Egypt dwelt two sons

In Egypt dwelt two sons of a nobleman, one of whom acquired learning, and the other gained wealth. The former became the most learned man of his time, and the other prince of Egypt. Afterwards the rich man looked with contempt on his learned brother, and said, “I have arrived at monarchy, and you have continued in the sartte state of poverty.” He replied, “ 0 brother, it behooved me to be the more thankful to the divine Creator, since I have found the inheritance of the prophets, that is, wisdom ; and you have got the portion of Pharaoh and Hainan, or the kingdom of Egypt. I am the ant, which men tread under their feet, and not the wasp, of whose sting they complain. How shall I express my grateful sense of such blessing, that I am not possessed of the means of oppressing mankind? ”

Heard of Durwesh

I heard of a Durwesh, who was suffering great distress from poverty, and sewing patch upon patch, but who comforted himself with the following verse : ‘ I am contented with stale bread and a coarse woolen frock, since, it is better to bear the weight of one’s own necessities, than to suffer the load o obligation from mankind.’ Somebody said to him “Why do you sit quiet, whilst such one in the city has a liberal mind and possesses universal benevolence, being ever willing to assist the pious and always ready to comfort every heart. If h were apprised of your condition, he would consider it an obligation to satisfy your wants.” He replied, “ Be silent, for it is better to die of want than to expose our necessities to any one : for they have said, that to sew patch upon patch and be patient, is preferable to writing a petition to a great man for clothing.” Of a truth, it is equal to the torments of hell, to enter into paradise by the help of one’s neighbor.

Kings of Persia

One of the kings of Persia sent a skilful physician to Mustufa (upon whom be peace!). He had been some years in Arbia without any one having come to make trial of his skill, neither had they applied to him for any medicine. One day he came to the prince of prophets, and complained, saying, “They sent me to dispense medicines to your companions, but to this day no one hath taken notice of me, that I might have an opportunity of performing the service to which I had been appointed.” Mohammed replied, “It is a rule with these people never to eat until they are hard pressed by hunger, and to leave off eating whilst they have a good appetite.” The physician said, “This is the way to enjoy health.” He then made his obeisance and departed. The physician begins to speak when evil would result from his silence; either when there is eating to excess, or when death might ensue from too much abstinence. Then doubtless his speech is wisdom, and such a meal will be productive of health.

In introducing this book, there are good reasons why one should start with a reassurance to the reader. In our own time, remarkable advances have been made in the improvement of archaeological method and practice: and during the past decade, a dozen handbooks have been produced, explaining the principals involved, illustrating their effectiveness and advocating their adoption. One would think there is hardly room for another: and indeed, this is not intended to be one.

It will deal with a particular aspect of archaeology. a particular kind of archaeological excavation, as practiced in one very vitally important group of countries. Even so, it will not pretend to be a comprehensive survey of what has been done there or of the methods adopted. For it is based largely on the personal experience of a particular excavator. Its primary purpose is to share that experience and the knowledge derived from it, with others who may benefit from it, before the pattern of recollected inferences loses its precision.

When, in 1961, I gave up my appointment as director of the archaeological institute in Ankara, I had almost completed a third of a century of continuous residence in the Near East: and during that period, hardly a year passed when I was not engaged in the supervision of an archaeological excavation. Almost all these excavations took place within the limits of what the American historian, James Henry Breasted, first called the “Fertile Crescent55: and the use of that phrase introduces the necessity for an immediate definition of the geographical area which the book is intended to cover. In addition, here it at once becomes apparent that Breasted’s phrase will not serve our purpose.