Temenos Wall | TW

Context Title: Temenos Wall | TW     
Context Name (Excavation): TW     
Context Name (Publication): Temenos Wall     
Context Description: The excavation area abbreviation TW stands for Temenos Wall, a wall that surrounded the ziggurat terrace and its extended sacred space in the northern central portion of the city of Ur through much of its history. The wall may have begun in the Early Dynastic period, as Woolley found some indication of what he believed to be its earliest foundation. There was clearly an Ur III period version that ran south of the giparu and then further southeast to encompass the ehursag. This was the general line of the wall through the Isin-Larsa/Old Babylonian and into the Kassite period, though the Kassites made some changes in the northern portion. Finally, the Neo-Babylonians changed the wall greatly, expanding the area encompassed to the north and south and adding several gateways. The foundations of this later, quite massive, wall often destroyed earlier remains. Woolley explored parts of the temenos wall in many seasons and frequently used the TW abbreviation for the wall in any of its building periods. Other excavation area abbreviations include parts of the temenos, particularly NCF, PDW and BC. The temenos wall built by Urnamma was 6 meters thick and built of mud brick with a baked brick facing. Most of the baked brick had been removed, probably for later building. The Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus temenos wall had chambers within it and sported six gates into the temenos area. This area was known as e-gish-nu-gal (Woolley read this e-gish-shir-gal). At least one later interpretation conflates TW with the phrase Town Wall, but the wall surrounding Ur was always referred to as the city wall, (CLW).     
Season Number: 01: 1922-1923      
Season Number: 03: 1924-1925      
Season Number: 05: 1926-1927      
Season Number: 11: 1932-1933      
Season Number: 12: 1933-1934      

Objects: Temenos Wall | TW Export: JSON - XML - CSV

Object U Number Museum Number (UPM Date Reg Number) Museum Number (BM Registration Number) Museum Number (UPM B-number) Description (Catalog Card)
13030 (none) (none) (none) Gold earring. 1 solid lunate end. Suspended in on very fine wire.
13029 (none) (none) (none) Clay saucer. Glazed ware. Bluish. New type P.44.
13028 (none) (none) (none) Necklace. Carnelian beads. Rings and 1 lentoid.
13027 (none) (none) (none) Clay bottle. Glzed ware. Bluish. Type. New type P.184.
13026 (none) (none) (none) Clay bowl. Baked. Fine egg shell ware. Hamispherical. =P.4
13025 (none) (none) (none) Clay. Greenish drab. Rim broken but complete. Type P.134.
12800 (none) (none) (none) Clay vase. With 2 long handles. Glazed ware. Blue. Type. See field note. New type P.226.
12799B (none) (none) (none) [A-B] 2 copper bangles. With double hammer headed ends.
12799 30-12-277 (none) (none) [A-B] 2 copper bangles. With double hammer headed ends.
12798 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Glazed frit. 3 balls. 1 fluted double conoid with rings ends; 1 ball with ringed ends thus [reference to drawing]; 1 flat seal - oval shaped with markings.
12797 (none) (none) (none) Bes amulet. Glazed frit.
12796 (none) (none) (none) Flat seal. Carnelian. Crescent moon and great bead (?). Persian period. [drawing 1:1]
12349 (none) (none) (none) Arrowhead. Flint. [drawing]
12348 (none) (none) (none) Whetstone. [drawing]
12347 (none) (none) (none) Copper Razor. T shaped. Wooden handle containing three copper rivets.
12339 (none) (none) (none) Wooden Comb. [drawing]
12338 (none) (none) (none) Copper Bracelet. Circular. Ends loose.
12337 (none) (none) (none) Copper Bowl. Plain circular type with low side. [Type] III. =RC.4.
12336B (none) (none) (none) [A-B] 2 Copper rings.
12336 (none) (none) (none) [A-B] 2 Copper rings.
11959 (none) (none) (none) Cylinder Seal. hematite (broken)
11954 (none) (none) (none) Mace head. Pinkish marble. [drawing 1:1]
1002C (none) (none) (none) [A-C] Fragments of clay bowls. With rounded panels stamped with palm decorations. Greenish-drab clay, wheelmade.
1002B (none) (none) (none) [A-C] Fragments of clay bowls. With rounded panels stamped with palm decorations. Greenish-drab clay, wheelmade. [drawing]
1002A (none) (none) (none) [A-C] Fragments of clay bowls. With rounded panels stamped with palm decorations. Greenish-drab clay, wheelmade.

Media: Temenos Wall | TW Export: JSON - XML - CSV

Media Media Title Title Label Author Omeka Label
Ur Excavations V: The Ziggurat and its Surroundings Ur Excavations V: The Ziggurat and its Surroundings 1939 Woolley Leonard (none)
Ur Excavations VIII; The Kassite Period and the period of the Assyrian Kings Ur Excavations VIII; The Kassite Period and the period of the Assyrian Kings 1965 Woolley, Leonard (none)
Ur Excavations IX; The Neo-Babylonian and Persian Periods Ur Excavations IX; The Neo-Babylonian and Persian Periods 1962 Woolley, L. and Mallowan, Max (none)
  • 3 Media

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Ur > Temenos Wall | TW

References

Woolley, L. and Mallowan, Max. (1962) Ur Excavations IX; The Neo-Babylonian and Persian Periods, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Woolley Leonard. (1939) Ur Excavations V: The Ziggurat and its Surroundings, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Woolley, Leonard. (1965 ) Ur Excavations VIII; The Kassite Period and the period of the Assyrian Kings, Oxford: Oxford University Press.