Cyrus cylinder

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The Cyrus Cylinder, also known as the ‘Cyrus the Great Cylinder’, is an artifact consisting of a declaration issued by the emperor Cyrus II of Persia inscribed in Babylonian (Akkadian) cuneiform on a clay cylinder.

It was discovered in 1879 by the Assyro-British archaeologist Hormuzd Rassam in the foundations of the Esagila (i.e., the Marduk temple of Babylon) and is kept today in the British Museum in London.

Historical Context

On October 12 (Julian calendar; October 7 by the Gregorian calendar) 539 BC, Persian troops entered the city of Babylon, without meeting resistance. On October 29, Cyrus himself entered the city, assuming the titles of "king of Babylon, king of Sumer and Akkad, king of the four corners of the world". The Cyrus Cylinder was placed under the walls of Babylon as a foundation deposit, following a long Babylonian tradition.

Description and Content

The text consists of two fragments, known as "A" (lines: 1-35, measures: 23 x 8 cm) and "B" (36-45, 8,6 x 5,6 cm). "A" has always been in the British Museum; "B" had been kept at Yale University, but has been transferred to the British Museum.

The contents of the cylinder which categorizes as the royal foundation, falls into six parts:

The criminal deeds of king Nabonidus are described, as well as how the Babylonian god Marduk looked for a new king and chose Cyrus (lines 1-19).
Royal protocol and genealogical table (20-22).
peace, abolished slavery, restored religions, allowed deported gods to return to their shrines (22-34).
Cyrus prays to Marduk for himself and Cambyses, his son (34-35).
The comment that all is well in the empire (36-37);
building activities in Babylon (38-45).

The characteristic passages of this Cyrus inscription are:

The worship of Marduk, the king of the gods, he [Nabonidus] [chang]ed into abomination. Daily he used to do evil against his city [Babylon] ... He [Marduk] scanned and looked [through] all the countries, searching for a righteous ruler willing to lead [him] [in the annual procession]. [Then] he pronounced the name of Cyrus, king of Anshan, declared him to be[come] the ruler of all the world ... I am Cyrus, king of the world, great king, legitimate king, king of Babylon, king of Sumer and Akkad, king of the four rims [of the earth], son of Cambyses, great king, king of Anshan, grandson of Cyrus, great king, king of Anshan, descendant of Teispes, great king, king of Anshan, of a family [which] always [exercised] kingship; whose rule Bel [Marduk] and Nebo love, whom they want as king to please their hearts ... I did not allow anybody to terrorize [any place] of the [country of Sumer] and Akkad. I strove for peace in Babylon and in all his [other] sacred cities. As to the inhabitants of Babylon ... I abolished forced labour ... From Nineveh, Assur and Susa, Akkad, Eshnunna, Zamban, Me-Turnu and Der until the region of Gutium, I returned to these sacred cities on the other side of the Tigris, the sanctuaries of which have been ruins for a long time, the images which [used] to live therein and established for them permanent sanctuaries. I [also] gathered all their [former] inhabitants and returned [to them] their habitations.

The Cylinder as a Charter of Human Rights

The Cyrus Cylinder has been described as the world’s first charter of human rights, "predating the Magna Carta by more than one millennium".

It was translated into all six official U.N. languages in 1971. A replica of the cylinder is kept at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City in the second floor hallway, between the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council chambers.

Passages in the text have been interpreted as expressing Cyrus’ respect for humanity, and as promoting a form of religious tolerance and freedom. By this argument, Cyrus' generous policies, support for freedom of local religions and stated opposition to slavery, repression and tyranny did win him support from his subjects.

However, there are some scholars who disagree with the concept of the Cylinder as a Charter of Human Rights, and have argued that such a concept is alien to the historical context. They also believe that Mesopotamia has a long tradition, dating back to the third millennium BC, of Kings making similar declarations when beginning their reigns.

Biblical significance

The Bible records that some Jews returned to their homeland from Babylon, where they had been settled by Nebuchadrezzar, to rebuild the temple following an edict from Cyrus (Ezra 1. 1-4). This appears to be confirmed by the Cyrus Cylinder:

(30) ... From [Babylon] to Aššur and (from) Susa, (31) Agade, Ešnunna, Zamban, Me-Turnu, Der, as far as the region of Gutium, the sacred centers on the other side of the Tigris, whose sanctuaries had been abandoned for a long time, (32) I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there [i.e., in Babylon], to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings.

Although it does not mention Judah or the Jews, the last phrase of line 32 has been interpreted as a reference to Cyrus' policy of allowing deportees to return to their original lands. However, this view has been challenged by Amelie Kuhrt, who argued that the people referred to are not deportees but people associated with the returned god images' cult.

Editions and Translations

The latest edition of the Akkadian language text is:

Hanspeter Schaudig, Die Inschriften Nabonids von Babylon und Kyros' des Großen, samt den in ihrem Umfeld entstandenen Tendenzschriften. Textausgabe und Grammatik. (2001 Münster, Ugarit-Verlag) (online with English translation based on Cogan 2003)

Older translations and transliterations:

Rawlinson, H.G., & Th.G. Pinches, A Selection from the Miscellaneous Inscriptions of Assyria and Babylonia (1884, 1909 London: fragment A only)).
Rogers, Robert William: Cuneiform Parallels to the Old Testament (1912), New York, Eaton & Mains (Online: fragment A only).
Pritchard, James B. (ed.): Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament (ANET) (1950, 1955, 1969). Translation by A. L. Oppenheim. (fragment A and B).
P.-R. Berger, "Der Kyros-Zylinder mit dem Susatzfragment BIN II Nr.32 und die akkidischen Personennamen im Danielbuch" in: Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 65 (1975) 192-234
Mordechai Cogan's translation, in W.H. Hallo and K.L. Younger, The Context of Scripture vol. II, Monumental Inscriptions from the Biblical World (2003, Leiden and Boston) (online with Schaudig's translitaration)
Brosius, Maria (ed.): The Persian Empire from Cyrus II to Artaxerxes I (2000, London Association of Classical Teachers (LACT) 16, London.

Notes

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