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Babylon: Ancient Babylon
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Babylon was the capital of Babylonia, the alluvial plain between the Euphrates and Tigris. After the fall of the Assyrian empire (612 BCE), Babylon became the capital of the ancient Near East, and king Nebuchadnezzar adorned the city with several famous buildings. Even when the Babylonian Empire had been conquered by the Persian king Cyrus the Great (539), Babylon remained a splendid city. Alexander the Great and the Seleucid kings respected the city, but after the mid-second century, the city's decline started.
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Babylon was a city of ancient Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province; Iraq about 80km south of Baghdad. It was the "holy city" of Babylonia from around 2300 BC, and the seat of the Neo-Babylonian Empire from 612 BC. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
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With the recovery of Babylonian independence, a new era of architectural activity ensued, and his son Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC) made Babylon into one of the wonders of the ancient world. Nebuchadnezzar ordered the complete reconstruction of the imperial grounds, including rebuilding the Etemenanki ziggurat and the construction of the Ishtar Gate — the most spectacular of eight gates that ringed the perimeter of Babylon. The Ishtar Gate survives today in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. Nebuchadnezzar is ... credited with the construction of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world), said to have been built for his homesick wife Amyitis. Whether the gardens did exist is a matter of dispute. Although excavations by German archaeologist Robert Koldewey are thought to reveal its foundations, many historians disagree about the location, and some believe it may have been confused with gardens in Nineveh.
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The concept of Babylon plays a central role in Rastafarian Ideology: There is only one other word Rastafarians use with more frequency and passion, and that is the name of their Majestic Ruler, Haile Selassie. People who have even a mild interest in reggae understand what"Babylon"means, yet the roots of the word"Babylon"remain unknown to the masses. To gain a better understanding of this term, it is necessary know the full history of Babylon, which starts 6000 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia.
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Although European travelers had been exploring the Near East searching for the remains of the Tower of Babel since the 12th century AD, the first scientific investigations at Babylon were conducted by Claudius James Rich in 1811. Later, Robert Mignan excavated at the site, and William K. Loftus, who would later excavate at Uruk/Warka, worked there in 1949. Austen Henry Layard began excavations there in 1850, but found little to warrant further campaigns. In 1852, the French team of Fulgence Fresnel and Jules Oppert found a number of inscriptions and published the first map of Babylon in 1853. In 1854, Henry Creswicke Rawlinson and George Smith excavated at the site, and in 1876, Hormuzd Rassam began a new campaign. Although Rassam found a number of important cuneiform documents, some of the ancient architecture of the site was destroyed by overzealous excavators.
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Ancient Babylon was located in Mesopotamia between the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. Today, the remains of the city are spread out over a cluster of mounds located on the Euphrates about 60 miles southwest of Baghdad, Iraq. The river divided the city in two, with the old city to the east and a smaller new city to the west. The river then fed main canals that watered each half. During the rein of Sennacherib, the city was destroyed by the Assyrians. Once the city was rebuilt, the name was changed to Babylonia.
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Ancient Babylon