City of Ur: Urban Life in Ancient Mesopotamia
- Sylvia Rose
- Apr 2
- 5 min read
Ur is a prominent city-state in ancient Mesopotamia. Founded c. 3800 BCE, Ur is a coastal city on the Persian Gulf. It slowly moves inland due to silting. It's known for trade, bureaucracy and architecture.
The location of Ur at the mouth of Euphrates in the Fertile Crescent promotes rapid urban growth and development. It's the start of a civilization focused on vital areas like trade, religion, and governance.
The climate in Ur is hot and dry, with temperatures reaching up to 49°C (120°F) in summer months. The Euphrates river provides fresh water for irrigation and fertile land.
Seasonal floods enhance soil fertility. Crops such as barley and wheat sustain the city’s population. Archaeologists discover grain storage facilities beneath the Great Ziggurat of Ur
The early people of Ur are Sumerians. A highly advanced civilization they're for their writing system, mathematics and architecture. The Sumerians are also skilled farmers, who develop irrigation systems to water their crops.
Ur begins as a small village and grows into an industrious coastal city. Its location on the Persian Gulf is ideal for trade and commerce. Merchants come to Ur to trade goods such as spices, textiles, and precious metals.
Society has a hierarchical structure. At the top are ruling class and priests, followed by artisans and farmers. A clear class difference exists, but skilled artisans, for example, can rise in status through their work.
At its peak, Ur has a population of 30,000 to 40,000 people. It's among the largest urban centers of the ancient world.
Ur architecture is highly advanced. Buildings are mud-brick, a durable, plentiful and affordable building material. The city's streets are paved, and buildings have with indoor plumbing.
Ancient Mesopotamians pave roads by using mud bricks bonded with bitumen, also called pitch or tar, about 6000 years ago. Bitumen is a valued trade item often used to waterproof boats.
Ur is a well-planned city, with a grid layout. The city is divided into districts such as residential, commercial and religious.
The residential district is made up of small, one-story homes, while the commercial district has markets, shops and warehouses. The religious district includes several large temples and the Great Ziggurat of Ur.
Administration offices appear in the temple complex. Priests and priestesses are often involved in this work, as spirituality and daily life are inseparable. They can also read and write.
Ur is ruled by a king advised by a council of elders. The king is responsible for governing the city, maintaining order and leading the city's army in times of war. He's known as ensi or "lord of the plowland" or lugal.
While queens also hold power as the king's consort, sole-ruling queens are rarer. If a queen rules alone she's also considered a king, like Queen Puabi of Ur (2600-2334 BCE) and given the title lugal.
The bureaucracy of Ur is highly organized, with a complex system of record-keeping and administration. Officials manage resources, legal matters and tax collection.
Trade and commerce drive the economy of Ur. The city imports spices, textiles, timber and precious metals from India, Egypt, and Arabia. Ur exports grains, dates, pottery and wool.
The people of Ur are skilled in pottery, weaving, and metalwork. The city's pottery is highly prized, both beautiful and durable. Weaving is an important industry in Ur, and trade of fine fabrics is lucrative.
Conflicts include The Sumer-Elamite wars and the wars of the Early Dynastic Period (c. 2900-2334 BCE). Sumer and Elam border each other and numerous battles arise over territory and control of trade routes.
The wars of the Early Dynastic Period involve frequent conflicts between city-states in Mesopotamia, including Ur, Kish, Lagash and others. Ur is at times aggressor and at others defender.
The Sumerians believe in a rich pantheon of gods and goddesses, each representing different aspects of life and nature. Major deities include An (Anu) god of the sky, and Enlil, wind god. With Enki, water divinity, these three often form a triad.
Inanna is the most popular goddess in Mesopotamia, and many cities including Ur have temples to her and her entourage, including her sukkal Ninshubur. The gods are worshipped in temples of the religious complex.
Priests and priestesses are intermediaries between the people and the gods, offering sacrifices and performing rituals on behalf of the people.
Priests, doctors, and scribes are important to the society of Ur.
Priests perform religious rituals and make offerings to the gods. The deities have "feeding schedules" and lists of appropriate sacrifices. Doctors are skilled in medicine, herbalism, incantations and exorcism.
Disease is considered caused by specific demons. For example, epilepsy is associated with disease demon Shulpae. In dentistry, the insidious tooth worm is a cause of oral pain, infection and cavities.
Scribes are highly educated. They're responsible for record-keeping and administration. Only about 10% of the population is literate, a figure fairly stable throughout the Mesopotamian Bronze Age and ancient history.
The Great Ziggurat of Ur dominates the temple complex, a massive stepped pyramid to honor moon god, Nanna (Sin, Suen). Coincidentally, disease demon Shulpae is believed to act on orders of Sin.
The ziggurat is built in the religious district of Ur. It's the city's most prominent landmark. Made of millions of mud bricks, it's over 30.5 m (100 ft) tall.
The average citizen of Ur lives in a small, one-story home in the residential district. People work as farmers, merchants, or artisans. Women are often weavers, potters and traders.
In ancient Mesopotamia, women can own property. They have the right to divorce their husbands, own slaves and operate their own businesses.
Weaving is a major industry, with wool the primary textile fiber. Women are primary producers. They spin and weave while men dye the fabric or yarn.
Craft knowledge is carefully protected and handed down from parents to children. Many crafters use specific techniques, formulas, or recipes to be kept secret from competitors. Sometimes, a skilled artisan gets famous.
When artistic creations attract attention of the nobility, demand for the products increases. Perfumers, musicians, jewelry-makers, scribes and poets can become particularly favored by the aristocracy.
The first written evidence of slavery in the ancient world comes from ancient Mesopotamia. Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian civilizations use slaves, and slavery is a recognized part of social and legal structures.
Slaves work in agriculture, mud brick making, domestic service (usually female), messengers or for credit purposes. Their owners sometimes use them as collateral or to settle a debt.
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