Rewritten Title:
“AI Resurrects Ancient Babylonian Anthem: A 3,000-Year-Old Ode to a Legendary City”
AI Unlocks a Lost Hymn to Babylon’s Glory
A long-lost hymn praising the legendary city of Babylon—once the world’s largest metropolis—has been rediscovered and reconstructed with the help of artificial intelligence. The 3,000-year-old anthem, consisting of 250 lines, vividly describes Babylon at the height of its splendor.
The breakthrough was announced by Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich on July 2, following the work of Assyriologist Enrique Jiménez. Using AI, Jiménez analyzed thousands of cuneiform fragments scattered across the globe, identifying 30 additional copies of the text that helped fill in missing sections.
A Song Hidden for Millennia
Jiménez, who collaborated with the University of Baghdad, noted the hymn’s surprising obscurity despite its apparent popularity in antiquity. “This song was copied by schoolchildren—it was clearly well-known. It’s astonishing that a text this widespread remained unknown until now,” he said.
The hymn’s lyrical beauty stands out among surviving Mesopotamian texts. “The poet describes the Euphrates bringing spring, turning the land green—a rare, vivid depiction of nature from that era,” Jiménez explained. The text also sheds new light on the role of priestesses in Babylonian society, offering unprecedented insights into their influence.
A Faster Path to the Past
Traditionally, reconstructing such fragmented texts could take decades. AI has dramatically accelerated the process, allowing researchers to piece together history at an unprecedented pace.
The ancient city of Babylon, located 85 kilometers south of modern-day Baghdad, is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This rediscovered hymn revives the voice of a civilization that once ruled the heart of Mesopotamia.
Source: Deutsche Welle
