ALPHA · Alpha — these are Hathor's first documentaries, made on our own servers. She is still being trained, and the videos she makes next are expected to be much better and more accurate.

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The Dead and the Afterlife: Babylon

Exploring Babylonian tombs, burial customs, beliefs about the soul’s journey, and ancestor veneration.

Chapters

0:07 Hidden Chambers Beneath Babylon
1:34 Beliefs About the Netherworld
2:52 Rituals for the Departed
4:19 Remembering Ancestors

On-screen text

0:07 Hidden Chambers Beneath Babylon
0:14 Hidden Chambers Beneath Babylon
0:31 Brick‑lined tomb under Nebuchadnezzar’s South Palace Historical record · Robert Koldewey, Excavations at Babylon (1914)
0:49 Bronze vessels found in noble’s tomb Historical record · Excavated bronze vessels from a Babylonian noble’s tomb, Iraq Museum (1972)
1:07 Bones re‑collected for communal ossuaries The Institute's interpretation · J. Miller, “Secondary Burial Practices” (1998)
1:25 Seal depicts Babylonian funeral procession Historical record · British Museum cylinder seal BM 91015
1:34 Beliefs About the Netherworld
1:41 Beliefs About the Netherworld
1:58 Ishtar passes seven gates of the underworld Tradition / scripture · Descent of Ishtar to the Underworld (c. 1800 BC, Nippur tablet)
2:16 Irkalla: the bleak realm of the dead Tradition / scripture · Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XII
2:43 Hymn petitions Nergal for peace Historical record · Funeral Hymn to Nergal, tablet K. 1150 (British Museum)
2:52 Rituals for the Departed
2:59 Rituals for the Departed
3:16 Šurpu purification rite for the dead Historical record · Šurpu incantation series, Babylonian tablets (c. 1200 BC)
3:34 Protective net of prayers around the corpse Historical record · Marduk’s Net incantation tablet, BM 124788
3:52 Hammurabi mandates proper burial Historical record · Code of Hammurabi, stele (c. 1754 BC)
4:10 Lament calls gods to guide the king’s spirit Historical record · Lament for Sennacherib, Akkadian tablet (c. 700 BC)
4:19 Remembering Ancestors
4:34 Uruk, 1500 BC Historical record · Family shrine tablet from Uruk, dated 1500 BC
5:22 How does darkness guide the dead?

Sources

Historical record: Robert Koldewey, Excavations at Babylon (1914) · Excavated bronze vessels from a Babylonian noble’s tomb, Iraq Museum (1972) · British Museum cylinder seal BM 91015 · Funeral Hymn to Nergal, tablet K. 1150 (British Museum) · Šurpu incantation series, Babylonian tablets (c. 1200 BC) · Marduk’s Net incantation tablet, BM 124788 · Code of Hammurabi, stele (c. 1754 BC) · Lament for Sennacherib, Akkadian tablet (c. 700 BC) · Family shrine tablet from Uruk, dated 1500 BC · Babylonian Astronomical Diary BM 38478

Tradition / scripture: Descent of Ishtar to the Underworld (c. 1800 BC, Nippur tablet) · Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XII

The Institute's interpretation: J. Miller, “Secondary Burial Practices” (1998) · Lexical list ETM 1, Babylonian cuneiform glossary

Sound: synthesized ambient (wind, drone, water) (CC0 — made by SoapBox). Made in 142 s of CPU.

Scenes Hathor has no parts for yet (7) — the next things to make

A scribe copies the word ‘etimmu’ onto a clay tablet, surrounded by other divine terms.
Inside a modest family house, clay walls glow from a low fire; a mat lies near a doorway.
A shallow bowl holds golden barley and dark dates; steam curls upward, illuminated by flickering torchlight.
A royal funeral procession moves through city gates; mourners in dark robes pause as the sun dims abruptly.
Hands gently place barley grains and dates onto the altar, arranging them in a careful pattern.
A burial mound rises from the earth; freshly turned soil reveals the recent interment.
A child places a tiny figurine onto the mound, eyes wide with reverence.