spear into her, and Tiamat split asunder, and her womb fell out from it. Marduk leaped upon her body and looked on her followers as they attempted to escape. But the Four Winds which he had stationed round about Tiamat made all their efforts to flee of no effect. Marduk caught all the Eleven allies of Tiamat in his net, and he trampled upon them as they lay in it helpless. Marduk then took the TABLET OF DESTINIES from Kingu's breast, and sealed it with his seal and placed it on his own breast. [Footnote 1: Or perhaps the "belly of Tiamat." The Egyptians distinguished a portion of the heavens by the name of "Khat Nut," "the belly of Nut," [Heiroglyphics] and two drawings of it are extant. The first shows an oval object rimmed with stars and the other a pear-shaped object, with a god inside it. (See Brugsch, _Inschriften (Astronomische)_ Leipzig, 1883, p, 146.) [Illustration]] Then returning to the dead body of Tiamat he smashed her skull with his club and scattered her blood to the north wind, and as a reward for his destruction of their terrible foe, he received gifts and presents from the gods his fathers. The text then goes on to say that Marduk "devised a cunning plan," i.e., he determined to carry out a series of works of creation. He split the body of Tiamat into two parts; out of one half he fashioned the dome of heaven, and out of the other he constructed the abode of Nudimmud, or Ea, which he placed over against Apsu, i.e., the deep. He also formulated regulations concerning the maintenance of the same. By this "cunning plan" Marduk deprived the powers of darkness of the opportunity of repeating their revolt with any chance of success. Having established the framework of his new heaven and earth Marduk, acting as the celestial architect, set to work to furnish them. In the first place he founded E-Sharra, or the mansion of heaven, and next he set apart and arranged proper places for the old gods of the three realms--Anu, Bel and Ea. [Illustration: Tablet sculptured with a scene representing the worship of the Sun-god in the Temple of Sippar. The Sun-god is seated on a throne within a pavilion holding in one hand a disk and bar which may symbolize eternity. Above his head are the three symbols of the Moon, the Sun, and the planet Venus. On a stand in front of the pavilion rests the disk of the Sun, which is held in position by ropes grasped in the hands of two divine beings who are supported by the roof of the pavilion. The pavilion of the Sun-god stands on the Celestial Ocean, and the four small disks indicate either the four cardinal points or the tops of the pillars of the heavens. The three figures in front of the disk represent the high priest of Shamash, the king (Nabu-aplu-iddina, about 870 B.C.) and an attendant goddess. [No. 91,000.]]