Claire Sulos

In creating Inanna’s Bargain, I wondered if the folklore stories that inspired the Neo-Assyrian Birth Legend of Sargon might have originated during Sargon’s own lifetime. Here’s a short excerpt from Chapter 12. Akkadians Harvesting Dates “There are many interesting stories circulating about the king,” Etti commented. “One story claims that the king’s mother was a priestess who offered him to…

The Neo-Assyrian Birth Legend of Sargon of Akkad, known since the mid-19th century, was loosely interpreted for popular audiences in an early serial publication, The Story of the Greatest Nations (1913). The authors elaborated on the famous legend with a rather fanciful description of Sargon’s encounter with the goddess: “A legend grew around him, telling that he was a prince, who was exposed to…

Sargon of Akkad was a great Mesopotamian king and conqueror, reigning c. 2334-2279 BCE. Though his origins and early life remain obscure, he has long been associated with gardening. The Sumerian King List, dating from the Ur III period (c. 2100 BCE), described Sargon’s father as a gardener or, more precisely, a ‘date grower.’ This biographical tradition (which has not been historically verified)…

The Neo-Assyrian Birth Legend expanded on the literature about Sargon of Akkad’s humble origins, drawing from biographical traditions as well as folklore themes including the infant exposure motif. In this ‘pseudo-autobiographical’ text, likely composed during the reign of Sargon II (722-706 BCE), Sargon described his early life as foundling raised by a gardener, who became a gardener himself,…

Performances only exist in the present, in the ephemeral experiences of performers and their audiences, in the interactive spaces of their engagement. And yet, the performativity of powerful creative works can resound in future iterations, in the reproductions and ‘covers’ that come later. The original works, while forever lost, continue to resonate over time through photos, recordings,…

The Sumerian Sargon Legend presents a dramatic tale involving omens, intrigue, and divine destiny. The story begins when the supreme gods An and Enlil decide to end Ur-Zababa’s rule over the city of Kish. The young Sargon of Akkad, then serving as the king’s cupbearer, has a prophetic dream in which the goddess Inanna submerges Ur-Zababa (or Sargon himself) in a river of blood. Sargon relates his…

Today I am celebrating romantic love in honor of my wedding anniversary. To all my followers, I hope that you find joy and happiness in your amorous relationships. May your love shine forth like the goddess Inana on the day she married Dumuzid. “At her mother’s bidding, Inana bathed in water and anointed herself with sweet oil. She covered her body with a grand robe; she also took her pin. She…

‘She Who Wrote’

Enheduanna, the first named author in world history, was a remarkable woman who lived around 2300 BCE. She was the daughter of Sargon of Akkad, who appointed her as high priestess of the Nanna Temple in Ur. Her writings include the Exaltation of Inanna, the Temple Hymns, Inanna and Ebih, and other attributed works. Enheduanna has been on my mind since I visited the Morgan Library & Museum’s…

In Inanna’s Bargain, ancient ceremonial objects exhibit magical powers associated with their divine originals. This excerpt from Chapter 21 describes Kianu’s encounter with such an object. As I prayed to the warrior god, my attention was captured by a large battle-mace displayed to one side of the cult statue, on a high shelf above the main altar. The object appeared to be a focal point for…

Sharur (Car-ur) was the magical battle-mace of Ninurta, the Mesopotamian warrior god of winds and storms. As an animated mythological weapon, Sharur served as a fierce protector as well as a trusted advisor, messenger and spy. The battle-mace played an important role in the late third millennium BCE Sumerian Exploits of Ninurta, gathering military intelligence, relaying communication to and from…

As the earth spins around the sun, we move within a universe filled with order as well as chaos. Our destinies are shaped by our actions and interactions, and by the unpredictable twists and turns of chance. When Covid struck, the world went on pause, then everything seemed to speed up and go crazy. Sometimes we feel caught in the spin, buffeted by the storm of events, and overwhelmed by the…

Judgment of the Bird-Man

Akkadian cylinder seals depicting the Judgment of the Bird-Man have often been viewed in light of later texts, such as the Neo-Sumerian Ninurta’s Pride and Punishment and the Akkadian OB/SB Epic of Anzu. These mythological narratives portrayed the Anzu/bird-man as a divine thief, conquered by the warrior god Ninurta—though the stories differed on whether he stole the Tablet of Destines from…

Inanna’s Willow

In Inanna’s Bargain, I explored the idea of multiple (fictitious) versions of ancient Mesopotamian myths, passed down and shared through oral traditions. With so many stories circulating, how did people know what to believe? “There are many legends about the tree of life, as well as other trees favored by the gods,” Beluga stated. “In one of the most famous stories, the goddess Inanna finds a…

Inanna’s Father?

Who was Inanna’s father? One of the Sumerian creator gods: An, Enki, or Enlil? Or the moon god Nanna? By the late third millennium BCE, different genealogical traditions had developed concerning Inanna’s parentage. The location of her cult center next to the ancient White Temple in Uruk reinforced her early associations with the sky god An. But over time, she also became linked with other…

“I am Inana!”

“My father gave me the heavens and he gave me the earth. I am Inana! Which god compares with me?” “Enlil gave me the heavens and he gave me the earth. I am Inana! He gave me lordship, and he gave me queenship. He gave me battles and he gave me fighting. He gave me the stormwind and he gave me the dust cloud. He placed the heavens on my head as a crown. He put the earth at my feet as sandals. He…

The Enigmatic Bent Tree

The Sumerian myth of Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld may have been illustrated by Akkadian cylinder seals depicting an enigmatic bent tree motif. Three examples include a female and male deity interacting within the curvature of the tree, while another god vigorously attacks the top of the tree with an axe. If this scene represents the Sumerian myth, as some scholars have proposed, the…

Inanna and the Halub Tree

The story of Inanna and the halub tree makes up the first half of the Sumerian myth of Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Netherworld. The story seems to stand on its own, opening with a cosmological creation, and ending with the death of the halub tree (often interpreted as a willow). Indeed, the two halves of the myth appear joined in the middle, with a shift in focus from Inanna to Gilgamesh. The deep…