Etemenanki — ziggurat
Babylon · Hillah, Iraq · The ziggurat was destroyed by Sennacherib in 689 BCE; restoration was begun by Esarhaddon (680–669) and completed by the Neo-Babylonian kings Nabopolassar (625–605) and Nebuchadnezzar II (604–562 BCE)
“House of the Foundation of Heaven and Earth.” A square of roughly 91×91 m, seven tiers, and the upper temple of Marduk. The leading candidate for the historical prototype of the Tower of Babel. Almost nothing remains above ground.
Dossier
- Type: Neo-Babylonian
- Ancient city: Babylon
- Modern location: Hillah, Iraq
- Deity: Marduk
- Dating: The ziggurat was destroyed by Sennacherib in 689 BCE; restoration was begun by Esarhaddon (680–669) and completed by the Neo-Babylonian kings Nabopolassar (625–605) and Nebuchadnezzar II (604–562 BCE)
- Builders: Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II (Neo-Babylonian dynasty); earlier — Esarhaddon
- Material: Mud brick (a core of 60×60 m), baked brick and bitumen (an outer shell about 15 m thick), and at the top a temple faced with blue glazed bricks
- Plan: A square base of ~91×91 m (c. 8400 m²) with 7 tiers tapering upwards and a temple at the summit
- Base: 91 × 91 m
- Height (originally): about 91 m
- Tiers: 7
What matters
Almost nothing survives of Etemenanki: only the mud-brick mass of the core (about 60×60 m) with the remains of the foundation platform. The famous dimensions of the “Tower of Babel” — a square base about 91×91 m and a height of about 91 m in seven tiers — are reconstructed from the cuneiform “Esagila tablet” and ancient descriptions. According to an inscription of Nabopolassar, by his time his craftsmen had raised the first tier to 15 m, and Nebuchadnezzar II completed the building.