Sunday Feb 26, 2023
37. Sumerian Lamentations, ENLIL Arrival Imminent, Eridu Stargate Has Opened As Promised
City Laments are one of the most engaging genres in ancient Sumerian literature. These bewail the destruction of central Sumerian cities during the fall of the glorious kingdom known as “the third dynasty of Ur” in 2004 BCE. To date, five laments of this type have been identified and deciphered, each devoted to the destruction of a different city: the Ur Lament; the Sumer and Ur Lament; the Uruk Lament; the Eridu Lament; and the Nippur Lament. The City Laments are characterized by vivid, rich descriptions of the destruction of the city, the mass killing of its inhabitants, and the loss of its central temple. In addition, the laments devote special attention to the divine sphere, where the great gods order the destruction of the city, and the city patron gods beseech them to alter their decision, but to no avail. The patron gods are then forced to abandon their city prior to, or simultaneously with, the destruction. They live as deportees in foreign cites, lamenting their devastated shrine. Eventually, after the destruction, they are invited to return to their holy abode and to renew their days as of old.
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