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Updated: May 19, 2025
Again, in the incantation texts she appears only as the daughter of Anu, coördinate with Sin and Shamash. Keils Bibl. 3, 1, 72, note. Old Babylonian Inscriptions, I. pls. 30, 31. Questioned by Peiser, ib. Among many nations the moon is pictured as a horned animal. See Robert Brown's interesting monograph on The Unicorn, pp. 27 seq. et passim; also above, p. 76. See above, p. 59.
The four succeeding months are parceled out among deities closely connected with one another, Ninib, Nin-gishzida, Ishtar, and Shamash. Of these, Ninib and Nin-gishzida are solar deities. Ninib, as the morning sun, symbolizes the approach of the summer season, while Nin-gishzida, another solar deity, represents an advance in this season.
So at Sippar, sacred to Shamash, and where the king deposits a cylinder recording the improvements that he instigated in the city, he associates the sun-god with Marduk, whereas in contradistinction to the rulers of the old Babylonian cities or states, when addressing Marduk, he does not find it necessary to make mention at the same time of an entire pantheon.
The story of Shamash, himself, laying the trap for the eagle looks like a myth produced with some specific intent, an illustration of legitimate sun-worship against rival cults. As a matter of course, in the case of such a myth, it is difficult to say where its popular character ends and the speculative or scholastic theory begins.
Esarhaddon, being hard pressed by a group of nations to the northeast of Assyria, led by a certain Kashtariti, and among whose followers the Gimirrites, the Medes, and Manneans are the most prominent, asks for an oracle from Shamash as to the outcome of the situation. The priest, acting as mediator, addresses the god: O Shamash! great lord! As I ask thee, do thou in true mercy answer me.
Apart from this, Anu only appears when a part or the whole of the Assyrian pantheon is enumerated. Thus we come across Anu, Ramman, and Ishtar as the chief gods of the city of Ashur, and again Anu, Ashur, Shamash, Ramman, and Ishtar.
The priest thereupon repeats his question to the sun-god: I ask thee, O Shamash! great lord! whether from the 3d day of this month of Iyar, up to the 11th day of the month of Ab of this year, Kashtariti, with his soldiers, whether the Gimirrites, the Manneans, the Medes, or whether any enemy whatsoever will take the said city, Kishassu, enter that said city, Kishassu, seize said city, Kishassu, with their hands, obtain it in their power.
At one time he enumerates Ashur, Sin, Shamash, Nabu, Marduk, Ishtar of Nineveh, Ishtar of Arbela; at another he prefers different combinations of these gods. Ashurbanabal is more consistent than most of the Assyrian rulers, and furnishes at the same time the best list.
Not many of the hymns rise to such a height as the one just quoted. There were certain gods only, and after all not many, whose nature was such as to make an ethical development of the conceptions formed of them possible. Besides Shamash and Sin, Ea as the god of humanity and Nebo as the god of wisdom belong to this class. Of Ea, however, no hymns have as yet been found.
As for the man who shall transgress his judgment or shall remove his gift, may the gods Shushinak and Shamash, Bel and Ea, Ninni and Sin, Mnkharsag and Nati may all the gods uproot his foundation, and his seed may they destroy!"
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