Babylonian artifact the Cyrus Cylinder shown in US for 1st time

Times Colonist ^ | 7 March 2013 | n/c

[Caipirabob]

I can’t even begin to describe visiting the British Museum, The British War Museum, and The Louvre in the same week. Our feet were like bloody pegs, but oh the dreams I had.

Wow, sounds wonderful, I would love to do that some day. Are we still allowed to dream or has the EPA designated that as "Mind pollution" yet?

[going hot]

A little music perhaps to go with the thread:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-5E6_qtXAw

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

I remember some years ago, when Saddam was still in power in Iraq, to raise money, he started selling off the vast number of ancient Babylonian clay tablets that were used as letters among the population, carried between cities in caravans.

Translated, many of these letters were unintentionally hilarious, because many of the cares and concerns of people then haven’t changed one bit. Some of the ones I remember include:

A letter from a teen girl to a girl friend complaining that men are no damn good and only want one thing.

A letter from a student to his parents complaining that he needs money, that all his friends wear new clothes and eat well and can buy stuff, but he is so poor he has to wear rags and is humiliated. Send money.

A letter from a debt collector notifying a dead beat that this was his third warning to pay up, and to not even think about fleeing to a nearby city, as he had notified the authorities there to be on the look out for him.

[colorado tanker]

My BS detector went off when I jumped to the article. The Persian Empire was hardly a state where every faith was "equidistant" from every other faith. Zoroastrianism was the official faith of the Empire and it was important to the legitimacy of the Archaemenian kings that they be publicly pious Zoroastrians.

True, Cyrus showed great tolerance to other faiths, including Judaism, but that seemed to stem from a very practical view of how he could rule a polyglot empire and obtain loyalty from non-adherents.

It would be silly to project concepts of modern day multiculturalism and diversity onto the Persian Empire.

[thecodont]

Translated, many of these letters were unintentionally hilarious, because many of the cares and concerns of people then haven’t changed one bit.

Isn't that the truth!

Thanks for sharing this. (grin)

[SunkenCiv]

I agree.