he retreat of the Greeks on the
eastern side of the Tigris, they crossed the river Zapetes and also a
ravine, and then reached the Tigris. According to Xenophon, they found
at this place a large deserted city formerly inhabited by the Medes. Its
wall was 25 feet thick and 100 feet high; its circumference 2 parasangs
[= 71/2 miles]. It was built of burnt brick on an under structure of
stone 20 feet in height. Xenophon then proceeds to say that "when the
Persians obtained the Empire from the Medes, the King of the Persians
besieged the city but was unable by any means to take it till a cloud
having covered the Sun and caused it to disappear completely, the
inhabitants withdrew in alarm, and thus the city was captured. Close to
this city was a pyramid of stone, one plethrum in breadth, two plethra
in height.... Thence the Greeks proceeded six parasangs to a great
deserted castle by a city called Mespila formerly inhabited by the
Medes; the substructure of its wall was of squared stone abounding in
shells ... the King of the Persians besieged it but could not take it;
Zeus terrified the inhabitants with thunderbolts, and so the city was
taken."

The minute description here given by Xenophon enabled Sir A. H. Layard,
Captain Felix Jones, and others, to identify Larissa with the modern
Nimrud and Mespila with Mosul. A suspicion is thrown out in some
editions of the _Anabasis_ that the language cited might refer to an
eclipse of the Sun. It is to be noted, however, that it is not included
by Ricciolus in the list of eclipses mentioned in ancient writers which
he gives in his _Almagestum Novum_. Sir G. B. Airy, having had his
attention called to the matter, examined roughly all the eclipses which
occurred during a period of 40 years, covering the supposed date implied
by Xenophon. Having selected two, he computed them accurately but found
them inapplicable. He then tried another (May 19, 557 B.C.) which he had
previously passed over because he doubted its totality, and he had the
great satisfaction of finding that the eclipse, though giving a small
shadow, had been total, and that it had passed so near to Nimrud that
there could be no doubt of its being the eclipse sought.

Sir G. B. Airy was such a very careful worker and investigator of
eclipses that his conclusions in this matter have met with general
acceptance. It must, however, in fairness be stated that a very
competent American astronomer, Professor Newcomb, has expres