Etemenniguru — ziggurat
Ur · near Nasiriyah, Iraq · c. 2100–2000 BCE (begun by Ur-Nammu, completed under Shulgi; Third Dynasty of Ur)
The best-preserved Sumerian ziggurat. Built by Ur-Nammu and Shulgi for the moon god. A triple staircase, bitumen-set masonry, a partial 20th-century reconstruction. The reference model of the classic type.
Dossier
- Type: Classic Sumerian
- Ancient city: Ur
- Modern location: near Nasiriyah, Iraq
- Deity: Nanna / Sin
- Dating: c. 2100–2000 BCE (begun by Ur-Nammu, completed under Shulgi; Third Dynasty of Ur)
- Builders: Ur-Nammu and Shulgi (Third Dynasty of Ur); restored by Nabonidus in the 6th century BCE
- Material: core of mud brick, facing of baked brick set in bitumen
- Plan: base of ~64×45 m, rectangular, with the corners aligned to the cardinal points, three receding tiers and a sanctuary on top
- Base: 64 × 45 m
- Height (originally): about 30 m
- Tiers: 3
- Survived: yes, the ruins can be visited
What matters
The height of about 30 m is a reconstruction: of the building of Ur-Nammu mainly the lower tiers and the foundations survive, while the upper sanctuary is lost. The top of the ruins visible today consists of the remains of the Neo-Babylonian rebuilding by Nabonidus. The façade of the lower tier and the ceremonial staircase were restored in the 1980s.