The Library of Ashurbanipal is one of the most important archaeological discoveries of the ancient world. Located in Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire (in what is now northern Iraq), this was the first systematically organized library in the ancient Middle East, created for the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, who ruled from 669 to around 631 BCE.

The image above shows a grand, elevated library with wide stone steps, detailed Assyrian carvings, and a peaceful riverside location—highlighting its role as a proud center of learning, culture, and scholarship in ancient Nineveh.

Ashurbanipal was more than just a king—he was a scholar and collector of knowledge. He ordered scribes to gather writings from across Mesopotamia and store them on clay tablets, written in cuneiform, the world’s oldest known writing system. Over 30,000 clay tablets and fragments were discovered in the ruins of his palace in the 1800s and 1900s.

The library included:

• Epics like The Epic of Gilgamesh
• Scientific and medical texts
• Omens, prayers, and incantations
• Dictionaries and bilingual lists
• Folk tales and myths

While fire destroyed much of Nineveh in 612 BCE, the clay tablets were actually preserved by being baked in the heat. This accidental preservation gave historians access to one of the richest collections of texts from the ancient Near East.

H.G. Wells even described it as “the most precious source of historical material in the world.”

Watch:

Dr. Irving Finkel, a cuneiform expert at the British Museum, is one of the world’s leading translators of these tablets. He helps decode the ancient stories, beliefs, and everyday lives of the people who lived over 2,000 years ago.

You can watch Dr. Finkel talk about the library and decoding cuneiform here:

The Great Library of Nineveh with Irving Finkel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls9JkxFEB9g&t=649s 

Cracking Ancient Codes: Cuneiform Writing – with Irving Finkel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfYYraMgiBA&t=36s 

YouTube Search: “Irving Finkel Library of Ashurbanipal”

Or start here: British Museum Video: Meet Irving Finkel

Research:

Use the following questions to guide your research online or with your Parent/Teacher:

1. What is cuneiform writing, and how was it made?
2. Why is the Library of Ashurbanipal considered such a significant discovery?
3. What was Ashurbanipal’s role in collecting these works?
4. How does this library compare to the more famous Library of Alexandria, which was later destroyed?
5. What can these texts tell us about life, science, religion, and storytelling in ancient Mesopotamia?

Explore:

https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/library-fit-king

https://www.britishmuseum.org/exhibitions/i-am-ashurbanipal-king-world-king-assyria

Create:

Write a short summary (1–2 paragraphs) explaining:

1. Who Ashurbanipal was
2. Why his library is important
3. What historians have learned from the tablets

You can also draw a simple diagram of what you think the library might have looked like, or illustrate a cuneiform tablet.

Share:

Present your findings to your Parent/Teacher. You may also record a video or write a script for a short podcast episode where you explain what made Ashurbanipal’s library such a big deal.

Bonus Activity:

Take a virtual field trip by looking at this real street view of the British Museum:

Explore the British Museum