[16]:58 Nonetheless, there are assumptions according to which treasures in wealthy graves had been intended as offerings for Utu and the Anunnaki, so that the deceased would receive special favors in the underworld. [35] In later myth, her husband was the god Nergal. A significant invention (one of many by the Sumerians) was the wheel, which at first was made of solid wood. Invention, the act of bringing ideas or objects together in a novel way to create something that did not exist before. The duty of the king and his officials were to administer the military, trade, legal system, and performing important religious ceremonies. : 3–4 Before the beginning of kingship in Sumer, the city-states were effectively ruled by theocratic priests and religious officials. [9] The Sumerian goddess Inanna also developed the counterpart Ishtar during the Old Babylonian Period. In this article, we shall study the various important inventions and achievements of the Sumerian civilization. Uses: Mathematics was developed here around 5500 BC, as a response to their growing needs of governance. It is important to note that the Sumerians were the first to create a code of law. 6789 Quail Hill Pkwy, Suite 211 Irvine CA 92603. The code consisted of 282 provisions which dealt with issues of trade, slavery, family rights, taxes, wages, tariffs, etc. The Sumerian god An, for example, developed the Akkadian counterpart Anu; the Sumerian god Enki became Ea. The Sumerian people of Mesopotamia had a flair for innovation. Utu was god of the sun, whose primary center of worship was the E-babbar temple in Sippar. Sometime around 5000 BC, a civilization was formed in southern Mesopotamia. [13]:179 Each Sumerian city-state had its own specific patron deity,[13]:179 who was believed to protect the city and defend its interests. The Sumerians envisioned the universe as a closed dome surrounded by a primordial saltwater sea. [10] Underneath the terrestrial earth, which formed the base of the dome, existed an underworld and a freshwater ocean called the Abzu. [13]:184[16]:86 Ereshkigal's sukkal, or messenger, was the god Namtar. [13]:203 The planet Venus was believed to be Inanna, the goddess of love, sex, and war. Eventually, to make their writing more efficient, they developed cuneiform style shorthand writing, which consisted of drawing wedged lines on the tablets, using a sharp reed on wet clay. In later times, Ereshkigal was believed to rule alongside her husband Nergal, the god of death. Wall plaque showing libations by devotees and a naked priest, to a seated god and a temple. Sumerian male worshipper, 2750-2600 BC ( CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Enlil: Second Sumerian King of the Gods . Sumerian period Architecture. Their order of importance and the relationships between the deities has been examined during the study of cuneiform tablets. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. The deity of the dome-shaped firmament was named An; that of the earth was named Ki. They were used to import stones, metals, and timber from Asia Minor and Syria, by traveling the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers. [16]:151, 157–158 Accounts of her parentage vary;[16]:108 in most myths, she is usually presented as the daughter of Nanna and Ningal,[29]:ix-xi, xvi but, in other stories, she is the daughter of Enki or An along with an unknown mother. In the Sumerian city-states, temple complexes originally were small, elevated one-room structures. [12]:37–40 Then, Nammu gave birth to An, the sky, and Ki, the earth. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. [22], During the late 2000s BC, the Sumerians were conquered by the Akkadians. Sumer was the southernmost region of ancient Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq and Kuwait) which is generally considered the cradle of civilization.The name comes from Akkadian, the language of the north of Mesopotamia, and means “land of the civilized kings”. Heaven was reserved exclusively for deities and, upon their deaths, all mortals' spirits, regardless of their behavior while alive, were believed to go to Kur, a cold, dark cavern deep beneath the earth, which was ruled by the goddess Ereshkigal and where the only food available was dry dust. Our site includes quite a bit of content, so if you're having an issue finding what you're looking for, go on ahead and use that search feature there! Of this belief, astrology was born, which lead to extremely detailed astronomical and mathematical information. [13]:178–179 The earliest Sumerian literature of the third millennium BC identifies four primary deities: An, Enlil, Ninhursag, and Enki. There were also clay tablets which showed their skill in working complex geometric problems. The primordial saltwater sea was named Nammu, who became known as Tiamat during and after the Sumerian Renaissance. [12]:37–40 Enlil separated An from Ki and carried off the earth as his domain, while An carried off the sky. [15][14] The celestial bodies were equated with specific deities as well. [18] The god Neti was the gatekeeper. During the Akkadian Period, Ereshkigal's role as the ruler of the underworld was assigned to Nergal, the god of death. [13]:179–180, The majority of Sumerian deities belonged to a classification called the Anunna (“[offspring] of An”), whereas seven deities, including Enlil and Inanna, belonged to a group of “underworld judges" known as the Anunnaki (“[offspring] of An” + Ki). The code was written on a 6-feet tall stone slab, with a carving of the king receiving the set of laws from the sun god. Some remained virtually the same until later Babylonian and Assyrian rule. Priests were responsible for continuing the cultural and religious traditions of their city-state, and were viewed as mediators between humans and the cosmic and terrestrial forces. Crafts: They were the first to create and use a potter’s wheel, which they used to create symmetrical clay products. It was based on the retribution-based system. This system also was put in use to measure time in 60 seconds and minutes, as well as the 360 degrees of a circle. Sumerian deities developed Akkadian counterparts. This is how we know so much about Mesopotamian culture, government, and history. Cuneiform writing was used for thousands of years, making it the longest used form of writing till date. [13]:203 The lowest dome of heaven was made of jasper and was the home of the stars. : Grave goods, the Mesopotamian afterlife, and the liminal role of Inana/Ištar", "Inanna/Ishtar as a Figure of Controversy", "Anunna (Anunnaku, Anunnaki) (a group of gods)", Sumerian Hymns from Cuneiform Texts in the British Museum, Castro culture/Proto Gallaecian-Lusitanian, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sumerian_religion&oldid=1011474675, Pages using multiple image with auto scaled images, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2009, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 11 March 2021, at 02:41. Transportation: The first sailboats were created in Sumer. The Amorite Babylonians gained dominance over southern Mesopotamia by the mid-17th century BC. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Carved figure with feathers. Sumerian religion was the religion practiced and adhered to by the people of Sumer, the first literate civilization of ancient Mesopotamia. Later, this role was supplanted by kings, but priests continued to exert great influence on Sumerian society. Remains and records of war chariots drawn by donkeys were found here by archaeologists. The Sumerians designed and invented numerous tools and systems to aid them in their daily life and to advance their civilization, some of which we even use today. [13]:179 Lists of large numbers of Sumerian deities have been found. The characteristics of this code are: The legacy of this great civilization is still felt in waves across the modern world. He was the patron deity of Girsu and one of the patron deities of Lagash. They were possibly the first to use pills and creams to treat illnesses. [16]:108–109 Her main cult center was the Eanna temple in Uruk, which had been originally dedicated to An. Nammu was the primeval sea (Engur), who gave birth to An (heaven) and Ki (earth) and the first deities; she eventually became known as the goddess Tiamat. Many portrait sculptures were produced during this time, such as the twenty-seven statues of the Sumerian king, Gudea, created during the Neo-Sumerian period after the two-century rule by the Akkadians. Medicine: These Mesopotamians also advanced a lot in the medical field. [13]:178–179 As a result of this, Sumerian deities began to lose their original associations with nature and became the patrons of various cities.
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