The best indication of the function of the ziggurats comes from the names given to them. For instance, the name of the ziggurat at Babylon, Etemenanki, means “temple of the foundation of heaven and earth.” One at Larsa means “temple which links heaven and earth.” Most significant is the name of the ziggurat at Sippar, “temple of the stairway to pure heaven.” The word translated “stairway” here was used in the mythology as the means by which the messenger of the gods moved between heaven, earth, and