What was the purpose of the Babylonian Map of the World?

What was the purpose of the Babylonian Map of the World?

The map is sometimes taken as a serious example of ancient geography, but although the places are shown in their approximately correct positions, the real purpose of the map is to explain the Babylonian view of the mythological world.

What does the Babylonian map show?

It shows Babylon on the Euphrates, surrounded by a circular landmass with Assyria, Uratu (Armenia), Ocean and islands arranged around, forming a seven-pointed star. Interestingly enough, the map deliberately omits the powerful empires of Persia and Egypt which were well known at the time.

Where is the Babylonian Map of the World?

The Babylonian Map of the World, known as the Imago Mundi, is a Babylonianclay tablet containing a labelled illustration of the known world, with a short and partially lost description, dated to roughly the 6th c. BC. It was discovered at Sippar, north of Babylon, and now resides in the British Museum.

Why was the location of Babylon important?

The town of Babylon was located along the Euphrates River in present-day Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. Hammurabi turned Babylon into a rich, powerful and influential city. He created one of the world’s earliest and most complete written legal codes.

Where does the Babylonian world map come from?

A. Sutherland – AncientPages.com – This cuneiform ancient map of the Babylonian world is an archaeological treasure equal to the Rosetta Stone and the code of Hammurabi. It probably originates from Sippar, southern Iraq. The Babylonian World Map, also known as Imago Mundi is usually dated to the 6th – 7th century BC.

What are the two circles on the map of Babylon?

The two outer circles represent water in between and is labelled as idmaratum “bitter river”, the salt sea. Babylon north of center of the map; parallel lines at the bottom seem to represent the southern marshes, and a curved line coming from the north, northeast appear to represent the Zagros Mountains.

Where is the map of the world located?

The Babylonian Map of the World (or Imago Mundi) is a Babylonian clay tablet containing a labeled depiction of the known world, with a short and partially lost description, dated to roughly the 6th century BC (Neo-Babylonian or early Achaemenid period). The map is centered on the Euphrates, flowing from the north (top) to the south (bottom).

What was the name of the Babylonian kingdom?

Actually Urartu is the ancient region or kingdom known as Urartu Ararat. Its a stand in for Armenia, because in the 19th century when this map was discovered. Archaeologists discovered that “Urartu” was the Babylonian term for Armenia.