Erech: (LXX., "Orech"), length, or Moon-town, one of the cities of Nimrod's
kingdom in the plain of Shinar
(Genesis 10:10) the Orchoe of the Greeks and
Romans. It was probably the city of the Archevites, who were
transplanted to Samaria by Asnapper
(Ezra 4:9) It lay on the left bank
of the Euphrates, about 120 miles south-east of Babylon, and is now
represented by the mounds and ruins of Warka. It appears to have been
the necropolis of the Assyrian kings, as the whole region is strewed
with bricks and the remains of coffins. "Standing on the summit of
the principal edifice, called the Buwarizza, a tower 200 feet
square in the centre of the ruins, the beholder is struck with
astonishment at the enormous accumulation of mounds and ancient
relics at his feet. An irregular circle, nearly 6 miles in
circumference, is defined by the traces of an earthen rampart, in
some places 40 feet high."
