of cedar-wood." Dyes, such as the
Indian lacca, raw cotton, ebony and other woods, may have come by the
same line of trade; while horses and mules are likely to have been
imported from Armenia, and slaves from the country between Armenia and
the Halys River.

If from the imports of Assyria we pass to her exports, we leave a region
of uncertain light to enter upon one of almost total darkness. That the
"wares of Assyria" were among the commodities which the Phoenicians
imported into Greece at a very early period, we have the testimony of
Herodotus; but he leaves us wholly without information as to the nature
of the wares themselves. No other classical writer of real authority
touches the subject; and any conclusions that we may form upon it must
be derived from one of two sources, either general probability, or the
single passage in a sacred author which gives us a certain amount of
authentic information. From the passage in question, which has been
already quoted at length, we learn that the chief of the Assyrian
exports to Phoenicia were textile fabrics, apparently of great value,
since they were most carefully packed in chests of cedar-wood secured by
cords. These fabrics may have been "blue cloaks," or "embroidery," or
"rich dresses" of any kind, for all these are mentioned by Ezekiel; but
we cannot say definitely which Assyria traded in, since the merchants of
various other countries are joined in the passage with hers. Judging by
the monuments, we should conclude that at least a portion of the
embroidered work was from her looms and workshops; for, as has been
already shown, the embroidery of the Assyrians was of the most delicate
and elaborate description. She is also likely to have traded in rich
apparel of all kinds, both such as she manufactured at home, and such as
she imported from the far East by the lines of traffic which have been
pointed out. Some of her own fabrics may possibly have been of silk,
which in Roman times was a principal Assyrian export. Whether she
exported her other peculiar productions, her transparent and colored
glass, her exquisite metal bowls, plates, and dishes, her beautifully
carved ivories, we cannot say. They have not hitherto been found in any
place beyond her dominion, so that it would rather seem that she
produced them only for home consumption. Some ancient notices appear to
imply a belief on the part of the Greeks and Romans that she produced
and exported various spices. Hor