Ereshkigal (also known as Irkalla and Allatu) is the Mesopotamian Queen of the Dead who rules the underworld. Her name translates as 'Queen of the Great Below' or 'Lady of the Great Place.' She was responsible for both keeping the dead within her realm and preventing the living from entering and learning the truth of the afterlife.
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Definition
Timeline
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2334 BCE - 2218 BCEEreshkigal referenced in fragments from the period of the Mesopotamian empire of Akkad.
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c. 2029 BCE - 1982 BCEEreshkigal mentioned in the poem The Death of Ur-Nammu from the reign of Shulgi of Ur, Sumeria.
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c. 2000 BCE - 1600 BCEEreshkigal grows in popularity during the Old Babylonian Period.
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1792 BCE - 1750 BCEEreshkigal's place in the Mesopotamian Pantheon solidifies during the reign of King Hammurabi of Babylon.