Mémoires de la Mission Archéologique en Iran, Tome XXXII: Mission de Susiane, Les Documents Épigraphiques de Tchogha Zembil

Rutten, M. (Text); G. Contenau (Introduction). Mémoires de la Mission Archéologique en Iran, Tome XXXII: Mission de Susiane, Les Documents Épigraphiques de Tchogha Zembil. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1953. First edition. [4], 88pp. Original printed wrappers with publisher’s logo on front cover and title page. Previous owner’s name (Herbert H. Paper*) on half-title. Archaeological report monograph on the epigraphic texts discovered at Chogha Zanbil, Iran. Choga Zambil means ‘basket mound.’ It was built about 1250 BC by the king Untash-Napirisha, mainly to honor the great god Inshushinak. Its original name was Dur Untash, which means ‘town of Untash’, but it is unlikely that many people, besides priests and servants, ever lived there. The complex is protected by three concentric walls which define the main areas of the ‘town’. The inner area is wholly taken up with a great ziggurat dedicated to the main god, which was built over an earlier square temple with storage rooms also built by Untash-Napirisha. The middle area holds eleven temples for lesser gods. It is believed that twenty-two temples were originally planned, but the king died before they could be finished, and his successors discontinued the building work. In the outer area are royal palaces, a funerary palace containing five subterranean royal tombs. Although construction in the city abruptly ended after Untash-Napirisha’s death, the site was not abandoned, but continued to be occupied until it was destroyed by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal in 640 BC. Some scholars speculate, based on the large number of temples and sanctuaries at Chogha Zanbil, that Untash-Napirisha attempted to create a new religious center (possibly intended to replace Susa) which would unite the gods of both highland and lowland Elam at one site. The ziggurat is considered to be the best preserved example in the world. Choga Zanbil was excavated in six seasons between 1951 and 1961 by Roman Ghirshman. This work is profusely illustrated troughout with 4 b/w photographic plates and numerous in-text figs. Upper corners bumped, thus affecting pages throughout. Wrappers age-toned along edges. Text in French. Wrappers in overall good- to good, interior in good+ condition. g. Paperback.

*Dr. Herbert Harry Paper (1925-2012) was Professor Emeritus of Linguistics and near Eastern Languages, and the Editor of the Hebrew Union College Annual, HUC-JIR/Cincinnati. He received a doctorate from the University of Chicago. Dr. Paper taught at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and joined HUC-JIR as the Dean of Graduate Studies. His specialties were Persian studies, concentrating on the history of the Persian language and on the ancient languages of Iran, and Yiddish literature. (35625) $65