With the ruin of the city fell the empire, and its fall was universal and complete. In the time of Herodotus, the memory of its fame was living 200 years afterwards ; but there was no vestige of Nineveh. Xenophon, who passed over its site, does not mention the name, but speaks only of two cities, which he describes as deserted, Larisas and Mespila, conjecturally identified by Mr. Layard, ii. 248, with Nimrtid and Koyunjik. The Persians never restored it, and it is a singular fact that no inscriptions in the Persian cuneiform character have been discovered in the Ninevite ruins. For this reason, the historians of Alexander, with one ex ception (Arrian, 42-3), make no allusion to the city. By Ctesias, except in one fragment, and by Diodorus, it is even placed on the Euphrates. Strabo appears to regard it as no longer existing. Speaking of a period towards the close of the reign of Nero, Tacitus mentions its capture by Meher dates, and calls it Ninos (Ann. 12, 13) ; and coins of Trajan and Maximin exist with the legend, Colonia Niniva Claudiopolis, which seems to show that Claudius had founded a colony there. Many Roman remains also are found among the rubbish which covers the Assyrian palaces. And a final reminiscence meets us, but it is only a name, in the battle of Nineveh, A.D. 627, in which Hcraclius, the emperor of the east, triumphed over the armies of the Persian Chosroes (Milman's Gibbon, iv. 322).
The dimensions of the city, as given by Diodorus Siculus, were 150 stadia on the long sides of the quadrangle, and 90 on the others, making a square of 480, variously computed as equivalent to 32 (Gibbon, ch. 46, n. rot), 6o, or 74 miles. Strabo says it was larger than Babylon, and Diodorus asserts that the walls were too feet high, broad enough for three chariots abreast, and flanked with 150o towers, each of the height of 200 feet. Scrip ture calls it `an exceeding great city of three days' journey,' and Layard remarks, ii. 247, ' If we take the four great mounds of Nimrtici, Koyunjik, Khorsabad, and Karamles, as the corners of a square, it will be found that its four sides corre spond pretty accurately with the 48o stadia or 6o miles of the geographer, which make the three days' journey of the prophet. Within this space there are many large mounds, including the principal ruins in Assyria, such as Karakush, Baasheikha, Baazani, Husseini, Tel-Yara, etc. etc., and the face of the country is strewed with the remains of pottery, bricks, and other fragments.' In 1841, M. Botta, who was French consul at Mosul at that time, commenced the work of exca vation at Koyunjik, but meeting with little success, he changed the place of his labours to Khorsabad. He had not been long at work there before he was rewarded by the discovery of various slabs and sculptures, and, after some months' labour, had succeeded in laying bare the greater part of the ground-plan of a magnificent palace. The antiqui ties secured by him here were deposited in the mu seum .of the Louvre, and constitute the national collection of Assyrian monuments in France. The principal mound at Khorsabad is susceptible of a twofold division. The upper portion is about 650 feet square and 3o feet in height ; the lower, which is connected with it, is about 135o by 300. At one corner there is a low pyramidal elevation, which may possibly be the remains of a watch-tower or may mark the site of a royal tomb. The whole quadrangle is little more than a mile square, and contains no other ruin of importance. Botta's dis coveries were followed by those of Layard at Nim rnd, where similar ruins were laid bare. These were, however, of higher antiquity and of more importance, and were evidently assignable to dif ferent epochs. The present condition of Nimnid is as follows :—In the N.W. corner of a walled enclosure of 2331 yards by 2095, in the widest part, is a mound of 700 yards by 400 ; surmounted by a conical elevation or pyramid, about 140 feet high. At the foot of the great mound, and west of this quadrangle, the stream of the Tigris once flowed ; now it is a mile and a half distant. The remains of not less than fifty-eight towers, at nearly equal distances, are discernible in the northern wall, but not more than fifty can be traced in the eastern. The parts which were not naturally pro
tected by the river, were artificially defended by a deep moat or ditch. In the principal mound, Layard found the remains of distinct buildings, which had evidently been erected by different kings, and in one instance materials had been taken from one building to be employed in the erection of another. In some cases, the destruction had manifestly been the work of fire ; in others, the remains had been suddenly covered by the falling in of the upper stories ; in the former, the sculptures were calcined as at Khorsabad ; in the other, they were perfectly prgerved with all their original sharpness and delicacy of detail. Many of the chambers were panelled with slabs, on which nothing but the same inscription was engraved over and over again ; others were lined with sculptures in bas-relief. The pyramidal mound was the remains of a square edifice, solidly built of sun-dried bricks, and faced with large stones, which were carefully squared and bevelled to the height of 20 feet, but above that faced with kiln-burnt bricks. Inside of it was discovered a vaulted gallery, which had probably served the purpose of a royal sepulchre, but was found empty. It was too feet long, 12 high, and 6 broad. Excavations were also carried on by Layard at the ruins opposite to Mosul, which consist of two principal mounds, Koyunjik and Nebbi Yunus, or the tomb of the prophet yonah. On the sides, and at the foot of the latter, fronting the river, there is an Arab village, and the top is covered with the graves of Mohammedans, who have been buried around the hallowed spot. The two mounds form part of the west or river side of a continuous series of mounds or fortifica tions which enclose an irregular quadrangle of un equal sides. Koyunjik measures about 866 yards by 300; Nebbi Yunus, 566 by 400. They are connected by the remains of part of the western wall of the inclosure, which is 4530 yards in entire length. The northern wall is 2330 yards ; the eastern one, which forms a curve, is 53oo ; while the southern one is scarcely moo. On the north, it was defended by a moat ; on the west, by the Tigris, which formerly washed the wall, but is now three quarters of a mile distant from Koyunjik, though it still approaches the N.W. corner of the enclosure ; and on the south, by a ditch or rampart. The eastern side was, at the same time, both the most exposed and the most fortified. The quadrangle is divided into two nearly equal parts by the river Khausser, which winds round the base of Koyunjik. Before entering the enclosure, it runs about a mile and a quarter parallel to the wall, and near it, so as to form a natural defence. On the further side of the Khausser, a low ridge of conglomerate rock was heightened artificially, so as to form a strong outer rampart ; and on the south of the point where the Khausser enters the quandrangle, the fortifications were extensive and complete. There were two deep ditches, which were fed by the stream, and ramparts of earth were thrown up for protection. An outer and larger moat, 200 feet wide, was cut out in the rock, ran along the east, and joined another ditch on the south ; while, facing the open country, there was a ram part, still nearly too feet high, which extended almost the whole length of the quadrangle, and is probably the wall spoken of by Diodorus Siculus. It was constructed chiefly of the earth and rubbish which were removed to make the ditch, and no remains of stone facings to it have been found. In many places the towers, which were for fortifi cation, may still be traced, and it is thought that the gateways were arched. One was discovered in the centre of the northern wall, and another in the inner east wall. The former consisted of two halls, 70 feet by 23, which opened on the plain, and on the interior of the inclosure, by means of gateways, which were flanked by colossal man headed bulls and winged human figures. The ruts of chariot-wheels could still be traced on the limestone slabs which formed the pavement. This gateway was buried beneath an immense amount of rubbish, and it is supposed, from this fact, that a lofty tower rose above it, which was probably destroyed by fire.