Ziggurats Trivia Quiz

Answer: Great Ziggurat of Ur

The ancient city of Ur was founded by the Sumerians and dates back to approximately 3800 BC. It was established near the mouth of the Euphrates River and was located close to today's Persian Gulf. During the fourth century BC the Euphrates River changed course, and the resulting flood wiped out the city of Ur.

Iraq's coastline has also changed, and the ruins of the Great Ziggurat of Ur are now about ten miles inland, near the modern city of Nasiriyah, which had a population of about 500,000 people in 2018. Nasiriyah is the capital of Dhi Qar Governorate; the area is known for its growing of dates and cottage industries, such as silver making.

Ziggurat fact: Ziggurats resemble ancient Egyptian step pyramids. Their design began with a raised platform that typically had other levels. As seen in the cover picture, taken at the Pergamon Museum, the levels became smaller as the ziggurat itself grew taller.

Answer: Great Ziggurat of Ur

Scientists believe that the Great Ziggurat of Ur measured approximately 210 feet (64 meters) long x 148 feet (45 meters) wide x 98 feet (30 meters) tall. There is evidence that suggests that it originally consisted of three levels.

By the 6th century BC, most of the original ziggurat, except for the first level, was in ruins. The last Chaldean King, Nabonidus, who is sometimes called the first archaeologist, ordered that the Great Ziggurat be reconstructed with seven levels instead of the original three. Today only three levels remain.

Ziggurat fact: In the 1990s Saddam Hussein ordered that the first level of the Great Ziggurat of Ur be rebuilt, as well as the staircase that leads to the second level.

Answer: Great Ziggurat of Ur

Ur-Nammu reigned for eighteen years during the 21st century BC. He was known for his military exploits, and was apparently successful as he took the titles King of Ur and King of Sumer and Akkad. Ur-Nammu is credited with beginning construction of the Great Ziggurat of Ur, as well as other ziggurats in Eridu, Uruk, and Nippur.

Ur-Nammu was killed in battle before the Great Ziggurat of Ur was completed. His son, Shulgi is credited with its completion.

Ziggurat fact: The bricks used for the core of a ziggurat were typically sun-basked, while the bricks used for the outside of the building were fired in kilns. It was customary for kings who built the ziggurats to have their names engraved on the bricks.

Answer: Great Ziggurat of Ur

Nanna (Sumerian), who was also known as Sin (Akkadian), was a moon deity in ancient Mesopotamia. Nanna was also connected to cattle herding and boats, and sometimes helped to judge the dead. Symbolized by the crescent, he was married to Ningal, whose name means "Great Queen". This leads some to believe that Nanna's status in the Mesopotamian pantheon might have compared to Zeus' in the Greek pantheon. Others believe that Nanna was an equal to Anu and Enlil, other important deities in ancient Mesopotamia. The cult center for the worship of Nanna was Ur.

Ziggurat fact: Although none of the top levels of ziggurats still exist today, it is thought that they were built as a special shrine to the city's patron deity; therefore, when the deity visited the city, he or she would have a place to stay.

Answer: Great Ziggurat of Ur

The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, ruled Mesopotamia from approximately 2112 BC-2004 BC. It came to power after the fall of the Akkad Dynasty and the defeat of the Gutian Dynasty. In addition to ziggurat building, the Third Dynasty of Ur is known for producing the Code of Ur-Nammu, the oldest known law code. It predates the Hammurabi Code by about 300 years.

Eventually the Amorites defeated the kings of the Third Dynasty of Ur, and came to power in Mesopotamia. They built the city of Babylon; over time the city became so important that the area around it became known as Babylonia.

Ziggurat fact: A ziggurat can correctly be called a temple complex. The first level is believed to have served as a storage area for grain and a place where business was conducted. In charge of the ziggurat was a person normally called a priest-king, or priest, who was responsible for both the religious and secular business of the city. Because the priest-king had no idea when the city's patron might visit, it was important to make sure the shrine at the top of ziggurat was kept clean and well stocked with food. He was the only human allowed in this part of the ziggurat.

Answer: Aqar Quf

Agar Quf is located about nineteen miles west of the city center of Baghdad. It has been visible for so long that it is believed that camel caravans used it as a guidepost for their trips into the city. Because it is so close to Baghdad - and, no, it was NOT the Tower of Babel - it is probably the most visited of the ancient ziggurats in Iraq.

Ziggurat fact: During the Persian Gulf War, Saddam Hussein moved some of his fighter jets next to the Great Ziggurat of Ur because he thought that his opponents would not bomb such an historic structure. Today the Great Zigguart is located close to one of the largest military installations in the Middle East. Apparently visitors to the area are not welcome, which helps to make Aqar Qut one of the most visited ziggurat sites.

Answer: Aqar Quf

As attested on a clay tablet known as the "Autobiography of Kurigalzu", Kurigalzu I, who died around 1375 BC, conquered land, built walls, constructed temples, and made sure that the gods had special care. One must assume that he was highly regarded by others, as both his daughter and granddaughter were the wives of the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III.

Dur-Kurigalzu, meaning "fortress of Kurigalzu", was founded as his new capital city, presumably to protect trade routes. Kurigalzu is known to have ordered building projects in at least eleven cities.

Ziggurat fact: The bricks used on the first level of Aqar Quf bear the name of Kurigalzu and the name of the deity to which the ziggurat was dedicated. Today the most prominent feature of the ziggurat is the inner core, which was made with sun-dried bricks that were fortified with reed mats every seventh layer.

Answer: Aqar Quf

Originally worshiped by the Sumerians as their chief god, Enlil was also worshiped by subsequent groups who ruled Mesopotamia as the god of the wind, storms, air, and earth. While the Sumerians believed that Enlil was so sacred that even other gods could not look at him, others did not hold him in such high esteem. His cult city was Nippur, which was destroyed in approximately 1230 BC.

Ziggurat fact: The ancient historian Herodotus wrote that each ziggurat had a shrine to city's patron at its top. The stairways built to the different levels made it relatively easy to keep people out of places they were not allowed to explore. While ordinary people could carry out business transactions at the lower level, only priests and religious officials could visit the other terraces.

Answer: Aqar Quf

The Kassites dominated Mesopotamia from approximately 1531 BC until 1155 BC, although they had been living in the area for about 150 years prior to that. They gained control over the area known as Babylonia, and took over the Amorite city of Babylon after it was destroyed by Hittite invaders. Little is known about the Kassites, however, archaeologists think that they ruled the area longer than any other ancient Mesopotamian group.

Ziggurat fact: The first level of Aqar Quf has been reconstructed; its base is believed to have originally measured 226 feet (69 meters) by 222 feet (67.6 meters). The first level and remains of the inner core stand about 170 feet (52 meters) tall.

Answer: Aqar Quf

The city of Dur-Kurigalzu, whose name means fortress of the shepherd of the Kassites, was founded in the 14th century BC, and thrived as an important city for about two hundred years before it was destroyed by the Elamites in the 12th century BC. In addition to the building of Aqar Quf around the time of the city's founding, the one-time ancient capital also had a large royal palace and several temples. A canal was also built to bring fresh water into the city from the Euphrates River.

Ziggurat Fact: The word ziggurat is derived from the ancient Akkadian "ziqquratu", which means to build high. Archaeologists believe that ziggurats were built with several different levels in order to connect the world of the gods with that of humans.