simply, as among the primitive peoples with whom we have hitherto been concerned, for the retaining of past events in the memory. Hence arises the difficulty that often an event of such importance that the year can be named after it does not occur until well on into the year, that is, the event from which the year is named does not take place until a greater or smaller part of the year has already passed by. Until the event takes place indications of the kind already mentioned, having reference to the preceding year, are employed, e. g. the year 17 of Dungi = ‘the year after that in which the ship of Belit (was launched)’; when a noteworthy event happens it gives its name to the year: thus the same year is ‘the year in which the god Nannar was brought from Kar-zi-da into his temple’. Hence arise twofold descriptions, and they are indeed necessary in this kind of designation when events of the current year are to be dated by the year. An example containing a political event is the year 36 of Dungi = ‘the year after that in which Simuru was destroyed’, or ‘the year in which Simuru was destroyed for the second time’. It is characteristic to count the destructions of a town but not the years[459]. During the reign of Rimsin of Larsa, a contemporary of Hammurabi, the years begin to be run together into an era: there are many datings from the capture of Isin, up to thirty years after that event,[460] and so under the second king of the first Babylonian dynasty five years were reckoned after the taking of Kazallu[461]. So also under the first dynasty of Babylon the years were described by occurrences, by events in the religious and political life, especially religious acts and buildings of the kings, by wars, and lastly by natural catastrophes, especially inundations of the country[462]. Dates given by events of a previous year are also found. At that period however the year-formula seems to have been given at the New Year’s Day and therefore to have been determined beforehand: when important historical events occurred, the year was given a new name from these[463].