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Ḫišamītum

Ḫišamītum or Ḫišametum[1] was a Mesopotamian goddess worshiped in the kingdom of Mari. She was the tutelary deity of the city of Ḫišamta, and it is presumed she originated as a hypostasis of Ishtar. Sacrifices to her are mentioned in various administrative documents from the reigns of kings such as Yaḫdun-Lim and Zimri-Lim. She is also known from letters and a compendium of divination.

Ḫišamītum
Tutelary goddess of Ḫišamta
Major cult centerḪišamta, Mari

Name and origin edit

Ḫišamītum's name can be translated as "Lady of Ḫišamta."[1] In a single offering list her name is spelled dNIN.E-sá-mì-tum, formerly erroneously read as dNin-e-di-lá-tum.[2][3] The construction dNIN used in early Mariote texts is now recognized as a double determinative used by local scribes to designate a name as belonging to a female deity.[4]

It is presumed Ḫišamītum she was a local hypostasis of Ishtar in origin.[5] She was the tutelary goddess of the city of Ḫišamta,[3] which was located south of Terqa.[5] Hypostases of Ishtar whose names are geographic designations were common, and other examples from Mari include Dērītum and Kišītum.[6]

Worship edit

Ḫišamītum was worshiped in Ḫišamta,[2] where a temple dedicated to her was located.[7] A further center of her cult was Mari, as indicated by texts pertaining to Zimri-Lim's veneration of this goddess.[7][5] A shrine dedicated to her is mentioned in various documents, but it is not certain if it was located in Mari's "sacred compound" or in the royal palace.[8] A gate in Terqa named after her is mentioned in a letter from the official Yasim-sumu to Zimri-Lim discussing the arrival of Elamites in the city.[9]

In a list of offerings from the reign of Yaḫdun-Lim, Ḫišamītum occurs after Shamash (the sun god) and before Ḫibirtum (a deity associated with grazing), in a list from a celebration following the enthronement of Zimri-Lim after Kiššītum ("Lady of Kish") and before Mārat-altim ("daughter of the goddess"), while in a document dealing with the cults of Terqa from the reign of the latter monarch - between Nergal and Dērītum.[10] One document lists her among the deities honored with a liptum, possibly to be understood as the act of consecration of a sacrificial animal.[11] It is also attested for deities such as Adad, Dagan, Annunitum and Taški-Mamma.[12] Sacrifice of lambs to her is mentioned in a number of texts originating in the so-called "archive of Asqudum,"[13] a collection of administrative texts.[14]

It is known that king Zimri-Lim at one point has traveled to Ḫišamta to make offerings to Ḫišamītum and other deities commonly worshiped in the proximity of Terqa, possibly in order to secure the support of local inhabitants.[5] A reference to his wife Shibtu traveling there alongside the icon of Ḫišamītum is known too.[15]

Ḫišamītum appears in a single masculine theophoric name.[16]

Miscellaneous attestations edit

In one of her letters Addu-duri, the mother of Zimri-Lim, relayed a message issued by Ḫišamītum to him.[17] Apparently the goddess, speaking through a member of the staff of her "house" (temple), a certain Iṣi-Ahu, declared that she trampled the king's enemies:

After you (left) they were eating your food [and] drinking from your cup, your antagonists keep bringing out ungood [and] evil things about you. I trample them underfoot [...][18]

In an Old Babylonian divination compendium, Ḫišamītum (dE-ša-mi-tim) appears alongside Ishara, and the omen corresponding to them is a red spot below the right armpit.[19] It has been noted that they appear in a grouping of deities who originate in western Mesopotamia.[20]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Sasson 2015, p. 236.
  2. ^ a b Nashef 1984, p. 95.
  3. ^ a b Cavigneaux & Krebernik 1998, p. 350.
  4. ^ Michalowski 1986, p. 168.
  5. ^ a b c d Pappi 2012, p. 582.
  6. ^ Hoskisson 1996, p. 261.
  7. ^ a b Feliu 2003, p. 81.
  8. ^ Pappi 2012, p. 581.
  9. ^ Sasson 2015, p. 88.
  10. ^ Sasson 2015, pp. 235–236.
  11. ^ Feliu 2003, pp. 73–74.
  12. ^ Feliu 2003, p. 74.
  13. ^ Feliu 2003, pp. 79–80.
  14. ^ Feliu 2003, p. 92.
  15. ^ Matthews 1978, p. 155.
  16. ^ Nakata 1995, p. 253.
  17. ^ Heimpel 2003, p. 526.
  18. ^ Heimpel 2003, p. 250.
  19. ^ Anor & Cohen 2021, p. 57.
  20. ^ Anor & Cohen 2021, p. 59.

Bibliography edit

  • Anor, Netanel; Cohen, Yoram (2021). "Bird in the Sky – Babylonian Bird Omen Collections, Astral Observations and the manzāzu". Revue d'assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale. 115 (1). CAIRN: 51–80. doi:10.3917/assy.115.0051. ISSN 0373-6032. S2CID 246562402.
  • Cavigneaux, Antoine; Krebernik, Manfred (1998), "Nin-an(na)", Reallexikon der Assyriologie (in German), retrieved 2022-10-22
  • Feliu, Lluís (2003). The god Dagan in Bronze Age Syria. Leiden Boston, MA: Brill. ISBN 90-04-13158-2. OCLC 52107444. Retrieved 2022-10-22.
  • Heimpel, Wolfgang (2003). Letters to the King of Mari: A New Translation, with Historical Introduction, Notes, and Commentary. Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 978-1-57506-080-4. Retrieved 2022-10-22.
  • Hoskisson, Paul Y. (1996). "The Scission and Ascendancy of a Goddess: Dīrītum at Mari". In Coleson, Joseph E.; Matthews, Victor H. (eds.). Go to the Land I Will Show You: Studies in Honor of Dwight W. Young. Eisenbrauns. ISBN 978-0-931464-91-1. Retrieved 2022-10-23.
  • Matthews, Victor H. (1978). "Government Involvement in the Religion of the Mari Kingdom". Revue d'Assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale. 72 (2). Presses Universitaires de France: 151–156. JSTOR 23282224. Retrieved 2022-10-23.
  • Michalowski, Piotr (1986). "An Early Old Babylonian Loan Document". Journal of Cuneiform Studies. 38 (2). American Schools of Oriental Research: 167–171. doi:10.2307/1359798. ISSN 0022-0256. JSTOR 1359798. S2CID 163380578. Retrieved 2022-10-23.
  • Nakata, Ichiro (1995). "A Study of Women's Theophoric Personal Names in Old Babylonian Texts from Mari". Orient. 30 and 31. The Society for Near Eastern Studies in Japan: 234–253. doi:10.5356/orient1960.30and31.234. ISSN 1884-1392.
  • Nashef, Khaled (1984). "The Divine Name Ḫišamîtum and Related Matters". Revue d'Assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale. 78 (1). Presses Universitaires de France: 95–96. ISSN 0373-6032. JSTOR 23282405. Retrieved 2022-10-23.
  • Pappi, Cinzia (2012). "Religion and Politics at the Divine Table: The Cultic Travels of Zimrī-Līm". Organization, Representation, and Symbols of Power in the Ancient Near East. Penn State University Press. pp. 579–590. doi:10.1515/9781575066752-048. ISBN 9781575066752.
  • Sasson, Jack M. (2015). From the Mari archives: an anthology of old Babylonian letters. Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns. ISBN 978-1-57506-830-5. OCLC 907931488.
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