2 – The Great Ziggurat of Ur
This Neo-Sumerian ziggurat was built in the ancient city of Ur in the modern day Iraqi province of Dhi Qar. King Ur-Nammu oversaw the creation of the ziggurat in the 21st Century BC during the Third Dynasty of Ur. When it was completed, the enormous step pyramid was 98 feet high, 148 feet wide and 201 feet long. It was part of the city’s temple complex and used as the shrine of Nanna, the moon god. The king died during the construction of the step pyramid, and it was completed during the reign of Shulgi. The new king declared himself a god to win the allegiance of nearby cities, and he reigned for approximately 48 years.
Since the Mesopotamian gods were often linked to the eastern mountains, the structure might have been a representation of their homes. As a result, the city’s inhabitants believed their ziggurat was where Nanna chose to live. Indeed, the ancient Mesopotamians believed their gods had the same needs as humans which is why there was a bedchamber built on top of the ziggurat. There was a kitchen where food was prepared for Nanna and chambers for human servants.
While Ur flourished under Shulgi, it fell apart once he died as his successors were unable to prevent the empire from falling apart. Soon, the city was sacked by Elamites. Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, restored the top two terraces in the 6th century BC. It is unlikely that his restoration looked anything like the original since he had little information to go on. During the 4th Century BC, the Euphrates River changed its course, and the city of Ur was abandoned due to lack of irrigation.
The remains of the ziggurat of Ur lay undiscovered until 1850. John George Taylor began the first excavations soon afterward, and his work ensured the site was identified as Ur. Further excavations began after World War I, and in 1920, Sir Leonard Woolley was appointed by the British Museum and the University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania and tasked with undertaking an extensive exploration of the site.
The excavation lasted until 1934, and the team found that the ziggurat consisted of three layers of solid mud brick with further burnt bricks set in bitumen. The baked bricks probably weighed as much as 33 pounds apiece and up to 720,000 bricks were required for the lower portion of the structure alone. In the 1980s, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein restored the lower section’s huge façade including the three massive staircases that led to the gate.
During the Iraqi War, Hussein made sure his MiG fighter jets were stored beside the ziggurat because he believed the enemy would not dare destroy the structure. He was mistaken as coalition bombardment damaged parts of the structure. Unfortunately, no further excavations are planned in the near future as the site of the ziggurat is considered too dangerous. Hopefully, the situation will change one day, and we can finally learn more about this incredible step pyramid.