During the course of last year's excavations at Nimrud many metal objects were found in both the Assyrian and Hellenistic levels, and the present article attempts a brief description of this material. The Assyrian buildings were especially rich in military equipment of various kinds while the Hellenistic villages included a good range of standard domestic implements. But it should be stressed that the finds of a single season cannot be regarded as a true reflection on the full range of metals, or of metal types, that were used in either period.

The bulk of the Assyrian metal-work was found in the building known as Fort Shalmaneser, which was a royal depôt in the S.E. corner of the outer town. For, despite the fact that the building seems to have been looted before it was destroyed in the sack of 612 B.C., many of its less precious metal objects were left in situ. One room in particular, F.S. N.W. 15, proved especially rewarding as it contained the remains of a rich collection of spearheads, armour and decorative metal plaques that would appear to have been abandoned when the upper walls threatened to cave in.