ZIGGURAT OF UR

Mesopotamia, the land between two rivers is the cradle of human

civilization. Euphrates and Tigris flowed smoothly five thousand years
ago. One of the massive heritages left by the Sumerians is the Ziggurat
of Ur. It was located in the Dhi Qar Province in present day Iraq and was
built around 2100 BC. Today, after four thousand years later, it is still
standing in the middle of the desert. This building is older than The
Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.
The Ziggurat of Ur is the oldest standing monument on earth. It was
built by Ur-Nammu in the 3rd dynasty of Ur. The ziggurat of Ur is a
temple complex to the god of Nanna, the moon god and the patron deity
of city Ur. Nanna is depicted as a wise man with four horns and long
beards. He lived in the shrine on the top of the ziggurat. Inside the
shrine, there is a bedchamber where the chosen lady to be the gods
companion will be occupied. On the northwestern part of the ziggurat,
the kitchen of the moon god was situated.



Building Materials

In early Sumer it was made of rectangular mud bricks because they
didnt have stone or timber.
It was decorated with clay cones which were dipped into red, black or
buff paint and then inserted into the plaster to form zigzags or
geometric designs.
Weep holes were square or rectangular shaped holes placed at different
levels in the temple to provide drainage.




General Appearance

This was the largest and most important building located in the center
of each Sumerian city. Sumerians believed it was the home of the citys
patron god.
It was built on a platform called a parraku, designed to dominate the
horizon and also to provide protection from floods. Most temples
were built on the remnants of older temples that were destroyed or
expanded with the citys population or wealth.
Each king would add on to the temple with numerous stairways leading
to different levels.
Ziggurat of Ur is a step pyramid which is 64m in length, 46m in width
and approximately 30m in height.
SumerianS belief

Ziggurat in the ancient Sumerians belief was the meeting place between heaven
and earth, or otherwise between god and human. The staircases on the
front, left and right side are built for the priests to ascend to the temple
to present their offering the god Nanna.
Nonetheless, this elegant monument of Sumerian has stands out of time.
With the excavation and restoration, this ziggurat can provide more
information about the Sumerian and their culture, beliefs, and social
structure.
Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilization has giving us the first written
system, the first wheel, the first legislative system, the Hanging Garden
of the Babylon, and the Great Ziggurat of Ur. The ziggurat is indeed a
gemstone of the history and presented by the Sumerian to all human
races on earth.

PLAN