2~ West Asia ppt.pdf in that pdf it is disscuss about west asia

in that pdf we are disscuss about west asia

1. Architecture of
Ancient West Asia Ancient West Asia
3000 B.C. –332 B.C.
Prepared by:
Sucharita Acharya
Lecturer in Architecture
North Calcutta Polytechnic

2. Geographical Feature
Ancient West Asia or Mesopotamia
A
Mesopotamia stretched from the
Persian
Gulf
to the
Caucasus Mountains
A
It is situated between the two rivers Tigris and Euphrates
.
A
It is known as
‘fertile crescent’
N
A
It is known as
‘fertile crescent’
A
To its south and west is
Arabian Desert
A
Persian Gulf
is on its east.
A
There were
frequent floods
in both the
rivers due to melting of snow in the
Caucasus Mountains in the spring.

3. Geological Feature
Ancient West Asia or Mesopotamia
r
Bricks made from alluvial soil (sun-dried & kiln-burnt)
r
Lime & bitumen used as mortar
r
Coloured glazed bricks used for decorative works
r
Alabaster used for fine ornamental work
r
Wood, silver, gold, tin, lapis lazuli are some materials were imported
Climatic Condition
r
Extreme climate
r
Rainfall is minimal except in the northern districts
r
Tigris and Euphrates produced flood hazard during spring

4. A
Bronze Age Mesopotamia included
Sumerian, Babylonian and Assyrian
empires.
A
In the Iron Age, it was ruled by the
Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian
empires.
c
The chronology of the empires is as follows:
r
Sumerian
- 3000 – 2000 B.C.
r
Old Babylonian
– 2016 -1595 B.C.
r
Assyrian
– 1859 - 626 B.C.
r
Neo- Babylonian
– 626 – 539 B.C.
r
Persian
-
750
–
332
B
.
C
.
Historical Background
r
Persian
-
750
–
332
B
.
C
.
A
It fell to
Alexander the Great
in
332 BC
and after his death it became part of
the Greek Seleucid Empire.

5. Socio-Cultural Background
r
Mesopotamia contributed immensely to the advancement of human civilization
r
It made great achievements in the fields of
astronomy, mathematics
r
The Mesopotamians created the
first lunar calendar
with 12 lunar months
r
They were expert in construction of
dams and reservoirs, irrigation canals
.
rEarliest script
was invented in Mesopotamia and it is the
birthplace of recorded history
r
They advanced greatly in
agriculture
and were first to employ
ox-driven ploughs
r
Mesopotamians were also the
first to use the wheel
r
They had a good skill in
pottery, textile weaving and metal casting
They had a good skill in
pottery, textile weaving and metal casting
r
Mesopotamian civilization
traded with ancient Egypt and Indus Valley civilisation
r
Religion dominated the social life of the Mesopotamian people
r
Mesopotamian religion was
polytheistic
, i.e. there were many gods and goddesses
rAnu
, the god of the sky was chief Sumerian god
r
Later,
Enlil,
the god of the air became the most powerful god in Mesopotamian religion.
rMarduk,
the god of justice, was the principal god of Babylon
rAshu
r was the chief god of the Assyrian empire.
Religious Background

6. Architectural Characteristics
A
Structure
:
A
Chief building materials:
r
The structures were essentially
arcuated
and columns were not used
r
Bricks
were made from alluvial soil (sun-dried & kiln-burnt)
r
Lime & bitumen
were used as mortar
r
Coloured glazed bricks
were used for decorative works
r
Alabaster
was used for fine ornamental work
r
Wood, silver, gold, tin, lapis lazuli
are some materials were imported
A
Ornamentation
:
rIn Babylonian palaces, the high alabaster plinths or dadoes had
low-relief carving
,
rThe walls above them were
painted
on thin plaster coverings.
rThe Assyrians preferred
mural decoration with polychrome
bricks instead.
r
The structures were essentially
arcuated
and columns were not used
r
The arches were formed by
corbelled horizontal courses
or with
radiating bricks
.
r
Buildings were raised on
mud-brick platforms
to protect them from heavy floods.

7. Architectural Characteristics
A
Types of buildings or structures:
c
Ziggurat:
c
Palace:
r
The palaces of the early Mesopotamian elites were
large-scale complexes
,
r
Palaces were organized around
large and small courtyards
.
r
The king's throne room
usually opened to a massive
ceremonial courtyard
r
Ziggurat was a part of Mesopotamian
temple complexes
.
r
It was an
artificial pyramidal mountain
with several tiers of rectangular stages.
c
Other structures:
r
The king's throne room
usually opened to a massive
ceremonial courtyard
r
Assyrian palaces contained
extensive pictorial and textual narrative carved on stone
r
The entrances to the cities were great
arched gateways
flanked by square towers.
r
These towers had
overhanging parapets
Ishtar
Gate,
Babylon

8. A
Ziggurat
c
It was a typical feature of Mesopotamian temple complexes.
c
It was an artificial pyramidal mountain
c
It was made up of several tiers of rectangular stages.
c
The angles of the ziggurat were oriented to the cardinal points.
c
The actual temple was situated on top of the ziggurat.
c
Massive stairways were provided to climb up to the temple.

9. The Ziggurat ofUr-Nammu, Ur (2125B.C.)
h
Commissioned by king Ur-Nammu , founder of third dynasty of Ur
h
Dedicated to the moon god, Nanna
h
Solid mass with a core of sun-dried bricks.
h
Covered with burnt bricks with a thickness 2.5m, cemented with bitumen.
h
Rectangular plan 62m X 43m and 21m high with three terraces
h
Ascent made from one of the larger sides by three steep stairways
h
Actual temple stood on top of the ziggurat
h
Large courtyard around the base of the ziggurat

10. A
The City of Babylon
c
The city was rebuilt by
Nebuchadnezzar II
in about
605 B.C.
c
The city was
heavily fortified
with huge
rampart walls
more than 86 km long
c
It was surrounded by a canal as a moat.
c
There were
eight bronze gateways
with high towers on either side.
c
One was the famous
Ishtar Gate
decorated with coloured glazed bricks.
c
The city consisted of an inner part and on outer part.
c
The
inner
town
was
square
in
plan
of
about
1300
m
sides
with
the
c
The
inner
town
was
square
in
plan
of
about
1300
m
sides
with
the
c
The western boundary was formed by
River Euphrates
c
The main streets intersected at right angles
terminating at the gateways.
c
‘Hanging Garden
’ & ‘
Tower of Babel
’ was
situated within the city

11. A
The City of Babylon

12. r
The Hanging Garden
c
It was one of the wonder of the ancient world
c
It was Annexed to the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II
c
It ccupied an area of 275m X 183m.
c
It Comprised a series of terraces supported by arcades.
c
Arcades were constructed with bricks and bitumen.
c
The arches were supported by 6m to 7m thick walls with 3m wide passages
c
There were terraces at different levels, starting from 25m to 100m in height.
c
The
terraced
gardens
were
planted
with
trees
and
flowers
and
fountains
c
The
terraced
gardens
were
planted
with
trees
and
flowers
and
fountains
c
Water was stored in a reservoir at the top and supplied to the garden.

13. r
Tower of Babel
c
It was a ziggurat with square plan of 90m sides at the base
c
It rose up to a height of more than 90m.
c
There were seven storeys crowned with a temple of god Marduk.
c
Three monumental stairways climbed to the top.
c
The lower part was decorated with blue glazed bricks.

14. Thank
You
Thank
You