The goal: to relaunch art, culture and even the economy of Iraq by making Babylon a showcase of a new Iraq,a must-see tourist attraction for visitors from all over the world, said one participant. In 2006, I wrote my first non-fiction book, Epicenter,in which I explained that according to Bible prophecy, the ancient and long-forgotten city of Babylon will one day be literally rebuilt. In 2019, UNESCO designated Babylon as a World Heritage Site. Revelation 14:8 says Babylon the Great is fallen, "she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality." She is only called great for her extensive tentacular reach, like the tentacles of an octopus. So, terribly low oil revenues along with COVID-related lockdowns and travel restrictions flatlined economic growth and caused unemployment to spike. After the invasion of Iraq in 2003, U.S. military contractors built a base on the site, digging trenches, driving armored vehicles on the fragile streets and filling sandbags with dirt mixed with pottery and bone shards. WMF also assisted SBAH with the completion of a World Heritage nomination for Babylon, holding workshops in 2017 to advance the research and writing necessary to achieve this goal. It was Saddam Hussein who took up Nebuchadnezzar's mantle and tried to reconstruct some of Babylon's former glory, but ended up with what art historians decried as "Disney for a despot." As a result of WMF and SBAHs partnership, Babylon was officially inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on July 5, 2019. As one of the greatest cities of the ancient world, Babylon has recently been dubbed the city of wonders. Iranian uranium enrichment reportedly dangerously close to nuclear bomb capability Like many Iraqis, he feels Babylons past is not just ancient history but his history. It's a sad ending to such a fabled city. According to an About.com article, "Saddam Hussein said that Babylon's great palaces and the legendary hanging gardens of Babylon (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) would rise from the dust.". Later excavations, undertaken by the German archaeologist Robert Koldewey in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, established that the city had been built and rebuilt several times, most notably on a lavish scale by its king, Nebuchadrezzar II (reigned 605-561 B.C.E . However, after years of destruction, there is not much left of the historical ruins today. The site of Babylon was first identified in the 1800s in what is now Iraq. But American archaeologist Jeff Allen says underneath it, the mud bricks and the mortar of what was the ancient world's grandest city have been disintegrating. Tel: +1 646 424-9594. Jeremiah 51:26. A story that will confound atheists and agnostics. Now Iraqi officials are hoping to get back to the ambitious construction and investment plans they were hoping to pursue soon after the country was liberated from Saddam Hussein in the spring of. Husseins interventions, neglect resulting from 12 years of draconian UN sanctions that bankrupted the country, and subsequent damage by military vehicles in the wake of the 2003 invasion all contributed to Babylons demise. #Syria When we say "Whaaaaaaaaat"!, that is not what my eyes see", we're told "not to believe our lying eyes". Yet, in every case, there exists PHOTOGRAPHS. Jesus ChristTo Him who loves us, and released us from our sins by His blood, (Revelation 1:5, " And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost." The Greek historian Herodotus, writing centuries after Babylon's heyday, described eight towers stacked on top of one another. The location of the ziggurat said to have been the Tower of Babel described in the Old Testament has also never been established. Therefore After its Final Fall, there can be NO MORE Photographs of Inhabitants at Babylon. Other pieces of Babylons walls were sold off to other institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Yes, there are certainly rumblings. Isaiah 13:20. Desolate Desert (no greenery; trees, gardens, groves) 5. They certainly have long had a difficult time imagining the rebuilding of the ancient Iraqi city of Babylon, at least on the scale described in the Left Behindnovels about the End Times (written by Evangelicals Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, and which sold more than 60 million books in the 1990s), or any of my novels or non-fiction books. FACT #6-- After the FINAL FALL of Babylon there will never again be any "PASSERS-BY", Her cities A land in which no man lives, And through which no son of man passes. Kevin Phillips, the best-selling author and former Republican strategist, was one such skeptic, among many. While Alexander the Great had intentions of rebuilding the city, he died before he could make that a reality. Although Babylon was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019, there isn't much left to see of the once-unstoppable empire that dazzled Greek historians and enslaved its rivals, most famously the biblical Kingdom of Judah. Advocates of Mystery Babylon being a rebuilt Babylon will often claim Babylon wasn't destroyed in the same way as Sodom. Indeed, as I was doing research for Epicenter, I interviewed then-Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Abdul-Amir Allawi. . His empire collapsed and Babylon was eventually abandoned. According to historians, Nechuchadnezzar relocated conquered people around the empire to keep them from organizing rebellions against him under his leadership, Babylon became the biggest and most modern city in the ancient world. That identity of Babylon never changes in the Old or New Testament. 1.7K 234K views 15 years ago The New Babylon (Sep 1997) In the sixth century BC, Babylon, was the greatest city in the world. But today, with renewed internal and foreign tourism and funding from the US embassy and other international donors, Babylon is coming back to life. As to what knowledge or treasures might be down there, he said, its a very simple answer no one knows., In Beleaguered Babylon, Doing Battle Against Time, Water and Modern Civilization, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/06/world/middleeast/babylon-iraq-archeology-conservation.html. And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. What is the Place & Time of Babylon's Ultimate Destruction?5. Babylon is also believed to be home to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. And the bricks just fall apart. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. But things are changing and its time for an update. In 2009 CE, the local government of Babylon opened the city to the public. "And Babylon the Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. To visit Babylon today, you have to go to Iraq, 55 miles south of Baghdad. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Later, the Persian empire was defeated by Alexander the Great, and the Greeks ruled the earth. World Monuments Fund safeguards cultural heritage around the globe, ensuring our treasured places are preserved for present and future generations. It remains in ruin after decades of war in the area. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a17313b09d87d0d However, as events unfolded, it became evident that Hussein was not the final enemy of God and that he would not be successful in restoring a Babylonian Empire. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Widely known for its legendary Hanging Gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, Babylon today is home to national treasures such as Ishtar Gate and the Lion of Babylon. is a trademark of World Monuments Fund. How the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World Work. . "And they will not take from you even a stone for a corner, Nor a stone for foundations, But you will be desolate forever," declares the LORD. The Processional Way led to the Ishtar Gate, the city's grand northern entrance. The restoration installed heavier modern bricks atop the ancient original ones. But it's never been listed as a modern World Heritage Site by the United Nations. Growth will surge. Nevertheless, many theories persisted regarding the structure and location of the gardens. Two millennia of looting and warfare reduced Babylon to the barest of ruins. It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation;" (Isaiah 13:19-20; Jer 51:37, 62) This prophecy is Simply and Literally stated. BELOW: A closer look at the inscription on the back of the photograph. The first mention of the gardens was in 290 B.C.E., long after Nebuchadnezzar (the alleged builder) had died. A replica of the Ishtar Gate built in the 1950s, when Iraq first started developing the remains of Babylon as a tourist site. ARRAF: If Babylon's application to be a World Heritage Site is accepted, it would give Iraq's antiquities department more power to protect it. For instance, when Saddam Hussein was in power, he vowed to rebuild Babylon and make it the great city it . When the book of Revelation (chapters 16-18) highlights Babylon, it is not only referring to a rebuilt city, but also to a system . The current WMF work at the Ishtar Gatethe eighth and most elaborate gate to the inner city of Babylon, whose north facade was reconstructed and displayed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin in1930is addressing issues around changing groundwater levels and its impact on masonry humidity. The elements and damaging reconstruction have left walls crumbling, and construction and fuel pipelines threaten vast areas of the huge, largely unexcavated city. Is Babylon inhabited today? Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. The ancient site of Babylon in Iraq has undergone a lot of damage in recent years but archeologists hope it will still get special status. This is the palace of King Nebuchadnezzar II: Continue Reading 156 3 Bob deWitt Baghdad can therefore be considered the successor to Babylon, though indirectly. The nearest modern town is Hillah, which is the capital of the Governorate. It was one of the cities founded by King Nimrod, according to Genesis 10:9-10. Today, what's visible is the top of some of the city walls. No, but the site was once again open to tourists in 2009. AFTER the FINAL FALL of Babylon, the site will never again have. The projects at the Ishtar Gate and Ninmakh Temple, launched in 2016 and 2019 respectively, will be the beneficiaries of the US embassy funding. Performance & security by Cloudflare. No. So it looked more like an archaeological site than it did a minimal correctional facility. Isaiah 13:19. Its hanging gardens were said to be one of the seven wonders of the world. Damage caused by military occupation is among the many ongoing challenges to the preservation of Babylon, along with illegal encroachments and large crowds of visitors. It is a clue to God's timetable because when the Temple is rebuilt the Antichrist will be set to confirm the covenant with Israel and begin the last 7 years of history for this age. When Headlines Seem To Conflict With Prophecy, Peace & Safety Occurs at Death of 2 Witnesses. . All that caused significant damage, a British Museum report found. Fewer still cared. For hundreds of years until the mid-1900s, Babylon suffered the ignominy of surrounding townspeople dismantling its walls to cart away the ancient bricks for their own building projects. ARRAF: You look around and you're surrounded by these 2,500-year-old walls with mythical creatures on them. The 2,500-year-old dragon relief behind him is related to Marduk, the patron deity of Babylon. Rev 16:19 - The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. ARRAF: Iraq is awash in archaeological sites. The production of the new bricks, sized and coloured to match the original Babylonian ones (the Hussein-era ones were too small and not the right shade) is simultaneously reviving traditional masonry and training new practitioners. Crumbling infrastructure. Hours of Operation: Mon - Fri 8:00am - 8:00pm, "Jane and I both agreed that your presentation on Babylon was the best we had ever heard on the subject. The fall of Babylon was complete when the empire came under Persian control. All Arab News According to the Book of Revelation, the city of Babylon has to be rebuilt once again. Jeremiah 51:49. It is still called Babylon and is situated in the Babylon Governorate of Iraq, on the Euphrates River south of Baghdad. All rights reserved. So if they're irreversible, how do you deal with them as a material? Art historians referred to his attempt as Disney for a despot. Some of Saddams recreations were destroyed during wars in the region, though others remain accessible to the public today. NOT YET! Babylon became the capital of an empire 2,500 years ago. The north faade of the Ishtar Gate, similar to the one pictured here in Babylon, was smuggled out of Iraq and is now housed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin Photo: Hadani Ditmars. 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