Lesson plan
Borsippa
Borsippa (Sumerian: BAD.SI.(A).AB.BA KI or Birs Nimrud, having been identified with Nimrod) is an archeological site in Babylon Governorate, Iraq, built on both sides of a lake about southwest of Babylon on the east bank of the Euphrates. It lies 15 kilometers from the ancient site of Dilbat. It is today one of the most vividly identifiable surviving ziggurats, identified in the later Arabic culture with the Tower of Babel due to King Nebuchadnezzar referring to it as the "Tower of Borsippa" or "tongue tower", as stated in the stele recovered on site in the 19th century. However, modern scholarship concludes that the Babylonian builders of the ziggurat erected it as a religious edifice in honour of the local god Nabu, called the "son" of Babylon's Marduk, as would be appropriate for Babylon's lesser sister-city. The tutelary god of Borsippa in the Ur III Empire in the late 3rd millennium BC was Tutu, who was syncretised with the god Marduk after the Old Babylonian period. Tutu was mentioned in the prologue of the Code of Hammurabi as the god of Borsippa. The goddesses Marat-E-zida and the god Mar-biti were also worshiped at Borsippa.
Article summary
Borsippa (Sumerian: BAD.SI.(A).AB.BA KI or Birs Nimrud, having been identified with Nimrod) is an archeological site in Babylon Governorate, Iraq, built on both sides of a lake about southwest of Babylon on the east bank of the Euphrates. It lies 15 kilometers from the ancient site of Dilbat. It is today one of the most vividly identifiable surviving ziggurats, identified in the later Arabic culture with the Tower of Babel due to King Nebuchadnezzar referring to it as the "Tower of Borsippa" or "tongue tower", as stated in the stele recovered on site in the 19th century. However, modern scholarship concludes that the Babylonian builders of the ziggurat erected it as a religious edifice in honour of the local god Nabu, called the "son" of Babylon's Marduk, as would be appropriate for Babylon's lesser sister-city. The tutelary god of Borsippa in the Ur III Empire in the late 3rd millennium BC was Tutu, who was syncretised with the god Marduk after the Old Babylonian period. Tutu was mentioned in the prologue of the Code of Hammurabi as the god of Borsippa. The goddesses Marat-E-zida and the god Mar-biti were also worshiped at Borsippa.
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.