Birhurtura (, ḪI×ŠE-ḪI×AŠ₂-tur-ra; sometimes written as ''BIRHARtura'') was a royal guard of

Gilgamesh sux, , label=none , image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg , alt = , caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...

Uruk Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...

. His military exploits are recorded in the Sumerian poem

Gilgamesh and Aga Gilgamesh and Aga, sometimes referred to as incipit The envoys of Aga ( Sumerian: ''lu2 kin-gi4-a aka'') is an Old Babylonian poem written in Sumerian. The only one of the five poems of Gilgamesh that has no mythological aspects, it has been th ...

, where

Kish Kish may refer to: Geography * Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish * Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish * Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf * Kish, Iran, ...

besieged Uruk to enslave the city into irrigation works.

Name

Jacobsen has identified the name as ''Caterpillar''.

Siege of Uruk

Aga Aga or AGA may refer to: Business * Architectural Glass and Aluminum (AGA), a glazing contractor, established in 1970 * AGA (automobile), ''Autogen Gasaccumulator AG'', 1920s German car company *AGA AB, ''Aktiebolaget Svenska Gasaccumulator'', a ...

sent messengers to

with a demand to work on the irrigation of

as slaves.

goes to the assembly of elders to suggest revealing himself against Aga, however, this proposition is rejected. Gilgamesh, not satisfied with the answer, and trusting the goddess

Inanna Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...

, goddess of Uruk, proposes the same to the ''guruš'' (lit. the able-bodied men). These accept and name Gilgamesh

Lugal Lugal ( Sumerian: ) is the Sumerian term for "king, ruler". Literally, the term means "big man." In Sumerian, ''lu'' "𒇽" is "man" and ''gal'' "𒃲" is "great," or "big." It was one of several Sumerian titles that a ruler of a city-state could ...

(

𒈗 Lugal ( Sumerian: ) is the Sumerian term for "king, ruler". Literally, the term means "big man." In Sumerian, ''lu'' "𒇽" is "man" and ''gal'' " 𒃲" is "great," or "big." It was one of several Sumerian titles that a ruler of a city-state cou ...

). After four days Aga leads his army to the walls of Uruk. Gilgamesh asks for a volunteer to distract Aga, whose mission Birhurtura fulfills. On leaving the city, he is captured and brought before Aga himself, who interrogates and tortures him. A man leans over the rampart; Aga, confused, asks Birhurtura if he is his king.

Aga saw him and then spoke to Birhur-tura: ''Slave, is that man your king?'' Birhur-tura then speaks: ''That man is not my king!'' ''Were that man my king?'' ''Were that his angry brow?'' ''Were those his bison eyes?'' ''Were that his lapis lazuli beard?'' ''Were those his elegant fingers?'' ''Would he not cast down multitudes?'' ''Would he not raise up multitudes?'' ''Would multitudes not be smeared with dust?'' ''Would not all the nations be overwhelmed?'' ''Would not the land's canal-mouths be filled with silt?'' ''Would not the barges' prows be broken?'' ''And would he not take Aga, ''The king of Kish,'' ''Captive in the midst of his army?''

Gilgamesh leans to the wall, and his divine radiance is beheld by Aga.

Enkidu Enkidu ( sux, ''EN.KI.DU10'') was a legendary figure in ancient Mesopotamian mythology, wartime comrade and friend of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk. Their exploits were composed in Sumerian poems and in the Akkadian ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', writte ...

takes advantage on the diversion and breaks against the enemy army. Gilgamesh captures Aga in the middle of the battle. Finally, Aga reminds him of favors he has done to him in the past, and Gilgamesh sets him free. While the text does not describe explicitly how Enkidu charged against the enemy troops, Birhurtura’s actions are understood as a depiction to Aga. According to Heimpel, tricking opponents for a dramatic turn in the development of the plot is a recurrent motif in

Sumerian literature Sumerian literature constitutes the earliest known corpus of recorded literature, including the religious writings and other traditional stories maintained by the Sumerian civilization and largely preserved by the later Akkadian and Babylonian em ...

, as for example, Enki’s trick to release Inanna from the netherworld, Inanna tricking Enki to gain his Me, and Gilgamesh himself for striking

Huwawa In Ancient Mesopotamian religion, Humbaba ( Assyrian spelling), also spelled Huwawa ( Sumerian spelling) and surnamed ''the Terrible'', was a monstrous giant of immemorial age raised by Utu, the Sun / justice / truth god. Humbaba was the guardi ...

.Heimpel 1981

References

{{reflist

External links

ETCSL - Text and translation of ''Gilgamesh and Aga''
Royal guards Uruk Sumerian people