Cities, neighborhoods, and houses: Urban spatial organization in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia.

Abstract

The study of ancient urban spatial organization has tended to involve formal models that focus on the city as a whole. But city morphology also involves regular patterns at the neighborhood and household levels, patterns which can influence the larger city-level patterns we identify. This study focuses on the relationship between spatial and social organization in the cities of Old Babylonian Mesopotamia, concentrating specifically on those patterns associated with domestic life. I approach the problem as an historical archaeologist, drawing upon archaeological data and texts (in Akkadian and Sumerian) for information on systems of everyday activities and the settings in which they occurred. I consider three levels of spatial organization: the city as a whole (including its agricultural hinterland), the neighborhood, and the household. At the city level, I identify regular patterns in the distribution of types of land in and around the city. I found that large private estates were an important component of Old Babylonian cities. With multiple residences in one or more villages and city centers, and agricultural land in various districts, such estates formed a significant link between the city center and the agricultural hinterland. I compare plans of neighborhood buildings from different cities to identify regularities in their distribution. Using a combination of archaeological and textual data, I identify small scale workshops embedded in residential areas as part of private homes rather than separate facilities. Evidence of craft and commercial activity at different scales illustrates the complexity of modes of production in Old Babylonian cities. At the household level, I compare the spatial patterning of rooms with particular features to determine how domestic activities were spatially organized. I look at regular associations among categories of people, their activities, the places in which those activities occurred, and the objects associated with them. The results of this study suggest that extended family relationships played an important role in Old Babylonian society. Bonds of kinship and dependence extended beyond individual houses, and served as an integrating mechanism within cities.