Ziggurat: Quick Facts

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Infographic of a stepped brick ziggurat with a broad central staircase and a blue temple at its summit. Labels explain mud-brick cores with baked-brick exteriors, terraced platforms for rituals, and stairways or ramps leading to the gods' temple.

The ancient brick ziggurat of Choqa Zanbil in Iran rises in stepped layers from a flat, sandy landscape under a blue sky.

The Great Ziggurat of Ur in Iraq, a massive ancient brick structure with broad staircases and terraced levels, stands alone in a barren landscape.

Ziggurat at Choghā Zanbīl, near Susa, Iran.

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