Babylon is a name that has a double meaning: it denotes the great ancient Mesopotamian city with a long and complex history and a symbolic, imagined version of Babylon that appears in many cultural traditions—from the Tower of Babel in the Hebrew Bible and the Whore of Babylon in the New Testament to the popular 1970s reggae song “Rivers of Babylon.”
The first royal dynasty of Babylon was founded by an Amorite interloper named Sumu-la-El a thousand years after the fall of the great Sumerian city states of Ur and Uruk, creating a new superpower in the Near East. Clinging close to the mighty River Euphrates, the city quickly grew, and thanks to its military prowess, soon expanded its territories, sweeping down to the Persian Gulf and advancing north into Syria.
The kingdom of Babylonia came into being and, governed by mighty Babylon, setting the agenda for what civilization meant. Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones, professor in ancient history at Cardiff University, explores Babylon's reputation as a city with a dual legacy by exploring its rich ancient past and its fabled mythic story.
His newest book, Babylon: The Biography of a Metropolis (Pegasus Books), is available for purchase.
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