Kingdoms of the Eastern Near East - Untash-Napirisha / Dur-Untash

The city states of Sumer formed one of the first great civilisations in human history (see feature link). This Near Eastern civilisation emerged a little way ahead of that of Africa's ancient Egypt, and up to a millennium before that of the Indus Valley culture.

Southern Mesopotamia (modern Iraq and the western edge of Iran) was subjected to permanent settlement during the Pottery Neolithic and, by the late fourth millennium BC, Sumer was divided into approximately a dozen city states, by which time other regions were emerging as population centres in their own right. Elam was located to the east of Sumer, with its own selection of city states at its core (and see feature link).

This region was located on an alluvial plan below the Zagros mountains, and its remoteness meant that it took some time for it to assimilate Sumer's groundbreaking social, agricultural, and administrative inventions. Access to Sumer was in the Zagros foothills, circling the marshes, but this meant difficulties in communication, and a feeling in Sumer of there being comparative barbarians on their eastern flank.

Culturally, Elamite kingdoms achieved less than their more advanced neighbours, and imported much of what they needed, including writing from Sumer and architecture from the later city and empire of Babylon. Elamite records are also extremely sparse in recording local events, and large areas of its history are almost totally unknown except through Sumerian records.

The city of Untash-Napirisha (or Untash-Naprisha, without the extra 'i', and sometimes shown as al-Untash-Napirisha, literally 'the city of Untash-Napirisha') was located at the modern archaeological site of Chogha Zanbil near the River Dez.

This site sits about forty kilometres to the south-east of Susa, and a similar way due south of what by its time was the largely-abandoned city of Chogha Mish. The city was established around 1250 BC, during the 'Middle Elamite' period (generally agreed at about 1500-1100 BC).

This important site lay on a plateau, about thirty or forty metres above the river plain. It was first excavated by Roland de Mecquenem in 1935-1939, and later by Roman Ghirshman between 1951-1962. Behzad Mofidi-Nasrabadi (author of a chapter of The Elamite World - see sources) carried out geophysical prospecting, surveys, and excavations between 1999-2005.

The city was conceived as a sacred centre for which was planned various temples for various Elamite deities. However, socio-economic aspects which played an important role in the development of urban life were not fully taken into consideration during its building. Although the city was founded above the Dez, making use of the river water was difficult due to the city's elevated location.

Some surmising by modern scholars has suggested that a canal was built to connect the city to the River Karkeh, over a rather staggering distance of forty-five kilometres. As may be expected, the suggestion has been treated as being speculative.

Since the sacred aspects of this new foundation played a fundamental role in its implementation, its ziggurat took up a central position. Inscriptions on the bricks highlight this importance. It was dedicated to the deities Inshushinak and Napirisha, and was enclosed by a wall. On the north-western side of this wall were situated temples for Ishmeqarab, Kiririsha, and Napirisha. Other temples were built at some distance from the ziggurat, surrounded by a second thick wall which formed a holy district of its own, while the city as a whole was delimited by a four kilometre-long outer wall.

Two palaces were located about five hundred metres to the east of the ziggurrat, along with a funerary building with five subterranean tombs. The tombs were most likely planned for the members of the royal family, but they must have been used on a secondary basis by other individuals since the sparse skeletal remains and grave goods do not make it possible to identify them as royal burials.

The city was renamed Dur-Untash (the 'fort of Untash') at some point in its rather short history. Precisely when seems to be unknown but, given the city's demotion in terms of status, it probably happened in the 1100s or 1000s BC.

Many houses were located within the holy district, inside the middle wall, constructed after the city had been demoted. Archaeologically these buildings are divided into three phases: 'Building Level 3' (1200-1000 BC), 'Building Level 2' (1000-800 BC), and 'Building Level 1' (800-600 BC). The city remained in use at least until the seventh century BC.

Sometimes Elamite cities had rival kingships, mostly poorly-recorded, and sometimes they seemed to combine into one kingdom or perhaps acted as a loosely-joined coalition. Sometimes they even attacked and/or invaded one another's territories, and sometimes the lands of Elam were united under the control of a single king. Potentially also included at various times in various events were smaller cities or groups which included Aratta, Harshi, Itnigi, Sapum, Shig(i)rish, Zabshali, and Zitanu.

Following Elam's eventual and final unification as a single state, the city of Susa also largely served as the capital prior to conquest by the Persians. By the time Alexander the Great was established there, in the late fourth century BC, it was better known as Susiana.

Near East Kingdoms

Ancient Eastern Near East

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