The hanging gardens of Babylon were built by King Nebuchadnezzar II for his wife Queen Amytis of Media. The gardens were said to have been built in the walls of Babylon, which is now Iraq, around 600 B.C. They were destroyed sometime between 350 and 40 B.C., when Alexander the Great conquered Babylon.
The Hanging Gardens were built to be a relaxing and peaceful place for the Queen and her friends to relax without getting sunburned or dirty from being outside during the hot summer months. The gardens had water channels that ran around them that carried water from the Euphrates River into them so they could stay cool during the summer heat wave days in Babylon.
The gardens were described by the Greek historian Herodotus as “a masterpiece which was constructed at great expense.” They were “a wonder to behold”, with a roof of cedar wood, and the walls were covered with bitumen, a tar-like substance that was used in waterproofing the bricks.
Herodotus wrote that the gardens were built on arches made from bricks that were baked with bitumen, which could hold their own weight or even more. The water for the garden was supplied by an aqueduct that ran from the Euphrates River.
The garden was destroyed during several wars (including Alexander’s conquest), earthquakes and fires. Today, there is no evidence of where it might have been located or how large it was; however, some historians believe it may have occupied about one hectare (2.5 acres).
