I'm not sure if they existed back then. However, there [i]were[/i] occult groups that practiced the same Babylonian rituals that the current Illuminati does today. It probably wasn't the exact same group, but one that was essentially identical in its goals and methods. The current Illuminati was most likely inspired by those ancient cults at some point during the Enlightenment. Anything pre-Enlightenment gets hazy. Even actual members of the Illuminati aren't really sure what was going on before that time.