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viii four seasons of excavating in the Near East. The work owes much more than appears in the footnotes to the advice and support of Professor Olmstead, who has furnished encouragement, friendly criticism, and references on many obscure points.

Dr. Robert H. McDowell of the University of Michigan by voluminous letters written in the press of field work and by frequent conversations has been of great assistance. The manuscript was read at Seleucia by Professor Clark Hopkins of the same insti­tution, and many of his suggestions are embodied in the text. Professor Arthur E. R. Boak, also of Michi­gan, read through the galleys and gave freely of his time during the preparation of the manuscript.

For aid in specialized fields Dr. G. G. Cameron, Dr. Raymond A. Bowman, and Dr. Waldo H. Dubberstein, all of the Oriental Institute, were of great assistance; and many other members of the staff have at one time or another rendered aid.

The painstaking work of Dr. T. G. Allen, one of the editors of the Institute's publications, has eliminated many inconsistencies and infelicities of English. In the final preparation of the manuscript Miss Elizabeth Stefanski has been of great assistance. Members of the Chinese section of the Department of Oriental Languages and Literatures have kindly helped in standardizing the spelling of Chinese names. Both my wife and the editorial staff of the Oriental Institute have spent many hours in working on the manu-