Ancient Babylon 3D reconstruction

[mavra22]

Here is an excellent reconstruction of the ancient city of Babylon:
http://www.kadingirra.com/
It was created in 2013 for the Mesopotamia exhibition of the Royal Ontario Museum. The project appears to be extensively researched and well-made (especially the "Palaces" part - it is a feast for the eyes). I wonder if anyone over here has come across this website previously? In any case, we can all appreciate taking a 3d look at the place where Alexander breathed his last.

[Alexias]

Interesting, thanks. I wonder if Alexander spent part of his illness in the summer palace as that would have been cooler and the river more accessible, but not suitable for the army to march past.

[mavra22]

Yes, Plutarch and Arrian both point this out in their accounts!
First, the entire thing from Plutarch (one can only guess the locations of the bathhouse and the swimming pool, but the "palace on the other river bank" seems quite clear) :

The following account of the illness is given in the Ephemerides. On the 18th of Daesius he slept in the bathhouse because of his fever. The next day he took a bath and went back to his bedroom, where he spent the day playing dice with Medius. Then, late in the day, he bathed again and sacrificed to the gods, after which he took a bite and spent the night in a fever.
On the 20th he bathed once more, and made his usual sacrifice. He then made his bed in the bathhouse and spent his time with Nearchus and his officers, listening to an account of their sea voyage and the ocean. The 21st he passed in the same manner, but his temperature was higher. He had a bad night and the following day his fever was extremely high. Removed from the bathhouse he then lay by the large swimming pool, conversing here with his generals on the subject of assessing personnel with a view to filling the vacant posts in the army command.
On the 24th his fever was again extremely high, and he was carried outside to perform the sacrifice. He gave orders for his highest-ranking officers to remain in the court, and for the taxiarchs and pentacosiarchs to spend the night outside. He was then transported on the 25th to the palace on the other river bank and here he slept a little, but the fever did not subside.
When his generals came to his side he was unable to speak, and that remained the case on the 26th. As a result the Macedonian rank and file thought he was dead. They came to the doors shouting and uttering threats to the hetairoi until they had to give in to them. The doors were flung open for them, and they filed past his bed, one by one, wearing only their tunics. That day, Python and Seleucus were sent to the temple of Sarapis to ask if they should bring Alexander there, but the god’s reply was that they should leave him where he was. On the 28th, towards evening, he died.

As we can see, Plutarch doesn't mention any further 'transferring' from the summer palace - but Arrian does:

From the mess he was taken on his litter to the river where he boarded a boat and crossed the river to the garden. Here he again bathed and took a rest, and the following day he bathed once more and performed the customary sacrifices. He then went to his bed where he lay down, chatting to Medius, and gave orders to his officers to come to him at dawn. After this, he ate little at dinner and was once more taken back to his bed where he remained in the grip of the fever all night long.
The next day he took another bath and performed the appointed sacrifices, and from the point of his discharging his religious duties the fever never let up. Even so, he called his officers to his side and instructed them to have everything prepared for the sea voyage. In the evening he took his bath, after which he was now in a sorry state. The next day he was moved to the building by the swimming pool, and he performed the appointed sacrifices. He was suffering badly, but he none the less called to him his highest-ranking officers and issued further instructions about the voyage.
It was only with difficulty that he could be carried out to offer the sacrifices the following day, but he still gave his orders to the officers with regard to the voyage. The day after that he again offered the prescribed sacrifices, despite his poor state of health, but he gave orders for the officers to remain in the court, and the chiliarchs and pentacosiarchs were to remain before the doors. By now he was in a very bad way, and was taken from the garden to the palace. His officers came to see him, and though he recognized them he no longer spoke to them – he had lost the power of speech. He remained in a high fever throughout the night and the following day, as well as the next night and the day that followed.

So you are right, Alexias - he was indeed back in the main palace before the army's final march-past; as the location of the summer palace wasn't suitable for such activity!

[dean]

Hi,

Thanks for the post.
The images are wonderful. Must have been simply amazing for Alexander to visit- the zigurrat, hanging gardens, Gate of Ishtar, not to mention the palaces.

Best regards,
Dean.

[mavra22]

Hi,

Thanks for the post.
The images are wonderful. Must have been simply amazing for Alexander to visit- the zigurrat, hanging gardens, Gate of Ishtar, not to mention the palaces.

Best regards,
Dean.

Thank you for replying, Dean! Yes, it must have been an awe-inspiring experience for Alexander when he entered Babylon for the first time. The weather must have been pleasant too, since it was already late October. Not so for his second visit, though - having had to spend his last summer in that sweltering heat must've been harrowing. No wonder we read of gardens and pools so many times in the accounts of his last days...

[chris_taylor]

woa, thanks to all for this thread. narrowing down where Alexander spent his last hours. Amazing!

[mavra22]

woa, thanks to all for this thread. narrowing down where Alexander spent his last hours. Amazing!

Thank you, Chris! And I hope that there will be lots of pictures from Central Asia coming up soon (that is, if you do manage to embark upon that tour to Uzbekistan/Tajikistan). I only wish Afghanistan were as easily accessible as well - that's perhaps the only area from Alexander's conquests that is off limits now. On that note, I live in Pakistan; and almost all of Alexander's ancient route lies over here, and not in modern-day India. Do pay a visit to our country too someday

[chris_taylor]

thanks for the best wishes for travel. but west of Pakistan, it doesn't look as rosy as you think for people wanting to retrace his route:

* Turkey was struck by an earthquake earlier this year that affected tens of thousands around the wider area of the battle of Issus. (I did see the Granicus battlefield, though - AMAZING)

* Sections of the mediterranean coast of Lebanon and Israel are dangerous for a single woman.

* Palestine and North Sinai are off limits altogether.

* Egypt (travelled last year) was ok, but unpleasant because of military presence. Trying to get across Suez West-to-East into North Sinai to see Tell Farama (ancient Pelusium), I got turned back by machine gun wielding soldiers four times. And cheating by using the bus from the tourist resorts of South Sinai to Cairo doesn't work, either. You're not allowed to get off.

* Jordan is ok, but we don't actually know which way he went!

* Syria - ravaged by civil war

* British Foreign office advises against all travel in Iraq. there is a tour that kind of follows the route, (https://www.rockyroadtravel.com/basra-to-erbil-tour/#4 ) but it's a whistlestop-wizz-along and he-who-must-be-obeyed won't let me go anyway

* Iran government practices hostage-diplomacy, particularly for foreign women.

But one of these days I will cross the Khyber to visit your beautiful country and sail down the Indus!

[mavra22]

Wow, thank you for the updated information regarding these places! I must admit that I mostly had Michael Wood's "In the Footsteps of ATG" in mind while thinking about tracing Alexander's route in the present day. And yet, the book is obviously quite old by now (though still marvellous), and the ground realities of the respective places are different from what they used to be in the 90s. Even so, I await your visit to Pakistan! Best wishes