Ekura (temple of Bunene at Sippar)

Ekura is a minor temple at Sippar dedicated to the god Bunene, the vizier of the sun-god Šamaš. Babylon's last native king, Nabonidus (r. 555–539 BC), claims to have rebuilt it anew.

Names and Spellings

According to an Akkadian inscription of the Neo-Babylonian king Nabonidus, the name of Bunene's temple went by the Sumerian ceremonial name Ekura, which means "House of the Mountain." However, this might be an incomplete, variant writing of Etukura ("Weighty House"), the name of this god's temple provided in the so-called "Canonical Temple List."

Written Forms: e₂-kur-ra; e₂-tukur^tu-kur-ra.

Known Builders

• Neo-Babylonian (ca. 625–539 BC)
Nabonidus (r. 555–539 BC)

Building History

In an Akkadian inscription discovered in the ruins of Ebabbar (probably in Room 50), Nabonidus records that he had Ekura built anew and had its façade shine like daylight. Unfortunately, no further details are provided about that building project of that Neo-Babylonian king at Sippar.

Archaeological Remains

Ekura has not yet been identified in the archaeological record. This temple was likely a (complex of) rooms in Ebabbar, probably in its southern part of the building.

Further Reading

• George, A.R. 1993. House Most High: The Temples of Ancient Mesopotamia (Mesopotamian Civilizations 5), Winona Lake, p. 118 no. 691 and p. 151 no. 1111.

Banner image: satellite image of Sipper (left); plan of Ebabbar and Ekunankuga (center); and photo from the excavations of the library at Sippar in March 1989 (right). Plan adapted from L. De Meyer Tell ed-Dēr 3: Sounding at Abū Ḥabbah (Sippar), plan B. Excavation photograph by Jean-Luc Manaud/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images.

Jamie Novotny & Joshua Meynell

Jamie Novotny & Joshua Meynell, 'Ekura (temple of Bunene at Sippar)', Babylonian Temples and Monumental Architecture online (BTMAo), The BTMAo Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, [http://oracc.org/btmao/Sippar/Ekura/]