The City of Babylon
The City of Babylon
The 2000-year story of Babylon sees it moving from a city-state to the centre of a great empire of the ancient world. It remained a centre of kingship under the empires of Assyria, Nebuchadnezzar, Darius, Alexander the Great, the Seleucids and the Parthians. Its city walls were declared to be a Wonder of the World while its ziggurat won fame as the Tower of Babel. Visitors to Berlin can admire its Ishtar Gate, and the supposed location of its elusive Hanging Garden is explained. Worship of its patron god Marduk spread widely while its well-trained scholars communicated legal, administrative and literary works throughout the ancient world, some of which provide a backdrop to Old Testament and Hittite texts. Its science also laid the foundations for Greek and Arab astronomy through a millennium of continuous astronomical observations. This accessible and up-to-date account is by one of the world's leading authorities.
- A wide-ranging, up-to-date account of one of the world's ancient civilisations with a focus on its most famous city
- Integrates literary, documentary and archaeological evidence
- Shows the huge progress made as a result of the discovery of thousands of new texts in recent excavations and collections
Reviews & endorsements
'… this detailed history, drawing on fascinating ancient texts and the archaeology of the site, is valuable reading for anyone wanting to get to grips with ancient Babylon.' Lucia Marchini, Minerva Magazine
'An excellent work … Highly recommended.' S. M. Burstein, Choice Magazine
'… an overview of the 2000-year history of the city of Babylon, bringing the story up to date with a great deal of recent research and many new interpretations that have rarely made it into works for general readers. Creating a book like this is a difficult task, but Dalley has met the challenge expertly, creating a clear narrative that is well researched and nicely organized.' Amanda H. Podany, Biblioteca Orientalis
Product details
July 2021Paperback
9781316501771
396 pages
244 × 171 × 19 mm
0.78kg
Available
Table of Contents
- Preface
- List of illustrations and maps
- Timeline
- Chart of ancient languages
- 1. Land and peoples: an introduction
- 2. Discoveries and excavations
- 3. First kings, to the great rebellion c.1894-1732
- 4. Law, education, literature: the path to supremacy
- 5. From the great rebellion to the end of the first dynasty c.1732-1592
- 6. The next 6 centuries: Kassite, Sealander, and Elamite kings: c.1593-979
- 7. In the shadow of Assyria 978-625
- 8. Independence under soldier-kings, from Nabopolassar to Nebuchadnezzar II 625-562
- 9. Nabonidus, Cyrus II The great, and Cambyses 556-522
- 10. Part I from Darius I to Darius III 521-331
- Part II Alexander III of Macedon, The Great, and Civil War 331-c.129
- Part III Seleucus I to the first parthian conquest
- 11. First parthian conquest 141 BC to the visit of trajan in AD 116
- Appendix. Genesis 14:1-16 and possible links with foreign rulers early in the reign of Hammurabi
- Bibliography
- Index.
