Tukulti Ninurta I built Kar Tukulti Ninurta just across the river and 3km upstream from Assur. A canal bisected Kar Tukulti Ninurta along the north-south axis, piercing even through the core walled royal-administrative quarter. At the southern end of the canal was a monumental gate; the north end stopped short of the opposite end of Kar Tukulti Ninurta. To the west of the canal were monumental complexes, including two palaces at the northwest edge of the city and another right on the river. There was a ziggurat in the middle of the city’s western half, attached to which was the Assur Temple. Tukulti Ninurta I celebrated his new capital with commemorative inscriptions on alabaster tablets found at Assur and Kar Tukulti Ninurta:
Color plaster paintings decorate the palace: exteriorly, the north and south sides of the terrace; and interiorly, much of the palace walls. Dominant botanical motifs were rosettes, palmettes, lotus blossoms and the sacred tree. Color plaster was formed by mixing clay with sand and vegetable matter to form blue, red and black.
| Excavation | Overview |
|---|---|
| Royal Palace | The North Palace had an enormous terrace that has yielded fragmentary wall paintings. The terrace was 18m high, giving it the dominance of a ziggurat, and was accessed by a courtyard paved with unique rhomboid bricks and decorated with glazed green and yellow tiles. Texts found at Kar Tukulti Ninurta mention Hurrian families deported from Upper Mesopotamia to build Tukulti Ninurta I’s building projects; the unique style of the Royal Palace likely arose via their influence. |
| Asur Temple | In an innovative move, the ziggurat and temple complex were integrated. The cult room adjoins the ziggurat, and the cult nice is built into the ziggurat itself. Although the major deity was Assur, texts found at Kar Tukulti Ninurta indicate that his sanctuary was shared by many other deities of the Assyrian pantheon |
Kar Tukulti Ninurta was abandoned after the death of Tukulti Ninurta I, who was presumably assassinated by one of his sons.
References
http://proteus.brown.edu/mesopotamianarchaeology/1500
Hadatu was an Assyrian provincial city. It was founded along an important route, just 30km east of Carchemish. The 4m thick city walls follow an oval plan, and were built of mudbrick on stone foundations. There are three large gates, one each at the east, west and north.
Amorites were mobile pastoralists perhaps living in North central syria near the jumble-bishree. After entering Assur, their commercial ambitions led them to form the colony Karum Kanesh (aka Kanis or Kanes) a few hundred miles north of Assur on the Anatolian plateau. Most of our knowledge of early Assyria is from Karum Kanesh, as Assur is relatively devoid of evidence during this period.
An alliance of the Medes and Babylonias, a decision that Assyria had become too much to deal with, forced the Assyrians to fall back into Haran. Then the Babylonians took over all the southern half of old Assyria and the Medes took over all the northern half. Sacked in 763 BCE, Harran was restored under the Assyrian ruler Sargon II. It served for two years as the headquarters for the then–crumbling Assyrian Empire after the fall of its capital Nineveh in 612 BCE.
The settlement and re-settlement of the Habur region by people from Samaria, the Mediterranean shore or even way over on the border of Iran had an Aramization on Assyria. Sargon II (722-705) claims to have built a structure at Dur Sharrukin in the bit hilani style. Also, Sennacherib (704-681) claims to have done construction at Nineveh in the bit hilani style.
| Ancient | Modern | Founder | Year | Overview |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashur | The capital of the kingdom Shamshi-Adad I (1813-1781 BC). | |||
| Karum Kanesh | Kültepe | Amorite Businessmen | Though not an Assyrian capital, most of our knowledge of early Assyria is from the commercial colony Karum Kanesh founded a few hundred miles north of Assur on the Anatolian plateau. | |
| Kar Tukulti Ninurta | Tukulti-Ninurta I | ~1220 BC | ||
| Kalhu | Nimrud | Ashurnasirpal II | ||
| Dur Sharruken | Khorsabad | Sargon II | 717 BC | Temple: ideograms are expressing great king, king of the universe type of thing, are the sequence of pictures. |
| Nineveh | Mosul | Sennacherib | Citadel is mound called Kuyunjik. Main citadel itself has palace without rival of Sennacherib, likely completed by his son. There is a semi-completed zigarat. There was also a Nabu, Shin Shamash and Kidnumi temple. Excavations at the kuyunjik go back to the 6th millenium BC. There was a change in style starting in Sennacherib, with miles and miles of relifs (not just throne room like at Nimrud). These reliefs lacked extensive inscriptions and only had epigraphs. | |
| Lachish | Not a capital of Assyria itself, but the capital of Assyrian control over Judah. | |||
 Foundation inscription. Ishtar Temple built by Tukulti-Ninurta. 1243-1207 BC. Assur. Lead. Istanbul Museum of the Ancient Orient. Inv No 8856, 8857. Image my L. M. Clancy, 2009/08/28 |
Ashur (aka Assur or Asur; modern Kaleh-Shergat, aka Qala’t Shargat). When looking at artifacts, a winged sun-disk (sometimes containing a homunculus) represents Ashur. |
| Event | Overview |
|---|---|
| Early History | Nineveh (ancient Ninu(w)a; near modern Mosul on the site Kouyunjik) was located on the Tigris’ east bank (36°24′ N 43°08′ E). Nineveh was settled from the 3rd millennium onwards and a crucial node in Assyria’s heartland since the Middle Assyrian Period, Nineveh was a major riverine trade port. Nineveh began to overshadow Ashur as Assyria expanded northward and westward. Shalmaneser I restored a temple ate Nineveh, and business tablets from his reign were found 30 miles to the west at Tell el-Rimah (attesting to trade activity). Nineveh continued to grow in importance under Tiglath-Pileser I and Nineveh was regarded as Assyria’s second capital. |
| Assyrian Capital | However, it was only after Sargon II’s (721-705) death in battle that Sennacherib (704-681) declared Nineveh as Assyria’s official capital and secured its place in history. The city was bisected by Hosr, a minor tributary of the Tigris. The western part of Nineveh has the principal mound, Kuyunjik (alt Kouyunjik), a steep-sided mound with a ~45 ha flat top ~25-30 m above the ground. Within the mound are notable prehistoric finds and the Neo-Assyrian South-West and North Palaces. |
| Without Rival | After diverting the river Tebiltu (modern Khosr) around the city, Sennacherib hydrated Nineveh with the Jerwan Aqueduct. He also installed a new city wall and a canal system. Also, Sennacherib had found a new source for building stone in Mt. Nipur to the north (modern Judi Mountain) — it is possible he used this stone to fashion his massive lamassu. When Sennacherib had fully developed Nineveh, it was the largest city of the era with a whopping 750 hectares of urban land (Dur Sharrukin was 320 ha). Nineveh was surrounded by a 12km long and 25m wide city wall riddled with as many as 18 gates. Sennacherib’s inscriptions describe vast open spaces within the city walls, allowing for plazas, gardens, fields, a zoo and possibly military camps. There were two residential areas: one with flimsy buildings was found to the west, near the Maski gate; and nearby were larger and better-constructed houses. |
| Excavation | Overview |
|---|---|
| Jerwan Aqueduct | Brought water for his new city building an aqueduct from a good source at Jerwan. |
| Citadel | Sennacherib’s citadel was located at the Small Sheep mound at the northwest edge of the city, between the city wall’s Quay gate and the Maski gates. |
| Istar Temple | The earliest building at Nineveh was the Istar Temple, which dated to the 3rd millenium bC. It was rebuilt multiple times during the Old, Middle and Neo-Assyrian Periods, revealing that Istar was a long lasting cult. |
| Nabu Temple | In the middle of the citadel was the Nabu Temple. It had a central courtyard encircled with very thick walls. This temple was built before Sennacherib. |
| Royal Palace | Sennacherib built his Palace Without Rival (aka Southwest Palace) on the southern edge of the citadel, at the southwest of the Kuyuncuk mound. It was completed in 694 BC. The palace had a new architectural feature: bronze lions in a striding (yet weight-bearing) pose served as column bases. The palace had: a throneroom (Court H) to the northeast; a colossal throneroom suite (Rooms I-IV); an inner court (Court VI) surrounded by additional reception suites decorated with elaborate relief orthostats; a second inner court (Court XIX) with even more grandiose thronerooms; and residential quarters behind it. Palace walls in all 38 rooms (except 3) were decorated with military reliefs. The palace was expanded piecemeal: early inscriptions give dimensions of 60×34 cubits; the last inscriptions state 914×440 cubits. The palace grew to fill the space bound by the Istar Temple and the Ziggurat. |
| Bit Nakkapti | To the northeast of the palace was Bit Nakkapti (aka Sennacherib’s Eastern Building). An inscription on its enormous lamassu indicate that it was a ~ 683 BC addition to the palace complex. Its main gateway: was paved with three large, wheel-rutted stone threshold slabs; bore apotropaic orthostats similar to the Southwest Palace. |
| North Palace | Little is known of Assurbanipal’s North Palace (aka Crown Prince Palace) at Nineveh. Assurbanipal had restored Sennacherib’s palace, and also built the North Palace on the northern part of the Small Sheep citadel, just north of the Nabu Temple. Oddly enough, the North Palace lacked lamassu in all excavated parts; the double columns marking some passageways are reminiscent of the bit hilani style. Within the North Palace were two rooms that formed a library of Assyro-Babylonian literature and official Assyrian archives (Jastrow 1915, p 21). The corpus consisted of divinations, incantations, legends and lexical lists. The divinations were copies of Babylonian priestly texts that described how to interpret phenomena of rivers and occurrences in houses, streets and cities (Jastrow 1915, p 21). Incantation texts detailed how expel demons of disease from victims and how to fight evil spells (Jastrow 1915, p 22). Legends included creation stories and the Epic of Gilgamesh. |
The reliefs at Nineveh were different from those at Dur Sharrukin and Nimrud. Palace reliefs originally in a life-like scale, with large figures taking up much space. At Nineveh, lots of figures were crowded together against very detailed backgrounds. Musculature was not as detailed, as the reliefs were just trying to communicate what happened and where. The magnificent and powerful figures found in Nimrud’s reliefs are absent from Nineveh. The reliefs at Nineveh used illustrations rather than inscriptions to detail locations and times. For example, a torture scene in a Southwest Palace reliefs clearly shows victims wearing western-style clothes. There is much more activity in the reliefs at Nineveh than the reliefs at Nimrud. Incidentally, this also makes Nineveh’s reliefs much more informative of material culture.
Relief fragment of cavalrymen along a stream in mountainous terrain. Alabaster. Palace of Sennacherib, Room XXXVIII, Nineveh. Neo-Assyrian Period, reign of Sennacherib (704-681 BC). Gift of John D Rockefeller Jr 1932. Metropolitan Museum, 32.143.16
Protective spirit (lahmu) guarding a door. Assyrian ~700-692 BC from Nineveh SW Palace WA 124792
Protective spirit (ugallu, great lion). Assyrian ~700-692 BC From Nineveh SW Palace WA 124826
Stone relief from the South-West Palace of Sennacherib (Room 32). Nineveh. Neo-Assyrian, 704-681 BC. Two guardian figures. British Museum. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/17.
Campaigning in southern Iraq. Assyrian ~640-620 BC. From Nineveh, SW Palace. Court XIX panels 10-12. British Museum.
A central band of river, the Tigris or Euphrates, separates two otherwise independent compositions. Above the Assyrians attack a town on a small island and carry booty from it. Below the Assyrian king in his chariot watches as prisoners are brought in and heads and booty are piled up in a palm grove.
http://proteus.brown.edu/mesopotamianarchaeology/1499
Dur Sharrukin (modern Khorsabad in Iraq) was established by Assyrian king Sargon II (722-705 BC) as a new capital of Assyria to replace Nimrud. Dur Sharrukin was constructed from 717-707 BC and Sargon II died in battle shortly thereafter in 705 BC. An outer wall pierced by seven fortified gates enclosed a 2.59 sq km city. Within the citadel, buildings had: walls that were thick, windowless and made of mud bricks; and gates opening onto internal courts. The State Court and Grand Entrance Court were the largest courts. The Throne Room was nestled between the State Court and a court for women and children. There was a seven-tiered ziggurat and a group of temples.
| Excavation | Overview |
|---|---|
| Royal Palace | 9 hectares. |
| Nabu Temple | There was a temple to Nabu, the God of Vegetation and a patron of writing. |
References
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/174077/Dur-Sharrukin
http://www.gardenvisit.com/garden/sargon_iis_palace_dur-sharrukin
| Next Steps | Immediately after Sargon II, Sennacherib replaced Dur Sharrukin with Nineveh as capital of Assyria. |
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Symbolic and religious imagery included the Tree of Life, signs of the gods and signs of the genii (good spirits). The king was often shown performing rituals. Reliefs depicting piety were situated in spots of great importance, such as behind the king’s throne, as they reassured that the king was directly connected to the divinities.
Booty scenes showed ambassadors of different lands bringing tribute to the Assyrian capital. Booty scenes dominated the outer courtyard. Tribute scenes were found in the outer courtyard, where tributaries may have actually been presented.
Narrative scenes consisted of reliefs depicting the king’s hunts military campaigns. The top and bottom portions had a continuous visual narrative, while through the middle was a standard inscription describing the events shown. Narrative scenes dominated the throne room, making it a place where both the king and his achievements were visible. Narrative reliefs were remarkably accurate in depicting a territory’s landscape, inhabitants and material culture.
Symbolic Scene. Assyrian, ~865-860 BC. From Nimrud, NW Palace. Room B panel 23. British Museum. WA 124531. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/19.
British Museum, WA 124567. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/20.
British Museum, WA 124568. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/20.
British Museum, WA 124569. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/20.
Court scene. Assyrian ~865-860 BC. From Nimrud NW Palace. Room G panels 2-4. British Museum, WA 124564-6. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/20.
Closeup of British Museum, WA 124564-6. Image by L M Clancy 2009/08/21.
Tribute-bearers. Assyria ~865-860 BC. From Nimrud NW Palace. Court D Panel 7. British Museum, ME 124562. Image by L M Clancy, 2009/08/21.Two of a group of tribute-bearers who were shown on the facade of the throne room. The first one has a turban of a kind worn in NW Syria raiss clenched hands in token of submission. The second may be Phoenician, is bringing a pair of monkeys. The Assyrian kings enjoyed collecting exotic fauna.
Within the Northwest Palace was the Banquet Stele, a large sandstone slab near the entrance to a throne-room. It described in extensive detail the opulent 10-day inauguration of the Northwest Palace in ~879 BC, attended by workmen, officials, inhabitants and notable guests. In the center of the stele was a relief of Ashurnasirpal II standing in front of the deities Sin, Assur, Enlil, Adad and Sibitti. The text tells of 69,574 guests enjoying a dizzying array of luxurious foods amidst gardens whose every plant is listed. Also, the Banquet Stele lists all the woods used to build a terrace supporting Ashurnasirpal II‘s palace: boxwood, mulberry, cedar, cypress, pistachio, tamarisk and poplar. There are also descriptions of the royal orchards, its 42 varieties of fruit and its canal irrigation. Boastful depictions of royal lion and bull hunts are also present. Incidentally, this is one of the most extensive accounts of botany and diet in Assyria.
Assyrian reliefs often recount the majestic gardens of Assyrian gardens, packed with exotic flora and fauna.
The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III was found in a central palace erected by Shalmaneser III and Tiglath-Pileser IV (Jastrow 1915, p 19).
| Bibliography | http://proteus.brown.edu/mesopotamianarchaeology/1500 |
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| Next Steps | Sargon II established Dur Sharrukin to replace Nimrud as capital of Assyria. |
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