Pictures from Iraq

Yesterday in my RIP post I mentioned my Platoon Sergeant from A-stan. Well, now a First Sergeant, he was kind enough to send some pictures of an excursion he took recently to the Ziggurat of Ur.

From Wiki:

The Ziggurat was dedicated to the moon god Nanna (or Suen; The name Nanna is Sumerian for “illuminator”) in the Sumerian city of Ur in ancient Mesopotamia, in present-day Iraq, near Nasiriyah south of Baghdad. The construct, a huge stepped platform, was built approximately in the 21st century BC by King Shulgi. In Sumerian times it was called Etemennigur. Today, after more than 4000 years, the ziggurat is still well preserved in large parts, and partially reconstructed, as the only major remainder of Ur in present-day southern Iraq.

The ziggurat was a piece in a temple complex that served as an administrative center for the city, and which was thought to be the dwelling of the moon god Nanna, the patron deity of Ur, on earth. Temples and shrines are built on top of the trapezoidal base. It is said that ziggurat serves as a tool to bridge the distance between the sky and the earth. The gods are believed to descend and visit the temple where only a selected group of priests and government officials may enter.[1] The construction of the ziggurat was finished in the 21st century BC by King Shulgi, who, in order to win the allegiance of cities, proclaimed himself a god. During his 48-year reign, the city of Ur grew to be the capital of a state controlling much of Mesopotamia. Later though, the fortunes of Ur declined, and it was sacked by the Elamites

I lucked out in the army with my Platoon Sergeants. And believe me, as an NCO you can live or die with good or bad SFCs. Here’s a pic of the 1SG, any wonder why we called him “Silverback”? Dude could bench press a humvee.

Category: Politics