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CONTENTS
Clay abundantly and cheaply available Columned Halls and Porticoes were
building materials. common protect from sever heat
Brick manufacture sun dried or Kiln-burnt High platforms or dadoes were provided
for buildings protect from heavy floods
Bricks glazed in different colors
decorative works
WEST ASIATIC ARCHITECTURE
FORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT
RELIGIOUS CONDITION
Religion dominated their life
SOCIAL CONDITION
The homes of the poor were simple with a central coutyard. Flooring consisted of paved bricks or
mud plaster.
The rich had two storeys with sleeping rooms, kitchens, wash room, servants quarters and a family
chapel.
The ancient architecture of West Asia developed from 3000 B.C. to 330 B.C. in the following
period
The ziggurats stood like modern skyscrapers over the city. Some ziggurats stood 70 feet tall.
There were big staricases to get up and down. The only level that remains today is the bottom.
Sumerians had no tools and machinery like us. Brickmakers formed mud bricks there were perfect.
After drying they take them to the site and set them in place with bitumen. Bitumen is a thick sticky
black stuff.
River Euphrates which had bought so much glory, prosperity to Ur, suddenly changed its course
and started running some 14km east to the city. As a result the canals became dry, lost its shipping
trades and ultimately the city lost its value.
WEST ASIATIC ARCHITECTURE
ZIGGURAT OF UR-NAMMU SUMERIAN ARCHITECTURE
(2125 B.C.)
The Ziggurat or holy mountain was erected by the
Mesopotamian King Ur-Nammu, a founder of Third Dynasty
of Ur.
The whole mass was solid, with a core of sun dried bricks and outer covering of burnt bricks of 2.5m thick
cemented with bitumen.
It was composed of three stages. Access to the ziggurat was through three converging ramps from where
a central stairway continued to the second stage. The shape of the staircase to the third stage is unclear.
Large Courtyard around its base and surrounded by shrines, among which one was dedicated to the
goddess Ningal, the wife of Nanna.
The temple had inner courtyard surrounded by a no. of rooms cooking, animal sacrifice, workshops, sotre
rooms.
There was also a palace within the courtyard for the King and his family members.
However, he was defeated by Kassites whose rule lasted until 1171 B.C.
The city was destroyed by Assyrians once in 13th and again in 7th Century B.C.
It was also protected by huge rampart walls which were more than 86km. In length and provided
with hundred bronze gateways.
Each of its eight gateways was protected by different gods, the main palace and gate were
dedicated to Ishtar, the goddess of love and battle.
The Ishtar gate was patterned by horned dragons; yellow and white bulls in reilef on a blue
background
The Horned Dragon
the symbol of Warrior
the God Marduk.
He was worshipped
in the Temple of
Esagila.
The gate consisted of two portals one behind the other, each flanked by huge
towers. It was built in Kiln-burnt bricks, cemented with pitch.
The outer surface was covered by enamelled bricks with colored figures of
dragons.
HANGING GARDENS(600B.C.)
Built by King Nebuchadnezzar, to please his persian wife
They founded their capital at Ashur (named after the God), a city on the bank of river Tigris.
They kept fighting wars to keep their trade routes open. They were opposed by Hittite empire in
the beginning.
Assyrian history really commenced under the reign of Takulti-Ninurta I(1250-1210B.C.) who
captured Babylon.
Then followed the reign of Sargon II(722-705B.C.) founded the capital city of Khorsabad.
There was the main Ziggurat temple of Ashur which was restored by
Tukulti-Ninurta.
The city had two large palaces built one for the living and other for the
Administration.
The high plinths of the temple courts were decorated with polychrome glazed bricks.
At one corner there stood a Ziggurat on square base of about 45m side rising in seven tiers to a
Height of 45m with shrine at the top.
It had a winding ramp of 1.8m wide by which one could reach on its top. Each of the seven tiers
was painted in different colors.
Main gateway to the grand court was flanked by imposing towers and guarded by the
man-headed winged bulls as a symbol of adad the god of thunder.
The founder of this empire, Cyrus the Great (559-530B.C.) captured medians and Assyrians.
After conqureing the Greek colonies of western Asia minor, he next subjugated Babylon in
539B.C.
After his death at pasargadae, his son Cambyses II(530-522B.C.) extended the kingdom upto the
borders of Egypt. In his reign, the persian architecture was largely influenced by the Egypts
splendid buildings of Thebes.
He founded two new capitals one at Susa and one at Persepolis the Gateway of all Nations
He constructed many arterial roads and planned to connect Red Sea and Nile by a canal.
The entire building stood on a rectangular plan 460mx275m over a rising terrace of 15m above
the ground.
The approach was provided at north-west by magnificent steps 6.7mwide and shallow enough
for the horses to ascend.
The throne room the famous Hall of Hundred Columns situated on the
east end, was commenced by Xerxes I and completed by Arta-XerxesI.
The throne room was set up on a high platform with columns 11m high
supporting the flat roof.
The columns had moulded base, fluted shaft and decorative capitals with
continuous vertical scrolls.
The top brackets of the columns were in the form of twin bulls, or dragons the
Symbol of power.
Alexander the Great defeated the last king Darius III and put the city including
the palace to the torch. Now it stands in ruins state.
But there was lots and lots of clay. So their buildings were usually built of brick, or mud-brick.
Another thing which made West Asian people build a certain way is the constant arrival of
nomadic people into the area: the Persians, the Parthians, the Arabs. All of these people were
used to living and entertaining in tents, and they built their houses and palaces kind of like tents,
so they would feel at home.
The Assyrians unlike the Babylonians produced Mural decoration. Often the gates of the palaces
were flanked by imposing towers and guarded by man-headed winged bulls.
They provided bas reliefs on walls showing scenes of fighting, hunting and ceremonies of states.
The chief form of ornmentation was lotus flowers, buds and band of rosettes
The temples, houses and palaces had rectangular plan and were built on high dadoes to
protect from heavy floods.
Double walls were more common. Doors and Windows were square headed.
They used relief slabs for parapets and surface decoration for the lower portions of the buildings.
The Persians were eventually defeated by Alexander the Great in 331 BC,
which led to a great many Greek temples and theaters and gymnasia being built all over
West Asia and even into India in the Hellenistic period.