Who is…
Asnapper

also known as: Osnapper, Ashurbanipal

He was the last truly great king of Assyria, and is believed to be the same as Assur-bani-pal (Ashurbanipal) (Sardanapalos of the Greeks), called the “great and noble” (Ezra 4:10), was the son and successor (668 BC) of Esar-haddon

He was “luxurious, ambitious, and cruel, but a magnificent patron of literature.” He formed at Nineveh a library of clay tablets, numbering about 10,000. These are now mostly in the British Museum. They throw much light on the history and antiquities of Assyria.

Ashurbanipal (Assur-bani-pal) was a munificent patron of literature, and the conqueror of Elam. Towards the middle of his reign, his empire was shaken by a great rebellion headed by his brother in Babylon. The rebellion was finally put down, but Egypt was lost, and the military power of Assyria was so exhausted that it could with difficulty resist the hordes of Kimmerians who poured over Western Asia.

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Article Version: April 8, 2026