock
of vultures which carry away the hands, arms, and decapitated
heads of the enemies vanquished and killed by Eannatum
and his soldiers. It was originally rounded at the top,
about five feet wide and correspondingly high, and covered
with scenes and inscriptions on both its faces. The representations
on the front celebrate King Eannatum as a great and
successful warrior, while those on the reverse, so far
as preserved,
are of a mythological character, showing traces of
several gods and goddesses in whose names the battles were
fought, and who seem to be represented here as assisting
their pious servant in the execution of his great and bloody
task. The stele of vultures, which indicates a very decided
progress in its style of art and writing as over against the
more primitive monuments of Ur-Nina, was erected by
Eannatum to commemorate his victory over the army of
Gis/i-k/iu, and his subsequent treaty concluded with Enakalli,
patesi of the conquered city, whom he made swear
never again to invade the sacred territory of Nin-Sungir nor
to trespass the boundary established anew between the two
principalities.
During the early months of 1898 and 1900 De Sarzec
conducted his last two campaigns at Tello. Little as yet
has been published with regard to their results. Heuzey
announced 1 that among the precious monuments obtained
through the excavations of the tenth expedition (1898)
there are the first inscribed bricks of Ennatuma I., brother
and successor of Eannatuma, and two carved oblong plates,
1
In Comptes Rendus, 1898, pp. 344-349.