Shulgi

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox royalty Template:Multiple image Shulgi (Template:Cuneiform ^dšul-gi,(died c. 2046 BC) formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from Template:Circa (Middle Chronology).<ref name="Klein1995" /> His accomplishments include the completion of construction of the Great Ziggurat of Ur, begun by his father Ur-Nammu. On his inscriptions, he took the titles "King of Ur", "King of Sumer and Akkad", adding "King of the four corners of the universe" in the second half of his reign.<ref>[1]Suter, Claudia E., "A Shulgi statuette from Tello", Journal of Cuneiform Studies 43.1, pp. 63-70, 1991</ref> He used the symbol for divinity ([[Dingir|Template:Cuneiform]]) before his name, marking his apotheosis, from at least the 21st year of his reign and was worshipped in the Ekhursag palace he built.<ref>Raphael Kutscher, "An Offering to the Statue of Šulgi", Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University, vol. 1, iss. 2, pp. 55-59, 1974</ref> Shulgi was the son of Ur-Nammu king of Ur and his queen consort Watartum.<ref name="Sharlach2007" />

Life and reignEdit

Shulgi apparently led a major modernization of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He improved communications, reorganized the army, reformed the writing system and weight and measures, unified the tax system, and created a strong bureaucracy.<ref>[2]Piotr Michalowski, "The Mortal Kings of Ur: A Short Century of Divine Rule in Ancient Mesopotamia", in Religion and Power: Divine Kingship in the Ancient World and Beyond Nicole Brisch, ed., Oriental Institute Seminars 4 Chicago: The Oriental Institute, 2008. Second printing with minor corrections, pp. 33-45, 2012 Template:ISBN</ref> He also wrote a law code, now known as the Code of Ur-Nammu because it was originally thought to have been authored by Ur-Nammu.<ref name="Klein1995">[3]Klein, Jacob, "Shulgi of Ur: king of a Neo-Sumerian empire", Civilizations of the ancient Near East 2, pp. 843-857, 1995</ref> He also built or rebuilt numerous temples throughout the empire.<ref name="Frayne1997" />

Shulgi is best known for his extensive revision of the scribal school's curriculum. Although it is unclear how much he actually wrote, there are numerous praise poems written by and directed towards this ruler. He had proclaimed himself a god by his 21st regnal year (there are indications this occurred as early as S12), and was recognized as such by the whole of Sumer and Akkad.<ref name="Klein1995" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Some much later chronicles castigate Shulgi for his impiety: The Weidner Chronicle (ABC 19), a literary composition written in the 1st millennium BC, states that "he did not perform his rites to the letter, he defiled his purification rituals".<ref name="Glassner" >Jean-Jacques Glassner, "Mesopotamian Chronicles", Society of Biblical Literature, Atlanta, 2004 Template:ISBN</ref> CM 48, written late in the 1st millennium BC, charges him with improper tampering with the rites, composing "untruthful stelae, insolent writings" on them.<ref name="Glassner" /> The Chronicle of Early Kings (ABC 20), written in the mid-2nd millennium BC, accuses him of "criminal tendencies, and the property of Esagila and Babylon he took away as booty."<ref name="Glassner" />

The manner of death is unknown, only that it occurred in his 48th regnal year, in or before the 11th month. In the 3rd month of his successor, libations to the dead were first recorded for Shulgi and two wives Geme-Ninlila and Shulgi-simti. All three appear to have died in the year 48. Several researchers have suggest Shulgi was assassinated, partly based on omen texts, including one based on an eclipse.<ref>Michalowski, Piotr, "The Death of Šulgi", Orientalia, vol. 46, no. 2, pp. 220–25, 1977</ref><ref>E. Sollberger, "Sur la chronologie des rois d'Ur et quelques problèmes connexes", AfO 17, pp. 10-48, 1954/56</ref><ref>Michalowski, Piotr, "Of Bears and Men: Thoughts on the End of Šulgi’s Reign and on the Ensuing Succession", Literature as Politics, Politics as Literature: Essays on the Ancient Near East in Honor of Peter Machinist, edited by David S. Vanderhooft and Abraham Winitzer, University Park, USA: Penn State University Press, pp. 285-320, 2013</ref> He was succeeded by Amar-Sin. The name Amar-Sin was not recorded before his ascension and is a "throne name". His original name, and whether he was actually the son of Shugi, is unknown.<ref>Sharlach, Tonia, "Princely Employments in the Reign of Shulgi", Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 1-68, 2022</ref>

NameEdit

Early uncertainties about the reading of cuneiform led to the readings "Shulgi" and "Dungi" being common transliterations before the end of the 19th century. However, over the course of the 20th century, the scholarly consensus gravitated away from dun towards shul as the correct pronunciation of the Template:Cuneiform sign. The spelling of Shulgi's name by scribes with the diĝir determinative reflects his deification during his reign, a status and spelling previously claimed by his Akkadian Empire predecessor Naram-Sin.<ref name="DTP132">Template:Cite book</ref>

Portraits of Shulgi.jpg

Portraits of Shulgi from his Nuska seal. Louvre Museum
Portrait of Shulgi as a builder, on a foundation nail.jpg

Portrait of Shulgi as a builder, on a foundation nail. Metropolitan Museum of Art

MarriagesEdit

Shulgi was a contemporary of the Shakkanakku rulers of Mari, particularly Apil-kin and Iddi-ilum.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> An inscription mentions that Taram-Uram, the daughter of Apil-kin, became the "daughter-in-law" of Ur-Nammu, and therefore the Queen of king Shulgi.<ref name="Sharlach2017a">Sharlach, T. M., "The Shulgi-simti Archive: Historical Sources", An Ox of One's Own: Royal Wives and Religion at the Court of the Third Dynasty of Ur, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, pp. 189-210, 2017 Template:ISBN</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In the inscription, she called herself "daughter-in-law of Ur-Nammu", and "daughter of Apil-kin, Lugal ("King") of Mari", suggesting for Apil-kin a position as a supreme ruler, and pointing to a marital alliance between Mari and Ur.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Nin-kalla, Amat-Sin, and Ea-niša were queens of Shulgi. This had influence and performed official functions which continued even after the death of Shulgi.<ref>Sharlach, T. M., "The Lives of Shulgi’s Wives: Ea-niša, Geme-Ninlilla and More", An Ox of One's Own: Royal Wives and Religion at the Court of the Third Dynasty of Ur, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, pp. 139-174, 2017 Template:ISBN</ref><ref>Michalowski, Piotr, "Royal Women of the Ur III Period, Part II: Geme-Ninlila", Journal of Cuneiform Studies 31.3, pp. 171-176, 1979</ref> Another queen, Shulgi-simti, who is known from a high number of texts presenting evidence for her economic power, had similar status. The archive shows she selected various large animals to use in rituals for deities including Belet-Šuḫnir and Belet-Terraban, Annunitum, Ulmašītum, Nanna, Ninlil and Enlil.<ref>Sharlach, T. M., "Sacrifice: An Overview of the Cultic Events to which the Shulgi-simti Foundation Contributed", An Ox of One's Own: Royal Wives and Religion at the Court of the Third Dynasty of Ur, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, pp. 239-260, 2017</ref> From thirty-second to forty-seventh year of Shulgi's reign she was in charge of the acceptance of ritual animals. On their death "libation places" for her and Shulgi were established.<ref name="Sharlach2007" >Sharlach, Tonia M., "Shulgi-simti and the Representation of Women in Historical Sources", Ancient Near Eastern Art in Context. Studies in Honor of Irene J. Winter by Her Students. Leiden & Boston, Brill, pp. 363-368, 2007</ref><ref>[4]Gomi, Tohru, "Shulgi-simti and her Libation Place (ki-a-nag)", Orient 12, pp. 1-14, 1976</ref> Another important woman was Geme-Ninlilla who appears in texts at the end of the king's reign. Other, less well known royal women are Šuqurtum, Simat-Ea and Geme-Su'ena.<ref>Michalowski, Piotr, "Royal Women of the Ur III Period Part I: The Wife of Šulgi", Journal of Cuneiform Studies, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 169–72, 1976</ref>

Shulgi, with many wives and concubines, is known to have had at least sixteen sons including Etel-pū-Dagān, Amar-^dDa-mu, Lu-^dNanna, Lugal-a-zi-da, Ur-^d,Suen, and possibly Amar-Sin (his throne name) as well as one daughter, Peš-tur-tur.<ref>Notizia, Palmiro, "Prince Etel-pū-Dagān, Son of Šulgi", From the 21st Century B.C. to the 21st Century A.D.: Proceedings of the International Conference on Neo-Sumerian Studies Held in Madrid, 22–24 July 2010, edited by Steven J. Garfinkle and Manuel Molina, University Park, USA: Penn State University Press, pp. 207-220, 2013</ref><ref>Changyu Liu, "Prosopography of individuals delivering animals to Puzriš-Dagan in Ur III Mesopotamia", Akkadica 142/2, pp. 113-142, 2021</ref><ref>[5]Changyu Liu, "Prosopographical Statistics Appendix of the article 'Prosopography of individuals delivering animals to Puzriš-Dagan in Ur III Mesopotamia'", Cuneiform Digital Library Preprints, 24.0, 1 April 2022</ref> The name of another daughter, Šāt-Kukuti, is known from a cuneiform tablet.<ref>Ali, Basil Bashar, and Khalid Salim Ismael, "Šāt-kukuti The Daughter of King Šulgi in a New Text from the Iraqi Museum", Athar Alrafedain 8.2, pp. 266-280, 2023</ref> A daughter, Taram-Šulgi was married to the ruler of Pašime, Šudda-bani.<ref name="Sharlach2017a" />

Royal hymnsEdit

File:Self-praise of Shulgi (Shulgi D).jpg

Text of the "Self-praise of Shulgi (Shulgi D)".

Shulgi also boasted about his ability to maintain high speeds while running long distances. He claimed in his 7th regnal year to have run from Nippur to Ur, a distance of not less than 100 miles.<ref name="Hamblin">Hamblin, William J. Warfare in the Ancient Near East to 1600 BC. New York: Routledge, 2006.</ref> Kramer refers to Shulgi as "The first long distance running champion."<ref>[6]Kramer, Samuel Noah, "Shulgi of Ur: The First Long-Distance Champion", in History begins at Sumer: Thirty-nine firsts in recorded history, University of Pennsylvania press, pp. 284-289, 1981</ref>

Shulgi wrote 26 royal hymns to glorify himself and his actions. In one Shulgi claimed that he spoke Elamite as well as he spoke Sumerian.<ref>Klein, Jacob, "The Royal Hymns of Shulgi King of Ur: man's quest for immortal fame", Transactions of the American Philosophical Society 71.7, pp. 1-48, 1981</ref><ref>Kramer, Samuel Noah, "Shulgi of Ur: A royal hymn and a divine blessing", The Jewish Quarterly Review 57, pp. 369-380, 1967</ref> In another he refers to himself as "the king of the four-quarters, the pastor of the black-headed people".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Armed conflictsEdit

While Der had been one of the cities whose temple affairs Shulgi had directed in the first part of his reign, in his 20th year he claimed that the gods had decided that it now be destroyed, apparently as some punishment. The inscriptions state that he "put its field accounts in order" with the pick-axe. His 18th year-name was Year Liwir-mitashu, the king's daughter, was elevated to the ladyship in Marhashi, referring to a country near Anshan and her dynastic marriage to its king, Libanukshabash.<ref>[7]Chen, Yanli, and Yuhong Wu, "The Names of the Leaders and Diplomats of Marḫaši and Related Men in the Ur III Dynasty", Cuneiform Digital Library Journal 2017 (1), 2017</ref> Following this, Shulgi engaged in a period of expansionism at the expense of highlanders such as the Lullubi, and destroyed Simurrum (another mountain tribe) and Lulubum nine times between the 26th and 45th years of his reign.<ref name="Samuel Noah Kramer">Template:Cite book</ref> He is also known to have destroyed Karaḫar, Harši, Šašrum, and Urbilum.<ref>[8]Lafont, Bertrand, "The Army of the Kings of Ur: The Textual Evidence", Cuneiform Digital Library Journal 2009 (5), 2009</ref> In his 30th year, his daughter was married to the governor of Anshan; in his 34th year, he was already levying a punitive campaign against the place. He also destroyed Kimaš and Ḫurti (cities to the east of Ur, somewhere near Elam) in the 45th year of his reign.<ref>Ghobadizadeh, Hamzeh and Sallaberger, Walther, "Šulgi in the Kuhdasht Plain: Bricks from a Battle Monument at the Crossroads of Western Pish-e Kuh and the Localisation of Kimaš and Ḫurti", Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasiatische Archäologie, vol. 113, no. 1, pp. 3-33, 2023</ref><ref>Sebahi, Zahraa Abdel-Sada, and Jassim Abid Al-Ammer Jassim, "City ki-maški King Šulgi military campaigns on him the light of the published and unpublished cuneiform texts of the modern Sumerian period (2112-2004 BC)", ISIN Journal 4. pp. 121-146, 2022</ref> An inscribed brick recorded:

"Sulgi, god of his land the mighty, king of Ur, king of the four quarters, when he destroyed the land of Kimas and Hurtum, set out a moat and heaped up a pile of corpses."<ref name="Frayne1997" />{{#if:|{{#if:|}}
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SusaEdit

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Shulgi is known to have made dedications at Susa, as foundation nails with his name, dedicated to god Inshushinak have been found there. One of the votive foundation nails reads: "The god 'Lord of Susa,' his king, Shulgi, the mighty male, king of Ur, king of Sumer and Akkad, the..., his beloved temple, built.".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="DTP132"/> An etched carnelian bead, now located in the Louvre Museum (Sb 6627) and inscribed with a dedication by Shulgi was also found in Susa, the inscription reading: "Ningal, his mother, Shulgi, god of his land, King of Ur, King of the four world quarters, for his life dedicated (this)".<ref name="DTP132"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The Ur III dynasty had held control over Susa since the demise of Puzur-Inshushinak, and they built numerous buildings and temples there. This control was continued by Shulgi as shown by his numerous dedications in the city-state.<ref name="DTP746">Template:Cite book</ref> He also engaged in marital alliances, by marrying his daughters to rulers of eastern territories, such as Anšan, Marhashi and Bashime.<ref name="DTP746"/>

Votive tablet of Shulgi, excavated in Susa, SB 2880.jpg

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Foundation nail-Sb 2879-P5280608-gradient.jpg

Foundation nail dedicated by Shulgi to the Elamite god Inshushinak, found in Susa. Louvre Museum
Carnelian bead with dedicatory inscription by Shulgi-Sb 6627 (transcription).jpg

Carnelian bead with dedicatory inscription by Shulgi, found in Susa. Louvre Museum, Sb 6627

Year namesEdit

File:Terracotta tablet listing the year formulae of king Shulgi. Ur III period. From Iraq. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul.jpg

CitationClass=web }}</ref> This is an Old Babylonian copy (ca. 1900-1600 BC) of an Akkadian original.<ref name="Ist Ni 00394"/> Museum of the Ancient Orient, Istanbul.

There are extensive remains for the year names of Shulgi, which have been largely reconstructed from year 1 to year 48 though some are fragmentary. There are no contemporary lists of year names, only partial texts from the Old Babylonian period so the order is not completely certain and a few years attribution is uncertain between Ur-Nammu and Shulgi. There are also multiple year names for some years which is not unprecedented.<ref name="Frayne1997" >Frayne, Douglas, "Šulgi", Ur III Period (2112-2004 BC), Toronto: University of Toronto Press, pp. 91-234, 1997</ref> For example year 20 is "Year: “Ninḫursaga of Nutur was brought into her temple”" and "Year: “The sons of Ur were conscripted as lancers”".<ref name="Sigrist2010" /> Some of the most important are:

1. Year : Šulgi is king
2. Year: The foundations of the temple of Ningubalag were laid
6. Year: The king straightened out the Nippur road
7. Year: The king made a round trip between Ur and Nippur (in one day)
10. Year: The royal mountain-house (the palace) was built
18. Year: Liwirmittašu, the daughter of the king, was elevated to the queenship of Marhashi
21c. Year: Der was destroyed
24. Year: Karahar was destroyed
25. Year: Simurrum was destroyed
27. Year after: "Šulgi the strong man, the king of the four corners of the universe, destroyed Simurrum for the second time"
27b. Year: "Harszi was destroyed"
30. Year: The governor of Anšan took the king's daughter into marriage
31. Year: Karhar was destroyed for the second time
32. Year: Simurrum was destroyed for the third time
34. Year: Anshan was destroyed
37. Year: The wall of the land was built
42. Year: The king destroyed Šašrum
44. Year: Simurrum and Lullubum were destroyed for the ninth time
45. Year: Šulgi, the strong man, the king of Ur, the king of the four-quarters, smashed the heads of Urbilum, Simurrum, Lullubum and Karhar in a single campaign
46. Year: Šulgi, the strong man, the king of Ur, the king of the four-quarters, destroyed Kimaš, Hurti and their territories in a single day {{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Year name 39 of Shulgi was "The year Šulgi, king of Ur, king of the four quarters, built é-Puzriš-Dagan, a residence {palace? temple?} of Šulgi".<ref name="Sharlach2016">[9]Sharlach, Tonia, "Šulgi, Mighty Man, King of Ur", Fortune and Misfortune in the Ancient Near East, pp. 211-20, 2016</ref>

Artifacts and inscriptionsEdit

Lugal Urimkima Lugal Kiengi Kiuri, King of Ur, King of Sumer and Akkad, on a seal of Shulgi (transcription).jpg

Lugal Urimkima/ Lugal Kiengi Kiuri Template:Cuneiform, "King of Ur, King of Sumer and Akkad, on a votive tablet of Shulgi. The final ke₄ Template:Cuneiform is the composite of -k (genitive case) and -e (ergative case).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Ancient ziggurat at Ali Air Base Iraq 2005.jpg

Shulgi completed the great Ziggurat of Ur
Earrings from Shulgi.JPG

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Seal of Shulgi, with Gilgamesh fighting a winged monster.jpg

Seal of Shulgi, with Gilgamesh fighting a winged monster: "To Shulgi, son of the king, Ur-dumuzi the scribe, his servant".<ref name="The seal cylinders of western Asia">Template:Cite book</ref>
Seal of Shulgi, with worshipper and seated deity.jpg

Seal of Shulgi, with worshipper and seated deity: "Shulgi, the mighty hero, King of Ur, king of the four regions, Ur-(Pasag?) the scribe, thy servant".<ref name="The seal cylinders of western Asia"/>
Mace head inscribed with the name of Shulgi, from Ur, Iraq. British Museum.jpg

Mace head in the name of Shulgi (inscription upside down). British Museum.
Official weight of 2 mina, reign of Shulgi, from Ur, Iraq. British Museum.jpg

Duck-shaped official weight of 2 mina, reign of Shulgi, from Ur, Iraq. British Museum.
Meluhha village tablet - BM17751.jpg

CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="SP"/>
Weight AO22187 mp3h9146.jpg

Weight of Template:Frac mina (actual weight 248 gr.) dedicated by King Shulgi and bearing the emblem of the crescent moon: it was used in the temple of the Moon-God at Ur. Diorite, beginning of the 21st century BC (Ur III). Louvre Museum, Department of Oriental Antiquities, Richelieu, first floor, room 2, case 6
Tablet of Shulgi.JPG

Tablet of Shulgi, glorifies the king and his victories on the Lullubi people and mentions the modern-city of Erbil and the modern-district of Sulaymaniyah, Sulaymaniyah Museum, Iraq

ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

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Shulgi's axe sold illegally in Germany from the German Middle East magazine zenith
The face of Shulgi. A realistic statue shows us how Shulgi may have looked in real life.

Template:S-start Template:S-reg Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft |- Template:S-end Template:Kings of Ur Template:Rulers of Sumer