The Lost Gardens of Babylon

Gr 8 Up—Of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon are the only one for which no archaeological evidence has yet been found. They have long been thought to have been built by King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon, an area south of modern-day Baghdad. Archaeologist Dr. Stephanie Dalley, one of a handful of people in the world who can read ancient cuneiform writing, discovered clues that suggested that an Assyrian king, Sennacherib, built the terrace gardens instead. Dalley journeys to Iraq to visit the ruins of an ancient canal system she believes fed the water to the site she identifies as the gardens' possible location, some 60 miles from the source of the canal, but that area is far too dangerous for her to visit. She sends a film crew to record brief footage of the ruins of Sennacherib's palace and the surrounding land. While not definitive, the evidence to support this exciting new theory is hard to dispute. This particular episode is appropriate for an older audience, from the creepy opening credits to the footage of a car bomb explosion to the mention of significant deaths associated with the violence in Iraq. Overall, the production quality is excellent.—Jennifer Verbrugge, State Library Services, Roseville, MN