CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Berossus and Babylonian History

The writings of Berossus, the contemporary of Manetho, are altogether lost. No valid dates of individual kings have been preserved by classic writers from Berossus.
Berossus' first post-flood dynasty is completely distorted. It is said to be composed of 86 Chaldean kings who supposedly reigned about 34,000 years! This dynasty includes Evechous and Kosmabelos -- Cush and Nimrod. The kings who composed the first dynasty were not successive but contemporary leaders who formed the first Democratic Council in history this side of the flood. Samuel Kramer, in his book "History Begins at Sumer", draws attention to the fact that the earliest records of democratic government are found in references to Shinar and the city of Kish.

The other dynasties of Berossus strikingly confirm the Sumerian King List and Biblical history. The following chart is from Berossus' transcribers.
 

Dynasty II	8 Medes	224 years (the Armenian copy reads 234)
Dynasty III	11 Chaldeans	NO YEARS ASSIGNED, AS DYNASTY WAS CONTEMPORARY. (In margin of Armenian version 48 years is noted.)
Dynasty IV	49 Chaldeans	458 years
Dynasty V	9 Arabians	245 years (Semiramis II reigned during this period.)
Dynasty VI	45 Chaldeans	526 years to seizure of Babylonia by Pul.

The dates for these dynasties may easily be restored. Pul, in Babylonian history, is Tiglathpileser III. He seized the city of Babylon in 729, during the third year of the reign of Ukinzer. See the "Babylonian Chronicle", Col I. Tiglathpileser considered this his first year; the Babylonians considered it his accession year assigning it to Ukinzer. Ptolemy coupled them together and designated the period as that of Chinziros and Poros.
 

Dynasty VI	continued 526 years	--	1255 to 729
Dynasty V	for 245 years	--	1500 to 1255
Dynasty IV	for 458 years	--	1958 to 1500
(Dynasty III	for 48 years	--	2006-1958)
Dynasty II	for 234 years	--	2192-1958
	or
	224 years	--	2192-1968

The year 2192 marks not only the beginning of Nimrod's rule in Egypt, but also the Median seizure of Babylonia at the time Nimrod usurped Supreme authority at the dethroning of his father cush. This confirms Greek traditions that even Japetus (Japheth) opposed the Titans -- the followers of Nimrod. The Medes, descendents of Japheth kept their power over Babylon for 224 years to 1968 -- the year of the death of Gilgamesh. In another ten years (1968-1958) the Chaldeans regained full power.
Those ten years and the previous 38 were times of great stress during which 11 Chaldean kings, including Gilgamesh, ruled contemporaneously as Berossus' Dynasty III -- 2006-1958. The date 2006 is confirmed by the Persian account of Gilgamesh. Persian historians assign him only 38 years -- 2006-1968 -- the exact duration of his rule as part of Dynasty III of Berossus. (See Al Biruni's "Ancient Nations", page 99.) The remarkable agreement of all these figures, found among different nations, is proof that the historical data have never been totally lost.

Another Account of Earliest Dynasties

As generally recorded, Berossus' First Dynasty begins with Cush and Nimrod; the Second Dynasty was Median. But Alexander Polyhistor and Abydenus preserve, from the most ancient records of the Temple of Belus at Babylon, an account of parallel rulers -- five Chaldean kings who were in turn succeeded by no less than six Arabians (pre-Ishmaelites). The information may be obtained from Jackson's "Chronological Antiquities", Pages 233-235. These much-misunderstood dynasties -- even Jackson did not understand their import -- perfectly correspond with the restoration of the Dynasty of Erech already presented.
 

First Kings of the Chaldeans after the Tower of Babel	Lengths of Reign	Dates
Porus	35	2254-2219
Nechubes	43	2219-2176
Abtus	48	2176-2128
Oniballus	40	2128-2088
Zinzirus	45 (or 46)	2088-2043 (2088-2042)

(Note that the 35 years -- 2254-2219 -- of Porus are also the same for Mizraim.)
 

Dynasty of Six Kings of the Arabians	Lengths of Reign	Dates
Mardocentes	45 (or 44)	(2042-1998)
Mardakos	40	1998-1958

(the year 1958 marks the final expulsion of the Medes from Babylonia.)
 

Sisimardacus	28	1958-1930
Nabius	37	1930-1893
Parannus	40	1893-1853
Nabonnabus	25	1853-1828

In 1828, "the Assyrian kings succeeded in the Babylonian Empire, and thenceforth Babylonia and Chaldea became a part of the Assyrian Empire" -- Page 237, Jackson's "Chronological Antiquities". This is also the year of the defeat of Erech by Ur. Syncellus preserved a total of 190 years for the Chaldean kings, and not the above total of 211 -- though his separate figures add up to 211! It is exactly 190 years from 2233 to 2043. The year 2233 was famous in Babylonian history as the beginning of astronomical observation. The Babylonians began their observations 1903 years before Alexander came to Babylon in 330.

First Dynasty of Ur and Successors

The city of Ur in Babylonian history is not the Ur from which Abram came. Abram's Ur was Urfa in northern Mesopotamia, not on the fringes of Shinar.

According to the Sumerian King List, the First Dynasty of Ur came to power at the close of the First Dynasty of Erech.
 

Names of Kings of First Dynasty of Ur	Lengths of Reign	Dates
Mes-Anne-padda	80 (includes reign of son A-Anne-padda)	1828-1748
Mes-kiag-Nunna	30	1748-1718
	(or 36)	1748-1712
Elulu	25	1718-1693
Balulu	36	1693-1657

The significance of the 36 years of Mes-kiag-Nunna will be explained when the Dynasty of Akshak is restored. The proper dates of Dynasty I of Ur are those of the Nippur list, which gives the total as 171 -- 1828-1657. (The Weld-Blundell Prism 444 adds the parallel reign of six years of Mes-kiag-Nunna to the total.)
At the close of the First Dynasty of Ur the Sumerian King List carries the government to the city of Awan in Elam (see page 224 of Pallis' "Chronology of the Shub-Ad Culture"). Reference to three kings is made, but only a cuneiform remnant of the last king's name is preserved: Kul ... 36 years. The total length of the Dynasty is 356 years -- 1657-1301. The date of the last king is therefore 1337-1301. A confirmation of these dates will be found in the succeeding history of the city of Isin and Dynasty III of Ur.
Historically the date 1657 marks Elamite prominence in Southern Mesopotamia and throws important light on the early history of India.
After Awan the Sumerian King List returns to Dynasty II of Kish. Though the names of the rulers of Kish during this period are preserved, the dates assigned to its rulers are extravagant -- over 3000 years being designated to 8 kings. Kish II begins about the time of the reigns of Gilgamesh and Mes-anne-padda, whose lives overlapped; for the last king of Kish I submitted to both (see the Sumerian poem "Gilgamesh and Aqqa" in Pritchard's Texts). The true length of Dynasty II is confirmed by Kish III and IV which we will now establish.
Listed after Kish II, though in part contemporary with it, is the Dynasty of Hamazi. Only one name of this dynasty is preserved: Hadanish. The total length of the dynasty is sometimes given as 360 years, sometimes as 420. It cannot be dated until Dynasty II and Dynasty III of Uruk are determined.
The shattered list of Dynasty II of Uruk is in the prism given 60 years and 120 years. In other documents it ends a period of 480 years. There is a definite relationship between these figures and those of Hamazi. But Uruk II and Hamazi cannot be dated until Uruk III is established.
From archaeology it is known that Uruk II was followed immediately by Uruk III -- though the King List branches off into parallel dynasties. Uruk III is composed of one King Lugal-zaggisi, who reigned 25 years. Comparative archaeology establishes that he succeeded Ur I, 1828-1657. The date of king Lugal-zaggisi is therefore 1657-1632.

As Uruk II preceded Uruk III, the 480 years extend back from 1657 to 2137. That is, the year 1657 ended an era of 480 years which began in 2137. As Uruk I ended in 1828, Uruk II lasted only 171 years 1828-1657. The figure 480 is not the length of the dynasty but the dating of an era. What happened in the year 2137? Isis (Ishtar or Semiramis) came to power after the 57-year era (2194-2137) of Nimrod. It was commonplace to date reigns in the "Era of Ishtar" (see Pritchard's "Texts", page 266, in Sargon's "Chronicle", and footnote 2). In chart form the figures for Uruk II are as follows.
 

480 years	--	2137-1657
120 years	--	1777-1657
60 years	--	1717-1657

Now the Dynasty of Hamazi may be dated:
 

360 years	--	2137-1777
420 years	--	2137-1717

Both these dynasties commenced with the Era of Ishtar. In another chart these two would appear as follows:
 

Hamazi	360 years	2137-1777
Uruk II	120 years	1777-1657