Page:Discovery and Decipherment of the Trilingual Cuneiform Inscriptions.djvu/288

Rh wrote. It must be remembered that when he began these studies, in 183(5, all that was known were a few proper names, and every attempt to pass beyond had hitherto led to ridiculous misrepresentations of the true meaning of the texts. When, in 1844, he completed his translation of the whole series of inscriptions of the Persian column — with the exception of the Behistun, which was not accessible to him — he had succeeded in making their contents as well known as they are at present in all the essential points of their subject-matter. It must be recollected also that he had to contend with difficulties that have since been. in great measure removed. The texts upon which he worked were in many places in need of emendation; and the parallel colunms in Susian and Babvlonian, which have afforded so much assistance to later translators, were then completely unknown. Moreover, it should not be for- gotten that, notwithstanding all the advantages that are now at command, many of the passages over which Lassen stumbled are still the subject of dispute.

Ilis collection included the ten independent in- scriptions at Persepolis; the Tomb insc^ription at Xaksh-i-Rustam, so lately recovered by Westergaard; the Cyrus inscription from Murgab; the inscriptions of Elvend and Van that only a few years before had acquired an entire volume to expound. He added a trans- lation of the short inscription on the crystal cylinder ])rouglit from Egypt and now in the British Museum. He reads: ' Ego Darius hominum tutor.' He also trans- lated the Denon inscription, found in 1800 near Suez, which, according to him, signifies 'Darius hominum tutcn' magnus.' Both these inscriptions write ' King ' with the abbreviation to which Lassen assigned the value of " narpa' and traiislates ' hominum tutor.' The true meaning of the first is 'I [am] Darius the King,'