The E-Kur Ziggurat
Dec 8, 2008 18:11:19 GMT -5
Post by Mela on Dec 8, 2008 18:11:19 GMT -5
The E-Kur or ziggurat (Akkadian ziqqurrat, D-stem of zaqāru "to build on a raised area") was a temple tower of the ancient Mesopotamian valley and Iran, having the form of a terraced pyramid of successively receding stories or levels. Some modern buildings with a step pyramid shape have also been termed ziggurats.
Ziggurats were built by the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians of ancient Mesopotamia as monuments to local religions. The earliest examples of the ziggurat were simple raised platforms that date from the Ubaid period[1] during the fourth millennium BC, and the latest date from the 6th century BC. The top of the ziggurat was flat, unlike many pyramids.
The Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public worship or ceremonies. They were believed to be dwelling places for the gods. Through the ziggurat, the gods could be close to mankind, and each city had its own patron god. Only priests were permitted on the ziggurat or in the rooms at its base, and it was their responsibility to care for the gods and attend to their needs. The priests were very powerful members of Sumerian society.
There are 32 ziggurats known at, and near, Mesopotamia. Twenty-eight of them are in Iraq, and four of them are in Iran. The most recent to be discovered was Sialk, in central Iran. One of the best-preserved ziggurats is Choqa Zanbil in western Iran. The Sialk ziggurat, in Kashan, Iran, is the oldest known ziggurat, dating to the early 3rd millennium BC. Ziggurat designs ranged from simple bases upon which a temple sat, to marvels of mathematics and construction which spanned several terraced stories and were topped with a temple.
An example of a simple ziggurat is the White Temple of Uruk, in ancient Sumer. The ziggurat itself is the base on which the White Temple is set. Its purpose is to get the temple closer to the heavens, and provide access from the ground to it via steps. The Mesopotamians believed that these pyramid temples connected heaven and earth. In fact, the ziggurat at Babylon was known as Etemenankia or "House of the Platform between Heaven and Earth".
Translated by:
Falkenstein 1959a, p. 5-79: commentary, translation, composite text. Jacobsen 1987, p. 101-111: translation. Römer 1990: score transliteration. Reisman 1970, p. 41-102: commentary, translation, composite text, photograph. Civil 1989: composite text. Krecher 1996a: composite text, translation.
Cuneiform sources
Amsterdam private coll. n/a CBS 7924B (SEM 102 B) CBS 8317 (MBI 10) CBS 8473 (STVC 116) CBS 8533 (PBS 10/4 10) CBS 10217 CBS 10226 (STVC 44)
CBS 10475 CBS 13869 (STVC 43) CBS 14152 (PBS 1/2 114) CBS 14218 HS 1530 (TMH NF 3 15) + HS 1531 (TMH NF 3 16) + HS 1532 (TMH NF 3 17) + HS 1749b + HS 2610 + HS 2648a+b + HS 2665 + HS 2685 (last five WK 23f.) HS 1576 (TMH NF 3 18) HS 1577 (TMH NF 3 19) IB 923 *** IM 44351a (TIM 9 13) KNMA 10047 (JCS 8 84) MM 478 N 1047 N 1348 N 1405 N 1780 + N 1782 N 3112 N 3453 N 3541 N 3568 N 7312 Ni 1039 (BE 31 6) Ni 1180 (ISET 1 68) Ni 4005 (SLTN 37)
Ni 4044 (SLTN 56) Ni 4150 (ISET 1 1f.; Bell. 16 pl. 61; UMB 17/2 fg. 16; FTS fg. 41) Ni 4339 (ISET 1 94) Ni 4377 (ISET 2 8) Ni 4584 Ni 9563 (ISET 1 114) Ni 9698 (OrNS 22 pl. 47) OECT 11 31 PRAK C 53 Si 231 (SGL 1 pl. 4) UET 6 65 UET 6 371
UET 6 *14 + UET 6 *63 UM 29-13-239 YBC 4618 YBC 4651 YBC 4653 (SGL 1 pl. 2f.) YBC 9845 (SGL 1 pl. 1f.) YBC 9858 3N-T314 = IM 58420 3N-T372 = A 30222
3N-T448 = IM 58486 3N-T507 = A 30253 3N-T508 = A 30254 3N-T547 = UM 55-21-344 3N-T650 = IM 58595 3N-T681 = A 30292 3N-T833 = IM 58746 3N-T900,12
3N-T901,39 + 3N-T918,439 3N-T902,81 + 3N-T903,115 3N-T902,90 3N-T903,125
3N-T904,154 3N-T907,275 3N-T908,301 3N-T916,322 3N-T916,331 3N-T918,448
3N-T919,491 3N-T919,493 3N-T920g = A 33494 3N-T925,507
Ziggurats were built by the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians of ancient Mesopotamia as monuments to local religions. The earliest examples of the ziggurat were simple raised platforms that date from the Ubaid period[1] during the fourth millennium BC, and the latest date from the 6th century BC. The top of the ziggurat was flat, unlike many pyramids.
The Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public worship or ceremonies. They were believed to be dwelling places for the gods. Through the ziggurat, the gods could be close to mankind, and each city had its own patron god. Only priests were permitted on the ziggurat or in the rooms at its base, and it was their responsibility to care for the gods and attend to their needs. The priests were very powerful members of Sumerian society.
There are 32 ziggurats known at, and near, Mesopotamia. Twenty-eight of them are in Iraq, and four of them are in Iran. The most recent to be discovered was Sialk, in central Iran. One of the best-preserved ziggurats is Choqa Zanbil in western Iran. The Sialk ziggurat, in Kashan, Iran, is the oldest known ziggurat, dating to the early 3rd millennium BC. Ziggurat designs ranged from simple bases upon which a temple sat, to marvels of mathematics and construction which spanned several terraced stories and were topped with a temple.
An example of a simple ziggurat is the White Temple of Uruk, in ancient Sumer. The ziggurat itself is the base on which the White Temple is set. Its purpose is to get the temple closer to the heavens, and provide access from the ground to it via steps. The Mesopotamians believed that these pyramid temples connected heaven and earth. In fact, the ziggurat at Babylon was known as Etemenankia or "House of the Platform between Heaven and Earth".
Translated by:
Falkenstein 1959a, p. 5-79: commentary, translation, composite text. Jacobsen 1987, p. 101-111: translation. Römer 1990: score transliteration. Reisman 1970, p. 41-102: commentary, translation, composite text, photograph. Civil 1989: composite text. Krecher 1996a: composite text, translation.
Cuneiform sources
Amsterdam private coll. n/a CBS 7924B (SEM 102 B) CBS 8317 (MBI 10) CBS 8473 (STVC 116) CBS 8533 (PBS 10/4 10) CBS 10217 CBS 10226 (STVC 44)
CBS 10475 CBS 13869 (STVC 43) CBS 14152 (PBS 1/2 114) CBS 14218 HS 1530 (TMH NF 3 15) + HS 1531 (TMH NF 3 16) + HS 1532 (TMH NF 3 17) + HS 1749b + HS 2610 + HS 2648a+b + HS 2665 + HS 2685 (last five WK 23f.) HS 1576 (TMH NF 3 18) HS 1577 (TMH NF 3 19) IB 923 *** IM 44351a (TIM 9 13) KNMA 10047 (JCS 8 84) MM 478 N 1047 N 1348 N 1405 N 1780 + N 1782 N 3112 N 3453 N 3541 N 3568 N 7312 Ni 1039 (BE 31 6) Ni 1180 (ISET 1 68) Ni 4005 (SLTN 37)
Ni 4044 (SLTN 56) Ni 4150 (ISET 1 1f.; Bell. 16 pl. 61; UMB 17/2 fg. 16; FTS fg. 41) Ni 4339 (ISET 1 94) Ni 4377 (ISET 2 8) Ni 4584 Ni 9563 (ISET 1 114) Ni 9698 (OrNS 22 pl. 47) OECT 11 31 PRAK C 53 Si 231 (SGL 1 pl. 4) UET 6 65 UET 6 371
UET 6 *14 + UET 6 *63 UM 29-13-239 YBC 4618 YBC 4651 YBC 4653 (SGL 1 pl. 2f.) YBC 9845 (SGL 1 pl. 1f.) YBC 9858 3N-T314 = IM 58420 3N-T372 = A 30222
3N-T448 = IM 58486 3N-T507 = A 30253 3N-T508 = A 30254 3N-T547 = UM 55-21-344 3N-T650 = IM 58595 3N-T681 = A 30292 3N-T833 = IM 58746 3N-T900,12
3N-T901,39 + 3N-T918,439 3N-T902,81 + 3N-T903,115 3N-T902,90 3N-T903,125
3N-T904,154 3N-T907,275 3N-T908,301 3N-T916,322 3N-T916,331 3N-T918,448
3N-T919,491 3N-T919,493 3N-T920g = A 33494 3N-T925,507
