The Abzu: Material and Cosmological Foundations

[us4-he2-gal2]

Thread Orientation: This thread is dedicated to the topic of the abzu, primarily its archaeological but also its textual attestations.

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The Abzu: Material and Cosmological Foundations

Hey everyone - I am starting this thread to present some data that I recently considered in a paper for my NMC363 (Mesopotamian Archaeology) class. This paper is in some ways risque as it attempts to bridge the worlds of Meso. archaeology with the world of Meso. literature, which as I discuss in the introduction, are defined by different camps who tend to be mutually exclusive in their interpretations of relevant data. The paper would likely come under fire from a strict member of the Meso. archaeology camp for its frequent admission of textual data for the purpose of interpreting archaeological data - but, with R. Zettler, the paper has tried to demonstrate that the integration of textual and archaeological data presents the real way forward. So I frequently refer to the ETCSL and whatever Sumerian literature seems to shed light what is suggested as the cosmological principal behind religious architecture.


The topic I choose to write on here was the abzu and its physical manifestations (as this was an archaeology class). I was inspired by a comment G. Selz had made, namely, that in the ED period the abundance of Abzu cult places make it clear that the god Enki had an important role in the religion of this time and therefore (suggestibly) in the religion of the early (Urukian) religion. But what are these abzu cult places that the texts mentions and in what way might they have been physically manifested?


My paper addresses these problems in the following way: in section 1.0 consideration is given to the abzu as cosmological unit and brief mention is made of the possibility that this cosmology was based on an actual subterranean lake in the vicinity of Eridu. In 2.0 through 2.2 the role of cosmology in Mesopotamian temple design will be discussed, with particular focus on the cosmic abzu in this context. Finally 3.0 through 3.2 focus is applied to the term èš-abzu, often translated "abzu shrine" , and some archaeological data often connected with Enki ideology is examined. In brief I have attempted to argue that a) the ways in which the Sumerian texts describe their temple building rational indicate a rich sense of cosmology was involved and b) by use of combined textual and archaeological approach, the expectation for the interpretable remains of a physical or manmade abzu should not be unjustified.

Problems or limitations of this paper: While the possibilities have of this line of investigation have been highlighted, no definite evidence was uncovered.


For those interested, a link to the paper is below:

McGrath_The èš-abzu and its Early Conceptualization

So I have put this post in a new thread here in the Mesopotamian discussion board as oppose to the usual place in the posted papers area - the reason is that I would like to expand the initial finding of the paper, make any necessary corrections and really keep looking for the abzu and its possible material foundations. Unique works on i) Mesopotamian temple foundations and ii) Mesopotamian foundation deposits will have to be consulted.

[us4-he2-gal2]

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Reviewing:


Sally Dunham - A Study of Ancient Mesopotamian Foundations


PhD dissertation for Columbia University


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The stated focus of Dunham' s study is on " a particular aspect of Ancient Mesopotamian architecture: the foundations of buildings and walls. The purpose is to delineate the kinds of foundations the ancient Mesopotamians used and to try and discern the practical - and perhaps also the conceptual - reasons for building them." (Introduction) To that end she studies archaeological evidence from the Neolithic through ED periods, and then examines 9 Sumerian words relating to foundations in texts from the ED to OB periods.



Uruk period foundations (pg. 173): Dunham' s summary of the foundation characteristics of this period is limited to sacred architecture, temples, as these are the only structures from this period that have really been excavated (especially in Uruk itself). While the main building material was brick (as is usually the case in Mesopotamia) stone is used for the foundation of the (Urukian) Limestone temple, the Stone Cone Temple, the Steingebäude, the foundation pavements of the Riemchengeäude and the terrace to the northeast of the Anu Ziggurat etc. Interestingly, at Jemdat Nasr and Tepe Gawra in this period, the terrace (raised platform) is in use for public and/or secular buildings - yet temples at Eridu, Uqair, Brak, Ur and Uruk are built on larger or higher terraces. At the Stone Cone Temple in Uruk a new foundation convention was established: a specially excavated and refilled ditch, and the building of elaborate foundations which reflect the plan of the building above.



Dunham states that the forerunner to the Ziggurat, the temple terrace (or raised platform) had become more than simply functional already in the Uruk period (i.e. it had gained a become part of religious architecture) - however she states that it's exact function still remains "uncertain." (pg. 300)



ED period foundations (pg. 294): Dunham remarks here that while smaller temples built in this period tend to have foundations resembling those used in secular housing, larger temples "often exhibit more complicated constructions, not all of which seem susceptible to practice explanations." For example, the foundations of the earliest levels at the Eridu temple are no different from the houses around them - as the temple expanded it was built on a raised terrace however.



On temen : Dunham traveled to Yale to consult with W.W. Hallo regarding the philology of the Sumerian words relating to foundations. Perhaps the most common Sumerian term, and most interesting, is temen. However the word has numerous connotations and is also heavily linked with foundation pegs, as the author explains: "The explanation given here has proceeded from its use in Ur III field plans to denote a surveying traverse. Here the word termen could refer to the area marked out, the borders of this area, or the corner points of this area, which were presumably marked by pegs. The interpretation that temen could refer to a set of peg foundation deposits and that temen.. si(g) refers to fasting the pegs in, rests on evidence that si(g) can have a meaning of "to nail, to fasten into, to stick into,' and that, when it does, it is used for posts, pegs and post-like objects. Since the foundation platforms of temples.... temen could refer to the foundation, the plan marked out in it, or the foundation deposits marking it, just as in the Ur III field plans temen could refer to the area marked out, its borders, or its corner points."



Arguing against the temple literally having its foundations in the abzu (or any water source): Although the author doesn't address this directly, she does mention that: "As stressed in the archaeological remains, one of the most important considerations in Mesopotamia in both ancient and modern times is to protect the bottom parts of mud brick walls from moisture. Provisions to achieve this can take the form of plastering, of using water proof materials such as baked bricks and bitumen, or of setting a row of bricks on edge along the bottom of a wall.



On cosmology: Temen as Dim-gal (post): Dunham notes that various temples were described as, or likened to, the dim-gal or "great mast" in Sumerian literature. The temen is also sometimes likened to the dim-gal , i.e. in Gudea Cylinder A: XXII:II . Its possibly, she says, that the epithet temen-an-ki, which is applied to the kesh temple, and to the ziggurat at Babylon (E2-temen-an-ki) has a connotation of a great post "linking" heaven and earth. All these references share in common a post / peg metaphor (either temen or dim-gal) and all are linking heaven and earth, acting as mediators between the two. A reference to van Dijk, Syncretism pg. 175 is given, where this author discusses the "cosmic tree" and its relation to dim-gal, temples and mediation.



However, about the general lack of cosmology in Dunham's work: Despite the fact that the author began an investigation to discern the practical, and "perhaps" also the conceptual, reasons for Mesopotamian foundation building techniques, she gives very little analysis to the conceptual. That is, outside of briefly descibing some relevant cosmology in the temen section. One reason is that she is of course, an archaeologist, a group who tend underplay textual evidence. Another reason is that, in her own words, she "tends toward the skepticism expressed by Oppenheim [in "Ancient Mesopotamia: Portrait of a Dead Civilization."] (pg. 302) And so she believes that "the difficulties inherent in trying to understand the physical remains of a cult long dead may preclude ever reaching a full understanding." (pg. 302). Therefore anything possibly cultic isn't discussed in that way so much as it is simply 'a consideration beyond just the functionality of the building.' About the scattered references of the ED practice of digging a foundation trench (removing a large chunk of earth and refilling it with purified soil), the author simply states that the procedure is "clearly motivated by ideas foreign to a modern viewpoint. Why excavate a big hole, "purify" the removed dirt by fire, and then replace it? "



Conclusions: Despite her hesitance to use the word "cult" or "cultic" (due perhaps to her previous stated allegiance to the "we will never know" mantra of Oppenheim), Dunham concludes that "a tradition of providing temples with very elaborate foundations, foundations which go far beyond being merely functional" developed in ED Mesopotamia. These including were typified by two types a) the evolution of the high terrace, from which the ziggurat developed and b) the elaborate preparation of the building ground, which in several instances involved excavation into and refilling earlier levels. The two traits may also be combined. In her final remarks she adds that "perhaps one could suggest that the careful attention paid to the foundations and the ground below the foundations stemmed from [cosmic] considerations... Certainly, Ellis' discussion of building rites concerning temples indicates how strongly the ancient Mesopotamians were influenced by their beliefs in supernatural powers."





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So next I will have to review and consider Ellis' work on Foundation deposits, Chap. 1 pp. 5-34