Bronze ritual wine vessel nr II at The British Museum, London

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The 6th century BC kicked off on January 1, 600 BC and wrapped up on December 31, 501 BC. This pivotal time period is widely regarded as the peak of a remarkable era known as the Axial Age. During this era, five influential thought streams emerged from five visionary thinkers in various parts of the world. The Buddha and Mahavira in India, Zoroaster in Persia, Pythagoras in Greece, and Confucius in China all made significant contributions to human knowledge. Pāṇini, an Indian scholar, crafted a comprehensive grammar for Sanskrit during this century or shortly after. This remains the oldest known grammar of any language that still exists today. In the Near East, the initial half of this century was marked by the dominance of the Neo-Babylonian or Chaldean empire, which rose to power in the latter part of the previous century following a successful rebellion against Assyrian rule. The Kingdom of Judah came to an end on August 21, 586 BC when Babylonian forces led by Nebuchadnezzar II captured Jerusalem and relocated most of its population to their own lands. However, Babylonian rule was toppled in the 540s by Cyrus, who established the Persian Empire as a result. The Persian Empire continued to expand and eventually became the largest empire the world had ever known at that time.