Babylonian Gardens. Queen Semiramis. Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Where are the Gardens of Babylon actually located?

90 km south of the capital of Iraq, Baghdad, are the ruins of ancient Babylon - a once majestic city, the capital of a world empire. It reached its greatest prosperity in the 7th century BC during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II. According to the testimony of ancient authors, on the orders of the king, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were built in the city, the secrets of which are still hotly debated by scientists today.

Dynastic marriage

Ruled all of Western Asia and the northern part of Egypt. The main opponent of Babylon in the struggle for dominance in the Ancient East was Assyria. To conquer it, Nebuchadnezzar enlisted the support of the Median king Cyaxares. In accordance with the terms of their military treaty, Princess Amytis of Media became the wife of the ruler of Babylon.

It was for her that one of the ancient wonders of the world was later created - the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Even by modern standards, it was a huge project, requiring significant financial investments and attracting a huge number of workers. However, the question inevitably arises: “Why the Gardens of Babylon and not the Gardens of Amytis?”

Legendary Shamiram

In the 9th century BC, Assyria was ruled by a queen - an unprecedented case in the history of the Ancient East, and not only that. Her name was Shamiram (in Greek translation Semiramis). In ancient texts, she is credited with the founding of Babylon, and her image absorbed many of the features of the goddess Ishtar. Be that as it may, today only one thing is known for certain: Shamiram (Semiramis) really existed and for some time reigned alone in Assyria. Traditionally, although erroneously, one of the famous wonders of the world - the Hanging Gardens of Babylon - is associated with her name in history.

Works of ancient authors

The unique park, built in Babylon, already in ancient times earned many enthusiastic descriptions. Mentions of him are found in the works of Greek, Babylonian and Roman historians. The most complete description of the gardens was compiled by Herodotus in his work “History”. He visited Babylon in the 5th century BC, that is, approximately 200 years after the Hanging Gardens were built here by order of Nebuchadnezzar.

In addition to Herodotus, other ancient authors also visited the city: Strabo, Berossus, Diodorus, etc. Thanks to their works, today we can imagine what one of the seven wonders of the world looked like - the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

Revival of interest

Along with the fall of Babylon, all the achievements of Mesopotamian civilization disappeared without a trace. For a long time, historians even doubted the existence of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, despite mentions of them in ancient manuscripts. However, their skepticism gave way to a new surge of interest after the excavations of Robert Koldewey, who discovered the Ishtar Gate and the Tower of Babel.

The German archaeological expedition headed by him, starting in 1899, made a number of sensational discoveries. Since that time, the hanging gardens have again become the subject of research by scientists around the world.

Koldewey's hypothesis and modern interpretation

Once upon a time, during excavations of the Southern Palace, a German archaeologist discovered 14 mysterious arched chambers. Koldewey insisted that they served as the foundation of the hanging gardens. Here, according to the archaeologist, there were devices that raised water upward. Today, many scientists believe that these were either warehouses or a prison.

Ancient Greek authors claimed that the gardens were located in close proximity to the Tower of Babel. Based on this, Koldewey decided that they needed to be looked for in the city center, not far from the temple and the royal residence. However, the Southern Palace was located too far from the Euphrates, and there was not enough space there for gardens.

For this reason, modern researchers believe that the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were located near the city wall, much closer to the river. This is indirectly confirmed by Strabo, who wrote that with the help of a pump, water from the Euphrates was raised into the gardens all day long.

Assyrian trace

The exact location of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is still debated. For example, there is another theory according to which they were not in Babylon, but in Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. In the 8th century BC it was a huge city, rivaling Babylon in size and splendor. Because of its inhabitants' love of gardening, some scholars believe that the second wonder of the world was located in Nineveh. Confirmation, in their opinion, is the surviving relief depicting gardens, which adherents of the “Assyrian” theory consider to be the gardens of Babylon. However, most scientists still adhere to the traditional version.

Royal gift

Having become the wife of Nebuchadnezzar, Amytis settled in Babylon, surrounded by endless sands. She quickly became homesick for the lush gardens, forests and streams of her homeland. Then the king decided to give a gift to his wife by arranging a real Median garden on the banks of the Euphrates. To fulfill his plan, Nebuchadnezzar hired the best engineers and builders of his time.

In the meantime, they were setting up a site for the future garden, an expedition set off to Ecbatana, the capital of the Median kingdom, located at an altitude of 1800 m, where the climate is cool and humid. The path was not close. Ecbatana (today northern Iran) was 500 km from Babylon.

About 200 species of trees were selected for the return journey through the desert, including pomegranates and palms, as well as rare flowers. Those accompanying the caravan had to constantly water the plants throughout the trip.

Construction works

According to Diodorus, the garden measured 123 x 123 m. It was built on a waterproof platform, which in turn rested on a foundation consisting of numerous platforms. There was a terrace on which to grow trees, and above it several others. To build the roofs of these galleries, a thick layer of reeds, bitumen, as well as clay bricks and cement were used.

Strabo, who visited Babylon in the first century BC, wrote a detailed description of how the water supply system for the gardens worked. The pumps rose to the very top tier, as well as diagonally on each terrace. They were probably powered by pack animals. The pipes carried huge volumes of water, which created artificial waterfalls and then flowed through a network of aqueducts, giving life to plants.

What the gardens looked like

Their description can be found in one of the works of the same Diodorus. He wrote that there was one entrance to the gardens, the terraces - the widest steps - were located in tiers, one above the other. In front of each of them was a gallery supported by stone columns.

But the interior decoration of the gardens was even more magnificent than the exterior. According to ancient descriptions, there were numerous rooms there, and in the very center there was a large area with a swimming pool. It was illuminated by the sun, the rays of which penetrated through the roof.

Grown in the dry and hot climate of Babylon, the trees and flowers amazed everyone with their splendor. For this reason, they were numbered among the miracles, which traditionally numbered seven in ancient times. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon are second on this list, immediately following the Pyramid of Cheops.

There have been many reconstructions of Babylon in the past. Of course, all photos of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon are a figment of the imagination of artists who were based on descriptions of ancient authors. With the development of computer graphics, Babylon was recently recreated in all its splendor, as you can see by watching the following video.

End of the Empire

The ancient Greeks compiled a list of the most impressive, in their opinion, architectural structures. It consisted of seven wonders, and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were quite naturally included in it.

For all its power, Babylon, however, could not exist forever. In 539 the city was conquered by the Persians. Everything was burned to the ground, neither the Tower of Babel nor the Hanging Gardens escaped the common fate. ordered to raze Babylon to the ground. All his luxury perished in the flames of a destructive fire. Eventually, the ruins of the city were covered with sand, and they were lost for many centuries.

The richest and most majestic city of the Ancient East. He was sung in legends, his magnificence was told all over the world. The best merchants and ordinary people flocked here in search of a better life. was famous for its beautiful architectural creations and wealth.

But, perhaps, the main attraction of the city was Semiramis. They have become a legend and are considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

D In our time, the creation of gardens was considered fiction. First of all, she contributed to this. After all, even her own life was covered in legends.

Ancient historians said thatwas a simple court lady. But she possessed such divine beauty that she captivated the king himself, who later married the beauty. The cunning wife had such a strong influence on the king that she persuaded him to give her power for five days. Immediately after receiving it, Semiramis arranged a grand feast, at which she won over all the nobles to her side. And later she won the trust of the remaining subjects of the king, and imprisoned her husband in prison. The rules of Semiramis were absolute throughout his life.

However, there is a more truthful version about the existence of Semiramis. She was a real historical figure, although little is known about her life. It is believed that there were even several Semiramis. It is difficult to say which of them the Hanging Gardens of Babylon are specifically connected with. And some historians call this name the daughter of King Beloch, who reigned at the end of the 8th century BC. e.

But actually famous Babylon are associated with another woman - the wife of King Nebuchadnezzar II. During his reign, Babylon fought with Assyria. In order to protect the state and strengthen the borders, the king entered into a military alliance with Media. And in order to strengthen the alliance, Nebuchadnezzar II married the daughter of the king of Media, Semiramis.

Media, unlike Babylon, was a prosperous state with green hills. In Babylon, surrounded by sands, Semiramis became bored. Therefore, Nebuchadnezzar II ordered the construction of the Hanging Gardens for his wife.

Semiramis was a pyramid consisting of four tiers supported by 25-meter columns. Each tier was covered with fertile soil, in which seeds of various flowers, herbs, shrubs and trees were planted. The tiers were connected by beautiful staircases made of white and pink stone. Inside one of the columns there was a pipe through which water from the Euphrates rose to the upper tier, from where it flowed down in small streams and waterfalls.

The ever-blooming exotic flowers, green grass, birdsong and the murmur of water made an indelible impression. The news of the creation of the gardens and their beauty spread throughout the world. In the sultry sands of Babylon, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon became a true miracle.

But during the Persian rule, the palace was empty. Subsequently, Alexander the Great moved here and made Babylon the capital of his empire. And after his death, everything here fell into decay.

Found by German archaeologist Robert Koldewey. In 1887 he was engaged in excavations in Babylonia. Comparing his findings with the records of ancient scientists and information on cuneiform tablets, Robert came to the conclusion that he had found the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Thus one of the greatest discoveries of all time was made.

Unfortunately, even the remains of the legendary gardens have not reached us. They were destroyed by the floods of the Euphrates. You can imagine what this wonderful architectural creation looked like only from the records of historians and with the help of your own imagination.

Where are the Hanging Gardens of Babylon?

Today you can only see the ruins of Babylon, located 20 km from Baghdad. You can get here by car.

For a long time, historians and archaeologists were skeptical of enthusiastic descriptions of this complex. This attitude was explained by the absence of their mention in the deciphered cuneiform writings of the Sumerians. The detailed description of Babylonia left by Herodotus, who was there during this period, also does not say anything about the hanging park.

But Josephus mentions them, referring to the “Babylonian History” written by the priest Berossus. In addition, the testimonies of ancient historians about the place of death of Alexander the Great say that he died under the arches of his favorite park, which reminded him of his native Macedonia.

The archaeological discovery of the German scientist R. Koldewey tipped the scales in favor of the version about the reality of man-made landscapes. Koldewey's expedition, which spent 18 years (1899–1917) conducting excavations in Hilla (90 km from Baghdad), proved that Babylonian miracles actually existed. The discovered remains of masonry pillars and a shaft well next to the brickwork of the ruins of the palace, according to the archaeologist, served as confirmation of the words of the ancient authors. The Babylonians used baked bricks in their buildings. The stone was very expensive. Stone was used only during the construction of gardens and part of the defensive wall.

The fate of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Babylon existed for about 26 centuries. It reached its greatest prosperity under King Nebuchadnezzar II in the 6th century BC. There was no city equal to it in size, beauty, power and degree of depravity. Expressions about the Tower of Babel, pandemonium, harlot, etc. have come down from the depths of centuries and have been preserved.

The kings of Babylonia waged constant wars with neighboring states. One of them, Assyria, annoyed the Babylonians the most, twice razing their capital to the ground. Joining forces with the king of Media, Cyaxares, they completely defeated the Assyrians.

To strengthen the alliance, Nebuchadnezzar II married the daughter of the king of the Medes.

Growing up in the cool, forested mountains of the Zagros Mountains (northern part of modern Iran), the queen suffered from heat, dry winds and sandstorms. The vain ruler ordered a corner to be built for his chosen one, similar to her beloved Media.

The river divided the city into two districts: western and eastern. Three rows of powerful walls with fortifications surrounded its perimeter. On one bank stood a tower, on the other - the ruler’s palace, unsurpassed in luxury, with 172 rooms and an area of ​​52,000 m2.

A four-tiered pyramid 40 m high was erected next to the palace. Massive supports held the slabs stacked on them.

Waterproofing, soil layer, good lighting and watering made this building an evergreen oasis.
The lower vault of the hanging gardens was the largest. It looked like a quadrangle with a maximum length of 42 m and a minimum of 34 m. Subsequent rows of slabs were stacked in terraces so as not to block the sun's rays, tapering towards the top.

The layer of soil made it possible to plant not only shrubs, herbs and flowers, but also trees.

By order of the ruler, seedlings and seeds were brought from all over the world. Strange plants have taken root on the man-made mountain, amazing with their beauty and aroma.

For irrigation, a special irrigation system was built, through which water came from the Euphrates. Channels were punched into the supporting pillars, through which hundreds of slaves pumped water to the top of the structure. From there, water flowed down in streams, cooling the scorching breath of the Arabian desert and filling the area with moisture.

Several rows of reeds, resin, stone, basalt, gypsum and lead slabs prevented water from seeping into the lower tier.

Bright white and coral stone stairs led to the top, and from there there was a view of a huge city, dusty and loud. And here, in the cool shade of the trees, silence reigned, broken only by the quiet whisper of water and the singing of birds.

For 200 years, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon delighted the eyes and aroused the admiration of their contemporaries.

But “nothing lasts forever under the sun.” The kingdom fell into decay. The new rulers did not have the desire or means to maintain an artificial park. Earthquakes and floods gradually destroyed it. After 6 centuries, Babylon also disappeared. The biblical prediction that it would be destroyed and never be inhabited again came true.

The Legend of Semiramis

The gardens were named after Semiramis. But the name of Nebuchadnezzar’s wife Amytis has been preserved in history. Who was Semiramis? Why is the wonder of the world created by the masters of Mesopotamia associated with her name?

History knows the names of several Semiramis, and all of them lived several centuries before the gardens. Poetic speculation intervened in the chronography. By combining real events and myths, he created the myth of Semiramis, the ruler of Babylon.

The Greek writer Diodorus came up with the legend of Semiramis, taking as a basis a completely historical person: Shammuramat, the Assyrian ruler.

The daughter of the goddess Derketo and a mortal youth was abandoned by her mother to the mercy of fate.

A flock of pigeons saved the baby by feeding and warming him. The shepherds, surprised by their strange behavior, followed their flight and discovered the child.

She was taken in by the caretaker of the royal herds. He even named the girl Semiramis, which means dove in Syriac.

The extraordinary attractiveness of the shepherd's adopted daughter captivated Onnes, Nin's first adviser. She married him and became his main adviser. The husband obeyed his adored wife in everything.

During the Bactrian War, Onnes commanded an army, but was unsuccessful. Ning was angry with him. Having a numerical advantage over the defenders of the capital of Bactria, his soldiers could not defeat them. The adviser turned to his wife for help.

The devoted wife rushed to her husband, assessed the situation and proposed an unconventional solution: to attack not in the weakest area, but in the most fortified one, judging that there were the fewest Bactrians there. She herself led a detachment of volunteers. The calculation turned out to be correct. The Assyrians completely defeated their enemies.

The king fell in love with the brave beauty and invited Onnes to give her up, or else he would order him to be deprived of his sight. Not having the strength to abandon his wife, Onnes hanged himself.

Ninus took Semiramis as his wife. She later bore him a son named Ninyas.

With the death of the king, the ambitious woman became the ruler of Assyria. She was no longer interested in marriage. She wanted power and might.

On the banks of the Euphrates, the queen built the city of Babylon, decorating it with temples, statues of gods and an artificial hill planted with unprecedented plants.

From then on, the dove became the sacred bird of the Assyrians.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon - the ingenious construction of Sumerian craftsmen, engineers and mathematicians disappeared forever, leaving descendants only an echo in which truth and fiction fused under the thousand-year pressure of time. They command admiration and respect 25 centuries after their disappearance. Who knows, maybe history will someday open the veil of secrecy, and humanity will learn more about the second wonder of the world of Antiquity.

Of all the “old” Wonders of the World, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is the most mysterious structure. For a long time it was not even known whether they actually existed, or whether it was someone’s fantasy, wandering from chronicle to chronicle over the centuries.

Fairy Hanging Gardens

It is noteworthy that the most diligent descriptions were left by those who have not seen this wonder of the world. The Gardens of Babylon are not mentioned in a single word on the tablets of Babylon, and those who visited there remain silent.

As a result, we have today what the ancient historians left us, weaving together Semiramis, Nebuchadnezzar, who ruled two hundred years after her, the Hanging Gardens themselves, attributing to them an almost mystical beauty and essence. Let's take a closer look at this wonder of the world.

The Gardens of Babylon, like many architectural pearls of antiquity, according to legend, were erected in the name of love. One of the stories goes like this: the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II entered into an alliance with the ruler of Media, taking his daughter named Amytis as his wife. Babylon itself rose among the endless expanses of sand. It was a noisy and dusty shopping center. Amitis began to yearn for her evergreen and fresh homeland. The loving husband was faced with a dilemma - to move the city closer to Media or to make Babylon itself more comfortable. And Nebuchadnezzar, so that his beloved’s eyes would not shine from tears of sadness, decided to build an unprecedented garden in Babylon. By order of the great ruler, a pyramid was erected with four tiers of platforms, which were supported by twenty-meter columns. The Hanging Gardens could not replace their native country, however, this was enough for the queen to say goodbye to the melancholy and nostalgia.

However, what does this have to do with a certain Semiramis? Babylon proved to the world that it could create the first monumental structure in honor of love. And the name of the then ruler miraculously mixed up in the memory of descendants with the name of another Assyrian queen, and the gardens became known as the gardens of Semiramis. Perhaps it is just a whim of the human consciousness to connect the great with the great...

The story of Semiramis is a Greek legend passed down through the centuries by Herodotus and Ctesias. And it did not refer to Nebuchadnezzar, but to another Babylonian king, Shamshiadat V. However, the legend retains the theme of love. In honor of the beautiful Assyrian Amazon queen, Shamshiadat ordered the construction of a huge structure from an arched arcade. On each floor of arches stacked on top of each other, gardens were laid out, planting the rarest trees. The amazing beauty was complemented by graceful fountains with the murmur of water, and birds invisible in the branches delighted the ears with their singing. The multi-story and end-to-end wonder of the world - the Gardens of Babylon - seemed almost like a castle in the air, mysterious and magical.

The garden was irrigated with the help of a water-lifting wheel; hundreds of slaves continuously set it in motion so that water flowed to each tier of the gardens. And to prevent water from dripping onto the lower tiers, each “platform” was covered with a dense layer of reeds, on top of which was laid a layer of fertile soil, into which, in turn, strong trees and shrubs and delicate flowers were embedded with rhizomes and roots. From a distance, the wonderful pyramid looked like an evergreen and blooming hill.

The Babylonian oasis lasted for about two centuries, and then fell into desolation during the hegemony of the Persians. This palace rarely hosted Persian kings.

Later, in the fourth century, the palace was chosen as a residence by Alexander the Great, becoming his last earthly refuge. After Alexandra, the luxurious 172 rooms of the palace fell into complete disrepair, the foundation was washed away, and the structure collapsed.

For a long time, the Gardens of Babylon were considered a beautiful fiction, a legend, like the Assyrian queen herself. However, Semiramis, although she lived a legendary life, is quite a historical figure.

Legendary queen of Assyria

In ancient times, a temple of the goddess Derketo was erected near the city of Askalon. Derketo was once forced to fall in love with a mere mortal youth. She bore him a daughter, and then, angry, irritated by the unequal marriage, killed her husband and disappeared into the waters of a deep lake. The girl was left to the mercy of fate. According to legend, pigeons saved her: they carried milk in their beaks and warmed her with their wings. The girl grew up, and she no longer had enough milk. Then the birds began to bring her cheese. The shepherds, from whose product the pigeons were pinching off pieces, noticed this matter. Interested, they followed the trail of the birds. And they found the girl. They took her to the caretaker of the royal herds, Simmas, who named the lovely child Semiramis, which meant “dove.” Semiramis grew up to be a beauty that had no equal at that time. The first royal adviser, Onnes, who was passing through those parts, was captivated by her beauty. Inspired by love, he asked Simmas for the hand of Semiramis, took the girl to Nineveh and made him his wife.

The beauty of the young woman was not inferior to her other talents. And a quick mind soon came in handy - because the war with Bactria began. The king sent a strong army, but with all his might he could not take the capital of Bactria. The enemy managed to repel all attacks. Onnes, tossing about from powerlessness, ordered to invite his beautiful wife to the battlefield, who had already given practical, wise advice more than once.

Semiramis ordered to sew herself a new dress for the journey. However, the dress turned out to be not quite ordinary. Elegant in fashion. it was cut and sewn in such a way that it would not be clear who was wearing it - was it a woman? Man?

Arriving at her husband, Semiramis saw that the troops of her native state, according to tactics and common sense, were attacking the weakest and most fragile part of the fortifications. Everything is logical, isn't it? But Semiramis was not burdened with knowledge of military affairs, like all women. Therefore, calling on volunteers, she ordered a strike to be struck where there were the fewest defenders - on the strongest part of the walls. The enemies did not expect such a strange move, contrary to all strategic sciences. Stunned, they missed several key defense points, and the city fell.

Admired by her courage and ingenuity, the king tried to persuade adviser Onnes to voluntarily give up Semiramis, promising to give his daughter for this. But Onnes was adamant. Then the king switched from persuasion to threats, promising to gouge out the rebellious man’s eyes - after all, he was truly blind to the orders of his ruler. In the end, Onnes could not stand the contradictions tearing him apart, went crazy and committed suicide. No one else stopped King Nin from marrying Semiramis. So the beautiful widow received the royal title.

After some time, she gave birth to a son, the heir to the throne. However, after her second husband, she took the reins into her own hands.

Despite the fact that many sought the hand of the dowager queen, luck did not smile on anyone. An enterprising, active woman decided to surpass her late royal husband. On the Euphrates River she founded a new city with powerful towers and impregnable walls - Babylon. Around the city, by order of the queen, the swamps were drained and an amazing temple to the god Bel was erected. During her reign, a convenient road was built through the seven ridges of the Zagros chain to Lydia, a state in the west of Asia Minor. In Lydia itself, on her orders, the capital of Ecbatana was founded with a delightful royal palace, and water was brought to the capital through a tunnel from distant mountain lakes.

Semiramis then carried out several successful military operations. First there was the Thirty Years' War, in which the kingdom of Media, Persia, Egypt, Libya and Ethiopia bowed to the queen. Only in India did the queen's luck turn away. She lost almost three quarters of her army. However, this could not cool her ardor. A slight wound from an arrow could not do this either.

The queen returned to Babylon to gain strength. There was a sign for her not to continue the war, and the powerful ruler, having tamed herself, stopped attacking India, the ruler of which allowed himself to rather rudely call the beautiful Semiramis a lover of love affairs.

By this point, her son was bored with his inglorious life. He decided that mother had stayed too long on the throne, and organized a conspiracy against Semiramis. The queen recognized the treachery and voluntarily handed over the crown to her son, and she herself “went out onto the balcony, turned into a dove and flew away...”.

The “official” story of the biography of Semiramis is much more prosaic. According to a second-century Greek writer, Semiramis was once an “insignificant court lady” of one of the Assyrian rulers, but her beauty was so great that even the ruler of the state could not resist. And one day she persuaded her husband to hand over the reins to her for just five days.

Having received the royal regalia, on the very first day she won over the dignitaries and military leaders to her side, organizing a grand feast. Then she ordered royal honors to be given to her, and imprisoned her husband. Plus: the determined queen received the throne and retained power until her old age.

These are the kind of contradictory stories time gives us. In addition, history knows several more contenders for the name “Semiramis”. The Greeks understood this name as the Assyrian queen Shammuramat, who lived around 800 BC.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon are a wonder of the world, an oasis created in the middle of deserted, faceless expanses. This is evidence of human power, the power of people over the laws of nature. The pyramids in Egypt were no less grandiose. The pyramids, rugged giants, are still “alive” today. But the Hanging Gardens turned out to be a fragile structure, and sank into oblivion along with the majestic Babylon.

Hanging Gardens. Alexander the Great

At the time when the troops of Alexander the Great entered Babylon, this city was no longer the capital of a great power; the era of its heyday was rolling towards sunset. Makenonsky himself, it should be noted, influenced in one way or another the fate of many monuments of the past, although he himself did not erect any of the wonders of the world.

In any case, in 331 BC. The Babylonians invited the Macedonian to visit their city in peace. The great conqueror was amazed by the grandeur and wealth of the world's largest city, albeit in decline. The Babylonians greeted Alexander as a liberator, and in front of him lay the whole world, awaiting the menacing advance of the Macedonian king.

Hardly ten years had passed before the circle closed. Tired and exhausted, Alexander returned to Babylon. Despite the inhuman stress of recent years, he was still full of plans and plans. He was going to conquer Egypt and was preparing to march to the West. His idea was to conquer Carthage, bring Italy and Spain to their knees and reach the Pillars of Hercules - the limit of the then world.

Alas, in the midst of preparations he was struck down by illness. For several days the conqueror struggled with illness, held a council with the commanders, and gave orders to the flotilla. The dust and heat of the city pressed on Alexander, penetrating even through the thick palace walls. Alexander was not afraid; he had seen enough of her and her ghosts in numerous battles. But death, understandable and even acceptable ten years ago, was now unthinkable for him. The living god, under the feet of whose horses the whole world obediently lay down, did not want to die in the dusty stuffiness on a foreign side, far from the shady forests of his homeland. He believed that he had not completed his destiny and must join the second part of the world to the first.

And when he felt completely miserable, he remembered the only Babylonian oasis that could bring him relief. He ordered to be transported to the gardens to remember the aroma of life, the smell of greatness and new achievements...

Babylon was no longer destined to become the capital of the world. The palace was destroyed, the empire of Alexander the Great instantly crumbled after him.

Tall columns collapsed, stairs and ceilings collapsed. However, the plants of the once beautiful garden died earlier - when there was no one to pump water from the Euphrates River day and night.

Where to find the Gardens of Babylon?

The Wonder of the World, the second of the famous ancient Seven Wonders, the Hanging Gardens, was discovered by scientist Robert Koldewey, a native of Germany. By the age of thirty, he was known as a participant in excavations in Assos and Lesvos. In 1887 he visited Babylonia, Syria, and Sicily.

Koldewey was an extraordinary and even unusual person, in comparison with his colleagues in the profession. The love of archeology - a science that is often described by publicists as boring, devoid of romantic adventures described in movies - did not prevent the scientist from observing, being interested in and studying everything around him. A bit of a poet, a bit of an architect, Koldewey had an original archaeological hobby - studying the history of sewers! It was this man who was sent to search for the Hanging Gardens, and it was he who found them!

Koldewey once came across some vaults on Qasr Hill, covered with clay and rubble. He continued to dig, although he found it strange that the basement - and it was the basement he expected to find - would be under the roofs of neighboring buildings.

But there were no side walls. The researchers dug further and further, and only pillars appeared from under the ground. Finally, a German scientist discovered traces of a deep stone well with a strange three-stage spiral shaft. During the excavations, it became clear that the structure was made not only of bricks, but also of stones. The discovery delighted the group of researchers - the combination of “oddities” allowed us to conclude that this structure was intended for special purposes.

And then Koldewey realized what he had found! All sources, from ancient authors to cuneiform tablets, mentioned only two objects for the construction of which the Babylonians used stone. During the construction of the northern wall of the Qasr region and for the Gardens of Babylon.

The already inspired scientist dug into the sources, carefully evaluating every line, every word. Finally, he came to the conclusion that this find could not be anything other than the basement vault of the legendary Gardens of Babylon. Alas, the structure was destroyed by the floods of the Euphrates, and what can now be seen in the images is the result of a few descriptions and the imagination of the authors.

Today tourists are shown one of the brown clay hills with fragments of bricks and fragments of tiles, like the remains of the Babylonian Gardens of Babylon.

And even in the last century, I. Pfeiffer, a German traveler, described one forgotten tree located on the ruins of El-Qasr. Unusual for these places, it received the name “atale” and the “title” of “sacred”. They say that it or its “descendant” has been preserved from the “hanging” gardens, and also that the plaintive, melancholy sounds heard in its branches when a strong wind blows...

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Wonder of the world. Gardens of Babylon

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Of all the “old” Wonders of the World, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is the most mysterious structure. For a long time it was not even known whether they actually existed, or whether it was someone’s fantasy, wandering from chronicle to chronicle over the centuries. Fairytale Hanging Gardens It is noteworthy, but the most diligent descriptions were left by those who have not seen this wonder of the world. Gardens...

History of appearance

Having won, they divided the territory of Assyria among themselves. Their military alliance was confirmed by the marriage of Nebuchadnezzar II to the daughter of the Median king Amytis. Dusty and noisy Babylon, located on a bare sandy plain, did not please the queen, who grew up in mountainous and green Media. To console her, Nebuchadnezzar ordered the construction of the Hanging Gardens.

The Hanging Gardens existed for about two centuries. When Semiramis died, they first stopped caring for the garden, then powerful floods destroyed the foundation of the columns, and the entire structure collapsed.

Device

Architecturally, the hanging gardens were a pyramid consisting of four tiers-platforms. They were supported by columns up to 25 meters high. The lower tier had the shape of an irregular quadrangle, the largest side of which was 42 m, the smallest - 34 m. All plants were brought from Media.

To prevent irrigation water from seeping through, the surface of each platform was first covered with a layer of reeds; on it lay a thick carpet of fertile soil, where seeds of various herbs, flowers, shrubs and trees were planted.

The pyramid resembled an ever-blooming green hill. Pipes were placed in the cavity of one of the columns. Day and night, hundreds of slaves turned a lifting wheel with leather buckets, supplying water to the gardens. Magnificent gardens with rare trees, fragrant flowers and coolness in sultry Babylonia were truly a wonder of the world. But during the Persian rule, Nebuchadnezzar's palace fell into disrepair. It had 172 rooms, decorated and furnished with luxury. Now Persian kings occasionally stayed there during inspection trips throughout the vast empire. But in the fourth century BC. e. this palace became the residence of Alexander the Great. The throne room of the palace and the chambers of the lower tier of the hanging gardens were Alexander's last place on earth.

Name

Hanging Gardens of Babylon (Babylon)

see also

Links

• Babylon. Hanging Gardens of Babylon (Discovery. Babylon. Alexander III.)

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See what “The Hanging Gardens of Babylon” is in other dictionaries:

THE HANGING GARDENS OF SEMIRAMIS, gardens in the palace of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (see NEBUCHADNEZZOR II) (605 562 BC), which he ordered to be laid out for his beloved wife, the Median princess; traditionally ranked among the Seven Wonders of the World (see SEVEN... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Hanging Gardens of Babylon 3B class. (Falcon)- R0–R1: 45m, 5s. Tree insurance + your own. Station under a tree with a double loop of main rope, or lower on a pine tree. R1–R2: 45m, 6b or A2. Own insurance. Friends with large numbers will make life much easier. At the end of the rope, before the exit to... ... Encyclopedia of tourists

Babylon is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Contents 1 History of appearance 2 Architecture and structure 3 Name ... Wikipedia

The Hanging Gardens in Russia are architectural structures built based on the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Tsarskoe Selo. Moscow's Upper and Lower Gardens The Upper Hanging Garden was built in the Kremlin in 1623. Nearby was located... ... Wikipedia

Gardens of Babylon- book. something wonderful, magnificent, beautiful. Semiramis is a legendary Assyrian queen. Greek historians (Diodorus and others) say that she built the “Hanging Gardens” in Babylon; The ancient world considered these gardens one of the seven wonders of the world... Phraseology Guide

Book What's l. about? magnificent, wonderful, wonderful. /i> The Assyrian queen Semiramis built the “Hanging Gardens” in Babylon, which were considered one of the seven wonders of the world. BMS 1998, 511 ... Large dictionary of Russian sayings

Hanging Gardens- Semiramis in Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the world... Dictionary of Antiquity

Hanging Gardens- gardens arranged above ground level on special. constructed terraces, vaults or inside the walls of a building; in the latter case, it should be distinguished from winter gardens located in rooms, i.e. closed on all sides, V.S., even enclosed by the walls of a house,... ... Russian humanitarian encyclopedic dictionary

Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Reconstruction of the beginning of the 20th century Semiramis (Greek: Σεμίραμις, Shammuramat, Shamiram) the legendary queen of Assyria, the wife of the legendary king Nin, who killed him with cunning and seized power. The historical prototype of Semiramis ... Wikipedia

- “Falling” gardens of Isola Bella Hanging garden is an architectural structure, a small garden located on the roof ... Wikipedia

Books

• , Gorokhov Vladislav Andreevich, Volume V of the textbook “Green Nature of the City” is dedicated to the gardens and parks of Asia - the largest part of the world both in territory and in number - 4.5 billion people live here (2017),… Category: Architecture. Sculpture Publisher: Architecture-S,
• Green nature of the city. Volume 5. Study guide, Gorokhov Vladislav Andreevich, Volume V of the study guide “Green nature of the city” is dedicated to the gardens and parks of Asia - the largest part of the world both in territory and in number - 4.5 billion people live here (2017). ),… Category: