Cities in Iraq

Babylon

Streets of Babylon

It was Hammurabi who made Babylon one of the great cities of the ancient world. Archaeologists have discovered that in his city the streets were laid out in straight lines that intersect approximately at right angles, an innovation that bears witness to city planning and strong central government.

There were 24 streets in Babylon, running either parallel to the river or at a right angle to it. These streets were narrow, irregular, ranging from about four to twenty feet in width with high windowless walls on each side. The streets were not paved, with the exception of the Processional Way, but instead created with raw earth. Streets provided access to houses, temples, and public buildings. They also carried the burden of becoming the dumping grounds for the city. The citizens of Babylon, not unlike those of Renaissance England, threw their garbage and filth into the streets. Then, they covered it up with layers of clay. As a result, the streets of Babylon began to rise, and eventually, houses needed to be built on higher ground. Here are the two main roads of Babylon:

Aibur-Shabu: The street known to the Babylonians as Aibur-shabu (the enemy shall never pass) was the name of the road leading from the north to the Ishtar gate. It was a broad paved road that ran for 200m between high walls (the eastern wall of the northern palace and the western side of the eastern outer bastion).

Processional Way: The most famous street was the "Processional Way" which ran along the eastern side of the southern palace, through the Ishtar gate and outside the inner town to a special festival house called the Bit Akitu situated to the north. The road climbs gently upwards towards gate. Center of the roadway was laid with huge flagstones of limestone, either side were slabs of reb beccia veined with white, each paving stone has an inscription of Nebuchadnezzar's dedication. On leaving the gate, the Processional Way goes past the Southern Palace, sloping downwards then some 900m south turns west between the ziggurat enclosure and the Marduk temple towards the Euphrates bridge built by both Nabonidus and Nebuchadnezzar.

The way was lined with figures of some 120 lions, the symbol of Ishtar in molded glazed bricks. The lions on the Ishtar gate have a dark blue background. They were either white with yellow mane or yellow with red manes (now weathered to green).

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The appeal of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon lies with the human desire to return to the simple and exquisite life in the Garden of Eden, a life of Earthly Paradise. The myth of an original Garden with perfumed trees and luscious fruits, birds and animal life, and rivers of life giving waters is common to many faiths including Christianity,

Judaism and Islam. This mystical and peaceful Paradise holds a fascination for the peoples of all ages and cultures, and which helps us to understand the allure of the first Wonder, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon are alluded to in many ancient historical texts, but it is the one Wonder which we are unsure even existed. Current day archeologists are still examining the evidence and trying to determine if and where these Gardens existed. The oldest and best historical reference to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon comes from the third century BC, written by a priest of Babylon named Berosus. He wrote an ancient document called the Babylonica, which is a wonderfully extensive document about many aspects of ancient Babylonian life. His source materials were ancient Babylonian cuneiform records, which he studied and interpreted. Cuneiform tablets were clay plaques into which the written language of Babylonian cuneiform was pressed using writing utensils made from reeds. In his historical documents, Berosus wrote about Babylonian astronomy, the history of the city, the ancient creation myths and the great Epic of Gilgamesh. He listed the dynasties of kings and the countries they ruled; and he also gave us the most accurate record of the great Nebuchadnezzar's rule during his many years as King.

Hatra- City of Sun

Hatra is an archaeological site situated in a depression in the northern jazirah of Iraq that lies between the Tigris and Euphrates, 3KM to the west of Tharthar valley and 10KM south west of the city of Mosul.

Nowadays, Hatra can be reached through a 27KM road that branches off west of the Baghdad - Mosul highway 85KM from Mosul.

It lies some 70KM from the ancient city of Assur.

Hatra was an Arab capital mentioned in a number of Aramaic writings.

The Kingdom of Hatra was bordered to the east by the Tigris river, to the west by the Euphrates river, to the north by Taurus Mountains and to the south by Madain (Ctesiphon) outskirts.

The influence of Hatra, however, had extended beyond Sinjar to reach Khabur and Nsaibin, according to Arab writings.

Hatra has a special geographic and strategic position that enabled it to control trade and military routes along the Tigris and Euphrates.

Hatra linked Mesopotamia, with the Arab Gulf via a land route. The rocky land of the Hatra, which made the city as non-deplete source of stone used in the construction of buildings and making of sculptures.