TLDR;
This YouTube video from National Geographic explores the historical context and archaeological evidence surrounding the Tower of Babel story and the reign of King Solomon and the complex legacy of King Herod. It examines the potential inspiration for the biblical narrative in the ziggurats of Mesopotamia, particularly the Etemenanki Ziggurat in Babylon, and the political and religious motivations behind their construction. The video also investigates the kingdoms neighbouring ancient Israel during Solomon's time, revealing insights into their wealth, culture, and interactions. Finally, the video examines the life and legacy of King Herod, exploring his building projects, political maneuvering, and the reasons behind his villainous portrayal in the Bible.
- The Tower of Babel story may have been inspired by Mesopotamian ziggurats, particularly the Etemenanki Ziggurat in Babylon.
- Archaeological discoveries shed light on the wealth, culture, and interactions of kingdoms neighbouring ancient Israel during Solomon's reign.
- King Herod's portrayal as a villain in the Bible is contrasted with his achievements as a builder and political operator.
The Tower of Babel [0:02]
In the deserts of Iraq, archaeologists are uncovering evidence related to the Tower of Babel, a legendary megastructure from the Bible. Babylon, a significant city in the ancient world located in modern-day Iraq, is the setting for this exploration. The Book of Genesis describes the Tower of Babel as an immense structure that angered God, prompting questions about the historical basis of this story. Archaeological discoveries are now shedding light on the events that may have inspired these legends.
Reconstructing Ancient Babylon [2:21]
In central Iraq, a project is underway to reconstruct ancient Babylon, where only a small percentage of the ancient city has been discovered. Osama Hisham and his team are focused on rebuilding the Ninmakh Temple, dedicated to the Mother Goddess Ninmakh, which faces challenges from termites and rainwater. The team aims to reconstruct an archway within the temple to understand the city's construction and appearance during its prime. Babylon, which rose to prominence in the second millennium BCE, was a thriving metropolis and the capital of a mighty empire, possibly the largest city of its time, with an estimated population of 200,000 people.
Engineering the Tower [6:04]
The Book of Genesis tells the story of humans speaking one language and building a tower to reach the heavens, leading God to make them speak in different tongues and scatter across the Earth. Osama's team is repairing the damaged lower walls of the Ninmakh Temple using sun-dried mudbricks, the same materials used by ancient builders. The size of the walls, up to 13 feet wide, indicates the engineering skill of the Babylonians, who built thick foundations to support towering monuments.
Ziggurats of Mesopotamia [8:08]
At Nimrud, 250 miles from Babylon, archaeologist Michael Danti is excavating a ziggurat, a towering monument with stepped platforms found in many Mesopotamian cities. The ziggurat at Nimrud, once at least 100 feet tall, was flattened by ISIS in 2014 as part of their war against non-Islamic heritage. Michael's team is uncovering more structures beneath the ground, including bricks with cuneiform inscriptions from the reign of King Ashurnasirpal II, who ruled the Assyrian Empire in the 9th century BCE. These bricks, some kiln-baked and stronger than sun-dried ones, reveal the materials used in constructing great towers in the region.
Cuneiform Tablets [13:25]
Clues to the Tower of Babel story may be found in the Babylonians' detailed written records in cuneiform, one of the oldest writing systems in the world. Lara Bampfield, an expert in cuneiform, examines a stele depicting a six-stepped ziggurat with a temple on top, accompanied by a cuneiform inscription that reads "Etemenanki, the ziggurat of Babylon," translating to "The house, the foundation of Heaven and Earth." The text describes the materials used to build the ziggurat, including baked brick and bitumen, and suggests a coating that would have made it gleam in the sun.
The Etemenanki Ziggurat [18:00]
In Babylon, archaeologist Ahmed Aziz Selman investigates the site for evidence of the Tower of Babel, using drone surveys to reveal the heart of the ancient city. A huge square ruin is identified as the core of the Etemenanki Ziggurat, depicted on the ancient stele. The dimensions of the ziggurat, derived from tablets and archaeological studies, indicate it was more than 300 feet tall, with a greater footprint than the Empire State Building.
Building Techniques [21:49]
Osama's team continues work on the Ninmakh Temple, using similar materials to the ziggurat, such as mud bricks, reed mats, and mortar. They use firsthand accounts from cuneiform tablets, including the Etemenanki stele, to understand the ancient builders' techniques. The team makes mud bricks from a mixture of water, soil, and straw, left to dry for almost a month, resulting in incredibly strong building blocks capable of holding immense pressure.
Religious Significance [26:05]
In Nimrud, Michael's team unearths rectangular rooms next to the ziggurat mound, including a stele depicting a deity and an individual, likely King Ashurnasirpal, who built the city and commissioned the ziggurat. The king wanted to associate himself with the gods to legitimise his power. Lara examines the Etemenanki stele and identifies King Nebuchadnezzar II as the ruler who commissioned Babylon's ziggurat, repairing and enlarging a smaller structure to create something spectacular.
The Confusion of Tongues [31:48]
At Nimrud, Michael's team excavates the Ninurta Temple, revealing the front part of the temple and providing a vivid picture of life at the Nimrud Ziggurat. Ancient priests used this temple to worship the god Ninurta, with the ziggurat towering above the temple in the background. The Etemenanki Ziggurat at Babylon rose high above the temple complex, with a temple dedicated to the city's patron deity, Marduk, at the top, accessible only to priests. Lara decodes a cuneiform tablet with a Sumerian myth about Enmerkar trying to build a ziggurat, but facing a confusion of tongues, similar to the Tower of Babel story.
The Biblical Account [39:04]
The Bible's Tower of Babel story is set long before King Nebuchadnezzar, but this ruler played a vital role in the lives of the authors of the Old Testament. In the 6th century BCE, Nebuchadnezzar II and his Babylonian army laid siege to Jerusalem, leading to the Judeans being exiled to Babylon. Living in exile, the Judeans would have seen the Etemenanki Ziggurat and heard the stories told there, leading some experts to believe they wrote the Tower of Babel account in Babylon, drawing on the city and its tyrant king to teach a moral lesson about the start of humanity.
The Lost World of King Solomon [44:07]
Archaeologists are investigating the lost world of King Solomon, focusing on the kingdoms of Ammon, Moab, and Edom, which neighboured Israel during the Iron Age. Katharina Schmidt and her team are excavating the Amman Citadel in Jordan, hoping to reveal a lost Iron Age kingdom, the ancient biblical kingdom of Ammon. The team is using drone photogrammetry to create a digital map of the citadel, helping them find structures from the Iron Age.
The Ammonite Palace [50:27]
Katharina examines a large structure within the Amman Citadel, believing it to be a royal building due to its thick walls, vast spaces, and the discovery of a stone toilet seat. Zeidan Kafafi, a pottery expert, examines pottery sherds found at the site, identifying them as typical of the Ammonite period, dating the palace to the 8th or 7th century BCE. Pearce Paul Creasman is exploring Tell Dhiban, associated with Dibon in Moab, to understand the power of ancient Moab and its relationship with Solomon's Israel.
A Carved Stone Head [55:43]
At the Amman Citadel, excavator Haitham Al-Adwan uncovers a carved stone head inside a wall, identified by Katharina as the top part of a double-faced female head from the Iron Age. The team carefully removes the head, which is in pristine condition, and plans to create a 3D computer model of it. The discovery is significant because Iron Age stone sculptures are rare, offering invaluable insight into the people of the biblical Iron Age kingdoms.
The Wealth of Edom [1:01:46]
Clues to King Solomon's wealth may lie south of ancient Israel, in the valley of Wadi Faynan in the Iron Age kingdom of Edom. Archaeologist Mohammad Najjar is searching for the source of this kingdom's wealth, following a trail of clues visible in satellite imagery. He discovers ancient mineshafts and heaps of black stone and dust, indicating the presence of valuable metals.
Analysing the Stone Head [1:04:20]
At a laboratory outside Amman, Katharina uses the SESAME laboratory to detect chemical elements on the Ammonite head sculpture without destructive testing. The synchrotron identifies different metals, including lead, zinc, and copper, suggesting the statue was richly painted with black, white, and red paint. This indicates the resources put into its decoration suggest it was commissioned by a wealthy ruler.
Copper Mines of Faynan [1:08:36]
In the valleys of southern Jordan, Mohammad finds copper ores in a dried-up riverbed, confirming that the ancient mines were a source of copper for the kingdom of Edom. The Edomites were expert smelters, producing tons of copper every year and shipping it all over the ancient world. Carbon dating of charcoal trapped inside slag from the smelting process places the Edomite copper industry at the same time as Solomon and the tales of his elaborate temple.
Mesha's Palace [1:11:42]
At Tell Dhiban in the ancient kingdom of Moab, Pearce Paul continues his exploration of the mound, uncovering a structure at the centre of the tell that has been dubbed Mesha's Palace. A nearby inscription refers to Mesha, a leader of the Moabites, who the Bible describes as enemies of the Israelites. The inscription details Mesha's deeds, including building walls, gates, towers, and a royal palace, indicating that Moab was a fully-fledged nation with a foremost god, Chemosh.
Ammonite Deities [1:16:24]
At the Amman Citadel, Katharina's team uncovers another stone head, similar in appearance to the first, suggesting they weren't representing one specific person or god, but were good spirits of the building. The team also explores the site of a Roman temple, beneath which archaeologists discovered an earlier Iron Age structure, believed to be the temple for the major Ammonite deity, Milcom. Biblical texts accuse the Ammonites of sacrificing children to Milcom, raising questions about the Old Testament's depiction of the Ammonite religion.
The Pools of Heshbon [1:19:32]
At Tell Dhiban, Pearce Paul examines a thick stone wall surrounding a bowl-shaped depression, likely a reservoir for the Iron Age settlement, reflecting a reference from the Bible to the pools of Heshbon. The biblical poem Song of Songs compares Solomon's lover's eyes to Moab's famous pools of Heshbon. The kingdoms next door to ancient Israel provide clues to what Solomon's own realm might have been like, with people trading, intermarrying, and engaging in social interactions.
The Assyrian Empire [1:22:50]
At the Amman Citadel, Katharina examines how the period of flourishing independent kingdoms came to an end. Museum director Taher Gonmin tracks down a stamp seal with a curious design, indicating the presence of the Assyrians in Ammon. The Ammonites chose to submit to the Assyrians rather than face annihilation, while the Israelites refused to bow to Assyria, leading to their cities being raided and destroyed.
The Legacy of Solomon [1:25:44]
The contrasting fates of Israel and its neighbours spurred the writers of the Bible to create an image of Solomon's kingdom standing mighty and alone in a golden age of its own making. Archaeological evidence is shedding light on a lost age, a time of evolving religions, great industry and trade, and a landscape of competing kingdoms, revealing the truth about the lost world of King Solomon.
King Herod [1:28:10]
On the coastline of modern Israel, in the ruins of an ancient city, a team of investigators prepares to head underground, searching for clues about King Herod, a villainous character in the Bible. The New Testament portrays Herod as ordering the murder of every child under the age of 2, known as the Massacre of the Innocents, while history books refer to him as Herod the Great. Archaeologists and historians are making fresh discoveries to reveal the truth about King Herod.
Caesarea Maritima [1:30:16]
On the coast of modern Israel lies the ancient port of Caesarea, once a great city in Herod's kingdom of Judea. Marine geoarchaeologist Beverly Goodman is on a mission to discover the true extent of this city in its prime and what the architecture Herod left behind might reveal about the true character of the infamous king. The team starts with Herod's palace and its grand pool, which was once covered by exquisite mosaics and surrounded by fine pillars and containers for exotic plants.
Herod's Family History [1:34:05]
A clue to Herod's ambitions could lie in his surprising family history. In modern-day Jordan lies the ancient city of Petra, the capital of the Nabataeans, neighbours of the Judeans. Herod wasn't a Judean; his father was a nobleman from Idumea, and his mother was descended from Petra's royal family, a Nabataean princess named Cypros. Sami al-Hasanat explores the city that Herod spent time in as a boy, uncovering the roots of Herod's great ambitions.
The Rise of Herod [1:37:06]
In 63 BCE, Rome conquered Judea and appointed Herod's father as ruler. When Herod was 30, a rival poisoned his father, creating a perilous moment for Herod, who was viewed as merely a puppet of Rome. In 40 BCE, Herod retreated to the stronghold of Masada and then raced on to Rome, where he was made king with the backing of Marc Anthony. In 31 BCE, Herod lost his powerful sponsor when Marc Antony was defeated by Octavian, who became the first Roman Emperor, Caesar Augustus.
Herod and Caesar Augustus [1:40:39]
Back in Caesarea, Beverly and her team believe Herod's monuments could hold clues to how he remained an ally of Rome. They head into the bowels of Caesarea's Roman Theater, exploring an undocumented tunnel that turns out to be part of a system that drained water from the Roman street above into underground channels. Herod's Caesarea was Roman in its scale and in its public buildings, and Beverly believes Herod's drive to expand Judean infrastructure on a Roman model was part of a master plan targeted at Caesar Augustus.
The Temple in Jerusalem [1:44:31]
Herod expanded the mount around the Temple in Jerusalem with thousands of giant limestone blocks and covered the innermost shrine with gold. However, he also broke sacred Jewish law by placing a Roman imperial eagle over a temple gateway, leading to his people burning them alive in his Jericho amphitheater. Beverly thinks his motives for renovating the Temple weren't wholly pure, as he was building a Roman temple for Caesar Augustus at the same time that he was building a temple for the Jews.
Luxury Living at Masada [1:46:03]
At Guy's laboratory, he scours the stores for clues that could reveal what Herod did with all the power of a king. One of the finest examples of Herod's contribution is the introduction of new materials and new technologies, such as stone tiles called opus sectile, a technique of flooring that is typical to the time of Augustus. Herod imported Roman engineering as well as Roman style, bringing the latest building innovations to the harshest of environments.
The Well at Caesarea [1:49:29]
In Caesarea, Beverly prepares to head underground into a well, looking for evidence that might date it to Herod's reign. She discovers a horizontal gap going all the way around the well, suggesting an earthquake caused it to shift down. The layers of grander, larger stone blocks correspond to Herod's city-building, but the bizarre gaps suggest a huge natural disaster.
A Submerged Coastline [1:54:46]
The drop at the bottom of the well reminds Beverly of another puzzling feature at Caesarea: its steep beach. She heads into the water and finds what look like man-made blocks along the sea floor, as well as stone columns, providing solid evidence that this area was once dry land. Beverly believes such a huge change to the city's coastline hints at an enormously destructive force, such as a tsunami.
The True Extent of Caesarea [1:58:54]
Beverly's work has revealed that in Herod's age, the city was much larger than today, with the land stretching 300 feet further out to sea next to the hippodrome. Caesarea may have been twice as big as previously thought, and the port's three huge basins may have been built within the ancient shoreline, making it one of the biggest ports in the Roman empire. This place, where she began her career over 20 years ago, has helped Beverly to understand the true extent of Caesarea.
Herod's Downfall [2:01:59]
At Masada, Guy examines an amphora that held apples from Cumae, a delicacy imported from Italy, demonstrating the level of decadence and opulence reached by Herod's luxury living. Herod was paying taxes to Rome and using his money to boost Augustus, building Temple Caesarea to honour him. However, in his old age, Herod's calculation and ruthlessness descended into paranoia and horror, leading him to kill his own sons and order high-ranking Judeans to be killed following his death.
The Temple of Augustus [2:06:19]
At Caesarea, Beverly explores the Temple of Augustus, finding that the wall was built after the tsunami, and long after Herod. This large wall is part of the foundations of a church that was built on top of the foundations of the Roman temple. In the centuries after the supposed Massacre of the Innocents, Christianity grew and became established, leading to the dismantling of the temple and the building of a church.
The Villain in Someone Else's Story [2:09:38]
Herod had been one of Rome's most loyal and effective servants, but for the empire's 50 million citizens, the Christian gospel turned him into a two-dimensional character, a necessary villain in Christ's origin story. New archaeological discoveries reveal the truth behind the title of Herod the Great, showing his ability, pragmatism, and the fact that he was a juggler, managing to overcome all those obstacles, inside and outside. He built vast temples and incredible palaces, and transformed the cultural landscape by championing Roman arts and games, but he also ruled with ruthless violence, immortalized in the stories of the Bible.
