Hanging Gardens Of Babylon

The city of Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar II, must have been a wonder to the ancient traveler's eyes. "In addition to its size", wrote Herodotus, a Greek historian in 450 BC, "Babylon surpasses in splendor any city in the known world." The Hanging Gardens probably did not really "Hang" in the sense of being suspended from cables or ropes. The name comes from an inexact translation of the Greek word or the Latin word pensilis, which means not just "Hanging", but "overhanging" as in the case of a terrace or balcony.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon are thought to have been built in the ancient city of Babylon. Even thought there is no proof that they actually existed, they are considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the World

Interesting Facts About Hanging Gardens Of Babylon:

• The Hanging Gardens are the only one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world that may not even have exited.
• There is no documentation in Babylon sources that the gardens ever exited. There is also no solid archaeological evidence that they exited.
• Several ancient Roman and Greek writers wrote about the Gardens. They wrote about why they were built, how they were built, and the size of the gardens. They even described how the gardens were watered. They didn't all agree on why they were built or why they were built for.
• The most popular theory is that the gardens were built by king Nebuchadnezzar II to make his wife happy. She was homesick for the plants and gardens of her homeland.
• King Nebuchadnezzar II ruled Babylon from 605 BC, for a period of 43 years. It was during this time that he is said to have had the Hanging Gardens built.
• If the gardens actually exited, it would have taken 8200 gallons of water each day to keep the plants watered.
• The gardens were thought to be about 75 feet high. The water would have had to have been carried up or transported to the top of gardens by a primitive water irrigation system.
• Many believe that if the gardens did exist they would have been located south of Bagged in Iraq.
• Some historians and archaeologists believe that the gardens did exist and were destroyed by war and erosion. Some believe it was earthquakes that eventually devastated and destroyed the gardens.
• In the "Hanging Gardens", the plants did not actually hang. They grew from many different levels of terraces.
• A Greek historian named Diordorus Siculus  described the  gardens as being 400 feet wide by 400 feet long. He also said that the walls were more than 80 feet high.
• Between 1899 and 1917 a German archaeologist Robert Koldewey may have unearthed the Hanging Gardens. What he unearthed resembled what Diordorus Siculus had described. In the bottom of the Hanging Gardens there were three strange holes in the floor that would have worked well for a chain pump irrigation system. This would have made it possible to irrigate the plants.
• Recent excavations have found traces of aqueducts near Nineveh, which would have supported such a garden. Nineveh is 300 miles away from Babylon.