The stone walls of Uruk mark a bustling hub in ancient Mesopotamia, in the area of modern day Iraq. Uruk is the first definitive urban center. At its apex of activity around 2900 BCE, Uruk has more than 50,000 residents of the city and up 90,000 more in the surrounding area.
By the end of the 3rd millennium BCE it's the largest city in the known world. The Uruk period predates the Bronze Age.
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About 50 mi (80 k) south of ancient Ur, the town is created of large mud brick buildings, decorated with relief carvings, painted works and mosaics. Uruk is the capital city of Gilgamesh, princely hero of the Epic of Gilgamesh, which holds the distinction of being the oldest written story in history.
Versions of the poem date to c. 2000 BCE. They're inscribed in Sumerian cuneiform, the first written language, which itself dates back to about 3400 BCE, as Mesopotamia and other regions hover at the edge of the Bronze Age.
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Excavated by archaeologists, a large ziggurat stands at the entrance to Uruk. At one time a White Temple of Anu, with smooth gypsum walls, stood upon the ziggurat. Uruk temple architecture is consistent with that of previous people. Buildings followed tripartite plans with central hall and anterooms.
About 400 Proto-cuneiform clay tablets have been found, dating to c. 3300 BCE, which many historians give as the beginning of the Bronze Age. The Bronze is the second of the three metal ages, the earlier being Copper, and later, Iron.
A city wall is built c. 3000 BC The buildings of Uruk include temples, houses, barracks, artisan quarters and palaces. The palace is equated with a gathering place, not necessarily the home of a monarch, though it could be either. Buildings are made of bricks. The main city covers an area of 5.5 sq km (2.1 sq mi).
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In pottery, the beveled rim bowl is the most common type of container, used as vessels for food or drink rations to dependent laborers. Pottery increased and quality and quantity with the throwing wheel, which came into Uruk culture in the 3rd millenium. The pottery wheel made mass production of pottery easier and more consistent.
The patron goddess of Uruk is Inanna, also known as Ishtar. The people believe she came to them because they built her a house with priests and servants in attendance. Inanna is one of the central figures of Mesopotamian mythology. She is a goddess of beauty, sex, divine law, political power, love, war and fertility. Her symbols are the lion and the eight-pointed star.
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She is worshipped at the temple as a three-aspect goddess or triad. The triple goddess is a familiar form in mythology and belief. Her official title is Queen of Heaven. Her husband is the agriculture god Dumuzid. The goddess Ninshubur acts as her sukkal (representative or attendant).
As in many other cultures, the ancient Mesopotamians make sacrifice to the gods. This could be on a special occasion, or on a regular schedule. As civilization and mythology grows in complexity, the gods have specific feeding times and rituals. Sacrificial animals include the rooster and goat, but greater honor is accorded bull sacrifice.
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Other gods are associated with Uruk in particular and greater Mesopotamia in general. Her father An or Anu also has devotees. Shamush the Sun God sees all with his eye as he travels across the sky. He has the role of judging humankind, and is responsible for justice, and the safety of travelers. He can be associated with Underworld in his aspect of divine judge.
The Mesopotamians believe in demons, elemental spirits, house entities and nature spirits. There are creatures of the hearth and home, wild ones in the mountains and hills or dashing through the crops, many possessing the trait of duality in a being with both creative and destructive powers.
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Uruk exists under a number of rulers as time goes by, including Gilgamesh early in history. Scientists are still piecing together an accurate chronology. In the early 20th century, workers unearth the Temple of Ishtar (Inanna). At one time Inanna and Ishtar are separate deities; over the years they become the same Goddess.
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