Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T14:19:28.279Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

George Smith and the Egibi Tablets

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 August 2014

Sheila M. Evers
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

In May 1874 Birch wrote to Fox Talbot that “The Arabs have tapped one of the Babylonian libraries and documents of the later dynasty of Nebuchadnezzar are finding their way to England, but they are all sale tablets, and therefore, of inferior interest.” One of George Smith's intentions during his ill-fated last expedition in 1876 was to inspect and acquire similar contract tablets offered by Michael Marini of Baghdad in June 1875. Such was his interest that his dragoman Mathewson reported that, although hungry and tired on arrival at Baghdad, he was so impatient that he went in search of Marini to see and arrange the purchase of antiquities which he had in store for him. He would never for a moment be put off looking at anything with cuneiform on it. Smith reported and commented on an initial purchase of “about 800 objects and have got them very cheap”.

A cholera epidemic and unrest made conditions for his expedition such that he started down river to reach Kurnah on 30th April 1876 to take the advice of the Consul General. He returned through flood and sandstorm to arrive on 8th May when he noted “Difficulties, Plague, incomplete returns”; “Quarantine, disinfecting, dissatisfaction”; “riots at Baghdad two sects of Mahom(medans) dispute as to Shrines”. This was part of the wider political unrest of the time and he noted “rebelling on Hindiyeh, riot at Mosul, Salonica, Difficulty at Damascus fear of spread of plague”, and finally “give up expedition and return”.

Type
Research Article
Information
IRAQ , Volume 55 , October 1993 , pp. 107 - 117
Copyright
Copyright © The British Institute for the Study of Iraq 1993

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 24/5/1874 Birch—Fox Talbot, Fox Talbot Museum, Lacock.

2 17/6/1875 Birch-Winter—Jones, DC 1866–1881, Winter-Jones (2)

3 22/8/1876 Mathewson—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 53 C, Oct. 1876.

4 17/5/76 George Smith—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 51 C, 5/8/1876.

5 BL Add. Ms. 30425

6 22/8/76 Mathewson—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 53 C, Oct. 76.

7 BL Add. Ms. 30425.

8 22/8/76 Mathewson—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 53 C, Oct. 76.

9 BL Add. Ms. 30421, 30422 and 30425.

10 BL Add. Ms. 30425.

11 14/6/1876 George Smith to Mary C. Smith, GS Bequest, BM.

12 BL Add. Ms. 30425.

13 14/6/1876 George Smith to Mary C. Smith, GS Bequest, BM.

14 29/6/76 Marini—Rawlinson, DC 1868–1881 LI-MA 4005.

15 22/8/76 Mathewson—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 53 C, Oct. 76.

16 16/7/76 GS—Winter-Jones, BM OP Vol. 53.

17 22/7/76 BL Add. Ms. 30425 f23.

18 31/7/76 BL Add. Ms. 30425 f25.

19 22/8/76 Mathewson—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 53 C, Oct. 76.

20 Boscawen, , TSBA Vol. 6, 01 1878 Part I (read 5/6/1877)Google Scholar.

21 ibid.

22 BL Add. Ms. 30421: see below, p. 000 ff.

23 BL Add. Ms. 30422.

24 BL Add. Ms. 30425.

25 Paper read 5/6/1877; Boscawen, W.St.Chad, “Babylonian Dated Tablets and the Canon of Ptolemy”, TSBA Vol. 6, 01 1878 Part 1Google Scholar.

26 BL Add. Ms. 30421 f4.

27 BL Add. Ms. 30425 f34.

28 BL Add. Ms. 30421 f19/20.

29 7/12/1876 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 55 C, 9/12/1876.

30 BL Add. Ms. 30422.

31 TSBA Vol. 6, 01 1879 Google Scholar. Theo. G. Pinches, “Remarks on Babylonian Contract Tablets and the Canon of Ptolemy”, read 2/7/78.

32 16/11/1876 Birch—Winter-Jones, BM OP Vol. 54.

33 10/1/1877 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 56.

34 25/10/1876 Birch—Mrs. M. Smith, DC 1868–1881 SH-SPA 6146.

35 25/4/1877 BM OP Vol. 58 C, 28/4/1877.

36 9/12/76 BM OP Vol. 54.

37 BL Add. Ms. 30425.

38 24/10/1876 Birch—Fox Talbot, BM DC 1868–1881 SPE-Thoma f6454.

39 23/9/1876 Birch—Rawlinson, BM DC 1868–1880 RAW-RTV f5484.

40 17/11/1876 Birch—Rawlinson, BM DC 1868–1881 f5498.

41 7/12/1876 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 55 C, 9/12/76.

42 10/1/76 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 56.

43 16/1/77 Winter-Jones—Mrs. M. Smith, BM LB 33.

44 As 38.

45 27/2/77 Mrs. M. C. Smith—Dr. Birch, BM OP Vol. 57.

46 1/3/77 Winter-Jones to Mrs. M. C. Smith, BM LB Vol. 33.

47 8/12/1876 Principal Librarian—Trustees, BM OP Vol. 55 C, 9/12/1876.

48 25/4/77 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 58 C, 28/4/77.

49 27/4/77 Boscawen—Birch, BM OP Vol. 58 C, 28/4/1877.

50 1/3/77—31/3/77 Birch—BM Trustees Departmental Report, BM OP Vol. 58 C, 14/4/1877.

51 12/4/77 Bosanquet—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f404.

52 4/5/77 Bosanquet—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC—BOS f405.

53 BM OP Vol. 56 C, 10/2/77.

54 10/5/1877 M. C. Smith—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 SH-SPA f6154.

55 29/5/77 M. C. Smith—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 SH-SPA f6156.

56 7/6/77 M. C. Smith, BM DC 1868–1881 SH-SPA f6157.

57 7/6/1877 M. C. Smith—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 SH-SPA f6158.

58 28/7/1877 BM Trustees Minutes, C 13989.

59 7/8/1875 Rev. W. H. Boscawen—Birch, BM DC 1869–1991 BIC-BOS 411.

60 21/7/76 Rawlinson—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 RAW-RIV f5476.

61 22/7/1876 Birch—Rawlinson, BM DC 1868–1881 RAW-RIV f5477.

62 24/7/1876 Fox Talbot—Birch, BM OP Vol. 52.

63 25/7/76 Sayce—Birch, BM OP Vol. 52.

64 12/1/1877 Birch—Trustees, BM OP Vol. 56 C, 13/1/77.

65 BM OP Vol. 56 Report, 1/1/1877–31/1/1877.

66 4/2/1877, 28/2/1877 Boscawen—Birch, BM DC 1868-1881 BIC-BOS 482, 487.

67 21/3/1877 Rev. W. H. Boscawen—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS 453.

68 21/3/1877 BM OP Vol. 57 C, 24/3/1877.

69 25/3/1877 Bosanquet—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f403.

70 12/4/1877 Bosanquet—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f404.

71 Report 1/4/1877–30/4/1877 BM OP Vol. 58.

72 2/5/1877 Boscawen—Birch, DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f498.

73 2/5/1877 Boscawen—Bosanquet, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f497.

74 11/5/1877, 27/5/1877 Boscawen—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f499, f500.

75 6/6/1877 Report 1/5/1877-31/5/1877, BM OP Vol. 59.

76 5/6/1877 Boscawen—Birch, BM DC 1868–1881 BIC-BOS f502.

77 22/6/1877 Principal Librarian—Trustees, BM OP Vol. 59.

78 26/6/1877 Boscawen—Principal Librarian, BM OP Vol. 59 C, 28/7/1877.

79 7/7/1877 BM Trustees Minutes C13954.

80 Budge, , Rise and Progress of Assyriology, p. 124 Google Scholar.