Assyrian lands referred to the region on the Upper Tigris river in northern Mesopotamia. The name derived from its original capital; ancient city of Ashur. The Assyrians rose to power and prosperity around 12th century BC in Mesopotamia which today consists mainly of modern Iraq. Their Empire extended to some regions of modern Turkey and settled in different cities in Anatolia.
Military Superpower
Geography put Assyria in a vulnerable position with its terrain open to plunder from most sides. Due to this it was in constant threat from neighboring states. This created a reactionary effect in Assyria which led to it developing an effective, well organized and strong military system that could cope with the constant aggression, conflicts and raids by its neighbors. This ultimately made the Assyrian army into an extremely potent force and, by 8th century BC, one of the first superpowers of the ancient world.
Warfare
The Assyrians are known for terrorizing their enemies as part of psychological warfare. Their army is known for its utter ruthlessness and brutal treatment of enemies. Assyrians were also perhaps the first to use the practice of deportation on a large scale removing one enemy population and settling them into another. This not only helped them manage their subjects according to strategy but also terrorized their enemies and curbed nationalistic sentiment making rebellions less likely.
Assyrian Art
Assyrian art is primarily concerned with relief carving. The best known Assyrian reliefs include the renowned Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipalscenes from the North Palace of Nineveh; and the Lachish reliefs showing a war campaign in Palestine at the South-West Palace of Sennacherib in Nineveh.
Medicine
In medicine, the Assyrians are known to have kept detailed patient history records; use surgical procedures; and use crushedadaru-poplar seed (akin to aspirin) to treat patients suffering from headaches.
Hydraulic Engineering
In 690 BC, the Assyrian king Sennacherib ordered the construction of a masonry dam to fulfill the requirement of water for his capital Nineveh. This masonry dam was constructed on the Atrush river and a 36 mile long canal provided water to the capital. It was a prodigious feat of hydraulic engineering for its time.
Grand library
The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal, named after the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, contains 30,943 clay tablets including such renowned works as Epic of Gilgamesh. It was one of the largest libraries of the time and is one of the oldest ones to survive.
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