Assur

Assur

Aššur ܐܫܘܪ آشور
American soldiers on guard at the ruins of Ashur, 2008
Shown within Near East Show map of Near East Assur (West and Central Asia) Show map of West and Central Asia Assur (Iraq) Show map of Iraq
Location	Saladin Governorate, Iraq
Region	Mesopotamia
Coordinates	35°27′24″N 43°15′45″E / 35.45667°N 43.26250°E / 35.45667; 43.26250
Type	Settlement
History
Founded	Early Dynastic Period
Abandoned	3rd century AD[1]
Periods	Early Bronze Age to classical antiquity
Site notes
Public access	Inaccessible (in a war zone) [citation needed] [needs update]
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat)
Type	Cultural
Criteria	iii, iv
Designated	2003 (27th session)
Reference no.	1130
Region	Arab States
Endangered	2003–present

Aššur (/ˈæsʊər/; Sumerian: 𒀭𒊹𒆠 AN.ŠAR₂^KI, Assyrian cuneiform: Aš-šur^KI, "City of God Aššur";^[2][3] Syriac: ܐܫܘܪ Āšūr; Old Persian: 𐎠𐎰𐎢𐎼 Aθur, Persian: آشور Āšūr; Hebrew: אַשּׁוּר ʾAššūr, Arabic: اشور), also known as Ashur and Qal'at Sherqat, was the capital of the Old Assyrian city-state (2025–1364 BC), the Middle Assyrian Empire (1363–912 BC), and for a time, of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (911–609 BC). The remains of the city lie on the western bank of the Tigris River, north of the confluence with its tributary, the Little Zab, in what is now Iraq, more precisely in the al-Shirqat District of the Saladin Governorate.

Occupation of the city itself continued for approximately 3,000 years,^[4] from the Early Dynastic Period to the mid-3rd century AD, when the city was sacked by the Sasanian Empire. The site is a World Heritage Site and was added to that organisation's list of sites in danger in 2003 as a result of a proposed dam, which would flood some of the site. It has been further threatened by the conflict that erupted following the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq. Assur lies 65 kilometres (40 mi) south of the site of Nimrud and 100 km (60 mi) south of Nineveh.