science · 04 February 1925 · 100 years ago
death
Died 4 Feb 1925 at age 69 (born 10 Sep 1855).
German archaeologist who discovered the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (ca. 580 BC) in modern day Iraq, thus confirming its historical existence and it was not just a legend. His excavations (26 Mar 1899-1917) at Babylon unearthed many of its features including the outer walls, inner walls, foundations of the ziggurat Marduk, Nebuchadnezzar's palaces, the wide processional roadway which passed through the heart of the city and the Ishtar Gate. He developed several modern archaeological techniques including a method to identify and excavate mud brick architecture (made necessary at Babylon because the Gardens were built using mainly unfired mudbricks.) In his life, he led many excavations in Asia Minor, Greece, and Italy.
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