THE DYNASTY OF UR AND THE KINGDOM OF SUMER AND AKKAD
The more recent finds at Tello have enabled us to bridge the gap
which formerly existed in our knowledge of Chaldean history and
civilization between the age of Narâm-Sin and the rise of the city
of Ur under Ur-Engur, the founder of the kingdom of Sumer and Akkad.
What we now know of Lagash during this period may probably be regarded
as typical of the condition of the other great Sumerian cities. The
system of government, by means of which Shar-Gani-sharri and Narâm-Sin
had exercised control over Sumer from their capital in the north,
had doubtless been maintained for a time by their successors; but,
from the absence of any trace of their influence at Tello, we cannot
regard their organization as having been equally effective. They, or
the Semitic kings of some other northern city, may have continued
to exercise a general suzerainty over the whole of Babylonia, but
the records of Lagash seem to show that the larger and more distant
cities were left in the enjoyment of practical independence. The
mere existence of a suzerain, however, who had inherited the throne
or empire of Shar-Gani-sharri and Narâm-Sin, must have acted as a
deterrent influence upon any ambitious prince or patesi, and would thus
have tended to maintain a condition of equilibrium between the separate
states of which that empire had been composed. We have seen that Lagash
took advantage of this time of comparative inactivity to develop her
resources along peaceful lines. She gladly returned to the condition
of a compact city-state, without dropping the intercourse with distant
countries which had been established under the earlier Akkadian kings.
During this period we may suppose that the city of Ur enjoyed a similar
measure of independence, which increased in proportion to the decline
of Semitic authority in the north. Gudea's campaign against Anshan
affords some indication of the capability of independent action, to
which the southern cities gradually attained. It is not likely that
such initiative on the part of Lagash was unaccompanied by a like
activity within the neighbouring, and more powerful, state of Ur.
In an earlier age the twin kingdoms of Ur and Erech had dominated
southern Babylonia, and their rulers had established the kingdom of
Sumer, which took an active part in opposing the advance of Semitic
influence southwards. The subjection of Sumer by the Dynasty of Akkad
put an end for a time to all thoughts of independence on the part of
separate cities, although the expedition against Erech and Naksu, which
occurred in the patesiate of Lugal-ushumgal, supports the tradition
of a revolt of all the lands in the latter part of Sargon's reign. Ur
would doubtless have been ready to lend assistance to such a movement,
and we may imagine that she was not slow to take advantage of the
gradual weakening of Akkad under her later rulers. At a time when
Gudea was marching across the Elamite border, or sending unchecked for
his supplies to the Mediterranean coast or the islands of the Persian
Gulf, Ur was doubtless organizing her own forces, and may possibly have
already made tentative efforts at forming a coalition of neighbouring
states. She only needed an energetic leader, and this she found in
Ur-Engur, who succeeded in uniting the scattered energies of Sumer and
so paved the way for the more important victories of his son.
That Ur-Engur was the founder of his dynasty we know definitely from
the dynastic chronicle, which was recovered during the American
excavations at Nippur.[1] In this document he is given as the first
king of the Dynasty of Ur, the text merely stating that he became king
and ruled for eighteen years. Unfortunately the preceding columns of
the text are wanting, and we do not know what dynasty was set down
in the list as preceding that of Ur, nor is any indication afforded
of the circumstances which led to Ur-Engur's accession. From his
building-inscriptions that have been recovered on different sites in
Southern Babylonia[2] it is possible, however, to gather some idea
of his achievements and the extent of his authority. After securing
the throne he appears to have directed his attention to putting the
affairs of Ur in order. In two of his brick-inscriptions from Mukayyar,
Ur-Engur bears the single title "king of Ur," and these may therefore
be assigned to the beginning of his reign, when his kingdom did not
extend beyond the limits of his native city. These texts record the
rebuilding of the temple of Nannar, the Moon-god, and the repair and
extension of the city-wall of Ur.[3] His work on the temple of the
city-god no doubt won for him the support of the priesthood, and so
strengthened his hold upon the throne; while, by rebuilding and adding
to the fortifications of Ur, he secured his city against attack before
he embarked upon a policy of expansion.
We may assume with some confidence that the first city over which
he extended his authority was Erech. It would necessarily have been
his first objective, for by its position it would have blocked
any northward advance. The importance attached by Ur-Engur to the
occupation of this city is reflected in the title "Lord of Erech,"
which precedes his usual titles upon bricks from the temple of the
Moon-god at Ur, dating from a later period of his reign; his assumption
of the title indicates that Erech was closely associated with Ur,
though not on a footing of equality. That he should have rebuilt
E-anna, the great temple of Ninni in Erech, as we learn from bricks
found at Warka, was a natural consequence of its acquisition, for by
so doing he exercised his privilege as suzerain. But he honoured the
city above others which he acquired, by installing his own son there as
high priest of the goddess Ninni, an event which gave its official
title to one of the years of his reign. We have definite evidence that
he also held the neighbouring city of Larsa, for bricks have been found
at Senkera, which record his rebuilding of the temple of Babbar, the
Sun-god. With the acquisition of Lagash, he was doubtless strong enough
to obtain the recognition of his authority throughout the whole of
Sumer.
[Illustration: BRICK OF UR-ENGUR, KING OF UR, RECORDING THE REBUILDING
OF THE TEMPLE OF THE GODDESS NINNI IN THE CITY OF ERECH.--_Front
Warka; Brit. Mus., No._ 90015_; photo, by Messrs. Mansell & Co._]
The only other city, in which direct evidence has been found of
Ur-Engur's building activity, is Nippur. From the American excavations
on that site we learn that he rebuilt E-kur, Enlil's great temple,
and also that of Ninlil, his spouse. It was doubtless on the strength
of his holding Nippur that he assumed the title of King of Sumer and
Akkad. How far his authority was recognized in Akkad it is impossible
to say, but the necessity for the conquest of Babylon in Dungi's
reign would seem to imply that Ur-Engur's suzerainty over at least a
part of the country was more or less nominal. Khashkhamer, patesi of
Ishkun-Sin, whose seal is now preserved in the British Museum,[4] was
his subject, and the Semitic character of the name of his city suggests
that it lay in Northern Babylonia. Moreover, certain tablets drawn up
in his reign are dated in "the year in which King Ur-Engur took his
way from the lower to the upper country," a phrase that may possibly
imply a military expedition in the north. Thus some portions of Akkad
may have been effectively held by Ur-Engur, but it is certain that the
complete subjugation of the country was only effected during Dungi's
reign.
In Sumer, on the other hand, Ur-Engur's sway was unquestioned. His
appointment of Ur-abba as patesi of Lagash was probably characteristic
of his treatment of the southern cities: by the substitution of his own
adherents in place of the reigning patesis, he would have secured loyal
support in the administration of his dependent states. We have evidence
of one of his administrative acts, so far as Lagash is concerned. On
a clay cone from Tello he records that, after he had built the temple
of Enlil, he dug a canal in honour of the Moon-god, Nannar, which he
named Nannar-gugal. He describes the canal as a boundary-ditch, and
we may conjecture that it marked a revision of the frontier between
the territories of two cities, possibly that between Lagash and lands
belonging to the city of Ur. In the same inscription he tells us that,
in accordance with the laws of the Sun-god, he caused justice to
prevail, a claim that affords some indication of the spirit in which he
governed the cities he had incorporated in his kingdom.
In the reign of Dungi, who succeeded his father upon the throne and
inherited from him the kingdom of Sumer and Akkad, the whole of
Northern Babylonia was brought to acknowledge the suzerainty of Ur.
Considerable light has been thrown upon Dungi's policy, and indirectly
upon that of the whole of Ur-Engur's dynasty, by the recently published
chronicle concerning early Babylonian kings, to which reference has
already been made. The earlier sections of this document, dealing with
the reigns of Sargon and Narâm-Sin, are followed by a short account
of Dungi's reign, from which we learn two facts of considerable
significance.[5] The first of these is that Dungi "cared greatly for
the city of Eridu, which was on the shore of the sea," and the second
is that "he sought after evil, and the treasure of E-sagila and of
Babylon he brought out as spoil." It will be noted that the writer of
the chronicle, who was probably a priest in the temple of E-sagila,
disapproved of his treatment of Babylon, in consequence of which he
states that Bêl (_i.e._ Marduk) made an end of him. In view of the fact
that Dungi reigned for no less than fifty-eight years and consolidated
an extensive empire, it is not improbable that the evil fate ascribed
to him in the chronicle was suggested by Babylonian prejudice. But the
Babylonian colouring of the narrative does not affect the historical
value of the other traditions, but rather enhances them. For it is
obvious that the disaster to the city and to E-sagila was not an
invention, and must, on the contrary, have been of some magnitude for
its record to have been preserved in Babylon itself through later
generations.
In Dungi's treatment of Babylon, and in his profanation of the temple
of its city-god, we have striking proof that the rise of the Dynasty of
Ur was accompanied by a religious as well as a political revolution.
Late tradition retained the memory of Sargon's building activity in
Babylon, and under his successors upon the throne of Akkad the great
temple of E-sagila may well have become the most important shrine in
Northern Babylonia and the centre of Semitic worship. Eridu, on the
other hand, was situated in the extreme south of Sumer and contained
the oldest and most venerated temple of the Sumerians. Dungi's care for
the latter city to the detriment of Babylon, emphasized by contrast in
the late records of his reign, suggests that he aimed at a complete
reversal of the conditions which had prevailed during the preceding
age. The time was ripe for a Sumerian reaction, and Ur-Engur's initial
success in welding the southern cities into a confederation of states
under his own suzerainty may be traced to the beginning of this racial
movement. Dungi continued and extended his father's policy, and his
sack of Babylon may probably be regarded as the decisive blow in the
struggle, which had been taking place against the last centres of
Semitic influence in the north.
Other evidence is not lacking of the Sumerian national revival, which
characterized the period of the kings of Sumer and Akkad. Of Ur-Engur's
inscriptions every one is written in Sumerian, in striking contrast to
the texts which date from the time of Shar-Gani-sharri and Narâm-Sin.
Of the still more numerous records of Dungi's reign, only two short
votive formulæ are written in Semitic Babylonian, and one of these
is from the northern city of Cutha. The predominant use of Sumerian
also characterizes the texts of the remaining members of Ur-Engur's
dynasty and the few inscriptions of the Dynasty of Isin that have
been recovered.[6] In fact, only one of these is in Semitic, a short
brick-inscription giving the name and titles of Gimil-Sin, which was
found at Susa. It is true that the last three kings of the Dynasty of
Ur apparently bear Semitic names, and of the rulers of the Dynasty
of Isin the Semitic character of the majority of the names is not
in doubt. But this in itself does not prove that their bearers were
Semites, and a study of the proper names occurring in the numerous
commercial documents and tablets of accounts, which were drawn up under
the kings of Ur and Isin, are invariably Sumerian in character.[7] A
more convincing test than that of the royal names is afforded by the
cylinder-seals of the period. In these both subject and treatment are
Sumerian, resembling the seals of Lagash at the time of Gudea and
having little in common with those of the Dynasty of Akkad. Moreover,
the worshippers engraved upon the seals are Sumerians, not Semites.
Two striking examples are the seal of Khashkhamer, the contemporary
and dependant of Ur-Engur, and that which Kilulla-guzala,[8] the son
of Ur-baga, dedicated to Meslamtaea for the preservation of Dungi's
life.[9] It will be noticed that on each of these seals the worshipper
has a shaven head and wears the fringed Sumerian tunic. There can
be little doubt, therefore, that Ur-Engur and his descendants were
Sumerians, and we may probably regard the Dynasty of Isin as a
continuation of the same racial movement which led to the establishment
of the kingdom of Sumer and Akkad.[10]
Besides affording information with regard to the racial characteristics
of the inhabitants of Southern Babylonia, the official lists and
commercial documents of this period indirectly throw light upon
historical events. In the first great collection of tablets found by M.
de Sarzec at Tello, the majority of those belonging to Dungi's period
were dated in the later years of his reign; but among the tablets
recovered during the more recent diggings on the site are many dated in
his earlier years. The date-formulæ inscribed upon these documents, in
conjunction with fragmentary date-lists, have rendered it possible to
arrange the titles of the years in order for the greater part of his
reign; and, since the years were named after important occurrences,
such as the building or inauguration of temples in different cities and
the successful prosecution of foreign campaigns, they form a valuable
source of information concerning the history of the period.[11] From
these we can gather some idea of the steps by which Dungi increased
his empire, and of the periods in his reign during which he achieved
his principal conquests. During his earlier years it would seem that
he was occupied in securing complete control within the districts of
Northern Babylonia, which he had nominally inherited from his father.
The sack of Babylon may well have been commemorated in the title for
the year in which it took place, and, if so, it must be placed within
the first decade of his reign, where a gap occurs in our sequence of
the date-formulæ. Such of the earlier titles as have been recovered
refer for the most part to the building of palaces and temples, the
installation of deities within their shrines, and the like. It is not
until the thirty-fourth year of his reign that a foreign conquest is
explicitly recorded.
But before this period there are indications that an expansion of
Dungi's empire was already taking place. In the nineteenth year of his
reign he installed the goddess Kadi in her temple at Der, an act which
proves that the principal frontier town on the Elamite border was at
this time in his possession. In the following year he installed in his
temple the god Nutugmushda of Kazallu, in which we may see evidence
that he had imposed his suzerainty over this country, the conquest of
which, according to the late tradition, had been a notable achievement
of Sargon's reign. In his twenty-sixth year he appointed his daughter
to be "lady" of the Elamite region of Markharshi, a record that throws
an interesting light upon the position enjoyed by women among the
Sumerians. These districts, and others of which we have no knowledge,
may well have been won by conquest, for it is obvious that the official
date-formulæ could not take account of every military expedition,
especially in years when an important religious event had also taken
place. But, in the case of the three countries referred to, it is also
possible that little opposition was offered to their annexation, and
for that reason the title of the year may have merely recorded Dungi's
performance of his chief privilege as suzerain, or the appointment of
his representative as ruler. Whichever explanation be adopted, it is
clear that Dungi was already gaining possession of regions which had
formed part of the empire of the Semitic kings of Akkad.
In addition to acquiring their territory, Dungi also seems to have
borrowed from the Semites one of their most effective weapons, for
the twenty-eighth year of his reign was known as that in which he
enrolled the sons of Ur as archers. The principal weapon of the earlier
Sumerians was the spear, and they delivered their attack in close
formation, the spearmen being protected in line of battle by heavy
shields carried by shield-bearers. For other purposes of offence they
depended chiefly on the battle-axe and possibly the dart, but these
were subsidiary weapons, fitted rather for the pursuit of a flying
enemy when once their main attack had been delivered. Eannatum's
victories testify to the success achieved by the method of attack in
heavy phalanx against an enemy with inferior arms. The bow appears
to have been introduced by the Semites, and they may have owed their
success in battle largely to its employment: it would have enabled
them to break up and demoralize the serried ranks of the Sumerians,
before they could get to close quarters. Dungi doubtless recognized
the advantage the weapon would give his own forces, especially when
fighting in a hilly country, where the heavy spear and shield would
be of little service, and it would be difficult to retain a close
formation. We may conjecture that he found his companies of bowmen of
considerable assistance in the series of successful campaigns, which
he carried out in Elam and the neighbouring regions, during the latter
half of his reign.
Of these campaigns we know that the first conquest of Gankhar took
place in Dungi's thirty-fourth year, and that of Simuru in the year
that followed. The latter district does not appear to have submitted
tamely to annexation, for in his thirty-sixth year Dungi found it
necessary to send a fresh expedition for its reconquest. In the
following year he followed up these successes by the conquest of
Kharshi and Khumurti. Gankhar and Simuru were probably situated in
the mountainous districts to the east of the Tigris, around the upper
course of the Diyala, in the neighbourhood of Lulubu; for the four
countries Urbillu, Simuru, Lulubu, and Gankhar formed the object of
a single expedition undertaken by Dungi in his fifty-fifth year.[12]
Kharshi, or Kharishi, appears to have also lain in the region to the
east of the Tigris.[13] These victories doubtless led to the submission
of other districts, for in his fortieth year Dungi married one of his
daughters to the patesi of Anshan, among the most important of Elamite
states. The warlike character of the Elamites is attested by the
difficulty Dungi experienced in retaining control over these districts,
after they had been incorporated in his empire. For in the forty-first
year of his reign he was obliged to undertake the reconquest of
Gankhar, and to send a third expedition there two years later; in the
forty-third year he subdued Simuru for the third time, while in the
forty-fourth year Anshan itself revolted and had to be regained by
force of arms.
In the course of these ten years it is probable that Dungi annexed the
greater part of Elam, and placed his empire upon an enduring basis.
It is true that during the closing years of his reign he undertook a
fresh series of expeditions, conquering Shashru in the fifty-second
year, subduing Simuru and Lulubu in the fifty-fourth year "for the
ninth time," and Urbillu, Kimash, Khumurti and Kharshi in the course
of his last four years. But the earlier victories, by means of which
he extended his sway far beyond the borders of Sumer and Akkad, may
be held to mark the principal era of expansion in the growth of his
empire. It was probably during this period that he added to his other
titles the more comprehensive one of "king of the four quarters (of
the world)," thus reviving a title which had already been adopted by
Narâm-Sin at a time when the empire of Akkad had reached its zenith.
Another innovation which Dungi introduced in the course of his reign,
at a period it would seem shortly before his adoption of Narâm-Sin's
title, was the assumption of divine rank, indicated by the addition of
the determinative for divinity before his name. Like Narâm-Sin, who
had claimed to be the god of Akkad, he styled himself the god of his
land, and he founded temples in which his statue became the object
of a public cult. He also established a national festival in his own
honour, and renamed the seventh month of the year, during which it was
celebrated, as the Month of the Feast of Dungi. He appears to have
been the first Sumerian ruler to claim divine honours. By so doing he
doubtless challenged comparison with the kings of Akkad, whose empire
his conquests had enabled him to rival.
[Illustration: DIORITE VOTIVE TABLETS OF DUNGI, KING OF UR, RIM-SIN,
KING OF LARSA, AND BUR-SIN, KING OF UR.--_Brit. Mus., Nos._ 90897,
90898, _and_ 91014.]
[Illustration: LIMESTONE VOTIVE TABLETS OF THE TIME OF RIM-SIN, KING
OF LARSA, AND OF SIN-GAMIL, KING OF ERECH; ON THE LEFT IS A NEO-BABY.
LONIAN COPY IN CLAY OF A VOTIVE INSCRIPTION OF SIN-GASHID, KING OF
ERECH.--_Brit. Mus., Nos._ 91081, 90899, _and_ 91082.]
Dungi's administration of the Elamite provinces of his empire appears
to have been of a far more permanent character than that established
by any earlier conqueror from Babylonia. In the course of this history
we have frequently noted occasions on which Elam has come into contact
with the centres of civilization in the valley of the Tigris and
Euphrates. In fact, from her geographical position, she was not only
the nearest foreign neighbour of Sumer and Akkad, but she was bound
to influence them and be influenced by them in turn. To the earlier
Sumerian rulers Elam was a name of terror, associated with daring raids
across the Tigris on the part of hardy mountain races. The Semitic
kings of Kish had turned the tables by invading Elamite territory, and
their conquests and those of the kings of Akkad had opened the way
for the establishment of close commercial relations between the two
countries. Although their expeditions may have been undertaken with
the object of getting spoil rather than of acquiring territory, there
is no doubt that they resulted in a considerable Semitic immigration
into the country. Moreover, the Semitic conquerors brought with them
the civilization they had themselves acquired. For their memorial
and monumental records the native princes of Elam adopted from their
conquerors the cuneiform system of writing and even their Semitic
language, though the earlier native writing continued to be employed
for the ordinary purposes of life.[14] Basha-Shushinak,[15] patesi
of Susa and governor of Elam, who may probably be placed at a rather
earlier period than the Dynasty of Ur, employs the Semitic Babylonian
language for recording his votive offerings, and he not only calls
down Shushinak's vengeance upon the impious, but adds invocations to
such purely Babylonian deities as Shamash, Nergal, Enlil, Enki or Ea,
Sin, Ninni or Ishtar, and Ninkharsag. We could not have more striking
evidence of the growth of Semitic influence in Elam during the period
which followed the Elamite victories of the kings of Kish and Akkad.
Close commercial relations were also maintained between Elam and Sumer,
and Gudea's conquest of Anshan may be regarded as the first step
towards the Sumerian domination of the country. In establishing his own
authority in Elam, Dungi must have found many districts, and especially
the city of Susa, influenced by Sumerian culture, though chiefly
through the medium of Semitic immigrants from Northern Babylonia.
His task of administering the conquered provinces was thus rendered
proportionately easier. That his expeditions were not merely raids,
but resulted in the permanent occupation of the country, is proved by
a number of tablets found at Tello, which throw considerable light
upon the methods by which he administered the empire from his capital
at Ur. Many of these documents contain orders for supplies allotted
to officials in the king's service, who were passing through Lagash
in the course of journeys between Ur and their districts in Elam. The
tablets enumerate quantities of grain, strong drink and oil, which had
been assigned to them, either for their sustenance during their stay in
Lagash, or as provision for their journey after their departure.
It is interesting to note that the towns or countries, from which
they came, or to which they set out on their return journey from
Ur, are generally specified. In addition to Susa, we meet with the
names of Anshan, Kharishi, Kimash and Markharshi, the conquest or
annexation of which by Dungi, as we have already seen, is recorded in
the date-formulæ. Other places, the officials of which are mentioned,
were Khukhnuri, Shimash, Sabu, Ulu, Urri, Zaula, Gisha, Siri, Siu,
Nekhune, and Sigiresh. Like the preceding districts, these were all
in Elam, while Az, Shabara, Simashgi, Makhar and Adamdun, with which
other officers were connected, probably lay in the same region.[16]
From the number of separate places, the names of which have already
been recovered on the tablets from Tello, it is clear that Dungi's
authority in Elam was not confined to a few of the principal cities,
but was effectively established throughout the greater part of the
country. While much of his administrative work was directed from Ur,
it is probable that Susa formed his local capital. From inscriptions
found during the French excavations on that site we know that Dungi
rebuilt there the temple of Shushinak the national god,[17] and it may
be inferred that he made the city his headquarters during his periods
of residence in the country.
The functions of many of the officials it is difficult to determine,
but some of the titles that can be explained include couriers and
royal messengers, who were entrusted with despatches. In the case of
officials of a higher grade the object of their mission is sometimes
indicated on the tablet, and it is seen that the majority superintended
the collection and distribution of supplies, the transport of building
materials, and the provision of labour for the public works undertaken
by the king. In fact, a very large number of the royal officers were
employed in recruiting public slaves in Elam, and in transporting them
to Ur and other cities, for work upon temples and palaces in course of
construction. From the situation of Lagash on the high-road between Ur
and Susa, it is natural that the majority of the officials mentioned
on the tablets should be on their way to or from Elam, but some whose
business lay in other directions are occasionally mentioned. Thus
certain of them were from towns in the immediate neighbourhood of
Lagash, such as Tig-abba, while others journeyed northward to Nippur.
Others, again, were on their way south to the coast, and even to the
island of Dilmun in the Persian Gulf.
Among the higher officials whose stay in Lagash is recorded, or whose
representatives passed through the city on business, a prefect, a local
governor, and even a patesi are sometimes mentioned, and from this
source of information we learn the names of some of the patesis who
ruled in Susa under the suzerainty of Dungi and his successors on the
throne of Ur. Thus several of the tablets record the supply of rations
for Urkium, patesi of Susa, on his way back to that city during Dungi's
reign. Another tablet mentions a servant of Zarik, patesi of Susa, who
had come from Nippur, while a third patesi of Susa, who owed allegiance
to one of the later kings of Ur, was Beli-arik.[18] It is noteworthy
that these names, like that of Lipum, patesi of Anshan, who is also
mentioned, are not Elamite but Semitic Babylonian, while Ur-gigir and
Nagidda, who were patesis of Adamdun during this period, are Sumerian.
It is therefore clear that, on his conquest of Elam, Dungi deposed
the native rulers and replaced them by officials from Babylonia, a
practice continued by his successors on the throne. In this we may see
conclusive evidence of the permanent and detailed control over the
administration of the country, which was secured by the later kings
of Ur. Such a policy no doubt resulted in a very effective system of
government, but its success depended on the maintenance of a sufficient
force to overawe any signs of opposition. That the Elamites themselves
resented the foreign domination is clear from the number of military
expeditions, which were required to stamp out rebellions and reconquer
provinces in revolt. The harsh methods adopted by the conquerors were
not calculated to secure any loyal acceptance of their rule on the part
of the subject race, and to this cause we may probably trace the events
which led not only to the Elamite revival but to the downfall of the
Dynasty of Ur itself.
It is clear that Elam under Dungi's administration formed a rich source
of supply for those material products, in the lavish display of which
the later rulers of Sumer loved to indulge. Her quarries, mines, and
forests were laid under contribution, and her cities were despoiled
of their accumulated wealth in the course of the numerous military
expeditions by which her provinces were overrun. From the spoil of his
campaigns Dungi was enabled to enrich the temples of his own land, and
by appropriating the products of the country he obtained an abundance
of metal, stone and wood for the construction and adornment of his
buildings. Large bodies of public slaves supplied the necessary labour,
and their ranks were constantly recruited from among the captives
taken in battle, and from towns and villages which were suspected of
participation in revolts. He was thus enabled to continue, on an even
more elaborate scale, the rebuilding of the ancient temples of his
country, which had been inaugurated by his father, Ur-Engur.
[Illustration: CLAY TABLETS INSCRIBED WITH SUMERIAN TEMPLE-ACCOUNTS
CONCERNING ASSES AND CATTLE, AND SHEEP AND LAMBS, DRAWN UP IN THE REIGN
OF DUNGI, KING OF UR.--_Brit. Mus., Nos._ 19024 _and_ 12231.]
[Illustration: CLAY TABLETS INSCRIBED WITH SUMERIAN TEMPLE-ACCOUNTS
CONCERNING GRAIN AND LABOURERS, DRAWN UP IN THE REIGN OF DUNGI, KING OF
UR.--_Brit. Mus., Nos._ 18957 _and_ 18344.]
Among the cities of Akkad we know that at Cutha he rebuilt E-meslam,
the great temple of Nergal, the city-god, but it is from Sumer that
the principal evidence of his building activity has come. The late
tradition that he greatly favoured the city of Eridu is supported by
a votive text in the British Museum, which records his restoration of
Enki's temple in that city; moreover, under Dungi, the chief priest of
Eridu enjoyed a position of great favour and influence. Another city in
the south, in which he undertook large building-operations, was Erech;
here he restored E-anna, the temple of the goddess Ninni, and built a
great wall, probably in connection with the city's system of defence.
We know few details concerning the condition of these cities, but the
wealth enjoyed by the temples of Lagash may be regarded as typical
of the other great Sumerian religious centres during Dungi's reign.
Among the baked clay tablets from Tello which date from this period
are extensive lists of cattle, sheep, and asses, owned by the temples,
and detailed tablets of accounts concerning the administration of the
rich temple lands. It is interesting to note that these documents,
which from the nature of their clay and the beauty of their writing
are among the finest specimens yet recovered in Babylonia,[19] were
found by M. de Sarzec in the original archive-chambers in which they
had been stored by the Sumerian priests. Though they had apparently
been disturbed at some later period, the majority were still arranged
in layers, placed one upon the other, upon benches of earth which ran
along both sides of narrow subterranean galleries.[20]
In spite of Dungi's devotion to the ancient Sumerian cult of Enki
in the south, he did not neglect Nippur, though he seems to have
introduced some novelties in the relations he maintained with this
central shrine of Babylonia. In the fifteenth year of his reign he
appears to have emphasized the political connection between Nippur and
the capital, and six years later he dedicated a local sanctuary to the
Moon-god at the former city, in which he installed a statue of Nannar,
the city-god of Ur. Enlil and his consort Ninlil were not deposed
from their place at the head of the Sumerian pantheon; the Moon-god,
as the patron deity of the suzerain city, was merely provided with a
local centre of worship beside E-kur, the great temple of his father.
Indeed, under Dungi's successors Enlil enjoyed a position of enhanced
importance; but it is possible that with Nannar the same process of
evolution was at this time beginning to take place, which at a later
period characterized the rise in importance of Marduk, the city-god
of Babylon. But the short duration of the Dynasty of Ur did not give
time for the development of the process beyond its initial stages. At
Nippur Dungi also built a temple in honour of the goddess Damgalnunna,
and we possess a cylinder-seal which Ur-nabbad,[21] a patesi of Nippur,
dedicated to Nusku, Enlil's chief minister, on behalf of Dungi's life.
Ur-nabbad describes himself as the son of Lugal-ezendug, to whom he
also assigns the title of patesi of Nippur. It is probable that at
Nippur the office of patesi continued to be hereditary, in spite of
political changes, a privilege it doubtless enjoyed in virtue of its
peculiarly sacred character.
In his capital at Ur it was but natural that Dungi should still further
enlarge the great temple which Ur-Engur had erected in honour of the
Moon-god, and it was probably in Ur also that he built a temple in
honour of Ninib, whose cult he particularly favoured. He also erected
two royal palaces there, one of them, E-kharsag, in the eighteenth
year of his reign, and the other, E-khalbi, three years later. In Ur,
too, we obtain evidence of an important administrative reform, by the
recovery of three weights for half a maneh, two manehs, and twelve
manehs respectively. The inscription upon one of these states that
it had been tested and passed as of full weight in the sealing-house
dedicated to Nannar. Dungi, in fact, introduced a uniform standard
of weights for use in at least the Babylonian portion of his empire;
and he sought to render his enactments with regard to them effective,
by establishing an offical testing-house at Ur, which was probably
attached to the temple of the Moon-god and conducted under the
direction of the central priesthood. Here the original standards were
preserved, and all local standards that were intended for use in other
cities had no doubt to be attested by the official inscription of the
king. It may be added that, in addition to the weights of his own
period that have been recovered, a copy of one has survived, which was
made after his standard in the Neo-Babylonian period.[22]
A considerable part of our knowledge of Dungi's reign has been derived
from the tablets found at Tello, and from them we also obtain indirect
evidence of the uniform character of his system of administration. As
he introduced a fixed standard of weight for use throughout Babylonia,
so he applied a single system of time-reckoning, in place of the local
systems of dating, which had, until the reign of his father, prevailed
in the different cities since the fall of the Dynasty of Akkad. The
official title for each year was fixed in Ur, and was then published in
each city of his empire, where it was adopted as the correct formula.
This change had already been begun by Ur-Engur, who had probably
introduced the central system into each city over which he obtained
control; with Dungi we may infer that it became universal, not only
throughout Sumer and Akkad, but also in the outlying provinces of his
empire. In the provincial cities the scribes frequently added to the
date-formula the name of their local patesi, who was in office at the
time, and from such notes upon the Tello tablets we obtain the names
of four patesis of Lagash who were Dungi's contemporaries during the
last twenty years he occupied the throne. Similarly on tablets found
at Jôkha[23] we learn that in the forty-fourth year of Dungi's reign
Ur-nesu was patesi of the city of Umma; while a seal-impression on
another tablet from Tello supplies the name of Ur-Pasag, who was patesi
of the city of Dungi-Babbar. The sealings upon tablets of the period
afford some indication of the decrease in influence attaching to the
office of patesi, which resulted from the centralization of authority
in Ur. Subordinate officials could employ Dungi's name, not that of
their local patesi, upon their seals of office, proving that, like the
patesi himself, they held their appointments direct from the king.
Of the patesis who held office in Lagash during Dungi's earlier years,
the name of only one, a certain Galu-kazal, has been recovered. He
dedicated a vase to Ningirsu for the preservation of Dungi's life,[24]
and his daughter Khala-Lama presented a remarkable female statuette
to the goddess Bau with the same object.[25] Of the later patesis we
know that Galu-andul was in office during the thirty-ninth year of
Dungi's reign, and that Ur-Lama I. ruled for at least seven years from
his forty-second to his forty-eighth year. The patesiate of Alla, who
was in office during his fiftieth year, was very short, for he was
succeeded in the following year by Ur-Lama II., who survived Dungi
and continued to rule in Lagash for three, and possibly four, years
of Bûr-Sin's reign. Among the public works undertaken by Dungi in
Lagash, we know that he rebuilt E-ninnû, Ningirsu's temple, the great
temple dedicated to the goddess Ninâ, and E-salgilsa, the shrine of the
goddess Ninmar in Girsu. Excavations upon other sites will doubtless
reveal traces of the other buildings, which he erected in the course
of his long reign of fifty-eight years. Indeed, the texts already
recovered contain references to work on buildings, the sites of which
are not yet identified, such as the restoration of Ubara, and the
founding of Bad-mada, "The Wall (or Fortification) of the Land." As the
latter was constructed in his forty-seventh year, after the principal
epoch of his Elamite campaigns, it may have been a strongly fortified
garrison-town upon the frontier, from which he could exercise control
over his recently acquired provinces.
In view of Dungi's exceptionally long reign, it is probable that
Bûr-Sin was already advanced in years when he succeeded his father
upon the throne of Ur. However this may be, he reigned for only
nine years, and Gimil-Sin, his son who succeeded him, for only seven
years.[26] A longer reign was that of Ibi-Sin, Gimil-Sin's son and
successor, who held his throne for a generation, but finally lost it
and brought Ur-Engur's dynasty to an inglorious end. These last rulers
of the Dynasty of Ur appear to have maintained the general lines of
Dungi's policy, which they inherited from him along with his empire.
The Elamite provinces required to be kept in check by the sending of
military expeditions thither, but in Babylonia itself the rule of
Ur was accepted without question, and her kings were free to devote
themselves to the adornment of the great temples in the land. It is of
interest to note that under Bûr-Sin and his son the importance of the
central shrine of Nippur was fully recognized, and emphasis was laid
on Enlil's position at the head of the Babylonian pantheon. Evidence
of this may be seen in the additional titles, which these two rulers
adopted in their foundation-inscriptions and votive texts that have
come down to us. Bûr-Sin's regular titles of "King of Ur, king of the
four quarters" are generally preceded by the phrase "whose name Enlil
has pronounced in Nippur, who raised the head of Enlil's temple," while
Gimil-Sin describes himself as "the beloved of Enlil," "whom Enlil
has chosen as his heart's beloved," or "whom Enlil in his heart has
chosen to be the shepherd of the land and of the four quarters." From
inscriptions found at Nippur we know that Bûr-Sin added to the great
temple of E-kur, and also built a storehouse for offerings of honey,
butter and wine, while his third year was dated by the construction
of a great throne in Enlil's honour. Gimil-Sin appears to have been
equally active in his devotion to the shrine, for two years of his
short reign derive their titles from the setting up of a great stele
and the construction of a sacred boat, both in honour of Enlil and his
consort.
The peculiar honour paid to Enlil does not appear to have affected the
cult of the Moon-god, the patron deity of Ur, for both Bûr-Sin and
Gimil-Sin rebuilt and added to the great temple of Sin, or Nannar,
in their capital.[27] They also followed Dungi in his care for the
shrine of Enki at Eridu; and there is evidence that Bûr-Sin rebuilt
the temple of Ninni at Erech, while the last year of Gimil-Sin's reign
was signalized by the rebuilding of the city-temple at Umma. It is
thus clear that the later members of Ur-Engur's dynasty continued
the rebuilding of the temples of Babylonia, which characterized his
reign and that of Dungi. Another practice which they inherited was
the deification of the reigning king. Not only did they assume the
divine determinative before their names, but Bûr-Sin styles himself
"the righteous god of his land," or "the righteous god, the sun of his
land." He also set up a statue of himself, which he named "Bûr-Sin,
the beloved of Ur," and placed it in the temple of the Moon-god under
the protection of Nannar and Ningal. It would seem that it became the
custom at this time for the reigning king to erect statues of himself
in the great temples of the land, where regular offerings were made to
them as to the statues of the gods themselves. Thus a tablet from Tello
mentions certain offerings made at the Feast of the New Moon to statues
of Gimil-Sin, which stood in the two principal temples of Lagash,
those of Ningirsu and the goddess Bau.[28] It should be added that the
tablet is dated in the fifth year of Gimil-Sin's reign. In view of
Nannar's rank as god of the suzerain city, the Feasts of the New Moon
were naturally regarded, even in the provincial cities, as of peculiar
importance in the sacred calendar.
Whenever the king rebuilt or added to a temple we may assume that
he inaugurated there a new centre of his cult, but it is certain
that temples were also erected which were devoted entirely to his
worship. Thus Dungi dated a year of his reign by the appointment of
a high-priest of his own cult, an act which suggests that on his
assumption of divine rank he founded a temple in his own honour.
Moreover, under his successors high officials sought the royal
favour by building and dedicating shrines to the reigning king. This
is proved by a votive inscription of Lugal-magurri, the patesi of Ur
and commander of the fortress, which records that he founded a temple
in honour of Gimil-Sin, "his god." At the king's death his cult did
not die with him, but he continued to be worshipped and offerings were
made to him at the Feast of the New Moon. Tablets from Tello, dated
during the later years of the Dynasty of Ur, record the making of such
offerings to Dungi, and it is noteworthy that the patesis Ur-Lama and
Gudea were also honoured in the same way. We have seen that Gudea
was probably not deified in his own lifetime, but at this period he
takes his place beside the god Dunpae in the rites of the New Moon.
Offerings in his honour, accompanied by sacrifices, were repeated
six times a year, and a special class of priests was attached to his
service.[29] An interesting survival, or trace, of this practice occurs
in an explanatory list of gods, drawn up for Ashur-bani-pal's Library
at Nineveh, where Bûr-Sin's name is explained as that of an attendant
deity in the service of the Moon-god.[30]
[Illustration: TWO TABLETS OF BAKED CLAY INSCRIBED WITH DETAILS OF A
SURVEY OF CERTAIN PROPERTY DURING THE REIGN OF BUR-SIN, KING OF UR.
--_Brit. Mus., Nos._ 18039 _and_ 19030_; photo, by Messrs. Mansell &
Co._]
The later kings of Ur appear to have retained possession of the
empire acquired by Dungi, but we may assume that, like him, they were
constantly obliged to enforce their authority. Tablets have been
found at Susa dated by the official formulæ of Bûr-Sin,[31] proving
that the capital of Elam remained under his control, but, before he
had been two years upon the throne, he was obliged to undertake the
reconquest of Urbillu. Other successful expeditions were made in his
sixth and seventh years, which resulted in the subjugation of Shashru
and Khukhunuri, or Khukhnuri. The date-formulæ of Gimil-Sin's reign
record that he conquered Simanu in his third year, and four years
later the land of Zabshali, while the only conquest of Ibi-Sin of
which we possess a record is that of Simuru. A date-formula of this
period also commemorates the marriage of the patesi of Zabshali to
Tukîn-khatti-migrisha, the daughter of the king, but it is not certain
to which reign this event should be assigned. Evidence of the extent
of Gimil-Sin's authority in the direction of the Mediterranean may
be seen in the date-formula for his fourth year, which commemorates
his building of the Wall, or Fortification, of the West, entitled
Murîk-Tidnim. Since Tidnu was explained by the Assyrian geographers
as another name for Amurru[32] and may be connected with Tidanu, the
mountain in Amurru from which Gudea obtained his marble,[33] we may
infer that at least a portion of Syria acknowledged the suzerainty of
Ur during his reign.
Of the comparatively long reign of Ibi-Sin, and of the events which
preceded the downfall of the Dynasty of Ur, we know little, but already
during the reigns of his predecessors it is possible to trace some of
the causes which led to the decline of the city's power. The wealth
obtained from the Elamite provinces and the large increase in the
number of public slaves must have introduced an element of luxury into
Sumerian life, which would tend to undermine the military qualities of
the people and their inclination for foreign service. The incorporation
of Sumer and Akkad into a single empire had broken down the last traces
of political division between the great cities of the land, and,
while it had put an end to local patriotism, it had not encouraged in
its place the growth of any feeling of loyalty to the suzerain city.
All the great provincial towns were doubtless required to furnish
contingents for the numerous military campaigns of the period, and
they could have had little satisfaction in seeing the fruits of their
conquests diverted to the aggrandizement of a city other than their
own. The assumption of divine rank by the later kings of Ur may in
itself be regarded as a symptom of the spirit which governed their
administration. In the case of Dungi the innovation had followed the
sudden expansion of his empire, and its adoption had been based upon
political as much as upon personal grounds. But with his descendants
the practice had been carried to more extravagant lengths, and it
undoubtedly afforded opportunities for royal favourities to obtain by
flattery an undue influence in the state.
We have already seen that Lugal-magurri, who combined the civil office
of patesi of Ur with the military appointment of commander of the
fortress, founded a temple for the worship of Gimil-Sin, and it is
clear that such an act would have opened an easier road to the royal
favour than the successful prosecution of a campaign. It was probably
by such methods that ministers at the court of Ur secured the enjoyment
of a plurality of offices, which had previously been administered
with far greater efficiency in separate hands. The most striking
example is afforded by Arad-Nannar, whose name as that of a patesi of
Lagash is frequently mentioned upon dated tablets from Tello. He was
"sukkal-makh," or chief minister, under the last three kings of Ur, and
appears to have succeeded his father Ur-Dunpae, who had held this post
in Dungi's reign. From the Tello tablets we know that he also held the
patesiate of Lagash during this period, for he received the appointment
towards the end of Bûr-Sin's reign[34] and continued to hold it under
Ibi-Sin. But the patesiate of Lagash was only one of many posts which
he combined. For two gate-sockets have been found at Tello, which
originally formed parts of a temple founded in Girsu by Arad-Nannar for
the cult of Gimil-Sin, and in the inscriptions upon them he has left us
a list of his appointments.[35]
In addition to holding the posts of chief minister and patesi of
Lagash, he was also priest of Enki, governor of Uzargarshana, governor
of Babishue, patesi of Sabu and of the land of Gutebu, governor of
Timat-Enlil, patesi of Al-Gimil-Sin,[36] governor of Urbillu, patesi
of Khamasi and of Gankhar, governor of Ikhi, and governor of the
Su-people and of the land of Kardaka. At some time during the reign of
Gimil-Sin Arad-Nannar thus combined in his own person twelve important
appointments, involving the administration of no less than thirteen
separate cities and provinces. The position of some of the places
enumerated is still uncertain, but it is clear that several were widely
separated from one another. While Lagash, for instance, lay in the
south of Sumer, Sabu was in Elam and Urbillu and Gankhar more to the
north in the region of the Zagros mountains.
This centralization of authority under the later kings of Ur
undoubtedly destroyed the power attaching to the patesiate at a time
when the separate cities of the land had enjoyed a practical autonomy;
and it incidentally explains the survival of the title, under the
First Dynasty of Babylon, as that of a comparatively subordinate class
of officials. But the policy of centralization must have had a more
immediate effect on the general administration of the empire. For it
undoubtedly lessened the responsibilities of local governors, and it
placed the central authority, which the king himself had previously
enjoyed, in the hands of a few officials of the court. The king's
deification undoubtedly tended to encourage his withdrawal from the
active control of affairs, and, so long as his divine rites were duly
celebrated, he was probably content to accept without question the
reports his courtiers presented to him. Such a system of government was
bound to end in national disaster, and it is not surprising that the
dynasty was brought to an end within forty-one years of Dungi's death.
We may postpone until the next chapter an account of the manner in
which the hegemony in Babylonia passed from the city of Ur to Isin.
[1] See Hilprecht, "Math., Met., and Chron. Tablets," p. 46 f.
[2] See Thureau-Dangin, "Königsinschriften," pp. 186 ff.
[3] The rebuilding of the wall of Ur was also commemorated in the
date-formula for one of the early years of his reign.
[4] See the plate opposite p. 246.
[5] See King, "Chronicles concerning early Babylonian Kings," Vol. I.,
pp. 60 ff.; Vol. II., p. 11.
[6] The same characteristics were probably presented by the votive
texts of local patesis, who were contemporary with the kings of Sumer
and Akkad. Thus Khaladda, patesi of Shuruppak, and the son of Dada who
was patesi before him, records in Sumerian his building of the great
door of the god or goddess of that city; see his cone-inscription
found at Fâra and published in the "Mitteil. der Deutsch.
Orient-Gesellschaft," No. 16, 1902-3, p. 13. On the other hand, Semitic
influence is visible in the inscription of Itûr-Shamash a high official
(_rabiânu_), who built at Kisurra and on an inscribed brick found at
Abû Hatab styles himself the son of Idin-ilu, patesi of Kisurra (_op.
cit._, No. 15, 1902, p. 13).
[7] See Huber, "Die Personennamen ... aus der Zeit der Könige
von Ur und Nisin," and Langdon, "Zeits. der Deutsch. Morgenländ.
Gesellschaft," Bd. LXII., p. 399.
[8] Or better, "Kilulla, the guzalû"; cf. "Königsinschriften," p. 194 f.
[9] See the plate opposite p. 246.
[10] In spite of the use of Sumerian for their inscriptions and the
continuance of the traditions of Ur, Meyer suggests that the Dynasty of
Isin may have been of Amorite origin (cf. "Geschichte des Altertums,"
Bd. I., Hft. II., p. 501 f.). But the presence of the name of the god
Dagan in two of the royal names is scarcely sufficient to justify this
view, especially as the suggested Amorite invasion in Libit-Ishtar's
reign has been to all intents and purposes disproved; see below, p. 315
f.
[11] See Thureau-Dangin, "Comptes rendus," 1902, pp. 77 ff., "Rev.
d'Assyr.," Vol. V., pp. 67 ff., and "Königsinschriften," pp. 229 ff.
[12] Cf. Thureau-Dangin, "Orient. Lit.-Zeit.," 1898, col. 169, n. 2,
and "Comptes rendus," 1902, p. 85.
[13] It may perhaps be connected with Khurshitu (cf. Meyer, "Geschichte
des Altertums," Bd. I., Hft. II., p. 498 f.), the site of which is
indicated by the brick from the palace of Pukhia, King of Khurshitu,
which was found at Tuz-Khurmati on the river Adhem (cf. Scheil, "Rec.
de trav.," XVI., p. 186; XIX., p. 61). Pukhia was probably contemporary
with the earliest rulers of Ashur.
[14] See below, Chap. XII., p. 338.
[15] The name has also been read as Karibu-sha-Shushinak. He does not
appear to have inherited his patesiate, for in his inscriptions he
assigns no title to his father Shimbi-ishkhuk.
[16] See Thureau-Dangin, "Comptes rendus," 1902, p. 88 f.
[17] See Scheil, "Textes Élam.-Sémit.," III., p. 20 f.
[18] Cf. Scheil, "Rec. de trav.," Vol. XXII., p. 153. Khunnini, patesi
of Kimash and governor of Madka, whose seal in the Hermitage at St.
Petersburg is published by Sayce ("Zeits. für Assyr.," VI., p. 161), is
probably also to be set in this period. Madka is to be identified with
Madga, whence Gudea obtained bitumen; see above, p. 261 f.
[19] See the plate opposite p. 292.
[20] Cf. Heuzey, "Rev. d'Assyr.," III., p. 66.
[21] The reading of the last syllable of the name is uncertain.
[22] Brit. Mus. No 91,005; cf. "Guide," p. 193 f.
[23] Cf. Scheil, "Rec. de trav.," XIX., p. 62 f.
[24] See Heuzey, "Rev. d'Assyr.," IV., p. 90.
[25] Cf. "Déc. en Chaldée," pl. 21, Fig. 4.
[26] Gimil-Sin possibly reigned for nine years; see Kugler,
"Sternkunde," II., p. 151 f. Another son of Bûr-Sin was Ur-Bau, whose
name occurs on a seal-impression from Tello (cf. Scheil, "Rec. de
trav.," XIX., p. 49).
[27] Devotion to the Moon-god is also expressed by their names and that
of Ibi-Sin.
[28] Cf. Thureau-Dangin, "Rec. de trav.," XIX., pp. 185 ff.
[29] See Scheil, "Rec. de trav.," XVIII., pp. 64 ff.
[30] See "Cuneiform Texts in the British Museum," Pt. XXV., p. 7.
[31] Cf. Scheil, "Textes Élam.-Sémit.," IV., p. 73 f.
[32] Cf. Thureau-Dangin, "Rec. de trav.," XIX., p. 185.
[33] See above, p. 261.
[34] One other patesi, the reading of whose name is uncertain, appears
to have separated Arad-Nannar from Ur-Lama II.
[35] See Thureau-Dangin, "Rev. d'Assyr.," V., pp. 99 ff.; VI., p. 67
f.; and "Königsinschriften," pp. 148 ff.; cf. also "Comptes rendus,"
1902, pp. 91 ff.
[36] "The City of Gimil-Sin," _i.e._, a town named after the reigning
king and probably founded by him.