Methodology of
the Chronology of the Building Texts of Nebuchadnezzar
Regardless how
Stephen Langdon in 1912 come to arrange the order, chronologically and
otherwise, of the building stelae, inscriptions, reliefs, cylinders of
Nebuchadnezzar in his transcription and translation of it (28 of them), the modus
operandi for such a chronology must include the following ratio
dicidendi for effectiveness: 1.
Nebuchadnezzar can only build with cedars if he conquered Lebanon.
He only conquered Lebanon circa 588-586 BCE and does not rule out other trips
there later or some trips in the earlier like 597 BCE. It does not rule out the regular
supply of cedars from the Lebanon after his first encounter of it. He can only
roof the buildings and decorate it with wood from these cedars if he had it. He can only have it if he encountered Lebanon. Thus it appears that most building operations regarding the temples and shrines
in and around Babylon only happened after he fixed the incomplete channel of
his father Nabopolassar in the north of the Euphrates, all the other street
works and layouts. Then when the city was built he focused on the temple
restorations and beautifications, then on his own palace. Building of each
takes about two years minimum each and either the same team goes from one to
the other or teams worked simultaneously. The logistics needed to be considered
by Langdon for chronology. 2.
The likelihood is that the building of the temples per se,
only occurred post 584 BCE until 570 BCE when his palace also was completed.
That leaves seven years free for his megalomania embarrassment and his
acknowledgement of the Jewish God before he died in 561 BCE. 3.
Diet supply to the temples would only occur after a beautification
of each temple. It included all kinds of wine. But the receipts of the Erech
temple only indicate twice before 568 BCE a receipt of wine. As a rule, it
seems that throughout his reign he did not favor the drinking of wine at
temples. Thus, when he was in a state of madness starting in 568 BCE
post-dating his megalomania thinking of his building works, then one finds on
the business receipts of the temple increased alcoholism on a monthly or weekly
scale, including priests. 4.
One needs to see that he is not dogmatic about his findings of the
dating and suggest it rather hesitatingly so one should not canonize his suggestions
as fixed norms that cannot be shifted. The cedar utilization is one of his weaknesses
not properly considered as a factor for chronology in the building projects and
thus his suggestion of the Wadi Broshi (Lebanon) text A and text B dates stands
under review. 5. According to a renewed study of the Building projects of
Nebuchadnezzar by the specialist Rocio da Riva over a long period but in his
publication of 2013, the finishing of the Main palace was circa 576 BCE.
“Nebuchadnezzar began the construction of the North Palace between
his 16th and 19th regnal years and did not finish it before 576 BC,his 29th
regnal year (Kleber 2008, 159–61). The building of the Hauptburg is
commemorated in the following texts: C34, C35, C024, C025 and ST (Da Riva
2008), and mentioned in the introductory sections of many other Nebuchadnezzar
inscriptions” (Rocio Da Riva, 2013. Nebuchadnezzar II’s Prism (EK 7834): A New
Edition. Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 103(2): 196-229, especially page 196
footnote 5).
6.
The Psychology of Megalomania requires some time of focused
reflection and repeated praises by all. The kakophonia of praises from
his administrators, people in the streets or populism, diplomats from other countries,
created in the mental composition of Nebuchadnezzar a reinforcement of his own
importance linked to his building operations. Daniel’s description of this
problem is very relevant. One can see for example in the modern style of
talking of president Trump that he is also reflective of his own achievements
and this is because everyone fail to have a proper conversation with him so
they quickly resort to a rescue tool for the uncomfortable few minutes with him
by resorting to abundance of praise for his successful economy leading to a psychological
rehearsal of him telling in public how great he is. This is why there are more
than 28 cylinders by Nebuchadnezzar repeatedly explaining how great he is by
his building operations. 7.
Although achievements is a fact in a person’s life, unless there is
a concerted effort by the person him/herself to “back down” or “step out” of
this praise, namely, to avoid hearing or seeing once own praise plastered in
public, the person can become mentally disorientated. The human being does not
have the capacity to handle over-praise and in this is his/her weakness as a
general rule. It is because God did not create the human to be filled with self-praise
in abundance. My father’s workers in South Africa said it right: “It is like
pepper: as long as you use a little, the food tastes good but if you shake it
too much, it will come into your eyes and burn you”. So they called by father
by the nickname “pelle-pelle”. 8.
The text EK7834 that Da Riva discussed was not necessarily written
in the 7th year of Nebuchadnezzar around 598 BCE but is the year in
which the storehouses of the treasury was filled with abundance (Da Riva 2013:
on Col. IV or III* (line 25) reading in se-bu-tim ša-at-ti-ja 1 lim 1 lim še-im (line 26) 1 [ME] 10+ [x] +10 [lim] ZÚ.LUM.MA 20 lim sa-ap-pa-a-ti ka-ra-[nam] (line 27) in qé-[re]-[eb] é-sag-íl akk-ku-ru-[un]
translated as “In my seventh (regnal)
year, I stored inside Esagil 1,000,000 (measures of) barley” when he finished
the Old Palace which his father Nabopolassar started building earlier. He
elaborated on it. He would build another palace or Main palace later in his
reign. The period between 605 and 597 BCE was one of grabbing for the treasury.
Then after the Old Palace enlargement the city buildings were done. Then the
temples inside and outside of Babylon proper and finally his own Main palace. One
reads of his wine storing practices before 597 BCE in this storehouse but it
seems that the Jewish lifestyles of Daniel and friends had an impact on him to minimize
the wine at temples as Erech receipts shows?