Why The Babylon Ishtar Gate

The Babylon Ishtar Gate There are many wonders of the ancient world that have been found by archeologists. Of these treasures found, one of the greatest and most beautiful has been the Ishtar Gate of Babylon. Babylon was the capital of a city in Mesopotamia, in the current day Iraq.(Hirst,Archeology.about.com) Babylon was damaged by weather, age and wars (the Iraq and USA war) but still archeologists managed to find the gate. (Hirst,Archeology.about.com) The Ishtar gate was built in the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar II. (www.mhhe.com) The King was expanding on his father’s plan to make Babylon one of the greatest cities in the world.(www.mhhe.com) When Babylon fell in 539 B.C. the gate was lost until many centuries later, in 1899,
The process of archeology is important for the study of ancient world history. It is the one way humans can learn more about their past. By discovering ancient bones, we are able to decipher what life was like and learn how humans evolved to who they are today. The Ishtar gate of Babylon was found in 1899 and continued to be evacuated until 1912-14.(www.bible-history.com) Robert Koldewey, the person in charge of the evacuation led a German crew called Deutsch Orient-Gesellschaft (German Oriental Society).(Watts-Plumpkin, www.world-archeology.com) The archeology team used shovels, as the main evacuation tool, to shovel away excess dirt and soil, then trowels, (a smaller version of the shovel which was used for similar purposes, when the shovels were too big). They had screens with little holes, which they would use to shift dirt, and soil (so that the
King Nebuchadnezzar II had, in 586 BC, overthrown Jerusalem and took many Jews prisoner and the gate was said to be where the Jews were marched into Babylon.(www.bible-history.com) The find of the gate proved that there was historical significance in the Bible and that at least some was accurate. The gate was one of 8 that led into Babylon.(Garcia, www.ancient.eu) A road ran through the gate called “May our enemies not have victory” or the Processional way.(www.mhhe.com) The road was used everyday, but during a New Year Festival there was many celebrations that followed the road. (www.mhhe.com) It was the main entrance and one of the most important gates, to the inner streets and to the temples of Babylon. The gate had two sections: the smaller, front piece, and the greater back piece.(Ayerbe, www.culturaltravelguide.com) The smaller part is in the Pergamon museum in Berlin, while the second part is in the same museum but in storage because it is too large to display. (Ayerbe, www.culturaltravelguide.com) The gate represents the glory and wealth of Babylon, as it was decorated with blue and gold bricks, 120 lions, many bulls, dragons, the weather god, Adad and the patron god of the city, Marduk.(www.mhhe.com) The gate was dedicated to the goddess Ishtar, goddess of fertility, love and war and that is were it received its name.(Garcia,