Architecture of Mesopotamia
The architecture of Mesopotamia is ancient architecture of the region of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, encompassing several distinct cultures and spanning a period from the 10th millennium BC to the 6th century BC. Among the Mesopotamian architectural accomplishments are the development of urban planning, the courtyard house, and ziggurats. Scribes had the role of architects in drafting and managing construction for the government, nobility, or royalty.
Image: The Gate of Nimrud (Metropolitan Museum)
Image: Ziggurat of Ur Inbound 1427286134917083377
King Ashurnasirpal's throneroom relief showing Ashur hovering above the tree of life.
Terracotta model of a house from Babylon, 2600 BCE, Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, San Jose, California
Ur was an important Sumerian city-state in ancient Mesopotamia, located at the site of modern Tell el-Muqayyar in south Iraq's Dhi Qar Governorate. Although Ur was once a coastal city near the mouth of the Euphrates on the Persian Gulf, the coastline has shifted and the city is now well inland, on the south bank of the Euphrates, 16 km (10 mi) from Nasiriyah in modern-day Iraq. The city dates from the Ubaid period c. 3800 BC, and is recorded in written history as a city-state from the 26th century BC, its first recorded king being King Tuttues.
The name 𒋀𒀊𒆠 URIM5KI for "Country of Ur" on a seal of King Ur-Nammu
Enthroned King Ur-Nammu (c. 2047–2030 BC)
Gold helmet of King of Ur I Meskalamdug, c. 2600–2500 BC
Mesopotamian female deity seated on a chair, Old-Babylonian fired clay plaque from Ur