Ekitušgarza

To differentiate the two Bēlet-Eanna temples in Babylon, inscriptions of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (r. 604–652 BC) specify that Ekitušgarza, which was in the Tuba district, was built “in the recess of the city wall of Babylon” (see, for example, RIBo Babylon 7 Nebuchadnezzar II 002 iv 44–48); her other temple Ekitusgirzal, which was in the New City district, was built “on the canal bank.” As noted already by A.R. George (1992: 330), “The "recess of the city wall" rather suggests a place where the wall changed direction (tubqu also has the meaning "corner", at the point where two walls meet), but there were no such places in the quarter Tuba, where Tintir sites E-kituš-garza. The reference may therefore be merely to a corner made by a projecting tower, such as would undoubtedly have formed part of the monumental Šamaš Gate. For this reason the temple is shown on our sketch map (fig. 4 on p. 24) as adjacent to this city gate, but the location is, of course, very tentative.”