ftreets flood the houses, all in 3 or 4 ftories in height, and beautified with all manner of ornaments; and the space within each of thefe fquares was all void, and taken up by gardens, &c. either for piedfute or convenience. A branch of the Euphrates divided the city into two, running through the midst of it, from N. to S. over which, in the middle of the city, was a bridge, a furlong in length, or as fome fay, no lefs than five furlongs, though but 30 feet broad. This bridge, however, alid to have been built with wonderful art, to upply a defect in the bottom of the river, which was all fandy. At each end of this bridge were two palaces; the old palace on the E. fide, the Der one on the W. fide of the river; the former or which took up 4 of the squares, and the latter 9. Tre temple of Belus, which stood next to the old Pace, took up another of the fquares. The wcle city food in a large plain, in a very fat and dp foil: that part or half of it on the L. fide of te niver was the old city, and the other on the W. was added by Nebuchadnezzar; both being uded within the vaft fquare bounded by the walls. The form of the whole was feemingly boroved from Nineveh, which was alfo 480 furngs; but though it was equal in dimenfions to city, it was lefs with refpect to its form, wich was a parallelogram, whereas that of Babyon was an exact square. It is fuppofed, that Nebidnezzar, who had destroyed that old feat of Afyrian empire, propofed that this new one d rather exceed it; and that it was in order to it with inhabitants, that he tranfported fuch Bambers of the taptives from other countries hiBut notwithstanding all his great conquells it was never wholly inhabited; for, Cyrus remoVing the feat of the empire foon after to Shufhan, Bayon fell by degrees to decay: though no Country was better able to fupport fo vaft and poas a city, had it been completed upon its t plan. but fo far was it from being finifhed According to its original defign, that, when Alexor came to Babylon, Q. Curtius tells us, "No more than 90 furlongs of it were then built:" which can only be underfood of fo much in h; and, if we allow the breadth to be as math, no more than 8100 fquare furlongs were then built upon: but the whole fpace within the Was contained 14,4 co fquare furlongs; and therefore there must have been 6,300 fquare furlongs maining unbuilt, which, Curtius tells us, were pwed and fown. Befides this, the houfes were not contiguous, but all built with a void fpace on aca fide, between the houses. (3) BABYLON, ANCIENT TEMPLE AND PALAOF. The next great work of Nebuchadnezwas the temple of Belus. The wonderful tower, however, that flood in the middle of it, was not his work, but was built many ages before; that, and the famous tower of Babel, being, as is commonly fuppofed, one and the fame ftructure. This tower is faid to have been compofed of 8 pyramidal ones raised above one another, and by Herodotus faid to have been a furlong in height; but as there is an ambiguity in his expreffon, it has been difputed whether each of the towers was a furlong in length, or the whole of them taken together. Even on the latter fuppo fition, it must have exceeded the highest of the Egyptian pyramids by 179 feet, though it feil fhort of its breadth at the bafis by 33. The way to go up was by ftairs on the outside round it, whence it feems most likely that the whole afceut was, by the benching in, drawn in a floping line from the bottom to the top 8 times round it; and that this made the appearance of eight towers, one above the other. Till the times of Nebuchadnezzar, it is thought this tower was all the temple of Belus; but he made great additions, by vafi edifices round it, in a fquare of two furlongs on every fide, and a mile in circumference, which exceeded the fquare at the temple of Jerufalem by 1800 feet. On the outfide of thefe buildings was a wall, which inclofed the whole; and, from the regularity wherewith this city was marked out, it is fuppofed, that this wall was cqual to the fquare wherein it food, and fo is concluded to. have been two miles and an half in circumference. In this wall were feveral gates leading into the temple all of folid brafs; which it is thought may have been made out of the brafen sea, brafen pillars and other veffels, which Nebuchadnezzar had tranfported from Jerufalem; for in this temple he is faid to have dedicated his fpoils from that of Jerufalem. In this ten ple were feveral images of maffy gold, one of them 40 feet in height; the fame, as fuppofed, with that which Nebuchadnezzar confecrated in the plains of Dura. For though this laft is faid to have been 60 cubits, or 90 feet high, thefe dimenfions appear fo incredi ble, that it has been fuppofed that in the 90 feet, the height of the pedelal is included, and that the 40 feet are for the height of the ftatue without the pedestal; and, being said to have weighed roco talents of Babylon, it is thence, con.puted, that it was worth three millions and a half of our money. In a word, the whole weight of the ftatues and decorations, in Diodorus Siculus, amounting to above soco talents in gold, the whole is eftimated at above twenty-one millions of our money; and a fum about equal to the fame, in treafure, utenfils, and ornaments, not mentioned, is allowed for. Next to this temple, on the eaft fide of the river, food the old palace of the kings of Babylon, which was 4 miles in circumference, Exactly oppofite to it, on the other fide of the river, was the new palace built by Nebuchadnezzar, 8 miles in circumference, and confequently 4 times as big as the old ore. The tower or ten.ple ftood till the time of Xerxes. But that prince, on his return from the Grecian expedition, having firft plundered it of its immenfe wealth, demolifhied the whole, and laid it in ruins. Alexander, on his return to Babylon from his Indian expedition, mopofed to rebuild it, and accordingly fet 10,000 men on work to clear away the rubbish. But his death happening foon after, a ftop was put to all further proceedings in that defign. After the death of that conqueror, the city of Babylon began to decline apace; which was chiefly owing to the neighbourhood of Seleucia, built by Seleu cus Nicator, as is faid, cut or fpite to the Bat y lonians, and peopled with 500,000 perfons drawn from Babylon, which by that means continued deg clining till the very people of the country were at a lofs to tell where it had ftood. (4.) Bey denus, attribute all thefe works to Nebuchadnezzar; but Herodotus tells us, the bridge, the banks, and the lake, were the work of a queen after him, called NITOCRIS, who may have finifi.. ed what Nebuchadnezzar left imperfect, and thence have had the honour this hiftorian gives her of the whole. Such is the defcription ancient hiftorians give of the grandeur of that city which, if these accounts are not exaggerated muft have exceeded every piece of human gran deur that hath yet appeared. Many of the me derns, however, are of opinion that these magn ficent defcriptions are exaggerated; although it certain that few other arguments can be brough against the reality of them, than that we do no fee things of a fimilar kind executed in our ow days. (4.) BABYLON, HANGING GARDENS, CANALS, &c.OF. Nothing was more wonderful at BabyJon than the hanging gardens, which Nebuchadnezzar made in compliafance to his wife Amyitis; who, being a Mede, and retaining a strong inclination for the mountains and forefts of her own country, was defirous of having fomething like them at Babylon. They are said to have contained a fquare of four plethra, or 400 feet, on each fide; and to have confifted of terraces one above another, carried up to the height of the wall of the city, the afcent from terrace to terrace being by fteps ten feet wide. The whole pile confifted of fubftantial arches upon arches, and was ftrengthened by a wall furrounding it on every fide, 22 feet thick; and the floors on each of them were laid in this order: first, on the tops of the arches was laid a pavement of ftones 16 feet long, and 4 feet broad; over this was a layer of reeds, mixed with a great quantity of bitumen; over this two courfes of brick, clofely cemented together with plafter; over all thefe were thick theets of lead, and on these the earth or mould of the garden. This floorage was defigned to retain the moisture of the mould; which was fo deep as to give root to the greatest trees which were planted upon every terrace, together with great variety of other vegetables pleafing to the eye. Upon the uppermost of thefe terraces was a refervoir, supplied by a certain engine with water from the river, from whence the gardens on the other terraces were fupplied. The other works attributed to Nebuchadnezzar by Berofus and Abydenus, were the banks of the river, the artificial canals, and the great artificial lake faid to have been funk by Semiramis. The canals were cut out on the E. fide of the Euphrates, to convey its waters, when it overflowed its banks, into the Tigris, before they reached Babylon. The lake was on the W. fide of Babylon; and, according to the loweft computation, 40 miles fquare, 160 in compass, and in depth 35 feet, as Herodotus, or 75, as Megaf. thenes will have it; the former, perhaps, meafured from the furface of the fides, and the latter from the tops of the banks that were caft up upon them. This lake was dug to receive the waters of the river, while the banks were building on each fide of it. But both the lake, and the canal which led to it, were preferved after that work was completed, being found of great ufe, not only to prevent all overflowings, but to keep water all the year, as a common refervoir, to be let out, on proper occafions, by fluices, for the improvement of the land. The banks were built of brics and bitumen, on both fides of the river, to keep it within its channel; and extended on each fide throughout the whole length of the city, and even farther, according to fome, who reckon they extended 160 furlongs, or 20 miles; whence it is concluded they must have begun two miles and an, half above the city being no more than 15 miles. Within the city they were built from the bottom of the river, and of the fame thicknefs with the walls of the city itfelf. Oppofite to each ftreet, on either fide of the river, was a brazen gate in the wall, with ftairs leading down from it 40 the river: thefe gates were open by day, and hut by night. Berofus, Megafthenes, and Aby (5.) BABYLON, OBJECTIONS TO THE DESCRI TION OF To the credibility of the above magr ficent descriptions, (§ 2-4.) M. Goguet has a vanced the following objections.“ Authors ha greatly extolled the public works and edific which once rendered Babylon one of the wonde of the world. We may reduce all these ctje to five principal heads: 1. the height of its wal 2. the temple of Belus; 3. the hanging garder 4. The bridge built over the river Euphrates, a the quays which lined that river; 5. the lake a canals dug by the hand of man to diftribute i waters of the Euphrates. All these works, so m vellous in the judgment of antiquity, appear me to have been extremely exaggerated by authors who have spoke of them. How can conceive, in effect, that the walls of Baby could have been 318 feet high, and 81 in thi nefs, in a compafs of near ten leagues? 10 fay the fame of that fquare building, known der the name of the temple of Belus. It was c pofed of eight towers placed one above anoth diminishing always as they went up. Herodot does not tell us what was the height of this n nument. Diodorus fays, that it furpaffed all lief. Strabo fixes it to one ftadium, a meaf which anfwers nearly to Goo of our feet. the time of this geographer the ftadia were m more confiderable than in the first ages. The tire mafs of this building ought to have been fwerable to its exceffive height; and this is the idea that the ancients defigned to give us it. We may judge by the following fact. Xer had entirely demolished this temple. Alexar undertook to rebuild it. He defigned to begir clearing the place and removing the ruins: 0, workmen who were employed two months in work, were not, fay they, able to finish it. riches inclofed in the temple of Belus were 1 portioned to its immenfity. Without speakin the tables and centers, the cups and other fac vafes, of mafly gold, there was a ftatue 40 high, which alone weighed 1000 Babylonish lents. In fhort, according to the inventory the ancients have given us of the riches conta in this temple, the total fum would amoun 220 millions and a half of French livres. Exa rations like thefe deftroy themselves. As to hanging gardens, according, to all appeara they never exifted. The filence of Herodotu a work fo fingular and fo remarkable, dete FIT. Fo to place in the rank of fables all that the other vrts have delivered upon this pretended wonver. Herodotus had carefully vifited Babylon. He enters into fuch details as prove that he has ted none of the rarities of that city Can we e, that he would have pailed over in filence work as the hanging gardens? All the auto have spoken of it are of much later this great hiftorian. None of them exas fpeaks on his own teftimony. It is the report of others. Diodorus had arted from Ctefias what he says of thofe fagardens. There is alfo great appearance Strabo had drawn from the fame fource. In wed, the manner in which Quintus Curtius himfel, fufficiently fhows how much zience of thele gardens appeared to him He judged they owed the greateft fit to the imagination of the Greeks. Let to peak of the bridge of Babylon, which the nts have placed in the number of the most Cous works of the eaft. It was near Ico cons in length, and almost 4 in breadth. We day but that a great deal of art and lais neceifary to lay the foundations, which ld not be eafy to fettle in the bed of an exy deep and rapid river, which alfo rolls aa prodigious quantity of mud, and whofe is entirely fandy. They had therefore ing precautions to fecure the piers of the Babylon. They were built of ftones ad fastened together with cramps of iron, joints filled with melted lead. The front im, turned towards the current of the was defended by butreffes extremely rhich diminished the weight and force , by cutting it at a great distance. the bridge of Babylon. While we do to the fkill of the Babylonians, in conducde works, we cannot help remarking the which at all times reigned in the works fem nations. The bridge of Babylon a ftriking instance of it. This edifice utely without grace, or any air of majefThe breadth of it was in no fort of proporits length. The diftance between the s alío very ill contrived. They were difCom each other only 11 feet and a half. , this bridge was not arched. We may its effect on the view. The Babylonians, 1, were not the only people who were igthe art of turning an arch. This fecret, I can find, was unknown to all the peonote antiquity, who, generally fpeaking, appear to have been very skilful in ftoneAs for the quays which lined the Euwe may believe that they were grand and ent: but I fhall not eafily believe that pated those which we have daily under In this refpect, I believe Paris may diffw magnificence, and for the extent of the h all the cities of the univerfe." YLON, a town of Egypt, near the eaftach of the Nile, fuppoted to have hood tint lite of GRAND CAIRO. Lon. 31. 12. .. N. SEBALONIA, ANCIENT HISTORY OF. Babylonia or CHALDEA, a kingdom of Afia, and the most ancient in the world, was founded be Nimrod the grandfon of Ham, who alfo is faid to have founded Nineveh the capital of the kingdom of Affyria. Indeed, thefe two kingdoms feem to have always continued in such a state of friendship that we can fearce help thinking that they were either the fame, or that Babylonia was for fome time a province of Afiyria. Nothing certain is known concerning either of them, except what may be gathered from Scripture. From thence we learn, that in the days of Abraham there was a king of Shinar, called AMRAPHEL, who, under Chedariaomer, the king of Elam or Perfia, made war upon the Canaanites. From this time we have nothing that can be depended upon tiil the days of Nabonafier, the first king of Babylon mentioned in Ptolemy's canon. It is plain indced, both from Scripture and profane hiftory, that Babylonia fubfifted as a distinct kingdom from Aftyria even when the latter was in all its glory. The moft probable account of the matter is this: The empire of Affyria was founded by Pul, on the ruins of that of Damafcus or Syria, in the days of Menahem king of Judah. Pul left two fons, Tiglath-Pilefer, and Nabonaffer. To the former he bequeathed the empire of Affyria, and to the latter that of Babylon. Tiglath-Pilefer refided at Nineveh, the original feat of the Affyrian empire; while Nabonater, who was the younger brother held his refidence at Babylon. As the two kingdoms were governed by princes of the fame fami ly, we may fuppofe harmony to have reigned between them, for tome time at leaft; the younger branch at Babylon acknowledging a kind of fubjection to the elder at Nineveh. That the Babylonian empire was of Affyrian origin, we are affured by faiah. “Behold the land of the Chaldeans: this people was not till the Affyrian founded it, for them that dwelt in the wilderness; they fet up the towers thereof; they built the palace thereof." As to the kingdom of Affyria, the Scripture mentions on y five kings, viz. Pul, Tig lath-Pilefer, Shalmanafer, Sennacherib, and Efarhaddon; whofe hiftory, as related by the facred writers, it is unnecetiary to relate here. From the days of Nabonafler to Nabopolater, that is from A. A. C. 747 to 626, the kings of Babylon made no figure, and were therefore probably in a ftate of dependence on the kings of Allyria; but at that time, in the reign of Chynalidan, the Sardanapalus of the Greeks, Nineveh was taken. and deftroyed by the Mcdes and Babylonians, and the feat of the empire transferred to Ba y or This Nebopolafier was the father of the famous NEBUCHADNEZZAR, who raifed the Babylonian empire to its highest pitch of what is commonly called glory. His conquests extended from Media: on the NE. to Ethiopia beyond Egypt on the S. W. comprehending Anyria, Perfia, Syria, Phanicia, Canaan, N Arabia, Idumæa, and Egypt.. From his time to that of NABONADIUS, the grandLon of Nebuchadnezzar, and the BELSHAZZAR Of Scripture, the hiftory of Labylon is little better than a blank. We know little more than the names of Nebuchadn zzar's fucceflor's. v z; h's fon Evilmcfodach and his widow Nitocris, his f n on.— in law Nerigliffar, Laborofoarchod, the fon of the latter, and Nabonadius the fon of Evil-merodach. Of the reduction of Babylon by Cyrus, which happened under the laft monarch, we have the following account. (2.) BABYLONIA, CONQUEST of. War had been begun betwixt the Medes, Perfians, and Babylonians, in the reign of Neriglissar, and had been carried on with very bad fuccefs on the fide of the Babylonians. Cyrus, who commanded the Median and Perfian army, having fubdued the fe veral nations inhabiting the great continent from the Egean fea to the Euphrates, bent his march towards Babylon. Nabonadius, hearing of his march, immediately advanced against him with an army. In the engagement which enfued, the Babylonians were defeated; and the king, retreating to his metropolis, was blocked up and clofely befieged by Cyrus. The reduction of this city was no easy enterprize. The walls were of a prodigious height, the number of men to defend them very great, and the place ftored with all forts of provifions for 20 years. Cyrus, def. pairing of being able to take fuch a city by storm, caufed a line of circumvallation to be drawn quite round it, with a large and deep ditch; reckoning, that if all communication with the country were cut off, the beficged would be obliged to furren der through famine. That his troops might not be too much fatigued, he divided his army into 12 bodies, appointing each body its month to guard the trenches; but the befieged, looking upon themselves to be out of danger by reafon of their high walls and magazines, infulted him from the ramparts, and looked upon all the trouble he gave himself as so much unprofitable labour. After Cyrus had spent two whole years before Babylon, without making any progrefs in the fiege, he at laft thought of the following ftratagem, which put him in poffeffion of it. He was informed that a great annual folemnity was to be held at Babylon; and that the inhabitants on that occafion were accustomed to spend the whole night in drinking and debauchery. This he therefore thought a proper time for furprising them; and accordingly fent aftrong detachment to the head of the canal leading to the great lake, with orders at a certain time, to break down the great bank which was between the lake and the canal, and to turn the whole current into the lake. At the fame time he appointed one body of troops at the place where the river entered the city, and another where it came out; ordering them to march in by the bed of the river as foon as they should find it fordable. Towards the evening he opened the head of the trenches on both fides of the river above the city, that the water might difcharge itself into them; by which means, and the breaking down of the great dam, the river was foon drained. Then the two bodies of troops entered the channel; the one comman ted by Gobryas and the other by Gadates: and finding the gates all left opin by reafon of the diforders of that riotous night, they penetrated into the heart of the city without oppofition; and meeting, according to agreement at the palace, they furpiited the guards, and cut them in pieces. Those who were in the palace eping the gates to know the caule of this con fufion, the Perfians rushed in, took the pala and killed the king, who came out to meet the fword in hand. Thus an end was put to the I bylonian empire; and Cyrus took poffeffion Babylon, in name of his uncle Cyaxares, II. c led in Scripture Darius the Mede: A. M. 34 From this time Babylonia never was erected in a diftinct kingdom, but always followed the f tune of thofe great conquerors who at differ times have appeared in Afia. It is now called l Arabia, and is frequently the object of content between the Turks and Perfians. See ASSYK f 2, and IRAC-ARABIA. (3.) BABYLONIA, PRODUCE, &c. or. Of climate and produce of this country, M. Sabbath gives the following account. "It rained very dom according to Herodotus. The earth watered by the river, which was here diffuted human induftry, as the Nile is over Egypt by ture: for all the country of Babylon was divi by canals, the greateft of which was naviga and flowed from S. to N. from the Euphrate the Tigris. In fhort, it was one of the fi countries for corn in the world; but for pro cing trees, the fig-tree, the vine and the olive was not famous. It was fo luxuriant in gr that it commonly yielded a hundred times n than what was fown; and in its good year yielded three hundred times more than it recei The leaves of its wheat and barley were four i es broad. Though I know,' fays Herode that the millet and the fefame of that cou grow to the fize of trees, I will not defcribe t particularly; left thofe who have not been in bylonia fhould think my account fabulous. 7 had no oil but what they made from Indian ( The country abounded with palm trees, w grew fpontaneously; and most of them borei of which the inhabitants made bread, wine, honey. They cultivated these trees and their trees in the fame manner. Some of them, a other trees, the Greeks called male ones. 7 tied the fruit of the male to the trees which dates; that the mosquito, leaving the male, t caufe the date to ripen, by penetrating it without that aliftance it came not to maturi Mofquitos bred in the male palms as in the fig trees." BABYLONIA CURA, the art of cafting natir BABYLONIAN, [BABYLONIUS,] adj. is in ancient writers for an aftrologer, or any related to aftrology. (1.) BABYLONIANS, the inhabitants € cient Babylon, and the country around it i Babylon. M. Sabbathier has collected fever rious particulars refpecting this ancient p from which we give the following extracts. (2.) BABYLONIANS, MARRIAGE LAWS OF When the girls were marriageable, they we dered to meet in a certain place, where the men likewife affembled. They were then the public crier; but he first fold the mot tiful one. When he had fold her at an im price, he put up others to fale, according degrees of beauty. The rich Babylonians emulous to carry off the finest women, wh fuld to the highest bidders. But as the l men who were poor could not aspire to ha phyficians. They afked thofe who approached the fick, if they ever had the fame diftemper? if they knew any one who had it? and how he was cured? Hence, in this country, every one who faw a fick perfon was obliged to go to him, and inquire into his diftemper. They embalmed their dead with honey; and their mourning was like that of the Egyptians. There were three Babylonian tribes, who lived only upon filh, and prepared them, by drying them in the fun, and then beating them in a kind of mortar to a kind of flour, which after they had fifted through a linen, they baked in rolls.” women, they were content to take the uglicft with the money which was given them: for when the crier had fold the handfomeft, he ordered the uglieft of all the women to be brought; and afked, if any one was willing to take her with a fmall fem of money. Thus the became the wife of him who was moft eafily fatisfied; and thus the fast women were fold; and from the money which they brought, fmall fortunes were given to theglieft, and to thofe who had any bodily infrnity. A father could not give his daughter in arriage as he pleafed; nor was he who bought Ler allowed to take her home, without giving fecurity that he would marry her. But, after the ale, if the parties were not agreeable to each other, the law enjoined that the money should be reftored. The inhabitants of any of their towns were permitted to marry wives at these auctions. Such were the early cuftoms of the Babylonians. But they afterwards made a law, which prohibited the inhabitants of different towns to intermarry, and by which husbands were punished for treating their wives ill. (3.) BABYLONIANS, PECULIAR CUSTOMS OF THE."We must not here omit to give an account of the peculiar and furprising conftruction of their boats of fkins, in which they failed along the river to Babylon. These boats were invented by the Armenians, whofe country lay north from Babylonia. They made them with poles of wilbow, which they bent, and covered with fkins: the bare fide of the skins they put outwards; and they made them fo tight, that they refembled board. The boats had neither prow nor ftern, but were of a round form like a buckler. They put ftraw on the bottom. Two men, each with sar, rowed them down the river, laden with ferent wares, but chiefly with palm wine. Of te boats fome were very large, and fome very fall. The largeft carried the weight of 500 tats. There was room for an afs in one of their fall boats; they put many into a large one. When they had unloaded, after their arrival at Babylon, they fold the poles of their boats and the fraw; and loading their affes with the fkins, nturned to Armenia: for they could not fail up the river, its current was fo rapid. For this reafon they made their boats of fkins, inftead of wood; and on their return to Armenia with their affes, they applied their skins to their former ufe. As to their drefs, they wore a linen fhirt, which came down to their feet. Over it they wore a woollen robe; their outer garment was a white vet. Their fhoes refembled thofe of the Thebins. They let their hair grow. On their heads they wore a turban. They rubbed their bodies all over with fragrant liquors. Each man had a ng on his finger, and an elegant cane in his ad, with an apple at the top, or a rofe, a lily, or an eagle, or fome other figure; for they were not fuffered to ufe canes without devices. When the Babylonians had become poor by the ruin of their metropolis, fathers ufed to prostitute their daughters for gain. There was one cuftorn among the Babylonians, worthy to be related. They brought their fick into the forum, to confult thofe who paffed on their diseases; for they had o VOL. III. PART I. (4.) BABYLONIANS, RELIGION, &C. OF THE. "The Babylonians at first worshipped only the fun and moon; but they foon multiplied their divinities. They deified Baal, Bel, or Belus, one of their kings, and Merodach-Baladan. They alfo worshipped Venus, under the name of Myle ta. She and Belus were the principal deities of the Babylonians. They counted their day from fun-rife to fun-rife. They folemnifed five days of the year with great magnificence, and almoft the fame ceremonies with which, the Romans cele brated their Saturnalia. The Babylonians were very much addicted to Judicial aftrology. Their pricfts, who openly profeffed that art, were obli ged to commit to writing all the events of the lives of their illuftrious men; and on a fancied connection between thofe events and the motions of the heavenly bodies, the principles of their art were founded. They pretended that fome of their books, in which their hiftorical transactions and revolutions were accurately compared with the courfes of the ftars, were thousands of years old. This affertion of their judicial aftrologers we may reasonably difpute; but that their aftronomers had made a long fyftem of obfervations, is inconteftibly true. It is certain that fome of those obfervations were extant in the days of Ariftotle, and that they were older than the empire of the Babylonians. See ASTRONOMY, Index. "As (5.) BABYLONIANS, TAXATIONS OF THE. all the nations under the dominion of Cyrus, befides the ordinary tributes, were obliged to maintain him and his army, the monarch and his troops were fupported by all Afia. The country of Babylon was obliged to maintain him four months of the year; its fertility, therefore, yielded a third of the produce of Afia. The govern ment of this country, which the Perfians termed fatrapy, was richer and more extenfive than any of the reft. It maintained for the king, befides the war horfes, a ftud of 800 ftallions, and 16,000 mares. So great a number of Indian dogs were likewife bred in this province for the king, that four of its cities kept thofe animals; and in return, they were exempted from all taxes and tributes." (1.) BABYLONICA. See BABYLONICS. (2.) BABYLONICA SOLANA, Coverings laid over couches, &c. painted with gold, purple, and other colours. (3.) BABYLONICA TEXTA, a rich fort of weavings, or hangings, denominated from the city of Babylon, where their practice of interweaving di U vers |