Ziggurats are ancient terraced pyramids found in Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica, used as places of worship for gods. They were built by ancient civilizations without modern tools and were often decorated with artwork. Similar structures were built in different regions of the world, indicating the association between pyramids and religious worship arose independently. Famous ziggurats include Sailk in Iran and the Ziggurat in Ur.
A ziggurat is a structure that takes the form of a terraced pyramid, with a flat platform at its apex. Ziggurats can be found scattered across lands once occupied by Mesopotamian civilizations and also in parts of Mesoamerica. These mammoth structures are quite remarkable, considering that the people who built them lacked access to modern architecture, engineering and construction tools, and they are fascinating sites to visit and study.
Some people believe that the Mesopotamian ziggurat served as a model for the Egyptian pyramid, and this is certainly possible. In some cases, parts of the ziggurats were even covered with a smooth coating, making them look a lot like pyramids, but they also had stairs and ramps for access, and the platform at the top typically housed a temple, as the ziggurats were used as places of worship. worship rather than burial.
From archaeological evidence, historians speculate that the Sumerians and Babylonians regarded the ziggurats as the abodes of the gods, and access to them appears to have been restricted to priests and other religious officials. These officials cared for the ziggurat and made offerings to the god it housed, holding various ceremonies to honor the gods and ask them to help the community. These massive temple towers were typically enclosed in large compounds with space to house priests, sacrificial animals, and large support staff.
Some famous ziggurats that people can visit include Sailk in Iran, believed to be the oldest ziggurat, along with the White Temple of Uruk, a simple ziggurat, and the massive Ziggurat in Ur. The Sailk Ziggurat dates back to before the third millennium BC, demonstrating how ancient it is. Although the walls of these structures are today made of dull stone, when they were built, the ziggurats were glazed and painted in a myriad of colours, with murals and other artwork decorating the structure both inside and out. Much of this art undoubtedly had a religious significance.
Interestingly, not long after the Babylonians and Assyrians built their massive ziggurats, the Mesoamerican cultures built their own step pyramids, and the structures are remarkably similar. It is unlikely that these cultures had contact with each other, so apparently the association between pyramids and religious worship arose spontaneously and in total autonomy in these very different regions of the world. Whether in the lush jungles of Central America or the remote deserts of Iraq, these structures are distinctive and tend to dominate the surrounding landscape, just as they did thousands of years ago when they were in active use.
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