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Sacred geography - guardians

Dr Joan Oates - Babylon

The shedu and lamassu represented in the form of huge human headed winged lions and bulls stood as guardian figures at the gates of Assyrian palaces.  Private homes were protected by figures made and consecrated with elaborate ritual and buried beneath the threshold.

Sacred geography - The Egg

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The site of Tell al Rimah, ancient Karana is in northern Iraq.  It has provided rare evidence for the building techniques of the Ur III period.  At Rimah a monumental temple and ziggurat, occupying the whole of the central mound of thre ancient city was built.  It has elaborate spiral columns and palm trunks in mud brick – we have not repeated the symbolism below, but a palm tree is the tree of life – which ornament the façade of both temple and ziggurat. There are two types of palm tree and the other may be the tree of knowledge.  It shows an engineering expertise far in advance of later periods. 

Dr Jean Oates – Babylon
This elaborate complex, with its ornamentation, was built entirely in mud-brick; the rooms, including the stairs, were constructed using radial vaulting with impressive expertise. Even the monumental staircase leading up from the town below was carried on a series of three vaults of increasing height. The whole structure was meticulously designed with a careful eye to the impact of its exterior elevations. The building owes its remarkable state of preservation to Karana's lack of resources after the death of its wealthy patron and protector. Not only was the original temple never completed, but thereafter this small kingdom could never afford to rebuild its main shrine in the manner of wealthier dynasties. The original sanctuary remained in use, though in a state of increasing neglect and dilapidation, for over 6oo years, the extraordinary ornament preserved through the centuries by the continuous build-up of debris within the temple.

Sacred geography - beacons

Dr Joan Oates - Babylon

Fire beacons were used, these consisted of a series of signal fires by which a message could rapidly be transmitted over the entire country.  Occasionally this system led to confusion, as it was of course necessary to establish in advance what the signal was to mean.  In one instance, the incompetent Yasmah-Adad was severely reprimanded by his elder brother [although this may be a term of address not familiarily] for setting off the whole system

Say to Yasmah-Adad,thus says Ishme Dagan, your brother
Because you lit two fires during the night, it is possible that the whole land will be coming to your assistance.  Have letters written to the whole land…. And send your fastest messengers to deliver them.