Changes

The development of ziggurats, like most monumental building in the ancient world, was a long process that took hundreds of years to reach its maturity. Unfortunately, there is no known extant text that explains precisely what ziggurats were intended to symbolize, but based on references to the structures in Sumerian and Akkadian language texts, modern scholars have determined that the ancient Mesopotamians believed they were the earthly homes of their many deities. <ref> Mieroop, Marc van de. <i>A History of the Ancient Near East: ca. 3000-323 BC.</i> 2nd ed. (London: Blackwell, 2007), p. 182</ref>  The Sumerians were the first ethnic group to bring civilization to Mesopotamia and they were also the first people to build ziggurats in the southern portion of that land, which is generally known as Sumer. It was during what is known as the Uruk Period (ca. 3500-2900 BC) – named for the city where civilization first began in Mesopotamia – when temples began to be built that can be considered “archaic” or proto-ziggurats. Essentially, the first of these ziggurats were comprised of a simple tower built on top of a platform. One of the first proto-ziggurats was known as the “White Temple,” which towered forty feet above the city of Uruk. <ref> Frankfort, Henri. <i>The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient.</i> (New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1996), p. 20</ref>  Later, true ziggurats would dwarf these early ones in size, but the meaning, style, and construction methods used to make them were established during this early period by the Sumerians. It was also during this early period when the secular, along with the religious importance of ziggurats was first solidified. Modern archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia have determined that ziggurats were often the first buildings constructed in a settlement and that they in fact provided much of the impetus for early urban development in Mesopotamia. <ref> Kuhrt, p. 25</ref> As Mesopotamian cities grew in size, ziggurats were also at the center of the growth.

The culmination of centuries of ziggurat construction took place during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (ruled 604-562 BC). Nebuchadnezar II is known to many as a “bad guy” from the Old Testament book of Daniel, but he was actually a very active king who led a new dynasty, referred to as the Neo-Babylonian Dynasty, to prominence in the Near East. The crowning achievement of Nebuchadnezzar II’s reign was the construction of the Etemenanki Ziggurat in Babylon. Etemenanki is translated from ancient Akkadian as the “House of the Frontier between Heaven and Earth,”<ref> Kuhrt, p. 593</ref> which again demonstrates the connection between ziggurats and the heavens. The ziggurat was dedicated to Marduk, who was the patron god of the city of Babylon. <ref> Frankfort, p. 203</ref>  Although nothing remains of the Etemenanki Ziggurat, its greatness inspired awe in people from far outside Mesopotamia. The fifth century BC Greek historian, Herodotus, wrote of it stating, “on the summit of the topmost tower stands a great temple with a fine large couch in it”<ref> Herodotus. <i> The Histories.</i> Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. (London: Penguin Books, 2003), Book I, 181</ref> and it was more than likely the inspiration for the legendary “Tower of Babel” described in Genesis 11:1-9. After Babylon was conquered by the Achaemenid Persians in 539 BC, the era of ziggurat building came to an end. Despite controlling Mesopotamia for over 200 years, the Persians did not carry on the tradition of ziggurat building, although they left most of the extant ziggurats intact. Eventually, all of the ziggurats fell into disuse during the Seleucid Dynasty and the desert claimed most as casualities.