Babylon
Babili · Bab-ili · Babylon City · Hillah
Old Babylonian to Neo-Babylonian and Hellenistic (1894 BCE–141 BCE; monumental peak Nebuchadnezzar II 604–562 BCE)·Babylonian / Assyrian / Persian / Hellenistic·🇮🇶 Babil Governorate, Iraq
About
About Babylon
Capital of Babylonian empire (1894 BCE–539 BCE) on Euphrates, Babylon at its greatest under Hammurabi and Nebuchadnezzar II (604–562 BCE): Processional Way, Ishtar Gate (glazed brick dragons and aurochs), ziggurat Etemenanki (Tower of Babel prototype), and reputed Hanging Gardens terrace. Outer walls 18 km circuit, largest city in world c.600 BCE (≈200,000 inhabitants). Partially reconstructed under Saddam Hussein; WHS 2019.
Why it mattersIconic Mesopotamian metropolis; Hammurabi and Nebuchadnezzar's capital
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Location and historicity of Hanging Gardens – at Babylon or Nineveh?
- 02Height and form of Etemenanki ziggurat (Tower of Babel) – 91 m Herodotus claim
Theories
- 01Gardens were Assyrian at Nineveh misattributed to Babylon by classical authors (Dalley)
- 02Etemenanki 91 m height feasible with mudbrick retention (Schmid)
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- First dynasty of Babylon 1894 BCE; major rebuilding under Nebuchadnezzar II 605–562 BCE
- Period
- Old Babylonian to Neo-Babylonian and Hellenistic (1894 BCE–141 BCE; monumental peak Nebuchadnezzar II 604–562 BCE)
- Culture
- Babylonian / Assyrian / Persian / Hellenistic
- Purpose
- Imperial capital and religious centre of Marduk (Esagila) dominating Mesopotamia
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
First dynasty of Babylon 1894 BCE; major rebuilding under Nebuchadnezzar II 605–562 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1377 CE
Major expansion
On the ground
Structures & features
32.5364° N · 44.4208° E · 40 m · 3 mapped features
Ishtar Gate
gateGlazed brick gate with mušḫuššu dragons and bulls on Processional Way
32.5431° N · 44.4200° EEtemenanki (Tower of Babel foundation)
zigguratBase of ziggurat dedicated to Marduk, 91 m square foundation
32.5345° N · 44.4270° EPalace of Nebuchadnezzar II (Southern Palace)
palaceVast palatial complex with throne room and reputed Hanging Gardens vaults
32.5422° N · 44.4215° E
Gallery