Historical place profile
Nimrud
In the ninth century BC, Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883-859 BC) built himself a new administrative center. Kalhu (biblical Calah) — modern Nimrud, a site identified as Larissa, a city mentioned in Xenophon’s Anabasis — became the capital of the Assyrian Empire, replacing Ashur, which had served as Assyria’s capital since the third millennium BC. The city — which is located twenty miles south of the modern Mosul and which occupied a strategic position six miles north of the point where the Tigris River meets the Greater/Upper Zab — served as Assyria’s capital until the reign of Sargon II (r. 721–705 BC). Although Kalhu never again became the primary residence of Assyria’s kings, that city remained a vital administrative, military, and religious center until the fall of the Assyrian Empire.
Record details
- Research ID
- catholon:place:pleiades:894019
- Catalogue ID
- pleiades:894019
- Place type
- archaeological-site, settlement
- Coordinates
- 36.099975, 43.331535
- Precision
- precise
- Locator semantics
- representative_point_not_boundary
Historical description
In the ninth century BC, Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883-859 BC) built himself a new administrative center. Kalhu (biblical Calah) — modern Nimrud, a site identified as Larissa, a city mentioned in Xenophon’s Anabasis — became the capital of the Assyrian Empire, replacing Ashur, which had served as Assyria’s capital since the third millennium BC. The city — which is located twenty miles south of the modern Mosul and which occupied a strategic position six miles north of the point where the Tigris River meets the Greater/Upper Zab — served as Assyria’s capital until the reign of Sargon II (r. 721–705 BC). Although Kalhu never again became the primary residence of Assyria’s kings, that city remained a vital administrative, military, and religious center until the fall of the Assyrian Empire.
Geographic evidence
The coordinates are a representative_point_not_boundary. They identify a research anchor and do not by themselves assert an ancient administrative boundary or the full extent of the settlement.
Provenance: Barrington Atlas: BAtlas 91 E1 Kalhu/Calah/‘Larisa’?
Source and reuse
This profile derives from the Pleiades current GIS record, licensed CC BY 3.0. Pleiades place record The profile preserves the source name, point, type, description, precision and provenance without silently adding a boundary reconstruction.
Research path
Compare this place with the chronological map at the relevant year, nearby political units, routes, institutions and the period portals. Where the source record is silent about jurisdiction, population or ecclesiastical rank, this profile makes no such claim.
Phase II — chronological and spatial research layer
Historical problem
In the ninth century BC, Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883-859 BC) built himself a new administrative center. Kalhu (biblical Calah) — modern Nimrud, a site identified as Larissa, a city mentioned in Xenophon’s Anabasis — became the capital of the Assyrian Empire, replacing Ashur, which had served as Assyria’s capital since the third millennium BC. The city — which is located twenty miles south of the modern Mosul and which occupied a strategic position six miles north of the point where the Tigris River meets the Greater/Upper Zab — served as Assyria’s capital until the reign of Sargon II (r. 721–705 BC). Although Kalhu never again became the primary residence of Assyria’s kings, that city remained a vital administrative, military, and religious center until the fall of the Assyrian Empire.
Spatial reading
The record classifies this location as archaeological-site, settlement with precise point precision. The coordinate is a research anchor, not a timeless urban, political or ecclesiastical boundary.
Source path
Geographic provenance: Barrington Atlas: BAtlas 91 E1 Kalhu/Calah/‘Larisa’?. The place should be compared with the active time slice, routes, neighbouring polities, institutions and dated textual witnesses.
Questions for further dossier work
- Which occupation phases are directly attested at this coordinate?
- Which ancient or medieval names refer to the same site, and which remain disputed?
- Which political and ecclesiastical jurisdictions changed over time?
- Which routes, ports or regional centres explain the place’s historical importance?