﻿446 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  19 
  2 
  9 
  

  

  tion 
  of 
  its 
  length 
  in 
  either 
  direction 
  (probably 
  little 
  remains 
  to 
  be 
  

  

  done 
  to 
  the 
  northeast) 
  can 
  be 
  carried 
  on 
  economically 
  and 
  with 
  

  

  proper 
  knowledge. 
  

  

  THE 
  WALLS 
  OF 
  UR 
  

  

  Thoroughly 
  to 
  work 
  out 
  this 
  prehistoric 
  site 
  was 
  a 
  task 
  far 
  too 
  

   big 
  to 
  be 
  tackled 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  a 
  season. 
  Content 
  for 
  the 
  moment 
  

   with 
  the 
  very 
  important 
  preliminary 
  results 
  which 
  we 
  had 
  obtained, 
  

   we 
  turned 
  our 
  attention 
  during 
  the 
  last 
  10 
  days 
  to 
  the 
  city 
  wall, 
  

   again 
  with 
  the 
  idea 
  not 
  of 
  complete 
  excavation 
  but 
  of 
  securing 
  infor- 
  

   mation 
  which 
  would 
  enable 
  us 
  to 
  draw 
  up 
  programs 
  for 
  future 
  digging. 
  

   The 
  results 
  were 
  immediate 
  and 
  surprising. 
  

  

  The 
  spot 
  chosen 
  w^as 
  on 
  the 
  northeast 
  side, 
  just 
  behind 
  the 
  expe 
  

   dition 
  house. 
  

  

  Two 
  days' 
  work 
  sufficed 
  to 
  produce 
  the 
  real 
  town 
  w^all 
  which 
  

   has 
  a 
  total 
  width 
  of 
  more 
  than 
  28 
  meters 
  and 
  is 
  still 
  standing 
  more 
  

   than 
  8 
  meters 
  high. 
  We 
  were 
  able 
  in 
  the 
  few 
  days 
  that 
  remained 
  of 
  

   the 
  season 
  to 
  follow 
  it 
  in 
  both 
  directions 
  for 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  over 
  a 
  hun- 
  

   dred 
  meters 
  and 
  to 
  establish 
  something 
  of 
  its 
  character 
  and 
  history. 
  

  

  Apart 
  from 
  a 
  few 
  literary 
  references 
  to 
  its 
  building 
  and 
  destruc- 
  

   tion 
  we 
  knew 
  nothing 
  about 
  the 
  wall. 
  More 
  than 
  this, 
  very 
  little 
  is 
  

   known 
  at 
  all 
  about 
  Sumerian 
  defenses, 
  seeing 
  that 
  no 
  expedition 
  has 
  

   yet 
  undertaken 
  the 
  heavy 
  task 
  of 
  clearing 
  the 
  circuit 
  of 
  an 
  ancient 
  

   town. 
  

  

  At 
  Ur, 
  the 
  center 
  of 
  the 
  site 
  is 
  surrounded 
  by 
  a 
  ring 
  of 
  mounds, 
  

   not 
  continuous, 
  for 
  w^hereas 
  in 
  some 
  parts 
  they 
  stand 
  high 
  and 
  pre- 
  

   sent 
  on 
  the 
  outside 
  an 
  abruptly 
  sloping 
  face, 
  in 
  others 
  they 
  sink 
  to 
  

   the 
  level 
  of 
  the 
  plain 
  or 
  are 
  so 
  confused 
  by 
  adjoining 
  mounds 
  as 
  to 
  lose 
  

   all 
  character. 
  But 
  even 
  from 
  the 
  ground 
  something 
  in 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  

   an 
  outline 
  to 
  the 
  inner 
  city 
  detaches 
  itself 
  from 
  the 
  tangle 
  of 
  slopes 
  

   and 
  hillocks, 
  and 
  an 
  air 
  photograph 
  shows 
  much 
  more 
  clearly 
  what 
  

   can 
  only 
  be 
  the 
  defenses 
  of 
  the 
  town. 
  The 
  inclosure 
  is 
  an 
  irregular 
  

   oval 
  about 
  three-quarters 
  of 
  a 
  mile 
  long 
  by 
  half 
  a 
  mile 
  wide; 
  outside 
  

   it 
  the 
  suburbs 
  stretch 
  for 
  miles, 
  inside 
  it, 
  like 
  the 
  citadel 
  inside 
  the 
  

   bailey, 
  lies 
  the 
  sacred 
  area 
  wherein 
  most 
  of 
  our 
  excavation 
  has 
  been 
  

   done; 
  within 
  the 
  inclosure 
  levels 
  average 
  higher 
  than 
  outside 
  and 
  it 
  

   is 
  reasonable 
  to 
  suppose 
  that 
  it 
  represents 
  the 
  oldest 
  settlement; 
  

   certainly 
  it 
  remained 
  throughout 
  history 
  the 
  administrative 
  and 
  

   religious 
  center. 
  

  

  The 
  fortifications 
  of 
  the 
  city 
  were, 
  naturally 
  enough, 
  repaired 
  

   or 
  reorganized 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  times; 
  the 
  earliest 
  work 
  that 
  we 
  have 
  

   found 
  dates 
  to 
  the 
  third 
  dynasty 
  of 
  Ur 
  and 
  is 
  probably 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  

   founder 
  of 
  the 
  dynasty, 
  Ur-Engur 
  (2300 
  b. 
  c), 
  who 
  explicitly 
  claims 
  

   its 
  construction; 
  we 
  have 
  reconstructions 
  and 
  additions 
  by 
  kings 
  of 
  

   Larsa 
  (circ. 
  2000 
  B. 
  C), 
  by 
  Kuri-Galzu 
  of 
  Babylon 
  (1400 
  B. 
  C), 
  and 
  

   by 
  a 
  later 
  king 
  whom 
  we 
  have 
  not 
  yet 
  identified. 
  Ur-Engur's 
  wall 
  

  

  