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Babylon: The Mother of All Cities, from the critically acclaimed ancient historian and author of The Persians
Babylon often appears more myth than history. Purportedly the site of the Hanging Gardens and the Tower of Babel, its infamous presence in the Bible has made it a byword for sinful decadence. But Babylon was a real place teeming with life, a bustling mega-city on the Euphrates where schoolteachers, artisans, priests, slaves, prostitutes and soldiers rubbed shoulders in maze-like streets and busy marketplaces.
The city was home to some extraordinary rulers, from Hammurabi the great lawgiver to Nebuchadnezzar II, the conqueror-king, under whose reign the city glistened in gold and lapis lazuli.
In Babylon, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones brings the city vividly to life, tracing its foundation through to its world domination, and subsequent decline, fall and ruin into dust. From ribald drinking songs to acerbic letters between rival kings, the extraordinary ancient sources help inform what is both a stunning work of scholarship and a fascinating evocation of a long-lost world.
The city was home to some extraordinary rulers, from Hammurabi the great lawgiver to Nebuchadnezzar II, the conqueror-king, under whose reign the city glistened in gold and lapis lazuli.
In Babylon, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones brings the city vividly to life, tracing its foundation through to its world domination, and subsequent decline, fall and ruin into dust. From ribald drinking songs to acerbic letters between rival kings, the extraordinary ancient sources help inform what is both a stunning work of scholarship and a fascinating evocation of a long-lost world.
528 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 21, 2026
About the author
Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
22 books106 followersLloyd Llewellyn-Jones is Professor of Ancient History at Cardiff University and a specialist in the histories and cultures of ancient Iran and Greece. He also works on dress and gender in antiquity and on the ancient world in popular culture, especially Hollywood cinema.
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May 31, 2026
Excellent book about babylon, from history all the way to modern cultural relevance. Unlike the author I think it sounds like a horrible culture and I don't mind the negative connotations today.
Even though it mentions Jews it glosses over the plagiarism of the Babylonian myths, when I learned about it from a different book I found it fascinating so was disappointed it's barely mentioned. I know that the book can't cover everything but I wish it spent more that on religion and daily life and less on sex.
Even though it mentions Jews it glosses over the plagiarism of the Babylonian myths, when I learned about it from a different book I found it fascinating so was disappointed it's barely mentioned. I know that the book can't cover everything but I wish it spent more that on religion and daily life and less on sex.
Displaying 1 of 1 review