Babylon

Four thousand years ago, there existed a thriving, progressive, and extraordinarily wealthy city, which grew to become one of the most prominent cities in the world. The city had paved streets, numerous gates, and over 250 towers, each at least 100 meters high. It was in this city that modern writing and mathematics were invented. With ferries, roads, and drawbridges, transportation within the city was efficient. The city's famous Hanging Gardens were a remarkable feat of engineering and were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The wealth of the city was unimaginable, with people creating impressive works of art out of gold. The city of Babylon, located in what is now modern-day Iraq, was home to a golden statue of Baal, a beautiful table supposedly made of 22,000 kilos of pure gold, a golden lion, and a golden statue of a man. The city's majestic royal palace was the largest ever built in world history. Babylon was well known for the Tower of Babel, the tallest tower in the world at that time. However, the city and the Babylonian empire met a dramatic fall after its incredible rise. We will explore how the Babylonian empire rose and fell.

After the fall of the Akkadian empire, two new empires emerged, claiming nearby land. The Babylonians were in the south, while the Assyrians were in the north. The Babylonians became the first group of people to create an empire that would claim the entire country of Mesopotamia. Although the city-state of Babylon had been in Mesopotamia for years, things started looking up for Babylon when they claimed the majority of the land for themselves. King Hammurabi was elected ruler around 1792 BC, and it was not long before he desired to expand his reach beyond Babylon. Within a few years, Hammurabi had successfully conquered the entire country of Mesopotamia, including the Assyrians in the north. Hammurabi became one of the most powerful rulers of his time, and under his rule, Babylon became the richest and most prosperous city in ancient history. Located on the banks of the Euphrates river, Babylon was a major trading area for people from all over the world. It had abundant supplies and goods, and services and resources were always available. The city was highly advanced and was the first to adopt new ideas and products that were being invented across the globe. At its peak, it's estimated that as many as 200,000 people lived in Babylon.

The locals constructed a colossal pyramid, which they utilized as a temple. According to researchers, this pyramid was believed to have a height of approximately 100 meters, with broad streets leading to it from all the entrances around the pyramids. Other areas of the city were adorned with gardens, palaces, towers, and awe-inspiring works of art, unlike anything humans had seen before. The city was the cultural hub of the world, where science, music, mathematics, astronomy, and literature flourished within its walls. The Babylonians' influence led to the invention of writing and mathematics, which we often take for granted. Without them, modern civilization would not exist as we know it today. They also claimed to have invented the wheel, modern agriculture, the bow, the plow, irrigation, and numerous other inventions that helped establish humanity.

Many of the early humans claimed to have been visited by beings who descended from the sky and imparted knowledge to them on how to live a prosperous life and use the resources around them to their advantage. While we don't know much about the invention of most of these things, it's fascinating to note that many of the people who originally invented them, such as the wheel or the plow, claimed that they were given the ideas by angels or aliens. However, let's get back to the Babylonians.

They invented the first writing system involving clay tablets engraved with wedge-shaped letters, which helped document their history and the creation of early mathematics. This method allowed us to know more about ancient Babylon than ancient Egypt. The Babylonians were also the first civilization to use mathematics to measure land, tax people, and conduct all kinds of business. They also documented the night sky with numbers, creating a lunar calendar that was remarkably accurate for its time. The Babylonians developed symbols to represent large numbers, making it more efficient to document quantities. They may have even created the first abacus, an early version of a calculator. One of their most notable contributions was the Hammurabi Code, a set of written laws established by King Hammurabi.

It may seem strange to think about, but before the concept of written laws, legal rules were generally communicated verbally or through implication. This left citizens in a legal gray area as they were uncertain about what was considered right or wrong. For example, if someone claimed it was illegal to own more than 50 piles of wheat and you owned more, you might be required to give it away to your closest neighbor. But what if someone lied and took advantage of you?

Hammurabi, the King of Babylon, realized this and requested that laws be written down. He commissioned his workers to create large pillars that would list the various laws of the land. These 282 laws served as guidelines that regulated businesses, ensured workers were paid fairly, and dictated criminal behavior. There were even laws related to adoption, marriage, and divorce.

However, after Hammurabi's death, his sons did not possess the same leadership skills as their father. They failed to maintain the city's strength, causing it to slowly crumble. Babylon's neighboring cities and countries took advantage of the situation, and the city eventually fell apart, nearly becoming lost to time.

It was the Cascites who conquered Babylon, overthrowing the new leaders and claiming the city as their own, ruling it for around 400 years. All of Hammurabi's rules were overturned, and the city was completely transformed to better serve the Cassidites' purposes. Later, the Assyrians came in and took over Babylon, but the city was eventually reclaimed by the Babylonians in 612 BC. The Neo-Babylonian Empire was established, ruled by King Nebuchadnezzar II, one of the city's greatest leaders who expanded the territory and captured the Hebrews. However, after Nebuchadnezzar's death, the city began to fall apart and was claimed by the Persians by 529 BC. One of Babylon's most notable achievements was the construction of the Tower of Babel, built after the Great Flood as a towering structure that reached the sky. Some believe it was constructed to reach heaven, while others say it was built as protection against another catastrophic flood.

Regardless of the reason, according to biblical accounts, God intervened and caused confusion among the people by making them forget their common language and speak in different tongues. This resulted in the downfall of the tower's construction as they were unable to communicate with one another. The exact location of the Tower of Babel remains unknown, but researchers believe that the Etemenanki tower in Babylon, dedicated to the patron god Marduk, is the most probable candidate.

Babylon, under the rule of Saddam Hussein, underwent excavation and reconstruction efforts to restore the ancient city. However, the project was never completed after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Today, Babylon is open to tourists, offering a glimpse into ancient human civilization and the city's history. Nevertheless, the accuracy of historical accounts of Babylon's grandeur and its significance may be subject to misinterpretation and embellishment over the years, as in the case of many historical events.