The remains of the ancient famed city of Babylon sit in the fertile Mesopotamian plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers about fifty miles south of Baghdad in Iraq. Its hanging gardens were one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
Saddam’s Palace overlooking Ancient Babylon, Iraq. Visited in 2012 after the American led invasion and before Iraq spiralled into civil war following their withdrawal.
Close to the site of the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, the Ziggurat of Dur-Kurigalzu was built in the 14th century BC by the Kassite king Kurigalzu.
A historically significant Arab City in northern Iraq on one of the major Roman trade routes. Abandoned over 1750 years ago.
The Iraqi National Museum contains exhibits dating back to the birth of civilisation. It was not open to regular Iraqi people when we visited in 2012 because of the current security situation but the staff there were working very hard towards a point when they hope it will be open for anyone to visit.
An excerpt from my photo journal arriving in Baghdad, in October 2012 after the withdrawal of the American’s and before Islamic State took hold and destroyed large parts of Iraq months later.