The Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia

Abstract

minutest touch could be exactly reproduced, but did of Rostock, thought they were marks of the work of : free from these objections; Darius and Herxes were not think it necessary to the casting of, say, a frock generations of worms. Others believed that they were I ' father and son h their names commenced with different coat, and for the body used the sand method. talismanic signs, formulas of priests, astronomical letters, and t ey seemed about the right length. Mr. Starkie Gardner differed from Mr. Graham as symbols, charms, etc.; and not a few held the opinion, Grotefend was correct, and the first step in the solu to the most ancient metal work. He believed that all that the characters represented the .Chinese, Cufic, I tion of the �robl�m was made. But he was not. able work which we regarded as prehistoric was cast, and Hebrew, Greek; and even the Rumc of Northern I ' to complete it, owmg to the small number of copies of not beaten, and that ii; was run into moulds of porous Europe was mentioned. Those whose opinions were inscriptions in his posses�ion, and also failing in possess stone which gave somewhat of the effect of sand casts. the most absurd were the most earnest in expressing I ing the knowledge and means essential to complete In the time of Charlemagne, the Germans were cer-them. success. tainly able to cast in brass, an example being the rail-Time r,assed in venturing opmlOns quite plalls-The next important discovery was made by R. Rask. ings at Aix-la-Chapelle. Much of the beauty and ible, while others were wide of the mark. The first In his work on the Zend language (1826), he determined richness ascribed to Eastern metal work must, he real step in the solution of the problem was made by the value of two characters representing m and n, feared } from the examples which had been examined, K. Niebuhr. He did not intend to interpret the in-which Grotefend interpreted di ff erently. No farther be put down to Oriental exaggeration. scriptions, but rightly conj ectured that those of which progress was made for the next ten years, but the Professor Aitchison, A. R.A. , seconded the vote of he had published copies were written in three different majority of oriental scholars were led to believe that a thanks, and mentioned that some time since, in decolanguages; and although he was not sure, yet he sup-sliarting point had been discovered by Grotefend,