The Inauguration of Palaces and Temples in the Assyrian ...

ORIENT Volume 49, 2014

The Society for Near Eastern Studies in Japan(NIPPON ORIENTO GAKKAI)

The Inauguration of Palaces and Temples in the Assyrian Royal Inscriptions

Victor A. Hurowitz

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Victor Avigdor Hurowitz*

Ritual practices performed by Assyrian kings are associated with the foundation and conclusion of both palace and temple building. The Akkadian terms signifying initiation are: tašīltu, celebration; tašrītu, inauguration; tērubtu, entry of the gods. The longest text concerning the inauguration of a palace is that of Assurnaṣirpal for his new palace in Kalḫu at which over 69,000 persons, as well as the gods, were present. The inauguration of Sargon’s palace at his new capital, Dūr-Šarru-ukīn, was different; it was two-staged, first the gods were invited into the palace and are feted, this was followed by the celebration of the king and his dignitaries. The inauguration celebrations of palaces built by Sennacherib, Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal all exhibited two stages, a divine aspect of hosting the gods, and a royal popular one. On the other hand, the main element in descriptions of temple inaugurations is the entry of the god into his dwelling. This was accomplished by the king “grasping the hand of the god” and leading him to his abode. This ceremony was followed by sacrifice, festivities and the presentation of gifts. While there are parallel elements in both types of inaugurations, they are fundamentally different. Palaces are built for kings, temples for the gods. Temples are initiated when the god takes up his residence therein. Palace inaugurations were held in order to honor the king as royal builders.

Keywords: Dedication, initiation ceremonies, inauguration, festive meals and sacrifices.

The process of constructing a public or private building often entails more than just the physical act of placing materials together into a structure. It is frequently enhanced by symbolic or ritual actions not related to architecture, engineering or constructing per se, but to the building’s social, political or religious functions and significance. Particularly susceptible to such enhancements are the beginning and end of the building process, namely the acts of founding and inaugurating the edifice. The importance of these two stages in particular is expressed artistically in the foundation plaque of Ur-Nanše (c. 2550-2500 BC), founder of the first dynasty of Lagash, in which, according to the accepted interpretation, the upper register depicts the king carrying a brick basket in foundation ceremonies for Ningirsu’s temple while the lower shows him and his family celebrating the dedication festivities (Pritchard 1969, 149, no. 427).

There are no such two-tiered depictions from Assyrian kings showing both stages of the project, although the first stage is represented by such reliefs as this famous depiction of Assurbanipal showing him bearing a brick basket for building Ekarzagina, Ea’s shrine in Esagila (1881.3, 23.367 = BM 90864 = RIMB 2, 199-202) .

The final phase may be represented by one of the reliefs on the walls of Assurnaṣirpal’s

*Professor, Department of Bible, Archaeology and Ancient Near East, Ben-Gurion University of Negev.After the untimely passing away of Prof. Hurowitz (January 20, 2013), the manuscript was posthumously edited by Mordechai Cogan and Shigeo Yamada.

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Part I: Literary Analysis of Assyrian Royal Inscriptions

palace in Nimrud/Kalḫu which, according to one suggestion, depicts the king sitting at a banquet celebrating the inauguration of the palace.1

Turning to the texts, the Assyrian royal inscriptions present many accounts of foundation rituals, and these have been studied by Richard Ellis,2 and more recently by Claus Ambos.3 But the texts also provide descriptions of inauguration ceremonies, which, to the best of my knowledge, have not been studied systematically. S. Lackenbacher has dealt with both types of ceremonies, first in a philological study of Assyrian building practices until the time of Tiglath-pileser III,4 and then in a more comprehensive work but aimed at a broader audience taking the study down to the end of the Assyrian empire.5 Jamie Novotny, in a recent article on “Temple Building in Assyria” provides a brief survey of “concluding ceremonies” for temples, but he says nothing about similar ceremonies for palaces.6 In my own volume, I Have Built You an Exalted House: Temple Building in the Bible in Light of Mesopotamian and Northwest Semitic Writings, I dealt briefly with both temple and palace dedication ceremonies, using Mesopotamian sources as context for the Biblical account of inaugurating Solomon’s temple (1 Kgs 8).7 I now propose to revisit this topic here but concentrate only on Assyrian texts.

In designating the acts to be discussed here I refrain from the commonly used terms including “dedication,” “consecration” or “sanctification,” because the acts need not entail presentation of the temple or palace to a god or to raising their cultic status from profane to sacred. I prefer, therefore neutral terms such as initiation, inauguration or commencement, in other words, acts of beginning. We could also follow Novotny and speak of “concluding ceremonies,” but I would reserve such a term for some action which completes the building process such as setting a keystone in place.8 In my opinion, and contrary to Novotny and Ambos, placing the god in the new or restored temple is the beginning of the temple’s use, rather than completion of its construction. I will also reserve the term “ritual” to a specifically religious act, often performed by a priest or ritual specialist with some symbolic connotation; while “celebration” or “ceremony” is an act to mark an event. The acts of initiation can include both aspects of rituals and celebrations.

The nature of the rituals and celebrations for initiating a building can be expected to reflect the nature of the structure itself. They may also reflect the role of the building in society, government and religion.

If we look at native terms to designate the initiation of a building, we are somewhat disappointed. I contrast to Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic which regularly use the terms חנ"ך or .such indicative words are rare in Akkadian. They do, however exist 9,חנכה

(1) The first term designating initiation celebrations is tašīltu, derived from the rare verb 1 See Paley 1976, 21, Pl. 19b. 2 Ellis 1968. 3 Ambos 2004. 4 Lackenbacher 1982, 129-144, 224-228. 5 Lackenbacher 1990, 89-150. 6 Novotny 2010, 135-139. 7 Hurowitz 1992, 271-284. 8 For placing the urubātu (sig4-tab-ba-ku4-ra) brick see Ambos 2010, 235-236. Cf. CAD U-W, 267a s.v. urubātu a. 9 See Num 7: 10, 84, 88; Deut 20:5 (2x); 1 Kgs 8:63; 2 Chr 7:5, 9; Ezra 6:16, 17; Neh 12:11, 27 (2x); Dan. 3:2, 3. The

etymology and primary meaning of this word (to rub the palate of a new born baby with dates) is irrelevant for its functional meaning as "initiate." See Reif 1972.

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šalû C, and expressing joy, delight, festiveness and splendid. But it can be used concretely to designate a celebration.10 Shalmaneser I uses this term in connection with inaugurating the Aššur temple (RIMA 1, 185 A.0.77.1 l. 147): tašīlassu ēpuš, “I made its joyful festival.” This is followed by a prayer starting “when Aššur, the lord, enters that temple and happily sits in his exalted dais.” This would make it seem as if the joyful festival just mentioned did not include the god entering the temple, but is only preparatory to the event. On the other hand, the written prayer may echo a prayer recited at the time the divine statue enters the temples and is placed on its dais. Elsewhere in the same inscription (RIMA 1, 204 A.0.77.16 l. 21') we find: tašīlātīšunu ēpuš u narêja aškun, “I made their festivities11 and set up my monumental inscriptions.” This passage refers to several cult cities and temples, each one with its own celebration.

Another occurrence is in Sargon IIʼs Bull Inscription describing the initiation of his palace in Dūr-Šarru-ukīn (Fuchs, Sargon, 73 Bull inscription ll. 97-100): “When I finished the work on the city and my palaces, in the month of Tishre I invited inside them the great gods who dwell in the Land of Assyria. I held their festivals (tašīlātīšina aškun);12 I received the heavy visitation offerings of the kings of the East and the West, gold, silver, anything valuable, as befitting those palaces.”

Another occurrence of tašīltu is in Esarhaddon’s description of the initiation of the ekal māšarti, armory, in Nineveh where we read: “I seated all of the officials and people of my country in it (vi 50) ina paššur tašīlāti tākulti u qerêti, at festive tables ceremonial meals, and banquets, and I made their mood jubilant.”13

CAD T, 287 s.v. tašīltu (a) lists several texts in which tašīltu is used as a substantive to describe temples. However, an inscription of Shalmaneser III (RIMA 3, 22 A.0.102.2 ll. 80) reports that the king took his gods into the palaces of Saḫlala and Tīl-ša-turaḫi, newly conquered from their ruler Giammu, and made a tašīltu in Giammu’s palaces (ilānīja ana ekallātīšu lū ušērib tašīltu ina ekallātīšu lū aškun). Similarly, Assurnaṣirpal II makes a tašīltu in the palace in Aribua captured from Lubarna the Patinean (RIMA 2, 218 A.0.101.1 col. 3 ll 82). In these cases, a tašīltu is not an initiation festival per se, but a celebration within a palace, perhaps with divine participation.

If so, the term tašīltu can be used for both palace and temple initiation ceremonies, and indicates the joyous nature of the celebration, but is not specific to the core event being celebrated.

(2) Another word, tašrītu occurs in Sennacherib’s account of initiating his “Palace Without a Rival” in Nineveh (ina tašrīt ekalli, “at the initiation of my palace”; OIP II, 116 l. 74 (E 1); 125 l. 51). The word is derived from the verb šurrû, which means “to begin” (CAD Š/III, 258). This term appears much earlier on a brick stamp seal from Nineveh of Tukulti-Ninurta I (RIMA 1, 284 A.0.78.33)14 where the king is called:

10 Cf. Hebrew שמחה as a term for a party or a celebration. 11 RIMA mistakenly translates “and made them magnificent.” 12 The antecedents of tašīltīšina are āli u ekallāti. 13 RINAP 4, 25, Esarhaddon 1, ll. 38-53, cf., 34-35, Esarhaddon 2, col. vi 10-24 with only the second passage, p. 40,

Esarhaddon 3, col. vi 1'-4' same thing partially broken, p. 67, Esarhaddon 19, fragment with same description and some slight variations.

14 Not listed in CAD T, and according to RIMA 1, ad loc, the meaning of the passage is uncertain.

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3-4) bāni bīt Ištar NIN KI.SIKIL tašrīt āl Ninu’a “RN, builder of the temple of Ištar, my mistress, Lady of the commencement/inauguration of the city of Nineveh”

It is not certain what occasion is referred to, but it may be the completion of Tukulti-Ninurta’s building works in Nineveh. Ištar would have been present at the inauguration, thus receiving the title or “Lady of the Inauguration.”

Although the noun tašrītu occurs only twice, the verb from which it is derived, šurrû “to begin” is more common, and, indeed is the regular term for initiating palaces. The verb šurrû is used in Assurnaṣirpal II’s Banquet Stele (RIMA 2, 292 A.0.101.30, ll. 102- 293) in reference to initiating the palace in Kalḫu: ina ūme Aššur-nāṣir-apli šar māt Aššur ekal ḫūd libbi ekal kulat nēmeqi ša āli Kalḫi ušarri’uni “When Assurnaṣirpal, king of Assyria, began/initiated/first put into use, the palace of the heart’s joy, the palace of all wisdom of the city of Kalḫu.” Outside the context of a Baubericht, it occurs also in Assurnaṣirpal II’s “Kurkh monolith” annals to designate the initiation15 of provincial palaces (RIMA 2, 258-9 A.0.101.19): l. 35 ekallum ina āli Tīl-uli ušarri, “I initiated a palace at Tīl-Uli”; l. 67 ekallum ša āli Tušḫa ušarri, “I initiated a palace at Tušḫa.” This is the first thing the king does when arriving at the place. Immediately afterwards, he tells of the tax and tribute he received there from other places, and shortly after that he moves on. It seems like he has set up temporary administrative centers in old palaces, and the verb may indicate only the beginning of work, and not indicate any particular type of ceremony or celebration. Finally, the verb occurs in a variant text in Assurbanipal’s account of initiating his bīt ridûti in Nineveh (Borger Asb., 74, A X 106-108; F VI 61).

The terms tašrītu and šurrû are never attested in relationship to temples. Their basic meaning is “to start to put to use,” “to begin to use,” and may not imply the performance of any ritual or celebration.

(3) A third term is tērubtu and the cognate verbs erēbu > šūrubu. This should be translated “entry ceremony.”16 Both terms appear in an inscription of Tiglath-pileser I (RIMA 2, 26 A.0.87.1 vi 86-93):

The temple of DN…the dilapidated temples of the gods of my city Aššur, I built to completion. I performed the “entry ceremonies” of their temples (tērubat bītātīšunu aškun); the great gods, my lords, I brought inside (ana libbi ušērib). I made their divine hearts happy.

This is a summary statement before the main Baubericht, and refers to five different temples and their entry celebrations, by which the king brought in the gods and made them happy. In the main Baubericht of this inscription referring to the Anu and Adad temple we find (RIMA 2, 29 A.0.87.1 vi 109-114)17:

Anu and Adad, the great gods, my lords, I brought inside (ana libbi ušērib). I seated them in their exalted seats/dwellings. I made happy their great, divine hearts.

Additional references to bringing gods into new temples occur in inscriptions of Assurnaṣirpal

15 In both places Grayson translates “I consecrated a palace.” 16 RIMA 1, 26 mistakenly translates here “I put in place the entrances to their temples.” For proper rendition see CAD

T, 369a. Outside of the royal inscriptions note the expressions tērubat bīti ašakkan, “I will perform the entrance/initiation ceremony of the temple” (EA 3, 26, letter of Kadašman-ḫarbe); tērubat bīt Aššur, “the entrance/initiation ceremony of the Aššur temple” (KAJ 223, 3).

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II (RIMA 2, 325 A.0.101.52; Sîn and Šamaš temple in Aššur); and Esarhaddon (RINAP 4, 136-137, Esarhaddon 60; Esagila rebuilt and statues restored and reinstalled). Esarhaddon reports:

42′–46a′) They moved forward and went out from Eḫursaggalkurkura radiantly, like the sun to the land. They took the [ro]ad to Šuanna (Babylon), a joyful path. From Baltil (Aššur) to [the quay] of Babylon, (piles) of brushwood were lit every third of a league (and) they slew (45′) fattened bulls at each league. Moreover, I, Esarhad[don], took [the] hand of his great divinity and ... before him. I had them joyfully enter (ḫadīš ušēribšunūti) into Babylon, th[eir] home city.

46b′–50′) They (the gods) entered (ērubū) the orchards, groves, canals, (and) gardens of Ekarzagina, a pure place (where) the craft of the sage, “the washing of the mouth,” “the opening of the mouth,” “bathing,” (and) “purification” (were recited) before the sta[rs of heaven: the gods Ea], Šamaš, Asalluḫi, Bēlet-ilī, Kusu, Ningirima, [Ninkurra, Ninagal, Kusibanda, Ninildu, (and) Ninzadim]. ... [...] ...

This term is used in reference to gods only in relationship to initiation of temples.18 As such it expresses the core event of the initiation ceremonies of the temple, namely the introduction of the god into his new home. It is also used in some palace initiation ceremonies, but the one who enters the new building is the king.19

Examination of the terms shows so far a clear distinction between temple and palace initiations. Palaces are simply put to use (šurrû), whereas temples, and on one occasion a palace, are entered by their resident (erēbu). Both these actions are done amidst festivities and rituals (tašīltu), but everything else is elaboration and embellishment of these core actions. This distinction will be borne out by examination of the rest of the texts, many of which contain none of the specific terms discussed so far.

I will now examine several descriptions of initiation festivities, some relating to palaces, and some to temples, to further illuminate the similarities and differences.

Palace initiations are mentioned in inscriptions of Assurnaṣirpal II (palaces in Kalḫu, Tīl-Uli and Tušḫa20), Sargon II (royal palace in Dūr-Šarru-ukīn [see below]; palace for talīmu

17 This statement is followed by two passages set off by dividing lines (col. 1-10, 11-16) reporting the reconstruction of a bīt ḫamri for Adad, essentially a parenthetical Baubericht within the main Baubericht. The first passage ends: ina libbīšu nīqē ellēti ana Adad bēlīja attaqi, “In it I offered pure offerings to Adad my lord.” The second passage states that certain stones taken in the king’s campaign to Nairi were deposited in the structure, NA4.ZÚ….ina bīt ḫamri ana ṣāt ūmī ukīn. Novotny (2010, 137) refers to the sacrifices as the ceremonies completing the building. It seems, however, that placing the stones in the building is the core event, and the bīt ḫamri may actually be the temple’s treasuries. Larsen (1976, 59, 244) translates ḫamrum as “sacred precinct,” but its nature is not clear. Grayson renders bīt ḫamri as ḫamrum Temple, and it is clearly a building. Could the building be a treasure house, a house of םרח? Are the sacrifices offered performed in conjunction with the delivery of the booty?

18 See Esarhaddon RINAP 4, 261-262, Esarhaddon 128, ll. 9-13 (Anum brought to Edimgalkalama in Der), p. 266 Esarhaddon 130 ll. 15; Esarhaddon RINAP 4, 274, Esarhaddon 134, ll. 14-15 (Enirgalanna Ištar’s cella (bīt papaḫi) inside Eanna). Esarhaddon 135, ll. 14-15, Esarhaddon 136, ll. 16-17 have identical statement concerning Eḫiliana, Nanāya’s cella in Eanna. See also RIMB 2, 185 B.6.31.16 ll. 14-15, p. 187, B. 6.31.17 ll. 14-15; Assurbanipal Borger Asb., 176, E text, fragment 6 ll. 6-9; see also p. 171 fragment 7 1-2 (Aššur brought into Eḫursaggula); Šamaš-šumu-ukīn RIMB 2, 253, B.6.33.2, ll. 4b-8, p. 255, B.6.33.4, ll. 15-17, p. 258, B.6.33.6, ll. 1'-4' (entered Babylon to take up seat in Esagila).

19 For Assurbanipal Borger Asb., 74, A X 106-108, see below. Note as well Sennacherib OIP 2, 133-134 (H 4) concerning his ekal kutalli in which he says he brought into the new palace all his riches to the astonishment of his people. But this may not be an initiation celebration.

20 Assurnaṣirpal II RIMA 2, 258-259 A.0.101.19 “Kurkh monolith,” l. 35: ekallum ina āli Tīl-uli ušarri, “I initiated a palace at Tīl-Uli.” Grayson translates “I consecrated a palace.” l. 67: ekallum ša āli Tušḫa ušarri, “I initiated a palace at Tušḫa.” Grayson translates “I consecrated a palace.”

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brother21), Sennacherib (Palace without a Rival in Nineveh [see below]; palace in Baltil22; perhaps the ekal kutalli in Nineveh23), Esarhaddon (ekal māšarti24; Egaltura palace in Tarbiṣu25; palace for Esarhaddon built by Zakūtu-Naqia26) and Assurbanipal (bīt ridûti [see below]). Tukulti-Ninurta I may refer to the initiation of Nineveh.27 Sennacherib, in his Bavian Inscription, also describes the initiation of a canal.28

The first text to be examined is the famous Banquet stele of Assurnaṣirpal II describing

21 Sargon II Fuchs, Sargon, 285 Threshold inscription from Palace L. Inauguration of palace for Sargon’s talīmu brother: ll. 4-6 “The great gods who dwell in the land of Assyria and that city he called into it. Pure sacrifices he offered before them. In their steady, pure hearts they blessed Sargon over and over, and the commanded the good of Sîn-aḫu-uṣur, his talīmu brother.”

22 Sennacherib Frahm, KAL 3 (WVDOG 121), 84. ll. 12-15 “Aššur the great lord, the gods and goddesses who dwell in Baltil I invited in its midst. Magnificent wild bulls, and fat sheep and sumptuous sacrifice I sacrificed before them.” The gods mentioned here are the gods of the city rather than the empire, and this is because the palace is probably a local palace and not the imperial palace. There is also no reference to popular participation. Even so, the gods are invited and not seated or installed. They probably came from the temples in the city.

23 Sennacherib OIP 2, 133-134 (H 4) ll. 86-90; The passage describes filling the new palace with tribute and loot. The concluding words ušēbilamma ušērib are reminiscent of the terms typical of temple initiation ceremonies, but rather than bringing the god into the temple, the booty is brought into the store palace. All this is done ana tabrāt kiššat nīšī. This expression is translated “to the amazement of all the people” and according to Luckenbill it is the closing statement in the previous segment. However, it may mean that the material is displayed to the people on occasion of inaugurated this palace. There was probably a parade to display the booty, featuring the vehicles mentioned. Note Assurbanipal chaining his enemies to the city gates as a spectacle to all the people.

24 Esarhaddon RINAP 4, 25, Esarhaddon 1, ll. 38-53. Inauguration of ekal māšarti, armory, in Nineveh; cf. pp. 34-35, Esarhaddon 2, col. vi 10-24 with only the second passage; p. 40, Esarhaddon 3, col. vi 1'-4' same thing partially broken; p. 67, Esarhaddon 19, fragment with same description and some slight variations.

25 Esarhaddon RINAP 4, 176, Esarhaddon 93, ll. 32-34: “After I finished the work on that palace and completed its construction, I invited (aqrēma) the god Nergal (and) the goddess Laṣ, (gods) who live in the city Tarbiṣu, into it. I made large, pure offerings before them (and) presented (them) with my gifts.” This is not the imperial palace, so only the local city gods are invited to the festivities. Even so, they are not seated in the building but only invited. The prayer that follows was probably recited during the festivities, depositing the inscriptions precedes the festivities (l. 31). Was this the normal course of events, in which case depositing inscriptions would be a part of the inauguration ceremonies?

26 Esarhaddon RINAP 4, 316-317, Esarhaddon 2003. The Queen Mother invites the gods to enter, and later on uses the same formula for inviting in Esarhaddon: iii 11′–20′) I invited (aqrēma) the gods Aššur, Ninurta, Sîn, Šamaš, Adad and Ištar, Nabû and Marduk, (and) the gods who reside in Nineveh inside it and [offered] sumptuous pure offerings before [them]; iv 13′–19′: I invited (aqrēma) Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, my beloved son, inside [it and] estab[lished] ... [...].

27 Tukulti-Ninurta I RIMA 1, 284 A.0.78.33 ll. 3-4: bāni bīt Ištar NIN KI.SIKIL tašrīt āl Ninu’a, “RN, builder of the temple Ishtar, my mistress, lady of the commencement/inauguration of the city of Nineveh.” Brick stamp seal from Nineveh. Not certain what the occasion referred to is, but it may refer to the completion of Tukulti-Ninurtaʼs building works in Nineveh. Ishtar would have been present at the inauguration, thus receiving the title “Lady of the Inauguration.” Not listed in CAD T.

28 Sennacherib, OIP 2, 81, ll. 27-34a - Initiation of a canal (cf. Lackenbacher 1990, 148): “In order to open this canal, I commissioned an āšipu and kalû … I presented carnelian, lapis-lazuli, serpentine, ḫulālu-stone, pappardilû-stone, precious stones, a raqqu-turtle, a šeleppû-turtle, the image of a golden …, aromatics, and fine oil, as gifts to Ea, lord of the water-sources, springs, and …, Enbilulu, inspector of canals, (and) Eneimdu, lord of [dykes and ditches]. I prayed to the great gods and they heard my supplications, and made the work of my hands flow (with water). The gate of that canal opened by its own accord, [without]? a spade or shovel, and made water of abundance flow down. Its gate did not open by the work of the hands of man, (rather) I made the waters murmur according to the wish of the gods. After I inspected the canal and set its work aright, I offered fattened bulls, plentiful sheep, and pure offering to the great gods who go at my side and establish my reign. Those work forces which dug that canal I clothed with linen, and multicolored garments. I put on them gold bracelets and gold daggers.” For the translation and a study of this ritual and other canal digging rituals in Mesopotamia, see K. Abraham and U. Gabbay, “Kaštiliašu and the Sumundar Canal: A New Middle-Babylonian Royal Inscriptionˮ (forthcoming). The main event in this celebration is the opening of the canal and the initiation of the flow of water, in other words, its being put to first use.

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the initiation of his new palace in Kalḫu (RIMA 2, 292 A.0.101.30 ll. 102- 293)29. This is the longest extant description of an initiation feast of any kind, palace or temple. However, the description is so extended because of the inclusion of the some lists which may have originally been independent documents,30 including the menu, down to the last detail, served to no less than 69,574 guests, during ten days of festivities. There is also a roll call of all twelve peoples whose representatives are in attendance. Incorporation of such lists is characteristic of this particular text which, elsewhere contains an inventory of all the forty-two different kinds of trees the king planted in the palace arboretum (ll. 40- 52), and an itemization of all the animals slain or captured in the king’s hunting adventures or received as tribute (ll. 84-100). If we ignore these expansions, the remaining description is quite compact:

At the time, Assurnaṣirpal, king of the Land of Assyria initiated (ušarri’uni) the palace of the joyous heart, the palace of all wisdom, of the City of Kalḫu, he invited inside (ina libbi iqrâni) Aššur, the great lord of the gods of the entire land.

MENUWhen he initiated (ušarrûni) the palace of the City of Kalḫu, 47,074 troops, women, invitees of the extent of my entire land (qari’ūti ša pirik mātija), 5,000 sent envoys of the Lands of Suḫu - Ḫindaneans Patineans, Ḫatteans, Tyrians, Sidoians. Gurgumeans, Malideans, Ḫubuškeans, Gilzaneans, Kumeans, Muṣaṣireans, 16,000 souls of the City of Kalḫu, 1,500 zāriqu-employees of my palaces, altogether 69,574 invitees of all the lands (sasi’ūte ša mātāti kalīšina), together with the people of the City of Kalḫu. For ten days I fed them and gave them drink. I bathed them and I anointed them. I honored them, and in wellbeing and joy I returned them to their lands.

On this occasion both gods and men are invited to the palace, using the key words iqrâni for inviting Aššur and the great gods and qari’ūti and sasi’ūti to designate the human invitees. At the end of the festivities, they are all, gods and men alike, sent back to their lands. In other words, the king seems not to distinguish between his treatment of gods and of human beings31. There is no specific mention of sacrifices (naqû) to the gods or tribute (kadrû, maddattu, biltu, tāmartu, igisû, etc.) to the king. The foodstuffs consumed may have been considered sacrifices, or, rather, food shared by the gods and the people, but there is no specific indication that this was so. But even if not fed, the gods were witness to the popular celebration. More striking, there is no statement that the king himself takes up residence in the new palace. This is a mass gathering, and the king uses the opportunity to display his largesse to his gods, officers and subjects; and the mass participation in this event, and especially the shared consumption of huge quantities of meat, will have the effect of creating communion between the king and all the invitees. The king honors his guests (ukabbissunūti) and it is reasonable to assume that he expects them to honor him. But in fact all actions mentioned in this description are done by the king to the gods and the people. He portrays himself as divine and public servant. The celebration would have profound social and political overtones and ramifications, and serve towards consolidating the empire on the one hand

29 For a discussion of the stele, see Mallowan 1966, 57-73, and esp. 69-73, concerning the banquet and the participants. 30 Integration of the menu into the narrative is in fact syntactically awkward and marked by what biblical scholars refer

to as a Wiederaufnahme, ina ūme …ekal…āli Kalḫi ušarri’uni (Aššur bēlu rabû u ilāni ša māti gabbiša ina libbi iqrâni) - MENU - kî ekallu ša āli Kalḫi ušarrûni.

31 Note the identical designations for gods and people: ilāni ša māti gabbiša ina libbi iqrâni // 47,074 ṣābī sinnišāti qariʼūti ša pirik mātīja gabbiša.

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and highlighting the king’s beneficence and dominion on the other.32

We turn now to the inscriptions of Sargon II of Assyria who built a new city, Dūr-Šarru-ukīn (current day Khorsobad), and outfitted it with temples and a royal palace. The inauguration festivities are described in several inscriptions in several different ways. In one text (Fuchs, Sargon,73, Bull inscription ll. 97-100), we read:

When I finished the work on the city and my palaces, in the month of Tishre I invited inside (ina qerbīšina aqrēma) them the great gods who dwell in the Land of Assyria. I held their joyous festivals (tašīltašina aškun). I received the heavy visitation offerings of the kings of the East and the West, gold, silver, anything valuable, as befitting those palaces.

This passage is preceded by a statement like that found in Sargon’s other inscriptions that he settled in the city all the polyglot people and taught them the fear of the gods (ll. 92-97). The festivities are called tašīltašina, “their festivitiesˮ referring to the palaces. At the inauguration

32 One might ask whether the menu, which seems at first glance gargantuan, is indeed so, and if it is realistic. In other words, would the comestibles and quantities feed the number of guests invited for the entire length of the festival, or would there be leftovers, and if so, how much? A simple calculation shows that 69,574 guests, eating one meal per day for ten days would require 695,740 meals; two meals daily would require 1,391,480 meals; and if people eat like gods and have four meals a day, then there must be 2,782,960 meals provided. We must determine then, what and how much an average person would consume at each meal, how many servings could be gotten out of each animal slaughtered, and what was the quantity of each of the containers. We might assume that not everyone would eat everything on the menu at every meal, and that people might vary their personal menus and not eat the same things and the same quantities every time they sat down to dine. Also, the morning meal need not be identical to the evening repast. As for the menu itself, it is very well laid out and orderly, but whereas containers for certain commodities are mentioned, no size is given for the containers, and in many cases, although the number of containers is given, the type of container is not specified. The scribe or the reader may have known certain conventions for specifying quantities of this or that commodity, but the uninitiated reader is left totally in the dark. With so many variables and unknowns, it would be impossible to determine unequivocally whether the menu is indeed realistic, or whether the foods and quantities listed will satisfy the number of guests.

But even if we can’t do exact calculations, certain things can be said about the menu. On the one hand, some things look peculiar in the menu. Most peculiar is the 10,000 (loaves) of bread. Dividing this amount of loaves among 69,754 people means that each person will receive 14%, or 1/7th of a loaf to spread over ten days. If this is the ration meant to satisfy the consumer, the loaves must have been quite big. There would be the same ration for eggs and skins of wine.

Another question is how many portions of meat could be derived from each animal served? This answer may be very roughly estimated on the basis of a cultic text from the Eanna temple in Uruk dating to the time of Nabû-apla-iddina (McEwan 1983). This text prescribes how meat from the daily sacrifices should be distributed among the king and several temple functionaries. The first three sections of this text describe the distribution of the daily ginû offering, probably a sheep, and each section refers to edible cuts of meat (shoulder, rump, rib roast, heart, kidney, naṣrapu, choice shoulder cut, shoulder, rib roast, breast, ḫarmil [gristle], choice shoulder cut, kidney, spleen, leg and back, penis and testicles), internal organs which may have been edible (rumen, intestines, lungs), and the hide, hocks and hooves which would have been inedible.

Not all the terms are fully understood, but if we ignore specific difficulties we find that the sheep is divided into nearly forty parts, thirty five of which bear determinatives UZU, meat, and five of which bear the determinative KUŠ, skin. The text speaks about sheep, and assuming that each sheep will provide a maximum of 35 edible meat portions, then a total of 490,000 portions would have been supplied by the 14,000 sheep of Ishtar, and another 70,000 by the 1,000 spring lambs and 1,000 siserḫu sheep. The 100 fat oxen and the 1000 dear, being larger than the sheep, would have provided more than 38,500 portions. We cannot know how much more, so let us approximate and say four times as much in which case there would be 159,000. There remain 34,000 assorted types of fowl, 10,000 fish and 10,000 jeroboa totaling 54,000 animals, all of which would provide as few as a single portion and far less than 35 portions each. If we approximate an average of four portions each, they will provide 216,000 portions. All this together provides for 938,000 portions of meat, which would provide each partier 1.34 portions of meat or fish each day!

As stated above, there are far too many uncertainties and variables to permit anywhere close to accurate calculations, Yet the calculations we have done make the menu seem reasonable to fit the needs.

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festivities the gods of the land of Assyria are invited in (ina qerbīšina aqrēma) but not “settled within,ˮ the later action having been done to the inhabitants. Furthermore, sacrifices are not mentioned, and gifts are presented to the king, and not to the gods. The prayer which follows (ll. 101-102) mentions the gods of the city “The gods who dwell in that city, may any works of my hand be acceptable before them. May they decree for eternity dwelling in their temples, and the stability of my regnal period.ˮ These are the seven great gods whose temples are mentioned in ll. 57-60.

A more detailed account of these festivities is found in the annals, in which inauguration of the temples precedes building the city and its inauguration (see below). The text goes on to describe construction of the palace, and then, its inauguration (Fuchs, Sargon, 184-185, Annals 440-445):

In a favorable month, on a propitious day, Aššur, father of the gods, the great lord, the gods and goddesses who dwell in the land of Assyria, I called within them (the new palaces described previously) (qerebšina aqrēma), and gifts of sparkling gold, pure refined red gold, broad igisû-gifts, heavy audience gifts, I made them receive (ušamḫiršunūtima). I made their frames of mind happy (ušāliṣa nuparšū).

Fatted large bulls, fat sheep, geese, ducks, dormice, allocations of fish, birds, abundance of the underground springs, which are without reduction, wine, white honey, produce of the pure mountains, conquests of my hands, which the progenitor of the gods, Aššur, added to the lot of my kingship, with select, pure free-will offerings, sumptuous incense, unceasing sacrifices I sacrificed before them.

In order to preserve life, grant length of days, and make my reign stable I piously bowed down and supplicated before them.

After the great mountain, Enlil, lord of the lands, who dwells in Eḫursaggalkurkurra and the gods who dwell in the land of Assyria in rejoicing song and hymns of blandishment (ina tamgiti u zamār taknê) returned to their city, along with the kings of the lands, provincial governors of my land, supervisors, messengers, princes, eunuchs and the elders of the land of Assyria I sat within my palace (ina qereb ekallīja ūšibma) and made a musical celebration (aštakan nigūtu).

Gold, silver, furnishings of gold, silver, precious stones, bronze, iron products of the mountains, all aromatics, sweet oil, clothing of many colors, cotton, blue, red, elephant hide, ivory, ebony, boxwood, anything of value, treasure of royalty, horses from Muṣru, pairs of yokes, onagers, donkeys, mules, sheep,…their heavy tribute I received.

This is again a description of a two-staged celebration.33 The term tašīlātīšunu aškun does not appear but there is mention of making the gods happy (ušāliṣa nuparšū). The first stage of the celebrations centers on the gods, Aššur and the gods of the lands, who are invited to the new palace, the expression being again qerebšina aqrēma. They are given tribute and feted and entertained with sumptuous sacrifices of the same type Assurnaṣirpal gave to his guests. At the end, the king prays for the gods’ blessings. The gods are then returned to their cities to the accompaniment of music, probably in a parade, ending the “religiousˮ part of the celebrations. At that time the king sits in his palace (ina qereb ekallīja ūšibma) and celebrates with his dignitaries who present him copious tribute. The king sitting in his palace is equivalent to the gods sitting in their temples (see below), both being the consummative act of inaugurating the palace. Despite certain similarities in detail and overall structure, this celebration is profoundly different in nature from that of Assurnaṣirpal II. It is not a popular celebration. There are plenty of people in attendance, to be sure, but they are all dignitaries, and there is no mention of masses of commoners,

33 A slightly shorter version of these festivities is found in Sargon II, Fuchs, Sargon, 80-81 Inscription from palace 14 ll. 54-89.

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not even the inhabitants of the newly founded city. Secondly, the celebration is heavily focused on the king. The king is not the beneficent provider for the people, but the recipient of tribute from their representatives and rulers.

The return of the gods to their places should be understood in light of an inscription from Tiglath-pileser I describing construction of his cedar palace Egallugalšarrakurkura. At the place in the Baubericht where one expects the initiation celebrations to be described, there are, instead, regulations for the palace. The palace was made for the king and NOT for the gods, so the gods are invited there annually and receive sacrifices, but they are sent home (RIMA 2, 45 A.0.87.4 ll. 77-89):34

This cedar palace I built … I made it fitting for my royal residence for eternity. As the former palaces – into which princes who preceded me, older kings down to my time, who constructed such palaces and (made them fitting) for royal [residences for eternity], would invite inside the god Aššur, my lord, and the [great] gods (Aššur bēlī u ilāni ana libbīšina iqarrûma) at the festivals of their city and make sacrifices […] – (as) those palaces were not consecrated or designated as divine residences [but when a prince/king] built a palace, his gods would come inside (and) he would present therein sacrifices [to] the gods: as the numerous palaces, [which] the kings who preceded me did not consecrate or designate as divine residences, this cedar palace, first/one year, palace of the god Aššur my lord, and the great gods […] eternity, sacrifices were made before them (although) this palace was [not] consecrated or designated as a divine [residence] – the king and his […] dwell therein.

Returning to the comparison with Assurnaṣirpal’s ceremony, we find that the emphases of the ceremonies are different. Assurnaṣirpal provides a feast for all his people, while it seems as if the feast provided by Sargon is for the gods alone. Also, there is no mention of Assurnaṣirpal actually sitting in his palace.

A third palace initiation ceremony is that of Sennacherib who celebrates building of his Palace Without a Rival in Nineveh (Frahm, Sennacherib, 79-80, ll. 263-274; p. 93 col. b VIII 24"-32"35; p. 94 ll. VIII 1'''-12''' may describe procession (cf. Frahm, Sennacherib, 259a; 268a, 34, Einweihungsfeier):

When I made an end of building my palace, Aššur the great lord, the gods and goddesses who dwell in the Land of Assyria I invited therein (ina qerbīša aqrēma) and offered magnificent sacrifices and gave them my presents. I made fine perfume from olive oil and aromatics of the broken up field and from the groves. At the initiation (tašrītu) of the palace I drenched the foreheads of the people of my lands and with wine and honey I filled their insides.

This ceremony too is divided into two parts. The king invites the gods of the land to the palace and he makes sacrifices and gifts. Afterwards he fetes the inhabitants of his lands. There is no reference to any dignitaries or any tribute received, so this is a completely popular celebration. It resembles that of Assurnaṣirpal II, in that the people of the lands are the participants, but it adds

34 This same practice may be reflected as early as Adad-nārārī I (RIMA 1, 152 A.0.76.16): ekallim šâti ašar parakku ša Aššur bēlīja ina qerbīšu ēpšu u šattīšamma Aššur bēlī ana parakki šâtu ana ašābi illaku, “that palace, within which the dais of the god Aššur, my lord, was built and annually the god Aššur, my lord, proceeds to that dais to take up residence” (Cf. A.0.87.4 ll. 77-89). It also seems to be in the background of a curse in an inscription of Tukulti-Ninurta I (RIMA 1, 238 A.0.78.1 13-19): lū ilāni āšibūt āli Aššur ina isinnāti ana libbi ekallīja ana erēbi ikallû ekallim ši’āti umaššarūma inaddûši, “or (who) prevents [the gods who dwell in] the city [Aššur] from [entering] my palace [during the festivals]; who abandons that palace, and neglects it.” This passage shows that gods from Aššur visited the new palace on various occasions. This might include the inauguration festivities.

35 See also Sennacherib OIP 2, 98 (A 1) ll. 91-92; Sennacherib OIP 2, 116 (E 1); Sennacherib OIP 2, 125 (I 1) ll. 48-52 (Bull no. 2) ll. 65-76.

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specific mention of sacrifice to the gods.A fourth ceremony is Esarhaddon’s Inauguration of the ekal māšarti, armory, in Nineveh

(RINAP 4, 25, Esarhaddon 1, vi 38-53)36. The inauguration ceremonies proper are preceded by a description of the actual building process, emphasizing the joy of the workers:

vi 38-43) The bearers of the spade, the hoe, (and) the basket, the workers who carry baskets of brick(s), passed their time in joyous song, in rejoicing, with pleasure, (and) with radiant mien. I finished its work with rejoicing, jubilation, (and) melodious songs (ḫidâti rišâti zamāri taknî), and I named it Ešgalšiddudua, ‘The palace that administers everything.’

This is followed by the inauguration ceremonies proper:

vi 44–53) I invited the gods Aššur, Bēl, Nabû, Ištar of Nineveh, (and) Ištar of Arbela, the gods of Assyria, all of them, into it. I made magnificant pure offerings before them and presented (them) with my gifts. Those gods, in their steadfast hearts, blessed my kingship. I seated all of the officials and people of my country in it “at festive tables, ceremonial meals, and banquets” (ina paššur tašīlāti tākulti u qerêti) and I made their mood jubilant. I watered their insides with wine and kurunnu-wine. I had (my servants) drench their (the guests’) heads with fine oil (and) perfumed oil.

Here too is a double phased celebration. First the gods of the land are invited to the palace where they receive magnificent sacrifices and tribute. The reference to the gods blessing Esarhaddon’s kingship parallels what was found in Sargon’s description of praying during the festivities. The rest is nearly identical to Sargon’s inauguration ceremonies, with the additional of several details. Unlike Sargon, who fetes only his nobles, Esarhaddon mentions both the nobles and the people of his land, giving it a popular flavor. Most strikingly, there is no mention of the king receiving tribute, but only the joy he brought to his people who were there feasting with him.

An interesting innovation is the remark that the king has seated his dignitaries and people at festive tables (paššur tašīlāti), a “sit-down dinner.” This is probably a special sign of honor. It also serves to create equality between the celebrants.

The fifth and last text we will examine is a short account by Assurbanipal of inaugurating his bīt ridûti37 in Nineveh (Borger Asb., 74 A X 106-108):

I finished its work and magnificent sacrifices I sacrificed to the gods, my lords. < In joy and happiness I initiated it (ušarrīšu)> I entered into (ērub qerebšu) it in joyous song (zamār taknê).38

This description is exceptional. It makes no mention of inviting the gods to the palace, or returning them home, although sacrifices are offered indicating divine presence. The sacrifices may have been made at a temple. Most interesting, the king says he entered the palace (ērub qerebšu). This language is typical of initiating temples. It is used here, however, because the king is taking up residence in his own residence. Reference to joyous song may indicate the king was led into the new house in some sort of a procession.

We have examined here the inauguration celebrations of five different palaces. The main feature they all have in common, with one exception, is that the gods are invited (qarû) but do not take up residence, and in one case they are expressly sent home. Each celebration has a

36 Cf. RINAP 4, 34-35, Esarhaddon 2, col. vi 10-24 with only the second passage; p. 40, Esarhaddon 3, col. vi 1'-4' same thing partially broken; p. 67, Esarhaddon 19 fragment with same description and some slight variations.

37 This is the crown prince’s palace where he dwelt before ascending the throne. 38 CAD T taknû, “care, solicitude, careful preparation,ˮ derived from kanû, kunnû. It is used three times in reference to

song. Could it mean composed songs, practiced songs.

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divine, royal, official and popular aspect, but the particulars of each aspect vary from king to king. Assurnaṣirpal’s banquet concentrates on feeding and feting the officials and the masses. The gods are invited but seem to receive no particular attention. The king serves the guests, but does receive nothing in return. In Sargon’s celebration there is no popular aspect and only official dignitaries participate. Here both the gods and the king receive worship and tribute, the gods from the king and the king from the dignitaries. Sennacherib returns to the popular mode of Assurnaṣirpal, but the gods specifically receive sacrifice. Esarhaddon combines the various aspects and we find that the king serves the gods, the officials and the people. Certain particular details of the celebrations also change. Sargon reports return of the gods to their cities to the accompaniment of music, probably in a parade. Assurbanipal uses the same language to describe his own entering into his palace. Esarhaddon mentions sitting at tables. Only Assurnaṣirpal reports return of the celebrants to their lands.

All these celebrations are imperial, “mediaˮ events, public displays of royal power and largesse, with religious, social and political ramifications. These variations on the modes of celebration, and especially the changing nature of the participants, certainly reflect changing relationships between the kings and their gods, officials and subjects, and these changing relationships may be attributable to changing historical circumstances. But explanations must be left for another occasion.

I turn now to the inauguration of temples. This subject has already been touched upon by me and other scholars, so I will not relate to all the sources and concentrate instead on select cases with the purpose of clarifying the core event of the temple initiation ceremonies and contrasting these ceremonies with the palace ceremonies discussed so far.

The Old Assyrian monarchs Erišum, Ikūnum and Šamši-Adad I mention fixing doors in temples, an act which can be considered a completion of the building (cf. Biblical Hebrew but not an initiation ceremony.39 The first mention in an Assyrian inscription of (הציב דלתיהseating a deity in the new temple comes from Aššur-uballiṭ I (RIMA 1, A.0.73.4, ll. 5-8): Ištar-kudnittu ina libbi bīti šu’ātu ušēšibši u sikkāti aškun, “I seated Ištar-kudnittu in the midst of that temple and placed my nails.ˮ The sequence here would imply that placing the nails, bearing the inscriptions was done after inauguration of the temple. There is no mention of any ceremonies or rituals, but this may be because of the brevity of the inscription.

Shalmaneser I tells of building Eḫursagkurkurra, the temple of Aššur in Aššur, and initiates it in a “joyful festivalˮ (RIMA 1, 185 A.0.77.1147) (tašīlassu ēpuš). In this inscription, “placing the monuments” (narêja aškun) precedes these festivities. The festivities are followed by a prayer starting “when Aššur, the lord, enters that temple and happily sits in his exalted dais.ˮ This would make it seem as if the joyful festival just mentioned did not include the god entering the temple, but is only preparatory to the event. Another inscription of this king reports construction of several cult centers, temples and ziqqurrats and concludes (RIMA 1, 204 A.0.77.16, l.

39 Erišum 5 RIMA 1, 27, A.0.33.5, ll. 15-16 dalātī iškun cf. הציב דלתיה; Erišum 14 RIMA 1, 37 A.0.33.14, ll. 25-26; Erišum 15 RIMA 1, 38 A.0.33.15, ll. 13-14; Ikūnum 1 RIMA 1, 42, A.0.34.1, ll. 22-23. Cf. Šamši-Adad I 1 RIMA 1, 49 A.039.1, ll. 39-42: ina bītāti dalāti ereni ša kakkabīšina kaspum u ḫurāṣum ušzīz. These lines are not at the end of the Baubericht, and refer to internal rooms in the temple. The Baubericht ends with a statement that he inspected the temple (ll. 49-51: bīt Enlil bēlīja ušteṣbi) and gave it a name (ll. 52-58).

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21'): tašīlātīšunu ēpuš u narêja aškun “I made their festivities40 and set up my monumental inscriptions.” If so, each centre and temple is initiated with its own celebration, but no specifics are provided about the core event of the festivities. However, more details are provided by a parallel event reported in another inscription (RIMA 1, 189 A.0.77.2, ll. 19-21):

I put stools and cult platforms in their sanctuaries (and) placed therein all the gods of Ekur (kullat ilāni šūt Ekur ina qerbīšu ukīn). I deposited my monumental inscriptions and clay inscriptions.

This passage replaces the tašīltu with placing the gods of Ekur in their places in the new temple.41

This passage places the seating of the gods before the placing of the inscriptions.Tukulti-Ninurta I tells of inaugurating a temple for the goddess Nunaittu/ Ninuaittu, the

Ninevite goddess (RIMA 1, 265 A.0.78.17, ll. 25-28): parakka arme dNunaʼita bēlta ina ḫidâte ina parakkīša ušāšib u narêja aškun, “I set up a dais. Nunaittu, the Lady, in joy I seated in her dais, and set up my monuments.ˮ This is the first record of joyously installing a deity in her dais, but this expression is synonymous with the tašīltu of Shalmaneser I noted previously.42

Tiglath-pileser Iʼs inauguration of the Anu Adad temple and Assurnaṣirpal IIʼs initiation of the Sîn and Šamaš temple in Aššur have been discussed above along with the terms tērubtu and erēbu/šūrubu designating the god’s entry into the new temple.

Assurnaṣirpal II tells of fabricating a cult statue of Ninurta in a new temple for that god in Kalḫu (RIMA 2, 295 A.0.101.31, ll. 13-17) and concludes with a statement that the king set up a dais for the god in the temple. This is followed by the prayer “When the god Ninurta, the lord, for eternity sits joyfully on his holy dais in his alluring shrine, may he be truly pleased (and) so command ….ˮ Elsewhere he reports making a statue of Šarrat-nipḫi/Ištar and placing it in her dais for eternity (RIMA 2, 296-297 A.0.101.32, ll. 12): ina parakkīja ana dārāte ina libbi lū addi. In another inscription he inaugurates the Šarrat-kidmuri temple and statue of Ishtar Šarrat-kidmuri (RIMA 2, 305 A.0.101. ll. 25-26): lamassat Ištar Šarrat-kidmuri ina ḫurāṣi ḫuššê lū abni ina parakkīša ušēribši niddabâša u tāklīša ukīnši. In this text placing the statue in its cella is accompanied by establishing the goddessʼs cult of niddabû and tāklu offerings, and its first performance probably was done during the initiation. Yet another text tells of initiating Eku, Ištar’s cella in the Emašmaš temple (RIMA 2, 309 A.0.101.40, ll. 36-37): Eku arattâ rabîš ana mūšab Ištar bēltīja abni illūssa rabītu in atmeniša nēḫiš ušēšib libbi ilūtīša rabīte uṭīb, “The excellent Eku I built in a splendid fashion for the abode of the goddess Ishtar, my mistress. I peacefully settled her great divinity in her shrine. (Thus) I did please her great divinity.ˮ The expression nēḫiš and libbi ilūtīša rabīte uṭīb may refer to the effects of ceremonies performed and gifts offered the goddess at the time of seating her in the temple to calm her and make her happy.

40 RIMA mistakenly translates “and made them magnificent.ˮ 41 See as well RIMA 1, 190 A.0.77.3, ll. 35-37: ilāni āšibūt Ekur bēlēja ina qerbīšu ukīn u narêja aškun; RIMA 1, 194

A.0.77.5, ll. 23-26: kullat ilāni šūt Ekur ina qerbēšu ukīn narêja aškun narê ša Aššur-uballiṭ abēja itti narêjama aškun.

42 Some of Tukulti-Ninurta I’s inscriptions about temples to Ištar and Dinitu speak of making the dais, but not of installing the goddess in it. See RIMA 1, 257 A.0.78.12, ll. 21-23; 258, A. 0.78.13, ll. 45-49 (Ištar); 262, A.0.78.14, ll. 21-28; 263, A. 0.78.16, ll. 52-56. RIMA 1, 278 A.0.78.25, ll. 25-30 describes building of Kār-Tukulti-Ninurta as a māḫazu, holy city, cult center, and then goes on to tell of building the temple Ekurmešarra as šubat Aššur, and in it (the temple, or the city) a ziqqurrat which is nēmed Aššur, Aššur’s stand. There seems to be a clear distinction made here between the temple itself and its ziqqurrat with regards to the nature of divine presence within, but the actual seating or standing of the god is not explicitly mentioned.

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Another inscription tells of building a temple for Mamu in the rebuilt city Imgur-Enlil/ Balawat (RIMA 2, 320 A.0.101.50, ll. 21-34): ṣalam Mamu bēlīja ina libbi lu ušēšib… Mamu bēlu rabû ina libbi ušēšib.43

Sargon II built temples in his new capital Dūr-šarru-ukīn and describes their initiation (Fuchs Sargon, 182-183, Annals 426-429):

Ea, Sîn, Šamaš, Nabû, Adad, Ninurta and their great spouses, who in the midst of Ehursaggaglkukurra, mountain of the underworld truly were born, goodly took their place (ṭābiš irmû) in bright temples and cunningly planned cellas in the midst of Dūr-Šarru-ukīn. Unceasing daily offerings as their portion I established. Nešakku priests, ramku priests, surmaḫḫu priests, who know the cultic prescriptions and are learned in secrets, … angubbu priests I set before them.

This passage describes the temples of Dūr-Šarru-ukīn. The gods take their positions within them (irmû), and the cult and priesthood are established. We may assume that this was accomplished by the said priests performing the rituals for the first time. The gods were “bornˮ for the purpose of dwelling in the new city. This reference certainly is to new divine statues, produced in the ancient capital city Aššur for the purpose of living in the new capital city. Placing the divine statues in the new temples is tantamount to the temples’ inauguration. The word ṭābiš “goodly,” describing how they took up their places may be elliptical for libbu ṭâbu “good heart, happy” and alludes to gifts given the gods or rituals performed to put them in good mood.

Sennacherib reports in a parenthetic, temporal clause preceding the account of constructing the bīt Akīti that he had made several divine statues and placed them in their dwellings (OIP II, 136, ll. 22-23): ištu ṣalam Aššur bēli rabî bēlīja u ṣalam ilāni rabûti ēpušma ušarmēšunūti šubassun nēḫti, “After I made the likeness of Aššur the great lord, my lord, and a likeness of the great gods, and had placed them in their restful dwelling.”44 Yet another inscription reports initiation of a temple of Ḫani (OIP 2, 147 (I 8), l. 9): Ḫani ilu ša ṭupšarrī ušarmâ, “Ḫani, god of scribes I made to dwell (therein).ˮ

The most detailed, extended account of a temple inauguration comes from Esarhaddon who tells of initiating Ešarra/Eḫursaggula, Aššur’s temple in Aššur (RINAP 4, 127-128, Esarhaddon 57, vi. 28-vii 34):

vi 28–vii 16) I had the god Aššur, king of the gods, dwell (ušarmâ) in his lordly, sublime chapel on (his) eternal dais (and) I placed the gods Ninurta, Nusku, (and all of) the gods (and) goddesses in their stations to the right and left. I slaughtered a fattened bull (and) butchered sheep; I killed birds of the heavens and fish from the apsû, without number; (and) I piled up before them the harvest of the sea (and) the abundance of the mountains. The burning of incense, a fragrance of sweet resin, covered the wide heavens like heavy fog. I presented them with gifts from the inhabited settlements, (their) heavy audience gift(s), and I gave (them) gifts. I banned access to A.RI.A.TA.BAR, (that is) ‘Foreign Seed,’ from its midst and appeased his (Aššur’s) anger.vii 17–34) The god Aššur, king of the gods, truly looked on my good deeds and his heart became joyful, his mood shone. He blessed me with a blessing of long days and named me as the builder of the temple. I, together with my nobles (and) the people of my land, held a melodious celebration in the courtyard of Ešarra for three days. I appeased

43 Seating Mama in the new temple is mentioned twice, first mentioning the statue, and then the god himself. The repetition seems to be a Wiederaufnahme bracketing the insertion of a brief account of an excursion to Lebanon to fell trees for use in the temple.

44 The use of ṣalam ilāni rabûti in the singular may indicate that it is not a cult statue in the round, but a standing stone with symbols of several gods drawn upon it. In any case, this divine symbol is installed in the temple and this indicates its initiation.

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the heart of his great divinity and placated his mood.

The main event in this celebration is seating the gods in their places. This is followed by sacrifices made by the king and by the king presenting the gods gifts from his empire. The gods receive tribute here of types which normally would be given to the king, so the king is essentially acting as the gods’ vassal. The purpose of the three day festivities is to calm the gods, and is not aimed at the human participants who are the king, his officials and his people. The gods are also calmed by removing the foreigners, but it is unclear what this refers to. If so, this ceremony which has certain components known from palace initiation ceremonies is actually very different. The core act is seating the gods in their places. The gods are fully at the centre, the king is servant of the gods, and if the people happen to enjoy the musical program, it is as incidental beneficiaries of something meant to entertain the gods. On the other hand, the king wins the gods’ blessings because of his service of them.

In several inscriptions Esarhaddon tells how he repaired and re-inaugurated Esagila, Marduk’s temple in Babylon. One brief account is RINAP 4, 214, Esarhaddon 106, iii 54-iv 6 (cf. RINAP 4, 237, Esarhaddon 114, iv 25-28):

iii 54–iv 17) I refurbished (uddiš) the gods and goddesses who lived in it (and) had (them) dwell (ušarmâ) on their daises as an eternal dwelling. I (re-) established their inter[rup]ted sattukku-offerings.

This text sees reestablishment of the regular cult as part of the temple’s initiation. Other texts use different verbs including šūrubu and šūšubu, indicating some sort of procession leading the god into the temple (RINAP 4, 261-262, Esarhaddon 128, ll. 9-13; 266, Esarhaddon 130, ll. 13-15):

The king during the days of whose reign the great lord, the god Marduk, became reconciled to Babylon (and again) took up his residence in Esagil, his palace (ina Esagil ekallīšu irmû šu[bat]su; (the one who) made the god Great-Anu enter (ušēribuma) into his city Dēr and his temple Edimgalkalama (“House, Great Bond of the Land”) and had (him) sit upon (his) eternal dais (ušēšibu parak dārāti); (the one who) restored the splendid appearance of the plundered gods of the lands, returned them from Assyria to their (proper) places, and (re)established their income.

Even more explicit allusions to divine processions, the king leading them into the temple, use the term qāt DN aḫāzu, “to grasp the hand of the god.” These texts also use the term šigaru šuparzuḫu to indicate filling the temple with splendid sacrifices.45 (RINAP 4, 274, Esarhaddon 134 ll. 14-15 Enirgalanna Ištar’s cella [bīt papaḫi] inside Eanna46):

I grasped the hands of the goddess Ištar-of-Uruk, great lady, brought (her) inside, (and) caused (her) to take up residence (there) forever (ušērib šubat dārāte ušarmê). I offered splendid offerings and made her door bolt extremely fine (ušparziḫ sigarša).

Assurbanipal reports initiation of the Akītu house of Ishtar in Nineveh (Borger Asb., 170, 255 T V 50- VI 11): 45 CAD Š/2, 409b, s.v. šigaru 1b, in synecdochic use for gate; I made her (Ištar’s) š. resplendent. See šigaru 1 for

various cases of bathing locks with sumptuous, noble oil. The verb *naparzuḫu appears as šuparzuḫu. GAG 110b *naparzuḫu (nur im Š-Stamm belegt: etwa “in Fülle geben(?)”); CAD Š/3, 318b, šuparzuḫu, “to make abundant, provide abundantly.” The verb always has sacrifices as an object. In Erimḫuš V 157 it appears in a group with sullunu “to be luxuriant” and ruṣṣunu “to be beautiful,” but in Malku V 99, VIII 21 it equals ḫidûtu.

46 RINAP 4 Esarhaddon 135 ll. 14-15; 136 ll. 16-17 have identical statement concerning Eḫiliana, Nanāya’s cella in Eanna. See also Frame, RIMB 2, 185, B.6.31.16, ll. 14-15, p. 187, B. 6.31.17, ll. 14-15.

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Aššur and Mullissu, the great gods in whom I trust, who provide all my heart’s desires, I brought into it (ušēribma) and I caused to make a festival of the akītu house (isinni bīt akīt). Sumptuous sacrifices I sacrificed before them and I presented my gifts. Aššur and Mullissu who had raised me since my youth and guarded my kingship enter (irrubma) that akītu house and make a joyous festival (followed by prayer).

Assurbanipal Borger Asb., 176 E text, fragment 6 ll. 6-9; see also 171, fragment 7 1-2:

Aššur the great lord I brought inside it (ušērib). I sat (him) (ušēšib) in Ehursaggula his divine atmanu, sumptuous sacrifices I sacrificed before him, I presented gifts.

Assurbanipal Borger Asb., 186, E-Prism Rs 62-63 Ehulhul in Haran:

…I grasped (probably grasping the hand in procession) and I sat him (ušarmešu) in an eternal dwelling, I presented my gifts.

Assurbanipal RIMB 2, 198 Ashurbanipal B.6.32.1 ll. 10-12 (cf. p. 200 B.6.32.2 ll. 37-48, p. 207 B.6.32.6 ll. 7-11; p. 214 B.6.32.12 ll. 8b-10a; B/6.32.13 ll. 13-15; p. 226 B.6.32.19 ll. 16b-17):

During my reign, the great lord, the god Marduk, < who during the reign of a previous king had resided in Baltil (Aššur) in the presence of the father who created [him], > entered Babylon amidst rejoicing and took up his residence (šubassu irme) in the eternal Esagila. I reestalished the regular offerings for Esagila and the gods of Babylon.

From Šamaš-šumu-ukīn comes a unique bilingual, somewhat poetic inscription which resembles the Assurbanipal texts above. They probably refer to the same event. RIMB 2, 250 B.6.33.1 (see also 253 B.6.33.2 ll. 4b-8; 255 b.6.33.4 ll. 15-17; 258 B.6.33.6 ll 1'-4'):

The king of the gods, the god Asari, came happily with me from Baltil (Aššur) unto “the Seat of Life.ˮ The great lord (and hero), the god Marduk, gladly took up his holy residence in Esagila, the palace of heaven and netherworld. I restored the precious rites and choice cult practices of the great gods who sit upon daises in the whole of Ekur.

Examination of all these texts show that the crucial act of initiating a temple is placing the god in the new building. This is done in a procession (qāt DN ṣabātu) which brings the god inside (erēbu/šūrubu). In the temple the god is either placed (ramû) or seated (šūrubu). There he is offered sacrifices (naqû) and presented tribute (šumḫuru) by the king. The god becomes happy (ḫadû) and rests (nâḫu) and he in turn blesses the king. Initiating the temple is also an occasion for instituting the cult and offering the first sacrifices, and sometimes priests are installed. There are instances in which the cult statue is new or has been refurbished, in which case the statue is submitted to the rites of mouth washing (mīs pî) and mouth opening (pīt pî), but these rituals are better related to the statue itself than to the temple.

In conclusion, this paper has examined two types of initiations or inaugurations, one of palaces and the other of temples. The two types are undoubtedly similar in that they both mark the first use of new buildings, with the participation of the gods, the king, his officials, his subjects, and clergy. There is lots of eating and drinking and everyone is joyful. Also, the core of both is a resident of a new building taking up residency in that building.

Even so, the two types of celebrations are profoundly and fundamentally different. Temples are initiated by the god entering and sitting in the temple. Palaces are initiated by the king sitting in the palace, while the gods are guests of honor who are invited but then sent home. Temples are built for the gods and they receive their first offerings at the temple’s initiation. The people

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in attendance are there as worshippers, and the king portrays himself as servant of the gods. Palaces are built for kings, and everyone is there to honor him, although the royal builder can exploit the initiation celebrations for forging his relationships with his subjects. The celebrations have religious trappings of inviting the gods, feting them among the guests, and asking for their blessings but they are in every way political and social “media moments.”

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and J. Novotny, eds., From the Foundations to the Crenellations: Essays of Temple Building in the Ancient Near East and Hebrew Bible, AOAT 366, Münster, 221-237.

Ellis, R. 1968: Foundation Deposits in Ancient Mesopotamia, YNER 2, New Haven and London.Hurowitz, V. A. 1992: I have built you an exalted house: Temple Building in the Bible in Light of Mesopotamian and

Northwest Semitic Writings, JSOTS 115, JSOT/ASOR Monographs Series 5, Sheffield.Lackenbacher, S. 1982: Le roi bâtisseur: Les récits de construction assyriens des origins à Teglatphalasar III, Études

assyriologiques, 11, Paris.Lackenbacher, S. 1990: Les palais sans rival: le récit de construction en assyrie, Paris.Larsen, M. T. 1976: Old Assyrian City State and Its Colonies, Mesopotamia 4, Copenhagen.Mallowan, M. E. L. 1966: Nimrud and Its Remains, vol. 1, London.McEwan, G. J. P. 1983: “Distribution of Meat in Eanna,” Iraq 45, 187-198.Novotny, J. 2010: “Temple Building in Assyria: Evidence from Royal Inscriptionsˮ in M. J. Boda, and J. Novotny, eds.,

From the Foundations to the Crenellations: Essays of Temple Building in the Ancient Near East and Hebrew Bible, AOAT 366, Münster, 109-138.

Paley, S. M. 1976: King of the World: Ashur-nasir-pal II of Assyria 883-859 B.C., Mount Vernon, New York.Pritchard, J. B. 1969: The Ancient Near East in Pictures. Relating to the Old Testament, Second Edition, Princeton, New

Jersey. Reif, S. 1972: “Dedicated to ḤNK,” VT 22, 495-501.

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