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

472 EXPLORATIONS IN BIBLE LANDS
varied in thickness from a little over 3 to about ^
l/ 2 feet.
b. A number of unbaked brick walls ran at right angles to
the facing wall, and with it constituted a number of larger
and smaller rooms, c. The building had two entrances in
its longer southwest side. The one near the south corner,
being the principal one, was \o x / 2
feet wide, while that near
the north corner measured only about half that width.
d. As the visible part of this large house seemed to rest on
the same level as the pavement of Kadashman-Turgu and
pavement of Ashurbanapal,
was completely covered by the
naturally I assumed that it had been restored for the last
time by a member of the Cassite dynasty. The correctness
of this theory was proved by an inscription taken from its
walls. Among the various bricks examined, one of them
(discovered in situ) bore a brief legend on one of its edges,
from which we learned that " Shagarakti-Shuriash (about 1 3 50
b. c), king of Babylon, prefect (sag-ush) of the house of
Bel," was one of the rulers who devoted his
time and interest
to this remarkable building, e. Immediately beneath
the southwest wall of the Cassite edifice are fragments of
an earlier wall which ran somewhat nearer to the northeast
face of the ziggurrat.
What was the original purpose of this extensive structure?
To judge from its mere size and conspicuous position
in connection with the characteristic inscription just
mentioned, there can be no doubt that it represents the
" house of Bel " itself, the palace in which the household
of the god and
his consort was established, where sacrifices
were offered and the most valuable votive offerings of the
greatest Babylonian monarchs deposited. In other words,
it was the famous temple of Bel, which, together with the
stage-tower, formed an organic whole enclosed by a common
wall, and was generally known under the name of
Ekur, " House of the Mountain." This divine palace
stood "at the side of the ziggurrat" of Nippur, pre-