Wonders _
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Greek geographer Strabo - "It consists of vaulted terraces raised one above another, and resting upon cube-shaped pillars. These are hollow and filled with earth to allow trees of the largest size to be planted. The pillars, the vaults, and terraces are constructed of baked brick and asphalt."
"The ascent to the highest story is by stairs, and at their side are water engines, by means of which persons, appointed expressly for the purpose, are continually employed in raising water from the Euphrates into the garden."
Strabo and Philo of Byzantium give the following records.
"The Garden is quadrangular, and each side is four plethra long. It consists of arched vaults which are located on checkered cube-like foundations... The ascent of the uppermost terrace-roofs is made by a stairway..."
"The Hanging Garden has plants cultivated above ground level, and the roots of the trees are embedded in an upper terrace rather than in the earth. The whole mass is supported on stone columns... Streams of water emerging from elevated sources flow down sloping channels... These waters irrigate the whole garden saturating the roots of plants and keeping the whole area moist. Hence the grass is permanently green and the leaves of trees grow firmly attached to supple branches... This is a work of art of royal luxury and its most striking feature is that the labor of cultivation is suspended above the heads of the spectators".
So here in this desert land with virtually no rainfall, a lush mountain garden was built, using a ‘chain pump’ bucket brigade method of raising water from the level of the Euphrates River to over 300 feet into the air. Here the water would flow down channels thru these terraces, lines with bitumen for water proofing; the plants along the terraces were watered and fertilized by the silted waters of the Euphrates.
Strange as it may sound, the Babylonian records of Nebuchadnezzar or any of his descendants are silent on the Hanging Garden. It is only recorded in the histories of the later writers and chroniclers. According to these stories, Amyitis, the wife of Nebuchadnezzar, was the daughter of the king of the Medes. Here was a dynastic wedding, but the daughter of the Median king was homesick for her home in the green and verdant foliage of the rugged mountainous terrain of the land Media now in northern Iran.
Somewhere in the 43 years of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule, which began in 605 BCE, Nebuchadnezzar began to build an artificial mountain with terraces of gardens, trees and beautiful foliage. Here the marvel of this wonder of the ancient world rose over the walls of the mighty city of Babylon. These garden, also called the Garden of Semiriramis, who lived about 810 BCE. There are some legends that the Hanging Gardens were actually built by Queen Semiriramis, but the firmer archeological evidence suggests that her memory is invoked in this grand structure. The building itself was built over masonry arches with multilayer of terraces and gardens. Beneath the garden luxurious apartments were constructed.
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Greek geographer Strabo - "It consists of vaulted terraces raised one above another, and resting upon cube-shaped pillars. These are hollow and filled with earth to allow trees of the largest size to be planted. The pillars, the vaults, and terraces are constructed of baked brick and asphalt."
"The ascent to the highest story is by stairs, and at their side are water engines, by means of which persons, appointed expressly for the purpose, are continually employed in raising water from the Euphrates into the garden."
Strabo and Philo of Byzantium give the following records.
"The Garden is quadrangular, and each side is four plethra long. It consists of arched vaults which are located on checkered cube-like foundations... The ascent of the uppermost terrace-roofs is made by a stairway..."
"The Hanging Garden has plants cultivated above ground level, and the roots of the trees are embedded in an upper terrace rather than in the earth. The whole mass is supported on stone columns... Streams of water emerging from elevated sources flow down sloping channels... These waters irrigate the whole garden saturating the roots of plants and keeping the whole area moist. Hence the grass is permanently green and the leaves of trees grow firmly attached to supple branches... This is a work of art of royal luxury and its most striking feature is that the labor of cultivation is suspended above the heads of the spectators".
So here in this desert land with virtually no rainfall, a lush mountain garden was built, using a ‘chain pump’ bucket brigade method of raising water from the level of the Euphrates River to over 300 feet into the air. Here the water would flow down channels thru these terraces, lines with bitumen for water proofing; the plants along the terraces were watered and fertilized by the silted waters of the Euphrates.
Strange as it may sound, the Babylonian records of Nebuchadnezzar or any of his descendants are silent on the Hanging Garden. It is only recorded in the histories of the later writers and chroniclers. According to these stories, Amyitis, the wife of Nebuchadnezzar, was the daughter of the king of the Medes. Here was a dynastic wedding, but the daughter of the Median king was homesick for her home in the green and verdant foliage of the rugged mountainous terrain of the land Media now in northern Iran.
Somewhere in the 43 years of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule, which began in 605 BCE, Nebuchadnezzar began to build an artificial mountain with terraces of gardens, trees and beautiful foliage. Here the marvel of this wonder of the ancient world rose over the walls of the mighty city of Babylon. These garden, also called the Garden of Semiriramis, who lived about 810 BCE. There are some legends that the Hanging Gardens were actually built by Queen Semiriramis, but the firmer archeological evidence suggests that her memory is invoked in this grand structure. The building itself was built over masonry arches with multilayer of terraces and gardens. Beneath the garden luxurious apartments were constructed.