Ashurbanipal's Royal Library of Nineveh

The Neo Assyrian Empire was the prominent power in Mesopotamia during the early part of the 1st millennium BCE. From a fallen people, the strong and brutal rulers of Assyria revived their former glory and achieved a golden age. Although their military capabilities were well-known, the Assyrians were also intellects. Assyrian kings had the tradition of collecting clay tablets for their palace libraries. And the most well-known of this kings was King Ashurbanipal II.