Assyrian Antiquities Lost in Translation

Abstract

Europeans who excavated the great Assyrian cities in the mid-nineteenth century discovered colossal alabaster figures, hundreds of wall panels, and innumerable smaller items that they wished to send home. The journey was perilous and much was lost, most notably sculptures from Khorsabad and elsewhere that were on a French convoy attacked near the Tigris-Euphrates confluence in 1855. There has been much uncertainty over what perished on this and other occasions. This paper integrates the relevant sources, identifies antiquities lost during transport from Khorsabad, the Northwest Palace at Nimrud, the Southwest and North Palaces at Nineveh, and other sites, and compares the loss of original photographs, squeezes and paper archives after arrival in Europe.