Assurbanipal Library

The library of King Assurbanipal, also known as the Library of Nineveh, was discovered by the British archaeologist Austen Henry Layard in the mid-19th century. Layard conducted excavations at the ancient city of Nineveh, in what is now modern-day Iraq, from 1845 to 1851. During these excavations, he uncovered the remains of the royal palace of King Assurbanipal, who ruled the Assyrian Empire in the 7th century BC. Within the palace, Layard discovered a library containing thousands of clay tablets inscribed with cuneiform script. These tablets contained a wide range of texts, including literature, laws, and scientific works. The discovery of the Assurbanipal Library was a major achievement in the field of archaeology and a valuable resource for scholars studying the ancient Near East.