Ziggurat
Ziggurat means the road to heaven, they were built by the ancient Sumerians, Akkadians, Assyrians, Elamites, Eblaites and Babylonians for local religions, mainly the Mesopotamian religion and the religion of the Elamites. Each ziggurat was part of a temple complex that included other buildings, the ziggurat was similar to a flat-topped mastaba. Sun-baked bricks formed the core of the ziggurat, with fired-brick cladding on the outside. Each step was a little less than the step below him. The facings were often glazed in different colors and may have had astrological significance. Kings sometimes engraved their names on these glazed bricks. The number of floors varied from two to seven. Access to the sanctuary would have been via a series of ramps on one side of the Ziggurat, or via a spiral ramp from base to summit. Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public worship or ceremony. They were considered the dwelling places of the gods, and each city had its own patron god. . Only priests were allowed on the Ziggurat or the rooms at its base, and it was their duty to look after the gods and take care of their needs. The priests were very influential representatives of the Sumerian and Assyro-Babylonian society. One of the best preserved ziggurats is Chogha Zanbil in western Iran. The ziggurat of Sialk in Kashan, Iran is the oldest known ziggurat dating from the early 3rd millennium BC. e. The ziggurat designs ranged from simple foundations on which the temple sat, to marvels of mathematics and construction that spanned several terraced stories and were topped off by the temple. To date, 11 ziggurats out of 21 ziggurats have been discovered by archaeological excavations according to historical sources. Here are some of these ziggurats that are found in Iran: 1. Kashan Sialk Ziggurat: The manufacturer of this ziggurat is not specified, but the date of construction is 2500 BC. e. Sialk hill was actually a sanctuary of ancient people made of clay and pottery. This historical complex was not identified by 1310 and was known among the people of Kashan for the cursed city. 2. Chogha Zanbil Ziggurat: Located in the southwestern part of Iran, near the city of Shush, it is the safest remnant ziggurat in the world and dates back to 1250 BC. The Choga Zanbil building is located in the center of this city and its highest part. This sanctuary was built by Ontash of Napier around 1250 BC. e. , the king of the Great Elamite, and was praised by the god Ishushinak, the guardian goddess of Shusha (the ancient city); which was attacked by the army while killing the Assyrian Banipal and was destroyed along with the Elamite civilization. 3. Ziggurat Kenar Sandal: Belonging to the ancient Elamite about 3800 years ago, now destroyed, but its historical information has attracted our attention. Sandal Ziggurat from Jiroft was recently discovered and is older than Ziggurat Choga Zanbil. This ziggurat belonged to the people of Arta and the archaeological excavations have not yet been completed. 4. Ziggurat Haft-Tape: According to the research of Dr. Negahban, it belongs to the Central Asian period and was built in 1357 BC.
