Babylonian Map of the World
By Deniz Ilgaz and Serpil Erzincanlı
The geographical content of The Babylonian Map of the World (mappa mundi) was first determined by F.E. Peiser. The second copy of the tablet was published by R.C. Thompson in 1906 in CT 22 48. This copy formed the basis of subsequent works by E. Weidner, E. Unger and W. Horowitz. In 1995 I. Finkel identified and joined fragment to the map on the obverse.
Dating of Tablet
Because of Bit Yakin and Urartu regions are indicated on the map, dating of the tablet cannot be before the 9th century BCE. In the colophon of the tablet Ea-bēl-ilī’s name is mentioned as the person who edited the tablet. The name Ea bēl ilī appears on another economical tablet (TuM II/IIII 220:12-13), is mentioned as 'descendant of Ea bēl ilī of Borsippa' referred to as. Therefore The Tablet comes from Borsippa.
Primary Sources
1- PEISER, F.E., (1889), Eine Babylonishe Landkarte, Zeitschrift für Assyriologie, Leipzig, Otto Schulze
2- THOMPSON, R.C., (1906), CT 22, Pls.48
3- UNGER, Echard, (1937), From the Cosmos picture to the world map, Imago Mundi: The International Journal for the History of Cartography, 2:1, 1-7, DOI: 0.1080/03085693708591828
Secondary Sources
DELNERO, Paul, (2017). "A Land with No Borders: A New Interpretation of the Babylonian “Map of the World”." Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History 4.1-2 (2017): 19-37
FINKEL, Irving, (1995), A Join to the Map of the World: A Notable Discovery. British Museum Magazine: The Journal of the British Museum Friends 23: 26–27
HOROWITZ, Wayne, (1988), The Babylonian Map of the World (Plate X), p. 147, Iraq volume 50, F1-F3. doi:10.1017/S0021088900006355
HOROWITZ, Wayne, (1998), Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography, Eisenbrauns, Winona Lake, Indiana
