Eridu Ziggurat — Abu Shahrain
Ziggurat of Eridu · Tell Abu Shahrain — Eridu mound · Eridug Ziggurat
Ubaid through Ur III (c.5400–2000 BCE, ziggurat Ur III Amar-Sin)·Sumerian (Eridu / Ubaid type-site, Ur III)·🇮🇶 Dhi Qar Governorate, Al-Dawahir desert (12 km SSW of Ur), Iraq
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About
About Eridu Ziggurat — Abu Shahrain
Eridu (Tell Abu Shahrain) is traditionally the first city of Sumer (King List) with an 18-level temple sequence from Ubaid small shrine (≈5400 BCE) to Ur III ziggurat of Amar-Sin. Mound 1 is 580×540 m rising 25 m at ziggurat. Iraqi-Italian AMEr mission documented seven mounds over 25 km². Ziggurat is mudbrick with baked brick facing, two stages, east stair.
Why it mattersType-site for Ubaid period and longest temple stratigraphy in Mesopotamia (5400–2050 BCE); traditional first city; key to temple-origin of ziggurat.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Earliest shrine — Ubaid 1 vs Halaf-Ubaid transitional
- 02Abzu symbolism — physical pool vs mythic abyss
Theories
- 01Temple-encapsulation model — ziggurat develops by sand-encasing earlier shrines
- 02Urban genesis — Eridu as cult centre preceding urban settlement
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.2112–2050 BCE (Ur III ziggurat) over Ubaid–Uruk temple sequence c.5400–2112 BCE; 18 levels
- Period
- Ubaid through Ur III (c.5400–2000 BCE, ziggurat Ur III Amar-Sin)
- Culture
- Sumerian (Eridu / Ubaid type-site, Ur III)
- Purpose
- Holy city and Enki cult centre — traditional 'first city' of Sumer; ziggurat crowns 18 successive Enki/Abzu shrines
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.5400 BCE
Earliest shrine (Enki temple XVIII, Ubaid 1)
c.2113–2046 BCE
Ur III ziggurat built by Ur-Engur/Amar-Sin
1854
J.E. Taylor discovers Abu Shahrein as Eridu
1946–49
Safar & Lloyd excavate temple sequence and ziggurat
On the ground
Structures & features
30.8158° N · 45.9961° E · 9 m · 3 mapped features
- Ur III ziggurat of Amar-SinpyramidTwo-stage mudbrick ziggurat on Mound 1 summit, 25 m high with east stair30.8158° N · 45.9961° E
- Enki temple sequence exposuretempleSW section exposing 18 superimposed shrines with sand-filled encasements30.8156° N · 45.9958° E
- Eridu Mound 2–7 northern moundsmoundNorthern subsidiary mounds (Mound 2 one km north) with Early Dynastic scatters30.8220° N · 45.9965° E
Gallery