College of Engineering Organizes a Field Trip for Architecture Students to Dur-Kurigalzu (Ziggurat of Aqar Quf) and the Abbasid Palace in Baghdad

The Department of Architecture Engineering at the University of Samarra organized a field trip for first-year students (both morning and evening studies) to the historic Ziggurat of Aqar Quf and the Abbasid Palace in the capital, Baghdad. This initiative is part of the scientific and extracurricular activities aimed at linking academic knowledge with historical and cultural reality.
The students were accompanied on this visit by a delegation of professors and engineers, including: Assistant Professor Dr. Raed Abdullah, Lecturer Dr. Suhail Najm Abdullah, Lecturer Dr. Ali Majid Hamid, Lecturer Mustafa Saadi Abdul Muhsin, Lecturer Raoof Abdul Razzaq Nouri, and Engineer Maria Salem Dawoud.
The field tour aimed to introduce students to the most prominent archaeological and heritage landmarks in Iraq, providing them with the opportunity to observe firsthand the planning, architectural, and structural characteristics of these sites, which represent significant milestones in the history of Iraqi and Islamic civilizations.
At the Ziggurat of Aqar Quf site, the students learned about the city’s history and its importance as a prominent architectural model of Mesopotamian architecture. Meanwhile, the tour of the Abbasid Palace included exploring the details of Islamic architecture of that era, characterized by structural and decorative treatments, arches, and vaults that reflect the evolution of architectural thought, alongside discussing ways to preserve and revive heritage buildings to serve cultural and tourism development.
At the same time, the visit witnessed outstanding interaction from the students through scientific discussions and field observations that focused on the close relationship between architecture, history, and cultural identity. This actively contributes to developing their professional awareness and enhancing their appreciation of the importance of Iraqi cultural heritage as a primary source of inspiration in their future architectural studies and projects.