treasures from E-sagila, the great temple
of Marduk. Such episodes must have been common at this period when each
city was striving for hegemony. Meanwhile, Shirpurla remained the centre
of Sumerian influence in Babylonia, and her patesis were content to owe
allegiance to so powerful a ruler as Dungi, King of Ur, while at all
times exercising complete authority within their own jurisdiction.

During the most recent diggings that have been carried out at Telloh a
find of considerable value to the history of Sumerian art has been
made. The find is also of great general interest, since it enables us
to identify a portrait of Gudea, the most famous of the later Sumerian
patesis. In the course of excavating the Tell of Tablets Captain Cros
found a little seated statue made of diorite. It was not found in place,
but upside down, and appeared to have been thrown with other debris
scattered in that portion of the mound. On lifting it from the trench it
was seen that the head of the statue was broken off, as is the case
with all the other statues of Gudea found at Telloh. The statue bore an
inscription of Gudea, carefully executed and well preserved, but it
was smaller than other statues of the same ruler that had been
already recovered, and the absence of the head thus robbed it of any
extraordinary interest. On its arrival at the Louvre, M. Leon Heuzey was
struck by its general resemblance to a Sumerian head of diorite formerly
discovered by M. de Sarzec at Telloh, which has been preserved in the
Louvre for many years. On applying the head to the newly found statue,
it was found to fit it exactly, and to complete the monument, and we
are thus enabled to identify the features of Gudea. Prom a photographic
reproduction of this statue, it is seen that the head is larger than
it should be, in proportion to the body, a characteristic which is also
apparent in a small Sumerian statue preserved in the British Museum.

[Illustration: 192.jpg TABLET INSCRIBED IN SUMERIAN WITH DETAILS OF A
SURVEY OF CERTAIN PROPERTY.]

Probably situated in the neighbourhood of Telloh. The
circular shape is very unusual, and appears to have been
used only for survey-tablets. Photograph by Messrs. Mansell
& Co.

Gudea caused many statues of himself to be made out of the hard diorite
which he brought for that purpose from the Sinaitic peninsula, and from
the inscriptions preserved upon them it is possible to ascertain the
buildings