Nimrod is the name of my brother's cat and of Assyria's second capital. The site lies about 37 km south-east of Mosul, on the eastern bank of the River Tigris, just south of Ninevah another major archeological site.
It was first designated as the Assyrian capital by Ashurnasirpal II in 879BC and was known as Kalhu (mentioned in Genesis as Calah). Later, with the accession of King Sargon II it was replaced by Khorsabad as the new capital in about 720BC.
In 612BC it was destroyed by the Medes of Northern Persia, at the same time as the fall of Nineveh.
Nimrud was excavated by the British under Henry A. Layard, and subsequent excavations by Sir Max Mallowen discovered vast palaces of the Assyrian kings. The most impressive of these is that of King Ashurasirpal II, the city's founding monarch. Impressive statuary at the palace entrance shows two hawk-winged lions with human heads, in the well-known Assyrian style.
