HISTORY AND THEORY

OF ARCHITECTURE III
(BAR 203)

LECTURE TWO

Architecture of the Ancient

Near East
15th October 2021

Arch Dr. Ralwala, Arch. Maggy Mweru

 Outline
• Historical Background
• Location and period
• Social characteristics and beliefs

Architecture of the Civilization

• Sumerian Architecture
• Assyrian Architecture
• Babylonian Architecture
• Persian architecture
 Outline cntd
Architectural Characteristics
• Buildings and other architectural
elements
• Building materials, construction
and technologies
• Architectural Organizing principles
 Learning Outcomes

It is expected that at the end of this

lecture learners should be able to:
Identify the factors, which
influenced the evolution of
Ancient near East Architecture and
the influence of this civilisation on
other periods.
 Learning Outcomes ctd.
Understand the Architecture of the
Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians and
the Persians.
Understand the Principles of city
Planning and Design
 Historical Background
Location
Located in and around the valley of
Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern
Iraq (Mesopotamia/land between two
rivers)
The land had poorly defined edges
The rivers were subject to flooding
 Historical Background
Period
The area witnessed the earliest rise of
human civilization around 4500BC
Civilisation lasted for 5000 years
Different cultures established city states
and empires at different periods
The cultures include: Sumerian,
Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian and
Persian.
 Historical Background
Period
It has not been possible to trace a neat order of the
history of the cultures however, the below sequence is
likely.
4500-2000BC: Sumerian culture
2350-2200BC: Akkadian period
2000-1600BC: Babylonian Culture
1600-1717BC: Kessites and Hittites
1350-612BC: Assyrian culture
612-539BC: Neo-Babylonian culture
539-330BC: Persian culture
 Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Mesopotamia is the cradle of civilisation
Civilisation is usually associated with the
cultural practices of cities and urban living,
the presence of writing and written law.
Between 4000-3000BC, large numbers of
people began living in a small area creating
cities.
Jobs unrelated to Agriculture also came
about.
Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Established cities grew and increased power.
Rivalries developed between cities for military
and economic control
Warfare became common While the Tigris
and Euphrates continuously flooded.
This made development impossible
Hence most cultures flourished and died
during this period.
Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Assemby of males
Short time leaders were selected during wars
and when piece prevailed kinship evolved
initially elective and later hereditary
Some cities became more powerful by
defeating weaker ones to create empires and
kingdoms.
Hence a sovereign king would rule city states
Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
With kingship came palaces
The belief in a supreme being.
Worshipped may gods and goddesses.
They did not believed in immortality or
eternal life. Only gods were immortal.
Rather, they believed in divine rewards for
moral conduct.
 Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
The rewards were enjoyed in life and included
worldly goods, numerous offspring and long
life.
Cults were related to fertility. The fertility
goddesses influenced the growth of crops
Weather, war and disease were explained as
actions of god.
The summerians had a religion based on the
sky, earth, water, sun, moon, e.t.c
 Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Their religion reflected the agrarian nature of their
society
As they began living in cities, they needed a means of
communication and record keeping
Circa 3500BC, the Sumerians invented a system of
writing based on pictograph.
This was later developed into a simpler writing called
the cuneiform.
Development of written language enabled them to
produce historical records.
Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Writing enabled the creation of laws
Cities were walled with a blend of
residential, commercial and industrial
buildings.
Houses were on story high and made from
mud brick.
Rooms were arranged around courtyards.
 Social Characteristics and
Beliefs
Houses looked inward
Rooms were narrow with thick walls and flat vault or dome
roofs
Mud was the most common building material while timber and
stone were scarce.
Buildings were raised on platforms to protect them from
floods.
Clay was also used for pottery
Mesopotamians invented astrology, wheeled vehicles and made
advances in science and math.
Architecture of the civilisation
Sumerian Architecture
Assyrian Architecture
Babylonian Architecture
Persian architecture
 Sumerian Architecture
(4500BC)
Established an irrigation system hence
food production to suppor5t urban living
Metal craft skills
Invented Cuneiform
Its major cities were: Kish, Uruk and Ur
Designed public buildings
 Sumerian Architecture
(4500BC)
Mud was the basic building material. It
was formed into brick, sun dried and built
into massive walls.
Walls were thick to compensate the
weakness of the mud
Walls were reinforced with buttresses. sketched illustration of Sumerian
buttresses

Spaces were narrow because of the walling

material
 Sumerian Architecture
(4500BC)
Facades of the buildings were white
washed to disguise the brick.
Buttresses and recesses were also used
to reduce the monotony of the
plastered wall surfaces.
Temples were their major building type
 Sumerian Architecture
The city of Ur
Cities were walled with temples and palaces as
centres of the city.
The city was made up of residential,
commercial and industrial buildings.
Houses were densely packed with narrow
streets between them
Streets were fronted by one storied courtyard
houses which had narrow openings.
City of Ur
 Sumerian Architecture
Temples
This was the principal architectural
feature (chief and city temples)
The white temple at Uruk and the
great Ziggurat at Ur (chief temples)
The Oval temple at Khafaje (city
temple)
 Sumerian Architecture
White temple Uruk (3000BC)
Iraq is derived from Uruk
Uruk was a major Sumerian city by
3300BC
The city covered an area of 2 square
kilometer and had a population of
40,000 people.
White temple at Uruk
 Sumerian Architecture
White temple Uruk (3000BC)
The temple was placed on a great mound of
earth called the Ziggurat, rising more than
12m above ground
The temple and the ziggurat were built form
mud bricks.
The temple is rectangular in shape, has thick
walls and is supported by buttresses.
Inside the temple was a long sanctuary,
containing an alter and offering table.
 Sumerian Architecture
White temple Uruk (3000BC)
Oblong rooms surrounded the long side of
the sunctuary
Imposing doorways were located at either
ends
Worshippers entered through a side door
Staircases lead worshippers to the entrance.
The temple was platered white externally
hence making it visible in the landscape.
 Sumerian Architecture
Great Ziggurat Ur (2113-
2048BC)
Ur was located near the mouth of the
eupharates river
It was considered sacred to Nnanna,
the moon god.
The temple was built on the ruins of
previous temples and incorporated
their remains.
 Great Ziggurat at Ur
temple was only
accessed by the the chief
priest temple was a
last line of
the ziggurat defence during
was believed war
to unite the
heavens and
the earth

fourth staircase
accessed through portal
with domed roof
climbing the
staircase was
believed to
give one a holy
experience

access through triple

stairways that
converged on the
summit of the first mud bricks
platform reinforced with thin layers
of amtting and
cables of twisted reeds
 Sumerian Architecture
Great Ziggurat Ur (2113-
2048BC)
It was constructed of mud bricks
reinforced with thin layers of amtting and
cables of twisted reeds
It was a complex compriesd of the Ziggurat
and its court and a secondary court
attached to it called the court of Nannar.
The king was the chief priest of the temple
and lived close to it.
 secondary court

Ziggurat's court
 Sumerian Architecture
Great Ziggurat Ur (2113-
2048BC)
The temple sat on a there tier Ziggurat mountain
Access was through triple stairways that converged
on the summit of the first platform.
From here on passed through a portal with a
domed roof to the fourth staircase.
The fourth staircase gave access to the second and
third stages of the ziggurat and to the temple which
was only accessed by the priest.
 Sumerian Architecture
Great Ziggurat Ur (2113-
2048BC)
The Ziggurat was believed to unite the
heavens and earth
Climbing the starircase gave one a holy
experience
The chief temple was used as a last line
of defense during times of war.
 temple is raised on a simple platform,
within the oval walls

Oval temple at Khafaje

inner court had
an offfering
table, basins for
ablution,
workshops and
spaces enclosed within courtyards storage rooms

subsidiary
chambers at
ground level

outer wall
extended to
house a
priest and massive oval walls
chapel
 Sumerian Architecture
Oval Temple-Khafaje
(2600 BC)
It has masive oval walls that surround the temple
Spaces within it were enclosed within courtyards.
This enabled it to be peaceful from the busy city
life.
The temple is raised on a simple platform enclosed
within the oval walls.
It had subsidiary chambers at the ground level.
The outer wall was extended to house a priest and
a chapel.
 Sumerian Architecture
Oval Temple-Khafaje
(2600 BC)
The inner court had an offering table
and showed evidence of animal
sacrifices.
It also had basins for ablution as well
as workshops and storage rooms.
 Assyrian Architecture
Part of Mesopotamia but located on the
upper Tigris
The principle cities were Nineveh, Dun,
Khorsabad, Nimrud and Assur
They were great wariors and hunters and this
was reflected in their art.
They created sculptures and relief carvings in
stone that was used to ornament their houses.
 Assyrian Architecture
During this period, temples lost their importance
to palaces.
Their king built walled cities in which palaces took
precedence over religious buildings.
Palaces were raised on brick platforms, and their
principal entrance ways were flanked by guardian
figures of human headed bulls or lions of stone.
Their halls and corridors were lined with pictures
and inscriptions careved in relief on stone slabs up
to 9 feet high.
 Assyrian Architecture
The interiors were richly decorated
and luxurious
The walls were strengthened by many
towers for defense
The city of Khorsabad demonstrated
the might and authority of the
Assyrian kings
 temples lost their importance to
palaces

enclosed by a double wall

palace located
on the north-
west side of
the city

walls strengthened by seven city gates

many towers for
defence
about 2.5 km2
 Assyrian Architecture
The City Of Khorsabad
It was designed as the royal capital of Assyria.
It was built on flat land with a n area of a bout a
square mile and was enclosed by a double wall
with seven city gates.
Only a part of the city including palaces, temples
and administrative headquarters was built.
The palace was located on the North West side
of the city.
 Assyrian Architecture
The Palace of Sargon
Within the citadel was the main palace,
two minor palaces and a temple.
The main palace was set on a platform
located on the Northern side of the
citadel.
All the buildings within the citadel were
arranged around courtyards.
 palace was arranged around two
major courtyards about which were
grouped smaller courtyards

buildings
arranged
around
courtyards
 Assyrian Architecture
The Palace of Sargon
The palace was arranged around two major
courtyards about which were grouped
smaller courtyards.
The palace consisted of large and smaller
rooms with the throne room being the
largest.
The building was decorated with relief
sculpture and glazed brick.
 Babylonian Architecture

After the fall of Nineveh in 612BC and the

end of Assyrian civilisation, focus shifted to
old Babylon.
A new dynasty of kings including
Nebuchadnezzar, revived old Babylonian
culture to create a Neo-Baylonian
civilisation.
Old sumerian cities were rebuilt.
 Babylonian Architecture

The capital old Babylon was enlarged and

heavily fortified and adorned with
magnificent new buildings
The traditional style of Mesopotamian
building reached its peak during the period.
Traditional building was enhanced by a new
form of facade ornament consisting of
figures designed in colored glazed brick
work.
 Babylonian Architecture
City Of Babylon
The city is shaped in the form of a
quadrangle sitting across and pierced by
the Euphrates.
The city was surrounded by a
fortification of double walls.
These had defensive towers that projected
well above the walls.
city shaped as a quadrangle
sitting across the Euphrates
defensive towers
that projected well
above the walls

double walls
 Babylonian Architecture
City Of Babylon
The walls also had a large moat in front, which was also
used for navigation.
The city had a palace, Nebuchadnezzar’s palace, located on
its northern side on the outer wall.
From the palace originated a procession street that cuts
through the city raised above ground to the tower of Babel.
The procession street entered the city through the Ishtar
gate. Which was built across the double walls of the city
fortification.
The gate had a set of projecting towers on each wall.
 coloured glazed
Ishtar gate
brickwork
blue glazed brick

herldic animals, lions, bulls and dragons molded in relief

 Babylonian Architecture
Ishtar Gate
All the facades of gates and adjoining streets
were faced with blue glazed bricks and
ornamented with figures of heraldic
animals, lions, bulls and dragons.
These were molded in relief and galzed in
other colors.
None of the buildings of old Babylon has
survived to the present age.
Babylonian Architecture
Architecture in the city of
Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar’s palace covered a land
area of 900feet by 600 feet.
It had administrative offices, barracks,
the king’s harem and a private apartment
all arranged around five courtyards.
It also had hanging gardens (one of the
seven wonders)
Babylonian Architecture
Architecture in the city of
Babylon
Temples and towers were also prominent
architectural elements of Babylon.
The tower of Babel was located at the
end of the procession street
 Persian Architecture
560BC
Started when Cyrus the great from the province of Fars
swept over the region with his powerful cavalry.
By the end of the century. Cyrus and his successors, Darius
1 and Xerxes had conquered the entire civilised world from
Indus to Danube river with the exception of Greece.
It was the wish of the Persians to construct great buildings
and use them to achieve greatness.
The Architectural solutions were a synthesis of ideas
gathered from almost all parts of their empire and from the
Greeks and the Egyptians.
 Persian Architecture
560BC
Their materials and construction technology
was from different regions.
Material included mud bricks from
Babylon, wooden roof beams from
Lebanon, precious material from India and
Egypt, stone columns quarried and carved
by Ionic Greeks.
Despite this sourcing, their Architecture was
original and distinct.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
This was the new capital for the Persian
Empire.
The city was started in 510BC and finished
in 460BC
It is set along the face of a mountain leveled
to creat e a large platform 1800feet by
900feet
It was surrounded by a fortification wall.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
This was the new capital for the Persian
Empire.
The city was started in 510BC and finished
in 460BC
It is set along the face of a mountain leveled
to creat e a large platform 1800feet by
900feet
It was surrounded by a fortification wall.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
The palace consisted of three parts:
An approach of monumental staircases, gate
ways and avenues,
Two great state halls towards the centre of
the platform
The palace of Xerxes, the harem and other
living quarters at the south end of the site.
 approach of
monumental
palace of Xerxes staircases

gateway
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
Structurally the buildings relied on a hypostyle
scheme throughout
The used it to achieve spaces of varying scale.
Some of the spaces were very big and generally
square in plan
The spaces were enclosed by mud brick walls
The most impressive aspect of the palace was the
royal audience hall.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
The royal audience hall was a square 250feet length
It contained 36 slender columns widely spaced and 67ft high
The columns had a diameter of 5 feet.
The centres of the columns were spaced 20 feet or 4 diameters
apart.
The column was the greatest invention of the Persians. Built from
stone
The column was fluted and stood on inverted bell shaped bases.
The capital combined greek motifs with Egyptian palm leaf topped
by an impost of paired beast.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
Another famous aspect of the palace was the
throne room/hall of 100 columns
The columns were 37ft high with a diameter
of 3 feet.
They were spaced 20 feet apart or 7
diameters from axis to axis.
The slim nature of the column created a
spacious feeling in the room.
 Persian Architecture
Palace at Parsepolis
The monumental entrance was dramatic
and was heavily ornamented with relief
sculpture. Built from stone
Architectural Characteristics
Buildings and other Architectural
elements
Building materials, construction and
technologies
Architectural organising principles
 Architectural organising
principles
Courtyard organisation
Lifting of buildings on platforms
Organic organisation
Forces shaping Architectural
organisation
Geography
Symbolism and meaning
Social factors
 Geography
Limited availability of varied
construction materials
Harsh desert climate led to the evolution
of the courtyard house
Mud was used for building as it was
readily available.
 Symbolism and meaning
The Ziggurat was a ladder to the sky and
to god.
The experience of climbing the Ziggurat
Palaces symbolise power and authority
 Social concerns
Need for defense during warfare led to
fortifications
Privacy
THANK YOU