Bit resch

Bit Resch is the old name of a temple complex in Uruk , which was built in the third century BC under the Seleucids .

The complex in the center of the city consisted of adobe bricks and a sequence of courtyards and halls. The whole building was about 167 × 213 m and was erected in several stages. A first mention in texts can be found in the year 317 BC. In contrast, the building, which is still preserved today, was rebuilt in the spring of 244 BC. Completed under the city lord Anu-uballit Nikarchus on behalf of Seleukos II . The building began under the city lord Anu-uballit Kephalon in 201 BC. BC considerably expanded. Above all, he built the Anu - Antum-Temple in the center of the facility. The façade, which is structured with niches and decorated with glazed bricks, is remarkable, which on the one hand has a long tradition in the Mesopotamian region, but is documented here for the last time. It has been calculated that 2.5 million bricks were used for this extension alone. The whole complex not only served as a temple, but also housed the city's supreme tax authority.

Around 108 BC At the time of the Parthian rule , the complex burned down and was not rebuilt. After that, rather simple residential houses were built into the complex.

literature

• A. Kose, Uruk: Architektur IV, From the Seleucid to the Sasanid period , Mainz am Rhein 1998 ISBN 3805318987