Nineveh

Capital of the Assyrian Empire from the 8th century BC until its destruction by the Medes under King Cyaxares in 612 BC. It was situated on the River Tigris (opposite the present city of Mosul, Iraq) and was adorned with palaces.

Excavations from 1842 onwards by Emile Botta (1802-1870), French consul in Iraq, and the British archaeologist Austen Layard brought to light the ruins of Nineveh (including the library of King Ashurbanipal) under the mounds, or tells, of Kuyunjik and Nebi Yunus.