ree tow ropes, two fastened to the
stone itself and the third to the bow of the boat.

The towers pull upon these cables by means of smaller cords passed round
the shoulders of each and spliced to the main ropes; by such means they
could bring far more weight to bear than if they had been content to hold
the cable in their hands, as in Egypt. The bas-relief in question is
mutilated, but we may guess that a hundred men were attached to each cable,
which would make three hundred in all obeying the single will of the
superintending engineer who is perched upon the stone and directing their
movements. On each flank of the gang march overseers armed with swords and
rattans that would be quick to descend on the back and loins of any
shirker.

More than one instance of such punishment may be seen on the bas-relief
reproduced in part in our Fig. 151. In its lower division two or three of
these slave-drivers may be seen with their hands raised against the
workmen; in one case the latter sinks to the ground beneath the blows
rained upon him. The way in which the whole series of operations is
represented in this Kouyundjik relief is most curious. High up in the field
we often find the king himself, standing in his chariot and urging on the
work. The whole occupies several of Layard's large plates. We can only
reproduce the central group, which is the most interesting to the student
of engineering in ancient Mesopotamia.

[Illustration: FIG. 151.--The transport of a bull. Height of the slab, 7
feet 3 inches; British Museum.]

The block of alabaster that we saw a moment ago on a boat towed by hundreds
of human arms has been delivered to the sculptors and has put on, under
their hands, the rough form of a mitred, human-headed bull. It will be
completed after being put in place; the last touches of the chisel and the
brush will then be given to it; but the heaviest part of the work is
already done and the block has lost much of its original size and weight.
Firmly packed with timber, the bull lies upon its side upon a sledge which
is curved in front like a boat, or a modern sleigh. Two cables are fastened
to its prow and two to its stern. The engineer is again seated upon the
stone and claps his hands to give the time, but now he is accompanied by
three soldiers who appear to support his authority by voice and gesture. In
order to prevent friction and to facilitate the movement of the sledge,
rollers are thrust beneath its runners