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Archaeology & History

Did the biblical Tower of Babel really exist ?

By T.K. Randall
May 12, 2017 · Comment icon 28 comments

Could the Tower of Babel have actually existed ? Image Credit: Pieter Brueghel the Elder
A stone tablet discovered 100 years ago in Babylon may confirm the existence of the Tower of Babel.
According to Genesis 11:1-9, the biblical tower was constructed in the land of Shinar by an ancient people whose common language made it easy for them to co-operate and work together.

Dissatisfied with their actions, God decided to confound their speech and scatter them across the face of the Earth. The tower, which was never completed, became known as Babel.

For centuries, scholars, historians and theologians have debated over whether the tower actually existed, but now, ancient text expert Dr. Andrew George of the University of London may have finally found the answer thanks to a stone tablet dating back to around 600 B.C.
In an upcoming episode of the Smithsonian Channel's "Secrets" series, Dr George is set to make an announcement regarding the tower which may even include where it was and what it looked like.

"This tablet provides the first-ever image of the real Tower of Babel," he said. "It confirms the building was a Mesopotamian stepped tower and illustrates the seven tiers of the ancient megastructure. Significantly, it also clearly identifies the man behind it: Mesopotamia's most famous ruler, King Nebuchadnezzar II."

A teaser video for the episode, which airs on Sunday, May 21, 2017, can be viewed below.



Source: Christian Post | Comments (28)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #19 Posted by BeastieRunner 7 years ago
While the article itself is cool and all, the photos Taun shared are the best part!
Comment icon #20 Posted by WoIverine 7 years ago
It's said that Nimrod was the son of Cush, who's father was Ham. Ham was the son of Noah, pretty cool huh?
Comment icon #21 Posted by DieChecker 7 years ago
I'm not so sure this is an good representation of the original Tower of Babel. The article says it probably dates to 600 BC, and ancient Babylon was in it's hayday around 1800 BC, so that's 1200 years. That's like finding a sculpture of Julius Caesar carved in the 12th century and saying it could be an actual likeness of him. I think a 7 tiered ziggurat probably would fit the bill of the origin of the myth however.
Comment icon #22 Posted by Taun 7 years ago
I know this is from wiki, but it may explain why a 7th century BC carving might be reasonably accurate... The Tower of Babel has been associated with known structures according to some modern scholars, notably the Etemenanki, a ziggurat dedicated to the Mesopotamian god Marduk by Nabopolassar, king of Babylonia (c. 610 BCE).[5][6] The Great Ziggurat of Babylon was 91 metres (300 ft) in height. Alexander the Great ordered it demolished circa 331 BCE in preparation for a reconstruction that his death forestalled.[7][8] A Sumerian story with some similar elements is told in Enmerkar and the Lord... [More]
Comment icon #23 Posted by WoIverine 7 years ago
If the video represented an actual finding of the original tower built by Nimrod (not Nebuchadnezzar 2), I'd be very surprised if it would be made publicly available.
Comment icon #24 Posted by Sundew 7 years ago
The tower predated Nebuchadnezzar II by quite a bit if my Biblical knowledge is correct. It predated Abraham and thus the Jewish nation I believe. The prophet Daniel and his friends (Jews) came along much later and were taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar I, as part of the Babylonian captivity, thus N II rule is at a much later date than Babel. 
Comment icon #25 Posted by WoIverine 7 years ago
Yep, you are correct. Nimrod's Babel was very ancient, in comparison to the finding in the video.
Comment icon #26 Posted by kobolds 7 years ago
I think we should not concentrate in looking for the  tower (or ruin)  but rather search for the foundation base. in order to build tower reach the heaven, they will need to build very large foundation (base) . the only problem is a modern city could be on top of it and no one realize that  .
Comment icon #27 Posted by DieChecker 7 years ago
I agree... It is really likely that the materials were reused, or at least built on top of. 
Comment icon #28 Posted by Sundew 7 years ago
Rather broad brush, your statement. Actually you can trust dates in the Bible. Because of the prophesies of Daniel and Micah the "wise men of the East" (Probably astrologers/astronomers as the two were somewhat synonymous at the time) knew when to look for the promised Messiah many centuries later.  The tower of Babel had many centuries between it and the time of Abraham. Can an exact date be given? No. But one certainly preceded the other. The text would make no sense otherwise, and the account of both was written down by Moses, not two separate people. I do not always trust man's interpreta... [More]


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