MARAD

Marad location in Iraq

Coordinates : 32°05'34 N 44°47'00 E

Marad (Sumerian: Marda, modern Tell Wannat es-Sadum or Tell as-Sadoum, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian tell (hill city). Marad was situated on the west bank of the then western branch of the Upper Euphrates River west of Nippur in modern-day Iraq and roughly 50 km southeast of Kish, on the Arahtu River.

The city's ziggurat E-igi-kalama (House which is the eye of the Land) was dedicated to Ninurta the god of earth and the plow, built by one of Naram-Sin's sons, as well as the tutelary deity Lugal Marada (also Lugal-Amarda). The city fell into the bounds of the Akkadian empire after the conquest of Sargon of Akkad.

History :

Marad was established ca. 2700 BC, during the Sumerian Early Dynastic II period. Although Marad is not mentioned in the Sumerian King List and in the earliest city lists, it does appear in the temple hymns of the Early Dynastic period, 42 in all, referring to 35 different cities in the southern alluvium and praising their main gods—in this instance, Lugal –Mar(a)da (some cities had more than one).

Archaeology :

Inscription for Naram-Sin's temple construction in Marad by his grandson Lipit-Ili

The site of Marad covers an area of less than 124 hectares (500 acres).

Marad was excavated by a team from Qadissiyyah University in 1990 led by Na'el Hannoon, and in 2005 and 2007 led by Abbas Al-Hussainy. Excavations resumed in 2019.

Source :

https://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Marad