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Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat)

Western Asia (Mesopotamia / northern Iraq, Salah ad-Din governorate), Iraq · Cultural site · UNESCO World Heritage property #1130

High ConcernConfidence: Supportedas of October 14, 2026

Significance

UNESCO describes Ashur as an ancient city on the Tigris in northern Mesopotamia, dating to the 3rd millennium BC, which was the first capital of the Assyrian Empire from the 14th to the 9th centuries BC and its religious capital, linked to the god Ashur; it was destroyed by the Babylonians and revived in the Parthian period. The Committee inscribed it in 2003 under criteria (iii) and (iv): criterion (iii) on its role as capital where Assyrian kings were crowned and buried, and criterion (iv) on excavated buildings recording the evolution of building practice from the Sumerian and Akkadian periods through the Assyrian period. It was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in the same session.

Current Status Rationale

Historical damage is documented in the site's record, but the current classification is based on present conditions and the most recent credible evidence. The 2014-2016 occupation, the August 2014 air-strike damage and the conflict damage later reported at the Tabira Gate and other structures are recorded in events[] permanently. The present picture is of a property on the List of World Heritage in Danger since 2003 whose Committee, in July 2026, noted with concern that it continues to be severely affected by water seepage, humidity and environmental degradation; whose Secretariat and Advisory Bodies describe the overall condition as of considerable concern, particularly the eastern cliff along the Tigris; and for which a Conservation Plan and a finalised Management Plan are still requested. Against that, there is real and recent activity: World Heritage Fund-supported emergency works on the Ziggurat in late 2025 by CRAterre with the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, a monitored pilot area, a fence and controlled access commended by the Committee in 2025, the confirmed permanent cancellation of the Makhool Dam, and ongoing excavation and conservation work by university teams. These indicate a fragile property under active management and international monitoring, not an emergency with lost access, which is why this is High rather than Critical. Confidence is Supported rather than Confirmed: the Danger List status and the Committee's concerns are directly confirmed in UNESCO decision pages and the working document, but the account of present on-site condition rests on UNESCO's summaries, the State Party's own reports and the implementer's account, the 2026 State Party report and the 2025 and 2026 state-of-conservation pages could not be read, and no independent (non-UNESCO, non-State-Party) 2025-2026 assessment, satellite analysis or security reporting was found. Confidence does not alter the status.

Serious, currently active threats are documented, or major historical damage remains substantially unrepaired. Credible sources support this status, with some limits on corroboration.

Threat Categories

Conservation / Structural

The June 2026 working document says the property lacks a management plan (a preliminary framework has been started) and that the Conservation Plan remains a priority; the 2026 decision asks for a Conservation Plan and a finalised Management Plan framework and for results of the Ziggurat pilot-area monitoring. The 2022 mission found no management system, management plan or conservation plan, estimated a minimum of 25% material loss from the Ziggurat (which it said is losing its shape), recorded that part of the Tabira Gate had collapsed, and reported five employees covering Salah-Addin province's 173 archaeological sites. UNESCO's 2023 entry reports that iron supports were added to the second arch of the Tabira Gate and that the other arches are also near collapse. Iraq's November 2024 report states that no maintenance work was carried out in the previous period because of weak funding. Positive developments are also documented: the 2025 Committee decision commends the State Party for controlling access and installing a protective fence, and emergency works on the Ziggurat (22 October-16 November 2025, funded by the World Heritage Fund and led by CRAterre with the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage) are welcomed in the 2026 decision.

First identified: Not established — Management and conservation gaps recorded since the 2003 ICOMOS evaluation, which noted no management plan; no single start date.

Sources: ICOMOS, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Government of Iraq, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, CRAterre (International Centre for Earthen Architecture)

Environmental / Climate

Ashur is built largely of sun-dried mudbrick, which Iraq's November 2024 report says is harmed mainly by rain, wind and humidity. The 2026 Committee decision (48 COM 7A.1) notes with concern that the property continues to be severely affected by water seepage, humidity and environmental degradation. The June 2026 working document records that Tigris erosion, after the river breached protective embankments, caused significant structural loss and a deep vertical cliff, that erosion still threatens the property, and that the 2022 mission's recommended investigations are still needed to find a suitable solution; the Secretariat and Advisory Bodies' analysis describes overall condition as remaining of considerable concern, particularly the eastern cliff along the Tigris. The 2022 joint mission reported significant current erosion of the Tigris riverbank, an almost completely eroded gabion retaining wall, and the eastern side of the Walter Andrae Residence about 7 metres from a cliff over the river. UNESCO's 2023 entry reports the State Party's statement that collapse of the cliff on the eastern riverbank poses an imminent threat to the property (the State Party's assessment; the entry says the Centre and Advisory Bodies' analysis did not address the cliff). Iraq's November 2024 report describes a vertical cliff 12-14 metres high about 7 metres from the Walter Andrae palace (State Party figures). The proposed Makhool Dam, whose reservoir would have partly flooded the site, was among the reasons for the 2003 Danger List inscription; the Committee deeply regretted its renewed proposal in 2021, commended the halt of construction in 2023, and in 2026 welcomed confirmation of its permanent cancellation (the State Party's November 2024 report cites an Economic Ministerial Council letter dated 2 October 2024 recommending approval of removing the project, which the report describes as permanent).

First identified: Not established — Chronic seepage, erosion and flood-related pressures documented across successive UNESCO reports; no single start date. The dam threat was identified at the time of the 2003 inscription.

Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Government of Iraq, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

Armed Conflict

UNESCO's 2015 entry records that armed groups occupied the German and new Iraqi mission houses, the ziggurat and the ancient palace area, and that air strikes on 27 and 29 August 2014 targeting their positions damaged the German mission house and a wall of Ashur and destroyed the glass cover over the Royal Cemetery. UNESCO's 2017 entry says the property was fully liberated in mid-December 2016 after about two years of occupation and that conflict-related damage included intentional destruction, without a full inventory. The 2018 entry records the State Party's report of explosion damage to the Tabira Gate stacks and Summer Palace and of looting in the northern section. The 2022 mission listed conflict-related damage; it said no direct damage to archaeological remains was reported and that this can only be properly analysed with comparative photographs, as damage might not be obvious on visual inspection. This is a legacy condition: no fighting at or near the site since December 2016 was found in the sources reviewed, and the June 2026 working document's Ashur section contains no specific statement on security measures. The sources reviewed do not describe current security conditions.

First identified: Not established — Earliest dated conflict-related event in the UNESCO entries reviewed: air strikes of 27 and 29 August 2014 (2015 entry). The start of the occupation is not dated in the sources reviewed.

Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

Historical Timeline

  1. 2003
    Ashur inscribed on the World Heritage List and, in the same session, on the List of World Heritage in Danger

    At its 27th session the Committee inscribed Ashur under criteria (iii) and (iv) (27 COM 8C.45) and decided to inscribe it on the List of World Heritage in Danger (27 COM 8C.46; the decision page states no reasons). UNESCO's later entries give the threats cited at inscription as nearby dam construction causing partial flooding and seepage, and armed conflict. The March 2003 ICOMOS evaluation had recommended inscription despite the lack of management systems and suggested considering Danger List inscription.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  2. 2014-08
    Air strikes on armed groups' positions damage buildings at Ashur

    UNESCO's 2015 state-of-conservation entry records that air strikes on 27 and 29 August 2014 targeted positions of armed groups that had occupied the German and new Iraqi mission houses, the ziggurat and the ancient palace; they damaged the German mission house and a wall of Ashur and destroyed the glass cover protecting the Royal Cemetery. The entry says accurate information on the site's condition was very difficult to obtain because it lay in territory controlled by armed groups.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  3. 2015-06
    Reports of deliberate destruction at Ashur

    UNESCO's 2016 state-of-conservation entry says extremist armed groups were reported to have deliberately destroyed parts of the property on 2 and 9 June 2015, and that other sources reported destruction and looting of several sites around the property between 23 December 2015 and 5 January 2016. The State Party reported having almost no information on the situation at the site, and the entry does not establish the extent of the damage.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  4. 2016-12
    Property fully liberated

    UNESCO's 2017 state-of-conservation entry says the property was fully liberated in mid-December 2016 after about two years of occupation by extremist armed groups, and that the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage soon carried out a rapid preliminary damage assessment and began cleaning the site.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  5. 2017-02
    UNESCO site assessment and international coordination conference

    According to UNESCO's 2017 entry, on 3 February 2017 UNESCO confirmed the reported damage, found the site unfenced but guarded against looting and stressed the urgent need for a shelter over the royal tombs; UNESCO and the Iraqi Government co-organised an International Coordination Conference on 23-24 February 2017 that laid the groundwork for emergency, medium- and long-term action plans and a joint UNESCO-Iraq Steering Committee.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  6. 2018-03-30
    State Party reports explosion damage and looting

    UNESCO's 2018 entry records that on 30 March 2018 the State Party reported that explosions had damaged the stacks of the Tabira Gate (large cracks visible) and severely damaged the Summer Palace and the northern section along the Tigris, and that the northern section, previously excavated by a German mission, had been looted. The date of the explosions is not stated. The entry also says no significant restoration or conservation work had been undertaken at Ashur and that the State Party considered the security situation stable enough for conservation work to begin.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  7. 2021
    Committee deeply regrets renewed Makhool Dam proposal (44 COM 7A.6)

    The Committee retained Ashur on the Danger List, deeply regretted that construction of the dam had again been proposed, asked Iraq to relocate or cancel it, asked Iraq to suspend any work toward construction pending review, and reiterated the need for a joint Reactive Monitoring mission once conditions permit.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  8. 2022-03/2022-04
    Joint World Heritage Centre-ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission

    The mission (28 March-1 April 2022) estimated a minimum of 25% material loss from the Ziggurat, reported significant current erosion of the Tigris riverbank with the Walter Andrae Residence about 7 metres from a cliff, recorded conflict-related damage (including to the Farhan Palace, the Royal Cemetery shelter and the Tabira Gate) and found no management system, management plan or conservation plan. It concluded that the dam protection measures proposed would not be sufficient and recommended relocating or cancelling the dam, a conservation plan, regular maintenance with pilot-area testing, fencing and a management system.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS

  9. 2022-09/2023-01
    Walter Andrae house restored by the Assur Excavation Project

    LMU Munich's project page says the Andrae house, built from 1903, was damaged in late 2016 during the ISIS occupation and its recapture, and that its restoration ran from September 2022 to January 2023, after which excavations began in 2023. This is the project's own account.

    Sources: LMU Munich, Ancient History (with WWU Münster)

  10. 2023
    Committee retains Ashur on the Danger List (45 COM 7A.27)

    The Committee commended Iraq's decision to halt construction of the Makhool Dam, asked for its permanent cancellation or relocation, asked Iraq to implement the 2022 mission recommendations (a conservation plan, regular maintenance tested in a pilot area, site protection, a management system and plan) and asked it to initiate a Desired State of Conservation for removal. UNESCO's 2023 entry reports that decayed cavities on the Ziggurat continued to expand, that Tabira Gate arches remained near collapse despite new temporary iron supports on the second arch, that the State Party stated that collapse of the cliff on the eastern riverbank poses an imminent threat (the State Party's assessment), and that on 4 March 2023 the State Party confirmed that dam works had stopped.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  11. 2024
    Committee retains Ashur on the Danger List (46 COM 7A.15)

    At its 46th session the Committee acknowledged Iraq's efforts to set up a partnership to prepare the Conservation and Site Management Plans, urged prioritising urgent maintenance and stabilisation (emergency stabilisation only where collapse or further damage is imminent), asked again for the dam's permanent cancellation or relocation, and retained the property on the List. UNESCO's 2024 entry records that no activities took place after the 2023 report apart from maintenance of the Walter Andrae house.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  12. 2024-11
    Iraq submits state of conservation report

    Iraq's State Board of Antiquities and Heritage report (November 2024) attributes the dominant threats to rain, wind and humidity, describes a 3,300-metre fence around the city on three sides (river approaches on the north and south sides left unfenced), states that uncontrolled access has ended, says no maintenance was carried out in the previous period because of weak funding, and cites an Economic Ministerial Council letter dated 2 October 2024 recommending approval of removing the Makhool Dam project (the report describes this as permanent; the letter itself does not use that word). These are the State Party's own statements.

    Sources: Government of Iraq, via UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  13. 2025
    Committee retains Ashur on the Danger List (47 COM 7A.35)

    The Committee commended the State Party for controlling access and installing a protective fence, urged Conservation and Management Plans, encouraged priority maintenance and stabilisation, asked Iraq to confirm that the Makhool Dam is permanently cancelled, encouraged work on a Desired State of Conservation and requested an updated report by 1 February 2026.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  14. 2025-10/2025-11
    Emergency conservation works on the Ziggurat of Ashur

    UNESCO reports that works from 22 October to 16 November 2025, funded by the World Heritage Fund and led by CRAterre with Iraq's State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, combined on-site diagnosis, preventive conservation and emergency interventions focused on reducing water's impact and stabilising the monument, with training for four State Board archaeologists and four local community workers. CRAterre says its team treated 16 cavities. The June 2026 working document records the World Heritage Fund contribution as USD 51,144 and the works as mudbrick repair, improved drainage and documentation.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, CRAterre (International Centre for Earthen Architecture)

  15. 2026-01-21
    Iraq submits 2026 state of conservation report

    According to UNESCO's working document WHC/26/48.COM/7A, the report was submitted on 21 January 2026 and confirmed that the Makhool Dam project is permanently cancelled, with related infrastructure transferred to entities unrelated to dam construction; the report text itself was not read.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  16. 2026-07
    Committee retains Ashur on the Danger List (48 COM 7A.1)

    At its 48th session (Busan) the Committee noted with concern that the property continues to be severely affected by water seepage, humidity and environmental degradation, welcomed the Ziggurat emergency works and the confirmation that the Makhool Dam is permanently cancelled, asked for results of the pilot-area monitoring, a Conservation Plan and a finalised Management Plan framework, encouraged boundary clarification and work on a Desired State of Conservation, and requested an updated report by 1 February 2027. Month reflects the session's scheduled 19-29 July 2026 dates per the working document; a draft decision 48 COM 8C.2 also proposed retaining the property on the List.

    Sources: UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

Digital Preservation Index

Overall coverage: Moderate — Documented in several categories, with some notable gaps.

Three of five categories (photographic, archival records, academic/scholarly) have publicly findable evidence, which gives the Moderate tier by the rubric. Coverage is uneven. The photographic evidence is a small institutional set: the first page of UNESCO's gallery shows 12 images (four credited to UNESCO / Veronique Dauge, seven to Editions Gelbart / Jean-Jacques Gelbart and one to Mahmoud Bendakir), each captioned only with the property name; the page indicates a larger set that was not opened. Archival records are counted because UNESCO hosts the scanned 2002-2003 nomination form and the 2003 ICOMOS evaluation as viewable documents; UNESCO's own state-of-conservation reports and Committee decisions are not counted for this category. The nomination form describes photographs, slides and a film and says site records are held by the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage in Baghdad; those holdings were not seen online. Academic documentation found is concentrated on the New Town excavation (2023-2025), not the whole property. No publicly viewable 3D model or photogrammetric record of the site and no virtual tour were found; a Google Arts & Culture entity page for Assur lists objects and a timeline but no tour or 3D content was seen on it. CRAterre says its 2025 report, photographs and a video are online; the report was not read and the media were not opened as evidence, so they are not counted. The 2022 mission report found no management system or conservation plan, and UNESCO's 2026 working document says no comprehensive conservation or management plan yet exists. Reflects what is publicly findable, not necessarily what exists in unpublished archives.

Law and commitments

Sources