Time and place
Iraq
These dates mark the focus of this case, not the full history of the place or its communities.
Connected worlds · Settlement · Iraq
Samarra: building an Abbasid capital
836 CE–892 CE (focus interval)
What can the footprint of a capital reveal?
Samarra’s palaces and major mosques form part of a large Abbasid urban landscape. The excavation archive also records pottery, painted fragments and plaster, offering evidence beyond the capital’s skyline.
Research draft · the main interpretation still needs independent reviewPage published · Source packet updated
At a glance
- Place
- Iraq
- Dates · case focus
- 836 CE–892 CE (focus interval)These dates mark the focus of this case, not the full history of the place or its communities.
- The question
- What can the footprint of a capital reveal?
- Key finding
- Samarra preserves a large Abbasid urban landscape including palaces and major mosques. Read the evidence ↓
- Important limit
- One ninth-century capital cannot represent every Islamicate community, region or historical period.
Where this case belongs
Iraq · 836 CE–892 CE (focus interval)
These points locate named sites or parts of a listed property. They show geographic references, not ancient borders or excavation plans. They make no claim about present-day sovereignty.
● Published reference point. Natural Earth public-domain land outline. No political boundaries are shown. The map does not capture scrolling.
Locations, precision and sources (10)
- Samarra North Zone - al-Mutawakkiliyya
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.3410°, 43.8235° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-001 · Samarra North Zone - al-Mutawakkiliyya · Iraq · N34 20 27.56 E43 49 24.76
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- Samarra Centre Zone
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2263°, 43.8826° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-002 · Samarra Centre Zone · Iraq · N34 13 34.59 E43 52 57.26
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- Samarra South Zone
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.1226°, 43.9306° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-003 · Samarra South Zone · Iraq · N34 7 21.42 E43 55 50.23
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- al-Istablat
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.0803°, 43.9156° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-004 · al-Istablat · Iraq · N34 4 49.04 E43 54 56.12
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- al-Quwayr
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2321°, 43.8399° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-005 · al-Quwayr · Iraq · N34 13 55.63 E43 50 23.53
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- Qubbat al-Sulaibiyya
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2277°, 43.7989° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-006 · Qubbat al-Sulaibiyya · Iraq · N34 13 39.54 E43 47 56.09
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- al-Ma'shuq
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2420°, 43.8094° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-007 · al-Ma'shuq · Iraq · N34 14 31.14 E43 48 34.02
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- Tell Umm al-Sakhr
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2666°, 43.8018° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-008 · Tell Umm al-Sakhr · Iraq · N34 15 59.82 E43 48 6.33
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- al-Huwaysilat Upper
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2945°, 43.7888° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-009 · al-Huwaysilat Upper · Iraq · N34 17 40.06 E43 47 19.81
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
- al-Huwaysilat Lower
Published heritage component reference; not excavation geometry or ancient territorial boundary. Present-day geographic reference for the named site/component; does not date an occupation or establish a territory.
34.2991°, 43.7893° · Coordinate source ↗
Source passage and date
276rev-010 · al-Huwaysilat Lower · Iraq · N34 17 56.90 E43 47 21.64
Coordinate source checked 2026-10-27.
What this case covers
What was found
Samarra preserves a large Abbasid urban landscape including palaces and major mosques.
What it may tell us
The size of a capital and the materials found within it answer different questions about institutions and daily activity.
Alternative explanations and limits
One ninth-century capital cannot represent every Islamicate community, region or historical period.
Access and review notes
The Berlin archive preserves the Sarre-Herzfeld excavation records. Its pages are not separate independent studies, and access does not settle object-acquisition history or photographic reuse rights.
Read the evidence
Source links apply to specific claims. Several links can lead back to the same study. Read what each source supports.
Samarra preserves a large Abbasid urban landscape including palaces and major mosques.
What remains uncertain
One ninth-century capital cannot represent every Islamicate community, region or historical period.
Method and source passage
Institutional primary description; introductory synthesis
Description and statement of Outstanding Universal Value
The excavation archive records pottery, painted and plaster fragments as well as major buildings; the capital can be approached through materials alongside its skyline.
What remains uncertain
Archival photographs require object/context and provenance review before broad economic or social interpretations.
Method and source passage
Primary research or collection account; access and inference limits apply
Contextualising Archaeological Finds; Samarra historical introduction
Berlin's digitization links roughly 1,500 excavation photographs with find records, making the history of documentation part of the reader's evidence trail.
What remains uncertain
Digital accessibility does not itself authorize image reuse or resolve the acquisition history of excavated objects.
Method and source passage
Primary research or collection account; access and inference limits apply
Contextualising Archaeological Finds; Samarra historical introduction
Questions that remain
- What can the footprint of a capital reveal?
- Which independent evidence would refine or challenge this account?
Settlement
The size of a capital and the materials found within it answer different questions about institutions and daily activity.
Limit: One ninth-century capital cannot represent every Islamicate community, region or historical period.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Samarra ↓Material traces
The excavation archive records pottery, painted and plaster fragments as well as major buildings; the capital can be approached through materials alongside its skyline.
Limit: Archival photographs require object/context and provenance review before broad economic or social interpretations.
Museum für Islamische Kunst: Digitising Samarra excavation photographs ↓How the evidence survives
Berlin's digitization links roughly 1,500 excavation photographs with find records, making the history of documentation part of the reader's evidence trail.
Limit: Digital accessibility does not itself authorize image reuse or resolve the acquisition history of excavated objects.
Museum für Islamische Kunst: Digitising Samarra excavation photographs ↓Sources you can inspect
UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Samarra ↗
Samarra preserves a large Abbasid urban landscape including palaces and major mosques.
- Passage or section
- Description and statement of Outstanding Universal Value
Access and source overlap
Institutional primary web account inspected 27 October 2026; no fieldwork or independent peer review claimed
Several links may describe the same research. Shared authors or data can limit how much independent confirmation they provide.
Museum für Islamische Kunst: Digitising Samarra excavation photographs ↗
Museum's excavation archive connects photographs and excavated objects and gives the capital interval as 836–892.
- Passage or section
- Contextualising Archaeological Finds; Samarra historical introduction
Access and source overlap
Museum research-project description, dates and digitization inventory inspected
Several links may describe the same research. Shared authors or data can limit how much independent confirmation they provide.