Nineveh
Ninua · Kuyunjik · Nebī Yūnus · Ninawa
Neolithic to Abbasid (6000 BCE–present; Assyrian capital 705–612 BCE)·Assyrian / Babylonian / Persian / Hellenistic / Parthian·🇮🇶 Nineveh Governorate, Iraq
About
About Nineveh
Great Assyrian capital under Sennacherib (705–681 BCE) extended by Ashurbanipal (668–630 BCE), Nineveh at fall (612 BCE) was world's largest city (~15 km walls, 100,000 inhabitants). Palace Without Rival, Ashurbanipal Library (30,000 tablets: Gilgamesh Epic), Nergal Gate with lamassu, and Sennacherib's aqueduct at Jerwan. Jonah narrative site (Nebi Yunus). Recent restoration and looting concerns post-ISIS occupation 2014–17.
Why it mattersGreatest Assyrian city; Ashurbanipal library preserved world literature
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Extent of Sennacherib's Garden that may be 'Hanging Gardens of Nineveh' (Dalley theory)
- 02Location of Ashurbanipal Library main archive vs dispersed finds
Theories
- 01Hanging Gardens built by Sennacherib, not Nebuchadnezzar, via Jerwan aqueduct (Stephanie Dalley)
- 02City destroyed 612 BCE by Medes-Babylonians left to desert
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Neolithic settlement; Assyrian capital rebuilt by Sennacherib 705 BCE
- Period
- Neolithic to Abbasid (6000 BCE–present; Assyrian capital 705–612 BCE)
- Culture
- Assyrian / Babylonian / Persian / Hellenistic / Parthian
- Purpose
- Neo-Assyrian imperial capital and library centre dominating Near East
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
Neolithic settlement; Assyrian capital rebuilt by Sennacherib 705 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1024 CE
Major expansion
On the ground
Structures & features
36.3600° N · 43.1528° E · 227 m · 3 mapped features
Palace of Sennacherib (Southwest Palace)
palaceLargest Assyrian palace, excavated by Layard with Lachish reliefs and lamassu
36.3594° N · 43.1522° ELibrary of Ashurbanipal
libraryPalace north wing where 30,000 cuneiform tablets including Gilgamesh Epic found
36.3610° N · 43.1530° ENergal Gate
gateRestored fortified gate with winged bull lamassu pair (partially destroyed 2016)
36.3585° N · 43.1395° E
Gallery