Ziggurat

A ziggurat, including the ziggurat, ziggurat, or Ziggurat Schiggorat ( Babylonian " towering / piled up sky hill mountain of the gods "; plural ziggurats ), is a stepped temple tower in Mesopotamia. The biblical tradition of the Tower of Babel goes according to current knowledge back to such a construction. The Sumerian report, which includes the " confusion of tongues " was known to the Jews from the Babylonian exile.

Formation

The emergence of the ziggurats of the former Temple Terrace is proven. The majority of development in the southern Meseopotamien is assumed BC since the 5th millennium. Earlier forms of the temple terraces existed but in addition to the ziggurats on. Ziggurats from the second half of the 3rd millennium are also detected in Elam in southwest Iran. Excavations in the southeastern area of Iran in Kerman province brought in a discovered there settlement two hills / terraces ( Konar Sandal A and B) to light, which are at Sandal B is a ziggurat - conditioning from the first half of the third millennium should have acted.

Dissemination

Approximately 25 ruins of ziggurat structures can be in Mesopotamia, especially in Babylonia, to prove. The most famous ziggurat that of the moon god Nanna, located in Ur in the area of ​​present-day Iraq. The architecture of a ziggurat is best comprehensible to the ziggurat of the Kassite royal seat of major Kurigalzu where a Zikkuratkern has been particularly well received.

In neighboring Elam ziggurats were built, which thus differed from the Sumerian- Babylonian that they were developed by internal stairs. Also, structurally, there are some peculiarities. The oldest building is in Tappe Sialk and 2900 BC dated, the best preserved in Chogha Zanbil ( Elamite major Untash ) and today has a residual height of 25 m ( once to 50 m ) and a side length of 105 m.

Features

The similarities that show all ziggurats ( in Babylonia, Assyria and Elam ), the step shape ( from two to seven such stages, upward each diminutive ) and its two main structure consisting of a jacket ( bricks ) and a core ( unfired air-dried mud bricks with straw mat layers ).

Whether respectively a low and a high temple temple existed, can be something difficult to prove. At least in Babylon and Borsippa, the existence of such a two-piece design of the sanctuary appears proven since the late Babylonian period.

• Babylon: Etemenanki ( high temple ) - Esagila (deep stamp)

• Borsippa: Euriminanki ( high temple ) - Ezida (deep stamp)

At least in these two places, it seems, in the case of the high temple not to be a temple of their own on the top of the tower, but an " unfolded " Deep Temple, the vertically all the details that also existed to the flat earth reflects. Thus is located on the top of the tower, only the inner sanctum ( cella ).

At the South Babylonian ziggurats mainly rectangular usually a centralized staircase in ramp form was detected. Additional bilateral lateral staircases, leaning on the center staircase construction, also passed. The chronology just these main features proves to be impossible in some cases, since it is this were newly built over at all times.

Top Locations

• Ur ziggurat of the moon god Nanna
• Uruk: Ziggurat of God to
• Babylon: Etemenanki
• Chogha Zanbil: Major Untash
• Borsippa: Birs Nimrud
• Harran: Ehulhul, ziggurat of the moon god Sin
• Assyria, Anu -Adad temple, a Doppelzikkurat

Afterlife

Widely believed the helical minaret of the Mosque of Samarra modeled after the ziggurat was built. As an example of a ziggurat with an outer spiral ramp of the Tower of Khorsabad is to lead. As demonstrated in the case of the seven -story square ziggurat of Khorsabad for ancient Near Eastern time, one also enters the top of the minaret with a spiral- shaped outer ramp.

Futuristic nature of the ziggurat

Dubai is currently planning under the name ziggurat developing a new kind of huge living pyramid. Responsible is based in Dubai Company for Environmental Design Time Link.