Word: harran
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1950-1959
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...only treasure that lies beneath the timeless sands of the Middle East. Temples, churches, palaces and whole cities wait for the digging; the finds of the past decade-at Harran and Arzawa in Turkey and Dura Europos in Syria-indicate how much more is to come. This week the government of Israel was opening to tourists the latest major discovery: the remains of one of the earliest Christian churches in the world...
...Harran's fortunes rose and fell with shifts of local politics, but its religious importance persisted. The last king of Babylonia, Nabonidus, was so devoted to Moon-God Sin that he tried to make him supreme above all the other gods of the densely populated Mesopotamian pantheon. This religious move was a tactical mistake; the local priests had a vested interest in other gods, and their machinations drove Nabonidus into the wilderness. He came back after a while, but was overwhelmed by Cyrus of Persia...
That was the end of Babylonia as an independent country, but Harran. the moon-god's city, clung tenaciously to Sin. Dr. Rice has found references in many ancient languages to the city's extreme conservatism. The rise and fall of the Roman Empire meant little to it. Christianity stopped at its walls; Harran held fast to the ancient faith. Even Islam came to terms with the conservatives of Harran...
This much could be learned by historical research, but when Dr. Rice investigated the ruins of Harran, he began to realize that Sin-worship persisted much longer than he or anyone else suspected. Last year he found an inscription which proved that the mosque of the Moslem city was built in its final form at the time of the Sultan Saladin in 1174 A.D. Under its three entrances he found three stone slabs with carvings showing Nabonidus and the worshiped crescent moon with inscriptions in the cuneiform writing of ancient Mesopotamia. They had been placed face down for the faithful...
...Rice intends to return to Harran soon, and excavate the ruins of Saladin's mosque. He hopes that under its tumbled stones he will find the remains of the temple of Sin. If such a temple exists, it can probably claim to be the one used longest by the same religion...