The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
A Tale of Two Cities
Eyes on Christ | Vol. 18, Issue 28 | June 25, 2025 | Ordinary Time (After Pentecost)
While reading and writing about Ashurbanipal's Library, I stumbled upon an intriguing mystery connecting hanging gardens and ancient libraries. Given the ongoing conflicts in the Near East, I hope this story deepens our empathy and prayers for all the people who call these lands home. Though writing developed independently around the world, in Sumeria, Egypt, China, and South America, the Near East remains a cradle of civilization that gave us some of our first cities, libraries, and wonders.
The Hanging Gardens
A Tale of Two Cities
In the shadow of ziggurats, where scribes carved immortal words into clay and kings dreamed of paradise, two great cities claimed dominion over heaven's own garden — but only one could hold the truth.
The Historical Mystery
You’ve probably heard of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon being one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. But did you know this? The question of the true location of the Hanging Gardens reveals one of archaeology's most intriguing puzzles, rooted in the rivalry between two of Mesopotamia's greatest civilizations.
Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar II (605-562 BCE)
Nebuchadnezzar II, the Chaldean king who rebuilt Babylon (modern Iraq) into the world's most magnificent city, supposedly constructed the gardens around 600 BCE as a gift for his homesick wife, Amytis of Media (an ancient Iranian kingdom located in what is now northwestern Iran and parts of Azerbaijan). According to later Greek and Roman sources, including Strabo and Diodorus Siculus, the king sought to console his queen, who yearned for the lush mountains and forests of her highland homeland. The flat, dusty plains of Babylon could not compare to Media's verdant landscapes.