The gardens were near the king's palace, next to the river, so that travelers could see it, since access to the people was forbidden.  At the top of the terraces a water reservoir from which running several streams stood.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon not "hung" really in the sense of being suspended by ropes. The name comes from an incorrect translation of the Greek word kremastos or pensilis Latin term that means not just "hanging" but "stand out" as in the case of a terrace or balcony.

The Greek geographer Strabo, who described the gardens in first century BC wrote:

"It consists of vaulted terraces raised one above another, resting on cubic pillars. These are hollowed out and filled with earth to allow the planting of large trees. The pillars, vaults, and terraces are constructed of baked brick and asphalt. "