Like the Assyrians, the Chaldeans were warriors who conquered many different peoples. Under their king Nebuchadnezzar (neb uh kuhd nez' uhr), they extended their empire's boundaries as far west as Syria and Palestine. The Chaldeans called themselves Babylonians. This was because most Chaldeans were descendants of the people who made up Hammurabi's empire about 1,200 years earlier. They built a new capital at Babylon in which nearly 1 million people lived.
Babylon was the world's richest city up to that time. It had its own police force and postal system. Huge brick walls encircled the city. The walls were so wide that two chariots could pass on the road on top. Archers guarded the approaches to the city from towers built into the walls.
In the center of the city stood palaces and temples. A huge ziggurat reached more than 300 feet, or over 90 meters, into the sky. When the sun shone, its gold roof could be seen for miles.
The richness of the ziggurat was equaled by that of the king's palace. The palace had "hanging gardens." These were layered beds of earth planted with large trees and masses of flowering vines and shrubs. They seemed to hang in mid-air. Nebuchadnezzar built the gardens to please his wife, who missed the mountains and plants of her native land.
To please the people, Nebuchadnezzar built a beautiful street near the palace. It was paved with limestone and marble and lined by walls of blue glazed tile. Each spring, thousands of pilgrims crowded into Babylon to watch a gold statue of the god Marduk (mar' duhk) being wheeled along this street. The Chaldeans believed that the procession would make their crops grow. They also believed it would help keep peace in the empire.
Outside the center of Babylon stood houses and marketplaces. There, artisans made pottery, cloth, and baskets. These were sold to passing caravans, or groups of traveling merchants. Traders came to Babylon from as far away as India and Egypt. Trade helped make Babylon rich.
¦y Reading Check
How did
Caravans help Babylon grow rich?
ENTRANCE TO BABYLON The Ishtar Gate was ancient Babylon's main entrance. It honored the goddess Ishtar and was covered with images of wild animals. Why was Babylon surrounded by walls with gates?
Babylon was also a center of science. Chaldean astronomers, or people who collect, study, and explain facts about the heavenly bodies, believed that changes in the sky revealed the plans of the gods. So, they studied the stars, planets, and moon. Once they knew the movement of heavenly bodies, they made maps that showed the positions of the planets and the phases of the moon. Chaldean astronomers made one of the first sundials. They also were the first to have a seven-day week.
Reading Check
What do
Astronomers study?
Babylon was the center of a great civilization for many years. As time passed, though, the Chaldeans began to lose their power. They found it hard to control the peoples they had conquered. Then, in 539 B. C., Persians from the mountains to the northeast captured Babylon. Mesopotamia became just another part of the Persian Empire.
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1. Define: caravans, astronomers.
2. What did the Chaldean astronomers contribute to science?
3. What led to the fall of the Chaldean Empire?
4. Identifying Alternatives Under whose rule—the Assyrians' or the Chaldeans'—would you have preferred to live? Explain.
5. Draw a diagram like this one, and use it to describe Babylon.
SECTION 3
World History
