A report on Babylon, Mesopotamia and Achaemenid Empire

A partial view of the ruins of Babylon.
The Tigris river flowing through the region of modern Mosul in Upper Mesopotamia.
A partial view of the ruins of Babylon.
Mesopotamian Marshes at night, southern Iraq; reed house (Mudhif) and narrow canoe (Mashoof) in the water. Mudhif structures have been one of the traditional types of structures, built by the Marsh people of southern Mesopotamia for at least 5,000 years. A carved elevation of a typical mudhif, dating to around 3,300 BCE was discovered at Uruk.
The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest territorial extent under the rule of Darius I (522 BC–486 BC)
Map of Babylon with major areas and modern-day villages
One of 18 Statues of Gudea, a ruler around 2090 BC
The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest territorial extent under the rule of Darius I (522 BC–486 BC)
Babylon in 1932
After early starts in Jarmo (red dot, circa 7500 BC), the civilization of Mesopotamia in the 7th–5th millennium BC was centered around the Hassuna culture in the north, the Halaf culture in the northwest, the Samarra culture in central Mesopotamia and the Ubaid culture in the southeast, which later expanded to encompass the whole region.
Family tree of the Achaemenid rulers.
Brick structures in Babylon, photographed in 2016
Overview map in the 15th century BC showing the core territory of Assyria with its two major cities Assur and Nineveh wedged between Babylonia downstream and the states of Mitanni and Hatti upstream.
Map of the expansion process of Achaemenid territories
Illustration by Leonard William King of fragment K. 8532, a part of the Dynastic Chronicle listing rulers of Babylon grouped by dynasty.
The Code of Hammurabi is a Babylonian legal text composed c. 1755–1750 BC. It is the longest, best-organised, and best-preserved legal text from the ancient Near East. It is written in the Old Babylonian dialect of Akkadian, purportedly by Hammurabi, sixth king of the First Dynasty of Babylon.
Cyrus the Great is said, in the Bible, to have liberated the Hebrew captives in Babylon to resettle and rebuild Jerusalem, earning him an honored place in Judaism.
The Queen of the Night relief. The figure could be an aspect of the goddess Ishtar, Babylonian goddess of sex and love.
Epic of Gilgamesh, an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature.
The tomb of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Achaemenid Empire. At Pasargadae, Iran.
Map showing the Babylonian territory upon Hammurabi's ascension in 1792 BC and upon his death in 1750 BC
Clay tablet, mathematical, geometric-algebraic, similar to the Euclidean geometry. From Shaduppum Iraq. 2003-1595 BC. Iraq Museum.
The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest extent, c. 500 BC
Old Babylonian cylinder seal, hematite. This seal was probably made in a workshop at Sippar (about 40 mi north of Babylon on the map above) either during, or shortly before, the reign of Hammurabi. It depicts the king making an animal offering to the sun god Shamash.
Medical recipe concerning poisoning. Terracotta tablet, from Nippur, Iraq.
The Persian queen Atossa, daughter of Cyrus the Great, sister-wife of Cambyses II, Darius the Great's wife, and mother of Xerxes the Great
Linescan camera image of the cylinder seal above (reversed to resemble an impression).
The Burney Relief, First Babylonian dynasty, around 1800 BC
Map showing events of the first phases of the Greco-Persian Wars
Sennacherib of Assyria during his Babylonian war, relief from his palace in Nineveh
King Meli-shipak I (1186–1172 BC) presents his daughter to the goddess Nannaya. The crescent moon represents the god Sin, the sun the Shamash and the star the goddess Ishtar.
Greek hoplite and Persian warrior depicted fighting, on an ancient kylix, 5th century BC
Cuneiform cylinder from reign of Nebuchadnezzar II honoring the exorcism and reconstruction of the ziggurat Etemenanki by Nabopolassar.
The Queen's gold lyre from the Royal Cemetery at Ur. C. 2500 BCE. Iraq Museum
Achaemenid king fighting hoplites, seal and seal holder, Cimmerian Bosporus.
Detail of a relief from the reconstruction of the Ishtar Gate
Royal Game of Ur, Ancient Mesopotamian board Game.
Achaemenid gold ornaments, Brooklyn Museum
A reconstruction of the blue-tiled Ishtar Gate, which was the northern entrance to Babylon. It was named for the goddess of love and war. Bulls and dragons, symbols of the god Marduk, decorated the gate.
The Babylonian marriage market by the 19th-century painter Edwin Long
Persian Empire timeline including important events and territorial evolution – 550–323 BC
Babylonian soldier in the Achaemenid army, circa 470 BCE, Xerxes I tomb.
Mining areas of the ancient West Asia.
Relief showing Darius I offering lettuces to the Egyptian deity Amun-Ra Kamutef, Temple of Hibis
Plan of ruins in 1905 with locations and names of villages
7th-century BC relief depicting Ashurbanipal ((r. undefined – undefined)669–631 BC) and three royal attendants in a chariot.
The 24 countries subject to the Achaemenid Empire at the time of Darius, on the Egyptian statue of Darius I.
Lion of Babylon
Campaign in the Mesopotamian Marshes of southern Babylonia during the reign of Ashurbanipal. Showing Assyrian soldiers on boat chasing enemies trying to run away; some are hiding in the reeds
The Battle of Issus, between Alexander the Great on horseback to the left, and Darius III in the chariot to the right, represented in a Pompeii mosaic dated 1st century BC – Naples National Archaeological Museum
Location of the Al Qurnah Disaster where over 200 cases of antiquities from Fresnel's mission were lost in 1855
The Standard of Ur; 2600 BC (the Early Dynastic Period III); shell, red limestone and lapis lazuli on wood; height: 21.7 cm, length: 50.4 cm; discovered at the Royal Cemetery at Ur (Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq)
Alexander's first victory over Darius, the Persian king depicted in medieval European style in the 15th century romance The History of Alexander's Battles
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Bronze head of an Akkadian ruler, discovered in Nineveh in 1931, presumably depicting either Sargon of Akkad or Sargon's grandson Naram-Sin.<ref>M. E. L. Mallowan, "The Bronze Head of the Akkadian Period from Nineveh", Iraq Vol. 3, No. 1 (1936), 104-110.</ref>
Frataraka dynasty ruler Vadfradad I (Autophradates I). 3rd century BC. Istakhr (Persepolis) mint.
Original tiles of the processional street. Ancient Babylon, Mesopotamia, Iraq.
Striding lions from the Processional Street of Babylon.
Dārēv I (Darios I) used for the first time the title of mlk (King). 2nd century BC.
Mušḫuššu (sirrush) and aurochs on either side of the processional street. Ancient Babylon, Mesopotamia, Iraq
Lamassu, initially depicted as a goddess in Sumerian times, when it was called Lamma, it was later depicted from Assyrian times as a hybrid of a human, bird, and either a bull or lion—specifically having a human head, the body of a bull or a lion, and bird wings, under the name Lamassu.<ref name="GL109">{{cite book |last1=Leick |first1=Dr Gwendolyn |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_pqEAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA109 |title=A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Mythology |date=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-64102-4 |pages=109–110 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Livius.org">Livius.org</ref>
Winged sphinx from the Palace of Darius in Susa, Louvre
Woodcut in 1493 Nuremberg Chronicle depicting the fall of Babylon.
Assyrian ornaments and patterns, illustrated in a book from 1920
Daric of Artaxerxes II
"The Walls of Babylon and the Temple of Bel (Or Babel)", by 19th-century illustrator William Simpson – influenced by early archaeological investigations.
alt=|Detail of Nebuchadnezzar II's Building Inscription plaque of the Ishtar Gate, from Babylon
Volume of annual tribute per district, in the Achaemenid Empire, according to Herodotus.
Nebuchadnezzar II ordering the construction of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to please his consort Amyitis, R ené-Antoine Houasse, 1676
alt=|Artist's impression of a hall in an Assyrian palace from The Monuments of Nineveh by Austen Henry Layard, 1853
Achaemenid tax collector, calculating on an Abax or Abacus, according to the Darius Vase (340–320 BC).
Contemporary artwork depicting Babylon at the height of its stature.
alt=|A Neo-Assyrian relief of Ashur as a feather robed archer holding a bow instead of a ring (9th-8th century BC)
Letter from the Satrap of Bactria to the governor of Khulmi, concerning camel keepers, 353 BC
The Fall of Babylon, Mezzotint by J. Martin, 1831
alt=|The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. The king, surrounded by his royal attendants and a high-ranking official, receives a tribute from Sua, king of Gilzanu (north-west Iran), who bows and prostrates before the king. From Nimrud
Relief of throne-bearing soldiers in their native clothing at the tomb of Xerxes I, demonstrating the satrapies under his rule.
The Daughters of Jerusalem Weeping by the Waters of Babylon, by John Martin, 1834
alt=|Contemporary artwork depicting Babylon at the height of its stature.
Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. c. 500 BC–475 BC, at the time of Xerxes I. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Alexander the Great receiving the keys of Babylon, by Johann Georg Platzer, ca 1740
alt=|"Winged genie", Nimrud c. 870 BC, with inscription running across his midriff.
Persian soldiers (left) fighting against Scythians. Cylinder seal impression.
The Figured Apocalypse of the Dukes of Savoy - Escorial E Vit.5 - Fall of Babylon, 15h century
The Ishtar gate was constructed in about 575 BCE by order of King Nebuchadnezzar II. Pergamon Museum, Berlin
Color reconstruction of Achaemenid infantry on the Alexander Sarcophagus (end of 4th century BC).
The Walls of Babylon by Antonio Tempesta, 1610
The walls of Babylon, in Babylon
Seal of Darius the Great hunting in a chariot, reading "I am Darius, the Great King" in Old Persian (𐎠𐎭𐎶𐏐𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁𐎴 𐏋, "adam Dārayavaʰuš xšāyaθiya"), as well as in Elamite and Babylonian. The word "great" only appears in Babylonian. British Museum.
Ziggurat of Ur
Achaemenid calvalryman in the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.
Ziggurat of Dur-kuriagalzu in 2010
Armoured cavalry: Achaemenid Dynast of Hellespontine Phrygia attacking a Greek psiloi, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.
A suggested reconstruction of the appearance of a Sumerian ziggurat
Reconstitution of Persian landing ships at the Battle of Marathon.
alt=|The alleged Abraham house in Ur
Greek ships against Achaemenid ships at the Battle of Salamis.
The walls of Babylon, in Babylon
Iconic relief of lion and bull fighting, Apadana of Persepolis
Achaemenid golden bowl with lioness imagery of Mazandaran
The ruins of Persepolis
A section of the Old Persian part of the trilingual Behistun inscription. Other versions are in Babylonian and Elamite.
A copy of the Behistun inscription in Aramaic on a papyrus. Aramaic was the lingua franca of the empire.
An Achaemenid drinking vessel
Bas-relief of Farvahar at Persepolis
Tomb of Artaxerxes III in Persepolis
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven wonders of the ancient world, was built by Greek architects for the local Persian satrap of Caria, Mausolus (Scale model)
Achamenid dynasty timeline
Reconstruction of the Palace of Darius at Susa. The palace served as a model for Persepolis.
Lion on a decorative panel from Darius I the Great's palace, Louvre
Ruins of Throne Hall, Persepolis
Apadana Hall, Persian and Median soldiers at Persepolis
Lateral view of tomb of Cambyses II, Pasargadae, Iran
Plaque with horned lion-griffins. The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Babylon was the capital city of the ancient Babylonian Empire, which itself is a term referring to either of two separate empires in the Mesopotamian area in antiquity.

- Babylon

3100 BC) to the fall of Babylon in 539 BC, when it was conquered by the Achaemenid Empire.

- Mesopotamia

After the fall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the city came under the rule of the Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman, and Sassanid empires.

- Babylon

In October 539 BC, Cyrus won a battle against the Babylonians at Opis, then took Sippar without a fight before finally capturing the city of Babylon on 12 October, where the Babylonian king Nabonidus was taken prisoner.

- Achaemenid Empire

Mesopotamia housed historically important cities such as Uruk, Nippur, Nineveh, Assur and Babylon, as well as major territorial states such as the city of Eridu, the Akkadian kingdoms, the Third Dynasty of Ur, and the various Assyrian empires.

- Mesopotamia

By the 5th century BC, the Kings of Persia were either ruling over or had subordinated territories encompassing not just all of the Persian Plateau and all of the territories formerly held by the Assyrian Empire (Mesopotamia, the Levant, Cyprus and Egypt), but beyond this all of Anatolia and Armenia, as well as the Southern Caucasus and parts of the North Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Bulgaria, Paeonia, Thrace and Macedonia to the north and west, most of the Black Sea coastal regions, parts of Central Asia as far as the Aral Sea, the Oxus and Jaxartes to the north and north-east, the Hindu Kush and the western Indus basin (corresponding to modern Afghanistan and Pakistan) to the far east, parts of northern Arabia to the south, and parts of eastern Libya (Cyrenaica) to the south-west, and parts of Oman, China, and the UAE.

- Achaemenid Empire
A partial view of the ruins of Babylon.

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Iran

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Country in Western Asia.

Country in Western Asia.

Inscription of Ardeshir Babakan (r. 224–242) in Naqsh-e Rostam: "This is the figure of Mazdaworshiper, the lord Ardashir, Shahanshah of Iran..."
An Ashrafi Coin of Nader Shah (r. 1736–1747), reverse:"Coined on gold the word of kingdom in the world, Nader of Greater Iran and the world-conquerer king."
A cave painting in Doushe cave, Lorestan, from the 8th millennium BC
A bas-relief at Persepolis, depicting the united Medes and Persians
Tomb of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Achaemenid Empire, in Pasargadae
The Achaemenid Empire (550 BC–330 BC) around the time of Darius the Great and Xerxes I
The Parthian Empire (247 BC–224 AD) in 94 BC at its greatest extent, during the reign of Mithridates II
Tomb of Hafez, a medieval Persian poet whose works are regarded as a pinnacle in Persian literature and have left a considerable mark on later Western writers, most notably Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Henry David Thoreau, and Emerson
Venetian portrait, kept at the Uffizi, of Ismail I, the founder of the Safavid Empire
A portrait of AbbasI, the powerful, pragmatic Safavid ruler who reinforced Iran's military, political, and economic power
Statue of Nader Shah, the first Afsharid ruler of Iran, at his Tomb
A map showing the 19th-century northwestern borders of Iran, comprising modern-day eastern Georgia, Dagestan, Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan, before being ceded to the neighboring Russian Empire by the Russo-Iranian wars
The first national Iranian Parliament was established in 1906 during the Persian Constitutional Revolution
Reza Shah, the first Pahlavi king of Iran, in military uniform
The Allied "Big Three" at the 1943 Tehran Conference.
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the Imperial Family during the coronation ceremony of the Shah of Iran in 1967.
Ruhollah Khomeini's return to Iran on 1February 1979
An Iranian soldier wearing a gas mask on the front-line during the Iran–Iraq War
The Green Movement's Silent Demonstration during the 2009–10 Iranian election protests
The 2017–18 Iranian protests were initiated on 31 December 2017 and continued for months.
Mount Damavand, Iran's highest point, is located in Amol, Mazenderan.
Persian leopard, listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
Iran's most populated cities (2010)
Iran's syncretic political system combines elements of an Islamic theocracy with vetted democracy.
Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, meeting with his counterpart, China's paramount leader Xi Jinping on 23 January 2016. Iran and China are strategic allies.
Ali Khamenei voting in the 2017 presidential election
Iranian former President Hassan Rouhani meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Iran and Russia are strategic allies.
The Islamic Consultative Assembly, also known as the Iranian Parliament
Protest against U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel. Tehran, 11 December 2017.
Sophisticated indigenous long range missile system Bavar-373 paraded in Tehran.
Iran's provinces by their contribution to national GDP (2014)
Historical GDP per capita development
A proportional representation of Iran exports, 2019
More than a million tourists visit Kish Island each year.
Iran holds 10% of the world's proven oil reserves and 15% of its gas. It is OPEC's second largest exporter and the world's 7th largest oil producer.
Literacy rate of Iran's population plus 15, 1975–2015, according to UNESCO Institute of Statistics
Sharif University of Technology is one of Iran's most prestigious higher education institutions.
The production line for AryoSeven at the Iranian biopharmaceutical company of AryoGen
Simorgh launch, Iranian Space Agency
Iran's population growth (1880–2016)
Iran's provinces by population density (2013)
Iron Age gold cup from Marlik, kept at New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art
Kamal-ol-Molk's Mirror Hall, often considered a starting point in Iranian modern art
Tomb of the 10th-century Persian poet Ferdowsi, author of Šāhnāme, the classical Persian composition of the Iranian national epics, in Tus
Zoroaster, the founder of Zoroastrianism, depicted on Raphael's The School of Athens
Karna, an ancient Iranian musical instrument from the 6th century BC, kept at the Persepolis Museum
The Roudaki Hall, constructed between 1957 and 1967 in Tehran
Reproduction of the 3rd-millennium BC goblet from southeastern Iran, possibly the world's oldest example of animation.
Abbas Kiarostami (1940–2016), an acclaimed Iranian film director
Behrouz Vossoughi, a well-known Iranian actor who has appeared in more than 90 films
Haft-Seen, a customary of Nowruz, the Iranian New Year
Chelow kabab (rice and kebab), one of Iran's national dishes
Skiers at the Dizin Ski Resort
The Azadi Stadium in Tehran is West Asia's largest football stadium.
Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, meeting with his counterpart, China's paramount leader Xi Jinping on 23 January 2016. Iran and China are strategic allies.
An Iranian tea tray served near Garden of Mausoleum of Omar Khayyam in Nishapur

The country is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC. It was first unified by the Medes, an ancient Iranian people, in the seventh century BC, and reached its territorial height in the sixth century BC, when Cyrus the Great founded the Achaemenid Persian Empire, which became one of the largest empires in history and has been described as the world's first effective superpower.

In addition to modern Iran, it includes portions of the Caucasus, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Afghanistan, and Central Asia.

Later conquests under Cyrus and his successors expanded the empire to include Lydia, Babylon, Egypt, parts of the Balkans and Eastern Europe proper, as well as the lands to the west of the Indus and Oxus rivers.

The Seleucid Empire (light blue) in 281 BC on the eve of the murder of Seleucus I Nicator

Seleucid Empire

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Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire originally founded by Alexander the Great.

Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire originally founded by Alexander the Great.

The Seleucid Empire (light blue) in 281 BC on the eve of the murder of Seleucus I Nicator
"Chandra Gupta Maurya entertains his bride from Babylon": a conjectural interpretation of the "marriage agreement" between the Seleucids and Chandragupta Maurya, related by Appian
The Seleucid Empire (light blue) in 281 BC on the eve of the murder of Seleucus I Nicator
Coin of Seleucus I Nicator
In Bactria, the satrap Diodotus asserted independence to form the Greco-Bactrian kingdom c. 245 BC.
Drachm of the Frataraka ruler Vahbarz (Oborzos), thought to have initiated the independence of Persis from the Seleucid Empire. The coin shows on the reverse an Achaemenid king slaying an armoured, possibly Greek or Macedonian, soldier. This possibly refers to the events related by Polyainos (Strat. 7.40), in which Vahbarz (Oborzos) is said to have killed 3000 Seleucid settlers.
Silver coin of Antiochus III the Great.
The Seleucid Empire in 200 BC (before expansion into Anatolia and Greece).
The reduced empire (titled: Syria, Kingdom of the Seleucids) and the expanded states of Pergamum and Rhodes, after the defeat of Antiochus III by Rome. Circa 188 BC.
The Hellenistic Prince, a bronze statue originally thought to be a Seleucid, or Attalus II of Pergamon, now considered a portrait of a Roman general, made by a Greek artist working in Rome in the 2nd century BC.
Coin of Antiochus IV Epiphanes.
Seleucid Syria in early 124 BC under Alexander II Zabinas, who ruled the country with the exception of the city of Ptolemais
Seleucid Kingdom in 87 BC
Bagadates I (Minted 290–280 BC) was the first native Seleucid satrap to be appointed.
Seleucid Bronze Coin depicting Antiochus III with Laureate head of Apollo Circa. 200 BCE
Price of barley and dates per tonne
Episodes of Seleucid dispoliation from Michael J. Taylor's Sacred Plunder

After receiving the Mesopotamian region of Babylonia in 321 BC, Seleucus I began expanding his dominions to include the Near Eastern territories that encompass modern-day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Syria, all of which had been under Macedonian control after the fall of the former Persian Achaemenid Empire.

Seleucus established himself in Babylon in 312 BC, the year later used as the foundation date of the Seleucid Empire.

The extent of the Babylonian Empire at the start and end of Hammurabi's reign, located in what today is modern day Iraq

Babylonia

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The extent of the Babylonian Empire at the start and end of Hammurabi's reign, located in what today is modern day Iraq
Hammurabi (standing), depicted as receiving his royal insignia from Shamash (or possibly Marduk). Hammurabi holds his hands over his mouth as a sign of prayer (relief on the upper part of the stele of Hammurabi's code of laws).
Cylinder seal, ca. 18th–17th century BC. Babylonia
The extent of the Babylonian Empire during the Kassite dynasty
Map of Mesopotamia c. 1450 BC
Prism of Sennacherib (705–681 BC), containing records of his military campaigns, culminating with Babylon's destruction. Exhibited at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.
Babylonian prisoners under the surveillance of an Assyrian guard, reign of Ashurbanipal 668-630 BC, Nineveh, British Museum ME 124788
The Neo-Babylonian Empire
Panorama view of the reconstructed Southern Palace of Nebuchadnezzar II, 6th century BC, Babylon, Iraq
Stele of Nabonidus exhibited in the British Museum. The king is shown praying to the Moon, the Sun and Venus and is depicted as being the closest to the Moon.
Babylonian soldier of the Achaemenid army, circa 480 BC. Relief of the tomb of Xerxes I.
Old Babylonian Cylinder Seal, hematite. The king makes an animal offering to Shamash. This seal was probably made in a workshop at Sippar.
Man and woman, Old-Babylonian fired clay plaque from Southern Mesopotamia. Sulaymaniyah museum, Sulaymaniyah. Iraq
Medical recipe concerning poisoning. Terracotta tablet, from Nippur, Iraq, 18th century BC. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul

Babylonia (Akkadian:, māt Akkadī) was an ancient Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq) and parts of Syria.

A small Amorite-ruled state emerged in 1894 BC, which contained the minor administrative town of Babylon.

The Chaldean tribe had lost control of Babylonia decades before the end of the era that sometimes bears their name, and they appear to have blended into the general populace of Babylonia even before this (for example, Nabopolassar, Nebuchadnezzar II and their successors always referred to themselves as Shar Akkad and never as Shar Kaldu on inscriptions), and during the Persian Achaemenid Empire the term Chaldean ceased to refer to a race of people, and instead specifically to a social class of priests educated in classical Babylonian literature, particularly Astronomy and Astrology.

Alexander riding Bucephalus on a Roman mosaic

Alexander the Great

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King of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon.

King of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon.

Alexander riding Bucephalus on a Roman mosaic
Alexander III riding Bucephalus on a Roman mosaic
Map of The Kingdom of Macedon in 336 BC, birthplace of Alexander
Roman medallion depicting Olympias, Alexander's mother
Archaeological Site of Pella, Greece, Alexander's birthplace
Philip II of Macedon, Alexander's father
Battle plan from the Battle of Chaeronea
Pausanius assassinates Philip II, Alexander's father, during his procession into the theatre
The emblema of the Stag Hunt Mosaic, c. 300 BC, from Pella; the figure on the right is possibly Alexander the Great due to the date of the mosaic along with the depicted upsweep of his centrally-parted hair (anastole); the figure on the left wielding a double-edged axe (associated with Hephaistos) is perhaps Hephaestion, one of Alexander's loyal companions.
The Macedonian phalanx at the "Battle of the Carts" against the Thracians in 335 BC
Map of Alexander's empire and his route
Gérard Audran after Charles LeBrun, 'Alexander Entering Babylon,' original print first published 1675, engraving, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC.
Alexander Cuts the Gordian Knot (1767) by Jean-Simon Berthélemy
Name of Alexander the Great in Egyptian hieroglyphs (written from right to left), c. 332 BC, Egypt. Louvre Museum.
Site of the Persian Gate in modern-day Iran; the road was built in the 1990s.
Administrative document from Bactria dated to the seventh year of Alexander's reign (324 BC), bearing the first known use of the "Alexandros" form of his name, Khalili Collection of Aramaic Documents
The Killing of Cleitus, by André Castaigne (1898–1899)
Silver tetradrachm of Alexander the Great found in Byblos (ca 330-300 bc.) (BnF 1998–859; 17,33g; Byblos, Price 3426b)
The Phalanx Attacking the Centre in the Battle of the Hydaspes by André Castaigne (1898–1899)
Alexander's invasion of the Indian subcontinent
Porus surrenders to Alexander
Asia in 323 BC, the Nanda Empire and the Gangaridai of the Indian subcontinent, in relation to Alexander's Empire and neighbours
Alexander (left) and Hephaestion (right): Both were connected by a tight friendship
Alexander at the Tomb of Cyrus the Great, by Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes (1796)
A Babylonian astronomical diary (c. 323–322 BC) recording the death of Alexander (British Museum, London)
19th-century depiction of Alexander's funeral procession, based on the description by Diodorus Siculus
Detail of Alexander on the Alexander Sarcophagus
Kingdoms of the Diadochi in 301 BC: the Ptolemaic Kingdom (dark blue), the Seleucid Empire (yellow), Kingdom of Pergamon (orange), and Kingdom of Macedon (green). Also shown are the Roman Republic (light blue), the Carthaginian Republic (purple), and the Kingdom of Epirus (red).
A coin of Alexander the Great struck by Balakros or his successor Menes, both former somatophylakes (bodyguards) of Alexander, when they held the position of satrap of Cilicia in the lifetime of Alexander, circa 333-327 BC. The obverse shows Heracles, ancestor of the Macedonian royal line and the reverse shows a seated Zeus Aëtophoros.
The Battle of the Granicus, 334 BC
The Battle of Issus, 333 BC
Alexander Cameo by Pyrgoteles
Alexander portrayal by Lysippos
Alexander (left), wearing a kausia and fighting an Asiatic lion with his friend Craterus (detail); late 4th century BC mosaic, Pella Museum
A Roman copy of an original 3rd century BC Greek bust depicting Alexander the Great, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen
A mural in Pompeii, depicting the marriage of Alexander to Barsine (Stateira) in 324 BC; the couple are apparently dressed as Ares and Aphrodite.
The Hellenistic world view: world map of Eratosthenes (276–194 BC), using information from the campaigns of Alexander and his successors
Plan of Alexandria c. 30 BC
Dedication of Alexander the Great to Athena Polias at Priene, now housed in the British Museum
Alexander's empire was the largest state of its time, covering approximately 5.2 million square km.
The Buddha, in Greco-Buddhist style, 1st to 2nd century AD, Gandhara, northern Pakistan. Tokyo National Museum.
This medallion was produced in Imperial Rome, demonstrating the influence of Alexander's memory. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.
Alexander in a 14th-century Armenian manuscript
Alexander in a 14th-century Byzantine manuscript
Alexander conquering the air. Jean Wauquelin, Les faits et conquêtes d'Alexandre le Grand, 1448–1449
Folio from the Shahnameh showing Alexander praying at the Kaaba, mid-16th century
Detail of a 16th-century Islamic painting depicting Alexander being lowered in a glass submersible
A Hellenistic bust of a young Alexander the Great, possibly from Ptolemaic Egypt, 2nd-1st century BC, now in the British Museum
A fresco depicting a hunt scene at the tomb of Philip II, Alexander's father, at the Archaeological Site of Aigai, the only known depiction of Alexander made during his lifetime, 330s BC

In 334 BC, he invaded the Achaemenid Persian Empire and began a series of campaigns that lasted for 10 years.

Due to the demand of his homesick troops, he eventually turned back at the Beas River and later died in 323 BC in Babylon, the city of Mesopotamia that he had planned to establish as his empire's capital.

Neo-Babylonian Empire

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The Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabonidus ((r. undefined – undefined) 556–539 BC)
Map of the Old Babylonian Empire under Hammurabi ((r. undefined – undefined)c. undefined 1792–1750 BC).
Locations of some major Mesopotamian cities.
The so-called "Tower of Babel stele", depicting Nebuchadnezzar II in the top-right and featuring a depiction of Babylon's great ziggurat (the Etemenanki) to his left.
Stele of Nabonidus exhibited in the British Museum. The king is shown praying to the Moon, the Sun and Venus and is depicted as being the closest to the Moon.
Map of the path of Cyrus the Great during his 539 BC invasion of Babylonia.
Illustration of the inhabitants of Babylon deriding the Achaemenid king Darius I during the revolt of Nebuchadnezzar III in 522 BC. From the History of Darius the Great (1900) by Jacob Abbott.
Major cities of Lower Mesopotamia in the 1st century BC.
Partial view of the ruins of Babylon in modern-day Iraq.
9th century BC depiction from a cylinder seal of the Statue of Marduk, Babylon's patron deity Marduk's main cult image in the city.
Cylinder by Nabonidus, commemorating restoration work done on a temple dedicated to the god Sîn in Ur. Exhibited at the British Museum.
Tablet concerning a legal dispute over barley, from Uruk and dated to the reign of Nabonidus (544 BC). Exhibited at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.
Striding lions from the Processional Street of Babylon. Exhibited at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.
Neo-Babylonian terracotta figurine depicting a nude woman. Exhibited at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore.
Tablet containing a 6th-century BC Babylonian "map of the world", featuring Babylon at its center. Exhibited at the British Museum.
The Babylonian marriage market, painting by Edwin Long (1875)
Tablet recording a silver payment from the temple dedicated to the god Shamash in Sippar, written during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II. Exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Irrigation canal from modern-day Iraq, near Baghdad
Approximate borders of the Neo-Babylonian Empire (red) and neighboring states in the 6th century BC.
Babylonian soldier as represented on the tomb of the Achaemenid king Xerxes I, c. 480 BC.
The Ishtar Gate, one of Babylon's eight inner city gates, was constructed by King Nebuchadnezzar II c. undefined 575 BC. The reconstructed gate is exhibited at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.
City plan of Babylon, showcasing the locations of major points of interest. The outer walls and the northern Summer Palace are not shown.
Reconstruction of the Etemenanki, Babylon's great ziggurat.
Mud-brick from the Processional Street of Babylon stamped with the name of Nebuchadnezzar II.

The Neo-Babylonian Empire, also known as the Second Babylonian Empire and historically known as the Chaldean Empire, was the last of the Mesopotamian empires to be ruled by monarchs native to Mesopotamia.

Beginning with Nabopolassar's coronation as King of Babylon in 626 BC and being firmly established through the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire in 612 BC, the Neo-Babylonian Empire and its ruling Chaldean dynasty were short-lived, conquered after less than a century by the Persian Achaemenid Empire in 539 BC.

The defeat of the Assyrians and the transfer of empire to Babylon marked the first time the city, and southern Mesopotamia in general, had risen to dominate the Ancient Near East since the collapse of Hammurabi's Old Babylonian Empire nearly a thousand years earlier.

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Elam

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Ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of southern Iraq.

Ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of southern Iraq.

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Timeline of Elam.
Kneeling Bull with Vessel. Kneeling bull holding a spouted vessel, Proto-Elamite period, (3100–2900 BC)
Proto-Elamite (Susa III) cylinder seal, 3150–2800 BC. Louvre Museum, reference Sb 6166
Polities during the Old Elamite period, and northern tribes of the Lullubi, Simurrum and Hurti.
Silver cup with linear-Elamite inscription on it. Late 3rd millennium BC. National Museum of Iran.
Orant figure, Susa IV, 2700–2340 BC.
Seal impression of King Ebarat, founder of the Sukkalmah Dynasty (also called Epartid Dynasty after his name). Louvre Museum, reference Sb 6225. King Ebarat appears enthroned. The inscription reads "Ebarat the King. Kuk Kalla, son of Kuk-Sharum, servant of Shilhaha".
An ornate design on this limestone ritual vat from the Middle Elamite period depicts creatures with the heads of goats and the tails of fish (1500–1110 BC).
Stele of Untash Napirisha, king of Anshan and Susa. Sandstone, ca. 1340–1300 BC.
The Chogha Zanbil ziggurat site, built circa 1250 BC.
Elamite archer fighting against the Neo-Assyrian troops of Ashurbanipal, and protecting wounded king Teumman (kneeling), at the Battle of Ulai, 653 BC.
Ashurbanipal's campaign against Elam is triumphantly recorded in this relief showing the sack of Hamanu in 647 BC. Here, flames rise from the city as Assyrian soldiers topple it with pickaxes and crowbars and carry off the spoils.
Relief of a woman being fanned by an attendant while she holds what may be a spinning device before a table with a bowl containing a whole fish (700–550 BC).
Elamite soldier in the Achaemenid army circa 470 BC, Xerxes I tomb relief.
ššina, one of the last kings of Elam circa 522 BC was toppled, enchained and killed by Darius the Great. The label over him says: "This is ššina. He lied, saying "I am king of Elam.""
Golden statuette of a man (probably a king) carrying a goat. Susa, Iran, c. 1500–1200 BC (Middle Elamite period).
Cylinder seal and modern impression- worshiper before a seated ruler or deity; seated female under a grape arbor MET DP370181
Statue of Napirasu
A carved chlorite vase decorated with a relief depicting a "two-horned" figure wrestling with serpent goddesses. The Elamite artifact was discovered by Iran's border police in the possession of historical heritage traffickers, en route to Turkey, and was confiscated. Style is determined to be from "Jiroft".
Indus round seal with impression. Elongated buffalo with Harappan symbol imported to Susa in 2600–1700 BC. Found in the tell of the Susa acropolis. Louvre Museum, reference Sb 5614<ref>{{cite web |title=Site officiel du musée du Louvre |url=http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice=13556|website=cartelfr.louvre.fr}}</ref>
Indian carnelian beads with white design, etched in white with an acid, imported to Susa in 2600–1700 BC. Found in the tell of the Susa acropolis. Louvre Museum, reference Sb 17751.<ref>{{cite web |title=Site officiel du musée du Louvre |url=http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice=13589 |website=cartelfr.louvre.fr}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Guimet |first1=Musée |title=Les Cités oubliées de l'Indus: Archéologie du Pakistan |date=2016 |publisher=FeniXX réédition numérique |isbn=9782402052467 |pages=354–355 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-HpYDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA354 |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Art of the first cities : the third millennium BC from the Mediterranean to the Indus. |page=395 |url=https://archive.org/details/ArtOfTheFirstCitiesTheThirdMillenniumB.C.FromTheMediterraneanToTheIndusEditedByJ }}</ref> These beads are identical with beads found in the Indus Civilization site of Dholavira.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nandagopal |first1=Prabhakar |title=Decorated Carnelian Beads from the Indus Civilization Site of Dholavira (Great Rann of Kachchha, Gujarat) |publisher=Archaeopress Publishing Ltd |isbn=978-1-78491-917-7 |url=https://www.academia.edu/37860117 |year=2018 }}</ref>
Indus bracelet made of Fasciolaria Trapezium or Turbinella pyrum imported to Susa in 2600–1700 BC. Found in the tell of the Susa acropolis. Louvre Museum, reference Sb 14473.<ref>{{cite web |title=Louvre Museum Official Website |url=http://cartelen.louvre.fr/cartelen/visite?srv=car_not&idNotice=13532 |website=cartelen.louvre.fr}}</ref> This type of bracelet was manufactured in Mohenjo-daro, Lothal and Balakot.<ref name="FeniXX réédition numérique"/> It is engraved with a chevron design which is characteristic of all shell bangles of the Indus Valley, visible here.<ref>{{cite book |title=Art of the first cities : the third millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus. |page=398 |url=https://archive.org/details/ArtOfTheFirstCitiesTheThirdMillenniumB.C.FromTheMediterraneanToTheIndusEditedByJ }}</ref>
Indus Valley Civilization weight in veined jasper, excavated in Susa in a 12th-century BC princely tomb. Louvre Museum Sb 17774.<ref>{{cite book |title=Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus |date=2003 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |isbn=9781588390431 |pages=401–402 |url=https://archive.org/details/artoffirstcities0000unse |url-access=registration }}</ref>
A 4.5 inch long lapis lazuli dove is studded with gold pegs. Dated 1200 BC from Susa, a city later on shared with the Achaemenids.
Elamite reliefs at Eshkaft-e Salman. The picture of a woman with dignity shows the importance of women in the Elamite era.{{Opinion|date=October 2019}}

During its early history, it fluctuated between submission to Mesopotamian and Elamite power.

The Iranian Medes, Parthians, Persians and Sagartians, who had been largely subject to Assyria since their arrival in the region around 1000 BC, quietly took full advantage of the anarchy in Assyria, and in 616 BC freed themselves from Assyrian rule.

Cyaxares the king of the Medes, Persians, Parthians and Sagartians entered into an alliance with a coalition of fellow former vassals of Assyria, including Nabopolassar of Babylon and Chaldea, and also the Scythians and Cimmerians, against Sin-shar-ishkun of Assyria, who was faced with unremitting civil war in Assyria itself.

Sasanian Empire

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The last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the.

The last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the.

The Sasanian Empire at its greatest extent c. 620, under Khosrow II
Initial coinage of founder Ardashir I, as King of Persis Artaxerxes (Ardaxsir) V. c. 205/6–223/4 CE. Obv: Bearded facing head, wearing diadem and Parthian-style tiara, legend "The divine Ardaxir, king" in Pahlavi. Rev: Bearded head of Papak, wearing diadem and Parthian-style tiara, legend "son of the divinity Papak, king" in Pahlavi.
The Sasanian Empire at its greatest extent c. 620, under Khosrow II
1840 illustration of a Sasanian relief at Firuzabad, showing Ardashir I's victory over Artabanus IV and his forces.
Rock relief of Ardashir I receiving the ring of kingship by the Zoroastrian supreme god Ahura Mazda.
Rock-face relief at Naqsh-e Rostam of Persian emperor Shapur I (on horseback) capturing Roman emperor Valerian (standing) and Philip the Arab (kneeling), suing for peace, following the victory at Edessa.
The Humiliation of Valerian by Shapur (Hans Holbein the Younger, 1521, pen and black ink on a chalk sketch, Kunstmuseum Basel)
The spread of Manichaeism (300–500)
Rome and satellite kingdom of Armenia around 300, after Narseh's defeat
Bust of Shapur II ((r. 309 – 379))
Early Alchon Huns coin based on the coin design of Shapur II, adding the Alchon Tamgha symbol Alchon_Tamga.png and "Alchono" (αλχοννο) in Bactrian script on the obverse. Dated 400–440.
Bahram V is a great favourite in Persian literature and poetry. "Bahram and the Indian princess in the black pavilion." Depiction of a Khamsa (Quintet) by the great Persian poet Nizami, mid-16th-century Safavid era.
A coin of Yazdegerd II
Plate of Peroz I hunting argali
Plate of a Sasanian king hunting rams, perhaps Kavad I ((r. 488 – 496)).
Plate depicting Khosrow I.
15th-century Shahnameh illustration of Hormizd IV seated on his throne.
Coin of Khosrow II.
The Siege of Constantinople in 626 by the combined Sassanid, Avar, and Slavic forces depicted on the murals of the Moldovița Monastery, Romania
Queen Boran, daughter of Khosrau II, the first woman and one of the last rulers on the throne of the Sasanian Empire, she reigned from 17 June 629 to 16 June 630
Extent of the Sasanian Empire in 632 with modern borders superimposed
Umayyad Caliphate coin imitating Khosrau II. Coin of the time of Mu'awiya I ibn Abi Sufyan. BCRA (Basra) mint; "Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad, governor". Dated AH 56 = 675/6. Sasanian style bust imitating Khosrau II right; bismillah and three pellets in margin; c/m: winged creature right / Fire altar with ribbons and attendants; star and crescent flanking flames; date to left, mint name to right.
The Walls of Derbent, part of the Sasanian defense lines
Sasanian army helmet
A Sassanid king posing as an armored cavalryman, Taq-e Bostan, Iran
Sassanian silver plate showing lance combat between two nobles.
A fine cameo showing an equestrian combat of Shapur I and Roman emperor Valerian in which the Roman emperor is seized following the Battle of Edessa, according to Shapur's own statement, "with our own hand", in 260
Sassanian fortress in Derbent, Dagestan. Now inscribed on Russia's UNESCO world heritage list since 2003.
Egyptian woven pattern woolen curtain or trousers, which was a copy of a Sassanid silk import, which was in turn based on a fresco of King Khosrau II fighting Axum Ethiopian forces in Yemen, 5–6th century
Persian ambassador at the Chinese court of Emperor Yuan of Liang in his capital Jingzhou in 526-539 CE, with explanatory text. Portraits of Periodical Offering of Liang, 11th century Song copy.
Coin of the Kushanshah Peroz II Kushanshah ((r. 303 – 330))
Foreign dignitary drinking wine, on ceiling of Cave 1, at Ajanta Caves, possibly depicting the Sasanian embassy to Indian king Pulakesin II (610–642), photograph and drawing.
Taq-i Kisra, the facade of the Sasanian palace in the capital Ctesiphon. The city developed into a rich commercial metropolis. It may have been the most populous city of the world in 570–622.
Plate of a Sasanian king, located in the Azerbaijan Museum in Iran.
A bowl with Khosrau I's image at the center
Horse head, gilded silver, 4th century, Sasanian art
A Sasanian silver plate featuring a simurgh. The mythical bird was used as the royal emblem in the Sasanian period.
A Sasanian silver plate depicting a royal lion hunt
The remains of the Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Sasanian silk twill textile of a simurgh in a beaded surround, 6th–7th century. Used in the reliquary of Saint Len, Paris
Sasanian sea trade routes
Seal of a Sassanian nobleman holding a flower, ca. 3rd–early 4th century AD.
Ruins of Adur Gushnasp, one of three main Zoroastrian temples in the Sassanian Empire
The Sasanians developed an accurate, phonetic alphabet to write down the sacred Avesta
Sasanian-era cornelian gem, depicting Abraham advancing towards Isaac with a knife in his hands. A ram is depicted to the right of Abraham. Middle Persian (Pahlavi) inscription ZNH mwdly l’styny. Created 4th-5th century AD
A Sasanian fortress in Derbent, Russia (the Caspian Gates)
"Parsees of Bombay" a wood engraving, c. 1873

After defeating the last Parthian shahanshah, Artabanus IV, at the Battle of Hormozdgan in 224, he established the Sasanian dynasty and set out to restore the legacy of the Achaemenid Empire by expanding Iran's dominions.

He also befriended a Babylonian rabbi called Samuel.

Narseh did not advance from Armenia and Mesopotamia, leaving Galerius to lead the offensive in 298 with an attack on northern Mesopotamia via Armenia.