Babylon deserves, as the first great city in history, the title of a world metropolis. Even on the periphery of the then-known Near Eastern world, it was regarded as the embodiment of urban life and city culture. Its heyday came under King Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 B.C.), ruler of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.
In area, population, architecture, and level of urban development, Babylon surpassed all other cities of its time. Its reputation and influence remained unmatched for centuries.
Biblical connection: The story of the “confusion of tongues” (Tower of Babel) may go back to the experience of the 50 000 Jews deported by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon, who encountered the city’s multilingual population.
The City of Wonders
Babylon contained two of the “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.”
- A double city wall, at least 18 km long, enclosed about 8 km².
An outer moat 80 m wide and a triple inner wall protected the urban core.
A 120 m Euphrates bridge rested on seven stone piers.
- The enormous ziggurat of sun-dried brick, the temple-tower Etemenanki, rose in seven terraces to about 92 m in height and had a base of 92 × 92 m.
It was one of the largest constructions of Mesopotamia and counted as a world wonder dedicated to the god Marduk.
- The second wonder, the “Hanging Gardens of Semiramis,” built by the Assyrians and reconstructed in Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar II, consisted of terraced roof gardens at different heights.
The city probably had over 100 000 inhabitants and was the most cosmopolitan center of its age.
Deported Jews and Iranians, as well as traders from Arabia and India, lived side by side — a situation that may have inspired the legend of the Babylonian confusion of languages.
Economy and Urban Life
Babylon’s economy differed from that of most Mesopotamian cities:
it was largely non-agricultural and included an advanced banking and financial system.
The city plan was deliberately organized.
From the Ishtar Gate a broad Processional Street led straight to the Temple of Marduk (Esagila), forming a ceremonial route used for royal parades.
Its layout symbolized the power and splendor of Babylonian kingship.
Additional Information Boxes
- Ziggurat = “House of the Connection between Heaven and Earth.”
The temple tower left traces in the biblical Tower of Babel story.
- Semiramis is the Greek form of the Assyrian queen Sammu-ramat (ca. 811 B.C.), whose later legend was linked to the Hanging Gardens.