Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex
Ubaid Period (6500-3800 BCE)·Ubaid·🇮🇶 Dhi Qar, Nasiriyah, Iraq
About
About Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex
Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex in Dhi Qar, Nasiriyah, Iraq is a Ubaid Period (6500-3800 BCE) temple complex attributed to Ubaid. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal enclosure 5 × 6 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 30.8207N 45.9853E controls access to Dhi Qar, Nasiriyah resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey temple-complex for Dhi Qar, Nasiriyah, illustrating Ubaid construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Ancestral burial reuse over centuries
- 02Astronomical alignment hypothesis
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 5000 BCE
- Period
- Ubaid Period (6500-3800 BCE)
- Culture
- Ubaid
- Purpose
- Ceremonial centre and pilgrimage focus with stratified deposits
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
c. 5000 BCE
Initial construction of Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex main structure
c. 983 BCE
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically at Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex
1961–2010
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
30.8207° N · 45.9853° E · 18 m · 3 mapped features
Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex — Main Temple-Complex Feature
cairnPrimary cairn at Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex — central chambered cairn with stratified deposits
30.8217° N · 45.9864° EEridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex — Secondary Enclosure
plazaAncillary plaza at Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex — rock-cut facade with stratified deposits
30.8193° N · 45.9855° EEridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex — Outlier Rock Art Panel
reservoirOutlier reservoir panel linked to Eridu Temple Platform South Mound Annex ceremonial landscape
30.8209° N · 45.9848° E