istant from the two sides,
where the platforms were 21 ft. wide. The three upper storeys were
45 ft. in height altogether, the two below these were 26 ft. each, and
the height of the lowest is uncertain. The topmost storey probably had
a tower on it which enclosed the shrine of the temple. This edifice
was for a long time a bone of contention among savants, but Colonel
Rawlinson's investigations have brought to light the fact that it was
a temple dedicated to the seven heavenly spheres, viz. Saturn,
Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon, in the order
given, starting from the bottom. Access to the various platforms was
obtained by stairs, and the whole building was surrounded by a walled
enclosure. From remains found at Wurkha we may gather that the walls
of the buildings of this period were covered with elaborate plaster
ornaments, and that a lavish use was made of colour in their
decoration.

Of the later Assyrian period several ruins of buildings believed to be
palaces have been excavated, of which the large palace at Khorsabad,
the old name of which was Hisir-Sargon, now a small village between 10
and 11 miles north-east of Nineveh, has been the most completely
explored, and this consequently is the best adapted to explain the
general plan of an Assyrian edifice. M. Botta, when French Consul at
Mosul, and M. Victor Place conducted these explorations, and the
following details are taken from their works. Like all other Assyrian
palaces, this was reared on a huge artificial mound, the labour of
forming which must have been enormous. The reason for the construction
of these mounds is not far to seek. Just as the chiefs of a
mountainous country choose the loftiest peaks for their castles, so in
Assyria, which was a very flat country, the extra defensive strength
of elevated buildings was clearly appreciated; and as these absolute
monarchs ruled over a teeming population and had a very large number
of slaves, and only had to direct their taskmasters to impress labour
whenever they wanted it, no difficulty existed in forming elevated
platforms for their palaces. These were frequently close to a river,
and it is by no means improbable that this was turned into the
excavation from which the earth for the mound was taken, and thus
formed a lake or moat as an additional defence. A further reason for
these terraces may be found in the fact that in a hot climate
buildings erected some 20 or 30 ft. above the level