Transcript Ziggurat - Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools

Religion of
Mesopotamia
Mrs. DelGrosso
Social Studies
Aim:
What was the religion of
Mesopotamia?
Why was the ziggurat such an
important building?
Ziggurat – A temple in
Mesopotamia with stairs and
a shrine at the top.
Polytheism – The belief in
more than one God.
First, we will be exploring
an interactive model
of a ziggurat in partners.
http://eduplace.com/kids/socsci/ca/books/bkf3/igraphics/
AC_03_093_ziggurat/AC_03_093_ziggurat.html
The largest and most important building was
the
Why were ziggurats built to look like a
mountain?
The ziggurats were considered to be
Were ziggurats a place of public worship?
Who were the only people allowed to enter
the ziggurat?
The largest and most important
building was the
ziggurat (temple tower).
Why were ziggurats built to look like
a mountain?
They were built like a mountain to
be closer to the gods.
The ziggurats were considered to be
the home of the gods.
Were ziggurats a place of public
worship?
Ziggurats were not a place of
public worship.
Who were the only people allowed
to enter the ziggurat?
The priests were the only people
permitted in the ziggurat.
Next, read the short article on the Sumerian
ziggurat and answer the questions with a
partner.
The Sumerian Ziggurat
Sumerians lived in city-states around 3000 B.C.E. Each city-state had its own
god to honor. Since religion was the center of Sumerian life, it was appropriate
that the center of each Sumerian city-state contained a temple which was
located in the center of the city. This temple, called a ziggurat, was shaped like
a pyramid with a large number of steps. It was made of white washed mud
bricks. At the very top of the ziggurat was a shrine to the main god of the citystate. The shrine contained a statue of the god. The only people allowed to
enter the shrine were priests and priestesses. Ziggurats were often used as
storage and distribution centers for surplus crops. This was convenient for
religious leaders, who often controlled the crops of the city-state. These
storehouses allowed the religious leaders the opportunity to feed poor people
as well as the many people who specialized in areas other than farming, such as
craft workers.
Each city in Mesopotamia had a primary god. For example, Murdock, Enlil,
and Shamash were gods of various cities within Mesopotamia. People believed
that they had control over parts of life, such as the sun and water. The ziggurat
in each city-state was usually dedicated to a god to show their appreciation for
all that they did for their civilization.
Describe the architecture of the ziggurat.
What activities took place at the ziggurat?
Why do you think the ziggurat was typically built at
the center of the city? (Think! Where was the Code
of Hammurabi located/why?)
Was Mesopotamian society polytheistic? How do
you know?
How is a ziggurat and Mesopotamian religion
similar to and different from temples, churches,
and other places of worship with which you are
familiar?
Describe the architecture of the
ziggurat.
It had a large number of steps made of
white washed mud bricks. It also has a
shrine(holy place) on top to honor
gods.
What activities took place at the
ziggurat?
Ziggurats were often used as storage
and distribution centers for surplus
crops.
Why do you think the ziggurat was
typically built at the center of the city?
(Think! Where was the Code of
Hammurabi located/why?)
It was built in the center of the city so
that everyone had fair access to it.
Religion is at the center of people’s lives,
so they thought it would be important for
the ziggurat to be in the center of the
city.
Was Mesopotamian society
polytheistic? How do you know?
It was polytheistic because they
believed in many gods. Each
ziggurat dedicated their temple to a
specific, special god. However, they
believed in multiple gods.
How is a ziggurat and Mesopotamian
religion similar to and different from
temples, churches, and other places of
worship with which you are familiar?
Ziggurats are different because they are
only open to priests, however today places
of worship are public.
Door Slap!
On your post-it, answer today’s aim
• What was the religion of
Mesopotamia?
• Why were ziggurats such important
buildings in Mesopotamia?
If you have time, click on
this link to the British
Museum website.
http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/ziggurats/h
ome_set.html