The following communication has been received :-

The accompanying photographic block represents an ex voto from the temple of Baal at Carthage. It belongs to A. C. Bruce-Pryce, Esq., of Duffryn, near Cardiff, who purchased it at Tunis.

Such votive tablets are by no means rare; indeed the number of them now in Europe must amount to many hundreds. The inscription in this case consists merely of the invariable dedicatory formula to the goddess Tnt and to Ba'al Hammân (or Hammôn, Ammon):

and the name of the dedicator, Bod-'Ashtôreth (BodóσTwp, Bostor):

אש נדר בדעשתר[ת]

QUEENS' COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.

4th October, 1884.

WM. WRIGHT,

The following Communication has been received from Mr. Theo. G. Pinches:

DOCUMENTS RELATING TO SLAVE-DEALING IN BABYLONIA
IN ANCIENT TIMES.

In the Proceedings of this Society for April, 1883 (pp. 103-107), and February, 1884 (pp. 102-106), I gave translations of some Babylonian tablets referring to the sale of certain slaves who, being marked with the name of their original owners, were liable at any moment to be claimed by them, the then holders of the slaves being obliged, in accordance with the wording of the contract, to return them to their former owners on such claim being made. I now give the text, with a translation, of a tablet recording the making of a claim, the giving back of the slaves, and the refunding of the money paid for them.

I.

S.+, 431.

Šattu sabîtu ▼ Kam-bu-zi-ia, šarri, ârḥu Kisilimi, ûmu ḥaššu Year seventh of Kambyses, the king, month Kislev, day fifth. 2. rab hu-ma-di,

Ra-za-am-ub-ba

Razam-ubba

Ra-za-am u-mar-ga-'
Razam has forfeited

4. As-bu-me-ta-na-', mâri-šu ša

for

Hattiza', their wives

šanê šinipu

mana kaspi

two and two-thirds of a mana of silver,

9. Iddi-na-a D.P. a-ši-bu, mâri-šu ša

Iddinâ, the magician,

10. Nabû-âḥê-iddin

Nabû-âhê-iddin,

son of

it-ta-din

he has given up.

a-na

to

8. WI YN EI A W~ WA N

9. Y « A N N Y « W X Y 9.།།

1o. ། །།། སླ༤ ༥ ༤

**EA

N

A

On the left-hand edge is the impression of a seal with a representation not unlike a scorpion, but which is, most likely, only produced by natural marks in the stone used for the seal. Beneath the seal-impression are

the words Y Y Y Y Y Z

II. ▼ Ar-ta-ru-šu,

D.P. rab-dam-garē

Artarušu, the chief of the field-labourers,

12. ik-ta-bi um-ma: A-na-ku i-di-eš

"In the seventh year of Cambyses the king, the month Kislev, fifth day, the .... Razam-ubba, son of Razam, has given back Asbumetana,' son of Asbutatika; Kardara', and Ḥattiza', their wives, for two and two-thirds of a mana of silver, to Iddinâ, the magician, son of Nabû-âhî-iddin, he has given them up. Artarušu, the chief of the field-labourers, has declared thus:-'I bear witness that his money has been taken.'

"In the presence of Rêmut and Murašû, priests; Habaṣiru, priest of Bit-kaṣiranu; and Niri-abiknu, the Elamite."

On the edge, beneath the seal, are the words, Kunuk Ar[tarušu], "the seal of Artarušu.”

This small but most interesting text refers, as will easily be seen, to the demand for the return of Asbumetana', son of Asbutatika, and Kardara' and Ḥattiza', apparently their wives; the money paid for them when they were bought by Razam-ubba, being repaid by Iddinâ at the same time. A declaration by a man named Artarušu, to the effect that money had really been taken (by the seller, Iddinâ) for the slaves, when he had sold them to Razam-ubba, is given, and the giving back of the slaves and the refunding of the money is witnessed by four people.