Ziggurat of Kish — ziggurat
Kish · Tell Ingharra, Iraq · Early Dynastic period, c. 2900–2334 BCE (probably the end of ED IIIa); badly ruined, so precise dating is difficult
Kish is one of the oldest political centres. The remains of a temple tower survive on the Ingharra mound. The monument is badly ruined, but it matters as a northern Sumerian example of the same canon.
Dossier
- Type: Classic Sumerian
- Ancient city: Kish
- Modern location: Tell Ingharra, Iraq
- Deity: Zababa / Inanna
- Dating: Early Dynastic period, c. 2900–2334 BCE (probably the end of ED IIIa); badly ruined, so precise dating is difficult
- Material: plano-convex brick, laid in herringbone courses
- Plan: Two ziggurats on the summit of Tell Ingharra: a large one to the southwest of the temple of Ishtar and a small one to the southeast; their form, base dimensions and number of tiers have not been established
- Height (surviving): about 9 m
- Survived: yes, the ruins can be visited
What matters
Two ziggurats once stood on Tell Ingharra — a large one on the southwestern side of the temple of Ishtar and a small one to its southeast; both survive to a height of about 8–10 m. The dimensions of their bases and the number of tiers have never been published: in the view of scholars, the large ziggurat may have been a stepped tower. The frequently cited base of ~60×56 m belongs to another mound at Kish, Tell Uhaimir, where the ziggurat was rebuilt right up to Neo-Babylonian times.