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Eshnunna
Eshnunna (also Esnunak) (modern Tell Asmar in Diyala Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian (and later Akkadian) city and city-state in central Mesopotamia 12.6 miles northwest of Tell Agrab and 15 miles northwest of Tell Ishchali. Although situated in the Diyala Valley northwest of Sumer proper, the city nonetheless belonged securely within the Sumerian cultural milieu. It is sometimes, in very early archaeological papers, called Ashnunnak or Tupliaš. The tutelary deity of the city was Tishpak (Tišpak) though other gods, including Sin, Adad, and Inanna of Kiti ( Kitītum) were also worshiped there. The personal goddesses of the rulers were Belet-Šuḫnir and Belet-Terraban. History Early Bronze Inhabited since the Jemdet Nasr period, around 3000 BC, Eshnunna was a major city during the Early Dynastic period of Mesopotamia. It is known, from cuneiform records and excavations, that the city was occupied in the Akkadian period though its extent was noticeably le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tishpak
Tishpak (Tišpak) was a Mesopotamian god associated with the ancient city Eshnunna and its sphere of influence, located in the Diyala area of Iraq. He was primarily a war deity, but he was also associated with snakes, including the mythical mushussu and bashmu, and with kingship. Tishpak was of neither Sumerian nor Akkadian origin and displaced Eshnunna's original tutelary god, Ninazu. Their iconography and character were similar, though they were not formally regarded as identical in most Mesopotamian sources. Origin It is commonly assumed that initially the tutelary deity of Eshnunna was Ninazu, worshiped in the temple Esikil. From the Sargonic period onward, Tishpak competed with Ninazu in that location, and the latter finally ceased to be mentioned in documents from it after Hammurabi's conquest. While similar in character, Ninazu and Tishpak were not fully conflated, and unlike Inanna and Ishtar or Enki and Ea were kept apart in god lists. It is generally agreed by sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tell Ishchali
Tell Ishchali (also Iščāli or Šaǧālī) is an archaeological site in Diyala Province (Iraq) a few hundred meters from the Diyala River, a tributary of the Tigris, and 3 miles south by southeast from the ancient city of Khafajah. It is thought to be ancient Nērebtum or Kiti and was, for part of its history, under the control of the city-state of Eshnunna which lies about 20 miles to the northeast. It is known to have been occupied during the Isin-Larsa period and Old Babylonian Empire, Old Babylonian period with excavations ending before earlier levels were reached. Tell Ischali lies about southeast of the modern city of Baghdad. Ancient name At first, the site of Ishchali was confused with Tutub (now known to be at Khafajah). Upon discovery of a date formula that read "year that king Ishme-Bali built the great wall of Nerebtum", that designation gained some support, although the temple dedicated to Inanna suggested Kiti as another possible toponym. Currently, scholarly opini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bilalama
Bilalama was a 20th century BCE ruler of Eshnunna, an ancient Mesopotamian kingdom located in the Diyala Valley in modern Iraq. Background It is assumed that Bilalama was a contemporary of Ishbi-Erra and Shu-Ilishu of Isin. He was the son of the previous ruler of Eshnunna, Kirikiri. The names of both Bilalama and Kirikiri are Elamite, which according to Katrin de Graef might indicate that a dynastic change occurred in the city after the reign of their predecessor . However, it is not clear if they necessarily were Elamites themselves, or if their names only reflect a high level of Elamite cultural influence on Eshnunna. Bilalama married a daughter of Abda-El, an Amorite chieftain who earlier for diplomatic reasons had his son Ušašum marry a daughter of Nūr-aḫum. Both marriages were most likely meant to guarantee positive relations between the rulers of Eshnunna and the local Amorite groups. Two children of Bilalama are known. His daughter, married king of Elam, as docu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kitītum
Kitītum was a Mesopotamian goddess closely associated with Tell Ishchali. Her name was derived from the oldest known name of this site, Kiti. It is assumed she originated as a local form of Inanna, as indicated by the designation "Inanna of Kiti" known from texts from Eshnunna, though it has also been argued that her character was influenced by the Hurrian deity Šauška. A temple dedicated to her has been discovered during the excavations of Tell Ishchali. It is one of the largest Old Babylonian temples known, but remained in use for only 150 years. It was most likely destroyed in 1762 BCE, during the war between Ibal-pi-el II of Eshnunna and Hammurabi of Babylon. Name and character The theonym Kitītum was spelled as '' dki-ti-tum'' in cuneiform. Her name was derived from the toponym Kiti. While texts from Tell Ishchali refer to the goddess as Kitītum, these discovered in Tell Asmar (Eshnunna) instead call her "Inanna of Kiti", dINANNA ''ki-ti''. However, the temple admini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khafajah
Khafajah or Khafaje (), ancient Tutub, is an archaeological site in Diyala Governorate, Iraq east of Baghdad. Khafajah lies on the Diyala River, a tributary of the Tigris. Occupied from the Uruk period, Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods through the end of the Old Babylonian Empire, it was under the control of the Akkadian Empire and then the Third Dynasty of Ur in the 3rd millennium BC. It then became part of the empire of the city-state of Eshnunna lying southwest of that city, about from the ancient city of Shaduppum, and near Tell Ishchali, both of which Eshnunna also controlled. It then fell to First Babylonian Empire before falling into disuse. The city of Tutub is mentioned in a fragmentary Sumerian temple hymn "... To the shrine Nippur, to the Duranki , To ..., to the brickwork of Tutub , To the lofty Abzu ...". Archaeology Khafajah was excavated for 7 seasons between 1930 and 1937 by an Oriental Institute of Chicago team led by Henri Frankfort with Thorkild Jacobsen, Conrad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belet-Šuḫnir And Belet-Terraban
Belet-Šuḫnir and Belet-Terraban were a pair of Mesopotamian goddesses best known from the archives of the Third Dynasty of Ur, but presumed to originate further north, possibility in the proximity of modern Kirkuk and ancient Eshnunna. Their names are usually assumed to be derived from cities where they were originally worshiped. Both in ancient sources, such as ritual texts, seal inscriptions and god lists, and in modern scholarship, they are typically treated as a pair. In addition to Ur and Eshnunna, both of them are also attested in texts from Susa in Elam. Their character remains poorly understood due to scarcity of sources, though it has been noted that the tone of many festivals dedicated to them was "lugubrious," which might point at an association with the underworld. Names The names of Belet-Šuḫnir and Belet-Terraban, written conventionally as '' dBe-la-at-Šuḫ-nir'' and ''dBe-la-at-Dar-ra-ba-an'', can be translated as, respectively, "lady of Šuḫnir" and "lady ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sin (mythology)
Sin () or Suen (, ) also known as Nanna ( ) is the Mesopotamian god representing the moon. While these two names originate in two different languages, respectively Akkadian language, Akkadian and Sumerian language, Sumerian, they were already used interchangeably to refer to one deity in the Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia), Early Dynastic period. They were sometimes combined into the double name Nanna-Suen. A third well attested name is Dilimbabbar (). Additionally, the name of the moon god could be represented by logograms reflecting his lunar character, such as d30 (), referring to days in the lunar month or dU4.SAKAR (), derived from a term referring to the crescent. In addition to his astral role, Sin was also closely associated with cattle herding. Furthermore, there is some evidence that he could serve as a judge of the dead in the Ancient Mesopotamian underworld, underworld. A distinct tradition in which he was regarded either as a god of equal status as the usual hea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tell Agrab
Tell Agrab (or Aqrab) is a tell or settlement mound southeast of Eshnunna in the Diyala region of Iraq. It is about 15 miles southeast of Tell Asmar, ancient Eshnunna. It has been suggested that the ancient name of the site was PA.GAR. History Tell Agrab was occupied during the Jemdet Nasr and Early Dynastic periods through the Akkadian and Larsa periods. It was during the Early Dynastic period that monumental building occurred, including the Shara Temple. There is no evidence that it was occupied after the end of the third millennium BC. Archaeology The site of Tell Agrab is encompassed by a rectangle with a height of around . It was surrounded by a fortification wall made of plano-convex bricks and with defensive towers every 19 meters. Though it had been subject to illegal digging earlier with materials from there appearing with Baghdad antiquities dealers, the site was officially excavated between 1935 and 1937 by a team from the Oriental Institute of Chicago which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diyala River
The Diyala (Arabic: ; ; Farsi: , ) is a river and tributary of the Tigris. It is formed by the confluence of the Sirwan and Tanjaro rivers in Darbandikhan Dam in the Sulaymaniyah Governorate of Northern Iraq. It covers a total distance of . Course It rises near Hamadan, in the Zagros Mountains of Iran. It then descends through the mountains, where for some 32 km it forms the border between the two countries. It finally flows into the Tigris below Baghdad. Navigation of the upper reaches of the Diyala is not possible because of its narrow defiles, but the river's valley provides an important trade route between Iran and Iraq. The river flows southwest of the Hamrin Mountains. Name Its Aramaic origin is "Diyalas" and in Kurdish it is called "Sirwan", meaning 'roaring sea' or 'shouting river'. In the early Islamic period, the lower course of the river formed part of the Nahrawan Canal. The Diyala Governorate in Iraq is named after the river. It may be the ancient Tornas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia)
The Early Dynastic Period (abbreviated ED Period or ED) is an archaeological culture in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) that is generally dated to and was preceded by the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods. It saw the development of writing and the formation of the first cities and states. The ED itself was characterized by the existence of multiple city-states: small states with a relatively simple structure that developed and solidified over time. This development ultimately led, directly after this period, to broad Mesopotamian unification under the rule of Sargon, the first monarch of the Akkadian Empire. Despite their political fragmentation, the ED city-states shared a relatively homogeneous material culture. Sumerian cities such as Uruk, Ur, Lagash, Umma, and Nippur located in Lower Mesopotamia were very powerful and influential. To the north and west stretched states centered on cities such as Kish, Mari, Nagar, and Ebla. The study of Central and Lower Mesopotamia has l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. Like nearby Elam, it is one of the Cradle of civilization, cradles of civilization, along with ancient Egypt, Egypt, the Indus Valley Civilisation, Indus Valley, the Erligang culture of the Yellow River valley, Caral-Supe civilization, Caral-Supe, and Mesoamerica. Living along the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Sumerian farmers grew an abundance of grain and other crops, a surplus of which enabled them to form urban settlements. The world's earliest known texts come from the Sumerian cities of Uruk and Jemdet Nasr, and date to between , following a period of proto-writing . Name The term "Sumer" () comes from the Akkadian Empire, Akkadian name for the "Sumerians", the ancient non-Semitic languages, Semitic-speaking inhabitan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Third Dynasty Of Ur
The Third Dynasty of Ur or Ur III was a Sumerian dynasty based in the city of Ur in the 22nd and 21st centuries BC ( middle chronology). For a short period they were the preeminent power in Mesopotamia and their realm is sometimes referred to by historians as the Neo-Sumerian Empire. The Third Dynasty of Ur is commonly abbreviated as "Ur III" by historians studying the period. It is numbered in reference to previous dynasties, such as the First Dynasty of Ur (26-25th century BC), but it seems the once supposed Second Dynasty of Ur was never recorded. The Third Dynasty of Ur was the last Sumerian dynasty which came to preeminent power in Mesopotamia. It began after several centuries of control, exerted first by the Akkadian Empire, and then, after its fall, by Gutian and independent Sumerian city-state kings. It controlled the cities of Isin, Larsa, and Eshnunna and extended as far north as Upper Mesopotamia. The Ur III provinces, from north to south were Sippar, Tiwe, Urum, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
