Abstract
BABYLONIA AND EARLY INDIA.—In further reference to the discovery of an early Indian civilisation at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa (see NATURE, October 18, p. 584), it may be of interest to note that the chief points of resemblance between the objects from, these sites and Babylonian antiquities to which Messrs. Gadd and Smith direct attention in the Illustrated London News of October 4, are as follows:—The seals are similar in shape to square stamp seals from Susa and Babylonia (3500-2500 B.C.), while the engraved bulls on them are distinctly Sumerian both in general appearance and in detail. They stand before a cult object in a position familiar in Babylonian art of all periods, and if the object were a sheaf, this would closely resemble the Sumerian picture sign Zag. Of the signs on the seals, obviously some form of writing, nine very closely, and seven partially, resemble Sumerian waiting. The numeration system appears to be the same. A cylindrical piece of haematite with flattened ends from Mohenjo-Daro recalls a common type of weight from Babylonia. The curious stone rings may be compared to Babylonian mace heads, and, like them, may be votive offerings. Shell inlay, of which pieces have been found, is one of the most characteristic features of early Sumerian culture. The figurine of a cock from Mohenjo-Daro finds a parallel in a clay figurine of a hen from Ur. The style of brick building, with its drainage system and ornamentation of glazed bricks, closely resembles the style of buildings brought to light by the recent excavations at Ur. The miniature funerary pottery from Mohenjo-Daro is similar to miniature pottery from Ur which belongs to the second millennium. Painted pottery from both Susa and Babylonia antedates 3000 B.C. It belongs, however, to a period when metal was only just coming into use, as appears to be the case on the Indian sites.
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Research Items. Nature 114, 623–625 (1924). https://doi.org/10.1038/114623a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/114623a0