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ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE BIBLE
ZIGGURATS |
| Definition | Ziggurats
are stepped temple towers, built as religious structures in the major
cities of Mesopotamia (now in Iraq) from circa 2200-500BC. There are
about 25 ziggurats known. They are spread throughout the ancient lands
of Sumer, Babylonia and Assyria. The largest ziggurat is at Chogha Zanbil in Elam.
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| Design | A ziggurat
had a core of mud brick and an exterior of baked brick. It had no
internal chambers (though is was sometimes built over other, more
ancient structures) and was usually square or rectangular. An exterior
triple stairway or a spiral ramp led to the top of the ziggurat. The
terraces were often adorned with trees and shrubs, and this is probably
the origin of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Most
ziggurats were about 170ft. square, or 125x170ft. (40x50metres) at the
base.
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| Links with the Bible | *
The Tower of Babel is associated with the ziggurat of the great temple of
Marduk in Babylon. * Sarah and Abraham came from Ur, and since they lived in the centuries after the Ziggurat of Ur was built, they must have looked on it when it was still in all its glory. Click HERE for information about Sarah and her Egyptian slave Hagar. * The ziggurats were simulated mountains, and many of the people in the ancient Near East continued to worship in 'high places'. In Israel, these 'high places' were situated on the top of mountains. The priests of Jahweh condemned this type of worship, since it was based on veneration of the gods of sky, weather and agriculture. See sections on ANCIENT RELIGIONS and JEZEBEL
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 The reconstructed facade which now covers the excavated remains of the Ziggurat at Ur
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 The unreconstructed Ziggurat of the sky god/power Anu, at Uruk, Mesopotamia
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 Reconstructed stairway of the Ziggurat at Ur
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 An American air base is situated near the Ziggurat at Ur
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 Aerial view of the Ziggurat at Ur, with reconstructed facade and stairway. The ridges on surrounding land are remains of the ancient temple complex that surrounded the ziggurat.
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 Google Earth image of the Ziggurat at Ur
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 The Anu Ziggurat at Uruk, now reduced by time and erosion to a formless mound. Anu was the god/power that ruled the sky. The stairway ramp is at right center.
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 The Anu Ziggurat at Uruk
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