UTU
![](Tablet_of_Shamash_(2).jpg)
Representation
of Shamash from the Tablet of Shamash (c. 888 – 855 BC), showing
him sitting on his throne dispensing justice while clutching a rod-and-ring
symbol
Other
names : Shamash, Amna
Major cult center : Sippar and Larsa
Abode : Heaven
Planet : Sun
Symbol : saw, rays of light, solar disc and winged sun
Number : 20
Mount : Sun chariot
Personal
information
Parents
: Nanna and Ningal
Siblings : Inanna/Ishtar (twin sister), Manzat
(in a single Maqlû incantation) and Pinikir (through syncretism
with Ishtar)
Consort
: Aya/Sherida
Children : Mamu, Kittum, Sisig, Zaqar, Šumugan
and Ishum
Equivalents
Hurrian
equivalent : Šimige
Ugaritic equivalent : Shapash
Hittite equivalent : Sun goddess of Arinna, Sun
goddess of the Earth and Sun god of Heaven
Luwian equivalent : Tiwat
Elamite equivalent : Nahhunte
Utu
("Sun"), also known under the Akkadian name Shamash, was
the ancient Mesopotamian sun god. He was believed to see everything
that happened in the world every day, and was therefore responsible
for justice and protection of travelers. As a divine judge, he could
be associated with the underworld. Additionally, he could serve
as the god of divination, typically alongside the weather god Adad.
While he was universally regarded as one of the primary gods, he
was particularly venerated in Sippar and Larsa.
The
moon god Nanna (Sin) and his wife Ningal were regarded as his parents,
while his twin sister was Inanna (Ishtar). Occasionally other goddesses,
such as Manzat and Pinikir, could be regarded as his sisters too.
The dawn goddess Aya (Sherida) was his wife, and multiple texts
describe their daily reunions taking place on a mountain where the
sun was believed to set. Among their children were Kittum, the personification
of truth, dream deities such as Mamu, as well as the god Ishum.
Utu's name could be used to write the names of many foreign solar
deities logographically. The connection between him and the Hurrian
solar god Shimige is particularly well attested, and the latter
could be associated with Aya as well.
While
no myths focusing on Utu are known, he often appears as an ally
of other figures in both Sumerian and Akkadian compositions. According
to narratives about Dumuzi's death, he helped protect him when the
galla demons tried to drag him to the underworld. In various versions
of the Epic of Gilgamesh and in earlier Gilgamesh myths, he helps
this hero defeat the monstrous Humbaba. In the myth Inanna and An,
he helps his sister acquire the temple Eanna. In How Grain Came
to Sumer, he is invoked to advise Ninazu and Ninmada.
Name
:
The two most common names of the sun god used in Mesopotamian texts
are Sumerian Utu and Akkadian Shamash. A further relatively commonly
attested name is Amna, whose origin is uncertain.
The
name Shamash is a cognate of Akkadian terms šamšu ("sun")
and šamšatu ("solar disc"), as well as the words
referring to sun in other Semitic languages, such as Arabic šams
and Hebrew šemeš. The linguistic connection between the
name of the god and the corresponding celestial body has been compared
to that between Adad (and Syrian Hadad) and the word addu, "storm."
The Amorite form of the name is Samsu, as attested for example in
the theophoric name Samsu-iluna ("Samsu is our god").
The ancient Aramaic form of the name was most likely Sameš,
though many variant syllabic spellings are attested. Additionally,
the name for the sun in Mandaean cosmology, Shamish, is derived
from Akkadian Shamash.
Utu
was understood as a masculine deity. According to Manfred Krebernik,
this most likely also resulted in his Akkadian counterpart being
viewed as such, even though in the majority of Semitic languages
both the word referring to the sun itself and names of solar deities
are grammatically feminine. Julia M. Asher-Greve considers this
the oldest attested example of a Mesopotamian deity's gender being
impacted by syncretism. However, not all researchers agree with
the assumption that the name Shamash was ever understood as referring
to a female deity in Akkadian-speaking areas. Christopher Woods
argues that the only available evidence are early ambiguous theophoric
names, which according to him do not necessarily point at the existence
of female Shamash, and might omit prepositions necessary to identify
the gender of the deity invoked in them. Manfred Krebernik notes
that a well known example of a female deity in what he deems the
"cuneiform cultural sphere" is Shapash. At the same time,
both the Amorites and the Arameans viewed the solar deity as male,
like Sumerians and Akkadians.
According
to Manfred Krebernik, the name Amna, attested as a synonym of Utu
in the god list An = Anum and used to refer to the sun god in an
inscription of Nabonidus, might be either connected to the toponym
Sippar-Amnanum or to a root attested in Northwest Semitic languages,
'-m-n, which can be translated as "to be reliable" or
"to be firm."
The
most common writing of the sun god's name was the logogram dUTU,
which could be read as Utu, Shamash, or, as attested in the god
list An = Anum, as Amna. Syllabic spellings of all three of these
names are also known. A further logographic spelling used the numeral
20, which was associated with him. Dozens of other variant names,
epithets or possibly minor deities who came to be seen as synonymous
with Utu are attested in god lists. Examples include Karkara (possibly
related to Ninkar, one of the names of his wife Aya), Nimindu (possibly
related to the name of the goddess Nimintabba), Si'e ("who
shines forth"), ?alam (possibly a name referring to a winged
sun symbol) and U'e ("sunrise").
Character
:
The sun god was one of the principal deities of the Mesopotamian
pantheon. In the Early Dynastic god list from Fara, he is the sixth
among the deities listed, after Anu, Enlil, Inanna, Enki and Nanna.
In later god lists, for example in An = Anum, he and his circle
appears between Nanna (Sin) and Ishkur (Adad). The Old Babylonian
Nippur god list instead places him between Ishkur and Ninurta. Despite
Utu's typical high status, it is agreed that the role of the sun
and deities representing it in Mesopotamian religion was not comparable
to that known from ancient Egyptian religion. Based on the attestations
of theophoric names such as Shamash-bel-ili (Akkadian: "Shamash
is the lord of the gods"), Shamash-Enlil-ili ("Shamash
is the Enlil of the gods") and Shamash-ashared-ili ("Shamash
is the foremost of the gods"), Wilfred G. Lambert proposed
that a tradition in which he was the supreme god of the pantheon
did exist, but never found official support and its spread was limited
to the clergy in Sippar and to a smaller degree Larsa.
Common
epithets characterize Utu as a "youth" (Sumerian šul,
Akkadian e?lu) and "hero" (Sumerian ursag, Akkadian qarradu).
As a representation of the sun, he was believed to travel every
day through the sky from east to west, and at night in the opposite
direction through AN.ŠAG4, a "nether sky" located
directly above the underworld, though the notion of a night journey
only developed later, and in sources from the third millennium BCE
Utu usually rests at night. A reference to the latter tradition
is also known from the "Standard Babylonian" version of
the Epic of Gilgamesh, where Shamash meets with his wife Aya after
sunset. Utu's vehicle was a solar chariot, which was pulled by four
animals bearing the Sumerian names Uhegalanna ("the abundant
light of heaven"), Uhushgalanna ("the terrifying great
light of heaven"), Usurmurgalanna ("the dreadful great
light of heaven") and Unirgalanna ("the noble light of
heaven"). Their species is not entirely consistent, though
in most cases the sun chariot is apparently associated with equids:
"choice steeds" (niskum) in an inscription of Gudea, horses
in various prayers and incantations, and mules in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
Manfred Krebernik argues that in early sources, his chariot was
drawn by lions, but this has been questioned by Marco Bonechi. Nathan
Wasserman in his translation of a fragment of a hymn to Utu mentioning
the animals only refers to them as "beasts." Sunrise and
sunset were described as the sun god passing through cosmic gates
situated on twin mountains on the opposite ends of the world. It
was believed that his daily journey let him see everything happening
on earth. He was also responsible for protection of travelers. Formulas
common in both prayers and literary compositions indicate that he
was likely often invoked outside temples, presumably as an astral
body. Early morning was likely regarded as the most appropriate
time for imploring him for help.
Utu
was also the primary god of justice, presumably because due to traveling
through the sky every day he was believed to see everything that
happened in the world. He could be assisted in this role by his
father Nanna, his sister Inanna, and various minor judge deities.
At least in the third millennium BCE, Ishtaran was regarded as a
divine judge equal in rank to Utu, and a fragment of a myth from
Ebla mentions a divine tribunal in which they both partake alongside
Idlurugu (dÍD), a river god also known for his association
with justice and judgment who represented ordeal by water. A hymn
to Utu states that Idlurugu cannot give judgment without his presence.
As an extension of his role as a divine judge, Utu could be associated
with the underworld, though this connection is not attested before
the Old Babylonian period. In exorcisms, he could be implored to
help with bringing restless ghosts to the land of the dead. In this
capacity he could be associated with the deified legendary king
Gilgamesh, commonly portrayed in a similar role.
Shamash
and Adad were jointly regarded as gods of divination, especially
extispicy. The connection between the sun god and the weather god
is well attested in Mesopotamian sources and goes back to the Old
Babylonian period. Its origin is uncertain, but since in the earliest
Sumerian sources Ishkur, who was analogous to Adad, was not associated
with divination, it is possible that it was based on the association
between Hadad and the solar deity in Ebla and possibly elsewhere
in Syria and Upper Mesopotamia. According to a late ritual text,
Shamash and Adad were responsible for teaching divination to the
mythical king Enmeduranki. Subsequently, he taught it to the people
of Sippar, Nippur and Babylon.
Iconography
:
![](Fired_clay_statue_of_a_seated_god,_probably_Shamash._From_Ur,_Iraq._Old-Babylonian_period,_2000-1750_BCE.jpg)
Fired
clay statue of a seated god, probably Shamash. From Ur, Iraq. Old-Babylonian
period, 2000 - 1750 BCE. British Museum
Whether referred to as Utu or Shamash, the sun god had identical
iconography. Due to distinct attributes, he is considered one of
the few Mesopotamian deities who can be identified in art with certainty.
Depictions of him are known from many sites, for example Eshnunna,
Tell al-Rimah, Sippar, Ur and Susa. His best attested attributes
are a large saw (šaššaru) and rays of light emanating
from his shoulders. The reasons behind associating him with the
former are poorly understood, and various interpretations have been
proposed, for example that it was a representation of the first
ray of sunshine of the day, that it was associated with judgment,
perhaps as a weapon used to behead criminals, or that the sun god
used it to break through the mountains during his daily journey.
Christopher Woods points out that both in Sumerian and Akkadian,
judgments had to be "cut" (kud/parasum), and therefore
considers the association with judgment to be most likely. The saw's
presence is often used to identify depictions of gods as Utu. He
could also be depicted holding the rod-and-ring symbol, commonly
associated with major deities. In some cases he is shown handing
them to human rulers.
Utu
was commonly depicted on cylinder seals as early as in the third
millennium BCE. Multiple motifs recur on them, some not known from
textual sources. On seals from the Sargonic period, he could be
depicted climbing over two mountains, which has been interpreted
as a representation of sunrise. He was also commonly depicted traveling
in a boat. This motif is the single best attested type of cylinder
seal image from the third millennium BCE, with over fifty examples
presently known. Another recurring image is a depiction of Utu,
sometimes accompanied by another god, partaking in a battle between
deities. The attendant deity is sometimes interpreted as Bunene.
In some cases Inanna is shown watching the battle or partaking in
it on Utu's side. It has been suggested that it is a symbolic representation
of a conflict between day and night, or that the deities confronted
by Utu and his allies are rebellious mountain gods. Wilfred G. Lambert
suggested that in some cases figures from battle scenes with rays
emanating from their shoulders might be representations of Enmesharra
rather than the sun god, as in a tradition known from a late myth,
Enmesharra's Defeat, he was their original owner.
In
the second millennium BCE, Utu was typically portrayed in front
of worshipers, either standing or seated on a throne. One well known
example of such an image is a stele of Hammurabi of Babylon, inscribed
with his legal code.
Anna
Kurmangaliev points out that only a single depiction of the sun
god in anthropomorphic form has been identified among works of art
from Babylonia from the first millennium BCE, the so-called Sun
God Tablet. It is commonly discussed in scholarship, and has been
described as "one of the masterpieces of ancient Near Eastern
art.” It was discovered by Hormuzd Rassam in December 1880
during his excavations in Abu Habbah in modern Iraq. Its discovery
subsequently made it possible to identify this site with Sippar.
It dates to the Neo-Babylonian period, but its style has been described
as "archaizing," and most likely was inspired by motifs
found in presentation scenes from the Ur III period. It shows three
individuals, an intercessory minor goddess (lamma) and two men,
possibly the king Nabu-apla-iddina and the priest Nabu-nadin-shumi,
facing Shamash. While other anthropomorphic depictions of the sun
god are known from Assyria from the same period, in Babylonia he
came to be usually portrayed in the form of a symbol instead.
The
symbolic representation of Utu was the sun disc, typically represented
as a four-pointed star with wavy lines placed between the points.
It is attested as early as in the Sargonic period, and continued
to be represented in art through the rest of history of ancient
Mesopotamia. It is well known from kudurru (boundary stones),
where it is typically depicted in the first row of symbols, next
to the eight-pointed star representing Inanna (Ishtar) and the
crescent representing Nanna (Sin). Additionally the symbol of
a winged sun came to be associated with the sun god in Assyria
in the first millennium BCE. Some depictions of it add a bird
tail as well. It only arrived in Babylonia during the reign of
Nabonidus.
![](640px-Ea_(Babilonian)Enki_(Sumerian).jpg)
Detail
of a cylinder seal from Sippar (2300 BC) depicting Shamash with
rays rising from his shoulders and holding a saw-toothed knife with
which he cuts his way through the mountains of the east at dawn
(British Museum)
![](466px-P1050763_Louvre_code_Hammurabi_face_rwk.jpeg)
A stele of Hammurabi depicting Shamash (right)
Old
Babylonian cylinder seal impression depicting Shamash surrounded
by worshippers
(c. 1850 - 1598 BC)
Mesopotamian
limestone cylinder seal and impression showing people worshipping
Shamash (Louvre)
![](640px-Detail,_upper_part._Kudurru_of_Ritti-Marduk,_from_Sippar,_Iraq,_1125-1104_BCE._British_Museum.jpg)
The solar symbol of Shamash (right) on a kudurru
![](Shamash.jpg)
Male
figure in an Assyrian winged sun emblem (Northwest Palace of Nimrud,
9th century BC)
Associations
with other deities :
Family :
The sun god was traditionally viewed as a son of the moon god in
Mesopotamian religion, both in Sumerian and Akkadian texts. They
are already attested as father and son in the Early Dynastic god
list from Fara. The relation between them could be illustrated by
matching epithets, for example in the god list An = Anum Utu is
the "small boat of heaven" (Mabanda-anna), while his father
Nanna - the "great boat of heaven" (Magula-anna).
Ningal was regarded as Utu's mother, and Inanna as his sister. Hymn
to the Queen of Nippur refers to them as twins. Due to her identification
with Ishtar (Inanna) the Hurrian and Elamite goddess Pinikir is
referred to as a twin sister of Shamash and daughter of Sin (Nanna)
and Ningal in a text written in Akkadian but found in a corpus of
Hurro-Hittite rituals. In a single Maqlû incantation, the
rainbow goddess Manzat is referred to as Shamash's sister and as
a daughter of Sin and Ningal.
The
sun god's wife was invariably the goddess of dawn and light, usually
known under the name Aya, though the forms Ninkar, Sudag, Sherida
and Sudgan are also well attested. Typically they were worshiped
together, though sometimes Shamash shared his temples with other
gods instead. Utu/Shamash and Aya are the single most common divine
couple in cylinder seal inscriptions from Sippar, with only the
number of dedications to Ishkur and Shala being comparably high.
Aya was believed to intercede with her husband on behalf of worshipers,
which is a function also well attested for other divine spouses,
such as Ninmug and Shala. It has also been pointed out that in the
case of Inanna, her sukkal Ninshubur fulfilled a similar role. In
legal texts from Sippar, the sun god and his wife commonly appear
as divine witnesses. The only other divine couple attested in this
role in this city are Mamu and Bunene. Buduhudug, a mythical mountain
where the sun was believed to set, was regarded as "the entrance
of Shamash to Aya" (nereb dŠamaš <ana> dAya),
the place where they were able to reunite each day after he finished
his journey through the sky.
The
deities counted among Utu's children include the dream goddess Mamu
(as well as two other, male, dream deities, Sisig and Zaqar), Šumugan,
a god associated with animals, Niggina (Kittum), the deified concept
of truth, according to Jacob Klein regarded as his principal daughter,
and Ishum.
In
myths both about himself and about Lugalbanda, the legendary king
Enmerkar was referred to as a son of Utu. However, in the Sumerian
King List Utu is instead his grandfather, and his father is a human
ruler, Meškiagašer. Unlike other legendary kings of Uruk,
namely Lugalbanda and Gilgamesh, Enmerkar was not deified, despite
the existence of a tradition attributing divine ancestry to him.
In various sources, Utu seems to serve as a special protector to
several of Uruk's other kings.
dAMAR.UD,
an early writing of Marduk's name, can be translated as "bull
calf of Utu," as long as it is assumed that the sign UD should
be understood as a writing of Utu's name without the divine determinative
(a cuneiform sign preceding names of deities), which is also attested
in some theophoric names from the Early Dynastic period. However,
no evidence exists that Marduk was ever viewed as a member of the
family of any sun deity in Sippar, Larsa or any other location in
Mesopotamia, which lead Wilfred G. Lambert to suggest this etymology
is not plausible on theological grounds.
Court
:
Multiple deities who could be regarded as the sukkal (attendant
deity) of Utu are known, and more than one could appear in this
role at a time. Bunene, also known under the name Papnunna, was
considered his chariot driver. Frans Wiggermann notes that his name
and character (as well as these of other well attested sukkals of
major city gods: Ninshubur, Alammush, Nuska and Isimud) do not appear
to show direct connection with these of his master, which means
that he cannot be considered the personification of the effect of
the corresponding major deity's actions (unlike such deities as
Nabium, deified flame and sukkal of the fire god Girra or Nimgir,
deified lightning and sukkal of the weather god Ishkur) or a divine
personifications of specific commands (unlike such deities as Eturammi,
"do not slacken," the sukkal of Birtum). Ninpirig was
referred to as Utu's sukkalmah ("great sukkal"). It has
been proposed that his name might hint at a connection with light.
He is attested in multiple theophoric names, chiefly from Sippar.
Some researchers, including Antoine Cavigneaux and Manfred Krebernik,
consider the reading of the second element of his name to be uncertain
due to variable orthography, and transcribe it as Nin-PIRIG. The
pair Nigzida and Nigsisa, whose names mean "law" and "order,"
respectively, are identified as the "vizier of the left"
and "vizier of the right" in the god list An = Anum. Nigsisa
alone is mentioned by Ninsun as Shamash's sukkal in the Epic of
Gilgamesh. Nigzida could be equated with Niggina, another goddess
regarded as the sun god's sukkal, though the latter deity's role
varies between that of a servant and oldest daughter in known copies
of the god list An = Anum. Her Akkadian counterpart was Kittum,
whose name has the same meaning, "truth." In An = Anum
Kittum is instead male and a brother of Niggina. She had a sukkal
of her own, Iqbi-damiq.
None
of Utu's sukkals known from other sources are present in documents
from the archive of the First Sealand dynasty. Odette Boivin proposes
that in local tradition, this role was instead fulfilled by the
deities Lugal-namtarra and dSUKKAL, who frequently appear alongside
the sun god, and that the former functioned as his sukkal during
his nightly journey through the underworld, while the latter fulfilled
the same role during the day. Lugal-namtarra is otherwise sparsely
attested and might be analogous to Namtar. Boivin speculates that
dSUKKAL developed from the male version of Ninshubur, and assumes
it is plausible a connection between the latter and the sun god
developed during the reign of Rim-Sîn I, a king of Larsa well
known for his devotion to Ninshubur.
Many
deities belonging to the court of Utu were regarded as divine judges.
They could be grouped together, and collective labels such as "Eleven
Standing Gods of Ebabbar" or "Six Judges of Shamash"
are known from various sources. One well known example of such a
deity is Ishmekarab, who could also be associated with Inshushinak
and Lagamal.
Kusarikku
(bull-men, or, as argued by Frans Wiggermann, bison-men) were frequently
associated with Utu, and especially through the second millennium
BCE were commonly depicted as members of his court, for example
as standard bearers. Similarly, the human-headed bull (alima) could
accompany the solar disc in art, and a reference to its head serving
as an emblem of Utu is known. It is possible that the association
between bison-like mythical beings and the sun god was based on
their shared connection to eastern mountains. A further type of
apotropaic creature associated with Utu was the girtablullu ("scorpion
man"). In the Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, a scorpion
man and a scorpion woman guard the mountain of sunrise.
According
to Christopher Woods, it is possible that in a single case the minor
serpentine god Nirah is attested as a member of the court of Shamash.
He proposes that it was a result of the well attested association
between the sun god and Ishtaran, whose servant Nirah usually was.
Foreign
deities :
The name of the Eblaite sun deity was represented with the logogram
dUTU. Manfred Krebernik assumes that it should be read as Shamash,
that the deity was male, and that the goddess Ninkar also attested
in texts from Ebla was his spouse. Alfonso Archi instead concludes
that the deity was primarily female based on lexical evidence,
but points out that the Eblaites were definitely aware of the
male eastern sun god, and seemingly adopted him into their pantheon
as a secondary hypostasis. Occasionally the sun deity's gender
had to be indicated directly, and both dUTU-munus (female) and
dUTU-nita (male) are attested. Joan Goodnick Westenholz proposed
that Ninkar in Eblaite texts should be interpreted as Ninkarrak
rather than the phonetically similar but more obscure Mesopotamian
Ninkar. Occasional shortening of Ninkarrak's name to "Ninkar"
is known from Mesopotamian sources as well. This theory is also
accepted by Archi, who notes it makes the widespread worship of
Ninkar easier to explain.
![](Yazilikaya_Sonnengott_des_Himmels.jpg)
A
relief of the Hurrian sun god Shimige (left) in Yazilikaya
The Hurrian sun god, Shimige, is already represented by the logogram
dUTU in an inscription of Atalshen, an early king of Urkesh. It
is the oldest known reference to him. He is directly equated with
Utu in the trilingual Sumero-Hurro-Ugaritic version of the Weidner
god list from Ugarit. It has been argued that his character was
influenced at least in part by his Mesopotamian counterpart. Gary
Beckman goes as far as suggesting that at least in Hittite texts,
he "cannot (yet?) be distinguished sufficiently" from
the latter. Due to this association, Aya was regarded as his spouse
in Hurrian tradition, as attested in sources from Hattusa and Ugarit.
In the trilingual god list, Bunene (transcribed as dwu-u-un-ni-nu-wa-an)
appears in association with Shimige. Shimige is additionally equated
with Lugalbanda in it, most likely because the Hurrian pantheon
was smaller than that enumerated in Mesopotamian lists, creating
the need to have a single Hurrian deity correspond to multiple Mesopotamian
ones. The same list also attests the equivalence between Utu, Shimige
and the Ugaritic sun goddess Shapash (Šapšu). Apparently
to avoid the implications that Shapash had a wife, the scribes interpreted
the name of Aya, present in the Sumerian original, as an unconventional
writing of Ea. Instead of the Hurrian spelling of Aya, the name
Eyan corresponds to him in the Hurrian column and Ugaritic one lists
the local craftsman god Kothar-wa-Khasis.
The
logogram dUTU is well attested in Hittite texts. In addition to
Utu himself and his Akkadian counterpart, the deities represented
by it were the Sun goddess of Arinna (dUTU uruArinna), the Sun goddess
of the Earth (taknaš dUTU), the male Sun god of Heaven (nepišaš
dUTU, dUTU ANE, dUTU ŠAME), as well as Luwian Tiwat, Palaic
Tiyaz and Hurrian Shimige. Gary Beckman notes that the Hittite conception
of solar deities does not show any Indo-European influence, and
instead was largely similar to that known from Mesopotamia. He points
out even the fact that the Sun god of Heaven was believed to travel
in a quadriga drawn by horses, similar to Greek Helios, is not necessarily
an example of the former, as deities traveling in chariots are already
depicted on Mesopotamian seals from the Sargonic period.
The
logogram dUTU also designated the sun deity or deities in Emar in
the late Bronze Age. According to Gary Beckman, the Mesopotamian,
West Semitic, Hurrian and Hittite sun deities might all be potentially
represented by it in texts from this city. Eduardo Torrecilla notes
in a more recent publication that the logogram commonly designates
Shamash in the middle Euphrates area, and syllabic writings of his
name are uncommon there, though he also states that Shimige cannot
be ruled out as a possible reading in some cases.
In
texts from Susa, Haft Tepe and Malamir in Elam the name of the sun
god was usually written logographically as dUTU and it is uncertain
when it refers to the Mesopotamian deity, and when to local Nahhunte.
It is possible that in legal texts, when dUTU occurs next to Elamite
deities Inshushinak, Ruhurater or Simut, the latter option is correct.
While the god list An=Anum does mention Nahhunte, he is not explicitly
labeled as a counterpart of Utu, and only appears as a member of
a group called the "Divine Seven of Elam," associated
with the goddess Narundi. A Mesopotamian commentary on a birth incantation
erroneously identifies him as a moon god and Narundi as a sun deity,
explaining their names as, respectively, Sin and Shamash.
Worship
:
![](Ikun-Shamash.jpg)
Votive
figure of Ikun-Shamash from Sippar. British Museum
The
main cult centers of the sun god were Larsa and Sippar, specifically
Sippar-Ahrurum (Abu Habbah). The latter city was regarded as older
in Mesopotamian tradition, and in lists of temples tends to be mentioned
before Larsa. In both cities, the main temple dedicated to Utu and
his spouse Aya was known as Ebabbar. Less important temples dedicated
to him, located in Girsu and Assur, bore the same name. It means
"shining white house "in Sumerian.
The
oldest attested votive objects dedicated to Utu (or Shamash) are
a mace head from Ur offered by a king named Anbu or Anunbu, and
a statuette from Sippar from the reign of Ikun-Shamash of Mari.
Both predate the Sargonic period. Evidence for the worship of Shamash
in the third millennium BCE is available from the entire Akkadian-speaking
area, from Mari and western Mesopotamian cities like Sippar, through
Agade, to the Diyala area.
Celebrations
related to the sun god took place on the eighth, fifteenth, twentieth
and possibly first day of each month.
Sippar
:
In the Early Dynastic period kings of Mari most likely visited the
Ebabbar in Sippar to pay homage to its deity. In later periods,
it was renovated by multiple rulers, including Naram-Sin of Akkad,
Sabium of Babylon, Samsu-iluna of Babylon, who called himself "beloved
of Shamash and Aya," one of the Kassite rulers bearing the
name Kurigalzu (Kurigalzu I or Kurigalzu II), Ashurbanipal, Shamash-shum-ukin,
Nebuchadnezzar II and Nabonidus. Many other kings are known to have
patronized or visited it at some point, including Manishtushu, Apil-Sin,
Hammurabi, Abi-Eshuh, Ammi-Ditana, Ammi-Saduqa, Samsu-Ditana, Simbar-shipak
and Nabu-apla-iddina. In addition to Ebabbar, a ziggurat dedicated
to the city's tutelary god also existed in Sippar. It was known
as Ekunankuga (Siumerian: "house, pure stairway to heaven").
It was rebuilt by Samsu-iluna, Ammi-Saduqa, Neriglissar and Nabonidus.
The position of Sippar and its tutelary god has been compared to
that of Nippur and Enlil - while both of these gods were high-ranking
members of the pantheon, and their cities were centers of religious
and scholarly activity, they never constituted major political powers
in their own right.
It
has been suggested that the Ebabbar in Sippar served as a treasury
housing particularly rare objects, as excavations of the Neo-Babylonian
level of the structure revealed a number of vases from the Early
Dynastic and Sargonic periods, some with signs of repair, as well
as the votive statue of Ikun-Shamash, a fragment of a monolith of
Manishtushu, a macehead of Shar-Kali-Sharri, a whetstone of Tukulti-Mer
of Hana, and other objects from earlier periods of Mesopotamian
history.
A
special group connected to Shamash in Sippar were women referred
to as naditu. Their existence is particularly well attested in the
Old Babylonian period, and it has been argued that the institution
first developed around 1880 BCE, during the reign of Sumu-la-El
of Babylon. Naditu lived in a building referred to as gagûm,
conventionally translated as "cloister," and Tonia Sharlach
notes they can be compared to medieval Christian nuns. They are
sometimes described as "priestesses" in modern literature,
but while it is well attested that they were considered to be dedicated
to a specific deity, there is little evidence for their involvement
in religious activities other than personal prayer. It is not impossible
they were understood as a fully separate social class. Family background
of individual naditu varied, though they came predominantly from
the higher strata of society. While many came from families of craftsmen,
scribes or military officials, a number of them were daughters or
sisters of kings. Both Zimri-Lim of Mari and Hammurabi of Babylon
had naditu of Shamash among their female family members.
A
ceremony called lubuštu was established in Sippar by Nabu-apla-iddina.
It involved providing the statues of Shamash, Aya and Bunene with
new garments at specific dates throughout the year. Records indicate
it was still celebrated in the Achaemenid period, during the reign
of Darius I.
Larsa
:
The Ebabbar in Larsa is mentioned for the first time in a text from
the reign Eannatum. It was rebuilt, expanded or repaired by Ur-Nammu
of Ur, Zabaya, Sin-Iddinam, Hammurabi, one of the two rulers bearing
the name Kadashman-Enlil (Kadashman-Enlil I or Kadashman-Enlil II),
Burnaburiash I, Nebuchadnezzar II and Nabonidus. Other rulers who
have patronized it at some point include Gungunum, Abisare, Sumuel,
Nur-Adad, Sin-Iqisham, Kudur-Mabuk, Warad-Sin and Rim-Sîn
I.
Odette
Boivin notes that the deities of Larsa were apparently well represented
in the pantheon of the First Sealand dynasty. She suggests that
those kings might have associated their position both with Larsa
and with its tutelary god.
The
Larsean form of the sun god was also worshiped in Uruk and a close
connection between these two cities is well documented. At an unknown
point in time after Larsa's loss of status, possibly in the Kassite
period, Uruk most likely gained influence over it, and in the Neo-Babylonian
period, the Ebabbar was functionally a subordinate temple of Eanna.
Multiple letters attest that the latter was responsible for providing
commodities required for the performance of various rites in the
former, for example sacrificial animals or wool for garments of
divine statues of Shamash and Belet Larsa ("Lady of Larsa,"
most likely a title of Aya). Craftsmen employed by the Eanna were
also responsible for repairing the paraphernalia of the deities
of Ebabbar. Such a situation is otherwise unknown, as each temple
usually maintained its own workshop. A treasury of Shamash and Aya,
distinct from that of the Eanna, is nonetheless attested. Ebabbar
most likely remained under control of the temple administration
from Uruk in the Hellenistic period, though known names of the city's
inhabitants from this period are predominantly Greek, rather than
Mesopotamian.
Other
cities :
Utu was among the deities worshiped in the territory of Lagash in
the Early Dynastic period. A dais dedicated to him existed in Namnuda-kigarra.
It was originally erected by Eannatum, then destroyed by Ur-Lumma
of Umma, and finally rebuilt by Entemena. It is possible that these
events took place during a border conflict between Umma and Lagash.
Theophoric names invoking Utu are well attested in texts from this
area. Examples include Shubur-Utu, Utu-amu and Utu-kiag.
A
temple of Utu, Ehili ("house of luxuriance") also existed
in Ur. It was rebuilt by Enannatumma, the daughter of Ishme-Dagan,
whose inscriptions refer to it as the god's "pure storeroom."
A town located near this city, most likely somewhere between it
and Larsa, bore the name Kar-Shamash, KAR.dUTUki. Most likely a
temple dedicated to the eponymous god existed there as well.
In
Babylon, Shamash was worshiped in the temple Edikukalamma ("house
of the judge of the land"), first attested in the Old Babylonian
period and still mentioned in inscriptions from the reign of Nebuchadnezzar
II. He was also one of the many gods worshiped in the Esagil temple
complex, where his seat was the E-ešbaranki ("house of
decisions of heaven and the underworld"). A socle dedicated
to him called Edikugal ("house of the great judge") was
also present in Erabriri, most likely the temple bearing this name
located in Babylon which was dedicated to Mandanu.
In
Assur, a temple of Shamash was refounded by king Arik-den-ili, though
as no name is given in sources mentioning this event it is uncertain
if it was identical with Ebabbar of Assur mentioned in a later topographical
text. Additionally, Ehulhuldirdirra ("house of surpassing joys"),
while primarily dedicated to Sin, was also associated with Shamash,
as attested in building inscriptions of Ashur-nirari I, Tukulti-Ninurta
I and Ashurnasirpal II.
A
sanctuary in Nippur known in Akkadian as bit dalili, "house
of fame," was jointly dedicated to Nisaba, Kusu, Ningal, Shamash
and Bel-aliya.
In
the Old Babylonian period, Shamash was worshiped in Susa in Elam,
where the local pantheon consisted out of both Elamite deities,
such as Inshushinak and Simut, and Mesopotamian ones. He appears
in oath formulas and theophoric names.
In
Mari, Shamash was worshiped in a temple named Egirzalanki ("house
of the joy of heaven and the underworld"), built by Yahdun-Lim.
An
inscription of Nebuchadnezzar II might indicate that the sun god's
manifestation from Larsa was also worshiped in Ekarra ("house
of the quay"), a temple located in Dilmun, on the Failaka Island,
which was dedicated to the local deities Inzak and Meskilak.
The
Canonical Temple List, which dates to the Kassite period, mentions
further temples, whose location is left unspecified: Eantasurra
("house which twinkles from heaven;" not to be confused
with an identically named temple of Ningirsu built by Akurgal
somewhere near Girsu), Ekukina ("pure house, bechamber"),
Enamtarkalamma ("house of the destinies of the land")
and Enugalanna (reading and translation uncertain, possibly "house
of the great light of heaven").
Shamash
depicted on bronze coin struck in Hatra (c. 117 - 138 AD)
In the Parthian period, Hatra came to be seen as a cult center of
the sun god, and according to Manfred Krebernik its importance can
be compared to Sippar and Larsa in earlier times.
Mythology
:
While no myths focused on Utu are presently known, he appears in
a supporting role in many well known compositions. Commonly other
figures appeal to him, especially when faced with problems connected
with locations far away from urban centers, such as steppes or mountains.
In
multiple accounts of Dumuzi's death, he pleads with Utu to save
him from the galla demons sent after him. This motif is attested
in Inanna's Descent, Dumuzi's Death, and other works. In Dumuzi
and Geshtinanna, Utu is specifically invoked as a judge. In all
cases, the circumstances leading to it are the same: Dumuzi is already
pursued, and his life is in danger. In both Dumuzi's Death and Inanna's
Descent, he argues Utu should help him because he is his brother-in-law.
Some copies of the latter narrative also include a couplet in which
he also states that he paid respect to Utu's and Inanna's mother,
Ningal. While Utu fulfills Dumuzi's request in all known myths about
his death, in none of them this is enough to save him, and the most
the sun god can accomplish is a delay of his death.
In
the myth How Grain Came to Sumer, Ninmada advises Ninazu to ask
Utu for help with bringing barley from a distant land. Since the
rest of the narrative is not preserved, it is unknown in which way
he helped them accomplish this goal.
In
the myth Inanna and An, Utu aids his sister with bringing the Eanna
temple down from heaven. It is possible that it served as an mythical
explanation of the origin of Mesopotamian temples.
A
myth involving the sun god and other deities is known from Ebla.
It might have been imported from Kish, and the language it was written
in has been described as "an archaic Akkadian dialect."
Due to many uncertainties translation and interpretation of this
text are considered difficult. It has been argued that it might
be a description of a meeting between Enki and Utu during the latter's
journey through the Abzu.
Shamash
is mentioned in a myth which deals with the origin of the god Ishum,
which is only known from a single fragment from the Old Babylonian
period. Ishum is described as a son of Ninlil and the sun god who
was abandoned in the streets. It is assumed that this story represents
a relic of the association between the goddess Sud, who came to
be identified with Ninlil, and Sudag, one of the names of the wife
of Utu. Ishum was usually regarded as the son of this couple instead.
Manfred Krebernik considers the composition to be the result of
confusion between the names Sud and Sudag, and thus between Ninlil
and Ishum's mother, rather than syncretism.
In
the myth Enmesharra's Defeat, which is only known from a single
poorly preserved copy from either the Seleucid or Parthian period,
Shamash's radiance was bestowed upon him by Marduk after the imprisonment
of the eponymous being, who was its original owner. The term used
to describe it is zimû (zi-mu-ú), which can refer to
a halo and possibly to the rays of the sun. Wilfred G. Lambert assumed
that this scene might be an echo of some of the depictions of fights
between gods from Sargonic cylinder seals.
Gilgamesh
myths :
![](Terracotta_plaque_of_Humbaba_(Huwawa)._From_Iraq._Old-Babylonian_period_2004-1595_BCE._Sulaymaniyah_Museum,_Iraq.jpg)
A
depiction of Humbaba. Sulaymaniyah Museum
In the Sumerian myth Gilgamesh and Humbaba, Enkidu tells Gilgamesh
that he should ask Utu for permission before they embark on the
journey to Humbaba's dwelling. After learning that Gilgamesh wants
to acquire fame because he knows he will not live forever, Utu grants
him seven constellations (described as zoomorphic creatures) meant
to guide him to his destination safely. Humbaba later tries pleading
with Utu when he is about to die, but his prayer is unsuccessful.
It is possible that in a slightly divergent version of the myth
he was spared, though this remains uncertain as its ending is not
preserved.
In
another early Gilgamesh narrative, Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld,
Utu is first referenced by Inanna, who asks Gilgamesh to help her
with getting rid of creatures infesting a tree she planted on the
bank of the Euphrates. She states that Utu refused to intervene.
The reasoning behind his decision is not explained. Later, when
Enkidu is confined in the underworld, Gilgamesh petitions Enki for
help. The latter tells Utu to bring Enkidu's shade with him when
he rises, which lets the heroes temporarily reunite. A retelling
of this episode is also known from the final tablet of the "Standard
Babylonian" Epic of Gilgamesh, which has no direct connection
to the rest of this version of the story. An old erroneous view
was that the god acting on Ea's (Enki's) command in this version
is Nergal rather than Shamash.
In
the Old Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh prays
to Shamash after deciding to venture to the Cedar Forest to vanquish
Humbaba. Later the elders of Uruk tell him to dig wells to be able
to make libations to the sun god and Lugalbanda (in this version
functioning as his personal god) while traveling westwards. On the
way, shortly before reaching the land of Ebla, Gilgamesh has a dream
which Enkidu interprets as a sign that Shamash (or, in a variant
from Tell Harmal, Shamash and Lugalbanda) views his efforts favorably.
It is possible that in one of the variants of the Old Babylonian
version, only known from Tell Harmal, Humbaba says that he was informed
by Shamash in a dream that he will be vanquished, though the state
of preservation of the tablet makes it impossible to determine this
with certainty. According to a tablet presumed to originate in Sippar,
Gilgamesh later encounters Shamash while wandering in the steppe
mourning Enkidu's death. The sun god warns him about the futility
of the quest for eternal life. This passage is not present in any
later versions, but Shamash's advice closely parallels another unique
scene from the same version, namely the advice given by the anonymous
alewife who corresponds to Šiduri from the Standard Babylonian
version.
In
the Standard Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh Shamash
is portrayed as Gilgamesh's divine patron. He is still invoked to
protect him on the way to Humbaba's forest, but the hero does not
pray to him on his own. Instead his mother, the goddess Ninsun,
invokes the sun god on the roof of her own temple. She blames Shamash
for Gilgamesh's desire to venture into distant lands, and asks his
wife Aya to intercede on her son's behalf to guarantee his safety.
During the confrontation with Humbaba, Shamash intervenes by sending
thirteen winds to incapacitate the monster, which lets Gilgamesh
strike the decisive blow. Andrew R. George notes that since this
version describes Humbaba as mimma lemnu, a term which can be translated
as "everything evil" or "an evil thing," often
found in exorcistic literature where it refers to hostile forces,
it is natural for Shamash, who was the god of justice, to oppose
him. In an earlier interpretation, Jeffrey Tigay argued that Shamash
outright becomes the instigator of the quest, which according to
him was the "final and logical development of his role."
However, according to George Shamash's participation in the slaying
of Humbaba is the realization of the requests from Ninsun's prayer.
In the same version of the composition, after the defeat of the
Bull of Heaven Gilgamesh and Enkidu offer the animal's heart to
Shamash, which might be a reference to a custom also mentioned in
one of the myths about Lugalbanda, in which he offers the heart
of a mundane wild bull to Utu after a successful hunt. After celebrations
of their victory, Enkidu has a dream vision of an argument between
gods during which Shamash protests Enlil's decision that one of
the heroes has to die as punishment for the slaying of Humbaba and
the Bull of Heaven. After waking up he laments that they dedicated
a door made from the cedar wood from Humbaba's forest to Enlil rather
than Shamash.
In
the flood myth which became part of the standard version of the
Epic of Gilgamesh, Shamash is responsible for announcing the beginning
of the flood when he rises in the morning, which according to Nathan
Wasserman represents a relatively young tradition, as in most of
the other versions the cataclysm starts in the middle of the night.
He suggests that most likely the compiler of the text found this
to be suitable given the sun god's role as humanity's helper through
the story.
Source
:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utu