ABSTRACT
It is well known that the ancient Near Eastern architects left us no theoretical treatises on building or on buildings. The ensuing difficulties for archaeologists attempting a reconstruction of the built-up surroundings of ancient community life are twofold: one has to conjecture what a building looked like, starting from a scratchy plan; and the functions of the building and its various sectors are often quite unclear. The relationship between form and function is difficult to establish — and this is typically a matter in which a body of theory could enlighten us 1 .
