We explain what the Babylonian civilization was, the stages in which it was divided and its characteristics. Also, politics, religion, art and culture.
For its study, this civilization is usually divided into two main stages : the Pale Babylonian or Amorite Empire, between 1792 and 1595 BC. C., and the Neo-Babylonian or Chaldean Empire, between 612 and 539 BC. C. (in the middle of these two periods the Assyrian domination arose). The Babylonian Empire was overthrown by the Persian Empire in 539 BC. After the conquest of King Ciro II, the Great.
The Babylonian civilization excelled in areas such as architecture , astrology, astronomy, and mathematics . One of his most prominent contributions was the Hammurabi code, a set of laws that constituted the first written legal code.
This civilization settled in a region in continuous dispute due to the fertility of its lands (product of the influence of the rivers that ran through that area). This made Mesopotamia an attractive region for the development of agriculture and herding.
The first stage of the rise of the Babylonian civilization, known as the Pale-Babylonian Empire, took place between 1792 and 1595 BC. C. The city was occupied in its beginnings by King Sumuabum, considered the founder of the dynasty. Together with his four successors, they formed the vast Babylonian Empire, which reached its peak with the figure of King Hammurabi , the most recognized of the entire dynasty and the one who carried out the legal code that bears his name.
After the death of Hammurabi, Babylon suffered attacks and was left in the hands of the Casitas, who were later defeated by the Assyrians, who inhabited the north of Mesopotamia. Babylon was under Assyrian power for several years and in the middle of 600 BC. C. managed to become independent. With the help of the Medes and the Chaldeans, the Babylonians brought down the Assyrian Empire and conquered their territories.
These conquests began the second stage of the Babylonian Empire, which received the name of the Neo-Babylonian or Chaldean Empire, between 612 and 539 BC. This period was characterized by the conquest of territories by the Babylonian Empire, such as Judah, and the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II stood out, who reigned between 605 and 563 BC. C. and turned Babylon into a great cultural and architectural center. After achieving the domination of Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar led the Jewish people into exile in Babylon.
The ruins of this city are located 90 kilometers from the capital of Iraq, Baghdad and, despite their historical importance, the constant confrontations in the region left a large part of them buried or in poor condition. The first excavations were carried out by German archaeologists, led by Robert Koldewey, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
This city was characterized by its temples, canals and hanging gardens . Some of the ruins and relics found by the researchers were removed from their place of origin and are exhibited in museums around the world, such is the case of the Ishtar gate, which is located in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. During the government of Saddam Hussein (Iraqi president between 1979 and 2003) a replica of the door was made, which was nailed in its original place.
Babylon is also recognized for being part of the biblical tradition , it is alluded to in many books and, above all, in the story of the tower of Babel in Genesis. It is an important city in the tradition of the Jewish people, since the exile and captivity of Babylon took place in Babylon, carried out by the Babylonians after the taking of Jerusalem.
For this civilization, the gods were terrible and vengeful beings , and they could only be kind and benevolent to the peoples they adopted. The evil gods were represented with the head or shape of an animal , while the kind or protective gods were represented with human figures.
Many of the religious cults of the Babylonian civilization spread and were adopted by other civilizations.
The king was advised by nobles and priests who formed one of the social classes into which Babylonian society was divided. Freemen (who used to be artisans, merchants or peasants) and slaves were the other two social classes of the time.
The main economic sources of the Babylonians were agriculture and livestock . This was possible thanks to the development of canals and irrigation systems that made it possible to use water from the rivers of the region.
The trade was another important activity in the economy Babylonian. This town traded both by land and by rivers and offered cereals, dates and textiles and imported metals and stone from other regions .
Throughout history, the Babylonians learned to work and alter different metals for the manufacture of weaponry or decoration and they became artisans. Some of the pieces they created and traded were jewelry, bracelets, and metal vessels.
In 539 a. C. Ciro and his army invaded and took Babylon , which produced the fall of the Babylonian Empire. Cyrus liberated the people of Israel, who were in exile in Babylon, and annexed the Babylonian territories to the Persian Empire.
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