Bas-relief supposed to depict the triple wall of Babylon, with a portion of the palace within. In the original, water flows at the base of the lowest wall. The above is the upper part of slab No. 89 in the Assyrian Saloon of the British Museum, and apparently illustrates Assur-bani-âpli's campaign against his brother, Samas-sum-ukin (Saosduchinos), King of Babylon (cf. p. 391). (Two at least of the walls of Babylon were much older than the time of Nebuchadnezzar.)
The portion of Daniel referring to Nebuchadnezzar which receives the best illustration from the inscriptions is that referred to after the relation of his second dream, where he is represented as walking in or upon his palace, and one may imagine that he had gone up to enjoy the view of the city, and whilst doing so, with almost justifiable pride the words, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my power and the glory of my majesty?” escaped him. From his inscriptions (and they are fairly numerous) we learn, with regard to Babylon, that it owed most of its glories as they then existed to this, the greatest of its kings. That the king did not always distinguish between what he built and what he rebuilt—indeed, none of his predecessors seem to have done so either, a circumstance probably due to the poverty of the Akkadian [pg 405] and Semitic Babylonian languages in that respect—would explain the words attributed to him.
According to the great India-House inscription, which was carved by order of Nebuchadnezzar, Nabopolassar had built (= rebuilt) the two great walls of Babylon, called Imgur-Bêl and Nemitti-Bêl. He had dug the great city-moat, and raised two strong walls on its banks, similar, in all probability, to what other kings had done before him. To all appearance also he lined the banks of the Euphrates with embankments (probably the quays of which Herodotus speaks), and constructed, within the city, a road leading from Du-azaga, “the holy seat,” where the oracles were declared, to Aa-ibur-sabû, Babylon's “festival-street,” close to the gate of Beltis, for the yearly procession of the god Merodach.
Bas-relief, supposed to represent the Hanging Gardens at Babylon, about 645 b.c. On the slope is a temple, a stele with the figure of a king, and an altar on the path in front. On the right pointed arches support a terrace planted with trees. Streams water the sides of the wooded hill. British Museum, Assyrian Saloon, No. 92 (upper part). The above, with Plate XIV., apparently illustrate Assur-bani-âpli's campaign against his brother Samas-sum-ukin (cf. page 391).
All these erections Nebuchadnezzar completed or altered and improved. He added to the defences which his father had built, and raised the level of the street Aa-ibur-sabû from the “glorious gate” to the gate of Istar. The raising of the “festival-street” necessitated the raising of the gateways through which it ran. Gates were made of cedar covered with copper, probably after the style of the great gate found by Mr. Rassam at Balawat in Assyria, which was adorned with bands of bronze chased with scenes of Shalmaneser II.'s warlike exploits in relief. In all probability there were but few gates in Babylon of solid metal, notwithstanding that there is no mention in Herodotus of their having been constructed merely of wood covered with ornamented strips of bronze. The thresholds of these gates were of bronze, probably similar to that of which a part was found by Mr. Rassam at Borsippa (evidently the doorstep of one of the entrances to the temple called Ê-zida), and which may now be seen at the British Museum. These and other portals at Babylon were guarded by images of bulls and serpents, also of bronze. In [pg 406] addition to this, Nebuchadnezzar built a wall on the east side of the city, high like a mountain, so that no enemy could approach. Access to the city was gained by gates, the doors of which were likewise of cedar ornamented with bronze. For further protection, he “caused great waters like the volume of the sea to surround the land,” and to cross them was “like the crossing of the broad sea, the Salt Stream” (the Persian Gulf). He then rebuilt the palace of his father, its walls having been undermined by the waters of the Euphrates, which ran near. Advantage of the changes made in this building was taken to raise the gateways, which had become too low in consequence of the raising of the festival-street of Merodach. In addition to this, he built another palace, adjoining that of his father, decorating it with cedar, cypress, and other precious woods; gold, silver, and precious stones; and adorning it with sculptures and with gates overlaid with bronze. According to the India-House inscription of Nebuchadnezzar, the fabric of this building was completed in fifteen days, a fact so remarkable that it is specially mentioned by Berosus (see Josephus, Antiquities, x., xi. 1), whose word may be taken as proving the translation of the passage in question. Besides restoring the temples of the cities, or at least the principal ones, he restored all the chief temples of Babylonia, notably that at Sippar, the chief centre of the Sun-god worship, and the great temple-tower dedicated to Nebo at Borsippa. This last, indeed, was one of the works upon which he prided himself most, as is proved by the fact that it is mentioned in all his inscriptions, including those on his bricks, along with the temple known as Ê-sagila (later pronounced Ê-sangil), the “temple of Belus,” which he calls “the tower of Babylon,” the principal shrine of which seems to have been called “the House of the Foundation of Heaven and Earth,” indicating clearly the estimation in which the Babylonians held [pg 407] it (see p. [138]). It was there that the god Merodach, the principal deity of the Babylonians, and the founder of the temple in question, was worshipped.
But one might go on for a long time describing what Nebuchadnezzar did for the city which, more than any other, he loved, and to which he brought the spoils of his many expeditions. There is no doubt that this, the last great king of Babylon, was a most successful ruler, of whom his people were proud. He was pious, and an intense lover of his country—two characteristics which endeared him, the one to the priesthood, the other to the people at large. Could we but find the real history of his reign, it would undoubtedly prove to be full of interest, and also of enormous importance, not only on account of the light that it would throw upon Jewish history during his period, but also on account of its bearing upon a most important epoch in the life of the Babylonian nation.
It is noteworthy that, in Herodotus, many of the great architectural works of his reign are attributed to Nitocris, who, he states, was the mother of Labynetus (Book I. 185-188). Now, who this Labynetus was, is clear from the statement that it was he against whom Cyrus marched—namely the Nabonidus of other Greek historians, and the Nabû-na'id of the inscriptions. Nitocris would therefore seem to have been the name of the queen of Nebuchadnezzar, and if so, it shows upon what grounds Nabonidus claimed the throne, and how Belshazzar, in the Book of Daniel, could be described as the son or descendant of Nebuchadnezzar. But in this case Nitocris must have been another wife of Nebuchadnezzar, and not the Median princess whom he had married when young. If she supplanted Amytis, Nebuchadnezzar's Median wife, in the affections of her husband, it is easy to see how she could have feared a Median invasion, as indicated by Herodotus.
Nebuchadnezzar died in the year 561 b.c., leaving [pg 408] his crown to Awēl-Maruduk, the Evil-Merodach of 2 Kings xxv. 27, and the Abilamarōdachos of Josephus, who, however, also gives, in his book against Apion (i. 20), the genuine Babylonian form as transcribed by Berosus, namely, Eueilmaradouchos. Two other sons of Nebuchadnezzar are also mentioned in the contract-tablets of his reign, namely, Marduk-šum-uṣur (in his fortieth year) and Marduk-nadin-âḫi (forty-first year). (See pp. [434], [435].)
The substitution of the mild rule of Evil-Merodach for the vigorous government of his father must have been witnessed by the Babylonians with considerable misgiving, for in the East, especially at that period, the successful ruler was he who was the most energetic. There is every reason to believe, however, that the character of Evil-Merodach was that of a man in every way kind and considerate, as is shown by the fact, that he released Jehoiachin (whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken prisoner), spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above those of the other vassal kings in Babylon. The only thing, according to Josephus, recorded about him by Berosus was, that “he governed public affairs lawlessly and extravagantly”—words which imply that he displeased the priestly class, of which Berosus was one. His name appears in certain contracts (published by Mr. Evetts) as ruler of Babylonia for about two years, from the 26th of Elul of his accession year to the 4th day of Ab of his second year—about two years and five months in all. According to Berosus, he was slain by his sister's husband, Nēriglissöoros, the Nergal-šar-uṣur of the inscriptions, who then ascended the throne.