Sumerian Mythology: Did you mean...?

Ishtar (Inanna in Sumerian sources) is a primary Mesopotamian goddess closely associated with love and war. This powerful Mesopotamian goddess is the first known deity for which we have written evidence. While largely unknown in the modern...

A statue of a Sumerian worshipper. Marble, early dynastic period, 2800-2300 BCE, Mesopotamia, Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq.

Gypsum replica of the statue of Sumerian scribe Dudu. The original statue was made of diorite and probably came from Tell Telloh (Girsu), Iraq, c. 2600 BCE. Sulaymaniyah Museum, Iraq.

Amongst the most famous statues from Tell Asmar are these two standing male and female ones, which were made of veined gypsum. They have a wide-eyed gaze and hold a cup with their hands. The man is bare-chested and wears a flounced kilt while...

Limestone head of a statue of a Sumerian male; the rest of the body is lost. The eye sockets are empty but might well have been filled in with a white shell or a precious stone set in bitumen. Front view. From the Single-Shrine at the Temple...

It was a Sumerian tradition to deposit or bury objects bearing inscriptions within temples and important public buildings. These recorded the names of the persons who were responsible for the building and also ensured divine protection. The...

Limestone head of a statue of a Sumerian male; the rest of the body is lost. The eye sockets are empty but might well have been filled in with a white shell or a precious stone set in bitumen. Side view, right. From the Single-Shrine at the...

Limestone head of a statue of a Sumerian male; the rest of the body is lost. The eye sockets are empty but might well have been filled in with a white shell or a precious stone set in bitumen. Side view, left. From the Single-Shrine at the...

Limestone head of a statue of a Sumerian male; the rest of the body is lost. The eye sockets are empty but might well have been filled in with a white shell or a precious stone set in bitumen. Me holding the head. Back view. From the Single-Shrine...

Inanna is the ancient Sumerian goddess of love, sensuality, fertility, procreation, and also of war. She later became identified by the Akkadians and Assyrians as the goddess Ishtar, and further with the Hittite Sauska, the Phoenician Astarte...