June3] SOCIETYOF BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGY. [1890.
years have now passed since my determination that Khita, or
Hamath,constitutesa character, but we are far off from decipher
ment. The materials are far better than whenthe decipherment
of cuneiform was began. Thecauseof the delay as to Khita and
of the useless expenditureof time andlabourand greatabilityhas
beenthe fanciful appropriationof phonetic valuesto the characters
without ascertaining what language is available or applicable.
HencecomplicatedSemiticandTuranian renderingswithoutresult,
for each interpreterhas exercised his own fancy.
TheTarkondemosbossis a valuable instrument,but no one is
agreedas to the use to be made of it. It is possible that it repre
sentswhatmaybe termed the classical Khita,or the language which
obtaineda preference for use in public documents. Theremaybe
various inscriptions susceptible of other Turanian and also of
Semiticrenderings.
My comments on this boss and seal (Athentcum, 1880)
remainthe same aftermanyyears, andafterconsidering the other
interpretationsproposed.
One main pointto be determined is the meaning of [JjJ (][],
becausethis will settle the position of the other character. By me
it is assigned to Demos as signifying son,offspring; first for paleo-
graphicreasons,and secondly for linguistic reasons. In paleographic
[] is a recognizable symbolfor son, as in Libyan. j][j jjy, an establishedform of the double plural, equals sons'son, andthe bar on the
fourth stroke is a paleographic sign for plural, a further plural.
Hencethe meaning is Sons' son,Offspring,Descendant,in reference
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