A double city wall still gives Hatra a clearly defined outline. The ancient fortified city was founded on the ruins of an Assyrian settlement and lies in northern Iraq between the Tigris and Euphrates, in an open semi-desert landscape. Its remarkably circular urban complex adapts to the topography. Here, a distinctive city form meets a vast, open landscape.

Hatra: urban form and cultural influences

Hatra lies about 110 kilometres southwest of Mosul and around 70 kilometres west of Ashur. Its well-preserved double city wall attests to the city's historical significance and to influences from Assyrian-Babylonian, Aramaic, Greek, Parthian, Roman and Arab cultures. A local museum is housed in rooms of the Temenos, or Great Temple. The city's form is thus linked to a long cultural history; the focus is at once on the fortified complex and on the various influences that shaped its significance.

Samarra: capital and mosques

Samarra offers a different historical perspective: from 836 to 892, the city was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. The archaeological city includes the 9th-century Great Mosque and its spiral minaret. The Al-Malwiya and Abu Dulaf mosques are also among the largest mosques. Samarra is considered the only surviving Islamic capital to have retained its original layout, architecture and art, including mosaics and carvings. Here, the city's history is reflected in its layout, religious buildings and artistic details. At the same time, 80 percent of the site has yet to be excavated. The known monuments therefore form part of a larger archaeological context.

Erbil: ancient records and urban patterns

Erbil offers another link to the distant past: the city is associated with Arbela, an important Assyrian political and religious centre. The name Arbela is attested in written sources dating back to pre-Sumerian times. On the mound, the settlement on the citadel preserves the urban form and street pattern of the Ottoman era. Alongside this long written record is a tangible later urban influence. This view of settlement form and street patterns differs from Hatra's fortifications and Samarra's mosques.

Ashur: a city on the Tigris

Ashur also links urban history to a clearly described landscape. The ancient city lies on the Tigris in northern Mesopotamia; the river forms its eastern boundary. To the north is a plain with a wadi, the valley of a former course of the Tigris, while hills extend to the west and south. Ashur also lies on the boundary between rain-fed and irrigated agriculture. This brings together the immediate surroundings of river, plain and hills with the transition between different agricultural areas. In contrast to Hatra's open semi-desert landscape, Ashur's location is defined by the Tigris.

Karbala: an annual pilgrimage

Another focal point is the Arba'in pilgrimage in Iraq's Karbala Governorate. Each year, around the 20th day of the Islamic month of Safar, the governorate welcomes millions of visitors. Pilgrims from across Iraq and abroad travel to the Holy Shrine of Imam Hussein. Unlike the archaeological city sites, the focus here is a recurring religious tradition. Its timing follows the Islamic calendar. If you would like to plan your trip around the Arba'in pilgrimage, check the specific event dates when making your plans.

These examples offer different ways to experience Iraq: fortified urban forms, preserved architecture, historic settlement patterns, riverside landscapes and religious traditions. The aspect that interests you most can help guide your travel plans.

Discover more destinations: Baghdad, Arbela, Kurdistan Region, Arbil, Al-Karbala, Najaf, Burundi, Mauritius.