mostly-history:Babylonian Map of the World (Sippar, c.500s BC).This Babylonian clay tablet has a lab
mostly-history:Babylonian Map of the World (Sippar, c.500s BC).This Babylonian clay tablet has a labelled description of the knownworld, and a short (partially lost) description. Babylon is placedin the centre.A circular waterway labelled “Salt-Sea” rings the central area. Eight regions (including Elam and Assyria) surround the sea’s outerrim, each indicated with a triangle labelled “Region” or“Island”, and marked with the distance in between. A trianglewas used for each region because that was how the Babylonians thoughtit would like like when approached by water.The regions are also described, although the text is incomplete. Strange and mythical beasts, as well as great heroes, were said tolive in these places.The real purpose of this map was to explain the Babylonian view ofthe mythological world. The places are approximately in their rightpositions, but it probably isn’t a literal example of ancientgeography. -- source link
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