Mesopotamian Architecture: Origins and Influences

Mesopotamian Architecture Origins

• Flourished in the fertile region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (present-day Iraq and Iran) from 4000-2100 BC.
• The harnessing of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers facilitated fertile landscapes, ample crops, food surpluses, urban growth, and specialized labor.

Key Elements Influencing Architecture

Geographical Factors

• Ancient cities were located in the fertile valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers of Mesopotamia.
• Mesopotamia was a highly cultivated and densely populated region.
• Early buildings were constructed at the mouths of rivers similar to those in Egypt.
• Civilization spread north from Babylon to Nineveh in Western Asia and south from Memphis to Phile in Egypt.

Geological Factors

• Chaldea (lower Mesopotamia) is an alluvial region formed by deposits from the Tigris and Euphrates.
• Lack of stone and trees led to the widespread use of sun-dried bricks as the primary building material.
• In Assyria stones were available and walls were often faced with limestone or alabaster slabs and bass reliefs.
• Bitumen or pitch was used as a cementing material in some cases.

Climatic Factors

• Swamps and insects in Chaldea necessitated elevated platforms for towns and palaces.
• The rainy season caused floods, reinforcing the need for elevated structures.
• Persia is a high table land with varying climates including extremes of heat and cold.

Religious Factors

• The people worshipped celestial bodies (sun, moon) and natural powers (wind, thunder).
• The presence of numerous Omen tablets shows they very superstitious.
• Ahura Mazda (God of light) was worshipped with fire as His symbol, while Ahriman represented darkness and evil.
• Worship seemed to have taken place in the open air with no specific need for temples or images.
• Man-headed bulls at Temple and Palace entrances were likely symbols related to benevolent genii or major deities in the Chaldean Pantheon.

Social and Political Factors

• Assyrians were a sturdy and warlike people which were known for their cruelty during battles and conquests
• Prisoners captured in battles were employed to build enormous mounds and platforms, as seen in Nineveh.
• Assyrian sculptures depict social conditions, costumes, and Military character of the time providing an illustrated history of battles and political events.
• Cuneiform characters on clay tablets or cylinders were used for inscriptions and formed libraries.
• Omar Khayyam indicates the influence of environment and climate.

Historical Factors

• Early Babylonian Empire, founded by Ianadu (4500 BC), extended north along the Tigris River.
• Assyria asserted Independence in 1700 BC and became a dominant regional power.
• Sargon, an Assyrian King, defeated the Egyptian Army which allied with the Philistines.
• Assyrians conquered Egypt in 672 BC but were eventually driven out.
• Nineveh was destroyed in 609 BC, and Assyria was divided among conquerors.
• Babylon rose to prominence until conquered by the Persians in 539 BC.
• Under Darius and Xerxes, palaces were built at Susa and Persepolis.
• Persia ruled until 333 BC when Alexander the Great conquered the region.
• In the 7th century AD, the Arabs settled in the region, followed by the Turks.

Architectural Characteristics

• Architecture in the Tigris and Euphrates region was influenced by the abundance of clay and scarcity of suitable Wood.
• Huge platforms for temples and palaces were made from compressed clay and sun-dried bricks which were later faced with Kiln burnt bricks or stone slabs.
• The use of brick limited shapes and allowed only attached ornamentation.
• Arches were employed for important openings and vaults, with true arches possibly discovered accidentally.
• Arches were crucial for supporting walls in the absence of peers.
• Architecture in Chaldea and Assyria lacked isolated supports because of the scarcity of suitable Stone.
• Persia, with abundant Stone, utilized it for walls and columns.
• Persian architecture was influenced by Assyria and later borrowed from Asiatic Greece and Egypt.
• Scroll capitals of Persepolis and Souza retained the form of wooden prototypes.
• Palaces were adorned with enameled bricks and glazed brickwork.
• Buildings in Asia Minor displayed Stone forms derived from Timber structures, as seen in Lycian tombs and Greek architecture.

West Asiatic Architecture Examples

The First or Babylonian Period

• The first or Babylonian period was marked by temple building.
• Main remains are the Temple of Birs Nimrod near Babylon and the temple at corsobot.
• The Temple of Birs Nimrod was dedicated to the seven Heavenly spheres in Chaldea.
• Each City had its ziggurat, serving as a holy mountain with a decorated Temple chamber.
• These temples were multi-storied, constructed with receding Terraces, and made of different colored glazed bricks.
• Temples were enclosed by walls with angles facing the cardinal points.
• Babylonians attempted to build a tower reaching to Heaven, as mentioned in Genesis 11 4.

The Second or Assyrian Period

• The second or a Syrian. Period was a palace building epic which ended with the destruction of Babylon by Cyrus in 539 BC.
• Main remains include the Palaces at Nineveh, koyunjik, nimroud, and corsobod.
• The Palace of Sargon corsobod (722-705 BC) covered an area of 25 acres and was raised on a Terrace 46 feet above the plain.
• The palace had three main groups of Apartments seraglio, Harem, and Khan service Chambers.
• Great entrance portals on the Southeast facade were adorned with 10 human-headed winged Bulls which were 19 feet in height.
• The Palaces of Seneca rib, Nineveh, and Asher Nasir pal, Nimrod provided valuable information on Assyrian palaces.
• The method of roofing is still debated; beams may have rested on walls, or arches and domes were used.

The Third or Persian Period

• The third or Persian period from Cyrus to Alexander the Great included significant remains at Souza, Persepolis, and pasigard.
• Persians adopted a Syrian architecture stemming from the lack of their own style.
• Persepolis, an important Persian Capital, had eight buildings on a large platform 1500 by 1000 ft with different levels.
• Notable examples at Persepolis include Darius's Palace Hall of the hundred columns and Xerxes buildings.
• Hall of the hundred columns was 225 feet square, with impressive base reliefs and unique column capitals.
• Seuss's palaces of Xerxes and artec Xerxes featured excellent colored and glazed brickwork.
• The tomb of Darius, naksh I roostum, near Persepolis, has a rock cut facade with double bull columns.

Hebrew Architecture

• Hebrew Jewish architecture borrowed from Egyptian, Assyrian, Greek, and Roman sources
• The temple at Jerusalem was the most significant structure, commenced by Solomon and added to by Herod.

Comparative Study of Architectural Elements

• Special character was given by raising temples on Terraces or platforms and grouping buildings around quadrangles.
• Unlike Egyptian Pyramids, Assyrian ziggurats had angles facing the cardinal points.
• Assyrian palaces, raised on platforms, were designed for both internal and external effect.

Walls

• Early Assyrians used Stone as a facing for brick walls, contrasting with Greek and Egyptian solid constructions out of marble and granite.
• Assyrian walls mainly consisted of cased brickwork, while Persia has survived Stone and Marble blocks.
• Alabaster slabs on Palace walls reveal social history and are now displayed in the British museum.

Openings

• Lighting in Assyrian temples was achieved through a clearer story, similar to Egyptian temples.
• Large doorways were relied upon for light and air, possibly with additional openings in Upper walls.
• Assyrians used both circular and pointed arches which is evident from discoveries at Nimrod and corsobod.

Roofs

• Roofs in Assyrian buildings were likely supported by Timber beams resting on double bull capitals.
• Some Halls may have had brick tunnel vaults, but many had flat roofs made of tough clay and sea Iris.
• Evidence suggests the use of domes in a Syrian architecture, as shown in base reliefs at koyunjik and historical accounts mentioned vaulted houses in Babylon.

Columns

• Initially, Assyrian columns were made of wood but later, at Persepolis, they were built of Natural Stone.
• Capitals of Assyrian columns included various designs: double bull, Double Griffin, double unicorn, double unicorn Double Horse, and some with the ionic scroll.
• Assyrian columns were less massive than those in Egypt.

Moldings

• Moldings were not extensively used in Western Asia, similar to Egypt.
• Sculpted slabs and colored surfaces replaced moldings in Assyrian palaces.
• Some moldings like bead Hollow and ogi were used in the bases at Persepolis.

Ornaments

• Assyrian sculptures show technical skill and refinement.
• Bronze bowls, Shields, and gate fittings display intricate repos pattern work.
• Decorative treatment of a Syrian architecture influenced details later used by the Greeks.
• Sculpted slabs show buildings with columns and capitals of Ionic and Corinthian form in their early stages.
• Greece adopted ideas of sculptures, freezes, colored decorations, and ornaments like the Honeysuckle and gyochi from Assyria.