The archeological site of Mosul is located in Iraq, the third largest city in Iraq . In approximately 850 B.C., King Assurnasirpal II of Assyria chose the city of Nimrud to build his capital city where present day Mosul is located. In approximately 700 BC., King Sennacherib made Nineveh the new capital of Assyria.
In 1840, Sir Henry Austen Layard was on his way to India when he saw the ruins of Nimrud and decided to examine them. Layard spent most of his time on the mound of Kuyunjik in Mosul looking for fragments of marble with cuneiform inscriptions. The superimposed structures on Kuyunjik date back to the third millennium BC, and survived until at least 200 AD. These structures were the palaces of King Sennacherib and his grandson Ashurbanipal. The walls and doorways of these palaces were lined with reliefs. Although the structures only date back to the third millennium BC, Kuyunjik was occupied as early as the sixth millennium BC.
Archeological sites throughout Mesopotamia have been excavated for many years. Because of the rich archaeological history of the area, it has been the subject of intense research for centuries. Currently, the University of California at Berkeley is excavating the major mounds of Nineveh, specifically Nebi Yunis. Nebi Yunis is said to be the burial site of Biblical Jonah. However, this has never been confirmed because the site is sacred and cannot be disturbed.
There have been literally hundreds of ruins discovered in the Mosul area. Some of the more interesting ruins include entire palaces and reliefs. Some fragments of reliefs have even been stolen. The stolen fragments are from Sennacherib’s Palace, specifically Hall XLIX [49].
Sources:
A Popular Account of Discoveries at Nineveh. Austen Henry Layard. J. C. Derby. New York. 1854.
“Botta, Layard and Rawlinson: The Fathers of Assyriology.” NBCi.com http://members.nbci.com/ashurbanipal/AssyH_5.htm March 23, 2001.
“Mosul.” Iraq Tour Guide 1996 http://www.arab.net/iraq/tour/iq_mosul.html March 23, 2001.
“Nimrud and Nineveh.” British Museum http://www.natmus.dk/pp/saer/nimrud/assyrgb.htm March 23, 2001.
By Torry Skurski