Iran - Andrew Burke [172]
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THE ROMAN CONNECTION
Some of Shushtar’s then state-of-the-art irrigation systems were built using Roman technology and labour: legionnaires defeated at the AD 259 battle of Edessa (today’s Şanlıurfa in Turkey). Their leader, vanquished Valerian, became the only Roman Emperor ever to be captured alive. Sassanian king Shahpur I was so proud of his victory that he recorded the event with boastful carved reliefs at Naqsh-e Rostam and Bishapur. Stories vary as to Valerian’s fate, but Shushtaris insist that he was imprisoned in Qal’eh Salosel (opposite). In some versions he was systematically insulted then brutally killed by being forced-fed a ‘soup’ of molten gold.
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HISTORY
The ancient inhabitants of proto-Iran attached great religious importance to mountains. Where they had no mountains, they made their own. This was the origin of distinctive pyramidal, tiered temples known as ziggurats. Choqa Zanbil’s ziggurat was the raison d’être of the town of Dur Untash, founded by King Untash Gal in the mid-13th century BC. Dur Untash bloomed especially in the early 12th century BC when it had a large number of temples and priests. The town was eventually sacked by Ashurbanipal around 640 BC and, incredibly, remained ‘lost’ for more than 2500 years. It was accidentally rediscovered during a 1935 aerial survey by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, the forerunner of BP.
THE ZIGGURAT
The ziggurat was dedicated to Inshushinak, the chief god of the Elamite pantheon and patron of Shush. In those days the area was fertile and forested, and the ziggurat was built on a slightly raised base to guard against flooding. It has a square plan with sides measuring 105m. The original five storeys were erected vertically from the foundation level as a series of concentric towers, not one on top of another as was the custom in neighbouring Mesopotamia. At the summit (now lost) was a temple accessible only to the highest elite of Elamite society. Even now the taboo remains and you’re not allowed to climb the remnant stairways that rise on each of the four sides.
The structure is made of red bricks so well-preserved that an observer could believe they’re brand new. However, if you look very closely, a brick-wide strip at around eye-level is intricately inscribed in cuneiform, the world’s spiky first alphabet that looks like a spilt box of tin-tacks. The inscriptions are not easy to make out unless you cross the rope cordon. Permission to do so is the only apparent advantage of tipping the ‘guide’. He speaks not a word of English, but gesticulates with gruesome clarity as to the purpose of the sacrifice stones (halfway along the northwest side). Easy to spot is an ancient sun dial (facing the southwest central stairway) and, beside it, a strangely moving footprint of an Elamite child, accidentally preserved for three millennia.
AROUND THE ZIGGURAT
The ziggurat was surrounded by a paved courtyard protected by a wall. At the foot of the northeastern steps would once have been the Gate of Untash Gal, two rows of seven columns where supplicants would seek the pleasure of the king. Around the wall was originally a complex of tomb chambers, tunnels and qanat channels. Once the site’s climate became drier, qanats brought water an incredible 45km from ancient rivers. Vestiges are still visible. Outside were the living quarters of the town and 11 temples dedicated to various Elamite gods and goddesses. Little of this remains.
Walk a couple of minutes east of the main asphalt access road towards an isolated lamppost to find some more, excavated Elamite royal tombs. There’s little to see here, either, though steep ancient steps lead down into (unlabelled) tomb number five. Descending is unwise as the pit stinks of toiletry misdemeanours… especially bad when the temperature hits 45°C. Nonetheless, it’s still worth strolling up