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Uruk
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Uruk (URUUNUG , Sumerian: unug; Akkadian: uruk Greek: Orchoë), from the Akkadian rendering of the Sumerian toponym 'unug', is modern Warka (Arabic: ), Iraq. Uruk was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates river, on the ancient Nil canal, some 30 km east of As-Samawah, Al-Muthanna, Iraq. The modern name Iraq is thought to be derived from the name Uruk. At its height c 2900 BCE, Uruk probably had 50,000–80,000 residents living in 6 km2 of walled area; the largest city in the world at its time.
Prominence
In myth and literature Uruk was famous as the capital city of Gilgamesh, hero of the Epic of Gilgamesh.
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Encyclopedia
Uruk (URUUNUG , Sumerian: unug; Akkadian: uruk Greek: Orchoë), from the Akkadian rendering of the Sumerian toponym 'unug', is modern Warka (Arabic: ), Iraq. Uruk was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates river, on the ancient Nil canal, some 30 km east of As-Samawah, Al-Muthanna, Iraq. The modern name Iraq is thought to be derived from the name Uruk. At its height c 2900 BCE, Uruk probably had 50,000–80,000 residents living in 6 km2 of walled area; the largest city in the world at its time.
Prominence
In myth and literature Uruk was famous as the capital city of Gilgamesh, hero of the Epic of Gilgamesh. It is also believed Uruk is the Biblical (Genesis 10:10) Erech, the second city founded by Nimrod in Shinar. Erech is in some way associated with Enoch.
In addition to being one of the first cities, Uruk was the main force of urbanization during the Uruk Period (4000-3200 BCE). This period of 800 years saw a shift from small, agricultural villages to a larger urban center with a full-time bureaucracy, military, and stratified society. Although other settlements coexisted with Uruk they were generally about 10 hectares while Uruk was significantly larger and more complex. The Uruk period culture exported by Sumerian traders and colonists had an effect on all surrounding peoples, who gradually evolved their own comparable, competing economies and cultures. Ultimately, Uruk could not maintain long-distance control over colonies such as Tell Brak by military force.
Geographic factors underpin Uruk's unprecedented growth. The city was located in the alluvial plain area of southern Mesopotamia, on the Euphrates rivers. Through the domestication of native grains from the nearby Zagros foothills and extensive irrigation techniques, the area supported a vast variety of edible vegetation. This domestication of grain and its proximity to rivers enabled Uruk's growth into the largest Sumerian settlement, in both population and area, with relative ease.
Uruk's agricultural surplus and large population base facilitated processes such as trade, specialization of crafts and the evolution of writing. Evidence from excavations such as extensive pottery and the earliest known tablets of writing support these events. Excavation of Uruk is highly complex because older building were recycled into newer one thus blurring the layers of different historic periods. The topmost layer most likely originated in the Jemdet Nasr period (3200-2900 BCE) and is built on structures from earlier periods dating back to the Ubaid period.
History
In myth Uruk was founded by Enmerkar, who brought the official kingship with him, according to the Sumerian king list. He also, in the epic Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, constructs the Eanna (Sumerian: E2-ana, 'House-of-Heavens') temple for the goddess Inanna in the Eanna District of Uruk. In the Epic of Gilgamesh Gilgamesh builds the city wall around Uruk and is king of the city.
Uruk went through several phases of growth, from the Early Uruk Period (4000-3500 BCE) to the Late Uruk Period (3500-3100 BCE). The city was formed when two smaller Ubaid settlements merged. The temple complexes at their cores became the Eanna District and the Anu District dedicated to Inanna and Anu, respectively. The Anu District was originally called 'Kullaba' (Kulab or Unug-Kulaba) prior to merging with the Eanna District. Kullaba dates to the Eridu period when it was one of the oldest and most important cities of Sumer. There are different interpretations about the purposes of the temples. However, it is generally believed they were a unifying feature of the city. It also seems clear that temples served both an important religious function and state function. The surviving temple archive of the Neo-Babylonian period documents the social function of the temple as a redistribution center.
The Eanna District was composed of several buildings with spaces for workshops, and it was walled off from the city. By contrast, the Anu District was built on a terrace with a temple at the top. It is clear Eanna was dedicated to Inanna symbolized by Venus from the earliest Uruk period throughout the history of the city. The rest of the city was composed of typical courtyard houses, grouped by profession of the occupants, in districts around Eanna and Anu. Uruk was extremely well penetrated by a canal system that has been described as, "Venice in the desert." This canal system flowed throughout the city connecting it with the maritime trade on the ancient Euphrates River as well as the surrounding agricultural belt.
Historic periods of Uruk
Archeologists have discovered multiple cities of Uruk built atop each other in chronological order.
- Uruk XVIII Eridu period (c 5000 BCE); the founding of Uruk
- Uruk XVIII-XVI Late Ubaid period (4800–4200 BCE)
- Uruk XVI-X Early Uruk period (4000-3800 BCE)
- Uruk IX-VI Middle Uruk period (3800-3400 BCE)
- Uruk V-IV Late Uruk period (3400-3000 BCE); The earliest monumental temples of Eanna District are built.
- Uruk III Jedet Nasr period (3000–2900 BCE); The 9 km city wall is built
- Uruk II
- Uruk I
Eanna District
The Eanna district is historically significant as both writing and monumental public architecture emerge here during Uruk periods VI-IV. The combination of these two developments places Eanna as the first true city and civilization in human history. Eanna during period IVa contains the earliest examples of cuneiform writing and therefore the earliest writing in history. Although these cuneiform tablets have been deciphered, difficulty with site excavations has obscured, the purpose and sometimes even the structure of many buildings.
The first building of Eanna, Stone-Cone Temple (Mosaic Temple), was built in period VI over a preexisting Ubaid temple and is enclosed by a limestone wall with an elaborate system of buttresses. The Stone-Cone Temple, named for the mosaic of colored stone cones driven into the adobe brick facade, may be the earliest water cult in Mesopotamia. It was ritually demolished in Uruk IVb period and its contents interred in the Riemchen Building.
In following period, Uruk V, about 100 m east of the Stone-Cone Temple the Limestone Temple was built on a 2 m high rammed-earth podium over a preexisting Ubaid temple, which like the Stone-Cone Temple represents a continuation of Ubaid culture. However, the Limestone Temple was unprecedented for its size and use of stone, a clear departure from traditional Ubaid architecture. The stone was quarryed from an outcrop at Umayyad about 60 km east of Uruk. It is unclear if the entire temple of just the foundation was built of this limestone. The Limestone temple is probably the first Inanna temple, but it is impossible to know with certainty. Like the Stone-Cone temple the Limestone temple was also covered in cone mosaics. Both of these temples were rectangles with their corners aligned to the cardinal directions, a central hall flanked along the long axis flanked by two smaller halls, and buttressed facades; the prototype of all future Mesopotamian temple architectural typology.
Between these two monumental structures a complex of buildings (called A-C, E-K, Riemchen, Cone-Mosaic), courts, and walls was built during Eanna IVb. These buildings were built during a time of great expansion in Uruk as the city grew to 250 hectares and established long distance trade, and are a continuation of architecture from the previous period. The Riemchen Building, named for the brick shape called Riemchen by the Germans, is a memorial with a ritual fire kept burning in the center for the Stone-Cone Temple after it was destroyed. For this reason Uruk IV period represents a reorientation of belief and culture. The facade of this memorial may have been covered in geometric and figural murals. The Riemchen bricks first used in this temple were used to construct all buildings of Uruk IV period Eanna. The use of colored cones as a facade treatment was greatly developed as well, perhaps used to greatest effect in the Cone-Mosaic Temple. Composed of three parts: Temple N, the Round Pillar Hall, and the Cone-Mosaic Courtyard, this temple was the most monumental structure of Eanna at the time. They were all ritually destroyed and the entire Eanna district was rebuilt in period IVa at an even grander scale.
During Eanna IVa The Limestone Temple was demolished and the Red Temple built on its foundations. The accumulated debris of the Uruk IVb buildings were formed into a terrace, the L-Shaped Terrace, on which Buildings C,D,M, Great Hall, and Pillar, Hall were built. Building E was initially thought to be a palace, but later proven to be a communal building. Also in period IV the Great Court, a sunken courtyard surrounded by two tiers of benches covered in cone mosaic was built. A small aqueduct drains into the Great Courtyard, which may have irrigated a garden at one time. The impressive buildings of this period were built as Uruk reached its zenith and expanded to 600 hectares. All the buildings of Eanna IVa were destroyed sometime in Uruk III, for unclear reasons.
The architecture of Eanna in period III was very different than what had preceded it. The complex of monumental temples was replaced with baths around the Great Courtyard and the labyrinthine Rammed-Earth Building. This period correspond to Early Dynastic Sumer c 2900 BCE a time of great social upheaval when the dominance of Uruk was eclipsed by competing city-states. The fortress-like architecture of this time is a reflection of that turmoil. The temple of Inanna continued functioning during this time in a new form and under a new name, 'The House of Inanna in Uruk' (Sumerian: e2-dinanna unuki-ga). The location of this structure is currently unkown.
Anu District
The great Anu district is older than the Eanna district; however, few remains of writing have been found here. Unlike the Eanna district the Anu district consists of a single massive terrace, the Anu Ziggurat, dedicated to the Sumerian sky god, An. Sometime in the Uruk III period the massive White Temple, was built atop of the ziggurat, and under the northwest edge of the ziggurat an Uruk VI period structure, the Stone Temple, has been discovered.
The Stone Temple was built of limestone and bitumen on a podium of rammed earth and plastered with lime mortar. The podium itself was built over a woven reed mat called giparu a word which originally referred a reed mat used ritually as a nuptial bed, but took on the meaning as the source of abundance which radiated upward into the structure. The structure of the Stone Temple further develops some mythological concepts from Enuma Elish, perhaps involving libation rites as indicated from the channels, tanks, and vessels found there. The structure was ritually destroyed, covered with alternating layers of clay and stone, then excavated filled with mortar sometime later.
The Anu Ziggurat began with a massive mound topped by a cella during the Uruk period c 4000 BCE and was expanded through 14 phases of construction, labeled L to A3 (L is sometimes called X). Interestingly, the earliest phase, used typology similar to PPNA cultures in Anatolia; a single chamber cella with a terazzo floor beneath which, bucrania were found. In phase E, corresponding to Uruk III period c 3000 BCE, the White Temple was built. The White Temple was clearly designed to be seen from a great distance across the plain of Sumer as it was elevated 21 m and covered in gypsum plaster which reflected sunlight like a mirror. For this reason it is believed the White Temple is a symbol of Uruk's political power at the time. In addition to this temple the Anu Ziggurat also had a monumental limestone paved staircase used in religious processions. A trough running parallel to the staircase was used to drain the ziggurat.
Uruk in Late Antiquity
Although, it had been a thriving city in Early Dynastic Sumer, especially Early Dynastic II, Uruk was ultimately annexed to the Akkadian Empire and went into decline. Later, in the Neo-Sumerian period, Uruk enjoyed revival as a major economic and cultural center under the soverignty of Ur. The Eanna District was restored as part of an ambitious building program, which included a new temple for Inanna. This temple included a ziggurat, the 'House of the Universe' (Cuneiform: E2.SAR.A) to the northeast of the Uruk period Eanna ruins. The ziggurat is also cited as Ur-Nammu Ziggurat for its builder Ur-Nammu. Following the collapse of Ur (c 2000 BCE) Uruk went into a steep decline until about 850 BCE when the Neo-Assyrian Empire annexed as a provincial capital. Under the Neo-Assyrians and Neo-Babylonians Uruk regained much of its former glory. By 500 BCE a new temple complex the 'Head Temple' (Akkadian: Bit Reš) was added to northeast of the Uruk period Anu district. The Bit Reš along with the Esagila was one of the two main centers of Neo-Babylonian astronomy. All of the temples and canals were restored again under Nabopolassar. In this era Uruk was divided into five main districts; the Adad Temple, Royal Orchard, Ištar Gate, Lugalirra Temple, and Šamaš Gate districts.
Uruk, now known as Orchoë to the Greeks, continued to thrive under the Seleucid Empire. In this period Uruk was a city of 300 hectares. In 200 BCE the 'Big House' (Cuneiform: E2.IRI12.GAL, Sumerian: iri-gal, Akkadian: ešgal) of Ishtar was added between the Anu and Eanna districts. When the Seleucid Empire was annexed by the Parthians in 141 BCE Uruk again entered a period of decline from which it never recovered. The decline of Uruk may have been in part caused by a shift in the Euphrates River. By 300 CE Uruk was mostly abandoned, and by c 700 CE it was completely abandoned.
Political history
In Uruk, in southern Mesopotamia, Sumerian civilization seems to have reached its creative peak. This is pointed out repeatedly in the references to this city in religious and, especially, in literary texts, including those of mythological content; the historical tradition as preserved in the Sumerian king-list confirms it. From Uruk the center of political gravity seems to have moved to Ur. —Oppenheim
Uruk played a very important part in the political history of Sumer. Starting from the Early Uruk period, exercising hegemony over nearby settlements. At this time (c 3800 BCE) there were two centers of 20 hectares, Uruk in the south and Nippur in the north surrounded by much smaller 10 hectare settlements. Later, in the Late Uruk Period its sphere of influence extended over all Sumer and beyond to external colonies in upper Mesopotamia and Syria. Uruk was prominent in the national struggles of the Sumerians against the Elamites up to 2004 BCE, in which it suffered severely; recollections of some of these conflicts are embodied in the Gilgamesh epic, in the literary and courtly form that has come down to us. the epic of Gilgamesh was an epic about a great sumerian king
The recorded chronology of rulers over Uruk includes both mythological and historic figures in five dynasties. As in the rest of Sumer power moved progressively from the temple to the palace. Rulers from the Early Dynastic period exercised control over Uruk and at times over all Sumer. In myth kingship was lowered from heaven to Eridu then passed successively through five cites until the deluge which ended the Uruk period. Afterwards, kingship passed to Kish at the beginning of the Early Dynastic period, which corresponds to the beginning of the Early Bronze Age in Sumer. In the Early Dynastic I period (2900–2800 BCE) Uruk was in theory under the control of Kish. This period is sometimes called he Golden Age. During the Early Dynastic II period (2800–2600 BCE) Uruk was again the dominant city exercising control of Sumer. This period is the time of the First Dynasty of Uruk sometimes called the Heroic Age. However, by the Early Dynastic IIIa period (2600–2500 BCE) Uruk had lost soverignty, this time to Ur. This period, corresponding to the Early Bronze Age III, is the end of the First Dynasty of Uruk. In the Early Dynastic IIIb period (2500–2334 BCE), also called the Pre-Sargonic period, Uruk continued to be ruled by Ur.
Early Dynastic, Akkadian, and Neo-Sumerian Rulers of Uruk
1st Dynasty of Uruk:
2nd Dynasty of Uruk:
- Enshakushanna; reestablished kingship over Sumer, however following his death kingship passed to Eannatum of Lagash
- Lugal-kinishe-dudu, Argandea, Lugal-ure; served as ensi of Uruk under the 1st Dynasty of Lagash
3rd Dynasty of Uruk:
- Lugalzagesi (2296–2271 BCE); originally of Umma, he made Uruk his new capital after conquering all Sumer
4th Dynasty of Uruk:
- Ur-ningin, Ur-gigir, Kuda, Puzur-ili; served as ensi of Uruk under the Akkadian Empire
5th Dynasty of Uruk
- Utu-hengal (2119–2112 BCE); an ensi of Uruk who overthrew the Gutians and briefly ruled Sumer until he was defeated by Ur-Nammu of Ur thus ending the final dynasty of Uruk.
Uruk continued as principality of Ur, Bablyon, and later Achaemenid, Seleucid, and Parthian Empires. The city was finally destroyed by the Arab invasion of Mesopotamia and abandoned c 700 CE.
Architecture
Uruk has the first monumental constructions in architectural history. Much of Near Eastern architecture can trace it roots to these prototypical buildings. The structures of Uruk are cited by two different naming conventions, one in German from the initial expedition, and the English translation of the same. The straitigraphy of the site is complex and as such much of the dating is disputed. In general the structures follow the two main typologies of Sumerian architecture, Tripartite with 3 parallel halls and T-Shaped also with three halls, but the central one extends into two perpendicular bays at one end. The following table summarizes the significant architecture of the Eanna and Anu Districts. It should be noted that Temple N, Cone-Mosaic Courtyard, Round Pillar Hall are often referred to as a single structure; the Cone-Mosaic Temple.
| Eanna District: 4000-2000 BCE |
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| Structure Name | German Name | Period | Typology | Material | Area in m2 |
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| Stone-Cone Temple | Steinstifttempel | Uruk VI | T-shaped | Limestone & Bitumen | x | | Limestone Temple | Kalksteintempel | Uruk V | T-shaped | Limestone & Bitumen | 2373 | | Riemchen Building | Riemchengebäude | Uruk IVb | unique | Adobe Brick | x | | Cone-Mosaic Temple | Stiftmoasaikgebäude | Uruk IVb | unique | x | x | | Temple A | Gebäude A | Uruk IVb | Tripartite | Adobe Brick | 738 | | Temple B | Gebäude B | Uruk IVb | Tripartite | Adobe Brick | 338 | | Temple C | Gebäude C | Uruk IVb | T-shaped | Adobe Brick | 1314 | | Temple/Palace E | Gebäude E | Uruk IVb | unique | Adobe Brick | 2905 | | Temple F | Gebäude F | Uruk IVb | T-shaped | Adobe Brick | 465 | | Temple G | Gebäude G | Uruk IVb | T-shaped | Adobe Brick | 734 | | Temple H | Gebäude H | Uruk IVb | T-shaped | Adobe Brick | 628 | | Temple D | Gebäude D | Uruk IVa | T-shaped | Adobe Brick | 2596 | | Room I | Gebäude I | Uruk V | x | x | x | | Temple J | Gebäude J | Uruk IVb | x | Adobe Brick | x | | Temple K | Gebäude K | Uruk IVb | x | Adobe Brick | x | | Temple L | Gebäude L | Uruk V | x | x | x | | Temple M | Gebäude M | Uruk IVa | x | Adobe Brick | x | | Temple N | Gebäude N | Uruk IVb | unique | Adobe Brick | x | | Temple O | Gebäude O | x | x | x | x | | Hall Building/Great Hall | Hallenbau | Uruk IVa | unique | Adobe Brick | 821 | | Pillar Hall | Pfeilerhalle | Uruk IVa | unique | x | 219 | | Bath Building | Bäder | Uruk III | unique | x | x | | Red Temple | Roter Tempel | Uruk IVa | x | Adobe Brick | x | | Great Court | Großer Hof | Uruk IVa | unique | Burnt Brick | 2873 | | Rammed-Earth Building | Stampflehm | Uruk III | unique | x | x | | Round Pillar Hall | Rundpeifeilerhalle | Uruk IVb | unique | Adobe Brick | x | | Anu District: 4000-2000 BCE |
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| Stone Building | Steingebäude | Uruk VI | unique | Limestone & Bitumen | x | | White Temple | x | Uruk III | Tripartite | Adobe Brick | 382 | |
It is clear Eanna was dedicated to Inanna symbolized by Venus from the Uruk period. At that time she was worshipped in four aspects as Inanna of the netherworld (Sumerian: dinanna-kur), Inanna of the morning (Sumerian: dinanna-hud2), Inanna of the evening (Sumerian: dinanna-sig), and Inanna (Sumerian: dinanna-NUN). The names of four temples in Uruk at this time are known, but it is impossible to match them with either a specific structure and in some cases a deity.
- sanctuary of Inanna (Sumerian: eš-dinanna)
- sanctuary of Inanna of the evening (Sumerian: eš-dinanna-sig)
- temple of heaven (Sumerian: e2-an)
- temple of heaven and netherworld (Sumerian: e2-an-ki)
image:Eanna5.svg|Plan of Eanna VI-V
image:Eanna4b.svg|Plan of Eanna IVb
image:Eanna4a.svg|Plan of Eanna IVa
image:Eanna3.svg|Plan of Eanna III
image:Eanna_neosumerian.svg|Plan of Neo-Sumerian Eanna
image:Anu_district.svg|Plan of Anu District Phase E
image:Pergamonmuseum Inanna 01.jpg|cone mosaic courtyard
image: Pergamonmuseum Inanna 02.jpg|detail of cone mosaic
Archaeology
The location of Uruk was discovered by William Loftus in 1849. By Loftus’ own account, he admits that the first excavations were superficial at best, as his financiers forced him to deliver large museum artifacts at a minimal cost.
From 1912–1913, Julius Jordan and his team from the German Oriental Society discovered the temple of Ishtar, one of four known temples located at the site. The temples at Uruk were quite remarkable as they were constructed with brick and adorned with colorful mosaics. Jordan also discovered part of the city wall. It was later discovered that this 40 to high brick wall, probably utilized as a defense mechanism, totally encompassed the city at a length of 9 km (5.5 miles). Utilizing sedimentary strata dating techniques, this wall is estimated to have been erected around 3000 BC. Jordan returned 15 years later and worked for nearly 10 years, reconstructing the city’s layout.
In 1954 Heinrich Lenzen began work at the site and discovered clay tablets with Sumerian and pictorial inscriptions that are thought to be some of the earliest recorded writing, dating to approximately 3300 BC. These tablets were deciphered and include the famous Sumerian King List, a record of kings of the Sumerian civilization. There was an even larger cache of legal and scholarly tablets of the Seleucid period, that have been published by Adam Falkenstein and other German epigraphists.
Together with the impressive temples, ziggurats were discovered. These were large temple towers with a pyramidal shaped building at the top. Large courtyards were uncovered which verify that these temples with ziggurats were the city’s main hubs of activity. Many religious writings were uncovered within the temples and a nearby cemetery yielded numerous sarcophagi.
The artifacts found at the site indicate that during the Uruk period (4000 – 3100 BCE) this civilization thrived and was the model for many other Mesopotamian cities. The artifacts also confirm that religion was an important aspect of culture of the city. Its proximity to the two great waterways of the land, and an array of non-indgenous artifacts indicate that Uruk was heavily involved in cultural trading.
In the existing research on Uruk there is little to nothing about the royal palace of Gilgamesh or any other king. So far the excavations have shown little to indicate there is even a palace on the site. Much is still unknown about Uruk with some tablets only being recently deciphered. No conclusive decision has been made regarding the purpose of many of the buildings excavated.
image:Male bust Louvre AO10921.jpg|Lugal-kisal-si, king of Uruk
image:UrukHead.jpg|marble heard found in Eanna
See also
Further reading
External links
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