Something that I get chills about is the fact that the oldest story told made by the oldest civilization opens with "In those days, in those distant days, in those ancient nights."

This confirms that there is a civilization older than the Sumerians that we have yet to find

Some people get existential dread from this

Me? I think it's fucking awesome it shows just how much of this world we have yet to discover and that is just fascinating

UPDATE: credit to Legboot

The Urra=hubullu glossary, dating to the second millennium BCE, which lists important words in both Sumerian and Akkadian. The words are separated into categories, including types of vehicles, names of stars, and types of animals and plants. The title of the glossary comes from the first entry, which contains the words for "interest-bearing debt" -- urra in Sumerian, and hubullu in Akkadian.

{WHF} {Ko-Fi} {Medium}

I mislaid (i.e., lost in scrolling feed) the post that put me onto this article. Which is hilarious. (Having trouble with a teacher at scribe school? Get your dad to bribe them with food and gifts. Problem solved.)

The Sumerian Pokemon Collection - Part 1 

The Uncanon Valley Museum is hosting a collection of recently uncovered ancient Sumerian earthenware figures of many in remarkable condition. Check out these samples from that collection here, and please, share this important cultural find.

Who’s that ancient earthenware figurine?

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Actually part of #thistoydoesnotexist, these are AI generated images created using Midjourney AI.  

Enkidu saves Gilgamesh, upcoming graphic novel approx. 45 pages

Sumeria. From me and @kvalentinwrites' sci-fi project.

DracariOctober #22

Now this is quite an Epic height for Gilgamesh! I don't think "Humbaba" is very happy to have them standing on his Cedar Forest... and most of the surrounding Sumerian Countryside! We're approaching the end of DracariOctober rather fast now, so please consider getting your donations in before it's too late!  This year we're supporting the South Sound Reading Foundation in honor of Mondomonger/Axelroo. Thank you for being there for me for a decade! https://www.southsoundreading.org/ This year's interactions are going to be a little spicier! We're only going to be increasing heights by a little bit per interaction, but Donations will begin to exponentially compound the results! The earlier the bigger, the better, and borkier! Voting will be for the next day's theme! Since we're supporting a Literacy Foundation this year, I'll select four possible literary worlds to draw our Derggo into at their given height! Each one will only appear once, so vote carefully! So how do we make this Dracario bigger? You can help! Right now, here's how much Interactions are worth: Likes = 2167.545m Retweets = 5418.863m Voting in the Poll = 2167.545m Exponential! Two kilometers per like and five per retweet/post? Now we're getting BIG! We could always grow faster though... Every $1 donated will exponentially begin to increase these values per day, compounding +0.1% per dollar. That means the earlier you donate, the more growth it will compound down the line, and if my math checks out, he could be getting pretty huge, but will they stay on Earth? Only your donations will tell! https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=H6ZB8M7EJ4QKE I will be counting Likes as Liking on Twitter or Favoriting on FurAffinity. I'd like to do more sites but I don't want to spend too much time collecting data when I could be doodling Derggo! Retweets will count both Twitter and Bluesky! Voting will count from the Twitter poll attached to the thread, or by visiting StrawPoll here: https://strawpoll.com/e2narxOLAgB

Posted using PostyBirb

You know...Sumerian coffee must have blown your head off.

Me: "This coffee is so good. I'm going to build a ziggurat and found civilization."

Coworker: "Dude, it's not even 8 yet."

A tablet explaining the actions of King Ur-Bau of Lagash -- here, he takes credit for rebuilding the temple of the god Ningirsu, as well as building temples to other gods throughout his territory.

{WHF} {HTE} {Medium}

The Sun. Art by Rubi Do Trinh, from the Star of Inanna Tarot.

𒌋𒑆 The Sun 𒌓𒉎𒃲 This card has an interesting origin story. Initially we were inspired by Utu as the Sun God and wanted to depict him rising in the sky for this card. However, the twin/sibling archetype shows up in this card sometimes and we thought that having Inanna riding along with him would be great. After we had already decided on the image though, I stumbled upon a myth called “Inanna and An”. In this myth, she calls upon her brother Utu to help her take the Eanna, An’s temple. In the end, they reached the temple successfully and Inanna claims it as her own. In Mesopotamian culture, this myth was an important one, showing how Inanna became Queen of Heaven and Earth, above all others. And that’s really what the sun is about, Isn’t it? Victory. Success. Joy. Triumph. Shining your light unapologetically. Following your truth. These are all themes present in this story. The Cuneiform is: 𒌓 ud Sun + 𒉎ni2+𒃲gal -Awe-inspiring Radiance

Ancestral Fire

Guardian dragon and protector Mušḫuššu has been renowned through history, appearing on the famous Ishtar Gate in Babylon.

Happy year of the Dragon.

Painting I made from a few years ago + some edits. I experimented heavily with storytelling here, something I should do more often in my personal work.

The painting depicts an ancient Assyrian king with his son, who, through the eyes of a child, views the empire he will inherit one day.

Hope you like it!

Best,

JCH

Cylinder seal with goddesses Ninishkun, the subject of three hymns attributed to Enheduanna, and Ishtar, Mesopotamia, Akkadian, Akkadian period (ca. 2334–2154 BCE), 

Cuneiform inscription: “To the deity Niniškun, Ilaknuid, [seal]-cutter, presented (this), Limestone” 

This cylinder seal was dedicated to a little-known goddess, Ninishkun, who is shown interceding on the owner's behalf with the great goddess Ishtar. Ishtar places her right foot upon a roaring lion, which she restrains with a leash. The scimitar in her left hand and the weapons sprouting from her winged shoulders indicate her war-like nature.

Poet Enheduanna (ca. 2300 BCE), the earliest-named author in world literature. Bringing together a spectacular collection of her texts alongside other works made circa 3400–2000 BCE.

Enheduanna received her name, which means “high priestess, ornament of heaven” in Sumerian, upon her appointment to the temple of the moon god in Ur, a city in southern Mesopotamia, in present-day Iraq. 

The daughter of the Akkadian king Sargon, Enheduanna left an indelible mark on the world of literature by composing extraordinary works in Sumerian. Her poetry reflected her devotion to the goddess of sexual love and warfare — Inanna in Sumerian, Ishtar in Akkadian. 

Whereas much of ancient Mesopotamian literature is unattributed, Enheduanna introduced herself by name and included autobiographical details in several poems. Her passionate voice had a lasting impact in Mesopotamia, as her writings continued to be copied in scribal schools for centuries after she died.

The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, acquired 1947; A27903.

Text courtesy: Hyperallergic