olden Calf
Worship in Israel--Queen Athaliah of Judah--Crowning of the Boy King
Joash--Damascus supreme in Syria and Palestine--Civil War in
Assyria--Triumphs of Shamshi-Adad VII--Babylonia becomes an Assyrian
Province.

In one of the Scottish versions of the Seven Sleepers legend a
shepherd enters a cave, in which the great heroes of other days lie
wrapped in magic slumber, and blows two blasts on the horn which hangs
suspended from the roof. The sleepers open their eyes and raise
themselves on their elbows. Then the shepherd hears a warning voice
which comes and goes like the wind, saying: "If the horn is blown once
again, the world will be upset altogether". Terrified by the Voice and
the ferocious appearance of the heroes, the shepherd retreats
hurriedly, locking the door behind him; he casts the key into the sea.
The story proceeds: "If anyone should find the key and open the door,
and blow but a single blast on the horn, Finn and all the Feans would
come forth. And that would be a great day in Alban."[428]

After the lapse of an obscure century the national heroes of Assyria
were awakened as if from sleep by the repeated blasts from the horn of
the triumphant thunder god amidst the northern and western
mountains--Adad or Rimmon of Syria, Teshup of Armenia, Tarku of the
western Hittites. The great kings who came forth to "upset the world"
bore the familiar names, Ashur-natsir-pal, Shalmaneser, Shamash-Adad,
Ashur-dan, Adad-nirari, and Ashur-nirari. They revived and increased
the ancient glory of Assyria during its Middle Empire period.

The Syro-Cappadocian Hittites had grown once again powerful and
prosperous, but no great leader like Subbiluliuma arose to weld the
various States into an Empire, so as to ensure the protection of the
mingled peoples from the operations of the aggressive and ambitious
war-lords of Assyria. One kingdom had its capital at Hamath and
another at Carchemish on the Euphrates. The kingdom of Tabal
flourished in Cilicia (Khilakku); it included several city States like
Tarsus, Tiana, and Comana (Kammanu). Farther west was the dominion of
the Thraco-Phrygian Muski. The tribes round the shores of Lake Van had
asserted themselves and extended their sphere of influence. The State
of Urartu was of growing importance, and the Nairi tribes had spread
round the south-eastern shores of Lake Van. The northern frontier of
Assyria was continually menaced by groups of independent hill States