Temples

Every ancient Mesopotamian city had at least one temple, and it was common for a city to have several. Each was dedicated to a specific god, but the largest and most splendid temple in a given city was usually that of its patron, the divinity thought to watch over the town and give it special protection. Thus, the main temple in the Sumerian city of Ur was dedicated to the local patron, the moon god, Nanna; and the largest temple in Babylon was that of Babylonia’s chief god, Marduk. Marduk’s temple complex in Babylon covered some 60 acres (24ha), nearly.10 square miles (.26 sq. km).

Unlike modern churches, ancient Mesopotamian temples were not intended as meeting places for worshippers. Instead, a temple was the dwelling place of the god’s sacred image, or cult statue; the residence of his or her priests and attendants; and the storehouse of the valuables given to the god by worshippers. Ordinary worshippers congregated outside the temple primarily on holy days, although sometimes they were allowed to stand in the first inner courtyard of the temple complex. Never, however, was the public allowed to enter the inner enclosures of the temple, where the cult statue and treasures were located. Only the king and priests or priestesses could enter these inner sanctums.

The evolution of the structural design of Mesopotamian temples can be seen at the site of the ancient Sumerian ceremonial city of Eridu. There, archaeologists found the oldest-known temple of the region, dating to the 4000s b. c., the so-called Ubaidian period. This temple consisted of a single room measuring roughly 12 by 15 feet (3.6 by 4.5m) and featured a table in the center for offerings given by worshippers. A niche in one wall held an altar and the cult statue. Because that statue is missing, experts remain unsure of the identity of the god to which the structure was dedicated. Another temple at Eridu, which dates from the fourth millennium b. c., is much larger. It featured a spacious central hall with rooms running off of each side, somewhat like the nave and anterooms in a modern christian church. The hall and side room of the Eridu temple sat on a raised terrace that one approached by a staircase, and the corners of the main building pointed to the four cardinal directions (north, south, east, and west). In general, with occasional small differences and modifications, this was the standard design of Sumerian and other Mesopotamian temples thereafter. Some of the platforms supporting these structures reached heights of 40 feet (12m) or more, making them landmarks that could be seen for long distances above stretches of ordinary houses and shops. Some temples in the larger cities were adjoined by a zig-gurat, a pyramid-like structure with a small chapel built on top.

The temples and their sanctuaries (sacred grounds) were deemed so important and played such a major role in society that they often made up as much as a fourth or even a third of the space inside the defensive walls of a Mesopotamian urban center. Also, a number of towns and cities had an extra temple located outside the city walls. They were called bit akitu in Akkadian (Babylonian and Assyrian). Typically priests and worshippers marched in a sacred procession from the urban center to the outer temple to celebrate the New Year’s festival, the biggest annual religious observance. In addition, many temples owned extensive tracts of farmland—the temple estates. Temple personnel ran these estates, planting and harvesting crops and raising livestock, as well as workshops that produced textiles, pottery, and other products. This made a temple a thriving economic enterprise as well as a religious institution. Another economic function of many temples was, like a bank, to lend money to people in need, possibly at lower interest rates than those charged by bankers. Temples could do this because they were usually very rich from their vast accumulation of offerings and government support.

Regarding that support, a special relationship developed between kings and local temples in Mesopotamian cities. First, it was seen as a sacred duty of the king to support, maintain, and, when necessary, help rebuild the temples. The king also often appointed the temple’s leading priests and derived large measures of prestige by fighting wars and erecting new buildings in the god’s name. In return, the government was allowed to tax the temples, money that helped maintain the palace and government. The Assyrians and the Babylonians exploited this special relationship between church and state by building temples alongside and even connected to royal palaces. This emphasized in the eyes of the people the king’s role as the earthly representative of the god.

Finally, Mesopotamian temples were, like medieval European monasteries, centers of learning. Scribes, both priests and laypersons, worked on the temple staffs. And at least one building in a temple complex was devoted to teaching scribes to read and write and keeping temple records on cuneiform tablets.

See Also: money and banking; priests and priestesses; religion; sacred prostitution