Elamite Rock-Cut Sanctuary at Kurangun (1650 BCE)
Nature as a setting for human activity
The Elamites (2700–646 BCE) were a pastoral people who inhabited the highlands of the Zagros mountains, east of the Tigris River (in modern-day Iran). In their own language, they were Heltam-ti, which meant “Highlanders.”[1] The Bible describes Elam as a land of bowmen, chariots, and horsemen (Isaiah 22:6). Frequently at war with their neighbors (the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Kassites, and Assyrians), they eventually were assimilated into the Persian Empire.
In 1650 BCE, the Elamites carved Kurangun, an open-air sanctuary, out of an outcrop of Kuh-e Pataweh, overlooking the Fahliyān River. The sanctuary can be accessed by going down three flights of stone steps from the top of the mountain to a platform.
Description of the Carving at Kurangun
The source for this newsletter is the research of Fulbright scholar Javier Álvarez-Mon.[2] In order to facilitate discussion, I have included a line drawing of the carvings with numbered figures.
At the base of the stairs, there is a platform with twenty-six fish swimming in opposite directions carved on the floor (fig. 3). There may have been a rim around the platform to form something like a rectangular basin that would hold water. In other words, the worshippers would be going down the steps to a shallow pool.
On the mountain side, the rock-cut relief depicts a divine couple and about forty worshippers. The worshippers, who are similar in size and appearance, appear to be descending the stairway (figs. 19 to 47). They wear belted knee-length robes, have long braids in the back, and their hands are clasped at the waist in a prayerlike gesture. These figures seem to model the behavior that is expected of humans as they approach the sanctuary.
In the center, there is a divine couple, facing the worshippers (figs. 1 and 2). Although they are depicted with human bodies, they are intricately connected to nature. The god sits on a coiled snake throne, and the goddess is seated on another animal (possibly a sheep). (What’s with those animal thrones? They will also show up in other places and time periods. Eventually, they morph into chairs with animal-paw legs.) The deities have bull’s horns and animal ears. The male deity has a beard, long sidelocks, and long hair in back. In his right hand, he holds a ring and rod with water flowing in both directions over the heads of nearby figures (almost like a baptism). It has been suggested that water might have actually flowed out of the rock at this point, falling into the basin below. In his left hand, he holds two snakes.
In front of the divine couple is a mysterious object (fig. 4). It could be vegetation sprouting from a water-filled jug, or alternatively, a fire altar with fire emanating from the open mouth of the snake (in which case the streams of water would be smoke or incense instead of water). Both water and fire would be seen by the Elamites as gifts from the nature deities.
What Exactly Is Kurangun?
It’s not a building; it’s more like an open stage. If you were to walk down the steps, you would be both outside in nature and in the man-made sanctuary at the same time—making it a liminal space. The Latin origin of “liminal” is “threshold.” When you are in a liminal space, you are between two realities, in this case somewhere between the man-made and the natural world. The nature deities are protruding halfway out of the rock. If they were to retreat back into the rock, you might be able to cross the threshold and follow them into the divine world. The term “thin place” is sometimes used to describe such locations where the veil between this world and the spiritual one is thin or nonexistent.
Facing the divine couple, you could describe Kurangun as a shrine (or house) for the deities. The streams of water flowing overhead and falling into the hands of worshippers on either side also look like a canopy that is held up over the heads of the gods. They are sitting on the porch of their home receiving the pilgrims who descend the steps.
Or Kurangun may be a site for the coronation of a ruler. The ring and rod are symbols of kingship. The deity hands them to the secular ruler thereby establishing his authority. The figures in the central panel (6 to 11) are not like those on the steps. They are wearing long robes. Figures 7 and 10 are women. These could be two royal families (king, queen, and prince). Kurangun is located on an ancient road that runs between the lowland capital of Susa and the highland capital of Anshan. Elamite kings used the royal title of “king of Susa and Anshan.” Coronation at a location between the two capitals would be highly symbolic.
I chose Kurangun to illustrate the idea of “nature as a setting for human activity”; that is, a situation where nature is a participant or essential element in the activity and not just the background. For example, if you were to have a picnic by the lake, the lake would just be a background feature because the picnic could be moved elsewhere and the activity would not be changed. However, if you were swimming, the lake would be a setting for human activity—not just a background feature. This distinction really represents two different views of nature: nature as setting and nature as background. I suspect that much of what we call spending time in nature is just doing something (like walking) with nature as a background.
[1] Philip Matyszak, Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World (London: Thames and Hudson, 2020), 37.
[2] Javier Álvarez-Mon, The Monumental Reliefs of the Elamite Highlands (University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns, 2019).
I like your distinction between our current view of nature as either setting or background. I think that most people today view nature only as a background as witnessed by extensive use of nature as the background for selfies. This is particularly true of the ocean for most people who travel to the coast only see the ocean as background and not as a setting. One of our goals for our marine education outreach program is to help children to visualize themselves are being part of the ocean, as explorer or fisherman or SCUBA diver. It we want people to care about saving nature, they must see themselves in the setting of nature.
The swimming pool is gone now. That pool looked like fun!