Ehursag Explained

Eḫursag (Sumerian: {{cuneiform|) is a Sumerian term meaning "house of the mountains".[1]

Sumerian ÉḪURSAG is written as a special ligature (ÉPAxGÍN),[2] sometimes etymologized as É.ḪAR.SAG, written with the signs É "temple" (or "house"), ḪAR "mountain" and SAG "head".

Ehursag is commonly associated with a temple of Enlil discovered by Sir. Charles Leonard Woolley during excavations at Ur in modern-day Iraq. He originally considered this to be a palace, a view that was later rejected in replace for a temple. The location of the royal palace at Ur remains unknown. No graves were discovered under the Ekursag during these excavations.[3] Woolley eventually conceded that it was a "minor temple of some sort." Modern scholars still vary on their interpretations of it as a temple, palace, or administrative building. It has even been suggested to be a wing or annex of the main temple, having had some of its foundations destroyed.[4] Stamped bricks used in the construction of the foundations revealed that they were built by Ur-Nammu of the Third Dynasty of Ur. Bricks from the pavement bore the stamp of his successor, Shulgi and later ones of the Isin-Larsa period after Ur was destroyed by Elamites.[4] Ehursag is also the name or epithet of Ninhursag's temple at Hiza and has been suggested to have been an interchangeable word with Enamtila.[1] The Ehursag at Ur was restored in 1961 using ancient and modern bricks, a 2008 report for the British Museum noted that this had collapsed in some areas, especially the northwest corner.[5]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: A. R. George. House most high: the temples of ancient Mesopotamia. 9 June 2011. 1993. Eisenbrauns. 978-0-931464-80-5. 2–.
  2. Book: Erich Ebeling. Bruno Meissner. Dietz Otto Edzard. Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie: Nab-Nuzi. 9 June 2011. 1998. Walter de Gruyter. 978-3-11-017296-6. 15–.
  3. Book: Tonia M. Sharlach. Provincial taxation and the Ur III state. 9 June 2011. 2004. BRILL. 978-90-04-13581-9. 9–.
  4. Book: Harriet E. W. Crawford. Harriet Crawford. Sumer and the Sumerians. registration. 9 June 2011. 2004. Cambridge University Press. 978-0-521-53338-6. 103–.
  5. Web site: Curtis, John., Rahee, Qais Hussein., Clarke, Hugo, Al Hamdani, Abdulamir M., Stone, Elizabeth., Van Ess, Margarete., Collins, Paul., Ali, Mehsin., An assessment of archaeological sites in June 2008: An Iraqi-British Project., p. 8, arxaiologia.gr, Iraq, 2008 . 2011-06-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111006182032/http://www.arxaiologia.gr/assets/media/PDF/3769.pdf . 2011-10-06 . dead .