villages of Northern Syria, where all the houses have conical roofs,
built of mud, which present a very singular appearance. [PLATE LVI.,
Fig. 2.] Both the domes and the cones of the Assyrian example have
evidently an opening at the top, which may have admitted as much light
into the houses as was thought necessary. The doors are of two kinds,
square at the top, and arched; they are placed commonly towards the
sides of the houses. The houses themselves seem to stand separate,
though in close juxtaposition.

[Illustration: PLATE 56]

The only other buildings of the Assyrians which appear to require some
notice are the fortified enceintes of their towns. The simplest of these
consisted of a single battlemented wall, carried in lines nearly or
quite straight along the four sides of the place, pierced with gates,
and guarded at the angles, at the gates, and at intervals along the
curtain with projecting towers, raised not very much higher than the
walls, and (apparently) square in shape. [PLATE LVII., Fig 1.] In the
sculptures we sometimes find the battlemented wall repeated twice or
thrice in lines placed one above the other, the intention being to
represent the defence of a city by two or three walls, such as we have
seen existed on one side of Nineveh.

[Illustration: PLATE 57]

The walls were often, if not always, guarded by moats. Internally they
were, in every case, constructed of crude brick; while externally it was
common to face them with hewn stone, either from top to bottom, or at
any rate to a certain height. At Khorsabad the stone revetement of one
portion at least of the wall was complete; at Nimrud (Calah) and at