The Hanging Gardens of Babylon rose up toward the heavens like a mountain, and its exotic trees grew lush and tall on its highest tier. So striking was this paradise, that Greek historians of the Hellenic Age named it one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Scholars are certain that six of those wonders existed, but nobody has been able to find the location of the Hanging Gardens. Some researchers think they never existed at all. Did ancient writers make up the whole story, or did they simply get the details wrong?
One of the prevailing legends about the gardens indicates that King Nebuchadnezzar II (r. 605-562 BC) of Babylon built them for his homesick wife, Amytis of Media. Amytis missed the green mountains of Persia. The legend places the garden about 50 miles south of Baghdad in present-day Al Hillah, Babil, Iraq. Unfortunately, there are no records, inscriptions, or any archaeological evidence in Babylon to support this story.
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