Babylon: The mother of all cities Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
Event details
Babylon often appears more myth than history. Purportedly the site of the Hanging Gardens and the Tower of Babel, its infamous presence in the Bible has made it a byword for sinful decadence. But Babylon was a real place teeming with life, a bustling mega-city on the Euphrates where schoolteachers, artisans, priests, slaves, prostitutes and soldiers rubbed shoulders in maze-like streets and busy marketplaces.
The city was home to some extraordinary rulers, from Hammurabi the great lawgiver to Nebuchadnezzar II, the conqueror-king, under whose reign the city glistened in gold and lapis lazuli.
Join historian Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones, author of Babylon, as he brings the city vividly to life, tracing its foundation through to its world domination, and subsequent decline, fall and ruin into dust.
Book sales
You can buy copies of many of our speakers’ books from Fox Lane Books, a local independent bookseller and Festival partner. In some cases, author signed bookplates are available too.
About the speaker
Professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones holds the chair in ancient history at Cardiff University, UK. The author of Persians and The Cleopatras, among other books, he has published widely on ancient history. His latest book is Babylon (Headline Publishing Group, 2026).
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