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'Extract from a letter addressed by Major Rawlinson to Mr Norris, dated Baghdad, 27 April 1847' in which he writes of Dr Hincks' discovery of the numerals of cuneiform of which he has no doubt that Hincks is right. He continues to write of the information he has been able to interpret from the inscriptions and his deciphering of some of the symbols.

'Extract from a letter addressed by Major Rawlinson to Mr Norris, dated Bisitun, 20 July 1847' in which he writes of his arrival a week previously and the collecting of scaffolding and ladders in order to examine the great sculpture. He writes that he has been poorly repaid for his trouble as the inscriptions are proving difficult.

'Extract from a letter of Major Rawlinson addressed to Mr Norris, dated Behistun, Sept. 20, 1847' in which he is delighted to report that having returned to the site ten days previously, with renewed health and spirit, he has found a considerable portion of the Babylonian inscription to be legible. He has made copies of the inscription using a powerful telescope resulting in him obtaining a list of Babylonian names and a 'tolerable' vocabulary.

'Extracts from letters of Major Rawlinson addressed to Mr Norris'. Extracts from letters dated 25 February, 28 March, 28 April and 15 July 1848, in which he writes firstly of how his indisposition has interrupted his explorations but he is working on the translations from the copies of the inscriptions he has made. In March he writes of making the most of learning about Babylonian knowledge whilst in the desert and of the discoveries he made. In April he had concluded that the roots of Babylonian are biblical and monosyllabic. He has found Babylonian words in the Rabbinical Chaldee. He has also found what he believes to be a description of Nebuchadnezzar's buildings. In July he remarks that his Assyrian progress is satisfactory. He has made good progress on a translation from the Nimrud obelisk and in his understanding of the different grammatical parts of the language.

A bound volume containing copies of letters sent in the administration of the Society between the years 1823-1835 and 1846-1861. The earlier ones, covering 1823-1835, are all concerned with the finances of the Society. There is then a break in the letters until 1846, after which the correspondence covers a broader spectrum of activities.