Cyrus Cylinder
Cyrus the Great's clay proclamation of his capture of Babylon and the return of exiled peoples and their gods
Found 1879 — Hormuzd Rassam, excavating for the British Museum
Where Babylon (Esagila precinct) (Iraq)
Dates from c. 539–538 BCE · Achaemenid Persian · Return from Exile (decree of Cyrus)
Now at British Museum, London (Room 52)
Names a biblical person Cyrus
How Cyrus Cylinder was found
Found in March 1879 in the Esagila (Marduk temple) area of Babylon, where it had been buried as a foundation deposit. A second fragment, now in Yale, was joined to it in 1971.
What it is
A barrel-shaped baked-clay cylinder about 22.5 cm long, inscribed in Akkadian cuneiform with roughly 45 lines. It was written by Babylonian priests in the name of Cyrus soon after he took the city in 539 BCE.
Why it matters for the Bible
The cylinder shows Cyrus presenting himself as a king chosen by a god (here Marduk) who restored sanctuaries and sent captive peoples and their gods home. That is the same royal policy Ezra 1 reports when Cyrus tells the Judeans to go up and rebuild the house of YHVH in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem). It does not mention Judah or the Jews, so it confirms the policy, not the specific decree. Modern claims that it is a 'charter of human rights' go beyond what the text says.
The Hebrew word: KO-resh
כּוֹרֶשׁ
כּוֹרֶשׁ is pronounced KO-resh and means Cyrus, the Persian king whom Isaiah calls YHVH's 'anointed' (Strong's H3566).
People this discovery connects to
- Cyrus — כּוֹרֶשׁ (KO-resh) — Persian Kurush; meaning uncertain, perhaps 'sun' or 'shepherd'
Places
- Babylon — בָּבֶל (bah-VEL) — gate of god; linked by Genesis to 'confusion'
Events
Fall of Babylon to Cyrus, 539 BCE · Decree allowing the exiles to return and rebuild the Temple
Cyrus Cylinder in Scripture
Isaiah 44:28 First mention of Cyrus in Scripture.
Isaiah 45:1 YHVH calls Cyrus his anointed who will subdue nations; the cylinder is Cyrus's own account of taking Babylon.
Ezra 1:1-3 Cyrus's proclamation that YHVH has charged him to build a house in Jerusalem and that the exiles may go up; the cylinder shows this was his general policy toward captive peoples.
Questions people ask
What is Cyrus Cylinder?
A barrel-shaped baked-clay cylinder about 22.5 cm long, inscribed in Akkadian cuneiform with roughly 45 lines. It was written by Babylonian priests in the name of Cyrus soon after he took the city in 539 BCE.
When was Cyrus Cylinder discovered?
It was found in 1879 by Hormuzd Rassam, excavating for the British Museum, at Babylon (Esagila precinct).
Where is Cyrus Cylinder today?
British Museum, London (Room 52).
Which Bible verses does Cyrus Cylinder relate to?
Isaiah 44:28, Isaiah 45:1, Ezra 1:1-3.
Related discoveries
- בֵּלְשַׁאצַּרNabonidus ChronicleBabylonian chronicle recording the night Babylon fell to the army of Cyrus
- אֲרֻחָהJehoiachin Ration TabletsBabylonian palace records of oil for 'Yaukin, king of the land of Judah' and his sons
- בֵּלEast India House Inscription of NebuchadnezzarThe king's own account of rebuilding Babylon's temples, palaces and walls
- בָּבֶלIshtar Gate and Processional Way of BabylonNebuchadnezzar's glazed-brick gateway, the Babylon the exiles walked into
- בָּבֶלEtemenanki, the Ziggurat of BabylonThe historical tower behind the Tower of Babel tradition
- אַחְמְתָאEcbatana (Hamadan) and the Tomb of Esther and MordecaiThe Median capital where Cyrus's decree was found, and Iran's shrine to the heroes of Purim