Fortresses in the Light of Cuneiform Texts

Abstract

The kings of the inhabitants of Mesopotamia have been constructing different buildings with various purposes, as required by the religious, political, defense, economic and social needs of those buildings. These buildings were distinguished by their different planning according to the purpose of their construction, but they shared many components, the most important of which are building materials and the main purpose of them is to serve the king or ruler and society. The fortresses are among the architectural manifestations in the civilization of Mesopotamia, and they reflect in their planning and construction an important architectural thought that indicates important political, fortification and economic dimensions, as its planning was linked to these civilizational topics. Through the various cuneiform texts with various purposes, we find that they have highlighted important and valuable information about those fortresses, their beginning, their purpose, and when they are urgently needed, and whether they are necessary to build or can they be dispensed with. Through preliminary induction of cuneiform texts, we find that the ancient kings and rulers built these fortresses for a necessary purpose that was directly related to the defensive aspect of the city and its residents, and they differ in their sizes depending on the location of the city, its large size, the population census and its political status. Through our research, we shed light on the most important cultural data related to the fortresses, what they are, the most important names, the places in which they are located, the building materials constructed from them, as well as highlighting the cuneiform texts related to each of these cultural colors associated with the forts.